In his State of the Nation address earlier this month, National’s new leader Christopher Luxon claimed New Zealand has a cost-of-living-crisis.
At first the Prime Minister denied it. But after a One News political opinion poll showed Labour trailing National, she embraced it, announcing an immediate 3-month 25 cents a litre cut in petrol tax, and blaming international forces and the war in the Ukraine for our troubles, rather than her management of our economy.
A breakdown of the price of a litre of petrol shows that once GST is applied, government taxes and levies make up around half of the price at the pump. Just over 70 cents in excise tax goes into the National Land Transport Fund to be used by the New Zealand Transport Agency for roading and public transport subsidies. In Auckland an additional 10c Regional Fuel Tax is earmarked for projects to reduce congestion. An ACC levy accounts for 6c, a Local Authorities Fuel Tax 0.66c, a Fuel Monitoring Levy 0.6c, and the Emissions Trading Scheme carbon tax is now almost 20c a litre.
In 2019, a report by the Productivity Commission outlining the sacrifices New Zealanders would need to make to achieve Jacinda Ardern’s vanity project of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 predicted the carbon tax on petrol would increase to around 55 cents a litre. New Zealanders are only now getting a taste of what’s in store once the harsh economic penalties planned by Labour and the Greens – under the pretext of saving the planet – start to bite.
In his speech, Christopher Luxon outlined how families are struggling to cope with skyrocketing inflation: “The facts are stark – we have a cost of living crisis in New Zealand. Inflation is at a three-decade high. With prices rising twice as fast as wages, Kiwi families are worse off than they were 12 months ago. Food price rises are the highest in a decade, petrol has hit more than $3 a litre, and rents are through the roof. And if you want to buy your first home, forget about it. The average house price is up almost $400,000 under Labour. Rising interest rates mean interest costs on a $600,000 mortgage are up $7200 in the last 12 months, and they’re only going up from here.”
He made the point that while increasing government spending to support the economy might have made sense back in 2020 as the country recovered from lockdowns, it doesn’t anymore. Even though inflation is rising strongly, and excessive government spending will make the problem worse, Labour is planning a record $6 billion of new spending in this year’s Budget.
So, while Labour doubles down on a tax and spend strategy, National is pledging to lighten the load on families by cancelling all of the new taxes introduced by the Ardern Government. That means ending the 39 percent income tax rate, cancelling the proposed new job insurance and light rail tax, the regional fuel tax, the bright line test extension, and resuming interest deductibility for rental property owners.
National is also calling on Labour to adjust income tax thresholds in the Budget to address bracket creep. Based on the last four years of inflation, they want the 10.5 percent tax rate to apply up to $15,600 instead of $14,000, the 17.5 percent rate to start at $53,500 instead of $48,000, and the 33 percent tax rate to kick in at $78,100, rather than $70,000.
The ANZ is predicting tough economic times lie ahead: “The outlook for economic activity is souring. Living cost pressures are extreme. And there’s more inflationary pain to come, with global developments adding more petrol to the fire, and the Omicron outbreak adding to labour scarcity. Inflation is now running laps around wage growth, meaning households are going backwards at an alarming rate. Meanwhile, many businesses are facing reduced demand as people stay home, and the housing market softens.”
Food prices, which rose 6.8 percent in February compared with a year ago – with fruit and vegetables increasing 17 percent, meat, poultry, and fish 7.1 percent, and other groceries 5.4 percent – could rise by as much as 22 percent over the next year according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, as the war in the Ukraine impacts on crucial grain and fertilizer supplies.
National’s tax cuts, estimated to cost $1.7 billion – just over a quarter of Labour’s planned Budget spend – would allow New Zealanders to keep more of their own money to spend as they see fit, rather than watching on as this socialist Government wastes more and more public money on ill-advised policy choices.
And that’s the problem. Almost every policy introduced by Labour has been a failure and has come at a considerable financial cost.
Just this week the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission reported no appreciable benefits in mental health services, despite Labour’s highly publicised $1.9 billion investment in Budget 2019.
Labour’s promise to build tens of thousands of affordable homes was such a fiasco it became a national joke. Meanwhile the waiting list for State houses has skyrocketed from 5,000 in 2017 when they became Government to 26,000, with more than 10,000 New Zealanders now living in emergency accommodation in motels and hostels. Costing more than a million dollars a day, leaving families with children cramped in “temporary” accommodation for years on end is creating social dislocation and the ghettoisation of neighbourhoods – at a time when motels are expected to soon be in demand for tourism.
Labour’s soft on crime approach – epitomised by Jacinda Ardern giving $2.75 million to the Mongrel Mob – has led to a dangerous explosion in gang violence.
Yet instead of targeting the gangs, the Prime Minister’s much-vaunted 2019 crackdown on firearms following the Christchurch tragedy only affected law-abiding gun owners. Furthermore, her new system has left 2,700 applicants waiting more than a year for a firearms licence.
The new compulsory New Zealand history curriculum released with great fanfare last week by the Prime Minister will indoctrinate all New Zealand children with the radicalised political propaganda of the Maori sovereignty movement.
Labour’s obsession with the Maori language is destroying trust in the public service as official communications are increasingly being produced in pidgin English, which inhibits understanding, erodes accuracy, and damages public confidence in Government institutions.
Labour’s ban on offshore oil and gas exploration has undermined New Zealand’s energy security, at a time of increasing global instability and heightened risk.
By turning the mainstream media into a government propaganda team of $55 million, Labour’s Public Interest Journalism Fund is destroying public confidence in the media.
Instead of allowing the use PPE – which kept everyone safe before vaccines were available – Jacinda Ardern’s decision to break her election promise and introduce illegal vaccine mandates has divided society, destroyed families, crushed basic human rights, and created such serious financial hardship that many New Zealanders will never trust the Prime Minister or her Government again.
Furthermore, as New Zealand turns into the world’s Covid hotspot, with everyone now knowing someone with the virus, the Prime Minister’s commitment to keep New Zealanders safe is in tatters, and the 400,000 former National voters who supported her at the last election, are finally seeing the error of their ways and are returning “home”.
With the PM’s ‘magic’ fast disappearing Labour is now in full panic mode, swiftly side-lining unpopular policies in the hope of digging themselves out of a grave.
Prime amongst those is their disastrous hate speech laws, as this week’s NZCPR Guest Commentator Dr Bryce Edwards, a politics lecturer at Victoria University and director of Critical Politics, explains:
“The Government has delayed the introduction of its fraught hate speech law reforms, and there’s strong speculation they’ll remain on ice until after the next election. In fact, they may never see the light of day again. This is a win for those who have argued that the reforms are likely to be counterproductive, impinging on human rights, including political freedoms and speech.
“Famously both the Minister of Justice Kris Faafoi and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern were unable to adequately defend or explain their new rules last year, which gave weight to the argument that they were dangerous and knee-jerk… The fact that the voices of dissent crossed the political spectrum from left to right, meant Labour had real pause for thought about persisting with the reforms.”
Whether falling poll ratings will also force Jacinda Ardern to abandon her He Puapua agenda – to replace democracy with tribal rule by 2040 under the guise of “co-governance” – remains to be seen. Since voters were not informed about He Puapua until after the 2020 election, all associated law changes – including Three Waters and the Pae Ora racial segregation health bill – are illegitimate and should be scrapped.
It’s ironic that the Prime Minister is introducing these racist laws at a time when polling shows Maori are deserting Labour in droves – it seems they don’t like the Maori Caucus’s plan to enrich the iwi elite any more than the rest of us!
So, what can we learn from the abject failure of the Ardern Government?
Firstly, Labour is the crisis.
While most independent commentators are now predicting they will suffer a massive defeat at the next election with many “safe” electorates likely to fall – see HERE – what could save Labour is MMP. If they form a coalition with the extremists in the Green Party, and the racists in the Maori Party, they may yet again win the Treasury benches.
But if Labour is a disaster now, just imagine how much worse things could become if that three-headed behemoth was in control. Such a spectre serves as a grim reminder of how governments can turn rogue and how important it is to ensure public safeguards are in place.
That means strengthening democracy at every level to protect New Zealanders from over-arching State power and Government abuse.
That includes bolstering the Bill of Rights, which was introduced in 1990 to protect New Zealanders against the unbridled power of government. However, in the face of a panicked response to this latest pandemic, it proved no match for Jacinda Ardern’s authoritarianism, as, for the first time in our history, inalienable liberties and freedoms were suspended – including Parliament itself.
Furthermore, as New Zealand stands on the cusp of the Government using their majority power to force unmandated law changes through Parliament – which will pass control of the country’s crucial water infrastructure and health services to iwi leaders – it is clearly time direct democracy safeguards were introduced to enable the public to step in and prevent what Labour is planning to do.
In fact, the whole concept of giving the iwi bosses of multi-million-dollar private tribal business development corporations power over the lives of other New Zealanders is so totally outrageous that it reveals just how dangerously misguided Jacinda Ardern really is.
Government without the consent of the governed is tyranny.
To prevent legislation being pushed through without a mandate, New Zealand needs a 90-day ‘People’s Veto’ – similar to the democratic protection enjoyed in a majority of US States. A ‘People’s Veto’ would enable the public to challenge new laws through a binding referendum process – as long as sufficient support for a veto petition is collected within 90 days of the law being passed.
A New Zealand People’s Veto would work in a similar fashion to the Maori ward petition rights that Labour abolished last year, and could easily be introduced through simple amendments to our Citizens Initiated Referendum legislation.
