Stuff reports:

Mediaworks’ under-fire chief executive Mark Weldon says New Zealand is “very low” in broadcast hours for reality television – signalling further investment in reality shows by the broadcaster.

While its news division is in turmoil after a string of exits headlined by star news anchor Hilary Barry, Mediaworks is focusing on producing more reality TV by forming a new company, Bravo New Zealand.

It’s a partnership with NBCUniversal – which makes shows such as Keeping up with the Kardashians, Million Dollar Listing and Real Housewives – which provides content to 176 territories worldwide, across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and Asia Pacific. …

Mediaworks will close the youth-oriented channel FOUR in July and replace it with Bravo New Zealand. Bravo will screen reality shows such as Million Dollar Listing, Top Chef, Shahs of Sunset, Flipping Out and The Real Housewives.

The first local offering on the channel, The Real Housewives of Auckland, launches in August.

Weldon said MediaWorks had identified a gap in the market for female-oriented reality programming, which tends to engender loyal and passionate fans. 

As a commercial decision, this makes sense. Reality TV stars don’t cost anything in terms of salaries, and actors do.

I don’t watch much reality TV, as I just don’t have the time any more. But they can be quite addictive. I used to watch The Amazing Race and Survivor heaps.

The Real Housewives of Auckland sounds somewhat compelling. Not for me, but I can see it doing well.

Nina Rees writes:

The latest U.S. News & World Report ranking of the best high schools in America is particularly strong on this point. U.S. News ranked schools on the basis of academic quality, as reflected in test scores. But rather than simply take into account raw data, U.S. News also looked at which schools are serving all students, across socioeconomic backgrounds. This year, for the first time, schools also had to meet a minimum graduation rate requirement.

Given the emphasis on serving all students at high levels of quality, it’s no surprise that charter schools are disproportionately represented on the list. Charter schools are public schools that are given greater autonomy and freedom in exchange for raising student achievement. They tend to cater to a largely minority and disadvantaged student population, particularly in inner cities. Though they only account for about 7 percent of public schools in the United States, they make up one-third of the top 100 schools in both the U.S. News and Washington Post lists. About 1.5 million students have graduated from charter high schools over the past 25 years.

Tell me again why some are so against charter schools? Oh it’s because they are not controlled by unions/

The SMH reports:

The Productivity Commission has recommended the free import of books, the free use of copyrighted material under new so-called “fair use” rules, a leglislated guarantee that consumers have the right to defeat internet geoblockers and much tighter restrictions on the granting and use of patents, under reforms it says could save consumers up to $1 billion a year.

Consumers should also have a legislated right to defeat internet geoblocks set by such companies as Amazon, it says.

Subtitled Copy(not)right, the draft report of the commission’s nine-month inquiry into intellectual property finds copyright terms are way in excess of what is needed, offering more than 100 years of protection for works that ought to be protected for 15 to 20 years.

The NZ Government should look seriously at this report when reviewing our copyright laws. If intellectual property laws are too tight, they damage the economy, just as they do if they are too loose also. Overall the laws are too tight.

Protecting intellectual property for over 100 years is silly. There won’t be one less invention or work because it was protected for say only 30 years instead of 100.

It backs proposals to introduce an open-ended and non-prescriptive right of “fair use” of copyrighted material that would allow many uses presently illegal in Australia, including the use of thumbnail images by search engines, the “quotation” of lyrics or song fragments in songs, the use of politicians’ jingles by their opponents in election advertisements, and the use of extracts from films in documentaries.

Fair use is essential to a country. Without it you couldn’t quote what anyone says.

The report says Australia’s patent rules are too lax, requiring claimed inventors to provide evidence of a “mere scintilla of invention” in order to lock up the use of their ideas. Patent fees should be higher and applicants should be required to explain why their ideas are not obvious, it says.

Many patents seem to be about blocking innovation rather than fostering it.

Consumers should have a legislated right to defeat geoblocks imposed by companies such as Netflix and Amazon in order to prevent Australians buying products sold overseas. The law that at present prevents Australian retailers importing books without the permission of local publishers should be repealed in the same way as the laws preventing the import of music without local publishers were repealed.

A great proposal. NZ should follow.

So what should voters in the US do if they want to vote for a presidential candidate who believes in free trade, lower taxes etc? Donald Trump is arguably even more protectionist than Bernie Sanders.

