The PM urges sophistication in our thinking about democracy – to make it gel with co-governance (and unelected councillors)

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern – answering questions in Parliament on Tuesday – ominously reinforced impressions she believes the Treaty of Waitangi entitles some New Zealanders to more political rights than others.

The entitlement of tribal leaders to appoint their own representatives to local authorities rather than stand for election, for example.

She was asked if she stood by her statement at Waitangi in 2019 that “Equality is our foundation”, and, if so, did she believe that our constitutional foundation should be equal political rights for all New Zealanders?

As Hansard records, she opted to address only part of the question:

Rt Hon JACINDA ARDERN: In answer to the first part of the question, yes.

The questions were asked by ACT leader David Seymour, who has  called for a public referendum on co-governance decision-making arrangements between Māori and the Crown.

In a speech to the Milford Rotary Club last week, he cited He Puapua, Three Waters and the Māori Health Authority as examples of co-governance principles being wrongly applied.

Presumably he hoped his questions in Parliament would flush out Ardern’s thinking on democracy, co-governance, the Treaty of Waitangi and so on.

How Poto Williams rejected a premise and denied Nats the data sought about gang membership

For   successive  days  in Parliament this  week  National’s  Mark  Mitchell   has  been asking Police  Minister  Poto  Williams whether gang  violence  has  increased  or  decreased  under  her  watch—and  whether  gang  membership  has  risen in that time.

Adopting a  technique favoured  by  her  leader,  Williams  is apt to say “I reject the  premise of  that  question”.

It’s a neat way of answering without providing the information that has been requested.

Here’s how  Hansard recorded  the   exchange  on  this point:

Buzz from the Beehive: Clark toughens competition law – but can an illegal activity be made more illegal

The government – or, more specially, David Clark – has us wondering about the effect(s) of a  “prohibition”.

No, not Prohibition (with a capital P), the word applied to the 1920-1933 era when the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages was illegal in the USA and gangsters flourished.

We refer to “prohibition” as in “ban”, meaning something has been forbidden, outlawed, disallowed or made illegal.

Once something has been  prohibited, banned, forbidden, outlawed, disallowed or otherwise made illegal – murder, for example – what more can a government do?

It could toughen the penalties, certainly.  But it can’t make murder any more illegal – can it?

Our thinking on this question was triggered by a statement from Commerce Minister David Clark which emerged from the Beehive along with news of

• The arrival this week of the first batch of the 60,000 courses of Paxlovid coming this year to be used from next week.
• The Government’s support for Air New Zealand (as the majority shareholder)  by committing to participate in the national carrier’s proposal to raise capital and accelerate the recovery for the airline
• The appointment of Karl Le Quesne as the new Chief Electoral Officer of the Electoral Commission.
• Grants totalling $154,000 for rural communities in the Waikato, Otago and the West Coast “to develop and drive solutions to local challenges”.

Buzz from the Beehive: Oh dear, Robertson dents the Nats in a sideswipe about Transmission Gully delays

Communication, in various forms, was a common factor in three of the latest statements from the Beehive.

One of these – released in the names of the PM and two other ministers – declared that Jacinda Ardern has officially opened the Transmission Gully motorway, in time for the Easter break, school holidays, “and the return of tourists to New Zealand”.

Two other statements, dealing with digital-age technologies, advised us of –

• A new research project which aims to fast-track the delivery of a digital solution for farm environment plans.
• The latest data which records progress in improving internet connectivity for rural areas across the country.

Oh – and there was some stuff about Covid-19 and how to combat it.

The Government has launched a new targeted rural service of rapid antigen tests for those who live in remote rural areas. And new guidance for businesses and organisations to help them deal with upcoming changes to vaccination requirements has been released.

Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta popped up, too, with news she has signed a partnership statement.

Not a treaty partnership statement.  This one strengthens this country’s relationship with  Fiji. 

Bigger benefits from tomorrow – bravo! But they might not buy as much as before

Ministers  have been celebrating  their  wisdom in raising  benefits  substantially from  April 1.

Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni led  the  chorus by  telling Parliament it is the biggest lift to main benefits in decades.  For many years, the rate of main benefits has fallen further behind the average wage, placing  many people, including children, in undue hardship, she said.

That  was  an unusual admission, given the  Labour  Party has been in office  for  four years.

So  now  the  good  news:

“In addition to indexing main benefits to wage growth, we are further lifting main benefits so they don’t fall further behind. The Ministry of Social Development’s analysis shows that from 1 April, a couple on a benefit with children will now be, on average, $237 a week better off than they were when the Government took office in 2017.

“As a Government, we have worked hard to lift as many children out of poverty as possible, and while raising the level of main benefit is only one way to achieve our goal, it is an incredibly important step in the right direction”.

Promoting well-being in this year’s Budget (and avoiding an inflationary cycle) will be challenging for Robertson

Budget  Day  is  now  seven weeks  away  and  lobby   groups  are  hammering  on  the Finance  Minister’s  door    for  the  relief   they believe they need, deserve, and which is  their  right.

The Save the  Children lobby group issued  a  press  statement this week saying:

“The  grim reality is many families are continuing to try to make do without life’s essentials such as healthy food, warm homes or access to health care”.

Advocacy and Research Director Jacqui Southey says while the child rights organisation is supportive of the lift in core benefits that will come into force later this week  these “small lifts” will not cover the steep rise in the current cost of living.

“Economic modelling on adequate benefit levels released by the Fairer Futures Coalition clearly shows that even with the new increase, benefit levels fall well short of covering the basic cost of living.