Under a People’s Veto, if Jacinda Ardern rammed through her unmandated Three Waters and Pae Ora legislation, petitions to repeal the law changes would quickly gain sufficient support for binding referenda to be held, so these racist laws could be thrown out.
Jacinda Ardern is reminding us, not only that governments cannot be trusted, but of the importance of ensuring democratic safeguards are in place to protect citizens when their governments go bad.
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THIS WEEK’S POLL ASKS:
*Does New Zealand need the safeguard of a 90-day People’s Veto?
*Poll comments are posted below.
*All NZCPR poll results can be seen in the Archive.
THIS WEEK’S POLL COMMENTS
| Absolutely, the powers that be cannot be trusted. They are devious. | Stevo |
| No greater reason than Ardern herself. Lives in a self worshipping bubble, out of touch with democracy. | Bob |
| It is essential to ensure democracy is not lost | Ken |
| Jacinda Ardern’s flagellant disrespect disregard for New Zealanders rights, shows we must strengthen the safeguards of democracy. Democracy can easily be eroded and I strongly suspect that this is Jacinda Arderns intention. She is a communist and authoritarian by nature but pretends (very effectively for many) to be a very caring person. This woman has done damge to New Zealand of which we will probably never fully recove. If she gets another term in power, we will be at the mercy of future dictators. Please god sake New Zealanders please don’t be deceived again by this very dangerous woman . | John |
| Ardern’s government is eroding many of the democratic principles that our forefathers fought for and some paid the ultimate sacrifice. To continue with the leftist, autocratic ideology is a sure signal that future NZErs could come under the same state of control, that the people of Russia are under. That doesn’t bear thinking about. | Kerry |
| The history of the last 2 years of the ardern government and their unlawfull mandates shows that we do need safe guards | Ron |
| sooner the better | barry |
| New Zealand is an out of control socialist racist TRAIN WREAK. Who could be stupid enough to vote these idiots back in ? | Greg |
| Sooner rather than later | Cyril |
| We sure do should have been put in place years ago none of our politicians can be trusted to make the right decisions for our communities – should also apply to local bodies | Rob |
| Certainly do under this government! | Alison |
| This is imperative as NZ is fast losing its democratic status. Kiwis are demoralised and disillusioned by the dictatorial decisions policies rapidly being introduced by the Labour Party. Added to this is a mass media paid off by the government to support their narrative policies. | Theodora |
| Protect our democracy. | |
| absolutely!! | tony |
| First we nee3d to abandon MMP.And return to democratic government.One person ONE vote. | George |
| Yes but, not only but also the team of five million need, as many who are able, to camp on the Parliament grounds or other conspicuous place, shut the country down with rolling strikes and remind this tyrannical regime they represent the People, not the WEF or UN or any other minority corporation | peter |
| Without it we have little political recourse against the ongoing tyranny. In ruling by decree and deceit hey are leaving us with few choices other than violence or terrorism. I suspect that’s what they want as a way to justify further assault on dissidents. | Evan |
| without a doubt, this government is just so under the thumb of maori elite. The working class maori I have gone out of my way to talk to see nothing of the money, NZ is being held to ransome by about 0.5% of the population…maori | mark |
| Never thought we would see New Zealander be taken to such a low level. Democracy must remain. | Gillian |
| Especially with this Government in power | Rick |
| Spot on! As Margaret Thatcher once said; The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money! The current socialist government run out of other people’s money some time ago and then started printing it, putting the country on a path of self destruction! Winston Churchill once said; Socialism is the philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance and the gospel of envy! If he were here today he would, no doubt, add another line. The practise of deceit! The economy will not be able to get to a position of democratic functionalism or meaningful wealth creation for a generation and that assumes that the next five governments are good governments that put in place policies to achieve real economic development. Socialism is incapable of any meaningful wealth creation, only wealth re-distribution and when all the wealth has been re-distributed they then re-distribute wealth that has not yet been created. So the longer they stay in power, the bigger the mess!!! But there remains a major problem and that is the refusal of Voters to take responsibility for the country’s future, as their voting patterns reflect short-term gain for the voter as opposed to accepting some sacrifices in the interest of a sustainable and healthy economic future. Perhaps the answer lies in educating Voters to get smarter? | Frederick |
| Bring it on so we can force the Iabour Party to back down on Three Waters | Ian |
| Maori pressure groups are undermining our democracy. The so called “partnership” does not exist in the treaty. Sovereignty was ceded to tb\he Crown in exchange for certain guarantees, National had better get its act (not ACT) together for conservative voters to once again support their meandering party. | Hugh |
| 100% yes,yes yes. | Lionel |
| Jacinderella DOESN’T know best. shock horror, Communist ! | bill |
| we need to be able to keep a check on those in power.The people need to be able to determine the way the country goes. | Mel |
| Yes we certainly do. As you say Muriel, Labour IS the Crisis. They are useless, evil and the whole lot of them need dumping.Preferably on a prison island somewhere from which they can never escape. | Rosemary |
| certainly | norman |
| better still, we need constitutional status of the Bill of Rights. There is no ‘justification’, ever, for suspension of individual rights. No law should be enacted that violates them. Ever. | Mark |
| Particularly with this current mob in, be great idea. Moving forward, with MMP I’m afraid again we will have tail wagging the dog scenarios so the peoples veto would be great idea. | Shane |
| Definitely. | Dianne |
| Absolutely | Kevin |
| This idea has already been suggested on the website for www.100days.co.nz and well publicised. I understand you are aware of this. Why not direct you readers to i- instead of attempting to run an unnecessary parallel movement? Not a good look | John |
| Well done Muriel. I am so very grateful for your ability to share such truth in a clear and concise way for all readers to understand. How blessed are we New Zealand, to have this spark of light working with and for us Shine on NZCPR I | Sky |
| The only democratic safeguard in the first instance is a change of government. THEN National AND Act must get together and make a binding pact to free New Zealand from Labour induced apartheid. This pidgin English in and on our media has to stop. Today’s school pupils can’t read or write English without being taught Maori as if it is going to be any use to them in the REAL world With out change this country is STUFFED. It probably is already. | Bruce |
| Absolutely. | John |
| The commentary provided reflects my thoughts to the letter. | Bryan |
| If Gvt do not agree to a 90 day veto period then they are confessing they have ended democracy in NZ | Mac |
| I should not get that far – get things sorted now ! | Graham |
| Tyranny of the majority, an often cited criticism of democracy, is fast being replaced by Tyranny of the Minority in New Zealand. Anti-Colonialism propaganda fails to recognize that NZ would still be a third-world country without western immigration and good governance practices. | Victoria |
| Arderns performance has been a disappointment to say the least on many fronts and the New Zealand I grew up in is rapidly disappearing. | Joan |
| Sounds interesting. It surely couldn’t go wrong | Eric |
| Great. Remember when Tizard went ahead and order the battle ships? It was talked about then ….may be someone can learn from the mistakes of that time. That weasel Upton was no help. Grrr | Peter |
| Definitely | Terry |
| if there is no democracy there will be chaos, as we have learned from history! | Chris |
| It is time we start to limit the power of the Labour government | Theo |
| We are sliding into an autocracy under Labour | Tina |
| We need to see that Christopher Luxon has undivided support of his party. At this stage he seems to be the only member of the party. | Denis |
| We currently have a government that is no longer a Labour government but a socialist /fascist government that is intent on total control. | Lois |
| Sooner the better | Ray |
| A 90 day peoples Veto is not the only thing needed. It is plainly clear that the system of “Corporate Government” from outside the country by the world “elite” is not what Men and Women of the world want. It is most important that our “Sovereign Free Will” is recognised as something that cannot be taken away, as the criminals who call themselves government are in the process of doing. I do not need them to keep me safe and to control every aspect of my life. The world “elites” so they call themselves, can just get out of my life. I will associate with whoever I choose to keep my life on track the way I want it. The Criminal Nazi WEF, UN, WHO and others can just but out. I am not going to fight them. It is the way I (and many others) say it is and there will not be any discussion or negotiation about it. | Neil |
| the way to go | Douglas |
| I completely disagree with any bill that carries with it any form of Maori Co-governance. ALL NEW ZEALNDERS should have exactly the same rights and ALL those in any governance should be democratically & fairly elected by our voters to perform as our representatives in carrying out their roles; making everyone accountable. | John |
| Can’t wait to see the back end of her and her cronies | Bob |
| Absolutely!! As NZ does not have an upper house for intensive scrutiny of rogue governments legislation (such as we have now) then it’s imperative that we initiate that safeguard. | Tony |
| To stop the tyranny. | natasha |
| Yes but it is needed now, URGENTLY. This Govt. has hijacked democracy, demoralized our belief in ourselves as a color blind society including any faith the Governor General’s role, justice, health and education. The opposition’s failure to be the opposition deepens anger and trust in MMP as a form of democracy. Get rid of list MP’s, elected MP’s only is a must. Party with the largest vote must form a Govt. Remove racial seats and appointees in first 100 days of new Govt. | Sam |
| Can’t say it loudly enough – YES | Peter |
| Definitely require a mechanism to stop the introduction of unmandated policy. | Norm |
| Last 4 years show how much damage an incompetent, arrogant, corrupt, totalitarian government can do to a society. We need to make them stop. | Greg |
