Podcasts about zero carbon bill

On Wednesday this week the former Green party co-leader James Shaw will address parliament as an MP for the last time. And in a moment when his party is reeling from a combination of scandal and tragedy, his valedictory marks the end of an undervalued career.   Many of the politicians who join our so-called minor parties are idealists. They're not like some Labour or National MPs (more than a few of whom I reckon secretly dream of becoming Prime Minister). They join because they really intensely believe in the political philosophy or kaupapa. And in the case of the Greens, it's my view that sometimes activism comes at the expense of more pragmatic strategy.   Ahead of his valedictory address, I went back and looked up James Shaw's maiden speech in parliament from back in 2014.   What stuck out to me was how much he talked about overcoming political divisions and tribalism, working together, reaching across the aisle to make connections and compromises with politicians in different parties.   That might sound like bland political speak, but actually, politicians in New Zealand don't talk about compromise all that much. In the U.S, Republicans and Democrats often talk about working across the aisle —even if that's bollocks, these days— but the way New Zealand's system is structured, usually the only compromise we see for really big legislation is between coalition or support partners in government together.   As an MP, James Shaw did not achieve everything he wanted. Our biggest-emitting industry doesn't pay for its emissions. Tax reform never got done. But it's interesting to reflect on what big legacy changes have and haven't survived the change of government.   The Māori Health Authority, Three Waters, Auckland Light Rail, Te Pūkenga, the Oil and Gas ban; so much of the last Labour government's policy and work programme has been scrapped.   But one big piece of work has endured. Despite ACT's continued opposition, the Zero Carbon Act has survived the change in government.   Why? I'd suggest a major part of the reason is the way James Shaw went about crafting that legislation. He didn't charge ahead by himself. He very deliberately worked across the aisle. He developed a close relationship with National's then-climate spokesperson Todd Muller and worked to gain the support of every MP in parliament, but one. The whole purpose of the legislation was that it would survive the changing winds and ups-and-downs of politics over time. And here we are.   I think there's a good argument to be made that the single most significant piece of enduring legislation from Jacinda Ardern's time in government, was a piece of work developed by an MP who wasn't even in her party or Cabinet.   The Zero Carbon Act is a victory for compromise. A victory for putting aside differences and uniting around common goals. And although James Shaw's style and strategy may not have always have been appreciated by everyone in his own party, the result speaks for itself. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The ACT Party enjoyed a positive reception at Fieldays 2023. The Party's Standing up for Rural New Zealand policy document included scrapping the Zero Carbon Bill and Three Waters, and tying emissions prices to that of New Zealand's five main trading partners. The Country's Jamie Mackay says his initial prediction was right, after ACT and David Seymour walked away to 'rapturous applause'. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's flagship climate change policy has passed into law almost unanimously. The Zero Carbon Bill was debated on for almost a year with the National Party asking for amendments, but not getting them. Still, National voted for it last night. Federated Farmers Climate Change spokesperson and vice president, Andrew Hoggard joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's flagship climate change policy has passed into law almost unanimously. The Zero Carbon Bill was debated on for almost a year with the National Party asking for amendments, but not getting them. Still, National voted for it last night. Federated Farmers Climate Change spokesperson and vice president, Andrew Hoggard joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The principal economist at the NZIER says dairy sales have gained strength despite the Covid pandemic but the industry could be undermined by tough government policy around the ETS, the Zero Carbon Bill and freshwater reforms.

Luke Wijohn is just 18 years old and running for Parliament - In the Prime Minister's Electorate, no less. After being a lead organiser for NZ's Youth Strikes for Climate, Luke decided to run as a Green MP in this year's election. We chat about his desire to change the conversation we're having with and about our farmers and how to achieve transformational change in city systems like waste and transport. Luke has a focus on getting politicians speaking to issues they have lived experience about and trying to increase youth turnout at the election this year (he's a staunch supporter of making 16 the voting age and lays out a pretty compelling case for it). We also chat about The Zero Carbon Bill and what the media gets wrong about political reporting in our MMP system. Follow Luke on Twitter here and on Facebook here. Thanks to Auckland Council and Live Lightly for supporting this podcast! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

