A guest post by ACT Leader David Seymour:

This week, I voted against National’s much-vaunted reforms to the Resource Management Act. For several years now, ACT has supported fundamentally reforming, and even completely replacing, the Act. Its 900 pages of red tape are the single biggest barrier to homebuilding and housing affordability.

However, ACT was unable to support the tinkering produced by National’s politically disastrous deal with the Maori Party. As has now been widely publicised, the new reforms actually add bureaucracy in the form of undemocratic new iwi participation arrangements.

Stephen Franks has already explained how the new Mana Whakahono a Rohe provisions breach the principle of ‘one law for all’. So in this column I’ll instead try to explain how the Government reached such a miserable outcome in the first place.

Nick Smith claims he couldn’t get agreement from ACT and United Future to pass effective RMA reform. In reality, we have offered him multiple opportunities to pass strong reforms without iwi concessions, but he declined at every turn.

Here’s how it happened: after the 2014 election, National, with ACT’s support, had the numbers to pass Resource Management Act reform with a 61-60 majority. Nick Smith voiced a commitment to reform, which ACT welcomed, with the caveat that we could not support co-governance arrangements pushed by the Maori Party.

However, instead of pushing ahead with RMA reform after the election as ACT had urged, Nick Smith dragged the chain until Winston Peters won the seat of Northland in 2015. This ended the National-ACT majority and meant Nick Smith had to choose between working with both ACT and United Future, or with the Maori Party’s two MPs.

That’s when Nick Smith made the disastrous decision to rush into the Maori Party’s arms, thinking it would be too hard to get ACT and United Future on the same page. He failed to envisage the concessions the Maori Party would demand, dragging out negotiations and adulterating the once positive proposals.

Meanwhile, I continued to meet with Peter Dunne until we agreed on an alternative set of reforms. Crucially, our proposals excluded the pernicious iwi participation arrangements. We formally offered our support for these reforms to the Government a year ago, but Nick Smith couldn’t bear to be seen changing course.

Maori Party-National negotiations seemed to stall until this year when the full extent of the Maori Party’s demands became clear. That’s when Peter Dunne and I hosted a press conference restating our offer to Nick Smith, offering him a way out of his embarrassing Maori Party fling.

That very afternoon, Nick Smith doubled-down on his allegiance to the Maori Party and confirmed his deal would go ahead.

National Party members are up in arms over how their party has been compromised. They’re letting their representatives know they’re angry, and good on them.

Winston Peters’ flamboyant comments on iwi issues have earned him airtime, but he has merely been shouting from the side-lines. ACT, however, last week actually introduced four separate amendments to improve the legislation. Our reforms would have scrapped iwi provisions, cut red tape, enshrined property rights, and prevented ministerial overreach, but all were voted down by National and the Maori Party.

This is the 18th Amendment to the RMA since it was passed in 1991, and if anything it is getting worse. It is a dog.

This is the problem New Zealand faces when a dominant party, even a right-leaning party, belatedly responds to a problem (in this case a housing shortage) that has built up for nine years. Principles are thrown out the window. Being seen to be doing something becomes the vital consideration, not the need to pass legislation that actually gets homes built. The result is a breach of democratic values, disaster for prospective homeowners, and a dark cloud hanging over National’s election prospects.

The upshot of this sad saga is actually a lesson in MMP politics. Most issues are decided by a single vote, and a small change in coalition arrangements can have a huge outcome in policy.

If ACT had just one extra MP, we could have nipped National’s deal with the Maori Party in the bud. Only ACT has been consistent on both fundamental RMA reform and opposing co-governance deals. A stronger ACT is needed now more than ever before to get National back on track.

The newsletter summary is:

There were three political voting polls in March – a One News Colmar Brunton, a Newshub Reid Research and a Roy Morgan.

The average of the public polls sees National 16% ahead of Labour in March, down 3% from February.

 The current seat projection is centre-right 58 seats, centre-left 52 which would see NZ First hold the balance of power.

We show the current New Zealand poll averages for party vote, country direction and preferred PM compared to three months ago, a year ago, three years ago and nine years ago. This allows easy comparisons between terms and Governments.