Well there are actually four parties that will be on the ballot in enough states that they could in theory win a majority of the electoral college. They are:

• Democrats – Hillary Clinton (probable)
• Greens – Jill Stein (probable)
• Libertarian – Gary Johnson (likely, 2012 candidate)
• Republicans – Donald Trump (presumptive)

Now sometimes the libertarian candidate is a fringe candidate. But Gary Johnson is in fact a popular former two term Republican Governor of New Mexico. Of course he won’t win the presidential election, but he is the candidate that true conservatives, libertarians and Republicans should support and vote for.

His record as Governor of New Mexico is superb. In summary:

• Vetoed more spending bills (750 in total) than the other 49 Governors combined
• School vouchers advocate
• Cut the 10% annual growth in the state budget
• Applied a cost-benefit analysis to all spending bills
• Supported marijuana decriminalisation
• Left the state with a large budget surplus

Only two of his vetoes were over-ridden, and he got reelected.

He is also incredibly fit – has completed several iron man triathlons and climbed the highest peaks in all seven continents (including Everest). Before politics he set up his own business and grew it to eventually employ 1,000 staff.

Who should be your second choice after Johnson, if you have to choose between Trump and Clinton?

Well Trump is far more virulent against free trade and advocates massive 45% tariffs. He is advocating as much spending as Clinton, and his budget proposals would see the US with a much higher and crippling deficit (around $15 trillion increase in debt). He also campaigned on breaching several rights in the Bill of Rights, advocates killing innocent family members and torture, and most of his policies are barely coherent. He also is an anti-vaxxer, opposes any reduction in social security and medicare entitlements and wants a higher ethanol mandate.

If it was a choice between Trump and Clinton, one can only choose Clinton. It’s not even close.

Now who would you rank 3rd and 4th comparing Trump to Jill Stein of the Green Party?

Stein advocates creating fake green jobs for every American out of work., cutting military spending by 30%, increasing taxes and nationalising the Federal Reserve and most utilities.

It’s tough, but she has even worse policies than Donald Trump.

So my order of preference would be:

1. Gary Johnson
2. Hillary Clinton
3. Donald Trump
4. Jill Stein

Stuff reports:

Former NZ First Minister, now national advocate for Unicef Deborah Morris-Travers has been appointed chief of staff for the Green Party. 

She’ll fill the role left by the resignation of long-time staffer Andrew Campbell, who said he was departing to try something new. 

Campbell’s resignation was the latest in a series of high-profile departures from the party.

This is a good appointment by the Greens. Deborah was a good and effective Minister, and since leaving Parliament in 1999 has proven skills in the wider political arena.

Her biggest challenge may be internal, not external. Losing your three most senior staffers within three months is not a coincidence. Staff are frustrated with the decision making process within the Greens.

The Herald reports:

Speaker David Carter has slapped down speculation he wants a top diplomatic posting – after New Zealand First leader Winston Peters intimated he would block such an appointment if in power.

After Mr Peters’ comments yesterday, Mr Carter has taken the unusual step of delivering a press statement to press gallery reporters, denying he wanted a change of job.

“Despite persistent media speculation, it has never been my interest or intention to become New Zealand’s High Commissioner in London,” the statement read.

“I am honoured to be Speaker of the House of Representatives. I enjoy the role, and intend to carry on with that role as long as I have the confidence of the House.”

High Commissioner to Britain Sir Lockwood Smith will step down early next year when his term ends.

This afternoon Foreign Minister Murray McCully said a decision on his replacement was in its final stages and focussed on one candidate, who was not a politician.

“I can tell you that Mr Carter’s name has not featured … we have somebody in prospect for London, who is not a Member of Parliament … I’m not expecting Mr Peters to be very upset when he finds out who it is.”

Anyone who knows David Carter knows that he was not wanting to be the High Commissioner to the UK.

In a speech to students at Victoria University yesterday, Mr Peters attacked the “brorocracy” of recent diplomatic appointments.

“As an example of how meritocracy has been abandoned in favour of a mainly white brorocracy look no further than how some of our high commissioners and ambassadors are being appointed.

The hypocrisy is high with this one.

Winston is the guy who lobbied Helen Clark insistently to make Owen Glenn the Honorary Consul to Monaco, after Glenn paid off his legal bills for him.

The Herald reports:

The days of local politicians double-dipping on the Super City have ended after a bill by National list MP Alfred Ngaro passed into law last night.

Under the new law, candidates standing for Local Boards will no longer be able to serve on more than one Local Board.

