Gordon Campbell On Labour’s CGT, The Government’s Mean Spirit, And Timor-Leste’s Future
Finally, Labour has released its capital gains tax policy. Labour’s CGT would levy a 28% tax on sales of commercial properties and investment housing, and […]
coalition politics
Gordon Campbell On The Coalition’s Peddling Of Bad News As Good News
At what point does a Cabinet minister distorting the statistics on issues in their portfolio amount to a sackable offence? Earlier this week, Children’s Minister […]
Gordon Campbell On Māori Customary Rights, And Why Trump Thinks We Don’t Need AUKUS
If something isn’t really broken, no wonder people feel suspicious when government promises to “fix” it to the potential benefit of corporate interests. In 2011, […]
Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Dodgy Claims About Reading Achievement
The spectacular improvements in reading achievement announced by Education Minister Erica Stanford on Monday were almost too good to be true – so it isn’t […]
Gordon Campbell On Luxon Advising Young People To Get Out While They Still Can
If anyone under 35 still had mixed feelings about leaving New Zealand to build a future elsewhere, PM Christopher Luxon probably sealed the deal this […]
Gordon Campbell On The Shameful, Incompetent Decision On Palestine
Given the daily horrors of the Gaza genocide, there could hardly be a more appropriate time for New Zealand to join the community of nations […]
Gordon Campbell On Sickness Leave, And On Our Muted Call On Statehood For Palestine
Sickness doesn’t work part-time, which is one of the design flaws in the government plans to amend the Holidays Act. Once the revamped Employment Leave […]
Gordon Campbell On Playing Performative Politics While The Economy (And The Public Health System) Burns
As the old saying goes, “With your eyes, you enter the world. But with your ears, the world enters you.” This may explain why hearing […]
Gordon Campbell On A Clueless Government Running A Jobless Economy
One of the whoppers told regularly by Nicola Willis and Christopher Luxon is that National inherited a terrible, no good economy from Labour, with rampant […]
Gordon Campbell On Using The Tax System To Boost Funding For The Arts
Despite the myriad concerns being expressed about the Regulatory Standards Bill – including misgivings by his own Regulations Ministry and scorn from constitutional law expert […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s crackdown on shoplifters
Politicians do like being tough on crime. Flexing law and order muscle is a feature of the patriarchal Daddy State, and is beloved by the […]
Gordon Campbell on ACT’s charter schools experiment
If there was still any doubt as to who is actually running this government – and it isn’t the buffoon from Botany – then this […]
Gordon Campbell on the coalition’s awful, not good, very bad poll results
Over the past 36 hours, Christopher Luxon has been dong his best to portray the centre-right’s plummeting poll numbers as a mark of virtue. Allegedly, […]
Gordon Campbell on NZF’s ability to maintain the ban on prisoner voting
Justice Minister Andrew Little has indicated that he will be taking a paper to Cabinet with the aim of repealing the prisoner voting ban. Good luck with that.
Gordon Campbell on the military withdrawal from Iraq
One fascinating aspect of this withdrawal decision is that it is not a case of victory over ISIS having being declared and everyone else going home at the same time, too.
Gordon Campbell on the government’s timidity on welfare reform
Only six months ago, the jury was still out on whether the Ardern government would enter the history books as a radical force for change, or as mere tinkerers with the status quo…
Gordon Campbell on National’s new, fledgling blue-green partner
Every year around about this time, National floats its own distinct vision of a different sort of Green Party…
Gordon Campbell on the Ardern pep talk
The intolerance being shown for coalition disagreements betrays our depressing appetite for a tidily totalitarian style of government where everyone is expected to march in lockstep.
Gordon Campbell on the Peters regency, and Imran Khan
If Jacinda Ardern is the mother of the nation, Winston Peters is rapidly turning into its kindly old uncle…
Gordon Campbell on National’s obsolescence and the Greens’ dilemma
The weekend’s National Party conference felt like one of those Sunday nights on RNZ, when everyone can forget about all the modern stuff and tune back into the way we were.
Gordon Campbell on the prevailing media narratives about the Labour–led coalition
The media reports the facts…. but that’s not the end of it, and nor should it be. It also marshals those facts and creates a […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s leadership contest
Essentially, English ran a great FPP campaign last year, and if the political system hadn’t changed 25 years ago you’d count that performance as a success…
Gordon Campbell on National’s leadership rumbles
There’s a ritual to leadership changes after an election loss, and the National Party is dutifully following the script.
Devising National’s comeback
How the backroom strategists might be concocting National’s battle plan…
What does Winston Peters want his legacy to be?
From here on, his power will diminish…
Your F**king Guide To Government Formation
Wondering why you don’t have a new government yet? Let me fill you the f**k in.
Gordon Campbell on the election result, and likely road ahead
A government led by Bill English and Winston Peters would be a more conservative one – particularly on social issues – than any during the Key years.
From the Hood : Election Lists
Bringing Order to the Election Result
Gordon Campbell on the likely path of Hurricane Jacinda
So far, Labour’s tax plans have been treated like an incoming hurricane in the Caribbean – how big will it be, what path it take through the economy, how much damage will it do?
Gordon Campbell on Act, the centre-right’s perennial ugly duckling
National has just endorsed Act leader David Seymour in Epsom, it being that time on the electoral calendar for the ceremonial anointing to take place once again.