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October 2009

OCR & The New Driving Laws

Submitted by Heather Roy on Fri, 30/10/2009 - 1:13pm

OCR Remains At All-Time Low
As predicted, Reserve Bank Governor Dr Alan Bollard this week announced that he has kept the Official Cash Rate (OCR) unchanged at 2.5 percent. This is the lowest that the OCR has been in history, and Dr Bollard has pledged to keep it there until the second half of next year. It appears that he is planning to increase the OCR rapidly, rather than gradually, when the time comes.

One of the key messages that Dr Bollard delivered was that fiscal policy over the longer term should be tightened – that is, that the Government could make his job easier by reducing future levels of expenditure. If they don’t – and it seems unlikely that the present Government will - then the OCR will have to increase significantly to avoid monetary pressure.

MMP Referendum

Submitted by Heather Roy on Sat, 24/10/2009 - 10:46am

Following on from ACT and National's election promises it was announced this week that New Zealanders would have an opportunity at the 2011 Election to decide whether to retain Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) representation or adopt a new electoral system.

New Zealanders were last asked to select the country's electoral system 16 years ago. At the time there was criticism that the existing First Past the Post (FPP) system created Parliaments that were different in composition to those that voters appeared to want.

It was argued that proportional representation would create a Parliament more representative of New Zealand society. This, coupled with widespread disillusionment with both National and Labour, led to a referendum in 1993 - and the subsequent replacement of FPP with MMP.

Return Of The Nanny State

Submitted by Heather Roy on Fri, 16/10/2009 - 1:01pm

The ousting of Labour from Government in November was perceived by many as the end of the 'Nanny State' that told New Zealanders how to live their lives for nine long years. Recent developments, however, indicate that we may have simply traded a red nanny for a blue one.

At the moment, there is debate around Prime Minister John Key's announcement that his Government will put an end to the over-the-counter sale of medications containing pseudoephedrine - the key ingredient for the manufacture of the drug 'P'. The idea behind the law change is to prevent people from purchasing pseudoephedrine medications from their local pharmacy and then selling them on to gangs and other criminals to make 'P'.

The Unintended Consequences Bill

Submitted by Heather Roy on Fri, 09/10/2009 - 9:17am

The Unintended Consequences Bill
We have often heard the imperative to lawmakers - 'First, do no harm'. The ACT Party has described this in many ways; through our votes in the House against ill-conceived statutes and also through our consistent call for regulatory responsibility and reform.

In the case of political expediency - such as that which characterised the last Labour-led Government - hasty and populist law-making, though not acceptable, is easy to understand. In desperate times - whether caused through war, natural disaster or economic uncertainty - the public is especially open to legislative initiatives that appear to address their fears.

However, the wise politician should be wary of this short-term, ready acceptance, because - when the unintended consequences are weighed, measured and found to be wanting - the backlash will be palpable.

A Helping Hand For Parents

Submitted by Heather Roy on Fri, 02/10/2009 - 2:44pm

In a bid to crack down on violence and misbehaviour at schools around the country, the Government this week announced that it will be sending over 12,000 parents back to school themselves - to learn parenting skills such as rewarding good behaviour, setting boundaries, discipline, and how to play with children.

The behaviour of our young people is becoming increasingly of concern in the public consciousness. One need only open the newspaper or switch on TV to see a report on some student or young person in trouble. And, while the media does tend to focus on the negative and bring it more sharply to our attention, things do appear to be getting worse in some areas.