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June 6, 2026 8:00am by Kokila Patel

General Debate 06 June 2026

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General Debate

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Cassandra

Secretary Hegseth has been lambasted (“idiotic” “bully”) for his actually quite measured speech at the Shangri La conference, by those who haven’t read his speech or are deliberately distorting it. His exhortation for 3.5% was consistent with his government’s policy and delivered without histrionics. Any mention of NZ was answering a question and acknowledged NZ Minister Penk and the country favourably.

Predictably lefties and much of the media have put the worst possible interpretation on it and the extensive quoting of the inane Topp twin about musicians repelling invaders demonstrates the weakness of their position.

There’s extensive quoting of 2% as a fact. It isn’t. It’s a target for 8 years time when most current politicians will be retired. And it won’t be nearly enough for 3 frigates, more P8s or the substantial manpower and infrastructure costs involved. We’re at 1.2% now and have been there or below for many years.

Another matter is Labour’s policy. Will they endorse these increases? I suspect that when the time comes the left wing of Labour will prevail. We certainly know what the position of Labour’s coalition partners is! Nada. In effect Ms Topp has announced a Labour-led government’s defence policy.
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June 6, 2026 8:01am
- herb1
  
  Cassandra I think you’re wrong about Topp twins. Having seen some of there past work, I actually they’re right about increasing expenditure for the arts. If we are invaded we just need to replay in loops their shows and I have no doubt the Chinese will be repelled from these shores. Never to return
  
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  June 6, 2026 8:21am
  - kowtow
    
    Never to return?
    
    Those “artists” would be very inclined , politically at least , to put on entertainments for the communist troops .
    
    Anyone recall how their ships can visit , no controversy at all from the usual suspects .
    
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    June 6, 2026 9:20am
- imalwaysright
  
  Haven’t heard the reasoning for the 3.5% figure.
  
  Is there a plan that has been costed on this amount for a limited time until the threat is eliminated, or is it a subscription model that will be embedded in each economy?
  
  And, not to be flippant, but what if the bad guys spend 4%?
  
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  June 6, 2026 8:30am
  - Cassandra
    
    I think it’s based on the US figure. It’s nothing more than a slogan but you can’t make a speech about any other measurement. Think of it as code for “ a military capability sufficient to beat Russia”. In our case we could probably get away with a bit less provided we acquire a real capability such as 3 new frigates properly manned and armed.
    
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    June 6, 2026 9:29am
    - G152
      
      And a few capable fighter aircraft to actually have an air force
      
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      June 6, 2026 9:42am
      - waikatosinger
        
        As an island nation we need antiship, antiair and antimissile capability most of all. Are expensive aircraft and ships the best way to achieve this? Ships can be taken out with drones. Aircraft can be downed with missiles. A budget target just encourages you to spend money on expensive things without considering what the objectives are and whether there are cheaper ways to achieve them.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:02am
      - Cassandra
        
        G & Waikato: we don’t need fighters. We need to be able to work with Australia and other friends to keep our sea lanes open and any conflict deterred/as far away as possible. Frigates and P8s will be enough. The new helicopters will help. Manning and infrastructure are vital. We must pay the staff properly.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:18am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        waikatosinger
        
        You are correct, over the next few years combat will increasingly be done by drones, both FPV and autonomous AI systems, that includes above and below the oceans surface.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:20am
      - Jethrod
        
        Drones are the way to proceed, we even have the capability to develop our own requirements based on a generic drone.
        Also I like the idea of anti-flying stuff as well.
        Ships are all very well, but very available for sinking easily. Ships like the Endeavor are the best for the Navy.
        More P8’s to oversee our large maritime area, subs and fishing g fleets.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:31am
      - Paulus
        
        Did we not have an Airforce Strike Wing once ?
        
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        June 6, 2026 1:01pm
      - Andrew Worth
        
        Paulus
        We once had 22 skyhawks
        
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        June 6, 2026 1:10pm
      - rouppe
        
        Paulus:
        
        And not once in all their service with the RNZAF did they fire a shot in anger.
        
        Orion patrolled our EEZ, and can perform anti sub and anti mine activities.
        Hercules delivered personnel and supplies to areas of need, including in the middle east I think.
        Skyhawks? Nothing.
        
        Unless we’re willing to invest in F35’s and continue to upgrade, an air strike wing is pointless.
        
        Drones can deliver Hellfire as easily as fast jets, and stay in the air 10 times as long.
        
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        June 6, 2026 1:35pm
      - Andrew Worth
        
        rouppe
        Does firing rounds across the bows of a fleeing fishing boat count?
        
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        June 6, 2026 3:22pm
      - Steve Todd
        
        @rouppe @ 1:35PM
        
        rouppe: You clearly have not clicked on to the fact that Paulus specialises in the smart-arse rhetorical question.
        
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        June 6, 2026 3:52pm
      - rouppe
        
        Once. Once ffs. In 1976. And not “bows” but “a bow” since it was only 1 boat and it happened only once.
        
        Given it wasn’t a full on strafing, as far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t count. More of a training run than anything else.
        
        We don’t even know what would have happened if the boat had kept going. Whether the government of the day would have authorised its sinking is unknown. Though since Muldoon was pm, maybe he would have.
        
        You can fire warning shots out the back of a Herc just as easily.
        
        And by the way. Why did they have to do it? Because the RNZN couldn’t catch it with their frigate.
        
        Sea. Guardian. Drones. “Kin Nan, Kin Nan, heave to and prepare to be boarded or you will be fired upon.” Click. Whoosh. Boom. Done.
        
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        June 6, 2026 4:10pm
    - Miss Cindy
      
      You only have to build and maintain the ports and airports etc……and allow them to be used.. that will almost cover NZ’s committment in dollar terms.
      
      Why?
      