IntroductionThank you Beth and thank you to our wonderful ACT Party volunteers and President. Did you know our online donations averaged a thousand dollars per day for the hundred days before the election was called? ACT has its best momentum and support in a decade.I want to thank Sang Cho and the team at Eden Bistro for opening up especially in Waitangi. Eden Bistro is a new business, and I think it’s going to be a big success. Here in the north of Mt Eden is one of the Epsom Electorate’s most exciting up-and-coming neighbourhoods.Many people here are from the Epsom Electorate. I’m proud to represent you as your local MP. This month marks six years since I started my campaign to represent Epsom in 2014. This year I will be campaigning anew for my neighbours to send me to Wellington for a third time.The state of Our Nation is strong. We are a democracy with a diversified free market economy. We have a rich civil society with voluntary organisations of every kind.We saw in the aftermath of our nation’s tragedy in Christchurch that we may be the warmest people on earth. We are lively, entrepreneurial people who moved further than anyone for a better tomorrow.We live on the greatest piece of physical real estate on earth.The State of our Nation is strong. Our strength has been built up by generations. The question we need to ask ourselves is: Are we adding to or subtracting from the legacy we inherited up until today?I want to talk about some issues we face as a country.Erosion of Rights and FreedomsFree SpeechThe number one political issue is the erosion of freedom under this Government. The foundational freedom of any free society if freedom of speech. It is a good place to start.The ACT Party says it’s a sacred right to think our thoughts and share our views. Freedom of speech allowed Galileo to say the Earth goes around the Sun. It allowed Kate Shephard to say Women have equal rights. Every chance of a better tomorrow depends on people thinking and speaking freely.The current Government thinks free speech is dangerous. It doesn’t want you involved in planning tomorrow. If you are allowed to just think whatever you want, you might think the wrong thing!That’s why they want so called hate speech laws. Someone, somewhere, will be employed by you to decide what you can say. If that sounds nuts, it is. But don’t blame me, I’m just describing their proposal honestly.Normally when the state comes after you, you’re allowed to defend yourself with facts. You can’t be convicted of theft if you didn’t actually take something. When charged with hate speech, no fact can come to your defence. The question is simply whether you said something unpopular, it is mob rule at its worst.It gets worse. Imagine a job that lets you punish the unpopular. Who would apply? Bad people, of course. The worst. We already have a guy called Paul Hunt in charge of the Human Rights Commission who thinks Jeremy Corbyn’s anti-Semitism is okay. That’s the sort of person we’re talking about giving the power to persecute.The ACT Party says hate speech laws are wrong. A government dependent on ACT will never pass laws that restrict your speech. We will expect National to join with us in repealing any hate speech laws introduced in the dying days of this Government.Firearm LawsFree speech allowed ACT to point out that the Government’s firearm laws wouldn’t work, couldn’t work, and haven’t worked. Make no mistake, we are now less safe from gun violence than we were on the 14 March. For three reasons.One. The buy-back failed. It didn’t just fail to get three quarters of the prohibited firearms; it got the least powerful firearms from the most honest people. Incidentally, they took the money and spent it on more firearms. Firearm retailers just had their best Christmas period since Jesus was a boy.Two. Good policing relies on trust. The police are the public and the public are the police. Trust in the law and Police is at an all-time low amongst licensed firearm owners because of the rushed legislation. Most people follow laws they disagree with because they trust the process. They believe in parliamentary democracy. It’s difficult to describe how much our Parliament’s rushed gun laws have damaged the dignity of our democracy.Three. They missed the real problem. How did an Australian weirdo on the wrong side of the Tasman get off a plane and buy an AR-15 with 3,000 rounds of ammo? A single male. Living alone. In another country. Who’d travelled to North Korea and Saudi Arabia. Where were the alarm bells going ding ding ding?Now you understand why the Government and National rushed through their crazy laws. They’d done nothing about the woeful state of New Zealand’s firearm laws for a generation. They knew the public would soon turn on them if they didn’t act immediately, so they practiced collective punishment for the worst crime in our nation’s history on a group of people who’d done nothing wrong.This election will decide whether we fix it, or things get worse. The Government can legislate a register before the election but they cannot implement one. ACT in Government would insist on reversing the second tranche of firearm laws, reintroducing the E-category, and getting the woeful Police out of firearm licensing and administration.That’s the only way to solve the real problems that the Royal Commission will unveil, after the Government’s legislation.The assault on firearm owners and free speech got attention because they made up the Government’s response to the Christchurch terror attacks.Zero Carbon ActThe Zero Carbon Bill give more power to Government Ministers than any legislation since Muldoon. What’s worse, it will do nothing about its stated goal of reducing climate emissions. The legislation is so filled with escape hatches that it will never actually reduce emissions. How do I know this? The British have had the same law for over a decade. Their emission reductions per dollar of GDP have been no better than ours.But it’s given a Minister the undemocratic ability to set plans for whole industries. A Government Minister setting carbon budgets will have the power to effectively decide whether steel, or aluminium is profitable or even if it survives.ACT put up amendments that would remove those Ministerial Powers, making them come to Parliament before setting any kind of industrial plan. We also put up amendments saying New Zealanders should be able to use foreign carbon credits if they’re cheaper.The Parliament, including National, voted against our proposed changes, so we didn’t support the bill.Oil and Gas ExplorationSpeech, firearms, and climate change are issues that get attention, but the erosion of freedom has happened in almost every policy area.New Zealand is already a hostile environment for energy and mineral investment. This is crazy. There are probably more New Zealanders working in Australian mines than New Zealand ones.The ban on oil and gas exploration is nuts. Announcing that the Government will allow no more exploration permits without Cabinet papers or consultation is a sure way to scare away the investment we need to raise worker productivity and wages.The Environmental Protection Agency was supposed to make scientifically robust decisions about who could mine. They’ve been disastrous, preventing environmentally sound projects that could bring investment jobs and growth.This is why we can’t have nice things.The next Government will have to start taking an objective approach to the benefits of the energy and mineral sectors.LandlordsSecond only to licenced firearm owners, landlords are the most persecuted group under this Government.The Government is so opposed to anyone who’s worked, saved and invested, that they have actually hurt tenants in their rush to attack landlords.Landlords perform an incredible service. If you don’t want to save, purchase, do maintenance, pay rates and insurance, and generally be responsible for a property, guess what? Landlords will do it for you. Often they charge rent that doesn’t even cover the mortgage interest rate on the property they’re renting out.You might think that landlords are the greatest benefactors in our society. As a renter myself I’m thrilled that someone is kind enough to do all the work and take all the risk for me. The weekly fee amounts to barely 2 per cent return on equity but hey, that’s their problem.Yet, somehow, landlords have become the whipping boys and girls of this Government. Letting fees are banned, tenants are given even more rights to occupy their property against their will, constant regulatory upgrades add to their cost.The result is predictable enough. If you make it harder to be a landlord, you get fewer landlords. If you raise their costs, they put up rents.Because the Government doesn’t understand the relationship between landlords and tenants, because they see the world through a hundred-year-old lens of class warfare, they’ve kneecapped the very people they’re trying to help.Employment LawEmployment is another relationship this Government fundamentally doesn’t understand. You can either take the risk of putting together capital, ideas, and customers for the privilege of giving other people jobs, or you can just work for someone else made