The Herald reports:

Winston Peters says we need to use the success of Kiwis like Lorde and Sir Peter Jackson as part of our foreign policy to promote our image abroad.

Speaking at a conference on cultural diplomacy in Berlin, Germany, yesterday, the New Zealand First leader said today’s digital environment meant the biggest contribution to cultural diplomacy would be made outside “official” channels.

“The recent impact of the Gangnam Style – something like riding a horse without the horse – raced across the world from South Korea,” he said, referring to the internet sensation turned international hit by musician Psy.

“Hundreds of millions sharing a harmless craze on YouTube and laughing together may be as helpful for world peace as some meetings at the United Nations.”

I agree. Not just because the UN performance is so limited due to security council vetos, but because the power of individuals to reduce barriers is immense.

Martyn Bradbury posted the above image on his union funded and supported website. The URL wasn’t on it (he has deleted the original – this version is from Whale Oil). It is a very obvious anti-semitic image, and this was pointed out to him on Twitter by Giovani Tiso and Russell Brown. They did not say Bradbury was anti-semitic – they said that the image was and Tiso even said he assumed Bradbury was ignorant of its use on anti-semitic sites.. They asked him to remove it.

He then stuck up a post attacking them, comparing them to the Israeli Defence Forces etc.  He refused to show the original image, and stuck up a partial image that didn’t show the “Father Christmas”.

Now I’m not too worried about a feud between those three gentlemen. They can all look after themselves. But what is of concern is the editorial policy of The Daily Blog. When Tiso responded with a comment saying he had never accused Bradbury of anti-semitism, Bradbury refused to publish the comment.

And when another commenter tried to back Tiso, that comment was also blocked. Neither comment was in any way abusive or could be judged to be inappropriate. They were censored because they dared to disagree with Bradbury. And to the contrary comments attacking Brown in very vicious language (saying he should have been born with a vagina) were allowed through.

Bradbury has been a guest lecturer or tutor at a journalism school. He often goes on about freedom of speech. It is very apparent that his idea of freedom of speech is speech that agrees with him.

As I said, I’m not too fussed over the issues itself of the image. The Little Pakeha has a good post setting it all out for those interested. And Bradbury has now apologised for his post attacking Tiso and Brown. What I want to draw attention to is that the moderation policy of The Daily Blog is based on whether or not Bradbury agrees with your views.

What is especially disturbing is that he would use the site to attack someone, and refuse to publish a very reasonable comment from them in response.  And this person is paraded before journalism students as someone they can learn from.

Jenny Michie blogs at The Daily Blog:

I was a little surprised to hear that over the past few weeks Labour has selected a number of candidates.

Not surprised that the candidates have been selected, early selections are fine, but surprised that I’d heard virtually nothing about them in any media that I pay attention to or in any communication from the Party.

I knew that Kieran McAnulty was standing in the Wairarapa last Sunday but I had to ring him up to find out how he did.

I’ve been online to discover what else has been happening and I’m happy to let the rest of NZ know the results, to the best of my knowledge, and where I found them:

Otaki (contested) – Robb McCann – Party press release on Scoop

Rangitikei (contested) – Dr Deborah Russell – Party press release on Kiwiblog

Whanganui (uncontested) – Hamish McDouall – Hamish posted on Facebook & Wanganui Chronicle

Wairarapa (contested) – Kieran McNulty – Kieran told the Wairarapa Times Age

Clutha Southland (uncontested) – Elizabeth Craig – Home Paddock

Waitaki (uncontested) – Glenda Alexander – Stuff via Southland Times

Te Tai Hauauru (uncontested) – Adrian Rurawhe – Wanganui Chronicle

 Quite amusing that two of the sources are centre-right blogs. But that is Jenny’s point:

Cameron Brewer facebooked:

Auckland Council Electoral Officer and Public Information Officer Bruce Thomas has confirmed with Auckland Councillor Cameron Brewer today that while he did not file a full “Register of Members’ Interests” annual statement by 30 June 2012, Brewer’s much criticised four-day sponsored trip to Australia was in fact declared by the Councillor for Orakei at the time and was subsequently in the Council gift register all along. 