      The USS Nimitz has more personnel on board than the NZ Navy has in total.
      
      You can’t fight a war, you can only ever help to do so……..in other words….it is all about RELIABILITY …..Hegseth is a very reasonable and capable friend.
      
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      June 6, 2026 1:44pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    im,
    Its just another political slogan.
    Drill down to reality, and its just noise.
    
    The United States’ defense spending currently sits at roughly 3.1% to 3.3% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
    
    Think of comparing GDP like comparing the horsepower of two vehicles. It tells you exactly how much raw power the engines can generate under specific conditions. However, it won’t tell you how comfortable the ride is, how efficient the fuel usage is, or whether the vehicle is actually heading in the right direction.
    
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    June 6, 2026 9:55pm
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Not to worry. Labour can kill two birds with one stone by establishing the Musicians Battalion. Linda Topp for Colonel!
  
  Unlikely? There is a precedent: the British Army’s Artists Rifles. From the url:
  
  “The Artists Rifles was perhaps the most curious regiment in the British Army. It was formed in 1860 by a group of painters, architects, poets, sculptors, musicians and actors concerned about a possible French invasion. The Pre-Raphaelites were early members as were William Morris, Frederic Leighton and even the poet Algernon Swinburne.
  The regiment was the natural choice for young men of an artistic persuasion at the outbreak of war in 1914. Artists like John and Paul Nash, the poets Edward Thomas and Wilfred Owen, and the playwright Noël Coward wore the uniform of the Artists Rifles”.
  
  http://www.nam.ac.uk/whats-on/artists-artists-rifles
  
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  June 6, 2026 8:49am
  - Charmaine Hawke
    
    My Grandfather was in this regiment during WW1, was one of the lucky ones who survived the engagement at Welsh Ridge and ended up in captivity.
    He was an architect in civilian life.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:04am
  - fightingtemeraire
    
    I beleive it became 23 SAS
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:20am
  - Manu-Rau
    
    I remember a story about a senior staff officer being sent to the front line to assume temporary command of the London Artists after their CO was incapacitated. Apparently he arrived during a barrage, and in the confusion couldn’t be sure he had found the right Battalion.
    
    He said the the first soldier he bumped into: “Excuse me. Are you an Artist?”
    
    “No”, replied the unknown soldier. “I’m a fookin’ comedian”, before disappearing into the darkness.
    
    (With thanks to the Australian historian, John Laffim.)
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:38am
  - Jethrod
    
    She would be like the corporal in Dad’s Army
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:27am
- Philview
  
  Imagine the media outcry if the US slapped a travel ban on our MPs. The Government needs to root out anti Western subversives in the media industry as they undermining the country.
  
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  June 6, 2026 8:52am
  - Miss Cindy
    
    They also need to define the difference between activist judges and sedition.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:35pm
- Simon
  
  Has the enemy been named? China NZ largest trade partner. lol Cant even say because questions will arise that cant be answered by the war nuts.
  
  [Mod – deleted]
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:02am
- Jack5
  
  The Herald today continues the Left’s hammering that America’s Secretary of Defence accused NZ of free loading in defence spending.
  
  Why do Auckland Leftists in particular, dislike the US? It seems to go back to Lange shutting out the nuclear-powered US Navy. The Herald today brings its Hegseth accusation into the report that NZ is buying five helicopters from America.
  
  Here’s the Herald today:
  
  “The US approval for the sale follows comments from US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth that amounted to accusing New Zealand of ‘freeloading’ during a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last month.”
  
  As our blog host DPF, posted yesterday, the truth is that Hegseth did not specifically target New Zealand
  
  DPF pointed out the question was aimed “at every ally and partner in the world. No mention of NZ.”
  
  Afterwards. journalist Anna Fifield asked Hegseth at the conference at which Hegseth was speaking whether he considered NZ would be a free rider.
  
  Hegseth’d response began:
  
  …if I’m being honest, 2 percent is not enough, and so 2 percent is free loading, but I don’t have anything against New Zealand. I want partners to step up. I didn’t intentionally leave it off my list. I look forward to working with the new Defence Minister there and enhancing those capabilities.
  
  Fifield’s an NZ journalist who went overseas at the age of 25, worked for the Financial Times and the pre-Bezos Washington Post before editing Stuff’s Dominion Post from October 2020 to December 2022.
  
  https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/new-zealand-to-buy-mh-60r-helicopters-mk-54-torpedoes-in-27b-us-deal/PHPGNFHER5GPRJDP7JTOC4ITBM/
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:17am
  - rouppe
    
    Can our frigates hold an MH-60? Otherwise they’re pretty close-in coastal defenders.
    
    Though I guess deployment from platforms from other countries as part of an international response is part of the decision.
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:55am
  - Burtland
    
    Anna Fifields question of Hegseth
    
    “I couldn’t help but notice that New Zealand was missing from your list of countries. There, they have recently outlined a plan to get from 1% to 2% of GDP, a long way from 3.5%. Would you consider New Zealand to be a free rider?”
    
    a loaded question from another leftard stirring up shit for the government
    
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    June 6, 2026 2:48pm
  - Skottowe
    
    “Why do Auckland Leftists in particular, dislike the US?”
    
    I’m a conservative, not a leftist. I’ve been around a longish time, have always taken a great interest in international affairs, have done a lot of reading on the topic. I distrust US foreign policy, while at the same time I accept the realpolitik aspects of NZ’s relationship with the US, though I don’t have to like it.
    
    “It seems to go back to Lange shutting out the nuclear-powered US Navy.”
    
    It wasn’t Lange. He was notoriously leery of conflict. My recollection of that period is that Lange had gone to some remote Pacific island and was out of contact when the decision had to be made. I think it was Geoff Palmer who was dropped in it, though it may have been that other fellow, Frank O’Flynn.
    