enough to do it.Like landlords, this Government thinks employers are a cash cow, there to be milked for better pay and conditions. That’s why we see the highest minimum wage in the world going up a dollar at a time. That’s why we see the threat of national awards, where wages get negotiated for whole industries from Wellington.What this Government doesn’t understand is that people respond to incentives. If you make it less attractive to employ people, guess what? Less people get employed.We are starting to see the evidence. New Zealand’s terms of trade have never been better, and some industries are desperate for workers, but somehow welfare rolls continue to increase. Since this Government took office, the number of people on welfare has gone up by 25,000. There are over 300,000 working aged New Zealanders on a benefit.ACT stands for the simple idea that employers need workers as much as workers need employers, and bureaucracy is ultimately bad for both of them.The Rural SectorNot so long ago, the farmers were proud to be the backbone of the economy, today the whole of rural New Zealand is under constant assault by Government.Once again the problem is a misunderstanding of the people being governed. Just like firearm owners, landlords, and employers, rural folk are the Government’s ‘bad people.’Bad people, they think farmers are, who want to make money by damaging the environment. They don’t know how to think win-win. It doesn’t occur to them that people who make a living off the land might be the country’s most motivated environmentalists.So they pile on regulations that will drive up costs for little environmental benefit. The one-size-fits-all freshwater regulations will impose costs much larger than the environmental benefits. They will impose standards that urban councils do not meet, and you start to understand why rural New Zealand is angry with this Government.Every Party except ACT supported the Zero Carbon Bill. It may be unavoidable that one day there will be a charge for carbon produced by agriculture. But it remains debatable how a short-lived gas such as methane should be compared with an inert gas such as carbon dioxide. The problem is our Government isn’t debating it. At the very least, our Government should be making the case internationally that methane is not a permanent greenhouse gas and should not be compared with them.None of that is to mention the unending compliance burden placed on farmers, or the Government’s support of a Reserve Bank Governor who has just put up capital costs for no good reason whatsoever.So, the biggest political issue we face right now is a slow erosion of your basic rights and freedoms. We have shown that we are prepared to fight for them.Sleaze in WellingtonIt’s a point of pride that we are the least corrupt country in the world. It’s something we should jealously guard.We should be a country where the rules are the same no matter who you are, and the real process is the same as the advertised one. That’s a fundamental building block of a free and prosperous society.We need to take stock of the sleaze in Wellington. Right now:• Two political parties are under investigation for irregular donations• Two lobbyists have been employed as Ministerial staffers with full access to Cabinet papers while remaining directors of their lobbying firms• The Speaker is being sued over allegations he wrongly slandered a parliamentary staffer as being a criminal• The Deputy Prime Minister can’t competently fill out his Superannuation forms, and there’s the uncomfortable mystery of how this fact -as secret as your tax records- became public• The Provincial Growth Fund is practically an invitation to corruption. There is no real public purpose for taxing some businesses and giving money to others. Shane Jones openly says people must vote for him to get the money, and conveniently forgets he met close associates who applied for the money.In March last year, ACT broke the story about Shane Jones helping to get $4.6 million through the Provincial Growth Fund for an organisation he once chaired. Of course, Jacinda Ardern looked the other way. But what NZ First’s slush fund really means is that you don’t get rich by creating products people want to buy at prices they can afford. No. Instead, you either need connections in the Beehive, or they need to come to Wellington and beg for largesse. These are not the values of a free and prosperous society.This is not a picture of the world’s least corrupt country. The problems lie almost exclusively with the three Governing parties. One reason we need to change the Government is to restore the standards of the world’s least corrupt country in Wellington. And by the way, if it’s legal for two companies controlled by one person to donate more than the declaration limit on the same day, then our electoral laws need to change.Spin Over SubstanceUnder Jacinda Ardern we live in the age of gesture politics. One well-meaning policy after another is marketed brilliantly, but does not work.You just have to ask how the Prime Minister got to be the Prime Minister. Marketing. She has a degree in marketing. She became Prime Minister by selling the same policies that David Shearer, David Cunliffe, and Andrew Little couldn’t sell.The lesson she took is that good marketing can cover off bad policy. Jacinda Ardern has invented the politics of gesture.Banning Plastic bags will not reduce the amount of plastic going into the ocean. Plastic bag litter from New Zealand is not the source of ocean plastic – but it is a fantastic gesture.Doing a market study into petrol companies will not reduce the price of petrol -the petrol companies’ slice is tiny compared with the price of oil and government taxes – but bashing big business is a great gesture.Having the Government build houses will not solve the shortage of housing -the real problem is a shortage of land to build houses on – but it is a great gesture.Buying the least powerful firearms off the most law abiding New Zealanders will not stop the next terrorist, but it is a great gesture.Reporting income statistics, as required by the Child Poverty Reduction Bill, will not reduce child poverty. The real problem is child neglect, but passing a Child Poverty Reduction Bill is a great gesture.I’m sure there’s a phrase used to describe people who are content with simply signalling their virtues.Taken together, the Prime Minister is tackling the housing crisis, saving the oceans from plastic waste, making petrol more affordable, protecting us from terrorism, and fighting child poverty. That’s why she has fans.The only problem is that every initiative is an empty gesture. None of it will actually make New Zealanders’ live better.But we shouldn’t place the blame entirely on the Prime Minister. We’re unable to have a serious discussion about policy in New Zealand. The standard of political debate is woeful. There is no substance. We are focussed on personalities rather than policies. At Waitangi, Winston Peters won’t stand next to Simon Bridges, so he got James Shaw to stand between them. Jacinda Ardern and Marama Davidson giggled during Simon Bridges speech. This is the level of debate. We could instead be talking about how Jacinda Ardern ended charter schools and sent Maori students back to the state school system that had failed them. But it is easier not to address the difficult issues. If we didn’t cheekily adopt Donald Trump’s slogan for today’s event, we wouldn’t have the company of our friends from the media!The other political parties prioritise spin over substance. We at ACT have a core set of beliefs and we’re prepared to put them into action. We are principled and we’re effective.This year the whole country will vote on the End of Life Choice Act. If a majority make it into a law, it will be a great triumph for human compassion and human freedom. It will mean that a person suffering at the end of their life need not suffer to fit in with someone else’s reality. It will be your life, your choice. That’s what a single ACT MP can achieve. That achievement is why we need more ACT MPs in Parliament.Confronting our Long Term ChallengesBeing unable to have serious discussions about which policies are best for New Zealand means we’re less able to solve our long-term challenges.ProductivityIt seems like nearly every week another group of patients and their families petition Parliament for new pharmaceuticals. Of course people are upset that their loved ones are dying, but what has made it a political issue? If I was dying Parliament’s the last place I’d spend my time, believe me.It’s a political issue for one very simple reason. The Australians get the good drugs. Maybe they pay higher taxes and give up other stuff to get the drugs? Nope, they pay lower taxes. They just have more money.This issue is one of productivity. So is keeping the next generation in New Zealand. So is inequality, because when people get left behind in a more and more competitive world we’re really saying they are suffering low productivity.Unfortunately we’re in the lower left corner of the productivity charts. Left because we started low. Lower because we’ve made little progress in productivity growth this century.Some countries started