“It is essential that every New Zealander can attain their right to a decent standard of living and incomes levels are critical to achieving this. “Families on the lowest incomes are so stretched they do not have the luxury of cost cutting to make ends meet”.

Buzz from the Beehive: nine NZ personnel head for Europe while peace-keeping deployment in Solomons is extended

The PM has been focussed on the horrors of the war in Ukraine and on offering Kiwi help while her Foreign Affairs Minister – doubtless with a wary eye on China – has been fixed on helping maintain peace and stability in the Solomon Islands.

Two of their colleagues, meanwhile, were fascinated by the glitz of Hollywood and the pizzaz of the Academy Awards presentation (although this was not without a moment of violence).

On the home front, other members of the Ardern team variously were announcing –

• The introduction of the Fair Pay Agreements Bill to Parliament.  These agreements are intended to improve wages and conditions for employees, encourage businesses to invest in training, “and level the playing field so that employers who are trying hard to offer fair terms don’t get undercut and disadvantaged”. This means the government aims to reduce a company’s ability to compete.
• Awards of funding (described as a $3.6 million investment) to 16 national and regional organisations to increase opportunities for young people with disabilities in sport and recreation. Moreover, Sport and Recreation minister Grant Robertson has dipped into “my Ministerial Discretionary Fund” to support Special Olympics with a $44,000 grant.
• The closure of depleted scallop fisheries in Northland and most of the Coromandel to allow them to recover.

What might have sounded like a bold decision to provide further military support to Ukraine as it defends itself against Russian invaders actually entails the dispatch of nine Defence Force staff to other countries in Europe.

Garth Cooper’s reasons for resigning from the Royal Society – they include his stance on science education for Māori

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Māori are good students when they are afforded the proper opportunity to learn and their right to unbiased access to optimal education should be protected vigorously.

This firm belief is among the reasons why Professor Garth Cooper, DPhil (Oxon) DSc (Oxon) FRCPA FMedSci, joined six other University of Auckland professors and signed a letter, “In defence of science”, published in July last year by the New Zealand Listener.  The signatories questioned proposals to include mātauranga Māori in the school science curriculum and to give it equal standing with Western/ Pakeha subjects such as physics, biology and chemistry.

The professors do not oppose the teaching of mātauranga Māori in anthropology, Māori studies, cultural studies, or similar social studies. They do challenge its being taught in the science curriculum.

Cooper and Professor Robert Nola have resigned both as members and as fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand (as Point of Order reported on March 18) following the society’s decision not to formally proceed with a complaint against them as Fellows of the Society.

The complaint was laid after the publication of the letter In defence of science.  

Robert Nola has explained why he resigned from the society.

Garth Cooper – who has Māori heritage and is described on the University of Auckland website as one of New Zealand’s foremost biological scientists and biotechnology entrepreneurs – explains here why he resigned …  

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Why did I resign from the Royal Society of New Zealand?

Garth J S Cooper DPhil (Oxon) DSc (Oxon) FRCPA FMedSci

My reasons for resigning from the Royal Society of New Zealand relate to its loss of understanding of its raison d’être; suppression of free speech; failure to properly support science and science education; untoward political focus of management and governance processes; and prolonged defamation of myself and Professors Michael Corballis (now sadly deceased) and Robert Nola, by certain of its authorities.

Keeping an eye on China and the Solomons – let’s hope the PM’s concerns are translated into appropriate Defence policy

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the  “draft agreement”   for a move  by  China  to station  military forces  on the  Solomon Islands   is  “gravely  concerning” .

Foreign Minister  Nanaia Mahuta is  similarly  exercised,  but  whether  Defence  Minister  Peeni Henare feels the  same  concern has  yet  to be  disclosed,  although  Point  of  Order  believes  the issue  may  have been discussed  with Australia’s  Peter Dutton   when Henare visited  Canberra  last week.

Before   his  meeting  with  Henare, Dutton said it  was a  standing agenda  item  “for  all of  us  to be  realistic  about  China’s  footprint, their  exertion,  their  pressure  and the  way  in which  they conduct their  business”.

Whether   the  same  measure of  realism has  developed  in  Wellington is  far  from certain.

While  Australia  is  busy  beefing  up  outlays  on  its  defence systems,  that  is  not  the  case  with the  Ardern government  and  morale  in  NZ defence   forces  is  said to be at a  low  ebb.

What  may  dismay New Zealanders  is  that  any   concern  over  China’s  planning  for  a  military  base  in the  Solomons  will not  be  followed up  by  a  prompt review  of the  state of  NZ’s  own military  capability.

Buzz from the Beehive: Using the Oscars to put a spotlight on the investment of public funds in the movie business

Several awards had been presented to Academy Award hopefuls at time of writing, including the first televised award. Ariadne DeBose won the Oscar for best supporting actress.

But ahead of the big occasion in Hollywood, two Ministers aimed to get a share of the spotlight by acknowledging that a New Zealand delegation had headed to Los Angeles to lift the profile of our screen sector.  This gelled with the Kiwi co-production The Power of the Dog going up against the world’s best for the Academy Awards.

Fair to say, the press statement (if you read all of it) did acknowledge there was another Kiwi in the running for an Oscar.

Stuff was  more appreciative that Wellingtonian Sean Walker was basking among the stars on the red carpet ahead of the Oscars ceremony in Hollywood and described him as a superstar.

 Walker, who is nominated for best visual effects for his team’s work on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is getting the full celebrity experience at the 94th Academy Awards.