On the making of The Hobbit
Given that successive governments have identified the film industry as a prime catalyst of the knowledge economy, you might have expected more local media attention […]
Employers
On why our business leaders continue to believe in the confidence fairy
(Also: On Vincent Ward) Given the poor economic data from the United States in June, the Reserve Bank obviously needs to halt the upward march […]
On The Jackson Film Commission review
So the long awaited, year-in-the-making blockbuster review of the Film Commission has finally been delivered by Sir Peter Jackson and David Court, and is now […]
On the plans to sell state assets
At yesterday’s post-Cabinet press conference Prime Minister John Key said that work ‘had not yet begun’ on deciding which state assets – if any – […]
On Sir Peter Gluckman, and the government’s science package for business
So far, at least two isotopes of the government’s chief science advisor Sir Peter Gluckman have been isolated, and identified. The commonly observed variant – […]
On CEO pay, and the calls to hike up interest rates
Lets get this straight. Paying schoolteachers is said to be a very very bad thing to do as we emerge from the recession – but […]
Gordon Campbell On Welfare Insurance
The new working group on welfare reform to be headed by former Commerce Commission head Paula Rebstock will be looking at schemes of unemployment insurance […]
On fresh evidence about the gender pay gap
An appropriate newsflash yesterday for International Women’s Day. After analyzing Inland Revenue data, the Women’s Ministry has found that women almost immediately begin to be […]
On Theresa Gattung’s attack on Telecom
One hates to kick someone when they’re down – but when it is former Telecom CEO Theresa Gattung and she is peddling a book in […]
On John Key’s agenda for the nation
Compensate is such a slippery word. If you set out to make the elite squad in team A immensely better off with money taken from […]
Cutbacks to Central (and Local) Government Spending
As sure as night follows day, when farmer incomes come under pressure, Federated Farmers want to cut welfare – and slash anything else they think […]
Managing the Press Gallery, and Afghanistan
Click for big version As a free fire exercise in which anything at all can be raised, the Prime Minister’s post Cabinet press conference should […]
Paula Bennett’s welfare abuse
To date, the government’s response to the recession has been faulted on the demand side – for not giving sufficient stimulus to the economy, as […]
Budget to push the “P” button?
The tone of the Budget is almost as important as its content, and while everyone – for good reason – is expecting a grim Budget […]
The risks of cutting wages during this recession
Obviously, the jobs situation in New Zealand is deteriorating. On current trends, unemployment is now expected to reach 8 per cent before this recession is […]
The Goverment’s rash of PR debacles, & Bob Marley
Plainly, the wheels are now falling off the government’s attempts to govern by tokenism and PR gimmicks – the nine day working fortnight, the national […]
The Goverment’s rash of PR debacles, & Bob Marley
Plainly, the wheels are now falling off the government’s attempts to govern by tokenism and PR gimmicks – the nine day working fortnight, the national […]
The miserly funding of the 9 day fortnight, and Israel’s war on children
Plainly, workers are going to be the first people over the side of the lifeboat during this recession. The main policy idea to emerge from […]
The miserly funding of the 9 day fortnight, and Israel's war on children
Plainly, workers are going to be the first people over the side of the lifeboat during this recession. The main policy idea to emerge from […]