Six months ago the Green Party launched a campaign to stop the use of glyphosate-based herbicides, such as Roundup, being used to control weeds in our streets, parks and playgrounds. In that time thousands of people have signed our petition seeking an urgent full reassessment of glyphosate and glyphosate based herbicides. The Green Party decided […]
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly – Hearing Panel recommendations on the Auckland Unitary Plan
Council staff have prepared a 600+ page document responding to Independent Hearings Panel (IHP) recommendations on Auckland’s Unitary Plan.
Australian Government’s shameful record on refugees
This week’s revelations about the abuse of women and children on Nauru are horrifying, but sadly are not new issues for refugees and asylum seekers trying to reach Australia. Three weeks ago I tried to meet a Tamil woman, Malarvily Thevaparan, who sought find asylum in Australia from the sustained sexual abuse and other forms of torture […]
Caring for our kids requires more money
All children deserve to be safe, free to play and learn. New Zealanders are rightly upset that we have the fifth highest rate of child abuse rate in the OECD and so many children going without the absolute basics because their families don’t have enough to cover costs. Currently, Child, Youth and Family (CYF) is […]
Women’s Sevens team shines at Rio
I’ll admit it. I’m not usually a rugby viewer (except when my brother insists). Watching the NZ Women’s sevens final though – wow! If you didn’t watch it, you sure missed out. They play a beautiful game and it’s something that all New Zealanders can be proud of. The final itself was nail-biting. I was […]
Live Captioning for Parliament a major milestone for democracy
I am absolutely thrilled that today Parliament launched its live closed captioning service. For the first time since my election, I am finally able to follow the debate in the house from my office!
Salisbury School and the Sinking Lid
Yesterday there was a big meeting about the future of Salisbury School, a Nelson residential school for teenage girls with complex needs. The school is threatened with closure despite the High Court affirming the value of the school and despite endless testimonials of their contribution by former students and parents across the country. The Government […]
New rules good for renters
People who rent their homes have it pretty tough in New Zealand. Compared to lots of other countries, it’s pretty easy to get evicted or have your rent raised. You can get in trouble for something as simple as putting a poster on the wall.
A day by the Waikirikiri/Selwyn River
This week I went to Canterbury to meet a river, the Waikirikiri/Selwyn, which flows from the hill country down to Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere through the Canterbury Plains. Mojo Mathers and local Green District Councillor for Selwyn Peter Hill took me for a drive out to Coe’s Ford as the best place to start.
Wahakura are go!
I was so happy to wake up this morning to the news that Health Minister Jonathan Coleman has done a u-turn and agreed to fund sleep pods for newborn babies. Baby sleeping pods, like pepi-pods or wahakura, are safe sleep bassinets that play a big role in saving babies’ lives. At the last election we […]
Ruamāhanga – swimmable!
Last Thursday, we carried out our first river tour day in the Swimmable Rivers campaign, in which we are calling on the Government to raise the minimum standard for rivers from wadeable to swimmable. The Ruamāhanga is the river of Metiria’s tupuna and the heart of the Wairarapa. It has some magical spots and some […]
Four reasons you should care about the Auckland Unitary Plan
Charter Schools and National Standards – how about a modern education?
National have two flagship education policies which they have been pushing since 2008. A great deal of public money has been spent on both. Charter schools and National Standards are central to their strategy of supporting education as a business opportunity and focusing on measurement and assessment rather than learning. Both these policies have serious […]
Select committee changes Kermadec/Rangitāhua Ocean Sanctuary Bill
Parliament’s Local Government and Environment Committee has made many changes to the Kermadec/Rangitāhua Ocean Sanctuary Bill in response to public submissions, particularly submissions from iwi authorities and Te Ohu Kaimoana. Read the amended Bill and the select committee’s full report here . The Green Party’s report The Green Party supports the Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary Bill (the […]
We need to talk about Bill
We need to talk about Bill English’s repeated accusations that planning is responsible for stratospherically high house prices and inequality, and about the opportunity the Auckland Unitary Plan has to get housing back on the right track. Ever since he wrote the forward to Demographia’s 2013 annual housing affordability survey, our Minister of Finance has […]
A change to our blog – switching off comments
You might have noticed a change around these parts in recent days. Yes, we’ve deactivated the comment function on the Green Party blog. We think it’s a good move that will allow us to keep delivering the views of our MPs direct to you. This isn’t a decision we’ve made lightly and we really appreciate […]
Justice for family carer
Margaret Spencer, a family carer who has looked after her son who has Down’s Syndrome for 47 years, has finally won backpay after years of struggle. Family members such as Margaret who care for their disabled children should be paid the same as non-family carers, otherwise it is discrimination. She has finally beaten the Ministry […]
Racist place names have to go – An open letter to the Minister
Today I wrote to the Minister of Land Information, Louise Upston, asking her to do the right thing and get rid of racist place names in Aotearoa. 19 July 2016 E te Minita, tēnā koe I was horrified to learn recently that in 21st Century Aotearoa we still have explicitly racist place names, and am […]
China at Sea: Gently pursuing ‘peaceful ascendancy’
At the turn of the 21st century, China explicitly promoted what it called its foreign policy of ‘peaceful ascendancy’. To quote Yoichi Funabashi in 2003: “Chinese officials are now at pains to deny that they have any ambition to reign supreme again in Asia or destabilize the world economically, politically, or militarily. …. Chinese scholars […]
Take me to the river
The Ruamahānga is a beautiful river, much loved by those who live near it. But it faces many pressures. South of Masterton, the river is affected by sewage issues and land use intensification that have reduced water clarity and made the river unsafe for swimming, particularly at The Cliffs, a scenic spot near a vineyard straight out of a tourist brochure. Unfortunately, the water has a D rating. You risk getting a nasty bug if you put your head under.