| BINDING referenda is my preference. It has worked well in Switzerland for many decades. Politicians of all persuasions do not like them because it means democracy is by and large with the people on most important issues instead of once every three years at election time as we have it at the moment. | Gary |
| Do I really need to make a comment on such a disastrous law | Stewart |
| But only because we have a lying, racist, undemocratic government. Those who made the Labour party once the saviour of the people must be hiding thier heads in shame. Shame on you, Jacinda Ardern, my hard working Labour ancestors would not believe what you have done in their name. | Paloma |
| An ideal brake lever on irresponsible government. | Pete |
| definitely | Graeme |
| Look at the effect of tribal power in Zimbabwe & South Africa. Basket case economics, corruption on a grand scale & failure of services due to lack of capable people to run them. Wake up Kiwis! | Dane |
| We certainly need something in place to stop these crazy people pushing their own warped little agendas!!! | Matt |
| Yes we do need a more representative democracy and that must start at the begining. Getting rid of MMP and putting the people back in control. First by making the electorate vote supreme and not the party machines. But the idea of a peoples veto would be a great start and could be included in any electoral reform | Cookie |
| Democracy above all else | Allister |
| A true expression of democracy. | Jon |
| We absolutely DO need a people’s veto, because everything that has been put in place over the last forty years or so is AGAINST democracy, against the Treaty, against freedom, against everything our nation used to stand for. Yes, Labour and the Greens have been a catastrophe, but Christopher Luxon is of the same ilk as Ardern. If people turn to National because they are fed up with Labour, it will be jumping out of the frying pan to land in the fire. We NEED a totally new government, and the lesser parties NEED to amalgamate to be able to achieve anything, and WE THE PEOPLE need to all stand up TOGHETHER and just say NO! We need to eradicate ALL the unlawful laws they have put into effect over the last 40 years, and start again with a TRUE democracy, one based on freedom and equality before the law. | Joyce |
| Any new law not in the manifesto prior to election, and subsequently brought in under the radar, should be referred to the electorate for approval / modification before appearing on the statute books. | Brian |
| We have a Government out of control! They believe their own PR! | Dianne |
| Absolutely YES | Phillippa |
| or something similar to protect our democratic freedoms | Ian |
| And most probably an upper house.. to make all this work, the removal of Maori Seats, the removal of Maori positions on Councils and boards… Everyone in this country CAN aspire to such jobs through Elections…and demonstrably have. | Lionel |
| End the unlawful powers of the Prime Minister. | Lee |
| No government should be allowed to RULE, like this bunch have, ever again. | Ray |
| Of course – lacking an upper house (and we don’t want one of those1) we need some brake on legislation.- especially with this government and ones like it. | Roger |
| All the undemocratic moves this govt have made MUST be undone. | Elizabeth |
| NZ desperately needs an entrenched constitution to protect us all from the evils of a rogue government such as the one we are being terrorised with now. | Richard |
| no contest | Peter |
| I find the gall of this government unacceptable in how it rides over our democratic rights. | ted |
| sounds good | Anon |
| Most certainly. Any communication to the Ministers of this Government do not give a rats ass what people thing/want. There has to be some higher independent authority invoked to stop their arrogance and destruction of this country. | Robyn |
| We need something to stop this madness that is being implemented by this government week after week. Unless she is gone in the next election I will be gone out of this country. | Lawrie |
| We need it now to stop this governments ideology | Steve |
| Democracy and tribalism do NOT go together. One person one vote must be upheld | Michael |
| Damn right we do. Labour just thinks it can steamroll over basic democracy as it wishes. | Fraser |
| Unfortunately, it would appear so. Sooner rather than later! | Michael |
| Fair’s fair | Ray |
| We the public need a change of Government now and for this lot to be exported to green land . To have to put in place such a safeguard shows that the public have lost faith in the people that run Government. We need to attract people with ambition and business skills and pay them market rates. Forget about the Greens and the liberals and start running the economy that benefits us all. | ken |
| Absolutely! | Ian |
| Absolutely. Jacinda Adern is totally under the influence of the WEF. She is on a mission to turn this country into a Globalist State. | Hans |
| Hell yes | Sheena |
| Given the ineptitude of this Labour Government and the likelihood that later governments will also need correction a democratic protection mechanism should be put in place. | Alastair |
| Citizens initiated referendum! This is MMP at its worsts NZ is being controlled by List MP’s most have never been voted for! | Christina |
| We voted for MMP for this very reason, as a safeguard against policies that clearly did not have majority support of NZ’ers. Oviously it was not enough and something else is required. Equally obvious is that neither National nor Labour bought into MMP completely and chose to ignore the message their constituents were sending. | Vicki |
| Yes we do. This government has proved useless in looking after the people that put them there, plus the three waters is dangerous and very damaging | Kerin |
| I think this sort of law is needed now like never before. It is hard to remember any time in the past when such unpopular laws are being proposed and many without proper consultation. As for the media fund to financially promote media to support government policies and pro-government actions is totally unacceptable. The media is effectively not able to produce even a balanced commentry for fear of their continued employment. | Keith |
| Too right I don’t like where we are heading under this Labour Government | Barry |
| and soon | Pam |
| We do not need another Government With the power this labour government was able to give themselves. The MMP must abandoned at the same time. | Wendy |
| we also need a method to chuck out the malevolent government | Robin |
| The People’s Veto bill is essential to ward off tyranny. | Helen |
| This would be vital for the safeguard of our nation. | Brian |
| I consider that the proposed legislation giving a racial group special privililages is counterproductive and very dangerous for democracy and the future of our country. | Brian |
| We need safe guards for every thing with the Labor Government. | Ann |
| Absolutely | Bev |
| That’s just common democratic good sense. | ian |
| The green commies would find it very useful in their campaign to finally abolish freedom. | K |
| If we are a true democratic nation with freedom of choice then the 90-day People’s Veto is obviously necessary. | D E |
| I have told my friends for many years we need a safe guard like this in please. Also abolish MMP or which ever party gains the most votes should automatically be placed in power and then they decide who their partners will be. This would of stopped Winston Peters from putting Labour in power. | Chris |
| 3 waters and the handover of any democratic rights to all kiwis. Must be stopped | Steve |
| have to have it | Noel |
| Adern has demonstrated how a low intellect person can take away our freedom | Stan |
| By having a safeguard will allow people time to absorb what the real agenda behind any new laws or legislation is. Particularly with this current agenda dominated government, who it seems wants to divide us. | Owen |
| The people are supposed to be told about new laws and have a chance to have their say we cannot do this the way Labour keeps their laws secret from the public. All law changes have been failures especially the change to the CCCFA which has proven a total fail and prevented a lot of people getting houses. Time to scrap the rubbish Labour has done to our law! | Chaquila |
| When a PM goes rogue and begins a fast track campaign to hand the country over to iwi bosses who are concerned with nothing more than lining their own pockets, the people of New Zealand must have a way to reel in and prevent such illegal and racist actions with speed. | Liz |
| It is criminal what Labour has pushed through | Margaret |
| Definitely! ! | John |
| I strongly believe that a 90-day People’s Veto is needed for our protection from corrupt government’s, especially this current one! | Jennifer |
| In general nowadays, the least capable members of the community end up in parliament, as the more capable are put off a life in public scrutiny. The only answer to this is more direct democracy, which is referendums on any constitutional issues | Luke |
| Absolutely, this has proved Allan Pease was 100% correct! Politicians are lying as soon as you see their lips move! The cannot be trusted, same goes for Luxon. Pretends to be Christian, but aided police brutality in parliament grounds! We definitely need a right of veto! | Peter |
| Seems a sound step and reinforces the dangers of longer terms for governments who cannot govern. | Murray |
| Labour needs to be gone – sooner the better for all our sakes! | Roy |
| Please a safeguard against any colour of tyranny is needed. | Rob |
| Definitely, we have had lot of our freedoms taken away. Badly written legislation by this government seems to be the norm but I wonder whether this is also deliberate. Write bad law about helping the vulnerable from moneylenders, it kills the housing market and takes out the first homeowners as well. | Mike |
| Long overdue solution to NZ’s democratic vulnerability. | Murray |
| Logical. | Richard |
| How about a quick referendum to throw out this awful ‘government’ within 90 days? | Patrick |
| Absolutely we do … how can this be enacted , time being of the essence ? | Lorraine |
| Need to halt this dangerous woman | Kath |
| Government for the people, by the people. Sadly, we are seeing that dismissed with no apparent recourse – until the next election. | DAVID |
| 1000% WE DO | trish |
| Yes. To stop a dictator. She doesn’t work for us. She works for Klaus Schwab and the WEF. Years ago before the pandemic she said to Bill Gates she wants NZ to be the most vaccinated country. Why? No conspiracy, fact! | Mike |
| But not for minor legislation however that is defined | Derek |
| We need whatever it takes to keep the government of the day aware that they work for us,not the other way around. This commie government has to go NOW. | Peter |
| We need a new democracy, this one is corrupt and now evil. | Alan |
| It is 100 days in Switzerland | Murray |
| We are rapidly sliding down the path of left-wing autocracy under the guise of a “caring mother ” figure. | Wolf |
| Absolutely. It is appalling the number of laws that are being rushed through under urgency by this government on all manner of topics that were never campaigned on. Democracy and peoples rights need to be protected. | Karen |
| It is not safe that labor, who started with was it 165 committees coting millions of our money – et were not ably to achieve any productive results. – other peoples money has been too easy. | Maurice |