At least three Local Board members — Lisa Whyte (Upper Harbour/Hibiscus and Bays), Warren Flaunty (Rodney/Henderson-Massey) and Grant Gillon (Kaipatiki/Devonport-Takapuna) — sit on two boards. Mr Flaunty sat on three boards in the first term of the Super City.

Board members earn between about $22,000 and $41,000 a year. Board chairs earn between about $50,000 and $91,000.

Ms Whyte, who chairs the Upper Harbour Local Board, is paid $110,900 for her two roles — more than the $101,900 salary of a councillor.

Mr Flaunty is paid $78,900 and Mr Gillon $79,000 for their two roles respectively.

The Local Government (Auckland Council) Amendment Bill (No 3), Mr Ngaro said, would prevent double-dipping and protect against conflicts of interest.

Excellent. It was a nonsense to have these professional politicians double dipping and claiming to represent multiple areas.

Over the last few years I’ve been putting together my family tree. Having now got as much info as it looks like I can gather, I thought I’d blog on my family tree, it may be a useful source of info for relatives and the like, and perhaps of some interest to others.

Basically I’m going to cover the families of my eight great grand-parents (none of whom I met/remember – they died between 1920 and 1969). The four families initially are on my mother’s aide and are:

• Auton
• Milne
• Clemens
• Newth

I’ll start with the Newths as they are the branch I can trace back the furthest.

My 12th great grand father was Thomas Newth. He was born in Horsley, Gloucestershire (England) in 1530 and died in 1583 or 1583 in Horsley or Dursley. His wife was Joan Byrde.

He has six children, and his oldest son Thomas born in 1556 is my 11th great father. Thomas lives to 74 and died in 1630 in Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire. His wife was Margaret Whitterne. They had one son called John Newth who died in 1627, before his father.

John Newth, my 10th great grand father was born in 1571 and died in 1627 in Wootton Bassett. He married Jane and had three children. The oldest, Johis, was born in 1597 in Malmesbury, baptised in Wootton Bassett and died in 1629 aged just 32. Johis was a glazier.

He had three children before he died with Joan Bungne. The youngest was called Robert Filius Johis Newth. He was born in 1625 and in Malmesbury and is my 8th great grand father. He died in 1676 aged around 51 and had one child with Margaret Bosse. He was also a glazier/

Mark Newth was born in 1663 and died in 1729, aged 66. His second marriage to Eleanor White produced four children, and the third oldest Thomas was born in 1707. He lived until 1776 in Malmesbury.

Malmesbury incidentally was prominent in the Middle Ages as a centre of learning due to Malmesbury Abbey.

Thomas married Alice Hawkins in 1730 and they had six children. Thomas was in a trade as he was a master who had an apprentice – a Jas Holden. His 4th oldest son John was my 5th great grand father, born in 1737 and died in 1797. He married Jane Ogbourne in 1762 and they had five children.

The oldest, Thomas Newth, is my 4th great grand father. Thomas Newth was born in 1762 in Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, his father, John, was 25 and his mother, Jane, was 22. He married Elizabeth Horsell and they had seven children together. He then married Mary Brain and they had one daughter together. He died in August 1852 in Crickdale, Wiltshire, at the impressive age of 90.

Their sixth oldest son Mark Newth in my 3rd great grand father. He was born in 1802 in Wootton Bassett and emigrated out to New Zealand in 1842. He was the foreman of the NZ Company’s preliminary expedition to Nelson under Captain Wakefield.

He married Ann Nancy Bye on February 24, 1825, in Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire. They had 11 children in 12 years. In 1873 he had his 48th wedding anniversary with 57 children, grand children and great grand children. Their marriage lasted 60 years until Ann Nancy died in 1886.

He died on July 19, 1888, in Nelson of bronchitis having lived a long life of 86 years, and was buried at the Waimea West cemetery.

His oldest son was Mark Daniel Newth, born in 1827 when his father was 25 and mother 19. He came to NZ as a 15 year old boy with his family and married Harriet Norris in 1848 in Nelson. Two of his sisters died in 1842 on the same day. Mark and Harriet were married 51 years, had 11 children and she died in 1900. After her death he moved to Foxton where he died in 1911.

In Waimea West, Mark worked as labourer and then took on farming, owning a freehold property. During his time in Waimea he was one of the appointed trustees of the Waimea East Churchyard. After he moved north to Foxton he was employed as a labourer then flax miller/cutter.