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    June 6, 2026 2:48pm
- Andrew Worth
  
  What evidence do you offer that a 67% increase in defense spending can’t finance a 50% increase in the number of frigates and P8’s we can afford, especially when those 2 systems consume less than 50% of defense spending? (The army along receives 35-40%).
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:23am
  - Cassandra
    
    How about 25 years in defence policy and a lifetime of study?
    
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    June 6, 2026 9:32am
    - Andrew Worth
      
      That’s of no value if you’re basing your conclusions on personal bias rather than the math. Where are your numbers?
      
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      June 6, 2026 9:34am
      - David Garrett
        
        MATHS…unless you are a Yank….
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:05am
      - Cassandra
        
        “Personal bias” perhaps better defined as judgement. It’ll all come out in due course. I know that planners are beavering away right now, consulting Australia and Japan.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:21am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        Cassandra.
        Good judgement is based on the sound analysis of good information.
        Personal bias is reaching the conclusions you prefer by ignoring the evidence that doesn’t suit your preferred conclusions.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:25am
      - artemisia
        
        Andrew Worth, bear in mind this is social media posting, not a cost benefit analysis. Opinions are quite acceptable, of course, and justification is optional. Also optional – read or not, agree or not.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:45am
      - Andrew Worth
        
        artemisia
        Of course Cassandra is entitled to her opinion, and I’m entitled to challenge what her opinion is based on. If it were a leftist boasting about how good they think Labour is for wanting to spend up big, you’d correctly point out the obvious weakness their claims were based on.
        Cassandra has failed to support her initial claim, her supporters have also failed to offer evidence to support her claim.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:53am
  - BananaLlama
    
    of course it can but no amount of spending will ever be enough for some, that’s the danger of a military industrial complex inside an echo chamber.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:54am
BarryB

Why anyone thinks that old harridan – who makes an expletive explosion of the brain – knows anything about international military importance is deluded.
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June 6, 2026 8:17am
Yvette

Al Capone v the Treaty …
The 5th Amendment stems from English common law, specifically the Magna Carta (1215), which established the right to due process. After the American Revolution, Anti-Federalists demanded a Bill of Rights to protect citizens from federal overreach. James Madison formally introduced it to Congress in 1789, drawing on early state constitutions.

Why did they not just say the essence of any desired 5th Amendment is contained in the Principles of the Constitution, namely that referring to freedom of speech, in this particular instance: being the freedom of not speak at all?
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June 6, 2026 8:40am
imalwaysright

Cops can’t find criminal they released on ‘compassionate grounds’ and didn’t return to jail.

Police say we should not approach him. (If he’s not safe to be approached then why did they release him?)

He doesn’t sound very compassionate…

Police hunt for Royal Hawea, after prison release | RNZ News https://share.google/7Ck1ttGFDFUOZE8CI
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June 6, 2026 8:49am
- Ghost
  
  police don’t release people from prison.
  
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  June 6, 2026 8:55am
  - pdm
    
    They do from Police cells Ghostie.
    
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    June 6, 2026 9:03am
    - Ghost
      
      Problem in your argument pms, the man was in prison, not in a police cell
      
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      June 6, 2026 9:11am
      - pdm
        
        Not really because I think it is fair to say we were both generalising.
        
        Nice one with the pms ghostie I hope the mods let it stand.
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:16am
      - Ghost
        
        No, it’s actally what has been reported by the media and the police.
        
        Police are seeking urgent sightings of Royal Hawea who has a warrant out for his arrest after he has failed to return to prison following being released by the courts on compassionate grounds.
        
        NZ Police
        
        Hawea failed to return to prison after being released on compassionate grounds in Hawke’s Bay, police said on Friday.
        
        Stuff
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:27am
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  Once upon a time, this miscreant would stand out for his facial tattoos.
  
  Now, not so much.
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:31am
artemisia

A high profile New Zealander died at an event in 2024. The coroner’s report has been released. According to the Herald today, their partner pushed for an inquest and cited concerns about the event’s management. Including whether greater consideration should have been given to participants’ medical history and their risks, health and safety, whether there was an “avoidable delay” in sourcing the defibrillator, and the “assigning, and dividing, of responsibility in the event of a health emergency”.

The coroner decided against an inquest. She found significant health issues that were being addressed, including weight loss surgery and that cause of death was heart disease. She also found that the event was adequately managed. There is quite a lot of detail from medical experts plus some cultural reasons for an inquest.

Sounds like a lot of effort to blame the event and its organisers. However, there are personal responsibility options, for example to consider medical history and risks.
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June 6, 2026 8:52am
- CJames
  
  More often than not, there is a want for payment or compensation behind such requests.
  You are right though about personal responsibility and life’s chances. If someone in a shopping mall has a heart attack and dies there, is it the mall’s fault there was no defibrillator or trained CPR person there, especially if the doctors say it was an unsurvivable one?
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:08am
NeverMindTheBollocks

I was chatting to a young public servant the other day, who let slip that they have unlimited sick leave. I’m aware that Jacinda gave the public service this boon during Covid, but rightly or wrongly I thought that it was for the pandemic period only.

Is anyone aware of any research that looks at how much sick leave is taken by head office employees on an annual basis over the last ten years?
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June 6, 2026 9:05am
- keepcalmcarryon
  
  They won’t take sick leave if we sack 3/4 of them.
  The best argument for reducing the public service was the massive increase under Labour while no useful metric improved.
  The private sector would not tolerate the degree of incompetence across so many departments, we should not tolerate it as taxpayers.
  