| Yes, we definitely need this protection from tyranny, and we need enough voters to be interested enough to know when to use it, and involved enough to use it when needed. | TOBY |
| Absolutely You can’t trust govts | Tony |
| It’s time our parliamentarians represented the people of NZ. Not half baked theories. Let’s get nz back on track. | Jason |
| We need this to keep our democracy from falling into the hands of these charlatans. | rob |
| The Swiss have used a 100 day scheme for years and most of their laws pass without any problem, because their Parliament doesn’t pass dumb ones because they know it would be thrown out! | Ted |
| Urgently I would say | Claire |
| With what has happened under this labour government, we definitely need the protection of a 90 day veto. | Adele |
| It should be longer than 90 days. 180 days would be more realistic, as it takes time to inform people about parliamentary changes that have been made – who actually reads the stuff that’s posted on parliaments’ web page regarding changes in legislation, etc? Only those who are very interested and have the time to do so | Trevor |
| Would 3 months be enough time ????? | Michael |
| Tyranny at its worst, we need protection. | Ewan |
| It is important that the people have a tool to keep the tyranical secretive government in check | Marie |
| Nothing about us without us | John |
| Definitely to prevent in the future what has happened and is happening under this dishonest Labour Govt. | Jane |
| Makes sense for our security | Paul |
| a safe guard against radical ideology would be brilliant | john |
| Absolutely. This woman is the devil’s work and her school-children CAUCUS are destroying our country. Trouble is – she was voted in. So the majority have ended up with what they wanted – haven’t they? She still has popular support like Hitler had. A nation of two legged sheep dragging us with them to the ‘end’. | Simon |
| More than ever | Colleen |
| Absolutely …… | Warren |
| The government simply cannot be trusted to act in the best interests of the people – they are acting out the Prime Minister’s Communist ideology. | Linton |
| Something is needed to keep our democracy in check. | Sue |
| Oh, yes please,we need this. | Chris |
| Thank the good lord for you and your team Muriel Newman | Annie |
| We shouldn’t, but the experience with this current Government makes it essential. A tragedy in 5 Acts. Submissions to select committees are a window-dressing farce. Nothing changes as a result. | Philip |
| And jail time for bad policies | Tjaart |
| yes of course, get on with it. | gerard |
| Politicians are not to be trusted, the people need the right of veto. | Stevo |
| Yes we do every government in living history have pushed through acts & laws against the will of the majority | Nigel |
| Hurry | Peter |
| Yes we do, considering the absolute bulldozing of Democracy since Labour came into power. Our people have had literally no say in anything, and Labour have bullied their way through everything, without care or consideration of the People of New Zealand. | Heather |
| I would like to see a Binding referendum on Capital Punishment for Smoking Gun Crimes. Also, an open conversation about 2nd Amendment Rights for all Vetted Kiwis | BRUCE |
| Cant trust our Labour Govt. Miguiding and lying to us. | Denis |
| We have seen our fragile our democracy is and how one crazed prime minister can damage and undermine the very values that make our country great. No politician should be able to undermine the Bill of Rights and push legislation through parliament without protections in place to safeguard the rights of all New Zealand citizens. The economic and social damage this government has done will take years to undo and should never be allowed to happen again. | Lena |
| Hell yea | Joseph |
| We need safeguards to protect us from this Government as they are so not transparent. | David |
| Most definitely. Do not forget that a referendum was to be held about Maori wards on councils, but was rejected out of hand by this current bunch of (aah) individuals. There are two types of people who enter parliament – those who, once in, we never hear from again, and those who we hear from all the time, and all for the wrong reasons. Let us hope that Three Waters and He Pua Pua go the same way! | Kevan |
| Do not rush. We need the safeguard. | William |
| Great idea | Chris |
| The majority of voters fail to research who they are voting for, so consequently, the Leader who is best at telling lies is usually elected. The last election was no exception, with the fear factor convincing many to vote for a Party that they thought had saved all their miserable lives. The same fear factor will be used, but even stronger at the next election, to convince the ‘young’ voters, that ONLY the Left can save them from catastrophic global warming, & the probability of an even worse pandemic. All lies of course, but did I not just explain that the best liars gain the most votes. | A.G.R. |
| The sooner the better | Cyril |
| This majority Government is so totally our of control, I can’t believe that there won’t be rioting in the streets if it continues. Ardern and her bunch of woke, PC racists must be held to account and reigned in! | Pieter |
| No, we do not need this measure, we just need a change of government | Peter |
| If the legislation can’t be repealed then there needs to be a safeguard, 90 days should be a minimum time for consultation. | Denise |
| Definitely. This crowds going crazy! | Wendy |
| how can we remove this anti-truth criminal ? | mike |
| ARDERN has an Imperial persona which makes it very difficult to understand the people she was once a part of. | Lyn |
| Unmandated and anti democratic Marxist policies are unacceptable in New Zealand and these Labour Green and Maori clowns in Government need to go.. sooner rather than later | Rob |
| absolutely brilliant idea, some how the people need to be able to stop this government from there crazy agendas Switzerland have referendums for all major changes and we should as well, but im not sure weather our opposition party’s are up to the battle they are to afraid of calling a spade a spade i just hope this government the greens and the maoris are all out at the next election | rodger |
| Due to the complete lack of checks & balances in legislation, plus a Maori rubber stamp Gov-General, | john |
| Absolutely. There appears to be no alternative. | David |
| Get rid of this communist government. We need strong powerful representation against these radical, divisive policies. All JA cares about is her ratings, the county can go to pot as long as she is on the front page. She must have a massive ego – very rare for a woman. | Laura |
| Long overdue for a safeguard like this. | Steve |
| Oh yes. This women is a real danger to our democracy and I cannot wait until the next election | Murray |
| The sooner we get rid of this racist socialist lot the better%u2026 then put in place safeguards to stop it happening again%u2026 | Clive |
| I just do not like this Govt and find I don’t understand half of what they say. I especially do not like so much Maori. I am not racist and have some good Maori people as friends but we cannot carry on with this separist garbage. | barbara |
| Thank you Dr. Newman for another interesting and thought provoking summary of the failings of Ardern and her crowd of Maori gimme gimme gimmes. A referendum has been suggested several times in the last few years and now it would seem that the justification for it is a worthy plan to follow. I note with interest that ‘A People’s Veto’ is available to many populations in US States. Being initiated by a simple vote to Veto petition within 90 days of legislation makes it simple to understand and use. This would never have been needed before in NZ politics but events of the last few months under this anti-democratic government has highlighted the need for much stronger controls over wayward prime ministers determined to go against the wishes of the majority of citizens. | CHRIS |
| MMP is no guarantee of a true democracy. Binding referenda of this nature keep the government honest regardless of its make up | Dave |
| This would aid the democratic process. | Michael |
| Depends on who writes the veto. We should instead adopt the 170 year old Swiss law – Citizens Initiated Mandatory Referendum which I suspect has a stronger influence and is a proven method. Whatever is chosen we know only two political parties are liable to adopt such a method of stopping extremist governments and the first to adopt as policy will win the next election! | Rex |
| Is this woman DUMB or what? Early Election!!!! | Ron |
| To stop unwanted and illegal legislation | Ted |
| Yes – perhaps – BUT … After the last two elections I have lost faith in the rationality of the Kiwi electorate. It was they – and that charlatan Winston Peters – who put us in the predicament of having this communist fanatic screwing the nation – aided and abetted by melonheads and Maori. | Ron |
| And anything else that will stop this blanket control!!! | Raewyn |
| loong overdue | Keith |
| Anything to stop this out-of-control Govt. doing any further damage to our democracy! | Sylvia |
| To not do so means living under an authoritarian regime. | Elizabeth |
| Or a recall system al la US system | Tom |
| Absolutely. We need every safeguard we can get to protect us from this disgusting tyrant of a PM | Rod |
| Yes, yes! Comrade Ardern’s dictatorial government has clearly demonstrated how important it is to have safeguards such as the democratic 90-day People’s Veto. | ROB |
| Absolutely! | Lynette |
| Absolutely yes. We need that safeguard desperately what with all the wacky proposals in the pipeline. We should adopt the Swiss system here. They would have the only true democracy in the World. Somehow we must also get rid of MMP as it’s skewing what the people want. | Helen |
| This is the only way for true democracy to work | john |
| Yes and No. Unfortunately things might have turned out very differently had citizenry had the right to veto the likes of the Roger Douglas reforms which they almost certainly would have. The result would’ve been disastrous for NZ. | Geoff |
| This would have been unthinkable pre Ardern, but has now become a necessity. Highly unlikely though in this collection of mediocriities term as “Government” | Peter |
| Absolutely needed as this Labour Government seems to like to keep things hidden relating to policy and then try’s to pass laws without the correct procedures of advising the voters. | James |
| This Labour government has managed to destroy any trust the electorate had in it by railroading through objectional bills without thought or discussion., Heaven forbid they should even let the public send in submissions before these bills become law!! | Brian |
| 90 days is not enough. | Wayne |
| Definitely need this. | Glen |
| Too many good people died providing us with democracy for a bunch of narcissistic tyrants to deprive us of it | Jock |
| We need this in light of the way legislation has been slipped thru without public understanding or consultation by the current Labour Party. | Paula |
| MMP also needs to be amended so that the party with the majority vote determines whom they partner with rather than the current process whereby the smallest part with the least votes dictating the direction of the country and who governs NZ | EUGENE |