Mark’s second oldest son was called John Newth and he is my great grand father. He was born in Nelson in 1850 and married Elizabeth Ann Clemens in 1883 in Picton. They had eleven children.

His early years were in Marlborough where he was the publican for the Empire Hotel and also a miner at Wairau. He played cricket for the Blenheim Cricket Club.

John Newth was a member of the first Waihi Borough Council, formed in 1902. Six years later he was elected Mayor, which office he held for four consecutive terms. He was a labourer and inaugural president of the Waihi Miners’ Union serving for five years until 1907. He was elected Mayor in 1908.

He died just seven years after his father in November 1918 as a victim of the influenza epidemic.

My grand father, Mark Edward (called Ted) Newth was born in Waihi in 1901 and died in 1975 when I was eight. He had two children with my grandmother, Kathleen (Kath) Milne – my mother Kay and uncle Mark.  Ted was born in Auckland and lived and died in Pukerua Bay.He married Kath in 1934.

Ted worked for the Railways as a line erector.

So on my mother’s father’s father’s side of the family the Newths come from the Cotswalds in England and were there from the 1500s or earlier. They emigrated to NZ in 1842 and so on their side of the family I am a sixth generation New Zealanders. And my great grand father was both a Mayor and a union president!

An interesting article in the Herald:

The tiny Waikato town of Kerepehi once resembled one of those semi-deserted rural communities unkindly referred to as “zombie towns”.

The dairy factory had long ceased operations, the War Memorial Hall and domain were seldom used and a close-knit rural community – which proudly sent 15 soldiers to World War I and 49 to World War II – mustered only 429 residents last census night.

But this dot on State Highway 2, between Ngatea and Paeroa, is emerging as an industrial and food technology hub.

Industrial sections are both well serviced and relatively cheap, proximity to two major ports has been noted far and wide and the moniker “Edmonds Town” seems most apt; like the famous baking powder this place seems “sure to rise”.

Transformation began a few years ago, when the Hauraki District Council spent $9 million upgrading the town’s water treatment plant to accommodate existing farms, plus future industrial growth. The council also approved a plant to process waste water from food processing.

Then Hauraki Mayor John Tregidga led an economic delegation to China and Taiwan to promote Kerepehi and its useful proximity to both Tauranga and Auckland Ports.

In 2014 the previously derelict dairy factory was taken over by Chinese-owned icecream manufacturer Allied Faxi Food Company.

The plant has been converted into an export-focused ice cream manufacturing plant, employing 15 staff sourced from local townships including: Kerepehi, Ngatea, Paeroa and Thames. Plans exist to ramp up workforce numbers to 50 by the end of the year, as offshore demand for product grows.

So the Council invested in some infrastructure and went out and sought foreign investment. And the result is a revival.

Some 23 industrial building sites immediately opposite the dairy factory have been tagged for future development. Seven of these – from 2020sq m to 12,392sq m – have been sold through Bayleys Hamilton.

Commercial and industrial sales specialist Josh Smith credits the visionary council with the success of Kerepehi’s Hauraki Park food hub.

He points out that the council removed development contribution fees, making it cheaper for developers to build new premises. Savings were passed on to incoming tenants or owner/occupiers.

“Hauraki District Council has taken some bold and innovative moves to attract new business to the region, and that’s a strategy which has certainly paid off. Employment is on the up and economic activity in the region has grown through on-going building and construction project work being undertaken,” he said.

Sounds like the Council is doing a good job.

Stuff reports:

Air New Zealand refused to let a woman board her flight to Tonga because the aircraft had reached its upper weight limit.

Auckland woman Alex Catchpole-Ozpınar was supposed to board her 9.30am flight to Tonga on Monday for a five day holiday but was turned away at the Air NZ check-in counter because her aircraft had reached its weight limit.

Catchpole-Ozpınar said she was told by a manager that if an aircraft weighed too much they kicked off the person who was last to book online.

The flight was not fully booked, Air New Zealand said.

Catchpole-Ozpınar said she booked her airfare in February. She tried to check in two-and-a-half hours before her departure time.

“This is such a screw-up. I expected way better from Air New Zealand,” she said in a post on the airline’s Facebook page.

Her mother, Leanne Catchpole, was already in Tonga waiting for Catchpole-Ozpınar to arrive.

She said the airline had only saved about 70kg by excluding her daughter and her carry-on bag from the flight.

“They didn’t try to contact her either to let her know not to bother to make the trip out to the airport,” she said.