  Nationals cuts – yet to happen-will not be enough, we need major reform and major downsizing.
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:40am
- JIV
  
  I work in the public service and we get 10 days sick leave per year. The problem is it accrues so you can build up a mountain of sick leave over the years. There are many that make sure they use all 10 days each year, usually on mondays, so add that to the annual leave and public hols youll probably find they rarely do a five day week
  
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  June 6, 2026 9:44am
  - MCōs
    
    It’s always been the case that sick leave accumulates if you work in the public service.
    When I worked for the MOW, as it was then, if you were crook on Friday and the next work day the intervening days counted as sick leave too.
    When I worked for private companies employees might have had a nominal number of sick days, but in reality they were paid for as long as they were genuinely crook. A rare occurrence.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:12am
    - peterwn
      
      And the reason for the intervening weekend rule was it benefited the employee in the context of the whole arrangement. Basically sick leave was long term capped at one year (assuming 40 years service). It was advantageous to the employee for the year to be taken as 365 days with intervening weekends being included in sick leave than for the number of working days in a year being taken as the sick leave cap.
      In those days, most public servants spent their whole career in the public service, indeed some families considered their male child had ‘made it’ if they landed a clerical cadetship in the public service as they were assured a job for life (at least until the 1980’s!).
      
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      June 6, 2026 11:18am
  - Miss Cindy
    
    add in Fridays ‘working from home’ ‘family emergancy leave’ etc……..
    
    ……..and i don’t think they would know if they were laid off or not.
    
    Give them all two years salary and start the firing.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:30pm
- Taieri
  
  a young public servant the other day, who let slip that they have unlimited sick leave.
  ———
  
  Spent many years working for a Singaporean private company. Our contract provided for 12 weeks sick leave every year at 80% pay. It could not be accumulated. I used it once, following a surgery, in nearly 20 years with them. This provision was not abused as far as I know.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:09am
  - pdm
    
    When I finished work mid March just short of turning 80 I had 112 hours accrued sick leave from working on average 9/10 hours a week over the last 5 years.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:20am
  - Paulus
    
    But you worked for a Singapore Company whose philosophy to work and life was Discipline – not to be found in New Zealand.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:05pm
- Gussy
  
  We are locked in a perpetual struggle between the productive, and the indolent.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:24am
- NeverMindTheBollocks
  
  It’s not just sick leave. At this agency, there’s also an allowance for wellness activities (think spas or art classes), plus mentors for mental health conversations, and more. No wonder those of the blue haired persuasion flock to the public service. No wonder those places are overstaffed.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:24am
  - David George
    
    The grift and BS isn’t confined to the public service; Woolworths/Countdown offer(ed?) paid “gender identity” leave.
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:40am
NeverMindTheBollocks

“Artificial intelligence has been used to develop a “fundamentally new” type of vaccine that could protect against large swathes of viruses and prevent pandemics”

What could possibly go wrong

http://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crrpggegwe0o
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June 6, 2026 9:30am
- Taieri
  
  “It then designed a “super-antigen” that could train the immune system…”
  
  And how does the AI “design” anything? It’s a tool for fcuk sake. It can be used to assist in various projects but it can’t do anything by itself.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:15am
NeverMindTheBollocks

Overshadowed by the broader Iran conflict, Israel continues to seize parts of Lebanon.

If you oppose Putin’s invasion of Ukraine then you should oppose this.

http://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c052343r812o
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June 6, 2026 9:37am
- Handyman
  
  Israel is not invading Lebanon.
  The Israeli and Lebanon government share a common goal to rid Lebanon of Hezbollah. The Lebanese army is not strong enough to do this on its own.
  There is an agreement between the Labanese government and the government of Israel that the Lebanese army will move into areas occupied by Hezbollah once Israel has done the hard yards and subsequently withdrawn.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:33am
  - Miss Cindy
    
    True……it helps stop civil war breaking out in Lebanon with the IDF fighting Hezbollah. With Israel doing the heavy lifting, and the army mopping up so to speak……secures peace on both sides…….schools have been shut for sometime in northern Israel…….and Southern Lebanon would be the same.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:26pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    I guess the million Lebanese displaced by Israeli forces eradicating their villages and claiming their land would agree with your opinion.
    
    Think Not!!!!
    So sorry. But Israel is invading Lebanon!!!!!!
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:07pm
- Notsofast
  
  I would see parallels between Israel and Ukraine on the one hand, and Hezbollah and Putin on the other.
  Note who started the fires.
  Your analogy lacks the most basic insight.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:38am
- kowtow
  
  https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-898499
  
  ‘Lebanese President Joseph Aoun slammed Hezbollah and Iran in an interview with CNN on Friday, saying that his country’s people “are not [Hezbollah leader] Naim Qassem’s people”
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:10pm
- Southern Raider
  
  Just rinsing and repeating radical left wing slop.
  
  Israel is pushing Hezbollah away from its borders as Hezbollah has been firing rockets and drones into Israeli civilian areas for the last two months.
  
  Hezbollah also killed a UN peacekeeper this week with a mortar attack. But as the UN is also a radical left organisation they mention an attack and conveniently leave out any mention of Hezbollah.
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:43pm
  - Ra Henare
    
    Rara Israel is good. Anybody resisting is bad.
    Yep, no problem, we get your bias.
    
    Guess you missed the bit about the IDF firing hugh amounts of ordnance into Lebanon.
    
    Also guess you missed
    The Incident (June 3–4, 2026)
    The Casualty: A UNIFIL peacekeeper—confirmed by Serbian authorities to be a Serbian national (Sergeant Milovan Jovanović)—was critically injured when mortar shells hit a UN base near Marjayoun/Dibbine in southeastern Lebanon.
    
    Neither side is innocent!!!
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:11pm
Benedict Yu

Something wrong with this story.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/360988780/nz-dad-fighting-life-bali-hospital-after-holiday-scooter-crash

The article states that this guy had travel insurance. Yet the family is seeking donations to cover his hospital treatment.