| Alternatively, reintroduce the Upper House of Parliament. | Ralph |
| ASAP | Allan |
| get rid of LABOUR,THE COUNTRY IS IN DEEP DEEP TROUBLE | GRAEME |
| I was not watching screen pressed wrong button | Allan |
| There is no teeth to the Local Government Act. Territorial Authorities are required to consult but time and time again submissions fall on deaf ears and the draft agenda prevails. A 90 day peoples veto would be ideal | david |
| To be voted on at the Local body elections. | Martin |
| We need whatever it takes to stop this madness | Gail |
| Would it be listened to? | Pammie |
| There has never been a greater need for something like this. | James |
| Absolutely the right answer . Cannot some of the legal fraternity instigate this veto ASAP lets stop these Labour parasites now and show we Kiwis wont put up with this Marxist ,apartheid based agenda . | Ray |
| Sounds like a positive move. Definitely agree. | Graeme |
| Or something like it. And a strong constitution that clearly enshrines the equality and fundamental rights of ALL citizens of NZ regardless of race. BORA clearly doesnt do it. | antoni |
| Very good idea | Philip |
| The Swiss system is superb. The electrol system with MMP here is not conducive to good Government. An article on this would be very helpful to ‘educate’ the NZ Voters. so they might consider a referendum on it. | Philip |
| how do we go about making that happen | harvey |
| Anything that improves democracy in New Zealand has to be good | Fred |
| We sure do need a 90 day Peoples Veto, and we need it now. This news letter says it all about this so called Government, and every issue in this news letter needs urgent attention and to be thrown out. They are killing New Zealand. | Des |
| Urgently | Kevin |
| What a disgrace to need such a safeguard. | Neville |
| The Sheep of NZ need every tool from the toolbox to wake them up from this Naz’ilism government we are cursed with. | Russell |
| She’s a psycopathic tyramt | Russell |
| Hell YES. | Ian |
| Expel this Marxist racist government | Claire |
| A big YES from me and if the polywog internal affairs dictator had not abolished the right of the people to vote on a polywog seat/ward on councils we would not have the sort of corruption going on now, and if the toothy dictator and the loonie greens and the corrupt polywogs get in in 2023 heaven help this country and its many decent people so its up to National and Act and even maybe NZ First to stop this runaway train to communism as its left the station when we let adern take the controls and she pushed the throttle to full ahead to chaos. | Richard |
| Useless labour shit | Allan |
| Absolutely | Jen |
| Very very important | Dianne |
| This Labour gvt is destroying NZ | Susie |
| At a minimum. We also need provisions for redress and criminal action against an incompetent govt or Ministers exceeding their rightful powers. NZ did not give Ardern Queen status. | Kevin |
| This is imperative while it seems New Zealand’s Prime Minister unilaterally attempts to impose ar One World governance autocratic structure over New Zealand .without so much as a (free) democratic national vote.. | Stuart |
| It bothers me dreadfully that the Iwi businesses pay NO tax!! | Hilma |
| It is time for the Governor General to dissolve this rogue NZ Govt. before anymore disasters happen, and call for an immediate General Election now. | John |
| Without a second house and the ability shown to over ride any basic human rights – such a safeguard is essential to preserve & safeguard our democracy in future. The power grab we are watching helplessly unfold before our eyes, must never be allowed to reoccur | tony |
| I agree with Muriel | June |
| most definitely. This government has become dangerous with changes to our democracy which they never campaigned on. | Marie |
| Muriel, you know very well that this movement, owing its inspiration from the Swiiss people’s 100 Days. Facultative Rerfreendum, has already been launched. See www.100days.co.nz You were present at the Summer Sounds Symposium -www..summersounds co,nz – when I introduced it, remaining as its convenor. It would be more helpful if you would let your readers know. | Amy |
| This government is creating divisiveness, through race based policy and race based application of law. New Zealand is becoming a bad place to live. | Graham |
| Its crucial nz remains a democracy and does not slide into totalitarism with all this covert legislation and centralized control been quietly inserted into our country. | rhonda |
| proper democracy has no need for these kind of safeguards. Our MMP system does not help , we could do better to accept a Swiss system. | HHenk |
| Marxist and racist ideology is being forced on us from several directions. New Zealanders need a defence against the worst excesses of this. Yes we have a democracy so far, and no doubt get the government we deserve but this government was elected on what they told the voters, then proceeded with what they did not tell the voters. Did we deserve that? Or will voters learn an “impordant” lesson, hopefully before its too late? | Frank |
| This government has shown us that democracy can easily be lost. | Dorothy |
| Without a doubt a people’s veto is required, who does this woman thinks she is, ah don’t answer that I don’t want to enrage an already enraged population. | Chris |
| The only hope now. | mary |
| We must stop 3Waters now with a pub public refereredem | Ian |
| Most definitely | Stuart |
| No way in hell can the people trust these bloody Governments today. | Don |
| This nonsense has to STOP! | Derek |
| The BS from the fish and chip wrapper and the crones and the lack of response from the general public about her socialist her her lazy mates looking for money for nothing. Like they gangs they don,t want to do real work for it. Sadly most New Zealanders live in their own little world and not really interestedin hat goes on in Wellington until it is to late. Aveto system could slow down governess. we just need good sensible an honest government. HISTORY WILL PUT THIS LOT DOWN AS OUR MOST CORRUPT GOVERNMENT EVER | ALAN |
| While it shouldn’t be necessary if we had good governance, after the radical depredations of Stalinda and co. we obviously do need such a thing. | John |
| You bet they do and the media need to pay back the money this dumb government gave them and start reporting the truth | Tom |
| Protect us from these crazed totalarian nitwits. Jizz and her corrupt lot need to go. | Nic |
| There has to be a way for citizens to block bad and tyrannical legislation. | John |
| Yes. Desperately needed to stop the madness of the Labour Govt. Media missing as usual. | Addrianne |
| It is not simply the current Labour Government that has chosen a path of tyranny. Every Member of Parliament from all political parties readily accepted ill-conceived Covid-19 mandates and choose to condemn a substantial proportion of New Zealanders as being unlawful when they stand up for justice and human rights. Perhaps it is time for a radical change in the whole political arena where we the people opt not to vote in the 2023 general election. Imagine having our Parliament (Government and Opposition) formed from say only 20% of eligible voters. The other 80% of New Zealanders can then determine whether they wish to comply with any new legislation or not as they are the majority. Laws are only effective if sufficient people comply! Perhaps we should learn from our elected representatives, who all seem to think that introducing legislation by stealth is acceptable. If tribal rule in New Zealand is the way of the future, it will be interesting to see if the non-voters become a formidable tribe. | Martin |
| Enough is Enough | Allister |
| we need this veto right now | john |
| It’s a must have | Richard |
| It should be longer than 90 days. | Bruce |
| I think Mr Muldoon said “Reds under the bed.” We now have “Reds in the bed.” NZ is getting exactly what it deserves. All those who voted for then should embrace their politics and enjoy it while it lasts. After all, she who must be obeyed, says, “be kind to each other.” | Ray |
| I was keen on extending the term of Government, not so now, but hand in hand with that, there would need to be something like this, they if they got carried away, people power could reign them back in. It is long overdue with the Govt for sure. | Steve |
| Absolutely. Never have I seen so much radical destructive change. The people are the country, not this wayward dictator I call Just A concern. | Noel |
| People must wake up to this. It is chilling and the secrecy and planning being carried out by the Arden government intensely worrying | Jenny |
| Nothing would get done. Many government initiatives are unpopular to the electorate and to have a referendum every time would just stifle change. | cliff |
| Sooner than late, the question is who will table it. | Sven |
| We need this more than ever .This Apprentice Government has to be rained in now .When Willy Jackson says we have nothing to worry about it’s time to Panic .17% will have all of the Power & 83% will have no say .only the big Bill to pay . | Michael |
| New Zealand laws should be founded on the principles of democracy. It is a shock to realize that any government can circumnavigate democratic principles and introduce binding parliamentary acts that avoid the approval of the populace. How is this so ? A referendum to seek last minute public support to forestall any unpopular government initiative is a desperation tactic but in this case necessary as there is no other means to bring about the change needed. New Zealand should have laws enacted that prevent any government from introducing undemocratic change on any matter. Political will can always sway mid term in any election term as a result of ruling party decisions that had not previously been introduced to the people . We should not be in a position to have to democratically overturn any government initiative. That matter should already be provided in our statutes. Any new legislation introduced should have the safeguard of democratic approval before it becomes a binding law. I am not suggesting the process to achieve such an end that is for the greater minds of the legal elite. | terrence |
| Galloping inflation caused by galloping socialism. | Stephen |
| Ditch Adhern | chris |
| Laws need to be considered carefully to ensure they fully meet the needs of the people ,not thrown together and rammed through Parliament leaving us with no come back. | Natalie |
| Without a doubt! | Carol |
| Certainly sounds like a good idea! So many stupid, and racially biased stuff going on! | Hugh |
| We need the people of N.Z to have their Democratic Rights protected. | Diane |
| It certainly would give governments a reason to think before they legislated policy. | Dennis |
| At least 90 days, I insist on a democratic safeguard on all issues. | Ken |
| Most important to have a people’s safeguard. Otherwise some lone dissenter could be rounded up and imprisoned, otherwise removed from having a voice. | Karen |
| This may be our only hope of having our opinion counted under such tyrannical governments as this Labour one | Paula |
| We cannot trust ANYTHING that this ‘government’ say so the people of NEW ZEALAND need this protection | david |