high and cruised along. Others started low and grew quickly. We have the worst of all worlds. Low productivity growth from a low starting point.When you look at the priorities of this Government, and the previous one, low productivity growth is no surprise because productivity growth has not been a priority.Successive governments have ignored policies that harm our productivity and favoured policies that do nothing for it.Having a wellbeing budget. Does nothing for productivity.Government building homes in competition with the private sector?Paying people more to stay home? Doesn’t help productivity.Being the highest taxed country in the Asia pacific region? Doesn’t make people want to work, save and invest.Having the fourth highest company tax rate in the developed world? Doesn’t help productivity.Cancelling basic infrastructure projects for two years then admitting they’re a good idea after all because there’s an election? Doesn’t help productivity.Building regulations where getting permission to build something often takes longer than actually building it? Does not help productivity.Cancelling charter schools that were working because other schools didn’t like losing their students? Doesn’t help productivity.Giving taxpayer money to kids from high decile schools wo were going to high school anyway? Doesn’t help productivity.Banning oil and gas exploration with no consultation or even a Cabinet paper? Scares the living daylights out of investors and doesn’t help productivity.This is insane. We have a Government that does everything but help raise productivity, and lots of things that will actively harm it.ACT in government will make productivity growth a priority. We need to stop taxing and regulating for the sake of it. We need to create the environment for investment, jobs and growth. If we fail, the consequences will be more and more serious over time.We will struggle to keep the promise of New Zealand Superannuation. Younger taxpayers will seek greener pastures. Those without skills will be left stranded, competing with those who lack skills in poor countries around the world. It is a recipe for division and conflict in our society.HousingNot far behind weak productivity is housing. Quite simply it is the biggest public policy failure of the last thirty years.I try not to fill my speeches with numbers but here are three. Since the early nineties, inflation has gone up 60 per cent. The cost of building per square metre has gone up 240 per cent. The price of the median Auckland section has gone up 900 per cent.Let me put that in context, that’s almost as much as shares in Apple. Apple in that time revolutionised the music industry, the personal computer, and the cell phone. Auckland sections were just made scarce by red tape and regulation.Anyone who doesn’t think there’s a problem needs to ponder those numbers. They need to ponder how a country that’s practically uninhabited can run out of sections because of bureaucracy.The consequences are many and dire. Overall home ownership rates are falling, but taking the overall rate masks the much greater declines that are occurring amongst younger, poorer, browner New Zealanders. If we wanted to set up a divided society of haves and have nots, our RMA, Local Government Act, and Building Act are the right way to go about it.It’s also a problem for productivity. It’s hard to attract global talent to your firm if they can’t afford to live here. Every New Zealand firm is paying a hidden tax. That’s the extra wage bill going to its employees’ mortgages.Unless we change our land use planning, our infrastructure funding, and our building consents, we will become a poorer and more divided society.ACT has the answers. People in the building industry quietly tell me they’re the only answers that will get more houses built.First we need to replace the Resource Management Act in urban areas. The Productivity Commission has already produced an excellent report ‘Better Urban Planning’ that lays out how planning could be done in urban areas if we wanted to actually build homes.Second we need to give councils a cut of the central Government’s taxes on new builds. If councils have to give consent and build the infrastructure for new developments, then they need money and they need incentives. ACT’s policy of giving the consenting council half the GST on new builds in their territory would not only give them money, it would dramatically change their incentives.Third, we need to get councils out of the building consent business. They should have been sacked from this role after leaky buildings. Instead, ACT would implement a regime of mandatory private sector insurance on new builds.Our goal should be that anyone who does the right things, works hard and saves their money, can own their own stake in New Zealand. It’s in all our interests to live in such a country.EducationThe final big issue facing this country is education.We spend $15 billion dollars on education, and we have some of the best schools in the world. But overall our education outcomes are highly unequal and slowly declining.The PISA study, which compares the reading, maths and science abilities of 15-year-olds across the world, shows our test scores are falling. A 2014 government report found 40 per cent of Year 12 students failed to meet literacy and numeracy standards even though they had NCEA Level 2.Large numbers of our children are leaving school unprepared for work and life. This is a disaster for our society and our economy. When it comes to the students who leave school without basic skills, our education system is – to borrow a phrase – a moral and fiscal failure.ACT wants to break up the government’s monopoly on education by giving educators freedom, and by giving parents choice.A one-size-fits-all education system doesn’t work and cannot work. The needs of students are diverse and our schools must also be diverse. All children - not just the well-off - should have a choice in education.Partnership Schools were an example of this philosophy in action. Schools had the freedom to innovate and families could vote with their feet by taking their children to a school that better met their needs.Any future government that ACT is part of will bring back Partnership Schools in even greater numbers.But freedom in the classroom is just the start. We also need to put power in the hands of parents.The issue of who should control education funding comes down to this: Do we trust the bureaucrats or the parents?Taxpayers will spend $250,000 on education over the life of every baby born this year, but parents have little control over how it is spent. We could get much better value for that money for all children - but especially disadvantaged children - if it was used to empower families to choose their school, public or private.ACT says that taxpayer education funding should be placed into student education accounts to be controlled by parents. Those who want to continue at their current school will be able to do so, however those who don't will have greater choice.ACTThe good news is ACT is in place to push back the incursions on our freedoms, push out the sleaze, and replace the politics of gesture with the politics of real policy that actually solves real problems.Every poll in the last three months has shown that, if an election were held tomorrow, Beth would be an MP. She’d make a great MP. She is an award-winning businesswoman. A former sheep and beef farmer. A mother of two. A three times elected member of the Rodney Local Board and elected Chair of that Board. Beth would be a better MP than 90 per cent of them on her first day.But there are other polls that haven’t been widely reported. When I tell you what they say you’ll understand why. Multiple sources have told me that Labour’s poll at the end of last year, Labour’s poll had ACT on 3.5 per cent. That’s five ACT MPs.Why is this happening? Because ACT is the only party working hard for a better New Zealand. If that sounds simple, it is.ACT is constructive. We worked with every party to pass the End of Life Choice Act.ACT is also principled. When it matters, we stand alone against every other party.The common theme is that ACT alone works issue by issue for a better New Zealand. Every other party is operating on the politics of gesture.The ACT Party stands to hold the balance of power after this election. How would we use that position?Again, very simple. We stand for people who want to make a difference in their own lives and the lives of those they care about. We stand against politicians with grand Government schemes to buy us a better tomorrow, with our own money.Let me put it his way. The ACT Party stands for those who do. We believe that the world is made a better place by human action. We oppose the marketing led gesture politics that makes us feel good but leaves us all the poorer.We are campaigning to roll back government incursions on our freedom and deliver practical policies that solve real long-term problems with productivity growth, homebuilding, and educational inequality.I hope you will join us in this fight for a Free New Zealand.Free SpeechACT New ZealandPolitics in Full Sentences - Podcasts NZSchool of Practical Politics