In a surprise turn, Mr Thomas advised Mr Brewer in an email today that “You did however declare the Port Douglas trip and this was included in the gift register. A copy of the gift register was given to the Ernst Young Inquiry.”

In an email to Mr Thomas from Mr Brewer on 8 September 2011, Mr Brewer wrote “Bruce, please declare… 1 trip to Port Douglas courtesy of Mediaworks, Four nights in august. Value approximately 2k. Secondly, my partner and I are in SkyCity box for opening night and game tomorrow. Cost unknown. Please let me know what further information you require. Thanks Cameron” 

Mr Brewer was responding to an email by Mr Thomas titled ‘Code of Conduct – Declaration of Gifts’ he had sent to all elected representatives the day before on Wednesday 7 September 2011. 

The email read: “Dear Councillors and Local Board Members, with the Rugby World Cup about to start, I thought it prudent to remind you of your obligation to declare gifts in excess of $300. Some of the ticket and hospitality packages that you (and your partner) may be offered by a third party are likely to exceed $300. If you suspect this to be the case then you should advise myself and we will log it and ensure it is recorded as part of you declaration on 30 June 2012.”

Mr Brewer said he is very pleased to learn that he did in fact formally advise the council of the trip soon after his return, and that it was subsequently officially declared in the gift register. 

While procedurally Cameron still erred in not also doing the formal annual declaration, the substance is that he did disclose the gift to the Council.

What will be interesting is if it is revealed who informed the media (incorrectly) that the gift had not been disclosed? My money is on one of the six ratepayer funded spin doctors working for Len Brown.

The Herald reports:

“Given this information was put on the council gift register and was actually part of the Ernst Young review, I’m very disappointed that council staff didn’t give me and the media the correct information last week.”

Will the Herald now retract their editorial and story on Brewer?

The Herald reports:

Irreverent Cabinet Minister Paula Bennett has produced her own pink wine label on a chardonnay this Christmas called “Sip It Sweetie”.

Some will find their way into Christmas stockings, but most will be auctioned to fundraise for her campaign in Upper Harbour next year.

“A fruity little number, plenty of sass and spirit,” the label says.

“This classy chardonnay will impress at a barbecue, beach picnic or a fancy-pants dinner party. Good drinking now but even better after a third term.” …

Prime Minister John Key has established a tradition of dispensing bottles of fine pinot noir at Christmas. Mrs Bennett says hers “is not as sophisticated as his, it would be fair to say”.

Heh I might bid for a bottle.

Stuff reports:

The Oklahoma Capitol Preservation Commission voted on Thursday to ban new monuments on statehouse grounds until a court battle is settled with the American Civil Liberties Union, which is seeking the removal of the Ten Commandments, local media reported.

Commission officials were not immediately available for comment on Friday.

The Oklahoma branch of the ACLU this year sued to have the Old Testament monument removed, saying the state should not be in the business of legitimising religion and that the precedent could result in a spectacle of religion.

No decision has been reached in the case.

Socially conservative Christian groups fought for years to have the Ten Commandments displayed at the statehouse, and the monument went up in 2012.

I like the ten commandments. But they should be displayed at churches, not on government grounds.

Oklahoma has put a halt to new monuments at its Capitol after groups petitioned to have markers for Satan, a monkey god and a spaghetti monster erected near a large stone tablet inscribed with the Ten Commandments.

Heh. If the state allows monuments to one religion, then they find it hard to say no to others. Personally a statue of the spaghetti monster would be very cool!

Sean Plunket writes:

Christmas came early for Wellington this past week with the announcement that the next three Avatar movies will be made here.

According to Treasury James Cameron’s apparent largesse might well come at a cost but I haven’t met a single Wellingtonian who doesn’t see it as a positive for this city.

It is a boost for Wellington.

So while this city prepares to turn blue and grow a tail Aucklanders are learning to live with their slick willy mayor and council that can do little to control him and Christchurch finds the kitty for its rebuild isn’t quite big enough to do everything it wants. Take note, John Key: in comparison to other large municipalities this capital city is hardly dying.

To be fair the PM was referring to corporate head offices leaving Wellington, and that is still happening.

