Gordon Campbell On The Government’s Epic Fails In Jobs And Housing
Through its austerity measures, the coalition government has engineered a rise in unemployment in order to reduce inflation while – simultaneously – cracking down harder […]
Housing
Gordon Campbell On Luxon Living In Denial About His Privilege
In the same week that food banks have been forced to close for lack of government support, Auditor-General John Ryan has slammed the process by […]
Gordon Campbell on The Coalition’s Fast-tracked Speed Dates With Property Developers
On the weekend, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop admitted that not everyone will “like” his fast track wish-list, before adding: “We are a government that does […]
Gordon Campbell on the privatising of state housing provision, by stealth
The scathing “independent” review of Kāinga Ora barely hit the table before the coalition government had acted on it. The entire Kāinga Ora board will […]
Gordon Campbell on the US opposition to mortgage interest deductibility for landlords
Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s fantasy trip to La La Landlord Land
How much political capital is Christopher Luxon willing to burn through in order to deliver his $2.9 billion gift to landlords? Evidently, Luxon is: (a) […]
Gordon Campbell on Luxon’s landlord myths, and the needless nightmare of high interest rates
During the PM’s post-Cabinet press conference yesterday, Christopher Luxon claimed that renters will be feeling “grateful” for the way the government is putting “downward pressure“ […]
Gordon Campbell on the government’s fast track to trashing the environment
With Shane Jones as the watchdog, who needs predators? Mining on DOC land now seems to be a fait accompli. Plainly, New Zealand‘s conservation estate […]
Gordon Campbell on the centre-right’s credibility problems
Supposedly, people get the governments they deserve, but what on earth did we do in our past lives to deserve an Opposition as shambolic as […]
Gordon Campbell on the foreign buyers tax, and attack ads
It has now been six days since National unveiled its tax plan – eons ago in the 24/7 news cycle – but the credibility problem […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s tax cuts
Since tax cuts are never a free lunch, collecting the revenue to pay for them was always going to be the credibility test of National’s […]
Gordon Campbell on the Greens plan to help renters
One of the best things about the Greens plan to cap rent increases at 3% annually is that it spreads around some of the pain […]
Gordon Campbell on sending mixed messages out on purpose
National has developed a novel election strategy. It involves being both for and against almost every issue that comes down the pike. The use of […]
Gordon Campbell on National‘s aversion to transparency
In the last year of a second term in government. the election outcome shouldn’t even be close. All that’s required for a competent Opposition to […]
Gordon Campbell on childcare as an election bribe
Down the years, centre-right parties have always found male voters to be receptive to a mix of hard-line economic politics and harsh stances on welfare. […]
Gordon Campbell on the crisis in renting
House prices and rental costs are two related areas where New Zealand truly does punch well above its weight. This country happens to have the […]
Gordon Campbell on living in Seymour World
So far, the horse race journalism surrounding the polling rise of the Act Party has not included much consideration of the policies an Act -influenced […]
Gordon Campbell on populism’s changing of the guard, plus a soul music playlist
The weekend’s Newshub/Reid Research poll results – Act up to 11.1%, National up 1% but still sitting at only 28.7%, Labour down to 43%, the […]
Gordon Campbell on Labour’s less than radical housing package
Houses are now like Bitcoin with a street address, a speculative currency priced beyond the reach of ordinary humans. The public is not impressed. Don’t […]
Gordon Campbell on Adrian Orr’s lending scheme, the Collins reshuffle and the Trump coup
Does anyone under 50 know why “Muldoonist” is a bad word? David Seymour was one year old when Robert Muldoon lost the 1984 snap election. […]
Gordon Campbell on the transTasman tinkering with Covid-related poverty
On September 25, the government’s Covid-19 rent freeze will expire. A fortnight ago, the Commerce Commission (in response to a complaint) sent out a letter […]
Gordon Campbell on a superb new book on the leaky homes scandal, and Cowboy Bebop
The real value of Dyer’s book lies in how thoroughly he has unpicked all the various factors that came together to turn this entirely preventable disaster into an inevitability.
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 political smears and begging
Can a ministerial spin merchant ‘accidentally’ pass on to a journalist the fact that a prominent critic of their Minister is under Police investigation?
From The Hood: Home, And A Way
Auckland struggles to cope with its over-supply of advice on housing affordability…
Gordon Campbell on the government’s impotence towards the banks, and Iran
One of the defining features of this government’s political style is how often Prime Minister John Key chooses to sound like a mere observer of […]
Gordon Campbell on Paula Bennett’s gaffe, and Luna in Newtown
Local Government Minister Paula Bennett’s statement of support for cutting red tape in the building industry was probably self-certified as being politically OK, but it […]
Gordon Campbell on the plight of dairy, anti-Chinese sentiments and Pluto
Where now for dairy farmers? On RNZ this morning, Economic Development Minister Stephen Joyce was portraying the carnage of plunging global dairy prices, declining Fonterra […]
Gordon Campbell on telling the poor to ask for more
The government’s “let them ask for more” response to the dilapidated, cold and unhealthy conditions faced by many families in state housing can only be […]
Gordon Campbell on why the Reserve Bank has cut interest rates
All hail Graeme Wheeler. Because at some point this year, the government appears to have contracted out all the major decisions to do with running […]