In the United States Trump’s net approval has dropped 11% in March. His failure to get a health care bill introduced saw his healthcare rating drop 18%.

 In the UK Theresa May has a net approval of +13% compared to 41% for Jeremy Corbyn.

In Australia Labour remain well ahead of the Coalition.

In Canada the Conservatives have now closed the gap with the Liberals to 5%, compared to 14% a year ago.

We also carry details of polls on superannuation, Labour leadership, housing, immigration, and the normal business and consumer confidence polls.

This newsletter is normally only available by e-mail.  If you would like to receive future issues, please go to http://curia.us10.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=e9168e04adbaaaf75e062779e&id=8507431512 to subscribe yourself.

The Herald reports:

Education Minister Hekia Parata sees merit in shifting teacher training to a post-graduate level – saying teaching has one of the lowest barriers to entry of any profession.

The change is opposed by the secondary school teachers’ union, the PPTA, who fear it could worsen teacher supply issues

But Labour’s education spokesman, Chris Hipkins, says it warrants further investigation, and could help ensure all teachers have the required literacy and numeracy skills.

“I definitely see merit in having teaching as a post-graduate qualification,” Hipkins said.

In a significant move, the Education Council is moving towards a position that all people wanting to become teachers – in early childhood, primary and secondary – should be required to have a bachelor-level degree, as well as a post-graduate level qualification in teaching.

This seems worthwhile to me. Finland has an excellent education system, and part of that is because their teachers are highly qualified and valued. It would inevitably mean paying teachers more, but that is fine if it is lifting the standard of teaching in the profession.

Stuff reports:

The Reserve Bank governor’s power over interest rate decisions will be reviewed, after years of denials by the National government that this issue needed to be considered.

Former State Services Commissioner Iain Rennie has been appointed by Treasury to investigate both the Reserve Bank’s process for determining movements in the official cash rate (OCR), and whether the bank should be in charge of the legislation it operates under.

The review was requested by Finance Minister Steven Joyce. …

While Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler insists the decision over whether to raise or lower the OCR is made by committee, that process is voluntarily.

Almost uniquely for central banks anywhere, Wheeler and his predecessors have the sole power over interest rates, which critics warn gives unrivalled power to an unelected official.

RB Governor is a very powerful position. But his job is to adjust the OCR so that (underlying) inflation stays within the target range. The Government sets the target range.

There is a case for having the decision made by a committee, than the Governor alone. A group decision may be more sound than an individual decision. However you would get a reduction in accountability. The Government can hold the Governor responsible for allowing inflation to get too high. A committee can’t really have the same degree of accountability. There is a danger that a committee would be softer on inflation as no one would be at risk of losing their jobs if inflation does creep up.

The Herald reports:

You’ll never earn as much as you do in your 40s, data provided to the Herald by Statistics New Zealand reveals.

Those aged between 40 and 44 earn the most throughout their career, recorded at $1325 per week, but that average dips – by a few dollars – for those slightly older, aged between 45 and 49, at $1323 per week.

The average earnings by age group is:

• Teens $356
• 20s $831
• 30s $1,194
• 40s $1,324
• 50s $1,218
• 60s $941

This is pretty expected. But worth remembering this when people insist that a 16 year old first time worker must be paid 75% of the average wage – you are comparing 16 year olds to those with 25 years experience.

Graeme Edgeler tweets:

Jury unanimous that Little did not defame Mrs Hagaman. Agree he defamed Mr H. at least once. But no agreement on whether he has a defence.

In respect of other causes of action, jury deadlocked. So no order of damages as yet. Could be a new trial.

Retrial limited to questions jury couldn’t agree. Still possibility of settlement, esp. as Mrs H lost, and will be liable for some costs.

This is basically a win for Little. I doubt it will go to a new trial considering the health of Mr Hagaman.

Cameron Slater blogs:

You may recall that I had Colin Craig’s vexatious copyright claim over his dopey poem struck out. …

The judge awarded a fraction of costs, according to the schedule. Colin Craig then asked the judge to revisit the costs award as he thought they were too high, despite being a fraction of the actual costs. …

Colin Craig’s application to reduce around $5,000 in costs awards further has just ended up costing him $32,593.27 in my case and a further $27,938.75 for Jordan Williams.