The whole point of travel insurance is to cover such costs. Including being evacuated back to New Zealand in the case of a catastrophic accident if you are in a place like Bali.
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June 6, 2026 10:02am
- Ghost
  
  Donations are for his parents and siblings to travel there, accommodation, and whatever insurance doesn’t cover
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:06am
  - Taieri
    
    Donations are for his parents and siblings to travel there
    ———
    
    But, according to the article, his siblings are already there.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:16am
    - Ghost
      
      Funds will go towards Medical expenses, accommodation, travel costs, and supporting Jaroms parents Rafael and Maree and siblings Natasha, Nicole and Ben as they manage time off work, any changes that may arise we will provide page update
      
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      June 6, 2026 10:24am
      - kowtow
        
        ‘Jaroms parents Rafael and Maree and siblings Natasha, Nicole and Ben as they manage time off work’
        
        Why do so many need to be involved .
        
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        June 6, 2026 10:35am
      - Ghost
        
        so you wouldn’t want to be with a loved one when they’ve had a major accident, one they may not recover from, sad. as sad as the pathetic sad people that down voted what the donations will go to.
        
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        June 6, 2026 11:03pm
    - MCōs
      
      They’ll want to extend their time in Indonesia, I sure, and the money will be flying out the window
      
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      June 6, 2026 10:26am
  - Benedict Yu
    
    But the article cites the 110,000 dollar hospital bill. Travel insurance health cover is uncapped, at least all the policies I have seen. Indeed insurance companies publish stories of them paying out huge sums to medivac people from around the world.
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:23am
    - Ghost
      
      Jarom does have a travel insurance policy the claim process is underway but is unknown what might be covered at this stage
      
      If he didn’t have a license, the policy is void. If he didn’t have it included in the policy, void. That they don’t know what might be covered makes me wonder what his policy was
      
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      June 6, 2026 11:32am
    - Miss Cindy
      
      Given it is insurance, and foreign insurance at that…….if you have an accident in the US…….everything down to the last aspirin and bandaid is listed…….and they are all well above Countdown shelf prices.
      Many years ago I knew someone from NZ who had a very serious accident in the US…….and the bill was HUGE…..and listed the above items.
      
      Edit: this was in the early 90’s…..and a bit more than the current $110k !!
      
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      June 6, 2026 1:18pm
- Charmaine Hawke
  
  It will depend on what policy he took out, some of the cheaper options don’t cover everything but in my experience unless they have not disclosed something he should be fully covered.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:07am
  - MCōs
    
    With travel insurance it’s another case of the big print giveth and the small print taketh away.
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:15am
- Hugh Jarse
  
  BY From the story-“She said Guillonta had travel insurance and they are in touch with the insurance company but don’t yet know how much of the bill, which has already reached $110,000, will be covered”. I think that riding scooters is an exclusion in travel insurance but relying on memory.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:10am
  - Ghost
    
    if the policy covers it you have to wear a helmet or you lose that cover
    
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    June 6, 2026 10:30am
  - Paulus
    
    I believe that in normal Travel Insurances the riding of a scooter is speciifically excluded, as norm.
    So I am waiting to hear that the insurance is not covering anything regarding this accident.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:09pm
  - marleybob
    
    When in asia it pays to pay the little bit extra insurance for riding a motorcycle. I think for me it’s like $50 more.
    
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    June 6, 2026 4:36pm
- rouppe
  
  Those a pretty serious injuries. Things we don’t know.
  
  Did he have a NZ class 5 licence to ride motorbikes? If not, injury from scooter riding won’t be covered. The policy document I’m looking at says under general exclusionss:
  
  Motorcycling outside New Zealand (unless you are riding
  a motorcycle with an engine capacity of 200cc or less and
  hold a motorcycle licence as required by the country you
  are in
  
  That usually means an international drivers licence covering bikes, which you can’t get unless you already have one. Unless a car licence was enough.
  
  Had he been drinking? If so, insurance may decline. In fact probably would unless it can be proven it was minimal.
  
  Having said that Givealittle and GoFundMe are now seen as normal whenever anyone gets in the shit.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:15am
  - Benedict Yu
    
    Yes fair enough re the motorbike. It is weird that people take risks in developing countries that they would never take here.
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:26am
    - MCōs
      
      I used to see tourists buzz around on pip squeak motor bikes with no helmets and a bargirl clinging on behind and wondered if they thought nothing would happen to them because they were on holiday.
      
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      June 6, 2026 12:57pm
      - rouppe
        
        Thailand police had started cracking down on no helmets when I was there last year.
        
        May have been temporary, I left after 3 months. I guess I’ll find out in September, but I wear one anyway. Visa changes are the current major uncertainty
        
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        June 6, 2026 2:00pm
      - Hard Cheese
        
        Thais are worse – not only will they not be wearing helmets, they often have two or three of them on the same scooter, young kids at the front with no helmet either. Not wearing a seatbelt in a car seems to be compulsory too.
        
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        June 6, 2026 2:44pm
      - MCōs
        
        I recall a previous crackdown on helmets.
        Cheap helmets of worthless safety value swamped the market.
        
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        June 6, 2026 4:30pm
    - rouppe
      
      My ex had a scooter accident in Hawaii. She was riding a scooter 50cc or less which can be hired on a car licence.
      
      She got covered the substantial fee.
      
      I’ll be hiring a scooter when I’m next in Thailand but I have a class 5 here, and will stay within 200cc which is ample for getting around a town.
      
      I’ve had to take out additional insurance for my 2 week Bhutan side trip as we’ll be on 450cc Himalayans.
      
      The injuries this guy has are more than a simple “off”. There’s been a significant collision with something and the circumstances of that will be being closely examined.
      
