NZ Politics Daily - January 9

With the Government’s asset sales programme dragging out until the next election, it gives plenty of time for analysis. David Beatson made good use of the wet holiday weather to go through the pre-Christmas news dump. In his post MOM…Show me the money! http://bit.ly/yC1SNd. Beatson observes that the political compromises made during the election to limit foreign ownership will undermine the economic rationale originally supported by Treasury.

It is going to be a very difficult balancing act for the Government to make assets sales politically saleable. The Herald on Sunday editorial focuses on the lack of guarantee on power prices for consumers (see: A long wait for cheaper power) http://bit.ly/A4F7BO, while Bernard Hickey says that the share float price must be ‘not too hot, not too cold, but just right’ – see Floats must hit Goldilocks standard http://bit.ly/wr7LaI. If the price is seen as too low taxpayers will feel cheated, too high and it will fail to attract the wide-spread New Zealand-based ownership that the Government claims to want.

The ‘mixed ownership model’ has also been mooted for the Ports of Auckland by C&R councillors, as the dispute drags on with further industrial action scheduled for today. Bernard Orsman reports in Mayor gives striking port union the message http://bit.ly/wSTbo9 that Len Brown has ‘issued an ultimatum’ to the port workers about agreeing to the port company’s demand for flexibility in the interests of greater capital returns for the council. 

Brown may be feeling the heat applied by Cameron Slater over a $2000 donation from the Maritime Union for his 2010 mayoral election campaign – see his blog post: The best investment the maritime union ever made http://bit.ly/yV8NZt. Although, it has to be said, if that is the price for having the mayor of the supercity in your pocket, Brown needs to review his rate card.

Matt McCarten claims that the rate of return being demanded by the port company directors is ‘insane’ given the financial position of most ports around the world. McCarten argues that the new directors of the company – of whom only one out of six has shipping experience – are there to sell the port not run it – see: Greedy wharfies' tale hides ambitions for port http://bit.ly/z4bemt.

Jo Moir’s Taranaki Daily News report The reality of poverty http://bit.ly/A3p9KQ, and a subsequent blogpost by Judy Callingham (Milk and Honey off the menu http://bit.ly/xzbYA4) are keeping the debate on child poverty in New Zealand going.  David Farrar questions the way poverty has been measured in his post: Child Poverty http://bit.ly/ypoefH.

Last week Tim Hazeldine wrote a good article examining the increasing wealth of the 1% and saying that the political left’s preoccupation with identity politics and welfare benefits has undermined its credibility on wealth distribution. He says it’s actually the right who should be most concerned, as capitalism has functioned best during periods where lower and middle incomes have risen – see: Staggering gains of top 1% beggars more than belief http://bit.ly/wJHIHO.

Finally, in Which public servants get the most super? http://bit.ly/wOcGum Richard Meadows has a good comparison of state servant superannuation schemes, comparing judges, MPs, police and firefighters with the other public servants. The results will not shock you. And Adam Bennett reports on yet another major Government department downsize at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade – see: Foreign Affairs set to lose about 200 jobs in revamp http://bit.ly/ybtciq.

Bryce Edwards
NZPD Editor (bryce.edwards@otago.ac.nz)