Wednesday, 10 April 2024 14:55

Crazy

Written by The Hound

font size decrease font size increase font size

OPINION: Your canine crusader was truly impressed by the almost unanimous support given by politicians of all stripes in Parliament to the recent passing of legislation for the NZ/EU free trade deal.

Strong support was given by the members of the coalition Government – National, ACT and NZ First.

Of course, the Labour Party, which did much of the heavy lifting in securing the deal under Damien O’Connor’s leadership, were also big supporters.

Surprisingly, so too were the Green Party – not well known for their support for commerce or commonsense – who back the deal.

However, the Maori Party voted against it.

Are the supposed guardians of all things Maori not aware of the huge reliance on the agricultural trade sector by Maori incorporations who stand to benefit hugely from better access to the EU?

Or of the special parts of the deal that specifically refer to and respect Maori customs?

There are none so blind who will not see.

More like this

ACT, farmers push for changes to Paris Agreement

The ACT Party's call for a better deal on the Paris Agreement on climate change is being backed by farmer organisations.

Dreams aren't plans

OPINION: Milking It reckons if you're National, looking at recent polls, the dream scenario is that the elusive economic recovery finally roars to life.

If voters see some growth and wages rising faster than prices, the government could say they've "fixed" things as they ride into the next election.

Back here on Earth though, the economy they inherited is a basket case, and the long-term headwinds are fierce.

Political commentator Liam Hehir says, "dreams are not plans" and if the turnaround doesn't come in time, National may have no choice but to go negative.

"Everybody wants to fight on the economy if they can. But when neither side has a compelling story, the contest shifts to other issues. That's not new. In fact, it's the stuff of politics everywhere, always."

Wrong focus

OPINION: Your old mate reckons townie Brooke van Velden, the Minister of Workplace (or is it Woke Place) Relations is now showing how underemployed she is as a minister by initiating an investigation into whether young children should be banned from collecting eggs on farms and feeding animals.

Burn the village

OPINION: There's an infamous term coined by a US general during the Vietnam war, specifically in reference to the battle of Ben Tre: "We had to burn the village to save it."

Purist problem

OPINION: The sudden departure of Jim Ward, manager of Molesworth Station for 24 years, highlighted some major dysfunction in the way conservation estate is managed in this country - the biggest problem, as the Hound sees it, being idealogues who harp on about "taonga" and use all means possible to block sensible commercial operations on conservation land.