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      June 6, 2026 1:55pm
- Ra Henare
  
  BY. Travel insurance doesn’t always pay out.
  Eg. If he had no license to ride the scooter. No payout.
  
  A friend of mine had expensive travel/medical insurance. had a stroke, massive hospital/evac costs.
  Insurance would not pay out, claiming a previous existing condition, ie he had high blood pressure, not disclosed on his application.
  
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  June 6, 2026 10:14pm
CJames

From NZME “British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer denounced US Vice President JD Vance for “trying to interfere in our democracy” with his comments about the murder of a white student by a Sikh man.
A spokesman for Sir Keir said: “We have seen people trying to interfere in our democracy and seeking to stir up division on our streets”.
The spokesperson added that the family of student Henry Nowak specifically did not want his killing “to be used to create further division, hatred or tension”.”
Notice in all of this that the UK PM (is he a caretaker, dead man walking, or just a cardboard cutout mouthing platitudes?) has not admitted there is a problem with two tier policing that was the cause of this problem? In fact he denied it existed. The hatred and tension was caused by the UK government policies that the Conservatives introduced, then Labour put on steroids.
The arrogance displayed by the ruling class is why Reform is so popular. Just like Australia with One Nation. Winston is trying hit here but after being in politics since before most people were born, he is more the ultimate insider
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June 6, 2026 10:39am
- mogg
  
  Starmer’s first instinct is to blame somebody else, it’s quite ridiculous of him to claim ‘no two tier policing’ when Hampshire police training documents
  which are now online state that ethnic minorities have to be policed respectfully according to their needs. Apart from stating the obvious he has avoided comment on the Henry Nowak case, instead blaming Nigel Farage for everything, which is not working because Reform have gone back to a ten point lead in the latest polling.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:38am
  - Paulus
    
    Starmer is an ex Senior Public Servant so is used to taking no responsibility.
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:12pm
  - rouppe
    
    Everyone should “be policed respectfully according to their needs.”
    
    The kicker is whether that was turned by the bosses into “everyone should be policed differently according to their race”.
    
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    June 6, 2026 2:03pm
- imalwaysright
  
  Starmer accuses Vance of interfering with Britains democracy.
  
  Starmer may have forgotten that the Labour Party sent nearly 100 people to the US to help K Harris get elected.
  
  https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62m2pde4p6o
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:58am
  - Philview
    
    Also there are pictures of Starmer going down on one knee for George Floyd.
    
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    June 6, 2026 12:28pm
- Miss Cindy
  
  All across the British Commonwealth you will see far too many managers and not enough Sargents.
  Out of touch is not good policy.
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:13pm
- CJames
  
  This is getting deeper
  “Officers from the force that failed Henry Nowak have now admitted they felt “controlled and pressured to feel certain ways” after mandatory DEI sessions that hammered home ‘white privileged’ and unconscious bias.
  The trainer outsourced to deliver the course was described as “deeply hateful of white people and British culture.” Serving and former Hampshire officers told former Home Secretary Suella Braverman they were furious but stayed silent out of fear for their careers.
  Multiple officers from Hampshire Constabulary have now gone on record about the ideological pressure inside the force.
  They described how DEI modules on white privilege, unconscious bias, and the importance of being an “ally” were drilled into them.””
  So he was a DEI fatality, though the knife wound was such that even ED support straight away would not have saved him. And unlike George Floyd, he wasn’t a criminal. Now which progressive will take knee for him? I know the answer – none.
  
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  June 6, 2026 2:20pm
  - mogg
    
    A Christian cop from North Yorkshire force has been suspended for questioning Islam’s right to be called
    the ‘Religion of Peace’, when they are committing acts of terror worldwide. At their training sessions they had lecturers walking up and down the aisles chanting “Islam is the religion of peace”, (brainwashing) Also the Muslim police officers association, which operates inside the police force, openly distributes an Anti Semitic magazine. This must be carried out with knowledge of senior officers .and management.
    
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    June 6, 2026 3:10pm
- Sane Voice
  
  Remember Obama going to England during Brexit?
  
  He openly stated that the UK would go to the back of the queue for trade deals if they Brexited.
  
  Starmer is a cock.
  
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  June 6, 2026 4:06pm
Paulus

I am beoming more interested to learn how far Councils have been inveigled to allowing unelected people on to Council Committees, with voting rights.
What is the purpose of having elections if they are to be abused by a minority to continue to get their own way, at other’s costs.
I see finally it is recognised by Parliament that these unelected people, at the same time fully allowing attendance, if necessary, can continue but surely if they are that important let them stand in the New Zealand way, at an election day.
I see that the only is brought up again today that the so called Parnership between the British Empire and the few Maori men around in 1840.
It is difficult to believe that the Empire covering half the World would go into Partnership with a few Cannibalistic natives in a remote country where the objective was to stop these people killing each other towards extinction.
Please let each stand on his or her own merits to the electorate and stop what is becoming more silly by the day much at Tax and Rate persons costs.
Bear in mind that many Maori do not pay Taxes or Rates.
Maori seats in Parliament are a sad part of these deliberations and should be abolished as there are no Maori in NewZealand and we should stop being continually amused by the antics of over weighted painted men and women doing the so called kapa haka which remains, as intended, as a war dance against the peoples of New Zealand, which in itself is changing dramatically in the next short years.
I find the whole scenario sad actually as over the last 40 years the divisions have altered dramatically in many ways but the resurgency of Maori expectations has dramatically affected this Great Country and not for the good as we are seeing with such silliness abound.
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June 6, 2026 10:54am
- Miss Cindy
  
  The threat to Maori is immigration and not the natural birth rate…….as recent mass immigration has arrived long after the Treaty was sighned…….or in other words……..Maori have allowed it, so can’t complain.
  