My God, that is an impressive own goal. You appeal against costs of $5,000 and you end up with costs of over $60,000.

Judge Sharp spares few words in relation to the claim. They include:

• a proceeding involving a deception on the Court
• the processes of the Court had not been fairly or honestly used
• being employed for an ulterior and improper purpose
• proceeding to be manifestly groundless and without foundation
• plaintiff acted vexatiously in continuing this proceeding
• plaintiff acted improperly in defending the summary judgment and strike out applications
• he had been put on notice about the implications of losing
• the process was not fairly or honestly brought, it was manifestly groundless and without foundation
• Mr Craig conducted the proceeding in such a way as to require a good many, otherwise, unnecessary attendances and memoranda to the Court from the defendants

It is hard to conceive of more damning words that a Judge could use. Also hard to think of a worse outcome than appealing against $5,000 costs and ending up escalating it to $60,000.

The Herald reports:

Te Kiri Gold producer Vernon Coxhead said his creation changes the molecular structure of the immune system so the water can penetrate to the bone, then to the cancer cells.

Yeah, no it doesn’t change the molecular structure of the immune system.

Analysis of the results by Dr Nick Kim, from Massey University’s school of public health, concluded the sample tested contained 220 times the amount of free chlorine found in drinking water.

Drinking the maximum recommended daily dose — 600ml — for the full eight-week programme would see consumers digest half a kilo of salt, which could be harmful to kidneys, heart and blood pressure.

Kim says the sample contained the same free chlorine content as a 3 per cent solution of household bleach.

Salt and bleach – the miracle cancer cure.

A list of instructions that comes with postal orders says the water starts killing cancer cells immediately and patients will “feel better” for the first days.

Surely such advertising is illegal?

The Ministry of Health says any product making therapeutic claims is regulated under the Medicines Act 1981.

The act says any medicine must undergo a rigorous assessment and gain approval for use before it can be generally supplied and advertised in New Zealand. It says Te Kiri Gold has not been through a clinical trial or submitted an application for one.

Cancer Society medical director Dr Chris Jackson says because Te Kiri Gold is not licensed the society would not recommend it.

“Any organisation selling a medical treatment that claims to cure cancer, before they have been through clinical trials to … prove safety and effectiveness, is misleading and potentially dangerous.”

Consumer New Zealand says all companies have a legal obligation to ensure their products are safe. Companies that mislead consumers about a product’s benefits face fines of up to $600,000 under the Fair Trading Act.

As they should.

The full eight-week programme costs about $1600.

$1,700 for water, salt and chlorine!

Coxhead says he agonised about having to charge but can’t afford to give it away.

Asked whether it’s ethical and moral to potentially be giving false hope to the sick and vulnerable, he says: “There is no such thing as false hope. You either have hope or you have none.”

That says a lot. He does not care that the hope is false. He is making money from desperate people who are hoping for a miracle cure.

It is possible his “water” does kill some cancer cells. If you drank acid it would also kill some cancer cells. That doesn’t make it a cure.

If he thinks it has any validity, he’d arrange a scientific trial of it.

The SMH reports:

One of Australia’s best-known satirists, John Clarke, has died at the age of 68. 

An ABC spokesman has confirmed John Clarke passed away Sunday while hiking in the Grampians National Park in Victoria. He died from natural causes. ​

The New Zealand-born comedian and writer regularly appeared on Australian television from the late 1970s onwards, starring in everything from Kath and Kim to The Lano and Woodly Show.

Along with Bryan Dawe, he wrote and performed satirical interviews on Channel Nine’s A Current Affair and later the ABC’s 7.30 program, mocking everyone from Paul Keating to George Bush.

We remember John Clarke as Fred Dagg, who was an iconic NZ figure. But he was also a great satirist in Australia. My favourite clip is the one below of Clarke and Dawe on quantitative easing.

In memory of a great New Zealander and a great Australian. Rest in Peace and thanks for the many laughs. We are sadder for your passing.