In this episode of Politics in Full Sentences, we look back at ACT’s achievements in 2019, including the passage of the End of Life Choice Bill, being the only party to hold Labour to account on free speech, rushed firearms law and the flawed Zero Carbon Bill, and helping to defeat Labour’s capital gains tax and radical education proposals.Free SpeechACT New ZealandPolitics in Full Sentences - Podcasts NZSchool of Practical Politics

 2019 The climate action year in roundupProduction: Andy BrittInterviews by Vivien Langford and Kurt Johnson As we face over a hundred Bushfires in Australia, the Madrid Climate Conference carries on and some Extinction Rebels go on hunger fast in order to get commitments from parliamentarians, we look at some of the campaigns that are hot at the end of 2019. Vanessa Petrie CEO of BZE talks about Australia's first Zero Carbon Factory. What we could do with 700% renewable energy and the groundswell of job creation in coal country.  Naomi Hogan from Lock the Gate Alliance defends the Traditional Owners of the Beetaloo Basin in NT. They are protecting their land against gas fracking. We can stand up with them for our future, especially if we are customers of gas companies.  Rev Alex Sangster takes us to the frontlines of resistance to Adani. The sacred springs of the Wangan and Jagalingou people are now "owned" by Adani and she calls out to us to go up to the Galilee and stand with them.  Daniel Bleakley speaks to Vivien on the steps of parliament. Surrounded by 27 empty plates to symbolise the meals he has missed over 9 days he draws attention to the hunger already felt where the climate crisis hits   our most vulnerable people. Which politicians will stop and listen to this eloquent messenger? He is part of a global hunger strike by Extinction Rebellion.   Jacinda Ardern the Prime Minister of New Zealand says we must move beyond targets and deliver signs of action. She launched her Zero Carbon Bill to a standing ovation. Thanks to Mik Aidt for the audio.                  "Jacinda Ardern hails New Zealand zero-carbon law: 'On the right side of history'"  Mark Carter is the author of "The Elephant in th sky" and has just launched a new group. Flight Free Australia. We talk about the effect of Greta Thunberg sailing to the USA and back. In extraordinary times we take extraordinary action.Its an ethical challenge we can rise to.Tommy John Herbert is a member of the MUA and a Sydney Wharfie. He talks about the dead Turtles and Fish he saw as a Seafarer as he supplied the gas rigs off Broome. His vision is for strike action to protect workers as they transition to servicing off shore wind and other necessary jobs that give us a better life.Wendy Farmer represents Voices of the Valley. She talks to Kurt Johnson about the Penalties being imposed on Engie for the Morwell mine fire of 2014. The responsibility of mine owners to protect the health of the community comes through loud and clear. Thanks to all our guests who made this show happen, to Beyond Zero Emissions and to Radio 3cr... and a big thanks to all of our listeners. The team this year has been Erin, Adelle, Roger, Andy, Kurt and Vivien. For climate action during the holidays contact any of the groups we have highlighted during the year. As its an emergency their rebellion will swell.