Air NZ responded to the Facebook post with a link to its conditions of carriage which outline that it may refuse to carry any item for safety or operational reasons.

Catchpole-Ozpınar’s five day holiday in Tonga was shortened due to the disruption and her accommodation was non-refundable.

“I was hoping for a positive experience but I feel discouraged to fly with you to the Pacific again.”

She was rebooked on a Tuesday flight but Air NZ said she would need to contact her travel insurance provider regarding accommodation expenses.

This is really bad customer service from Air NZ.

Sometimes flights may be overbooked or be at weight capacity.

But what a good airline should do (and is common in the US) is offer rewards (such as free upgrades or airpoint dollars) to passengers willing to delay their flight. Not just destroy’s someone’s travel plans who has done nothing wrong.

In the US I’ve happily accepted a flight delay in exchange for an upgrade and/or free accommodation.

I’d be ropable if an airline ever simply refused to let me board a plane I had a paid ticket for, simply because they have over booked or are at weight capacity. You should pay people to volunteer to delay in those circumstances.

John Key has joined Linked In.

People normally do this as a way to get their CV out there to future employers. So if the PM looking for a new job as he is going to retire at the end of the year? Maybe beating Labour for a 4th time is not longer challenging enough!

Newshub reports:

The woman who shut National MP Parmjeet Parmar out of a citizenship ceremony says the “political pillow talk” attack on her and her husband is “offensive”

Julie Fairey, who is married to Labour’s likely Mount Roskill candidate Michael Wood, described Dr Parmar’s allegation she was blocked from the ceremony to give him a political advantage as “sad”.

“As a woman in politics, I identify as a feminist, I’ve been involved in women’s issues for a long time and I find it pretty frustrating to be reduced to basically an appendage of my husband and it happens more than you think in this day and age,” Ms Fairey said.

Dr Parmar put out a press statement saying she was stopped from going because of “political pillow talk” and has laid an official complaint with Auckland Council.

Ms Fairey is the Puketapapa local board chair and decides who can attend the ceremonies.

The row has blown up because Mr Wood and Dr Parmar are likely to face off in a Mt Roskill by-election later this year if Phil Goff wins the Auckland Mayoralty. 

Ms Fairey said she was within the rules as only locally elected MPs were allowed to come — and Dr Parmar was a list MP. 

Mr Wood is allowed to go because he is also an elected member of the Puketepapa local board.

I’m sorry but this is fairly outrageous behaviour.

Sure only Electorate MPs have a right to attend, but many many Councils invite or allow any local MPs. I know Chris Bishop in the Hutt Valley has attended ceremonies as a List MP.

The question to Ms Fairey has to be what harm is done by allowing other local MPs to attend. Does she think aspiring citizens want fewer MPs at their ceremonies? Is Ms Fairey acting in the interests of the aaaspiring citizens by refusing a local MP to attend?

The fact her husband is the likely Labour Party candidate against Dr Parmar is of course relevant. Nothing to do with being sexist. If it was Ms Fairey standing for Labour and Mr Wood the local Chair blocking Dr Parmar, the behaviour would be just as objectionable.

Citizenship ceremonies should not be partisan affairs. Any MP should be welcome. So should any Councillor. The aspiring citizens certainly would want more representatives there, not less.

Auckland Council says it is bound by the Local Government Act and can’t change the rules. 

There is no rule that says only certain people are allowed. In fact the Citizenship Regulations 2002 says:

The oath of allegiance set out in Schedule 1 of the Act, or an affirmation to the same effect, may be taken—

• (a)in New Zealand, before—

  • (i)a District Court Judge; or

  • (ii)a solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand; or

  • (iii)a Justice of the Peace; or

  • (iv)a member of Parliament; or

  • (v)the mayor or deputy mayor of a territorial authority; or

  • (vi)the chairperson or deputy chairperson of a regional council; or

  • (vii)the chairperson of a local board of the Auckland Council; or

  • (viii)the Secretary; or

  • (ix)an officer of the Armed Forces who holds a rank not below that of lieutenant-commander in the Navy, major in the Army, or squadron leader in the Air Force, in the case of a person who is a member of the regular forces, reserve forces, or territorial forces (as those terms are defined insection 2(1) of the Defence Act 1990):

Note it refers to a Member of Parliament, not just Electorate Members of Parliament. So if all MPs are eligible to actually perform a citizenship ceremony, doesn’t it look very petty to ban one from attending?

