Meth Testing Report: Housing NZ "To Right Wrong"

Phil Twyford “Housing NZ acknowledges that around 800 tenants suffered by either losing their tenancies, losing their possessions, being suspended from the public housing waiting list, negative effects on their credit ratings or, in the worst cases, being made homeless.” More>>

ALSO:

• NZ Govt - Standards system reassurance sought
• Greens - Heart put back into social housing
• National - Government shouldn’t be compensating crooks
• MBIE - Review finds meth standard not improperly influenced
• Auckland Action Against Poverty - Meth eviction compensations don’t account for social harm
• NZ Property Investors' Federation - The ongoing effects of the 0.5 meth standard
• Out-Link - A painful reflection • Hard News • Public Address

No Reshuffle: Meka Whaitiri Removed As A Minister

Meka Whaitiri will be removed as a Minister with immediate effect... The decision was made after receiving a report into an incident that occurred on 27 August in Gisborne, involving Meka Whaitiri and one of her staff. More>>

ALSO:

• ACT - Two Ministers Down, Nine More To Go

Pay Equity Bill: Making History For Women’s Pay

The Equal Pay Amendment Bill, introduced to the House today, will make it easier for workers to make a pay equity claim , using a more simple and accessible process within New Zealand’s existing bargaining framework. More>>

ALSO:

• CTU - Unions celebrate Suffrage Day win for women
• E tu - E tū welcomes Suffrage Day equal pay bill
• NZNO - Legislation another milestone in pay equity journey
• Public Service Association - Changes to the 1972 Equal Pay Act will make it easier
• NZEI - Support Workers ratify pay equity settlement for education
• TIASA - Celebrate Suffrage Day but Put Your Money Where Mouth Is

Suffrage 125: NZ A Trailblazer For Women

“We acknowledge the work of Kate Sheppard, Meri Te Tai Mangakāhia, and all of the suffragists who tirelessly campaigned for the vote… Today we also need to ask each other: how we can continue to make our country a fairer and better place to continue the legacy of the suffragists.” More>>

ALSO:

• RNZ - Suffrage 125: New Zealand women make their voices heard - Women taking the lead in NZ Rugby
• NZ Govt - Making history for women’s pay in New Zealand - PM keynote address, Suffrage 125 celebration - Suffrage125 community fund announced
• National - National celebrates 125 years of women’s vote
• Greens - We will keep working in Parliament for equity for women
• Human Rights Commission - 125 years on – Still Striving for Equality
• National Council of Women - Suffrage 125 a milestone year - National Council of Women Announces New Patron
• Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians - New Zealand MPs Unite to Celebrate Suffrage Day
• Zonta - Zonta International New Zealand marks Suffrage anniversary - Zonta New Zealand Women of Achievement 2019 Awards
• Westpac NZ - The Aunties founder named 2018 Supreme Woman of Influence
• People Against Prisons Aotearoa - NZ celebrates incomplete democracy
• Family Planning NZ - No equality without sexual and reproductive health
• Kate Sheppard Memorial Trust - Kate Sheppard Memorial Trust Award - An Evening With Gaylene Preston
• Wellington City Council - Wellington’s new plaques to honour great local women - Council shines light on Suffrage 125

Asylum: Refugee Quota Increasing To 1500

“The quota increase will take place from July 2020. In the meantime, we will work to increase the number and spread of refugee resettlement and support services. We need to make sure we’re prepared for this change in policy.” More>>

ALSO:

• National - More refugees – but what’s the trade off?
• Greens - Green Party welcome decision to take more refugees
• Doing Our Bit - Double the quota campaigner praises government
• NZ Red Cross - New Zealand Red Cross pleased by quota announcement
• Earlier World Vision NZ - NZ Youth to challenge refugee quota policy
• Human Rights Law Centre Australia - Children on Nauru are now suicidal, UN hears
• Ipsos - What New Zealanders think of Refugees and Immigration

"Broad-Based Growth": GDP Rises 1 Percent In June Quarter

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 1.0 percent in the June 2018 quarter, up from 0.5 percent last quarter, Stats NZ said today. This is the largest quarterly rise in two years. More>>

ALSO:

• BusinessDesk - UPDATE: Stronger than expected growth
• National - Economic growth figures highlight Govt fallacy
• CTU - Latest economic figures expose gloom merchants
• Kiwibank - Whooshkaa! Our growth is better than you think

Judicial Review: China Steel Tarrif Rethink Ordered

On 5 July 2017 the Minister determined not to impose duties on Chinese galvanised steel coil imports. NZ Steel applied for judicial review of the Minister’s decision. More>>

Debt: NZ Banks Accelerate Lending In June Quarter

New Zealand's nine major lenders boosted lending at the fastest quarterly pace in almost two years as fears over bad debts subsided. More>>

ALSO:

• ACT - Banks Slam Govt's Reserve Bank Bill - No Need for Knee-Jerk Bank Bashing in New Zealand

Balance Of Trade: Annual Current Account Deficit Widens To $9.5 Billion

New Zealand’s current account deficit for the year ended June 2018 widened to $9.5 billion, 3.3 percent of GDP, Stats NZ said today. More>>

ALSO:

• Statistics NZ - Quarterly: Near-record exports see current account deficit shrink
• BusinessDesk - NZ dollar falls vs Aussie - Dairy product prices fall

Gordon Campbell: On The Kavanaugh Case And Women’s Suffrage

On suffrage day when – reportedly – we celebrate women winning a political voice, and ensuring that their voices are heard, respected, and acted upon, despite all the attempts to ignore and silence them. More>>

Gordon Campbell: Are Only Old People Likely To Vote For Simon Bridges?