On the International Men’s Day edition of Trans Tasman Talk. Tim and Dieuwe discuss other political issues that have been blamed for causing the NSW bushfires, the latest China diplomacy issues in both nations, refugee transfers and an interestingly timed royal visit. Live Replay Podcast Show Description The bushfires debate is still raging in New South Wales, with a feminist campaigner suggesting that firefighters aren’t that brave because they will go home and beat their wives. Israel Folau ignited another firestorm of his own after the media promoted his latest sermon where he suggested that the fires in NSW were God’s displeasure following the recent abortion liberalisation. There’s a bit of Biblical support for such punishment, and the same government that gave its blessing to abortion liberalisation also enacted the green policies that allowed the fires to get out of hand. Farm protests were held in New Zealand, with over 1,200 marching on Wellington last week and then another 3,000-4,000 gathering in Greymouth on the West Coast to protest the Zero Carbon Bill, waterway policies, and forestry subsidies. Establishment MPs that attended were booed and heckled. Jacinda was out of the country.  Shane Jones,  the infamous NZ First MP, referred to the protesters as “Ngati Redneck-ery” (Redneck Tribe), and Simon Bridges “promoted” Maureen Pugh (whom he referred to as “effing useless” in leaked tapes) to the MP for West Coast issues. Dieuwe suggested that farmers should not forget that both parties have abandoned them and not to fall for the empty promises that will inevitably be broken. China was back in the news, with Liberal MPs Andrew Hastie and James Paterson being banned from entering China for a study tour. The Chinese government has ordered they recant their sin of criticising Beijing, but both have refused and Australia has broken off a human rights collaboration project. It has been revealed that New Zealand taxpayers have given a $250k subsidy for Chinese propaganda films to be made in the country. A line from the film reads as follows: “anyone who offends China, no matter how remote, must be exterminated.” They sound just like the Daleks. The Nauru asylum seekers made headlines again as Guardian writer Behrouz Boochani made his way to New Zealand, hoping to get a UN refugee resettlement in the USA. Scott Morison is trying to get the infamous “medevac” laws repeated that have allowed illegal aliens to enter the country via medical procedures. One refugee was found to have had a botched penis enlargement performed on him. The injustice system was highlighted by the case of Rouxle Le Roux who posted Instagram photos of her at the beach in a bikini with an ankle bracelet. The 18 year old is nearly finished serving her sentence of a few months home detention after killing a 15-year-old in a hit-and-run when she ran a red light after a night of drinking and drugs. Cases like this highlight the inversion of the justice system and how cold-blooded murderers can get away with just about anything in New Zealand, Australia, and much of the post-Christian West. Prince Charles has been visiting New Zealand, which has resulted in a few gaffs almost as bad as Prince Andrew’s recent pizzagate interview. Duchess Camilla did bring some entertainment though as she botched a “hongi” that looked more like it was going to end up as a big smooch for the poor Maori greeter. The Unshackled Links: Website: https://www.theunshackled.net Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TUnshackled Twitter: https://twitter.com/Un_shackled Gab: https://gab.ai/theunshackled Telegram: https://t.me/theunshackled Right Minds NZ Links: Website: https://www.rightminds.nz/ Donate: https://www.rightminds.nz/donate Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rightmindsnz/ Twitter https://twitter.com/rightmindsnz YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFcFU3Qv9lKc9rHEIqWd6Dw Unshackled Productions: WilmsFront: http://www.timwilms.com Debt Nation: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKKEHuAGzwVtIEIFW3cZOPg The Uncuckables: http://theuncuckables.com/ The Report from Tiger Mountain: https://www.facebook.com/reportfromtigermountain/ Further Unshackled Links: Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theunshackled/ Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/the_unshackled Minds: https://www.minds.com/The_Unshackled MeWe: https://mewe.com/p/theunshackled Bitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/theunshackled/ Membership: http://www.theunshackled.net/membership Donate: https://www.theunshackled.net/donate/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theunshackled Paypal: https://www.paypal.me/TheUnshackled Events: https://www.theunshackled.net/events/ Store: https://www.theunshackled.net/store/