UPDATE: Also the sensible think for Ms Fairey to do would have been to recuse herself from decision making on the attendance of Dr Parmar, on the basis she is the likely opponent to her husband.

UPDATE2: Fairey has commented below. It turns out that the Board and Council was acting illegally as the law mandates that citizenship ceremonies must be public.  An updated story is here. It remains a very bad look to not just have tried to block Dr Parmar from attending, but even worse to not know they are public meetings, not private meetings.

Ruth Dysons’ Rates Rebate (Retirement Village Residents) Amendment Bill got drawn from the ballot.

The purpose is:

The rates rebate scheme was introduced in 1973 to allow ratepayers of residential properties who are on low incomes to receive a rebate on their rates. This was before the expansion of retirement villages and occupation right agreements (ORAs). Residents of retirement villages with ORAs pay rates but, in most circumstances, pay indirectly (i.e. to the retirement village owner) rather than directly to the local authority. Under the Rates Rebate Act 1973, these residents are not entitled to a rates rebate. It is this anomaly that this Bill addresses.

Some local authorities have changed their rating practice so that individual residents with ORAs are billed directly for their rates. In these instances, the residents are entitled to apply for a rates rebate. This amendment would ensure that, regardless of the billing practice of the local authority, residents are recognised as paying rates, and are therefore entitled to apply for a rates rebate.

Looks like a sensible bill, and at first glance can’t see any reason why all MPs shouldn’t support it.

The order paper is here.

Oral Questions 2.00 pm – 3.00 pm

1. RON MARK to the Minister for Land Information: Why is her Government planning to hike Overseas Investment Office application fees?
2. ALFRED NGARO to the Minister of Finance: What steps has the Government taken to deliver Better Public Services to support New Zealand families?
3. Hon ANNETTE KING to the Minister of Health: Will core Crown health expenditure in 2016/17 meet all health demographic and inflationary cost pressures; if not, why not?
4. JAMES SHAW to the Minister of Revenue: How many times did the Minister meet with representatives from the foreign trust industry between 27 November 2014 and 14 May 2015, and what other stakeholders did he meet with during that time period to discuss foreign trusts?
5. PHIL TWYFORD to the Minister responsible for HNZC: Does he have confidence in Housing New Zealand’s handling of procurement and conflict of interest issues in light of the Auditor-General’s report into the contracting of Andrew Body Ltd to advise on the sale of state housing?
6. JAMI-LEE ROSS to the Minister for Building and Housing:What does the latest data show about the growth in residential construction in Auckland?
7. CHRIS HIPKINS to the Minister of Education: Does she agree with Hon Bill English that a lot of Kiwis are “pretty damned hopeless” and “they can’t read and write properly”; if so, does she accept any responsibility as Minister of Education?
8. CATHERINE DELAHUNTY to the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Will he, or a Cabinet Minister on his behalf, meet with senior church leader and human rights defender Reverend Socratez Yoman from West Papua next week at Parliament when he visits; if not, why not?
9. MELISSA LEE to the Minister of Immigration: What recent announcements has he made to help attract entrepreneurs to New Zealand?
10. RON MARK to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his statements?
11. JONATHAN YOUNG to the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage: What announcements has she made on funding for regional cultural facilities?
12. JENNY SALESA to the Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment: Is he confident in his oversight of the tertiary education sector, given that over the next five years there is estimated to be a 58 percent shortfall in the number of plumbers required in Auckland alone?

National: Four questions on better public services, Auckland housing, immigration and Arts & Culture

Labour: Four questions on health spending, Housing NZ, education x 2

Greens: Two questions on foreign trusts and West Papua

NZ First: Two questions on the OIO and PM standing by is statements

Government Bills 3.00 pm to 6.00 pm

New Zealand Public Health and Disability (Southern DHB) Elections Bill – first reading

This bill exempts the Southern District Health Board from the 2016 triennial general election as it will be governed by a commissioner until the 2019 triennial general election.

• Introduced: December 2015
• 1st reading: December 2015, passed 95 to 26 with Greens and NZ First opposed
• SC report: April 2016, supported without amendment and without dissent

The second reading is a debate of 12 speeches of up to 10 minutes each so a maximum debate of two hours

Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Bill – third reading

This bill provide governance arrangements for the Canterbury Regional Council to operate during the 2016 to 2019 local authority election-cycle period”, being seven elected Councillors and six appointed Counillors.