Stuff reports:

Just five people were eating dinner on a recent weeknight at a Texas church that is a stopping point for newly arrived immigrants on the US-Mexico border. On a typical night last year, hundreds of immigrants might come through the church.

Immigrants who are still coming say many people in their home countries are staying home amid fears about US President Donald Trump’s immigration rhetoric, putting off coming to the US until they see how his policies play out. …

Fewer than 12,500 people were caught at the southern border in March, the lowest monthly figure in at least 17 years and the second straight month that border arrests dropped sharply. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, in testimony submitted to a Senate committee, called the decline “no accident” and credited Trump.

That is a big drop. The previous year saw over 30,000 a month.

Stuff reports:

Sir Douglas Myers, the long-time chief executive of Lion Breweries and Lion Nathan, has passed away. He was 78.

Myers was one of New Zealand’s most prominent businessmen, having worked his way up through Lion Nathan to build a personal fortune estimated to be worth $900 million.  

In 2008, he was diagnosed with bowel cancer and spent much of his later life fighting the disease. In 2013, he revealed that the cancer had returned fiercely. Doctors told him he had only a matter of months to live.

He exceeded the expectations, but sadly it was just delayed.

MP Paul Goldsmith, who co-authored a biography, The Myers, said Myers was passionately committed to improving the country’s economic performance for the good of all Kiwis.

Myers devoted much of his time to supporting the reforms begun in 1984 by the Fourth Labour Government.

Myers said: “I realised that gaining personal satisfaction was dependent on living in a place where everyone could get satisfaction. In a large country, like Brazil, it is possible to tolerate extremes in living standards. Not so in New Zealand. It’s too small; relationships are too intense. So I was convinced that everyone had to strive to be better, to be more productive, so the whole community moved forward. It’s not good enough to live in a beautiful country.

“That’s why you’ve got to kick against the pricks, and get off your chuff and do something. The main beneficiary of the [New Zealand economic reforms of the 1980s], as I saw it, was the average Kiwi.”

Myers was a staunch and consistent advocate for improving New Zealand’s economic performance.

Myers was also a philanthropist, setting up the Sir Douglas Myers Scholarship which awards Year 13 students $100,000 to study at Cambridge University.

He also gave millions of dollars to Auckland University’s Kenneth Myers Arts Centre, and supported the university’s Business School.

My thoughts are with his family and close friends.

UPDATE: A nice piece on him by Jane Phare in the Herald.

Catriona MacLennan writes:

Lawyers continue to peddle rape myths on behalf of their clients.

These myths include:

* Women who consent to sex at night wake up in the morning regretting it and make false rape complaints to cover their regrets.
* A woman who has had sex once with a man has consented to sex with him forever.
* “No” said by women doesn’t mean no and “real men” will keep pressing for sex.
* False rape complaints are common.
* Women’s behaviour or clothing are a justification for rape as men are “led on” by skimpy female clothing.
* Women who are drunk or have used drugs are to blame if they are sexually violated.
* Teen rape is not rape but “adolescent experimentation”.
* Women make up false complaints of rape against famous men to try and extort money.

In promoting these myths, lawyers are disregarding their primary ethical duties. These are not to the client, but rather to the court and to the administration of justice.

The Lawyers and Conveyancers Act states in section 4 that every lawyer must comply with the fundamental obligation “to uphold the rule of law and to facilitate the administration of justice in New Zealand”. 

Both the act and the Conduct and Client Care Rules governing lawyers specifically state that the overriding duty of a lawyer is to the court. 

Obligations to clients are secondary.

Ms McLennan seems to be arguing that if someone is accused of rape, then their lawyer should not be allowed to offer a defence related to consent.

Why not just save time, and say you go straight to jail if accused of rape.

I mean what could possibly go wrong?

It is not that I disagree that some of the above statements are wrong (blaming rape on what someone wears) or uncommon, but that the particulars of an individual case should determine what is allowed in court.

False complaints of rape are certainly not common, but they are not unheard of. The prevalence rate is very hard to quantify, but a number of studies have concluded around 2%.

The Herald reports:

New Zealand should adopt Australian rules and make it illegal not to vote, former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer says.

