Gordon Campbell On The Centre-Right Laying Traps For Winston Peters
“I can take care of my enemies, but God protect me from friends”- Salvatore Giuliano When it comes to running a market economy, Labour and […]
coalition politics
Gordon Campbell On Opportunity’s Identity Issues, And Why Parliament Needs A Muzzle
The public is not happy. The polls keep telling us that Christopher Luxon’s government is widely disliked, and that there is little enthusiasm either, for […]
Gordon Campbell On National’s Abusive, Co-Dependent Relationship With Christopher Luxon
Correction: In this article I have mis-stated the rules around casting a vote in a place other than the electorate in which you are enrolled. […]
Gordon Campbell On Christopher Luxon’s No Good, Very Bad Fortnight
Decades ago, the Washington Post ran a carton showing White House advisors gibbering in terror backstage as a beaming Ronald Reagan suddenly looked away from […]
Gordon Campbell On National’s Rejection Of Opportunity
Earlier this week, when Christopher Luxon ruled out forming any government with Opportunity, it was like the ugly kid in class suddenly announcing that he’s […]
Gordon Campbell On The Centre-Right’s Attempt To Steal The Election
People with more wealth enjoy better health, and their children get a head start in life. Pretty obvious, really. Yet criticism of this state of […]
Gordon Campbell On The Epic Falling Out Between Trump And Netanyahu
Here’s a snapshot of government priorities: one third of staff at a key facility that seeks to prevent the incidence of family and sexual violence […]
Gordon Campbell On Budget 2026
The Luxon government won the last election by claiming that it alone possessed the managerial competence to fix the nation’s cost of living crisis. Three […]
Gordon Campbell On The Social Housing Debacle, And The Red Tape Fantasy
Fair is foul, and foul is fair. Truly, the witches in Macbeth had a pretty accurate take on the government’s new demands for social housing […]
Gordon Campbell On The Public Service Chainsaw Massacre
According to Finance Minister Nicola Willis, trashing the public service (“an old clunky system” says Willis, a “make work scheme” says Christopher Luxon, “a job […]
Gordon Campbell On Pauline Hanson’s Rise, And The TOP Renaissance
Routinely in politics, there is a double standard for outrage. The same people who regarded Jacinda Ardern as a jackbooted tyrant seem to be quite […]
Gordon Campbell On The Political Panic Over Immigration
In the wake of WW2, immigration policy was driven by a mixture of compassion for the refugees of war, and by a less admirable desire […]
Gordon Campbell On The FTA With India
Labour finally came down off the fence last week and agreed to give National the votes required to get the free trade deal with India […]
Gordon Campbell On The Lifeline Thrown To Christopher Luxon
The National Party caucus seems to have a death wish. In increasingly “uncertain and volatile times,” it has placed all its bets on the guy […]
Gordon Campbell On New Zealand’s Luxon Liability
The National Party caucus has got itself into in a real bind. For weeks, their Cabinet Ministers and MPs have had their work cut out […]
Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Zombie Shuffle Into A Fuel Crisis
The US rationale for the blockade/entire war is that Iran must never, ever be allowed to have a nuclear weapon and that Iran has always […]
Gordon Campbell On National’s Caucus Ructions
In his tilt at the leadership last November, Chris Bishop plainly forgot Omar’s excellent advice from The Wire: “If you come at the king, better […]
Gordon Campbell On The Folly Of Blaming Everything On Trump
The recently infamous “I’m the CEO/ Your job is the Prime Minister” exchange between Christopher Luxon and Tova O’Brien should be a defining moment in […]
Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Leadership Failure On The Fuel Crisis
As the last stop on the global supply chain for oil and diesel, New Zealand should be the first country taking pre-emptive steps to conserve […]
Gordon Campbell On The Feeble Fuel Support Package, And Israel’s Violent Land Grabs
Two big calls this week by the two real decision makers in this government. First, David Seymour all but sank the government’s plan to make […]
Gordon Campbell On Our Willingness To Earn US Approval, Via China-Bashing
The Chinese Embassy is right. The recent joint statement by Australia and New Zealand condemning China’s actions in the South China Sea reads like a […]
Gordon Campbell On The Weaponising Of IRD
So hard to pick and choose but the $2.9 billion tax break for landlords still stands out as the coalition government’s most abject surrender to […]
Gordon Campbell On The Iran War’s Impact On The Economy, And On Air New Zealand
Oil and gas prices have surged since the war on Iran began. The real surprise is that oil prices haven’t risen as much as you’d […]
Gordon Campbell On The “Move On” Homeless Fiasco, And Country Music In The Age Of Trump
According to Police Minister Mark Mitchell, applying the new “move on” laws to the homeless will not put any extra strain on Police resources. Well, […]
Gordon Campbell On The Callous, Short-Sighted “Moving On” Laws
Watching Christopher Luxon try to get to grips with a serious issue can be a pretty sad sight. His response to the homelessness epidemic has […]
Gordon Campbell On The Centre-Right’s Newly Found Passion For Taxes, And James Bond, Snowboard Ace
Meet National, our new “tax and spend” party. Reportedly, the National-led coalition is seriously considering spending (at least) $16 billion on a second harbour crossing […]
Gordon Campbell On Weather, Climate, And The Contest Between ACT And NZF For The Braindead Vote
As the wild weather rages, and once-in-a-century storms and floods become seasonal events, Mark Mitchell, the country’s Emergency Management and Recovery Minister, still seems locked […]
Gordon Campbell On The Not Good, Very Bad, Terrible Unemployment Figures
As the unemployment rate hits 5.4%, the highest jobless rate in a decade, PM Christopher Luxon may be regretting his choice of “Fixing the Basics, […]
Gordon Campbell On The Secret Pact On Rare Earth Minerals, And The India FTA
Drill and dig, baby. The week began with the coalition government giving an Australian mining company the green light for an open cast gold mine […]
Gordon Campbell On Selling The Recovery Mirage, And Wolf Parade
If the economy was an apartment building, the recovery would be the party that’s beginning to kick off in the penthouse flat, while everyone else […]