  It’s clearly about misguided powers – and the money.
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:05pm
- Ra Henare
  
  Some education required there, Paulus.
  (It shows your ignorance and bias)
  
  “”kapa haka which remains, as intended, as a war dance “”
  
  Hakas are expressions of emotion.
  
  Hakas happen at funerals, weddings, and graduations, amongst other occasions.
  
  They are far from being a war dance against the peoples of New Zealand.
  
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  June 7, 2026 1:34am
Harro104

KiwiSaver Reform:

An 18-year-old entering KiwiSaver today has a 47-year investment horizon before reaching 65. Yet many default KiwiSaver members are placed into balanced funds rather than growth-oriented funds. For someone with nearly five decades until retirement, that can create a significant opportunity cost. Most financial advisers would recommend a predominantly growth-focused strategy between roughly ages 18 and at least 50, accepting higher short-term volatility in exchange for stronger long-term returns. The Financial Markets Authority reports default balanced funds have delivered around 6.5% per annum, while growth and high-growth funds have historically achieved closer to 7–9%. That gap may seem small, but compounded over 30 years or more it can translate into substantially greater retirement wealth.

A simple Private Member’s Bill could deliver a major wealth boost for the many KiwiSaver members who are disengaged from investing and remain in default settings. By introducing age-based default funds—high-growth for younger members, with risk gradually reduced as retirement approaches—the system would better reflect mainstream financial advice without requiring individuals to make active investment decisions. For young savers, the greatest risk may not be market volatility. It may be missing decades of higher returns because their default fund is too conservative for their investment horizon.
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June 6, 2026 11:12am
- rouppe
  
  True. But remember that the default fund until very recently used to be a conservative fund.
  
  So as to not scare the horses if volatility happened early on. I think growth funds were considered as a default, but “balanced” was a middle compromise.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:26am
- peterwn
  
  All very well, but if there was a major economic failure meaning growth funds permanently lost value there would be pressure on the government to bail these people out. So better to leave it with balanced funds. Remember the ANZ/ING Diversified Yield Fund some years ago which was heavily promoted. The internal returns were low, so the managers spiced up returns by investing in American sub-prime mortgages. What could go wrong? When the fund was finally wound up it was worth only 60% of the original investments. ANZ bank staff were telling customers that the fund was just as safe but higher yielding than term deposits.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:33am
  - Harro104
    
    Fair and you’d bar claims on that ground. It’s risk/ reward. Past performance not prediction of future performance but almost every expert in this space would advise higher risk exposure in the first 3 or 4 decades of investing. I think it’s fair to say the risk of the proposal is weighted toward missing out on upside, rather than protecting a downside risk.
    
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    June 6, 2026 11:39am
- mogg
  
  Hasn’t the govt subsidy just been taken away, just put the money into an etf where the costs are much lower.
  
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  June 6, 2026 11:46am
  - peterwn
    
    Two issues here:
    1. If you do not have a Kiwisaver fund you would miss out on the employer’s contribution.
    2. There is a bewildering array of ETF’s (exchange traded funds) to choose from especially if you include overseas based funds promoted by the likes of Vanguard. So you would need to have a bit of knowledge of markets, investments, tax issues etc before you start investing. Your kids may be more savvy than you are especially if they have been dabbling in Sharesies etc. Also if you are not good with money, it could be very tempting to cash in ETF’s for money for consumption (it is almost cash in a flash plus two days for settlement).
    
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    June 6, 2026 1:50pm
    - rouppe
      
      I put half my money into a global ETF (essentially vanguard total world fund) and half with an active manager.
      
      I’m now $300,000 worse off for using the active manager.
      
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      June 6, 2026 2:06pm
    - mogg
      
      NZ is part of a no double taxation agreement with 40 other countries the list seems endless. Yes The employer contribution is important early on.
      
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      June 6, 2026 3:21pm
      - Steve Todd
        
        Yes The employer contribution is important early on.
        
        Surely, for most people, the employer contribution is very important right through all 47 years.
        
        Hasn’t the govt subsidy just been taken away, […].
        
        If you mean the annual “free money”, no, it was halved again in last year’s budget, to $260.72.
        
        (Just as an observation, it would seem you operate on a “financial plane” somewhat more elevated than us mere mortals.)
        
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        June 6, 2026 4:14pm
      - Dougal10
        
        The employer contribution is actually just part of your wages.
        
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        June 6, 2026 5:15pm
      - Steve Todd
        
        @Dougal10 @ 5:15PM
        
        Let’s say that’s true, in all cases (which I doubt). So what?
        
        The employer contribution goes into the employee’s KiwiSaver account, to be accessed at age 65 (setting aside first-home withdrawals and other special circumstances). It is money saved that, in most cases, would not otherwise have been saved — for retirement.
        
        That’s a good thing. Right?
        
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        June 6, 2026 5:33pm
Philview

I used to enjoy buying a selection of newspapers at the weekend and browsing through at a leisurely pace. I don’t bother now. The content just doesn’t seem to be of interest to me anymore. Does anyone find value in the weekend newspapers? I have the Substack app on my phone and enjoy a range of commentary from that instead.
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June 6, 2026 12:52pm
- kowtow
  
  The content of our papers has got very poor.
  Weekend even worse and seem to want to appear like women’s magazines , given the content.
  
  I do not subscribe to any now .
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:05pm
- peterwn
  
  I used to. I lived in Brighton for a little while and would frequently return there on the train on Sunday evenings. I could pick up copies of most of the Sunday papers that had been discarded in the carriages by earlier passengers.
  
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  June 6, 2026 1:54pm
- Gravelroad
  
  “Does anyone find value in the weekend newspapers? “
  Puzzle pages.
  So I hopefully won’t get dementia and/or Altzheimers.
  Or am I too late?
  