| It is the only way that the citizens of NZ could make any Govt honest by establishing a 90 day PEOPLES veto . | JOHN |
| It needs to be stronger than that. Any last passed under an “emergency” need 90% ( or such like) support or the house. In other words the vast majority of elected MP need to support it. Any law passed under an Emergency still needs to retrospectively go through due process and MUST be repealed or amended based on the outcome of the process | Peter |
| Isn’t it terrifying to think we actually need this desperately in New Zealand… Who would have ever thought!!! | Des |
| Ken oath we do need this safe guard! | Rodney |
| Barring the Commissioner of Police from speaking at an inquiry into the demonstrations at parliament is just another sign of things to come. Clearly showing us the Prime Minsters ideology and where she is taking this country Politically. You have to be blind deaf and dumb not to see it. | Dene |
| absolutely ! | mike |
| Yes, absolutely! – recent events, here, and worldwide, have shown that all Governments are, to some degree, corrupt. It is therefore imperative that effective safeguards be put in place to protect the citizenry against the depredations of Jacinda Ardern and her ilk. They tend to forget that they govern by consent of the governed – indeed it should be regarded as a privilege – and they need to be constantly reminded of this fact! | Scott |
| This type of Labour Govt. should never ever be tolerated again. Never in NZ’s history have we had such a shocking bunch of people elected to rule. I hope many people are feeling ashamed of themselves. Rest assured I am not one of them who voted this lot in… | Ann |
| Stop Aparthied Ardern | Sheila |
| Absolutely, then we would not be faced with bills being passed secretly through parliament late at night. | Robert and Louise |
| Yes! Yes! Yes! | Jacky |
| absolutely, 100 % | norman |
| With these nut jobs in power we need all the protection we can get. | Mark |
| sad that it comes to this | prue |
| it worries me greatly that there appears to be no real push back from the opposition parties. They are handed golden opportunities to criticize and offer alternative solutions but seem to offer nothing. | Rod |
| VITAL and soon! | John |
| Yes. This will ensure that governments once they have a mandate, don’t use that mandate to force through ideas that are not popular. Power to the People! | Janine |
| aLL OUR RIGHTS HAVE BEEN TAKEN AWAY AND NEED REPLACING | Colin |
| What a good idea | David |
| Yes … but better still would be to get rid of MMP. It is a really stupid form of “electing” a government. It cannot be considered a democratic process. There should not be a back door via the list, for unknown, unelected people to become MP’s. It’s a really bad idea. We have several Green MP’s who are radicals who have drifted into New Zealand from far off lands. These people have absolutely no right at all to be influencing laws in New Zealand. | Dianna |
| New Zealanders need the safety of a veto vote to control the lunacy and bad management of parliament by current labour party and ardern. Also for the future safety of New Zealand. We need the ability to maintain a democratic govt. | jude |
| This is needed to stop any government pushing through unpopular legislation under mandates or urgency when clearly unpopular and stacking reviews with one sided people only like the new History Curriculum. | Kay |
| The damage caused to New Zealand and the way of life for the much vaunted “Team of 5 Million” by Comrade Ardern and her regime will take a whole generation to repair once Labour are voted out of power and a real democratic government takes over. | Colin |
| We need to be able to stop Governments passing legislation in the middle of the night that they have no mandate for and have not informed the people about. At the moment the public has no idea of what legislation this Government has put through | Lynn |
| This would be a good start. | Rex |
| This woman is out of control, thanks a bunch Winston this is your fault, and hopefully you will pay the ultimate price along with ardern. Countries don’t need traitors running the govt, neither of you are capable, or knowledgeable enough, two egotists. | Merryl |
| With this current government, definitely YES | Darryl |
| Recent events with Labour have shown what an illusion our Bill of Rights is, in it’s present form. | Giles |
| NEEDED to protect against and provide protection of abuse from State Power Control | leo |
| I have never voted LABOUR. This has proved to me how divisive and dangerous the present Government has become. | David |
| Great idea | car |
| Great idea. New Zealand is heading down the gurgler – without (most of) it’s citizens knowing it. | Paul |
| And a new way of running the country that is NOT Centralised. Less bureaucracy is essential to all of us living happy and healthy lives. | Keith |
| 90 days is a short time to get facts out when you have a paid off media. Perhaps a longer time period should be looked at? | Heather |
| Otherwise the current situation where labour simply pushed laws through under urgency will continue. Socialist govt at its best. | Maurice |
| Also major change of direction planned must be campaigned on prior to an election. Otherwise no mandate. | Lynne |
| Out of control. No idea on how to run a family left alone a country | jeff |
| We certainly need something to reign in the power of big government. | Brent |
| After what has happened we still need greater protection from abuse of power by corrupt Governments. A watertight constitution is needed. | Peter |
| You simply cannot trust these politicians particularly the left and also those with agenda aka Greens and Maori | Mike |
| It can’t come soon enough | Judith |
| Very valid safety measure, will need very carefully crafted legislation. | Grace |
| It’s time to consolidate all our constitutional documents into a single ratified document including the sidelined Bill of Rights our ancestors fought and died for | Russ |
| Absolute necessity of Referendum for many of Government’s suggested racist undemocratic changes to our Nstiin | Hylton |
| of course we do | greg |
| This Liebour Govt has definitely lost its way & continue to be SO delusional about their agendas when changing the fabric of our NZ Society by giving 15% of our population a 50:50 “Co-Governance/Partnership” leaving the other 85% having to bow to the iwi elite in all aspects of our lives…!!! | Bruza |
| We sure do, more now than ever before We have a Government who is running amok and determined to turn us into a tribal country, doesn’t seem to matter to them that they have no mandate from us to do so. They are out of control and need to go asap | Warren |
| That would allow the brakes to be put on what is currently no better than a dictatorship. | Ian |
| Urgently | Bill |
| Anything that can stop this stupid carry on from happening, i also think the sooner Jacinda Ardern resigns as prime minister of this country before her dirty home life, partner issues and the real reason why she gave the gangs the millions of dollars comes out the better off we will all be. | COLIN |
| Yes, but I’m not familiar with how it works or would work in NZ. | Ray |
| New Zealanders have every right to stop what is not right for ALL | Denise |
| Someone has to stop Jacinda, she is ruining our Country. We used to be a Democracy, now we have a Dictatorship. | Mel |
| Its a start…. | gill |
| Rule through APARTHIED is not acceptable in NEW ZEALAND | WARWICK |
| Now more so that at any time in the past. This Labour/Ardern socialist government HAS to go. | Carl |
| Any law changes need to be properly worked through. Recent hasty introduction of laws have proved to be faulty. There needs to be consultation in a democratic society. | David |
| Absolutely !! | Pierre |
| I would be heartened if this was written by National but it isn’t. The problems you identify need to be on a National Party agenda. | John |
| Take a look at how Switzerland does it | tony |
| Absolutely. NZ needs a robust system to prevent traitors like Ardern and corrupt iwi elite from destroying our democracy. If you want an example of why co-governnce will never work just look at Urewera National park. It was one a jewel in our conservation estate but since co-governance was introduced it has become a run down mess, often closed to the public by iwi who are only interested in their own agenda. DOC and iwi can’t seem to agree on anything. Do we really want this sort of mindless stupidity governing our three waters, let alone the country NO! | Steve |
| Most of the unhealthy changes are slipped through Parliament without announcement. We do not find out until it’s too late. | Harvey |
| Absolutely! Taxcinda is an autocrat. | Evans |
| Excellent safeguard against unbridled government – proved to be working in Switzerland. | Andy |
| It’s a shame that it should become necessary in a modern democracy | John |
| We need safequards for our democracy more now than at any other time in our political history. If NZers dont value our democracy enough to stand jp fof it , we will lose it. We eed to strengtben The Bill of Rights. This Glvernment has alerted NZers to the very real plssibity of a rogue Governent becoming estaisbex here. We have seen it happen overseas. We are not immune. | Maria |
| Anything to restore control by the electorate | Peter |
| We have a government.not acting on our behalf therefore their electoral mandate should be rescinded. In disability law the overarching rule is Nothing About us without us. These mandates and laws behind closed doors are anything but consensual. | Christina |
| For failed Govt policies make the responsible M.P’s, personally accountable Presently there are no consequences for thoughtless govt Actions. which are an abuse of power: | mike |
| Would be fantastic! | Sue |
| Jacinda has NO MANDATE to bring in these changes. This is WEF agenda | Phil |
| Reading what my Swiss friend writes, this system does not work in Switserland anymore, because they also have a Fascist regime at the moment. All due to the Fauci Flu and corruption, supported by the Medical Mafia. Gates, Fauci, FDA, CDC, Pfizer et all. | peter |
| It’s a no brainer but the corrupt political parties will kill it dead. | chris |
| We need to implement the Swiss system of binding referenda triggered by sufficient initial support by voters | Chris |
| absolutely. Although I would like to see things go further and our whole system of government as in MMP scrapped and replaced with a somewhat similar system to the Swiss who also include a 100 day veto. A precise outline of this system is able to be read in the book 100 Days by Amy Brooke. Our system as it stands is a total crock, you cannot claim it to be a democratic system when you have a boat load of unelected people pertaining to be our representatives. It is ridiculous and totally skewed towards party control | Carolyn |
| Very sad that New Zealanders are faced with a totally corrupt and inept government where the only safety valve is as suggested a 90 day veto of divisive legislation. Bring it on and the sooner the better. | Chris |
| Anything to control this out of control political shambles | Shaun |
| I would also add we need a mechanism for impeachment | Wayne |
| 3 waters Health system Mandates Education Media Need more | Peter |
