The Government is assuring food traders a Bill reforming the
industry does not need further protection for small traders,
nor do the proposed powers for food safety officers need to
be curbed.
Moves to enable criminal histories to be checked at
transtasman border posts will be discussed in talks in
Melbourne this weekend between Justice Minister Judith
Collins and Australian Attorney-general Nicola Roxon.
Prime Minister John Key, facing "nanny state" criticism over
the Government's new $25 million welfare policy for young
people, says he is not going to apologise to anyone for
intervening in their lives.
Dunedin North Labour candidate David Clark predicts a degradation of student life, should the Bill promoting voluntary student membership pass through Parliament.
Claims that a capital gains tax would create large amounts of
government income and make houses cheaper were flawed, Polson
Higgs tax partner Michael Turner said yesterday.
It might be thought by some taxpayers that after all the fuss
stemming from the Labour government's abuse of spending
public funds for electoral purposes - it and half a dozen
other lesser offenders claimed ignorance - parties might have
mended their ways.
National MP Michael Woodhouse says calls for the Government to interfere in KiwiRail's procurement decisions are misguided, expensive and inconsistent with the previous government's approach.
Barack Obama's speech on the Middle East lasted 40 minutes,
but did it say anything new? Not exactly, although it did
reinstate an old rule that had been abandoned.