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  June 6, 2026 2:20pm
  - Swifty
    
    Still plenty of life in you, young fellow.
    
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    June 6, 2026 2:43pm
  - peterwn
    
    You do not need to buy newspapers for puzzles as many of them are separately published as books. ‘Wordfit’ is one such example.
    
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    June 6, 2026 6:19pm
Skottowe

I note this piece of news very recently:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/crime-and-justice/597365/sentencing-of-a-mother-son-duo-caught-smuggling-18kg-of-pounamu-celebrated-by-iwi-leaders

A couple of years ago, we were in tourist areas in the South Island. We had occasion to discuss with locals the issue of access to greenstone, and the fact that it’s been vested in private ownership by an act of parliament, dating, I think, from the 1990s.

Unsurprisingly, we encountered a good deal of unhappiness over the issue of ownership. The sort of thing described in this link may be less likely, had greenstone remained in public ownership, as used to be the case when we were young adults.
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June 6, 2026 12:57pm
greybeard

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360986997/million-dollar-views-no-equity-coastal-dream-being-swallowed-sea
I am getting sick of hearing about “climate change” in relation to normal coastal erosion.
Erosion from the sea affects all coastlines everywhere in the world, all the time. It’s normal. It’s well known. It is a fact of life. It does not require council intervention or recompense. Just common sense.
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June 6, 2026 1:56pm
- Skottowe
  
  “It’s normal.”
  
  Exactly. Nothing to do with “sea level rise”, either. I, too, am fed up with the “climate change” bogey being dragged out in such stories. That also has nothing to do with it. People should go read up on what’s been happening for centuries on the East Coast of the UK. Though even there, the twin bogeys of “rising sea levels” and “increased storm surges” are invoked.
  
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  June 6, 2026 3:00pm
- wsk12345
  
  She built in 1998 and says she was way back from the beach. I remember looking at houses in early 2000s and thought that while I’d love to be Waterfront it was just too risky. She can’t say she didnt know about coastal inundation but gotta say I didnt realise it would take kms of land. Those West Coast seas though are harsh…
  
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  June 6, 2026 3:10pm
  - cmm (semi-retired edition)
    
    Anyone who has been to a beach like Sumner over a reasonable period should have some idea of the sea’s ability to move sand around.
    
    I have been going to Sumner for the last 30 years – on and off. In that time, the sea has eroded the beach to non-existent (waves crashing up against the road), to depositing so much sand that you could walk over 500 metres out to sea at low tide. Then eroded it all away and deposited it all again…. and again… and again.
    
    I’ve seen this happen in South Africa too and – no doubt – this is something that Ugg and Ogg would have observed 50,000 years ago on any beach anywhere.
    
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    June 6, 2026 4:40pm
greybeard

https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/360988865/wairarapa-mp-mike-buttericks-national-party-swag-bags-upset
These are probably the same schools which promote transgender thinking for their young pupils, and which brainwash them with maori rubbish, and which promote Green-party ideologies and nonsense.
Bloody hypocrites.
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June 6, 2026 2:16pm
- Maggy Wassilieff
  
  Oh C’mon..
  
  We don’t need politicians canvassing school children.
  
  I expect folks on here would get plenty upset if Labour, Greens, TMP, Vision NZ, etc MPs or Candidates visited schools to drop off politically-branded material.
  
  If Mike Butterick wants his contact details known, then perhaps he should proselytise on street corners or door knock local house-holds or attend a few public events and get to know locals.
  
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  June 6, 2026 3:23pm
- rouppe
  
  We are quite politically outspoken at home and so my daughter already knew she didn’t like Mike [Butterick] or the National Party
  
  Nothing like a bit of hate being taught in the home to develop young minds.
  
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  June 6, 2026 3:49pm
  - Dougal10
    
    So she already didn’t like the nice man who handed out a bag of free stuff. 100% the problem with politics is it is more tribal than ford vs holden
    
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    June 6, 2026 5:21pm
- cmm (semi-retired edition)
  
  It is absolute nonsense handing out swag bags at any school and any workplace – especially state (and I mean taxpayer) funded.
  
  The purported reason – to give out contact information – is complete bullshit. That could have been achieved with nothing more than a business card.
  
  And business cards are rather obsolete as Google can find anyone’s MP in seconds.
  
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  June 6, 2026 4:45pm
mogg

Time and tide waits for no man, Fergus Slattery the 1974 Lions and Ireland captain has just died from dementia. He played on the side of the scrum, so plenty of head knocks there. He would legally be onto the centres as soon as the ball arrived. He even had the mightySid Going making mistakes.
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June 6, 2026 3:31pm
MCōs

Part time MP
https://x.com/misinfofact/status/2062665469379985648?s=61
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June 6, 2026 4:44pm
Quail

On Google , NZ First ‘Shane Jones is complaining some Maori multiple-owned land that has just received government ( taxpayers) money for water storage is now not eligible for Zespri Kiwifruit licences.
Perhaps they should have checked that out first??

Interestingly Zespri is owned by 2800 Kiwigrowers, about 10% Maori owners and about 152 Maori entities that own 243 orchards consisting of about 1400 producing hectares.

So there is no racist activity by Zespri — what about Jones and NZ first?
And what about the taxpayers money for water storage?
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June 6, 2026 5:21pm
Gravelroad

OH NO!!!!
The Crusaders have won the rugby again!
I am sure the harpies on The Breakdown TV programme last week told me that Auckland was going to win this.
How will they cope with another loss by their fave team?
A rather thuggish effort by the Blues.
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June 6, 2026 6:31pm
Ghost

train derails in wellington. strangely they seem to have a lot of issues with their rail

https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/06/06/eight-injured-after-train-derails-in-wellington/
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June 6, 2026 9:16pm

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