A WorldBending podcast about the Zero Carbon Bill and the exemption of methane and nitrous oxide from the Emissions Trading Scheme for another 5 years.

Last week National did the unthinkable. It fell into line with the government and voted for the Zero Carbon Bill. So we decided to do things differently, and put together a panel to discuss this asinine move.On the agenda today —National leadership, education and the abuse of children's minds by climate propagandists.I spoke with two National long-time members and one of the best educationalists in the country. And there is something to offend almost everyone.File your comments and complaints at Leighton@newstalkzb.co.nzHaven't listened to a podcast before? Check out our simple how-to guide.Listen here on iHeartRadioLeighton Smith's podcast also available on iTunes:To subscribe via iTunes click here

Climate change is being described as a tricky issue for the National Party.The Opposition voted in favour of the Zero Carbon Bill on Thursday, allowing the bill to pass into law with the support of all MPs except for David Seymour. The move has earned National and leader Simon Bridges criticism from the farmers.However, NZ Herald political reporter Audrey Young told Andrew Dickens that Bridges should be praised for his stance. She says that Bridges has done a lot of behind the scenes management on a prominent policy shift. "There was a lot of potential for internal strife on that issue, and I think he should be given credit for his political management of it."Young says that the deal the farmers did with the Government around the Emissions Trading Scheme changed the dynamics."There was less imperative for National to be the voice of the farmers, which gave National a bit more freedom."Bridges' move meant that other National MPs who don't support the bill, such as Judith Collins, ended up voting in favour of the bill. 

Farmers feel 'kicked under the bus' by National's decision to back the Zero Carbon Amendment Bill.The bill passed its third reading in Parliament yesterday.Federated Farmers Vice President Andrew Hoggard sold Tim Dower farmers expected Simon Bridges to oppose the bill if National hadn't got the compromises it was after.But he says farmers will still back National at the election, provided the party doesn't prioritise Auckland over the rest of the country."The only way to reduce carbon is by putting in less feed, resulting in fewer cows and sheep, which would greatly affect rural communities."LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW ABOVE

Is the zero Carbon Bill strong enough? - A discussion with Jeanette Fitzsimons Founder and ex-coleader of the Green party,on the zero carbon bill is it strong enough? And must the climate mitigation campaigned include climate justice and economic equity and we get the population on board for the needed drastic changes in long-term? Broadcast on OAR 105.4FM Dunedin www.oar.org.nz

Robyn Dynes (AgResearch) led a panel discussion at Farmsmart 2019 with Dr Judy Lawrence (Senior Resarch Fellow, NZ Climate Change Research Institute) and Peter Ettema (Manager for the International Policy Directorate, MPI). The panel addresses the biggest issues facing our sector – the Zero Carbon Bill, the Emissions Trading Scheme, and climate change. What does all this mean for our red meat producers?

Green Party co-leader James Shaw talks winter grazing and the Zero Carbon Bill, Federated Farmers CEO Terry Copeland on a new scheme set to see farmers get prescription medicines delivered to them, Richard Dawkins is our 'Character of the Country' this week, plus we are joined by regular guests weatherman Richard Green and Rural Today host Dominic George.

The Government’s plan to plant a billion trees, coupled with the Zero Carbon Bill, has New Zealand farmers worried about the future of livestock farming.With the east coast of the North Island already seeing some sheep and beef properties sold to forestry, there are concerns about how these policies will shape rural communities in the future.Farmers Weekly editor Bryan Gibson spoke to RNZ’s The Detail podcast about the issue.

A political commentator says it's over the top to claim the National Party is our biggest climate change threatColumnist Simon Wilson wrote this week that National's refusal to endorse the Zero Carbon Bill, among other things, is undermining the country's effort to address climate change.But Vernon Tava told The Weekend Collective this isn't true."Labour and it's coalition partners could get this bill through on numbers, so to then claim that the whole scheme is being threatened by National opposition is pretty over the top." Tava is widely expected to launch his own so-called Blue/Green Party in time for next year's election. 

A political commentator says it's over the top to claim the National Party is our biggest climate change threatColumnist Simon Wilson wrote this week that National's refusal to endorse the Zero Carbon Bill, among other things, is undermining the country's effort to address climate change.But Vernon Tava told The Weekend Collective this isn't true."Labour and it's coalition partners could get this bill through on numbers, so to then claim that the whole scheme is being threatened by National opposition is pretty over the top." Tava is widely expected to launch his own so-called Blue/Green Party in time for next year's election. 

A political commentator says it's over the top to claim the National Party is our biggest climate change threatColumnist Simon Wilson wrote this week that National's refusal to endorse the Zero Carbon Bill, among other things, is undermining the country's effort to address climate change.But Vernon Tava told The Weekend Collective this isn't true."Labour and it's coalition partners could get this bill through on numbers, so to then claim that the whole scheme is being threatened by National opposition is pretty over the top." Tava is widely expected to launch his own so-called Blue/Green Party in time for next year's election. 