We have a second-term mayor who seems to be using the word economy more often and a bunch of councillors who, if not unified, are at least pretty experienced and represent in a positive way our diverse population.

Celia’s performance, so far, has been better this term. Getting rid of some costly CCOs has been welcomed, and the Council seems more harmonious.

We’ve got parking wardens back under the control of our council which will hopefully curb some of the more market-driven excesses of those who patrol the pavements and the council’s living wage policy shows our elected city officials can get together and do the right thing.

On top of that we are building up to the International Festival of the Arts next year and the first sod has been turned on Transmission Gully.

Don’t agree on the living wage but do on the others.

In fact I’d argue there is actually more silver lining than cloud around the harbour capital right now and to repeat my exhortations from earlier in the year I just hope more of us realise that in 2014.

Yep, life in Wellington is pretty good.

From NBR:

E is for English, as in Bill, the standout star of the cabinet, who can take the credit when the economy booms next year, and whose macroeconomic stewardship deserves better support from his senior colleagues who remain preoccupied with questionable one-off deals. 

F is for Free Democrats, a great name for a new classical-liberal party, although the German version had its worst result since 1949, falling below the 5% threshold, missing out on seats in the Bundestag, and thus threatening Angela Merkel’s hold on power despite her Christian Democrats being by far the most popular party.

I’d call a new classical-liberal party “The Liberal Party”. The name should make it clear what you stand for.

G is for Graham, as in McCready, who first put Trevor Mallard in the dock and now John Banks, and maybe David Cunliffe, putting the police to shame.

He has vowed to prosecute Cunliffe for his tweet.

J is for jealous, the feeling of all of us too stupid to buy Xero back at launch (partly made up for by not being so stupid as to buy Mighty River Power or Meridian).

I’ve purchased at launch Xero, Mighty River and Meridian and believe all will be good long-term investments.

L is for Louisa, as in Wall, who joins a small elite club, including Fran Wilde, Tim Barnett and Sue Bradford in actually achieving something as a backbencher.

O is for awesome, like the All Blacks, Valerie Adams, Lydia Ko, Lorde and, sadly, Oracle Team USA.

Z is for zoo, and Auckland’s will have a new elephant, by far the most substantial ever outcome by any prime minister at a CHOGM.

That is probably correct!

Matt McCarten writes:

Until this week Brown’s crime has been mainly about moral hypocrisy by using his wholesome family image to help his career for years while being privately the opposite. Without doubt, if any council employees had used council property or work time for trysts, they would have been fired with the mayor’s blessing.

This week the findings of the investigation take things to another level. His conduct crossed from his personal misbehaviour to the professional compromise of the office of mayor. …

Brown won’t get another term, regardless of what happens. So he should forget about himself and spend his energy doing big meaningful things for the people who put him there. That’s the mayor’s pathway to redemption.

Otherwise he may as well resign now and put himself, his family and us out of our misery.

Kerre Woodham also writes:

You’d have thought that shame would have seen him depart the mayoralty but the shame gene appears to be missing from his DNA.

I suppose he’s hoping the Christmas and New Year break will take the heat off him and when everyone comes back to work next year, it will be as if nothing ever happened.

But unless there’s a seismic shift, he’s going to be the most impotent mayor in the history of local body politics (which is ironic, really, isn’t it?)

People don’t want to work with him. Ratepayers are contemptuous of him. And politicians in Central Government will be wary of him, because nobody likes being around a loser, so it will make it more difficult to lobby for Auckland’s interests in Wellington.

On that note the HoS reports:

Auckland councillor Dick Quax, an outspoken critic of Mayor Len Brown, has called on him to withdraw from hosting Prince William and wife Catherine early next year.

The couple and their baby George will visit New Zealand in April.

Yesterday, Quax said Brown should not be greeting the royals after his two-year extramarital affair with Bevan Chuang and a review that found he had accepted free hotel rooms and upgrades.

“I’d be absolutely horrified if he was the face and the representative of Auckland meeting Prince William, his wife and their baby.”

That would be embarrassing.

And the HoS editorial:

When Santa Claus packs his sleigh ahead of his delivery run in the next couple of days, it’s fair to assume he won’t be needing a lot of space for parcels for one Len Brown, of Manukau in Auckland.

