Thursday December 26, 2024 

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A.E. Thompson: Collins' Over-correction on the Marsden Fund in 2024

The Marsden Fund was established by the government in 1994 and we the population pay for it through taxes. After Grant Robinson changed the qualifying criteria for its funding awards, Judith Collins has now reset those criteria to be closer to the foundational purpose of the Fund. From Collins' responses on the matter in parliament on 17/12/2024 (You Tube: "Taxpayers' Union | Judith Collins deals with Marsden Fund questions in Parliament"), she seems to be ignorant on the topic of science. Good research on social issues is as much science as are chemistry, physics etc. If she knew what she was talking about she would have simply emphasized that she is making Marsden Fund focus on particular types of science closer to that envisaged in setting up the Fund.

Breaking Views Update: Week of 22.12.24

Thursday December 26, 2024 

News:
Whangārei hapū wins appeal against subdivision
The judges who threw out a consent for a Whangārei subdivision say it is one of the clearest cases they have ever seen of a site that should not be developed because of its significance to Māori.

Whangārei hapū Ngāti Kahu o Torongare is celebrating after winning an Environment Court appeal against a 93-home development on land at Onoke Pā, in Te Kamo.

Dr Will Jones: Church of England Tells Clergy to Edit Christmas Carols....

Church of England Tells Clergy to Edit Christmas Carols to “Avoid Unnecessary Offence”

If you’re planning to attend a carol service tonight, says Celia Walden in the Telegraph, you might want to check out the hymn sheet first, to see that you’re not singing ‘O Come, All Ye Wokeful’. Here’s an excerpt.

Nuclear waste could be an electricity game-changer

Today’s so-called nuclear waste is only slightly used nuclear fuel, as only about 3% of its potential has been realized before it is classified as “waste.” Thus, we are burying fuel which still has 97% of its potential for generating electricity that has yet to be realized.

Here’s an energy analogy:

Dr Will Jones: Britain on Brink of Recession....

Britain on Brink of Recession After Growth Revised to Zero Following Reeves’s Horror Budget

Britain is on the brink of a recession after official figures were revised to show zero growth in the third quarter of the year and living standards fell, with Rachel Reeves’s horror Budget blamed. The Telegraph has more.

David Farrar: Unfit remarks

Newsroom reports:

Carr, who ends his five-year tenure as the commission’s first chair on Sunday, was also given an opportunity for a parting message to policymakers by the select committee.

Bonner Cohen: Trump charts a fresh climate course

The pall that descended on the latest UN climate confab in the wake of Donald Trump’s election was justified. It’s a foretaste of things under an administration determined to part company with global environmentalists.

Along with issuing the obligatory proclamations of impending planetary doom, the gathering in Baku, Azerbaijan, was tasked with arranging financing (taxpayer handouts) to help poorer countries deal with what are said to be the ravages of human-induced climate change. Hysterical rhetoric was duly produced, but when it came to wealth nations forking over cash, giddy expectations were not realized.

Dr Bryce Edwards: National decline in 2024

While support for Act and New Zealand First has remained fairly steady over the last twelve months, the average of the last five public polls shows National declining from an election result of 38.08 down to 32.94. This is a significant fall. Most commentators identify three key liabilities for National. Its leader, Christopher Luxon, has poor communication skills and poor judgement, the economy appears to be deteriorating under his watch, and the public does not trust the Government to manage the public health system.

Wednesday December 25, 2024 

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Merry Xmas and Happy New Year!

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

- from the Breaking Views Team

The Breaking Views team - and the New Zealand Centre for Political Research - would like to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!

Thank you so much for your on-going interest in our work, for your support and participation during the year. Here's hoping 2025 will be a great year for all!

 Please don't forget that our main website is at www.nzcpr.com and that if you don't receive our free NZCPR Weekly newsletters, you are most welcome to register HERE.

William Keylor: German Soldiers Made First Move in the Christmas Truce

The Christmas Truce is no stranger to popular entertainment – the year 2014 more than any other as its 100th anniversary is marked. The famous moment when British and German soldiers climbed out of the trenches in peace on Christmas Day 1914 has been replicated and ruminated upon in history books, film, and propaganda – and now advertising. In the UK, the supermarket Sainsbury’s 2014 Christmas advert dramatises the event, prompting cries of outrage that it has trivialised it. But what really happened 100 years ago?

Mary Hobbs: Christmas and the great kiwi summer holiday

To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer. — Mahatma Gandhi

The Christmas and summer holiday break in New Zealand is loved by most.

It is an intrinsic part of the Kiwi culture. It’s a time to take it easy, rejuvenate, catch up with family and friends, get outside, enjoy the summer, and tune out the world’s woes. A calm spreads throughout the country. It gives most of us at least some time to enjoy summer.

Tuesday December 24, 2024 

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Ross Meurant: 2025 Resolution - Time for Name Changes

A glance at a map of New Zealand will demonstrate about 80% of “places”, are Māori names.

In the western sector of the parliamentary electorate (Hobson), I once served as MP for 9 years, at a glance, I counted 6 English named places and over 30 Māori, between Hokianga and Kaipara Harbour entrances.   This ratio appears similar across the country.  

Mike Bain: What called you to action in 2024?

Throughout 2024, New Zealanders engaged in numerous protests, each driven by a deep sense of urgency and passion. Kiwis took to the streets, voicing their concerns and demanding change. Yet, as the year progressed, it became evident that these efforts often fell short of achieving their intended goals.

Marches against the Treaty Principles Bill culminated in a massive hīkoi to parliament in November. Despite the fervour and energy invested in these protests, the issues at hand remained unresolved: the Treaty Principles Bill advanced and the societal impact of these protests seemed minimal.

Ele Ludemann: Getting it right from the start

It’s nearly 20 years since National Party members were asked to pitch policies at regional conferences. Those judged best went to the national conference and became policy.

Among those was my pitch to fund maternity services to allow women to stay in maternity hospitals until breast feeding was established should they choose to.

Michael Reddell: Fiscal failure and indifference (with introduction by Don Brash)

Don Brash: This short analysis of the current fiscal position as compared with the fiscal position as projected shortly before the Labour Government left office is sobering.

Chris Hipkins and other Labour spokespeople are talking as if the current Government has cut government spending drastically, creating the “politics of austerity”. But over the next few fiscal years core government spending is projected to be as high as, or slightly higher than, that projected in Labour’s last Budget.

So much for the “politics of austerity”!

Michael Reddell was an economist of gradually increasing seniority at the Reserve Bank throughout my 14 years as Governor, and for more than 10 years beyond that. In my opinion, he is one of the most astute economists in New Zealand.

NZCPR Newsletter: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dear NZCPR Reader,

It’s been a busy year for the NZCPR. We have achieved a great deal - but only thanks to your support.

Our mission to inform public opinion, influence decision-makers and help to shape the future direction of New Zealand has never been more important.

So, as we look forward to 2025, our plea to each and every one of our readers, is that if you have found any value whatsoever in our newsletters, our website, our campaigns, or our social media platforms – our Breaking Views blog, our NZCPR Facebook Group, or X – then please support our Christmas fundraiser so we can continue to work hard for you next year.

Centrist: Mission creep at Diversity Works NZ leads to taxpayer-funded DEI activism

Tracing the shift in mandate

The ongoing shift in Diversity Works NZ’s focus from equal opportunity to equal outcome employment is an example of the type of mission creep common in publicly funded entities.

A registered charity, heavily funded by taxpayers, Diversity Works NZ, the trading name for the Equal Employment Opportunities Trust, was established in 1992 under the National government.