Slowing down the sun
Kiwis are going solar in record numbers to escape rising power bills and get a degree of energy freedom, but the electricity industry is using a host of tactics to try and discourage them.
Thoughts on Labour’s new housing policies
The Labour Party launched its package of ideas to fix the housing crisis over the weekend. Their ideas match ours in many ways. This is good news, because it means that when we change the government we’ll be ready to hit the ground running with a common policy programme to tackle one of the most […]
The Big Sleep Out 2016 – a wrap up from our MPs
On Thursday 7th July, four Green MPs joined many other Kiwis and made a stand against homelessness by taking part in the Big Sleep Out.
Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori
A week is not enough but it can be a spring board to taking steps towards our national language, the first language of Aotearoa. So far it has been tau kē! We had the celebratory hīkoi through Te Upoko o Te Ika, hundreds of excited tamariki, waiata, haka and Te Reo kōrero. We heard that cute […]
Brave Submissions on the Social Security Rewrite Bill
Yesterday I heard submissions on the Social Security Rewrite Bill. We heard from a range of organisations working with people needing income support, and people who have had to or have to use income support. There were some very emotional moments and I want to pay tribute to those telling their own stories; firstly for their survival and secondly for summoning up the hope to share that experience and give us the opportunity to create a better system.
Aviation Security workers deserve fair pay
Threats by the Aviation Security Service (AvSec) that striking workers could be locked out are a classic example of a public service employer playing hardball, backed by an anti-worker government.
He akonga o te reo Māori – A student of the Māori language
The first phrase of conversational Maori I learned was, “Haere mai kare, whengua tō ihu.” (“Come here darling, blow your nose.”) It was our first time at kōhanga reo and I was new to the community and with a four-year-old and a new-born, keen to make new friends and learn te reo Māori at the same time.
Britain, Europe, and the World
In the course of a century there are just a few events that change the direction of history. The early 20th century witnessed the First World War and the creation of the League of Nations. The mid-20th saw the second war and the United Nations. The late-20th saw the end of the Cold War, and […]
Mental health a crucial need for young people in Christchurch
Council tendering process short-changes bus drivers
Currently, some NZ Bus drivers in Wellington earn up to $5 per hour more than the drivers at some rival bus companies in other parts of the country. Those rival companies are likely to be able to bid for the Wellington bus contracts at a lower price, because they pay their drivers less.
National’s RMA changes will make it easier for councils to shut out the public voice
Well done Greenpeace in asking the High Court to review the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s decision to not seek public feedback on its decision to extend the area of land that will irrigated by the Ruataniwha dam.
We need a national strategy to end homelessness now
Since I entered Parliament I have wanted to focus on homelessness, in particular, in my role as the Greens’ spokesperson for Social Housing. As recent media coverage of the issue has highlighted, homelessness is much broader than rough sleeping, it covers all those who are in insecure housing situations.
A Day with the PSA
This week, along with Labour MP Kris Faafoi, I accepted an invitation to spend a day working alongside the good folk at the Public Service Association in Wellington. As the Workplace Relations and Safety spokesperson for the Greens, I was looking forward to an interesting and informative day, and I wasn’t disappointed.
We have a housing emergency in New Zealand
We have a housing emergency in New Zealand. Like many people we are ashamed and angry that in a wealthy country like ours, we have so many people living in garages, in cars and on the streets. This is not the kind of country most New Zealanders recognise or want. There aren’t enough houses in […]
Toxic Sites – the down low on the go slow
In 2011, I negotiated an agreement with the National Government to advance work on cleaning up contaminated sites across the country. This included establishing a National Register of the ten worst sites where the creators of the problem could not be held accountable.
National leaves Kiwi savers the most vulnerable in OECD
News last week that Israel’s Finance Minister will insure savers’ bank deposits means New Zealand will be left as the only country in the OECD that has no deposit insurance to protect savers’ funds should a bank fail.
Another National Government failure: 90 day work trials
On Friday last week, the Treasury released a report by MOTU economic consultants into the effectiveness of the controversial 90-day work trial legislation. The report found that there was “no evidence that the policy affected the number of hires by firms on average, either overall or into employment that lasted beyond the trial period” – which is what National said it would do. It also had no effect on the number of “disadvantaged jobseekers” being hired. In short, 90-day trials have failed to do what National said they would do.
Denial is a long river
For many New Zealanders the loss of swimmable rivers and the effects of intensive agriculture are big issues and they want it cleaned up. William Rolleston is running lines that no one believes and which do Federated Farmers reputation no good at all. Denying that 62 percent of our monitored rivers are too dirty for safe swimming is pointless.
Assessing the Defence White Paper
The Government’s recently released Defence White Paper has raised questions again about New Zealand’s defence priorities, and in particular the level and nature of public funding on defensive capabilities.
Peace hīkoi to Parihaka
On Friday a Green crew walked with the peace hīkoi from Ōkato to Parihaka. Some of us were from Parliament and some were party members from Taranaki and further afield. It was a cloudy but gentle day and at one point Taranaki maunga emerged in snowy splendour to urge us on. We had some excellent conversations about peace and justice based on Te Tiriti o Waitangi.