“Have you been a good boy this year, Len,” is a question the Auckland Mayor would, surely, dread right now.

It has been a horrendous end to 2013 for a man who should have had so much to celebrate. He won a landslide victory in the Supercity mayoralty and had another term or two firmly in mind. But his lengthy affair with Bevan Chuang, an independent report that cleared him of legal wrongdoing but revealed freebies and the use of a ratepayer-funded cellphone to support the affair, his forgetfulness over council policies on transparency, and a media pack that has turned on him all mean one thing – Mayor Len is dead man walking.

Len’s sole supporter remains Brian Rudman it seems.

An easy one for year end. Quiz here.

Fran O’Sullivan writes:

Auditor-General Lyn Provost is the right person to take inquiries into Len Brown’s relationship with the SkyCity hotels and casino operator to the obvious next stage.

The mayor of Auckland has attempted to brazen his way through the embarrassing detritus exposed by the EY (Ernst & Young) report into some of the implications of his two-year affair with Bevan Chuang.

But that report, emasculated as it was after legal negotiations between Brown’s lawyer and the Auckland Council’s QC, has put new material on the table which must now be investigated by the Auditor-General herself.

I agree.

But in the Auditor-General’s case there is a firm basis on which to make more inquiries of Brown, the mayor’s office and SkyCity. The EY report is fact-based. But it also suffers from the obvious limitation of being a report commissioned by Auckland Council CEO Doug McKay into his boss.

Provost is not constrained by any such relationship and, importantly, has the power to inquire and make relevant comment.

The EY report established some useful facts, but didn’t cover many things. For example there was no asking of the Auckland Art Gallery whether or not the Mayor’s reference was the major reason Chuang was hired.

The EY report – as published – shies away from disclosing whether Brown solicited any of the nine freebies he had in four city hotels or requested any of the 64 upgrades.

The impression by Brown’s public comments is that his wife, Shan Inglis, made most of their hotel bookings.

But it stretches credibility to believe Inglis would have made the booking for her husband’s rendezvous with Chuang in a SkyCity hotel bedroom.

Especially as rumour has it that some of the bookings were for the day, not the night!

EY saves the mayor some embarrassment by failing to distinguish between Brown’s overnight stays and his daytime stays in hotels. A footnote to the report simply says “room nights refers to both night stays and day stays”.

It is unclear whether these so-called “room nights” cover the pop-in arrangements that Brown was said to have when a room was sought for a few hours for him to get away from the pressures of the office.

Pressures of the office?

John Armstrong at NZ Herald writes:

National’s opponents have long worked on the assumption that John Key’s Government – like all Administrations – will inevitably be ground down and worn out by the failings which destroy all Governments ultimately – namely the accumulation of mistakes, embarrassments, duplicity, expedience, arrogance and (the real killer) the feeling that from the Prime Minister down the Administration is no longer listening.

Things reach a tipping point where a clear majority of voters deem a Government has reached its use-by date. At that point it is as good as being all over. There is no way back.

Labour and its allies have seen their task as one of hastening that decline and ultimate fall. Because Key is the embodiment of National’s ongoing success, Labour has devoted considerable effort to pinning the blame on him when things go wrong or look dodgy.

In order to ping Key, Labour has become far too consumed by the minutiae of day-to-day political conflict which largely passes most people by.

Unfortunately for Labour, the Prime Minister – assisted by poll data – has an instinctive and almost always accurate ability to diagnose what is really unnerving voters amid which issues he must tackle and those he can safely afford to ignore.

Labour need to pick one or two issues that really matter to people and relentlessly push those issues. Instead they run around after the headline of the day.

It means ensuring that in their portfolio work, Cabinet ministers are almost always on the side of majority public opinion.

Be it the number of non-urgent operations carried out by hospitals, the crime rate, prodding welfare beneficiaries back to work or building new roads to unclog Auckland’s traffic – things which really do matter to people – Key and National devote considerable attention, effort and resources to getting it right.

As long as National continues to focus on such fundamentals, all the huffing and puffing provoked by matters like Key’s handling of legislation covering the security agencies pale into relative insignificance as far as many voters are concerned.