Around the world, young people seem to be gravitating to left wing policies and parties, leaving the old to prop up the conservative parties... the size of the gap suggests there’s more involved to this evolution than the usual clichés about the young being idealistic and the old being more realistic. More>>

Gordon Campbell: On The Fuss Over The PM’s Pacific Forum Trip

Truly, the abuse being levelled at PM Jacinda Ardern for doing her job at the Pacific Islands Forum shows just how much – and on how many levels – Ardern seems to enrage a goodly number of citizens. More>>

Gordon Campbell: On MP Pay And The REAL P.C. Danger Zone

There has never been anything remotely credible about the way parliamentarians would paint themselves as the helpless victims of the Remuneration Authority when it came to their pay increases... More>>

Decriminalising Same-Sex Relationships: UN Rights Chief Applauds Indian Decision

“This is a great day for India and for all those who believe in the universality of human rights," Bachelet said. "With this landmark decision, the Indian Supreme Court has taken a big step forward for freedom and equality...” More>>

ALSO:

• UNAIDS - UNAIDS welcomes ground-breaking decision

Myanmar: UN Chief Rohingya Refugee Crisis Enters Second Year

Over 700,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar to ramshackle refugee camps in neighbouring Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar area, Bangladesh after being forced from their homes by a military operation which UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein compared, at the time, to ethnic cleansing. More>>

ALSO:

• Ramzy Baroud - The Massacre of Inn Din: How Rohingya Are Lynched
• UN - Myanmar - conviction and sentencing of journalists - UN Secretary-General speaks to Security Council on Myanmar - Myanmar military leaders must face genocide charges - UN - Rohingya emergency one year on
• UNICEF - UNICEF warns of ‘lost generation’ of Rohingya youth
• Tearfund - One Year Anniversary of Rohingya Refugee Crisis
• Oxfam NZ - $72 million needed to protect Rohingya refugee women
• Fortify Rights - U.N. Security Council: Refer Myanmar to International Court
• Image - Tasnim News Agency / Wikimedia

Scott Morrison In Hot Seat: NZ Congratulates Current Australian PM

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has today congratulated Scott Morrison on winning the leadership of the Australian Liberal Party and has acknowledged outgoing Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. More>>

ALSO:

• National - National congratulates Scott Morrison
• Binoy Kampmark - Hijacked Democracy: Normalised Instability in Australia - Sodding the Australian Voter: Accidental Prime Ministers - Prime Ministerial Chaos: Turnbull’s Last Days
• Australian Govt - Turnbull/Bishop Press Conference After Leadership Confirmed
• Jane Salmon - Human Rights Abusers Lead the Field For National Leadership - Morrison’s Resurgence Concerns Refugee Supporters
• Greens - Green Party: Dutton is gone, it’s time to reconsider
• The Scoop Team - PM's Press Conference 20/8/18: MP Pay, Nauru, Antarctica

Swing States: Gordon Campbell On Why The US Needs MMP

After the bizarre events this week in Helsinki, the world will be hoping and praying that the US midterm elections in November can put a restraining brake on the presidency of Donald Trump. This may happen, but there’s a highly undemocratic reason why such hopes may be frustrated. More>>

ALSO:

• Earlier Gordon Campbell - Gordon Campbell on the White House romance with Russia
• Out-Link - NYT detail intelligence of Russian interference

Howard Davis: Off The Hidden Path - Five Los Angeles Treasures (Part I)

The immense cultural diversity of LA provides an extraordinary variety of lifestyles and arhcitecture. Here are five 'hidden' destinations where the discerning traveller can appreciate and enjoy this unique and constantly evolving metropolis. More>>

City Of 100 Lovers: Multi-Million Dollar NZ Theatre Production To Launch

Produced in New Zealand with an $8 million budget, this musical comedy has been created with both locals and tourists in mind. More>>

Howard Davis Review: The Outsider Art of Tony Fomison

Among such gifted contemporaries as Bill Hammond, Tony de la Tour, and printmaker Jason Grieg, Fomison distinguished himself as highly idiosyncratic, and could have become wealthy, had not his demons prevented him from investing his income wisely. In his near monochrome oil painting on black hessian, he staked out a territory of morbid originality. More>>

Scoop Review Of Books: Immortal Love

The series has a wild-west tone with a steampunk vibe, so if you’re a fan of Joss Whedon’s Firefly or Joe Abercrombie’s Shattered Sea, then chances are you’ll enjoy this book. More>>

Howard Davis Review: The Trappings of Success - McQueen

This troubling documentary about the extraordinary life and untimely death of British fashion designer Alexander McQueen is a cautionary tale of an extremely gifted, but self-destructive soul caught up in a business that chews up and spits out its creative talent. More>>

Indycars: Dixon Wins Fifth US Championship

The New Zealand motor racing driver Scott Dixon has won the US Indycar championship for the fifth time, finishing second in the final race of the season in Sonoma, California. More>>

ALSO:

• Image via - Teaser Trailer for “Born Racer: the Scott Dixon Story”