MOM … Show me the money!
The new National-led Government delivered a fine present as it shut down for Christmas – a big dump of official documents on its plans to extend what it calls the “Mixed Ownership Model”. The Sale of...
View ArticleThe Optimist’s Budget
This was no “zero” budget. If all goes according to plan over the next three years, the Government sees its tax revenue increasing by nearly 23%, its spending rising by a little more than 7%, and its...
View ArticleThe asset sales "trade-off" - a lose-lose
Another week, another "trade-off" for National to sell. This time it's state assets. While Tony Ryall's a much more adept and experienced salesperson than Hekia Parata, he's still got a heck of a...
View ArticleThe price of water
About a week ago I did an interview for Nine to Noon about the state of the National Government’s privatisation programme in which I stated the obvious; that it was in serious trouble.read more
View ArticleThe Partial State Asset Sale poem
Five state assets going on the blockAirline prices fell and so did one's stockDon't sell Air New Zealand, the people saidBill replied "Hmph, I'll sell the other four instead" Four state assets going on...
View ArticleThe Mighty River Battle is on again
Last week, the Supreme Court rejected claims that the Government’s plan to sell shares in Mighty River Power would impair its ability to address Treaty of Waitangi breaches in respect of Maori...
View ArticleWhy the rush to sell Mighty River? Politics.
Whatever side of the politics you sit on asset sales, no-one except the government thinks this is a good time to sell. But they’ve already banked the $7 billion they expect from the sale. They need it...
View ArticleFog on the Water
Mighty River Power – the vanguard of the Government’s drive to pull private investors into its new Mixed Ownership Model for State-dominated enterprises – has been at war with the Waikato Regional...
View ArticleWhat is the alternative to Labour’s energy policy?
If you are a critic of Labour’s new, interventionist electricity policy, there are only two questions I’m really interested in:Do you think the current system is working? And, if you don’t, what’s your...
View ArticleFor there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so
If you were to go searching for a place where absolute, unarguable truth could be found, you might think you would find it in the realm of mathematical certainty. After all, we like to say that numbers...
View ArticleThe Mighty River Power – unanswered questions
It hasn't been a great week for political parties and their predictive powers.read more
View ArticleNational's final asset sale justification is proved false
It's no secret that I'm no fan of National's partial asset-sales programme. To me it's always seemed like selling the rental property to pay to renovate the spare room. Why would you give away the...
View ArticlePut me on the board! Put me on the Cadillac board!
Some things sell on their merits alone. Icebreaker. BMW. Wooing Tree Pinot Noir. Sure, they may throw in the occasional discount or sweetener to clear inventory or get over a flat patch, but on the...
View ArticleThe price of water
About a week ago I did an interview for Nine to Noon about the state of the National Government’s privatisation programme in which I stated the obvious; that it was in serious trouble.read more
View ArticleThe Partial State Asset Sale poem
Five state assets going on the blockAirline prices fell and so did one's stockDon't sell Air New Zealand, the people saidBill replied "Hmph, I'll sell the other four instead" Four state assets going on...
View ArticleThe Mighty River Battle is on again
Last week, the Supreme Court rejected claims that the Government’s plan to sell shares in Mighty River Power would impair its ability to address Treaty of Waitangi breaches in respect of Maori...
View ArticleWhy the rush to sell Mighty River? Politics.
Whatever side of the politics you sit on asset sales, no-one except the government thinks this is a good time to sell. But they’ve already banked the $7 billion they expect from the sale. They need it...
View ArticleFog on the Water
Mighty River Power – the vanguard of the Government’s drive to pull private investors into its new Mixed Ownership Model for State-dominated enterprises – has been at war with the Waikato Regional...
View ArticleWhat is the alternative to Labour’s energy policy?
If you are a critic of Labour’s new, interventionist electricity policy, there are only two questions I’m really interested in:Do you think the current system is working? And, if you don’t, what’s your...
View ArticleFor there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so
If you were to go searching for a place where absolute, unarguable truth could be found, you might think you would find it in the realm of mathematical certainty. After all, we like to say that numbers...
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