Such things are treated as the flotsam and jetsam of political life.

Key has been helped by David Cunliffe seeking to reassert Labour’s dominance of the centre-left since taking over his party’s leadership.

Labour seems to be doing well at picking votes up off the Greens. Less so, off National.

In his speeches, Cunliffe likes to say a Labour Government he leads will not be afraid to use the powers of the state to intervene where a market fails. Well, someone else got there first.

His name is John Key. His sacrifice of his party’s ideology to cut a deal with Twentieth-Century Fox to ensure the further Avatar movies are filmed in New Zealand illustrated Key’s willingness to undercut Labour and leave that party punching at air.

The following day’s fiscal update also offered Labour little to complain about given its rosy growth forecasts and confirmation National remained on track for Budget surplus by mid-2015 – something which will give National huge cachet with voters.

The clincher came on Thursday. The Treasury’s growth forecasts have frequently turned out to be little more than mirages. Not so the latest official gross domestic product figures which had economic growth hitting a giddy 3.5 per cent in the September year.

Strong economic growth and a return to surplus will make an excellent base for re-election.

Stuff reports:

Labour leader David Cunliffe has been warned by police over a message he posted on Twitter on November 30, the day of the Christchurch East by-election.

Cunliffe’s tweet urged residents to vote for Labour candidate Poto Williams, breaching electoral laws which ban any campaigning on election day.

“If you are resident in Christchurch East don’t forget to vote today – for Labour and Poto Williams!” Cunliffe wrote.

The Electoral Commission referred the tweet to police, with Cunliffe revealing today he had been warned.

“It was an inadvertent mistake which I regret. I took steps to rectify the error by immediately deleting the tweet and Labour also notified the returning officer as soon as possible,” he said.

“I have taken the warning on board and will not repeat the error.”

Still incredible that a party leader could think it is okay to tweet “Vote for Labour” on an election day.

Fairfax hands out it political awards. Here’s a few of them:

Quote of the Year: “One of the messages that I had was that this bill was the cause of our drought. Well, in the Pakuranga electorate this morning it was pouring with rain. We had the most enormous big gay rainbow across my electorate – Cabinet minister Maurice Williamson in his speech on the gay marriage bill for which he later became a YouTube hit with a 1.5 million views.

Look on the bright side award – to Gilmore. Everyone knows who he is now.

Titanic award for best performance as a sinking ship to State-owned coalminer Solid Energy for its dive from Cabinet darling to basket case.

Edward Snowden award for services to Big Brother – David Henry and Paula Rebstock who snooped on people’s private emails, phone and swipe-card records without even needing a warrant. Who needs the Government Communications Security Bureau?

Brendan Horan thick skin award – Auckland Mayor Len Brown who seems to be alone in believing people will have forgotten about his transgressions by the time the next election rolls around.

Nothing in life is free award – Kris Faafoi, Clayton Cosgrove, Annette King and Phil Goff whose enjoyment of SkyCity’s corporate hospitality at the rugby was in stark contrast to Labour’s vociferous opposition to “crony capitalism” and the SkyCity convention centre deal.

Maxwell Smart shoe-phone award – UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne who despite his denials was fingered by the so-called Henry inquiry as the possible leaker of a sensitive GCSB report after it accessed his phone, swipe card and email records.

No man is an island award – Mana Party leader Hone Harawira who has managed to alienate just about everyone in Parliament.

Surprising Hone can alienate so many there, as he is so rarely there himself.

Radio NZ report:

The University of Auckland surveyed 1700 Maori students nationwide on their health and well-being in 2012. …

The report shows the number of Maori youth who drink alcohol at least once a week has more than halved in the past five years – something which comes as a surprise to Alcohol Healthwatch director Rebecca Williams.

The survey bucks the trend of many other reports but, nonetheless, any indication of a move away from alcohol consumption should be celebrated, Ms Williams says.

Ms Williams is wrong. Almost every report shows youth drinking is declining and has been for some years. The ALAC surveys have. Youth 2007 and 2012 surveys. This latest survey. The youth drink driving stats. They’re all said that youth drinking is heading in the right direction.

