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Peter Dunne - Latest News [Page 13]
Dunne Speaks: One More Change for the Speaker to Make
Thursday, 27 June 2019, 8:31 am | Peter Dunne
In a recent column I was very critical of the performance to date of the current Speaker of the House of Representatives whom I suggested was acting in a far more partisan manner than many recent Speakers, and behaving more like the bully boy that ... More >>
The Speaker who brought Parliament into Disrepute
Friday, 10 May 2019, 9:16 am | Peter Dunne
Parliament's current Speaker is turning the ancient and venerable institution on its head. Traditionally, the Speaker's role has been a rather conservative, sometimes passive, one to preside independently, without fear or favour over proceedings in ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: The Dilemma of Hate Speech
Wednesday, 1 May 2019, 11:54 am | Peter Dunne
In the wake of the Christchurch terrorism incident, specifically the publication on-line of the alleged killer’s so-called manifesto, the topic of hate speech and how to deal with it has come more strongly into public focus. There have been calls ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: All Politics is Local
Thursday, 25 April 2019, 11:20 am | Peter Dunne
When I first became an MP back in 1984 one of the earliest and sagest pieces of advice I received was from my illustrious predecessor, Sir John Marshall, who told me "be loyal to your electorate and it will be loyal to you." It was advice I was to ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: The Capital Gains Tax U-Turn
Thursday, 18 April 2019, 8:45 am | Peter Dunne
In my Newsroom Column last week about the proposed Capital Gains Tax I wrote that "Notwithstanding her own strong feelings in favour of a comprehensive capital gains tax, [the Prime Minister] needs to recognise the depth of public opposition ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Shooting the Pharmac Messenger
Thursday, 11 April 2019, 9:55 am | Peter Dunne
National's unsuccessful attempt to get a Parliamentary inquiry into PHARMAC is a classic case of shooting the messenger. PHARMAC is a procurement agency, charged with securing the nation's supplies of medicines and medical devices. But it is not, ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: The Death of Reason
Thursday, 4 April 2019, 9:57 am | Peter Dunne
Anyone who tuned into this week’s television debate between ACT leader David Seymour and National MP Maggie Barry on the subject of Mr Seymour’s End of Life Choice Bill in the expectation of learning more about a controversial subject that will ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: No Need for Royal Commission
Thursday, 28 March 2019, 9:48 am | Peter Dunne
There is no need to need to review the structure of the security services in the wake of the Christchurch Mosque killings. Both the SIS and the GCSB have already been heavily reviewed in recent years, made more accountable in their operations, ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Beware the Ides of March
Thursday, 21 March 2019, 8:52 am | Peter Dunne
In school, we all learnt the phrase, "Beware the Ides of March" courtesy of Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar. The soothsayer's warning to Caesar was brushed aside and Caesar assassinated a little later in the day. For the last nearly 420 ... More >>
Dunne Speaks
Friday, 15 March 2019, 9:19 am | Peter Dunne
It is often said that no government can legislate for commonsense. And it is also often said that the first thing every new Minister should do upon appointment is read and comprehend the provisions of the Cabinet Manual. Both statements are particularly ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Public Servants Have Political Views Too
Friday, 8 March 2019, 9:39 am | Peter Dunne
The Wellington public service bureaucracy still maintains an aura of political neutrality about its operations. Public servants are, as tradition expects, generally loyal to their Ministers and the government of the day, and do not seek to cause them any ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: All Political Parties Trite and Banal on CGT
Friday, 1 March 2019, 9:15 am | Peter Dunne
The report of the Tax Working Group heralds potentially one of the most significant shake-ups of our tax system in the last thirty years, whatever one may think of its individual recommendations. Yet it was surprising and disappointing that with the ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Tax Working Group no more than Cullens stooges
Friday, 22 February 2019, 10:16 am | Peter Dunne
So, the details of Labour’s long-awaited capital gains tax have been revealed, and now the speculation begins as to how the government will go about implementing Sir Michael Cullen’s long-cherished dream. One thing that is near certain is that ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Flushing out NZ First on Capital Gains Tax
Thursday, 14 February 2019, 9:11 am | Peter Dunne
Once, Greens co-leader James Shaw's comment when Parliament resumed this week that the current government does not deserve to be re-elected if it fails to introduce a capital gains tax would have been regarded as yet another reason why the Greens ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Time we knew our full history
Friday, 8 February 2019, 1:01 pm | Peter Dunne
Another Waitangi Day has passed – this year without adverse event – and with it, the often too brief opportunity to consider what it means to be a New Zealander, 179 years after the signing of the Treaty. More >>
Dunne Speaks: National's Search for a Partner
Friday, 1 February 2019, 10:32 am | Peter Dunne
The National Party’s delight earlier in the week at revelations that consideration was being given to the establishment of a “blue-green” party that could be a partner at future elections was as understandable as it was premature. It was understandable ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: What I Want for Christmas
Thursday, 20 December 2018, 9:33 am | Peter Dunne
DUNNE SPEAKS I want a Christmas present I do not think Santa can, or will, deliver me. I am not being selfish or unreasonable, but just realistic, because what I want is a political party I can vote for at the next General Election. More >>
Dunne Speaks - Strikes and the public reaction
Thursday, 13 December 2018, 9:49 am | Peter Dunne
Just over two years ago when Business New Zealand and the Employers and Manufacturers Association were using the bully-boy and standover tactics more associated with the trade unions of old in an attempt to browbeat Government support partners at the ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: Mental Health Challenges only just beginning
Thursday, 6 December 2018, 8:56 am | Peter Dunne
Congratulations David Clark! In a Government where initiating a review has been a substitute for doing anything, he has become the first Minister to have both established a major review - into Mental Health - and to have received the final report of the ... More >>
Dunne Speaks: We Are No Better Than Trump
Thursday, 29 November 2018, 8:59 am | Peter Dunne
The outrage when President Trump refused outright to condemn the Saudi Crown Prince for his role in the murder of expatriate columnist Jamal Khashoggi, despite apparently overwhelming implicating evidence, was palpable and predictable. So too was the President’s ... More >>