Palmer, who ran the country as head of the Labour Party from 1989 to 1990, told Radio NZ’s Guyon Espiner that voter apathy had led to Trumpery and Brexit.

“Democratic government around the western world is in some sort of crisis,” Palmer said in the hour-long interview, which is part of new RNZ series The 9th Floor.

“Look at the level of voting in the 2016 New Zealand municipal elections – hardly anyone votes. And yet we’ve got a supercity in Auckland with enormous powers – why would they not vote?

“It’s quite hard to understand. Are they turned off by it? Do they think it doesn’t matter?”

Voting in both local government and parliamentary elections should be enforced, Palmer said.

I disagree. We want more people to vote but you want voters who are informed voters, rather than voters who are voting just to avoid a fine.

The Herald reports:

Allowing children up to the age of 12 to cycle on footpaths with an accompanying adult “has merit”, a new report by the New Zealand Transport Authority (NZTA) has concluded.

Simon Kennett, NZTA senior project manager, said the report recommends children up to the age of 12 and an accompanying adult should be able to ride on the footpath.

Kennett said the NZTA believes children cycle at a lower speed than teenagers and adults, and are typically more obedient of the rules. Changing the law would also enable children to be educated about safe cycling on the footpath.

This seems very sensible to me. You really don’t want young kids on the road and allowing them to use footpaths allows them to build up their bike skills and confidence.

Cycling rates in New Zealand have plummeted from around 12 per cent for primary school students in the 1980s to 2 per cent in 2014, partly because of busier roads and safety concerns.

Would be good to reverse that.

Stuff reports:

Wellington City councillors splashed out $1 million to buy a forest in Tawa despite council officers objecting to the purchase.

Community environmental volunteer group Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves asked the council to bid for the Forest of Tane to save it from developers.

The forest, which comprises 32 hectares of rural-zoned land on the western hills above Tawa, contains 20 hectares of managed pine forest ready for harvest, with the balance in regenerating native forest.

So most of this forest is just a commercial crop of trees.

Minutes from the public-excluded meeting in February, where councillors voted in favour of the purchase, show council officers recommended they did not submit a tender and instead work with the new owners to negotiate a shared walking and cycling connection.

Sounds sensible.

It is also understood the reason the mature pine trees were not milled by the previous owner was because it would cost more to mill them than the milled logs would be worth.

This loss is believed to be one of the reasons some councillors were opposed to the purchase.

Wow has the current owner done well then. Found some people stupid enough to buy a crop that will cost more to harvest than to sell!

Stuff reports:

Every winter Sarah* and Mike make the choice between groceries, or clothes for their children.

Born 14 weeks early, Destiny has a weakened immune system and gets sick easily. Last winter, she missed a whole term of school due to sickness.

Poverty has been labelled the key driver for respiratory illnesses that are weighing on New Zealand’s economy to the tune of $6 billion each year, according to figures from the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation.

But with a family of eight, the $500-odd they get from Work and Income and Mark’s part-time job as a teacher aide only goes so far, Sarah said.

A family of eight?

Maybe have fewer kids. I am all for a welfare system that allows a couple, no matter their income, to support say a couple of kids. But six kids? Surely there should be some personal responsibility about having more kids than you can afford.

538 have analysed the statements of the 100 US Senators on Trump’s air strike in Syria.

Overall 79 Senators support Trump, 15 have no clear position and six are opposed.

By party 63% of Democratic Senators are supportive, 27% have no clear position and 10% are opposed.

For Republicans 94% are supportive, 4% no clear position and 2% opposed.

Stuff reports:

At present plant research company Scion based in Rotorua carries out GE trials on radiata pine trees, but the plants are destroyed afterwards.

At its Grasslands site in Palmerston North, AgResearch scientists have developed GE ryegrass that yields 50 per cent more but lowers methane levels in livestock. The plants will be shipped to the United States for testing because of New Zealand’s strict laws.

So GE ryegrass can lower our level of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, yet we can’t even test it in New Zealand. Madness.

