Articles in ‘Opinion’

Zoonotic diseases are diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans and they have been in existence (as any search will yield) since the origin of Homo sapiens 200,000 years ago or, roughly, since Adam. Given a globally increasing population density, where the current total is 7.9 billions, one ought to anticipate an increase in zoonotic diseases of which coronavirus 2…

trojan (n.) — Malware that misleads users from its true intent. Dr Bryan Betty, the Medical Director of the Royal NZ College of General Practice, has let down the nation massively these past 18 months by actively eroding the moral and scientific integrity of the once noble vocation of medicine. Under the watch of this 'Big Pharma' loyalist, and a few others, we have seen the…

I received another reminder from my Government to book my Pfizer mRNA shot

It’s thought that it was Mark Twain who said, “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” It’s become a commonplace phrase for describing the persuasive power of numbers, especially statistics, when used to strengthen someone’s argument or point of view. As National’s spokesperson for statistics, I can vouch for the important role that statistics play in…

Once again, I feel compelled to write about house prices. Why? Because it is the most important cause of social distress in New Zealand today, and that by a large margin. There would still be social problems if house prices were half their present level, but they would be vastly more manageable – child poverty would be much reduced, mental health would be better, there would…

The troubles of the world as we know it, are now a constant in our life at present, with Covid and its new variant Delta sweeping the world, which will never be the same again. Gone are the things we have taken for granted all our lives, like getting on an aircraft and flying wherever we wish in the world to new and hereto unknown adventures! Now, I for one have a distinctly…

Banking risk is not often talked about or discussed in mainstream media and this in part is a man-aged form of media spin designed to ensure the public that all is OK in the world of banking. Whenever a banking CEO or Treasury Minister faces the media the narrative is very predictable in that promotion of certainty in the banking sector is a given. No one wants to undermine faith…

On the 3rd of March, I published my journey to date with the Three Waters Reforms being proposed by Government. You can see this summary on YouTube. Now, with the 2021 Local Government Conference behind us – the conference where we listened to the Prime Minister and Minister Mahuta and had discussions with a number of Mayors and Chief Executives – it’s time for a further update. …

When Daily Blog editor, Martyn Bradbury, says Labour’s lucky the country’s currently distracted by the Covid-19 Delta Variant, he’s right. Were New Zealand safe and out of Lockdown, it would be in the midst of a dangerously divisive row about Oranga Tamariki, the Judiciary, Race, and the Rule of Law. Given that the matters at the heart of this controversy are sub judice (i.e.…

The Prime Minister’s politics — including her stance towards the Mongrel Mob and the Taliban — can be baffling. Graham Adams reckons answers lie in her past as a Mormon. Whether it is from politeness or a lack of curiosity, it is rare for journalists or commentators to dwell on Jacinda Ardern’s religious history and how it might have shaped her politics. When the Prime Minister…

Today, 18 August, the New Zealand political class crossed the fine line between democracy and socialism. On the steps of TVNZ’s Auckland office twelve policemen and women in yellow hi-viz vests seized Free Speech advocate and democracy idealist Mr Billy te Kahika, while he addressed a peaceful gathering. Ten minutes later they grabbed maverick media man Vinnie Eastwood,…

I recall a very fine lawyer, New Zealand’s most highly regarded QC, once saying that no law should ever be passed unless it was absolutely necessary. Apparently nobody has pointed this out to Jacinda Ardern. In the minds now of many, the plethora of legislation already passed under her leadership and the proposed inflictions she feels impelled to add to these, point in a very…

A distinctly curious feature of the backlash against the letter published in the Listener titled “In Defence of Science” is that none of its most prominent critics have actually defended mātauranga Māori (traditional Māori knowledge) as being scientific. Yet the main point of the letter by the Auckland University professors — and the main point of contention for its critics — was…

While there’s a clear case for change in our Three Waters sector, the Government’s plan isn’t compelling, and the model of four regional entities comes with several serious problems. We recognise and understand the need for change. But the proposed solution will end up with more problems than solutions. The benefits of scale are not convincing. Water services are not like the…

Professor Peter McCullough, Dr Reiner Fuellmich, Dr David Martin, Dr Michael Yeadon, and thousands more of our finest experts are pursuing hundreds of lawsuits against the WHO, the CDC, the Davos Group of the World Economic Forum, government officials, and many others for corruption and escalating “Covid19” crimes against humanity. These organisations and their Government and…

The Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) is currently New Zealand’s principal law that governs how people interact with natural resources such as our air, soil, fresh water and the coastal marine environment. The RMA also regulates land use and the provision of infrastructure. It is generally accepted across most of the parties in Parliament that the RMA has passed its use-by date…

One of the most amazing aspects of politics in New Zealand in recent decades is the enduring popularity of a Prime Minister who leads a Government which has failed in almost every major policy area. It is indeed a sad reflection on democracy itself that voters seem more impressed by a pretty smile than by the Government’s ability to deliver on its important policy objectives. Too…

An elderly neighbour dropped in to see me today seeking an explanation to an emailed marketing blurb she received from Countdown. The front page of the usual specials advertising was “Celebrate Matariki Maori New Year”. I explained to her the current Government had legislated a new public holiday” as a celebration of Matariki, the Maori New Year”. She wasn’t impressed, raising…

Mark Twain famously said, “it is easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled”. Whilst points of view can appear to be paradoxical, both right, sometimes this is illusory, and we need to go back to the basics. Real people live in three dimensions not two and so the solution to the illustration is to flip the number the right way up before interpreting…

Small to medium-sized businesses make a significant contribution to New Zealand’s economy, but many face the challenge of how to achieve greater productivity – and this doesn’t mean working longer hours. Improving New Zealand’s productivity has proved elusive for decades and unfortunately we now rank amongst the bottom 25 per cent of OECD countries. But what is productivity, and…