• Introduced August 2015
• 1st reading: October 2015, passed 62 to 59 with Labour, Greens, NZ First and United Future against
• SC report: February 2016, supported with amendments by majority with Labour and Greens dissenting
• 2nd reading: March 2016, passed 62 to 59 with Labour, Greens, NZ First and United Future against
• Committee of the whole House: passed 63 to 58 with Labour, Greens and NZ First opposed

The second reading is a debate of 12 speeches of up to 10 minutes each so a maximum debate of two hours

The Spectator reports:

On 26 October last year, the Spanish government shut up shop in preparation for a general election. This duly took place in December but then a strange thing happened: after all the build-up, the arguments, the posters and the television coverage, the result was… nothing. The various parties were so balanced, so mutually distrustful and ill-assorted that no government could be formed. Since last October, therefore, there has been no government in Spain.

One can imagine that the average political correspondent would think this a terrible problem, maybe even a crisis. The Financial Times has referred to Spain ‘enduring’ months of ‘political uncertainty’. This is assumed to be a matter requiring furrowed brows and grave tones. But the economy seems to be taking a different view of the matter. It is bowling along more breezily than in a long time. The growth rate during the final quarter of last year was an annualised 2.9 per cent, which, in these days of dismal Euro-growth, is a star performance — easily beating the pants off Italy, France and even Germany.

I think Belgium once went an entire year with no Government, and did quite well also.

Switzerland probably has the weakest central government in all Europe. It is so puny that it does not even have a minister of education. Yet Switzerland is the most successful of all the European economies if one leaves out small tax havens and oil-rich Norway. Its GDP per capita is £52,000 compared with Britain’s modest £28,000.

Governments generally do not create economic growth, they just inhibit it to varying degrees. Sure they do some good stuff with their tax revenue, but they don’t create the economic growth. Private firms do.

If governments were boyfriends, you would call them control freaks. The controls and regulations are always ostensibly for the good of the people. But the unintended damage is extraordinary and vastly underrated.

Great line.

Tech Crunch reports:

A convoy of self-driving trucks recently drove across Europe and arrived at the Port of Rotterdam. No technology will automate away more jobs — or drive more economic efficiency — than the driverless truck.

Jo Coughlan announced:

Mayoral Candidate Jo Coughlan today said when it came to the airport runway extension, she would be weighing up Wellington’s long-term interest not the short-term interests of airlines. And if the city did invest, it would need to be reflected in its ownership stake in the airport, not a donation.  

“I am concerned about Wellington’s long term interest, not the short-term perspective of existing airlines. We need more long-term thinking. And we need to ensure that any investment made by the city is reflected in the city’s shareholding in the airport. It should not be a donation to the airport,“ Ms Coughlan said today.    …

“I am yet to see the business case, but on the face of it, extending the airport has merit. Of course how it gets paid for matters as well. 

In a significant policy announcement Ms Coughlan said: “In my view additional investment put into the airport extension by the city should be reflected in some way in the city’s ownership stake.  There are many ways this could potentially be achieved and I would be open to considering how the city’s investment is not seen merely as a donation,” Coughlan concluded. 

Pleased to see a Mayoral candidate saying any WCC contribution should not just be a donation. If there is to be a contribution beyond the current shareholding, then maybe it can be way of purchase of extra shares, which gives the Council a greater ownership stake.

Coughlan is also saying she wishes to double tunnel the Mt Victoria and The Terrace Tunnels. Both badly needed. We need four lanes from the airport to Levin. Having less than four lanes at any one point, means the entire network will be slowed to that point.

Stuff reports:

Lawyer Duncan Webb is seeking to stand for the Labour Party in Christchurch Central after representing many Canterbury homeowners struggling with earthquake claims.

Webb, a long-time Labour Party member and insurance expert, has announced his intention to stand for Christchurch Central, after nominations closed last week.

National’s Nicky Wagner won the traditional Labour stronghold by only 47 votes in 2011, ousting former journalist Brendon Burns.

The associate Christchurch regeneration minister retained the seat in 2014 against Labour candidate Tony Milne and increased her majority.

Wagner increased it to 2,320 last time. Hopefully it will increase even more in 2017.

In 2014 Labour only got 26.3% of the party vote in Christchurch Central.

Christchurch Central should “never be a National seat”, he said.

“It’s full of ordinary, working people with small businesses and [the electorate] isn’t well served by a Government looking simply at running a surplus.”