The Washington Post reports:

The U.S. Senate confirmed Neil M. Gorsuch to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, capping more than a year of bitter partisan bickering over the ideological balance of the nation’s highest court.

On a vote of 54 to 45, senators confirmed Gorsuch, 49, a Denver-based judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. He will become the 113th person to serve on the Supreme Court and is scheduled to be sworn in Monday.

Justice Gorsuch is just 49 years old. He is likely to be on the Supreme Court for 30 or more years.

The age of the existing Justices is:

1. Ruth Bader Ginsburg 84
2. Anthony Kennedy 80
3. Stephen Breyer 78
4. Clarence Thomas 68
5. Samuel Alito 67
6. John Roberts 62
7. Sonia Sotomayor 62
8. Elena Kagan 56

It is not impossible that the Supreme Court could go from the 4-1-4 balance of the last couple of decades to a 7-2 conservative majority that could last for 10 – 20 years.

The Law and Order Committee of Parliament has recommended:

Sale and supply of firearms and ammunition

• 1 that the law be amended so that a firearms licence is required to possess ammunition, unless the person in possession of the ammunition is under the immediate supervision of a firearms licence holder (page 7).
• 2 that the law be amended so that a firearms dealer’s licence be required to sell or supply ammunition by way of a business (page 7).
• 3 that the law be amended so that dealers be required to keep records of sales of ammunition (page 8).
• 4 that it create a Police registration process for websites that wish to facilitate the buying, selling, or trading of firearms, parts of firearms, or ammunition online. It would be an offence to operate such a website without current registration (page 8).
• 5 that the permit to procure process be extended to cover the sale or transfer of all firearms (page 9). Definition of military-style semi-automatics
• 6 that the Police investigate the creation of a category of restricted semi-automatic firearm (rifle and shotgun) to replace the MSSA firearm endorsement category (page 10). Effectiveness of licensing, training, and registering firearms
• 7 that firearms prohibition orders be implemented in New Zealand (page 12).
• 8 that the Police Arms Manual guidelines on determining who is fit and proper to possess firearms be codified within the Arms Act 1983, with any necessary modifications, to improve the overall certainty and consistency of the licensing process (page 13).
• 9 that it implement a stand-down period after revocation of a licence, before a new application for a firearms licence can be made (page 13).
• 10 that the Arms Act 1983 be amended to clearly state that a gang member or prospect must not be considered a fit and proper person to possess firearms and therefore must not hold a firearms licence (page 15).
• 11 that the law be amended to require the Police to record the serial numbers of all firearms possessed by licence holders upon renewal of their licence or inspection of their premises (page 16).

Criminal offending with firearms

• 12 that it review the penalties in the Arms Act 1983 (page 18).
• 13 that the law be amended so that where a dealer has committed an offence under the Arms Act 1983, the court must treat this as an aggravating factor at sentencing (page 18).
• 14 that the Police undertake further work to determine appropriate security standards for “A” category firearms (page 19).
• 15 that the law be amended to make it clear that the secure storage requirements must be met to the satisfaction of the Police, before a licence or endorsement can be issued (page 19).
• 16 that it extend the power under regulation 29 to allow the Police to enter premises to inspect the security of “A” category firearms (page 19).
• 17 that the Arms Act 1983 be amended so that failure to comply with the storage regulations must result in revocation of a firearms licence (page 19).

Reducing the number of grey firearms

• 18 that it clarify the amnesty in section 10 of the Arms Act 1983 and extend it to include MSSAs, “A” category firearms, and the handing in of firearms to the Police (page 21).
• 19 that the Police develop policy guidance so that, under the amnesty, when people hand in firearms that are unlawfully in their possession, or report firearms lost, stolen, or destroyed, the Police will have the discretion not to prosecute for the possession offence, subject to police inquiries not revealing offending other than breach of lawful possession of firearms(s) under the Arms Act 1983 (page 21).

Importing firearms into New Zealand

• 20 that it ensure that visitors who have imported firearms and have been in the country for up to twelve months for a sporting holiday or competition should have the export of the firearms checked by the Police when they leave New Zealand (page 24).

The recommendations were backed in full by the National, Labour and Green MPs on the committee, and in part by NZ First.