Articles in ‘Opinion’

It was suggested that I do an additional short article 10 days out from the election with an appraisal of the economic policies being proposed by Labour and National. I’ve found this extraordinarily hard to do! That’s partly because of the difficulty of defining “economic policies”. Does the term include policy on reforming the Resource Management Act, or policy on oil and gas exploration – both highly relevant to our future economic…

This year has been quite frankly one out of a box of nightmares. Most New Zealanders have been dealt financial disasters large and small, with no apparent end yet in sight. Trips planned then discarded, special celebrations and family bereavements. A decided lack of enthusiasm to fly, if you could, anywhere in the world. A new word with a chilling name Covid 19 became something out of a horror movie, a daily conversation subject. February…

As I write, there’s one month to go. Everybody will have their own views about what problems the next Government should try to solve, but for me six issues should be priorities. First, and most obviously, is the need to guide New Zealand back to a path of low unemployment and low government debt after the disastrous consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic – the inevitable effects and the self-imposed ones by having one of the most severe…

I have been inspired by the lives of Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Kate Sheppard, Mother Teresa, and Nelson Mandela. At the heart of their lives was a passion to make attractive communities. They are the champions of a compassionate and a free society that we enjoy today. A greater freedom from discrimination, oppression, and poverty. The picture they paint of a compassionate free society is one of connected, cohesive,…

There’s an increasing divide between how Covid-19 related news and information is being reported by governments, health authorities and the mainstream media on one hand, and alternative media and independent expert commentators on the other. This is particularly the case on matters of science. The resultant public uncertainty is fuelling ever more polarised public viewpoints in relation to what should and shouldn’t be done because of, or in…

If, as many predict, we will have to learn to live with Covid-19 for some years, we need to get our border issues sorted out. No, I’m not talking about our international border. I’m talking about the one down the road here on the edge of Auckland. · I’m talking about the borders you get when you lockdown a region or a city; the border that divides people who live in one zone and work in another. · In the latest lockdown, much of the debate has…

As I write this month, Auckland is again in a Level 3 lockdown, with all the frustrations and irritations of that situation. I myself got caught up in a huge traffic jam, which had four lanes of traffic (including the bus lane) at a total stand-still for more than an hour, because of a mad rush of people wanting to get tested for the virus – and I doubt if anybody in that traffic jam was in fact wanting to get tested. I certainly didn’t. And…

The headline for this article is a double entendre, which I’m pointing out just in case anyone was thinking about getting offended. It’s Tick-The-Box time coming up again shortly in New Zealand, and where some folks may still not be completely au fait with the vagaries of the MMP voting system – whilst others, being more nerdy in a political sense, are better up with the play – it’s a less well-known given that the various recipients of the…

I’ve enjoyed 30 years of auditing the charities of NZ. The opportunity to meet people who passionately endeavour to improve the lives of those struggling with misfortune, is an everyday meeting with “Good Sorts”. I am equally amazed by New Zealander’s acceptance of the compassionate response to COVID-19, whereby the lives of the few vulnerable people mattered more than the personal freedom of many with healthy immune systems, as the team of 5…

Is there a way that the NZ government could handle a second wave of COVID-19 in such a way as to protect people who are most vulnerable to experiencing complications or dying from a SARS CoV-2 infection yet still allow most people to work and enjoy a normal social life and keep our economy and society healthy? The answer to this question is yes. · In the more than six months since the SARS-CoV-2 virus swept around the world, a great deal has…