| Critical | Warren |
| AND limit the proportion of list MPs in each party, and/or limit their voting powers. Governance should rest with elected reps as much as possible. | Rod |
| Sounds like a very good right to have. Sometimes we cannot wait until the next election or the Opposition parties to have an effect! | Paul |
| yes. It needs to be an election issue so that people can vote for the party that will implement it. In a way , it is a more civilised alternative to the right to bear arms. | Bruces |
| most definitely | ERIC |
| We no longer live in a democracy | mike |
| We need this as a law so we can tell losers like Aden where to get off | Ken |
| Labors lies and misguided legislation proposals are proof that the citizens of New Zealand need a peoples veto facility to ensure these problems can never happen again. | David |
| More now than ever. We have seen what happens when a government goes rogue | Bev |
| yes and tomorrow is not soon enough. what a rotten govt we have, hope they get dumped next year. | james |
| Should be part of a formal written, patriotic constitution | Paul |
| I haven’t thought this through properly yet but I’m simply voting YES on the basis that something is definitely needed ASAP to safeguard the people in this country against the abuses of power of any government or group in charge of New Zealand again. The current government is a combination of the most corrupt, self-serving egotists and the completely naive and incompetent bumblers. Never have we had a more dangerous collection of ‘useful idiots’ in charge and we must safeguard against putting ourselves in this position again. | Jenny |
| Yes we do need this, I’m amazed how many groups of people have massed together like the protests, this could work. Power to the people again, and is happening now to a point. thanks | anita |
| Democracy Meaning:- A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives. | Bruce |
| YES we need a 90 day peoples veto to ensure that ideological bias is not overwhelming the Government procedure. and that activist zealots are not driving the national agenda beyond what the people require and deem necessary. Moreover we need a full time no expiry peoples veto by Citizen voters registered with their IRD identifier where a percentage of the voters act in unison . This would suspend a portion of the law but also require the Government to revisit that law within 90 days. | Richard |
| Tine for a snap election before this Labour outfit destroys NZ | Des |
| We need this safeguard, to protect N Z Citizens from deceitful Governments, who hide their true agendas from all N Z Dre%u2019s. | Rod |
| Absolutely essential to deal with the duplicitous politicians that now infest our government. | Steve |
| With Labour in control “YES” I do not recall the need in prior times for this, but now is certainly the time. She is purely acting out her orders from Schwab and to hell with NZers. | Michele |
| YES – there has to be some way to keep tyrants in check! | Mark |
| We need some form of recourse to rein in a government who is breaching sensible and democratic process. A binding referendum would be a good start for the people to protect us from flawed legislation. | chris |
| If someone ran a company in the same manner they would be sent to jail. The serious fraud office needs to audit the entire “covid” spending and find out where the money went. Totally irresponsible. | Rick |
| Desperately needed my any single political party has majority in the house . | James |
| And make the veto legislation future proofed from repeal or change by any government. | Nyle |
| We need it NOW. | Phil |
| This is crucial if we are to recover our democracy | Brett |
| Never been so important in the history of NZ | Alan |
| No govt can be trusted it seems they all work for WEF and UN and the NWO agenda | Marc |
| That is a great idea. | Tony |
| It’s way overdue. | Kevin |
| We desperately need some form of protection against Rogue Governments such as we have at present and this suggestion may just be the answer’ Achieving Binding status for citizens initiated referenda has long been a core policy of New Conservatives. | Lance |
| Democracy must be safeguarded against act of Democide exhibited by Labour | Jason |
| At the moment Kiwi’s can only trust political parties to be honest about their agendas and the policies they will enact during the election cycle, however as has become glaring obvious with Jacinda’s government they rule by fiat so without a people Veto we the people are powerless. I would also go one further that we also need the ability recall a politician or entire party when they have lied to the public about their true intentions, so their actions in office are contrary to their election pledges. | John |
| It is nearly unbelievable that it has come to measures like this to stop the smiling assassins from wrecking a peaceful safe society like NZ was decades ago when we had hardly any crime, racism or unemployment, maybe it is the fault of a soft permissive society to allow it. | Leonard |
| To prevent legislation being pushed through without a mandate, New Zealand needs a 90-day People’s Veto – similar to the democratic protection enjoyed in a majority of US States. A People’s Veto would enable the public to challenge new laws through a binding referendum process – as long as sufficient support for a veto petition is collected within 90 days of the law being passed. That should be the minimum requirement There should also be a power of recall to get rid of dishonest or corrupt politicians or parties. At least Binding Citizens Initiated Referenda. Without any of the above, to rein in arrogant, power-crazy politicians, all we can expect is more of what we are now being subjected to. Control, separatism, and apartheid. With BCIR the FPP system would be more acceptable. Get rid of list MPs. Only elected candidates should get into parliament. Nobody knows the views of a list MP until they hit the ground, and by then you are stuck with what, at the very least, is a bunch of flakes, or as is now the case, a whole bunch of treacherous, separatist, racist communists. Jacinda Ardern is reminding us, not only that governments cannot be trusted, but of the importance of ensuring democratic safeguards are in place to protect citizens when their governments go bad. Like having a Governor General who is willing to enforce The Reserve Powers when the government is obviously ceding sovereignty to tribal elite. That is unlikely to happen when the Governor General is appointed by the PM. | Terry M |
| Cannot giveaway democracy | Buzz |
| Help us all before we sink back into the sea. | Pauline |
| if not that a second house of representatives. | mike |
| In the face of this totalitarian administration it is vital. This government is determined to hand effective control of the nation to maoris, without proper consultation with the majority, and must be stopped. | Gavin |
| Great work, Dr. Newman! | kevin |
| It needs to be binding, otherwise Taxinda and Mahoota would ignore it. | Hone |
| A good safeguard. | jill |
| Absolutely do need it. We also need an early election and get rid of Adhern and this government | Dianne |
| Absolutely essential and urgent. | valerie |
| About time someone stood up to be counted. we need truthful guidence and it will not come via a politition. | Tom |
| ITS WAY OVERDUE,where are the lawyers to make this happen,surely they are not all lefties & people with heaps of money to help pay for this.WHY was jacinda not taken to the overseas court before.Come on lawyers protect your children & grand children FINALLY ACT. | Cindy |
| It is patently obvious, that this government is out of sinc with democracy, and we need a safety valve to reign them in. Ardern is a loose cannon, due to go off again at her whim. Heaven knows what the next disaster will be | Peter |
| I have already voted However, I would prefer to see the Governor General take action against this Government if our Democratic rights are taken away. After all, I believe that is our Westminister safeguard. | Robert |
| Absolutely, this should never be able to happen again | Debra |
| This Veto right is urgently needed..absolutely crucial to rein in this tyrannical bunch of NZ destroyers. | Peter |
| Labour & Ardern are the perfect examples of why we need a 90-day Peoples Veto. | Mark |
| It’s a big YES from me. I have been banging on about the system of the citizens binding referendum in my last few commentaries and I’m pleased to see this being expressed in this forum. The possibility of this lot winning the next election is frightening. Surely the voting citizens of New Zealand have enough collective nouse to ensure that this will not happen? I beg you all…… | Garry |
| We should be able to have our say on undemocratic policies. | James |
| Yes, especially under our basically undemocratic MMP system. More important, however, is that we have a non- partisan media which investigates and reports properly on government proposed legislation. When, for example, has he pua pua and the co-governance crap ever been openly critiqued or a balanced argument on the causes or climate change been published in/by MSM?? | Alan |
| While this current Labour government is the worst in our history, no government can ever be trusted absolutely, so this public veto option is a must! | Dennis |
| Absolutely a requirement for democracy, particularly for undeclared pre-election initiatives. I would go further and suggest we need change to Govt to something similar to Swiss system of democracy. | Mark |
| It is fast getting to a stage of “too litle, too late” It will be interestresting if National won the next election, that they repeal ALL of the labour parties racist desisions. | William |
| Especially under todays wayward racist Labour led Coalition Govt and looking forward to any further Governing political party trying rush and push through their political agendas. | Wayne |
| This would serve as a very wise safeguard against these ridiculous, ill considered laws being brought into use. | Margaret |
| Why limit it to 90 days? | Darag |
| Hell yes. | neil |
| This would stop hidden agenda reforms being driven thru. Like He Pua Pua.The Gun Law, Maori wards | Frank |
| It would be very helpful, and put a lot of minds at rest. | Dick |
| We are already dangerously down the path of privilege based on racial groups. | Bryan |
| Yes,A People’s VETO is a must but how do we educate the two legged sheep who are glued to the paid & bought for media. My house’s section runs into A retirement village, if I walked into their dining room & said Jacinda is destroying our country,they would throw their food at me. That is the problem. | Allen |
| This dictatorship needs to be ended asap | Gareth |
| Or a Constitution that can prevent corruption. | Colleen |
| More than ever. At the moment democracy is in the ICU in NZ, and it is going to die! | Jan |
| Needed so we can keep our democracy | Gordon |
| never trust them | paul |
| Due to the ongoing evidence of non-democratic behavior by this Government it is imperative the public need this safeguard! | John |
| Democracy is …….. | Graham |
| This is a good safeguard measure to poor legislation. | NEIL |
| The brutal reality is that we cannot trust our politicians. We definitely need a People’s Veto to oppose unmandated or unwanted legislation. When the politicians refuse to properly represent the people then the people should be able to represent themselves. | Denis |