Yet for some reason the taxpayer funds Alcohol Healthwatch and others to spread moral panic about youth drinking and to try and create a crisis to justify their existence.

Stuff reports:

Milk from farms used as dumps for drilling waste will be tested for toxins, but the Green Party is calling for more widespread testing of Taranaki animal products.

The Green Party has previously called on Fonterra to stop taking milk from cows grazing on the farms in Taranaki where oil and fracking waste had been spread.

The party said the milk was unsafe and could threaten the reputation of New Zealand’s dairy industry.

The Taranaki Regional Council has previously dismissed the claims as scaremongering. The farms where the waste was spread were quarantined then underwent extensive testing before cattle were put back on them, it said.

One just has to hope that people overseas don’t take the Greens any more seriously than most people in NZ do.

I’m all for testing, but when a party claims that milk must be stopped even after testing has been done, they are just scaremongering.

Her 82 year old mother says she is evil or mentally unwell. Her children hate her, and she has got one of them arrested by perjuring herself. She killed her husband. She started stealing at school, she forged a letter to her employer, she stole from an employer, and she stole from her sick aunt.

Can’t say I see any reason she should ever be let out. May her sentence for murder have a very long non-parole period.

Her only redeeming benefit is her stupidity.  She spent years telling people she wanted to kill her husband, and even tried to pay her sons and in-laws to hire someone to kill him. The fact she almost got away with it in an indictment on the original Police investigation. Her sister-in-law and the coroner deserve our praise for their efforts to get justice for Nisbet and see this evil woman put away.

The Herald reports:

Labour’s poll support has slipped after an initial surge following David Cunliffe’s election as leader, the latest Herald-DigiPoll survey shows.

The Maori Party would hold the balance of power if the figures were translated to an election result.

With the left and right blocs fairly evenly split, it could be a close election next year.

Neither National nor Labour would be able to form a government without the Maori Party.

Labour has fallen 2.3 points in the survey to 35.4 per cent. In the September poll, it had a surge in support and could have formed a government with just the Greens and Mana.

National has risen 3.1 points and Prime Minister John Key has somewhat recovered in the preferred Prime Minister stakes, after taking a 9.4 point dive in the last poll.

He has jumped 6.1 points to 61.9 per cent, well ahead of Mr Cunliffe on 16.5 per cent.

Not a bad place to end the year. And David Cunliffe is polling below what David Shearer was as Preferred PM.

The Herald reports:

Mayor Len Brown will forgo some executive powers as he sets out to rebuild his political career after a decision by councillors to keep him on.

A subdued Mr Brown yesterday accepted the unanimous decision by his colleagues to censure him with a warning from supporters Ross Clow and Chris Darby he would be on thin ice if any other skeletons came out of the cupboard.

Mr Brown gave an assurance there was nothing else out there and made a commitment to work closer with councillors on a common agenda in the new year.

Really?

In a blog written at the meeting, Metro editor Simon Wilson said if Mr Brown could not lead the council he needed to find the courage and grace to step aside. “He’s reached that stage,” wrote Mr Wilson, who said the subtext of the mayor’s supporters was they no longer had confidence in him.

“Len Brown will soon be gone. It’s hard to see him lasting past Christmas.”

He’s lost Metro! Wilson is as left as they come, so that is significant.

The Herald does another editorial:

If Len Brown declined to make a move yesterday, there was not going to be a move. That was the harsh reality for Aucklanders, the majority of whom clearly want the mayor to resign, and the councillors who met to publicly censure him. Mr Brown’s obduracy duly carried the day as he refused to acknowledge that the standing and influence he once enjoyed had been shredded by conflicts of interest and inadequate explanations and apologies arising from inquiries into his two-year extramarital affair. …

Auckland has a mayor who is politically reined in, reputationally damaged and personally unlikely to regain residents’ respect. It also has a mayor who must, one day soon, realise his diminished mana cannot allow him to speak for all in the region. At one level, a right-wing councillor, Sharon Stewart, reveals Mr Brown’s reputation so troubled schools and churches in her community they found it hard to have him present awards. At another, left-wing commentator Chris Trotter doubts Mr Brown’s ability to be taken seriously in Wellington.

