Federated Farmers is adamant: food, a necessary of life, must not be in the greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme (ETS). John Key and his Minister of Agriculture, David Carter, are adamant it must be in.
When the National party and Federated Farmers are openly at odds on a major issue, that is serious politics.
The foreshore and seabed is much more a political than a legal issue. That’s why the government will take its time.
Of course, there is much law involved. The issue became political because the Appeal Court in effect laid down new law in 2003 by overturning a longstanding High Court decision.
There is also the common law, Maori customary law, Te Ture Whenua Act, which deals with Maori land, and complex coastal and marine law. And there is the Foreshore and Seabed Act, which the ministerial review committee, itself reinterpreting the law, wants repealed and replaced.
Here are two views about the electricity industry: it charges consumers too much; and the large government-owned parts don’t deliver big enough dividends to the government. The government holds both views.
Here are two more views about the electricity industry: for the good of the clean-green brand the proportion generated from renewable sources must rise; and generators must be free to build non-renewables plants. The government holds both views.
On Monday Rodney Hide will take a paper to the cabinet to set up a 2025 commission. This is an ambitious undertaking.
The 2025 commission is part of the National-ACT support agreement.
The two parties agreed to set a “concrete goal of closing the income gap with Australia by 2025”. They also agreed that would “require a sustained lift in the productivity growth rate to 3 per cent a year or more”.
Grant Robertson, MP for public servants, is keeping a tally of sackings — 1200 at his latest count. If he sticks to this task, he is assured of a long-term job.
National last year promised a “cap” on core public service staff numbers but also a shuffle: fewer “bureaucrats” and more on the “front line”, especially in hospitals, police and prisons.
The jury has spoken. But does it speak for anywhere other than Mt Albert? And does it speak on anything but Mt Albert’s particularities?
At least the Supreme Court doesn’t get a look in, to tell the jurors there is evidence they must not hear because they are not wise enough to judge its relevance or accuracy. In elections, as distinct from in the law, voters are treated, by the presiding authorities at least, as adults.
Jeanette Fitzsimons put her finger on the Greens’ central political poser in her valedictory speech as co-leader last weekend. She spoke of “putting forward the positive and practical alternatives”.
Too often Greens are finger-waggers. Fitzsimons said: “We’ve always had bundles of ideas on what could be done but we do spend rather a lot of time criticising governments rather than looking like a government in waiting.
There is a hole in the budget and it is an issue for your kids. Will Bill English fix it next year?
English stated on Thursday that the budget had two principal aims: to tide the economy, and the people, through the recession; and to build a more competitive economy for the future.
The first aim can be seen in the choice to maintain social spending and defer the promised 2010 and 2011 tax cuts. Spending for 2009-10 overall is up by $2.9 billion on 2008-09, in part to cope with higher unemployment — and including enough crumbs for the Maori party to say the budget is mana-enhancing.
One clause in Treasury Secretary John Whitehead’s speech last Friday spoke volumes: there have been “structural spending increases rather than temporary fiscal stimulus”.
Thursday’s budget will aim to make a start on fixing that.
A “temporary fiscal stimulus” can be unwound when it has done its work or the money runs out. The government goes back to the way things were. For those in the state’s employ and locked into its activities, life goes on.
John Key’s government is six months old this weekend, time enough for some mistakes. What’s the prognosis?
This week’s mistake was the blindsiding of Peter Dunne over Christine Rankin’s appointment to the Families Commission. Not very mana-enhancing, twice-blindsided Pita Sharples might say.