If it is full of working people with small businesses, then why would they vote Labour who are looking at paying everyone not to work, and wish to abolish the right of small businesses to have 90 day grievance free trials for new staff.

Major aspects are:

• threshold for 37% tax rate moves from $80,000 to $87,000
• a “temporary” 2% tax hike on income over $180,000 to end in 2017
• company tax rate to reduce to 25%
• $594 million for a rail link from Brisbane to Melbourne
• $2 billion for water infrastructure
• Cigarette excise up 12.5% a year for four years
• Deficits to continue until at least 2020 with A$37b this year

If I was in Australia I’d be fairly unimpressed with another five or more years of deficits and a take hike on top income earners.

Expect to see the flow to NZ continue.

Stats NZ reports:

The unemployment rate increased to 5.7 percent in the March 2016 quarter (from a revised 5.4 percent), while the labour force grew 1.5 percent, Statistics New Zealand said today. This was the largest increase in New Zealand’s labour force since December 2004.

“The total labour force increased by 38,000 people in the March 2016 quarter,” labour market and households statistics senior manager Jason Attewell said. “This resulted in more New Zealanders in unemployment and employment than three months ago.”

The growth in people employed (1.2 percent) exceeded the growth in the working-age population (0.8 percent) this quarter. This resulted in the employment rate going up to 65.1 percent (from 64.9 percent). Employment increased for men and women this quarter, including for women going into full-time employment (10,600 people). Compared with a year ago, 47,000 more people were employed (2.0 percent).

47,000 more people working is not bad.

The increase in the unemployment rate was expected as the previous quarter had dropped 0.7%, and to some degree this is probably a correction (the HLFS has sampling margin of error like any poll).

From a year ago:

• Employment up 2.0%
• Unemployment down 0.3%
• Unemployment rate down 0.1%
• Average ordinary time hourly earnings up 2.4%

Amy Adams has announced:

Communications Minister Amy Adams has welcomed today’s signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between InternetNZ and the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) on the management of the .nz domain name.

“The agreement will help ensure this important resource continues to be managed in a transparent way that supports the interests of the local internet community and end users of digital services,” says Ms Adams.

The Memorandum of Understanding sets expectations for how InternetNZ will operate the domain name in the interests of New Zealand internet users, and sets out a process for dealing with any concerns between parties.

It provides a clear statement of how the relationship between InternetNZ and MBIE should operate.

“A stable, reliable, and responsive domain name system is a key part of a modern communications infrastructure.

“The success of the .nz domain name lies in consulting with, and being accountable to, New Zealand internet users,” says Ms Adams.

That accountability is key, and I think it is great to have this agreement. In many countries Governments run the country code top level domain or have passed laws dictating how it should be run. In New Zealand, we have an open multi stakeholder approach to Internet policy.

The MOU is here. It is almost unique in the world to have a Government sign an agreement recognising that the country code top level domain should be run in accordance with RFC1591. They have also recognised the seven principles for top level domains that InternetNZ is guided by:

1. Domain name markets should be competitive.
2. Choice for registrants should be maintained and expanded.
3. Domain registrations should be first come, first served.
4. Parties to domain registrations should be on a level playing field.
5. Registrant data should be public.
6. Registry / Registrar operations within a TLD should be split.
7. TLD policy should be determined by open multi-stakeholder processes

The agreement also increases accountability for InternetNZ by setting out a process any complaints can be heard, and also requiring InternetNZ to regularly test the views of the Internet community on key issues.

It’s really pleasing to be in a country where the Government has such good policies towards the Internet.

• NB – I am Chair of the .nz Domain Name Commission but wasn’t involved in negotiating the MOU – however I was one of those consulted on its details

Politico reports:

Ted Cruz is quitting the presidential race, according to campaign manager Jeff Roe, ending one of the best-organized campaigns of 2016 after a series of stinging defeats left Donald Trump as the only candidate capable of clinching the nomination outright.

Cruz had appeared likely to go all the way to the Republican convention, but a string of massive losses in the Northeast, and his subsequent defeat in Indiana, appear to have convinced him there’s no way forward.

Trump has done it. He has won the nomination despite Kasich still being in the race.

Almost every pundit got it wrong. We all wrote Trump off as a joke, yet he has just become the de facto Republican nominee.

Can he beat Clinton. She is at $1.33 to win and he is $3.50. I doubt it, but he has proven people wrong before.

What will be interesting is if there is a third party candidate campaiging as a true conservative?