| and while this will buy some time – we need a robust constitution! ASAP | Skarlett |
| We certainly need the checks and balances of a second public examination of legislation. This govt has abrogated its obligations to New Zealanders, and unchecked could continue to entrench legislation which is against the wider interest of the country | John |
| We need to stop this insane Govt from introducing these divisive, undemocratic policies | Andrew |
| Anything to get rid of tribal law and corruption and the end of democracy. National and Act where are you – it’s time to put on your big boy pants | Peter |
| the labour govts Hate speech law is paraleled to happenings in China, and Russia at present. Democracy is not communism | bob |
| Of course such a safeguard is needed. But how can we get such legislation enacted when this tyrannical government has an absolute majority? | Rod |
| Arrogant and abusive use of power by the present government. | Janet |
| Hell yes but which political party has the gonads to push for this law democratic change | Trevor |
| This works brilliantly overseas & definitely needed here due to absurd MMP rules that prevent two minor parties receiving much less than than the greatest #of votes forming a Govt. (remembering 2017\Lab/NZFirst fiasco. | Kate |
| 100 percent yes. Labour is definitely a government gone rogue. Corruption, extortion and gangs taking over from Maorimix Iwi/elite who can’t control gangs will be our future under Labour. | Brenda |
| Most definitely yes | Ann |
| Yes to protect our freedoms. | Marg |
| Any protection from this treacherous Government with their obvious agendas is desirable and necessary. | Alan |
| As soon as possible, please! | Elizabeth |
| As well as removal of this low-life govt. or Democracy of New Zealand is destroyed for generations…. | Chris |
| Most definitely | Joan |
| There urgently needs to be some safeguard put in place to halt the evil and dangerous actions of a mentally unstable government. Whoever that may be. | Vaughan |
| I think this would be a step in the right direction | Robbie |
| The recent failure of MMP to produce safeguards against over-reaching policy without consent, strongly suggests that participatory democracy is needed to be added to the mix. | Matt |
| Theoretically, under a MMP political system the answer to this question is “no”, but with the current Government not operating as a MMP inclusive I need to answer “yes”. | Gavin |
| Absolutely | John-Paul |
| Two years overdue. It is a great idea if for nothing else than protection against the madness of Ardern and Labour.. | Paul |
| The public needs enforceable protective measures in place so a corrupt government can never run rampant again | ROWAN |
| Absolutely essential. | Paul |
| This is an idea worth implementing | Phil |
| We definitely need this because right now our current Government is just riding roughshod over all the Peoples concerns. This Government is the Virus. | geoff |
| We used to have an upper house that controlled government. Funny enough is was Sir Walter Nash (Labour) that got rid of it. The American House Oversights Committee is also another example which keeps government in check. We have nothing like this in NZ. Another recent example was the Mongrol mob getting 150K to remove New Zealand off their tatoos to replace it with Aotearoa. This just gob smacks me. New Zealand government is in need of control. It is not their money they are spending but ours. | Rex |
| It is now a “must”!!! | Jim |
| Couple this with binding citizen initiated referenda, and have the people govern the decisions of the government. | Thomas |
| Most definitely !! A government that listens to the people will have nothing to fear from such a policy. | Leon |
| Power to the people. | Christopher |
| Good idea. Also a law forbidding any government to interfere (or pay) the media. | Sheila |
| We need open and honest government | Peter |
| Without doubt it’s way passed time something was done how the opposition has let them get away with the stupid legislation and new laws n rules the labour government has put into place just boggles my mind if I was 20 years younger I’d do what a lot of my friends and family are doing leaving the country in droves | Peter |
| Trust who? The Zero Carbon Act is one scam to be removed. | RICHard |
| A very qualified yes. There are problems in that the Left may use it to stymie National/Act agenda when in power. Better would be a strengthened Bill of Rights and greater oversite by the Courts. | Brenton |
| Absolutely, New Zealand is looking more like a totalitarian state each day and the future looks grim. | Gary |
| awe all know that Power corrupts, and that has been proven by Comrade Jacindas and Putins actions prove. | Don |
| The Labour Government does not have majority support. JA needs to resign now. | Keren |
| Absolutely | Bruce |
| Fed up with this govt and its Maori bias that even Maori don’t want or need. | Michael |
| Politicians need to be reminded that they are there to do the bidding of the people they are supposed to represent. | Elizabeth |
| As we in NZ have no Upper Chamber like Westminster, then the People will have to suffice | ABS (Bryden) |
| This is the minimum safeguard needed to counter rogue government. | Helen |
| Yes please!! | Sylvia |
| Definitely ! | Debbie |
| In addition it should be required that the government remove (say) 7 laws from the books for every new one they introduce (per Trump’s very successful policy in this space). You can hardly turn around without breaking one law or another and it’s become ridiculous. | Tony |
| As well, how about reestablishment of an upper house (legislative chamber), abolished in the early ’50’s by a National government? | Rick |
| YES or something very similar..!! | Vic |
| Along with anything else that will reign these quays in! | John |
| Certainly do to stop Jacinda further introducing her socialist policies. She still carries her communist ideals that she had at university. Once a pig always a pig! | Peter |
| Yes, we certainly do need a People’s Veto. However, not one of the current members, would still be there. | Jude |
| This People’s Veto bill is essential to ward off tyranny | Brian |
| I’m just sick and tired of this government’s anti democratic and unwanted laws and illegal mandates. Roll on the next election. | Will |
| Yes, that seems like a good idea. | Kate |
| Definitely | Graeme |
| Prior binding referendums. The public are constantly having to spend their own money to oppose those whom we already pay | Laurie |
| We need to get rid of this childish government and their world UN ideology. | Craig |
| I don’t trust this government. | Graham |
| Totally to ensure our democracy | Nick |
| Ardern & Co have provided the ultimate justification for a 90-day People’s Veto to be introduced. I don’t actually trust Luxon much either so this would apply just as much to National as well. | Derek |
| this is the very least New Zealanders would need to re-establish democracy | Klaus |
| I Voted yes, but we really didn’t need it, until we ended up with this government. | Les |
| The politicians have hijacked MMP & turned it into a “dog” of a voting system. Let us not forget that Winston Peters chose to go with Labour in 2017, even though they didn’t have the largest slice of the vote. Then Ardern cast fear over most of the “sheeples” & won an absolute majority in 2020. A peoples veto is definitely needed in these days of the “political elite” who are acting like the kings of old & treating their constituents like subjects to be ruled over. | Rex |
| Our Govt’s total failure and destructive actions have made us a laughing stock internationally. | Edgar |
| In the absence of something better and more immediate yes we do. | Charles |
| We most certainly do | Robert |
| Not only that. What we really need is a fresh start and remove this ‘ river of filth’ from parliament. And get rid of MMP. Only then we would have the chance of a true recovery. Wishful thinking on my behalf. I know !! But what do you do with a patient who has life threatening cancer. You do some radical surgery to save the patient !! I rest my case here. | Michael |
| We have little or no say in what the government puts through in parliament and that is not democracy | Andrew |
| Labour has lost all trust of the people. We must guard ourselves in any way we can from the Fuhrer’s rule. | Jeff |
| This Labour Govt has way too much power and is not consulting the people they proport to serve! | Kathleen |
| We need to keep government honest | Philip |
| Jacinda needs controlling before she destroys this country with her racist policies | Jock |
| Absolutely. | Simon |
| Yes something heads to be done about the cost of living crisis. In the supermarkets goods seem to have risen by $1 each instead of the usual small increments. I don’t see how Chris Luxons tax cuts will benefit those who most need a helping hand. The lower bracket to get about $2 a week.we probably need someone to think outside the square with this one. I think all people under say $100,000 need some sort of “helicopter” payment to get them through.the situation we are in is unprecedented and all caused by this government keeping our country locked down for far too long. | Janine |
| What frightens me most is the fact that there is very little evidence of pushback from the major opposition party. | Rod |
| labour should be trialled for trason & jailed | chris |
| The actions of this government have demonstrated very clearly why such a veto is necessary | David |
| Citizens initiated referendum would get rid of these numpties | Kerry |
| Absolutely. Apparently Labours paper on the history curriculum is not being made available universally so that the population may read & discuss it. What’s in there that needs hiding? White guilt? Another complete shafting from the self proclaimed most honest, transparent Government ever. Who knows how they are brainwashing children given into their care. Known as child abuse in a lot of circles. Perhaps they are turning them all into little commies along Stasi lines where they will go to school and report their parents for dissent and criticism to the local Commissar. Madam Mao, Red Rob and all the pointy head woke educators need burying. Labour are busy putting them all “in situ” as a base for future elections. | Terry |
| Yes, yes, yes – New Zealand is in desperate need of a “People’s Veto”. The threat of its use would probably be enough to bring governments to their senses! | Brian |
| Absolutely. I wonder if National or ACT would have the courage to propose one as a bottom-line election promise? It would certainly be popular with the public! | Murray |
| A People’s Veto would work brilliantly. Just look at how many times something similar prevented councils introducing Maori wards that the community did not want. | Dennis |
| With the threat of ‘co-governance’ now upon us, New Zealanders desperately need a mechanism to protect us from the Labour Party dictatorship. It would also help if the media stopped acting like government cheerleaders and started doing their job of holding them to account. | Mary |
| Absolutely we need ways to strengthen democracy. This government is planning to destroy it. | Jason |