B+LNZ’s Chief Insight Officer Jeremy Baker explains the reasoning and science-based approach behind our submission on the Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill currently being considered by Parliament.

Submit on the Zero Carbon Bill - Adam Currie, Generation Zero

What New Zealand is aiming for with its Zero Carbon Bill, and why our country is unique when it comes to dealing with methane-producing cows. 

Chris and Mike Yardley wrap the week that was, discussing the Cannabis referendum, the Zero Carbon Bill and Kiwibuild, is it time to let it go?

James Shaw says the Zero Carbon Bill will be too much for some and too little for others, but they have to do more than simply plant trees. Details of the Government's long-awaited climate change laws were unveiled today, setting out a 30-year plan to help limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius.Farmers will be happy methane - the gas mainly produced by agriculture - is exempt from a target of reducing all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.The methane target is 10 percent reduction by 2030.The Bill will also establish the independent Climate Change Commission, set five-yearly emissions budgets as stepping stones, and require the Government to help combat growing threats like flooding and fires.The Climate Change Minister told Kerre McIvor the bill is based on scientific research from New Zealand and overseas."The science about what it's going to take for us across the whole economy, not just farmers, to live within 1.5 degrees of global warming." Shaw says that there are some figures that don't have a New Zealand context, such as around biological methane emissions.The Climate Change Commission will now have to give the Government a definitive answer by 2024 on that and other matters."There is a range of uncertainty, and we want to give people more predictability and certainty than that." He says that every part of society and the economy has to work together to lower emissions and improve our climate.Shaw says that there are some areas around energy, such as more solar and wind, where we are falling behind and we can improve.When it comes to other countries and their emissions, Shaw says that they have a commitment to help countries that are lesser off through this transition. "We do have a historic responsibility there. Not every country in the world is pulling their weight, but the momentum is building, and I think before too long the countries that are pulling their weight are going to look at those that aren't and ask why."

So no Capital Gains Tax.An old French philosopher once said: "Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose"It means the more things change the more they stay the same.  We have a Labour led coalition government that came in with a coalition partner saying that capitalism had failed.  They called themselves a transformational government and this year was the year of delivery. The spooked  the busness sector with a minimum wage rise and a halt to future oil and gas exploration and gave beneficiaries a payrise and then……Nothing.Labour law reform stymied.  Immigration is back on the rise. Teachers pay dispute deadlocked.  The Zero Carbon Bill marooned in a rising tide of scepticism.  Vulnerable children on the rise.  Mental Health and State Care Abuse reports still eons away. Quietly this week Grant Robertson reiterated the Budget Responsibility Rules so there will be no spending greater than revenue.I am now finding it hard to find any concrete evidence that this government is fundamentally differing from the previous two governments.  Pragmatic, poll driven compromisers.  Ardern and Key are two sides of the same coin and not wildly different in action but only in rhetoric.And that doesn’t worry me.  I’ll just get on with being the best I can be and so should you.Meanwhile, Auckland’s underground rail development just blew it’s budget by a billion and could be late in completion.  Gee what a surprise.  Who didn’t see that coming?We can’t cry over blown budgets because we’re too far gone now and in 20 years’ time we’ll be thankful for the infrastructure and I’ve always said what a pity we didn’t do this in the 50s.But the Auckland mayor now has to find 500 mill.  He wants to keep his promise not to increase the rates.  So he’s got a plan.That plan may include selling or leasing the council’s 4500 city carparks.  Now I first greeted this with some despair as those carparks are the last affordable ones in town and then I stopped and wondered why they volunteered this idea so quickly.Is it part of their plan?  Give the car parks to private industry and watch the prices shoot up into the stratosphere and the result?   Force more people out of their cars.Depending on which way you stand this is either a genius idea or a new level of social engineering evil.  And it’s even more brilliant when you realise a lot of people who complain that Council’s are in too many businesses that should be in the private sector can’t complain unless they want to be seen as self-serving hypocrites.

New Zealand needs to quickly stop burning fossil fuels, plant vast amounts of forest - and switch to electric vehicles and greener agriculture, a major report has found.The Productivity Commission's final report on how the country can shift to a low-emissions economy also called for emissions standards for newly registered vehicles, a "feebate" scheme to boost the uptake of EVs, and putting a price on gases from farms.Chairman Murray Sherwin said the period between now and 2050 - the target the Government has set for its bold Zero Carbon Bill - would pass quickly, and delaying action now would make the shift harder and costlier in the long run.The commission recommended a move away from using fossil fuels for providing process heat for industry, and a "rapid and comprehensive" switch from petrol cars to EVs, of which fewer than 10,000 are on our roads today.The suggestion has been met with mixed reaction from talkback listeners, particularly around the switch to electric vehicles.Some callers were positive about the move to electric bikes – though one caller, Allan, who owns an electric bike store, revealed that you can be fined for riding an electric bike too fast.  Feedback was more mixed about what to do about electric vehicles. Caller Louie said that there’s little point in making a big move to electric vehicles, as you never know what the next big change will be.LISTEN TO THE CALLER FEEDBACK ABOVE

Sarah propositions an All Black, Hamish and Loey have a hard chat about men's health, and James Shaw joined us to discuss the public consultation on the Zero Carbon Bill - all that and MORE in todays show.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.