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Seeking precision and finding equivocation
There are few things more appealing than some time spent talking about health sector infrastructure and investment.
mike.houlahan@odt.co.nz
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Southern Say: In the red corner
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In the red corner
There have been many great parliamentary rivalries over the years ... Muldoon vs Lange, Clark vs Brash, Michael Cullen vs anybody.
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Abandon the razor, and the dangling ETS sword
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Abandon the razor, and the dangling ETS sword
A minor change or a surrender in the fight against climate change: take your pick on what the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading Scheme Agricultural Obligations) Amendment Bill actually does.
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Looking forward to confronting the past
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Looking forward to confronting the past
With due respect to the Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill — let alone the Contracts of Insurance Bill and Contracts of Insurance (Repeals and Amendments) Bill — the biggest show at...
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Hipkins up for the fight: ‘I still love my job’
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Hipkins up for the fight: ‘I still love my job’
A year on from the 2023 election, Labour leader Chris Hipkins reflects on his prime ministership with ODT political editor Mike Houlahan and considers how he can get the job back.
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You won’t see nothing like the mighty Cliff
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Come all within, you won’t see nothing like the mighty Cliff
Parliamentary security is not overly fond of seeing vehicles on the forecourt - it still has nightmares about former National MP Shane Ardern driving Myrtle the tractor up the stairs in 2003.
A man who made things happen
A man who made things happen
The bands which came to define what is now known as ‘‘the Dunedin sound’’ would probably have formed, composed and created without the work of Douglas Henry Hood.
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An annual event without the regular trimmings
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An annual event without the regular trimmings
Blink and you might have missed it, but Prime Minister Christopher Luxon visited Dunedin on Thursday.
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Guess ORC’s race is run as it breaks rocks in the hot sun
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Guess ORC’s race is run as it breaks rocks in the hot sun
See that bright light? That really was a train in the tunnel, not the sun.
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Plain speaking, especially after rain falls mainly on the plain
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Plain speaking, especially after rain falls mainly on the plain
For a glorious five minutes or so on Tuesday, the South Island in general and Dunedin in particular were at the centre of New Zealand’s political universe.
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Walking the path to a bright tomorrow, or not
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Walking the path to a bright tomorrow, or not
Fourteen months.
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Trying to remain as angry as possible for another two years
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Trying to remain as angry as possible for another two years
Yes, the turnout for the Dunedin Hospital protest march was very impressive indeed.
Love at heart of war tale
Love at heart of war tale
One of the formative history books I read in my younger days was Alistair Horne’s remarkable account of the war of 1871, The Fall Of Paris.
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Going off diary to deliver a kick in the guts for South
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Going off diary to deliver a kick in the guts for South
Every week the government’s media team puts out a ministerial diary, advising what official appointments and speeches members of the Cabinet have scheduled.
Parliamentary clash over announcement
Parliamentary clash over announcement
Southern MPs clashed in Parliament yesterday during an urgent debate on the Dunedin hospital cuts, the government’s announcement being either a callous betrayal or fiscal responsibility.
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Getting a good workout during the environment estimates
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Getting a good workout during the environment estimates
Due to circumstances beyond the government’s control much of this year’s Estimates Debate was crammed into this week.
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An emotional reminder that what Parliament does matters
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An emotional reminder that what Parliament does matters
Despite the aspersions of some that the legislation which Parliament passes is not actually that important, it really, really is.
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How much do we care about right to repair?
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How much do we care about right to repair?
I do not know what cobweb-bedecked appliances the junkroom, shed or basement in your house contains, but in various places in the Southern Say household can be found PCs, laptops, juicers...
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The gun guy and the gun girl agree to disagree on reform
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The gun guy and the gun girl agree to disagree on reform
Assuming that there is such a stereotypical thing as a "gun guy", Green Taieri list MP Scott Willis would not be it.
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Ministers and backbenchers alike hunt game in the House
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Ministers and backbenchers alike hunt game in the House
To reverse a famous observation by Oscar Wilde, there is only one thing in life worse than not being talked about, and that is being talked about.