David Farrar: Mental Health system improvements

The health system is slowly turning around, with key indicators improving. Still a long way to go, but the latest data on mental health targets is encouraging. Over the last year we have seen:

David Farrar: The difference six years makes

The latest Crown financial statements have just been published so let’s look at the annual crown financial statements for 2023/24 compared to 2017/18.

David Farrar: Life got worse under Labour

If you felt life got worse in the last five years, you were not alone. The 2023 General Social Survey data lets us see the changes since 2018, and 2021. Changes are:

Professor Robert MacCulloch: Former PM Ardern & Opposition Leader Hipkins Legacy....

Former PM Ardern & Opposition Leader Hipkins Legacy - Collapsing Trust in NZ Education, Parliament, Courts, Heath-care, Police & Media to all-time lows.

The evidence is out. Stats NZ today released survey data measuring Trust in NZ's key institutions. The previous Labour government ended its time in office in 2023 achieving all-time record lows for trust in our education system, parliament, health-care system, our courts, police and media.

Professor Robert MacCulloch: Labour turned NZ into the Worst Performing Economy in Asia-Pacific

It's Official: Labour turned NZ into the Worst Performing Economy in Asia-Pacific. Does that mean the Covid Royal Commission will investigate itself?

Our former Finance Minister, Grant Robertson, was hired by Otago University to help sort out its finances. Good luck to them. Let's see how he did sorting out NZ's finances. The IMF released its April 2024 World Economic Update yesterday. Our Main Stream Media - Stuff, NZ Herald, and the bankrupting Newshub - won't dare blare the headline:

Cam Slater: These Morons Should Never Be Trusted Ever Again

Chris Hipkins has admitted that Labour’s flagship policies for the 2017 election were “undeliverable”, and yet they blew millions upon millions in trying to deliver the “undeliverable”. This is economic vandalism and proves that any promise they make in the future should be ignored.

Worse though is that they now have the temerity to question National about uncosted policies.

Mike's Minute: The annals of history wont be kind to the 2017-23 Government

A couple of fun facts that weren't covered in the Government's transport plan, given we all got exercised about registrations and fuel taxes.

The Road to Zero has been dumped as part of it. And the Te Huia train is under review.

You can add these two projects to the Labour Government's litany of shambles that, essentially, came to nothing.

Bryce Wilkinson: Media release - Government’s mini-budget fronts the serious challenges ahead

Wellington (Wednesday, 20 December 2023) - “Treasury’s updated fiscal and economic forecasts released today confirm that this government faces serious fiscal challenges”, said Dr Bryce Wilkinson, Senior Fellow at the New Zealand Initiative.

“The Minister of Finance’s “mini-budget” statement shows she fully ‘gets it’.”

“Taxpayers and the recipients of government spending cannot all expect to avoid the burden of those challenges”.

Cam Slater: Truth Will Out

Over the weekend two columns highlighted Grant Robertson’s appalling track record as history sets about judging him as the worst Finance Minister to have ever graced the Treasury benches. Truth will out.

First up was Matthew Hooton:

Mike Hosking: The ineptitude of the last Government is being increasingly revealed

Is it just me or are the growing number of reports about the ineptitude of the last Government an ever-larger indictment on what might be the most useless collection of buffoons in the modern political age?

I mean we all knew they were trouble, hence the election result, and as I mentioned at the start of the show no one held them to more account than this programme.