The mayor’s failure to acknowledge the reality of his position was starkly apparent when, offered a “right of reply” to the councillors’ decisions yesterday afternoon, he offered a few perfunctory thoughts that came across as insufficient and offhand. The contrition that even his council supporters desired remained out of reach.

The manner in which Mr Brown has brazened it out with the council and the people this week shows he doesn’t, really, get that his tide has gone out. The city needs a new leader.

The reality will maybe set it, when Brown doesn’t receive any invitations to address businesses, schools, community groups and the like. No group will want him as a guest speaker.

Meanwhile scrutiny goes on other Councillors:

Auckland councillor Cameron Brewer, who has been baying for Mayor Len Brown’s blood for not declaring gifts, has admitted not declaring a four-day junket to the Gold Coast.

Mr Brewer yesterday admitted taking free air tickets and accommodation paid for by MediaWorks, which runs TV3.

The right-wing councillor said he made a declaration of interests in 2011, but not in 2012, which would cover the period he went to Queensland.

The 2012 declaration of interests shows that Mr Brown and just nine of the 20 councillors filed returns.

All Councillors should be filing returns, even if they are nil returns. Maybe the requirement should become a legislative one so there can be consequences for not doing so.

And why was Mediaworks paying for a Councillor to go to Queensland? Maybe he won a competition?

UPDATE: It seems it was to talk to a marketing and sales conference, in his role as a former head of Newmarket Business Association.

UPDATE2: The Pants Down Brown song is now the No 1 selling country song on iTunes for NZ. You can buy a copy for just $1.79, for endless fun.

UPDATE3: The Dominion Post also calls for him to go:

Len Brown is done. The sooner he and the councillors who slapped him over the wrist with a wet bus ticket yesterday realise it, the sooner Auckland can get on with its business.

Mr Brown’s crime is not his extra-marital affair with a woman 25 years his junior. It is the way he has dealt with the affair becoming public and what has been revealed by the investigation into his conduct.

His attempts to paint himself as a victim and to duck responsibility for his actions have damaged his credibility. His breaking of Auckland City Council rules has damaged the reputation of the council. Pleading ignorance of the rules or that he was distracted by other matters is not an excuse. As mayor Mr Brown had a responsibility to acquaint himself with the rules and to abide by them.

And:

He, and his remaining supporters on the council, need to realise that Auckland is bigger than him. His continuing presence is an embarrassment and a distraction to the city he claims to love.He cannot impart a sense of direction to the city while he is ducking the public and avoiding the media. He cannot uphold standards for councillors when he has lowered them himself. And while questions persist about his conduct, the council cannot turn its attention to matters that actually concern Aucklanders. …

”You have sat too long for any good you have been doing,” Oliver Cromwell famously told the Rump Parliament in 1653. ”Depart, I say; and let us have done with you. In the name of God, go!”

Mr Brown should heed the sentiment.He has broken the rules, lowered standards and lost the respect of the people he represents and the people he is required to deal with as mayor of the country’s largest city. He should resign.

Is there anyone at all saying he should stay? No, Brian Rudman doesn’t count.

Stuff reports:

Power customers are switching companies at the highest rate for more than two years.

Across all retailers in November, some 37,000 customers changed electricity company, according to a monthly report from Meridian Energy.

The 12-month average switching rate was 19.6 per cent at the end of November, the highest since the middle of last year.

A recent global report on household electricity prices showed New Zealand had the highest level of retail “churn” in the world, ahead of Belgium and Australia which are just under 18 per cent a year.

The VaasaETT report said New Zealand had some of the most efficient switching procedures anywhere, with “a good supply of competitors”.

The latest government survey of household prices estimates the average tariff as 28.5 cents a kilowatt hour, which would make prices about the fourth cheapest compared with European countries.

37,000 customers in one month swapped providers to get a better deal. That’s excellent.

Of course that will end with the Labour/Green nationalisation policy. All generators will be forced to sell at the one price to a state monopoly, which will then sell at the one price to retailers. This will mean no effective competition and effectively no choice. Everyone will be ultimately buying their power from a Government monopoly, and that’s batshit crazy.