The chairman is Greg Muir of Hanover fame.

Tourism chief’s goodbye gift ‘not a good buy’
By NICK CHURCHOUSE – The Dominion Post
Last updated 05:00 02/12/2009

Tourism New Zealand’s directors have been forced to stump up thousands of dollars of their own for a Dick Frizzell painting after Prime Minister John Key blasted the purchase “excessive expenditure of taxpayer money”.

The painting, commissioned as a farewell gesture for departing Tourism New Zealand chief executive George Hickton, was approved by the board but has not impressed Mr Key, who is also tourism minister.

It is understood Frizzell did the painting for considerably less than it might be worth on the open market, with a price tag of less than $10,000.

But, following Mr Key’s rebuke, the board members paid back most of the purchase price, with a final cost to Tourism NZ of $2000.

A spokesman for Mr Key said he acknowledged Mr Hickton’s long service at Tourism NZ but the board’s choice of gift was “excessive expenditure of taxpayer money”.

“[The prime minister] would expect the board members themselves to make a substantial contribution towards the cost. The Government is firm that it does not want a culture of extravagance in government departments and Crown entities.”

Tourism NZ chairman Greg Muir said in light of the prime minister’s comments, the gift was “more appropriately funded largely by the board members themselves”.

The board had asked Frizzell to commemorate Mr Hickton’s “10 years of outstanding contribution” at Tourism NZ. The artwork was commissioned without Mr Key’s or Mr Hickton’s knowledge.

Mr Hickton’s time at the tourism marketing body saw the introduction and development of the 100% Pure New Zealand brand, now acknowledged as the leading destination brand in the world.

Frizzell said the “price was right” for the painting and he was delighted with how it was received, knowing Mr Hickton was a fan.

“I do like it when I get a commission where everybody is on song. The idea is received with open arms, the execution is spot on, and the price is right and the client goes bonkers when they unwrap it. It was one of those, it was a thrill.”

Mr Muir was paid $58,000 in the past financial year and Tourism NZ directors between $4000 and $25,000. They are Susie Johnstone, Paul Bingham, John Barrett, Glenys Coughlan, Henry van Asch, Malcolm Johns, Jennie Langley and Paul Richardson.

Planning is under way for Prime Minister John Key to attend the Copenhagen conference on climate change, as chances grow of a deal at the historic meeting.

Though Mr Key is still refusing to say if he will go to Denmark for the conference, which begins next week, officials have made contingency arrangements for him, including preliminary travel bookings.

Mr Key said on his way last week to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Trinidad and Tobago, it was unlikely he would go to Copenhagen because of the slim possibility of any resolutions being hammered out. But as more world leaders book their tickets, pressure is mounting on him to attend. Representatives of 193 countries are now expected in the Danish capital, including 90 leaders.

In Trinidad, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged all world leaders to go to Copenhagen “and seal a deal that is ambitious, a deal that is equitable, a deal that satisfies the demands of science”.

So its of to Copenhagen we go when last week it was no.
We need an election urgently.

What I am trying to say here. Well I can spot guys on the internet who think they understand what they’re talking about, but actually have zero knowledge about the subject/topic. You should try to read discussions on various physics forums on the net so that you can educate yourself on science rather than keep quoting someone who has no clue to science but an expert in cutting & pasting HTML codes then call themselves software-engineer? WHAT? There is nothing engineering about cutting & pasting HTML codes.

http://ossfoundation.us/projects/environment/global-warming/myths/the-hockey-stick

Newsflash: everything the CRU has produced and everything produced from that is bullshit. Tough luck.

Show me the money.

Yes, but I’m sure you can drive google yourself.

AGW science is not a link war Luc, it’s a truth pact.

We all love the planet.

Post your questions, let me know if you don’t find something valid, I’ll reply tomorrow evening.

UEA is a research facility who seek data from organisations who collect that data.

Nothing is lost or destroyed. It’s just elsewhere. The raw data is meaningless until it is corrected. That is the scientific method that put men on the moon.

Or do you think that is a conspiracy theory too?

The geologic record Luc.

Look at the geologic record.

You know, the stuff that goes back millions of years.

Look at the temp fluctuations in that and guess what?

No humans.Yet fluctuations happened. Crikey. Hello?

Got a link?

Climate change data dumped

SCIENTISTS at the University of East Anglia (UEA) have admitted throwing away much of the raw temperature data on which their predictions of global warming are based.

It means that other academics are not able to check basic calculations said to show a long-term rise in temperature over the past 150 years.

The UEA’s Climatic Research Unit (CRU) was forced to reveal the loss following requests for the data under Freedom of Information legislation.

Very convenient ey?

The geologic record Luc.

Look at the geologic record.

You know, the stuff that goes back millions of years.

Look at the temp fluctuations in that and guess what?

No humans.Yet fluctuations happened. Crikey. Hello?

Tending to indicate that GW is a cyclical phenomena. AGW is an unproven hysteria.

Then look at the Sun, Luc. You know, that big thing in the sky that turns night into day etc and so forth. It has these things called Sun Cycles

Oh, and apparently historical data shows that temperature always rises first, followed 800 years LATER by carbon dioxide levels. This is the REVERSE of what global warming theory claims. (Source: Six respected climate and environment scientists)

Nick, you’re obviously clearly astute, since you’re interested both in conservative values and politics which is a relatively rare combo for a young person.

Can I ask, what would you like to see happen, in real-politic terms? Not just naive fantastical idealistic la-la stuff like the lefties crap on about (all the time, endlessly with never ending repetition), but stuff that would actually work and make a difference in the real world?

Since you asked: CO2 always lags warming in the natural climate cycle True or false?.

Here’s a challenge for you: present just one fact, clearly and concisely, that appears to disprove AGW, and I guarantee I can rebut it within a reasonable time frame.

Luc, and I bet I can do the opposite; but that is my point right there: there isn’t a consensus one way or the other, therefore nothing should be done about it until we learn more – certainly not the spending of ridiculous amounts of money by governments worldwide.

As for losing the raw data, that’s what they claimed – that they didn’t have it anymore. Rather that than hand it over I guess.

If you look at magazine articles during the 20th century you’ll see scaremongering switching from warnings of another coming ice age, then warming, then ice age, then warming.

That’s a crap reason without even looking analysing the nature of the predictions. Fortunately some have looked at it from a few angles, there was even a paper written on it: http://www.skepticalscience.com/ice-age-predictions-in-1970s.htm

No cigar.