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NZNE Newsletter #7 for Friday, December 23rd, 2022

Judge speaks against the right to protest

Billy ‘TK’ Te Kahika Jr and Vinny Eastwood have been convicted of failing to comply with a law they were protesting. If convicted, the pair could face up to 6 months in prison. Judge Winter: The right to protest “is not an absolute right”.

Government attempts to control the narrative -Part 1

To fight dis/misinfo PM Ardern declared Government the “single source of truth”. Bungled attempts to tinker with the media from the TVNZ RNZ merger to the Pharmac media blunder do more harm than good to the Government’s narrative. If most NZ journalists lean left, hard left, or extreme left, then what does the media mean by ‘disinformation’?

Government directly censoring social media

Elon Musk has been releasing files concerning the influence of outside actors on Twitter's internal behavior in moderating content. Evidence shows the Ministry of Health and the Government-funded group Netsafe conspiring to have individuals banned and a wide range of content removed from Facebook. Documents show their efforts to protect political interests were only partially successful.

Reduction in prisoners may be a pyrrhic victory for Labour

In 2017, Labour campaigned on a goal to reduce the number of prisoners by 30%. Since 2019, New Zealand’s incarceration rates fell by over 20%. The falling incarceration rates match a recruitment shortfall that has hit Corrections hard. Also, despite claims to the contrary, crime rates appear to be increasing dramatically.

When Government gets involved, IT costs skyrocket

Treasury says $659 million to build and operate a brand new IT system for the four WSEs while noting “additional funding may be required”. If recent Ports of Auckland and INZ experiences are anything to go by, there may be cause for concern. Inland Revenue may be a ‘success story’ in an otherwise spotty record.

Labour’s proposed unemployment scheme may be on the chopping block

A proposed $3.5b per year scheme to insure Kiwis against unemployment has been pushed to 2025. Finance Minister Grant Robertson has barely mentioned the proposed safety net in recent months. Many are opposed and the scheme may get axed as Labour heads into an election year.

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