expected to pass into law, but last minute stalling tactics by her opponents this week succeeded in delaying the vote. the child is in danger of hurting themselves or other. some Labour MPs who aren #x2019;t exactly 100% behind it, who might waver within Labour, who do you need to keep an eye on and keep talking to?
party, in our party it's a party vote because our party has trying to do here, so I think it's up to each party to make here. Any particular Labour Party MPs that you're gonna be chipping away at over this time Chester? my purpose, but if you look at the voting history of about that she has, she's said she wouldn #x2019;t vote for a piece of this debate, Sue has agreed that her bill does prohibit SUE Can I just make a point on that, but it's actually illegal now to smack your child.
This point seems has a clear mandate, this is so hotly debated by the public, so why legislate why not just educate? fact is the legislation is there, at the moment you're looking at removing it, so that #x2019;s part of it. I believe their kids, that #x2019;s the way it is.
the vote? CHESTER Very strongly, you know there's a few people in the middle, we know there's more than enough people who are unhappy. If this was a conscience vote right for National then?
boat as the Green party here funnily enough. I put up my proposal, 48 people in the caucus agreed with it, not a single dissenting vote as far as my amendment goes, so position is that we are voting against it, those who want to exercise their conscience are able to do that, and there's on this discussion let's go to Bernard Hickey, who is father of two, are you a proponent of smacking or not? HICKEY #x2013; Managing Editor, Fairfax No, no.
I'm pleased to debate about this in New Zealand. I think the mood is shifting particularly after the Kahui twins, I personally because the bill isn't about that, I've never been a proponent of smacking either, I've never made the stupid harm. This is purely about whether parents who do smack should be rendered liable to prosecution, it's not about prosecuted for smacking their kids?
point. What your saying if you go along that track is well the courts do or whatever, in actual fact it's our job to or transitory impact of a smack, like the kid throwing a tantrum in a supermarket, or deliberately smashing an ornament, some mild touch like that, and then parliament of violence that it's okay to use against children. What people keep forgetting in this debate is it's about kids, about our babies, our children and young people, we have adults have.
At the moment if a husband beats his wife we transitory manner, what Chester's saying is that if his this manner. So if you put a child's hand on an electric fence for a moment that #x2019;s okay, that #x2019;s transitory, so RICHARD It can't be worse than it is now, sake, that #x2019;s really bad, so that wouldn #x2019;t take place under your bill or under Chester's amendment, but it mild slap in the supermarket for kicking down a display, or smack, let's be clear on what your position is. defence of reasonable force, but that does not mean that on that one?
I mean can you imagine the Police in this day criticism not responding to a complaint, they'd have wonderful thing, every time we hear of a child death we say why didn #x2019;t the Police do more, so of course they should investigate, that does not mean that they arrest and prosecute, they look at the Police prosecution guidelines on this, are the Police going to actually follow up all offence disclosed the Police must investigate. Now what's going to happen in an investigation, well the Police come in the course of the investigation. It's huge, you have to what that says, not say well we're just gonna hand this over LISA So can you overturn it then?
think we can, it depends on what support we get, who's my amendment does what she said she wanted to achieve. Part 2 #x2013; To smack or not to smack? in the top three for child deaths under the age of 14, LYNNE That #x2019;s right, and so there issue it was an issue, a party issue about violence against children in our society, and in terms of Section 59 the bill LISA Alright let's bring Barbara Stewart in, you voted for the bill on its second reading, you support Chester Burrows' amendment, why is that the way to go?
have, I think there's been a lot of misinformation about bring our panel in here, Lynne Pillay has brought up the for rather vicious beatings, but does anyone here believe of children, would the Kahui twins still be alive if we had link the two, I mean New Zealand is in a very bad way, every report that comes up says just how bad we are, there's a there, but there's a lot of beating of children and a lot of in court for bouncing her baby off the kerb, but this bill's got nothing to do with that, that #x2019;s a particular violence prosecution, the only time the defence is used is when prosecuted and they have got off under that defence, the very case you referred to, so the message to society is it got off. Now when the Police are considering prosecution at prosecution succeeding. The benchmark is that because some to investigate any complaint that is made to them, that is what they're there for, so if somebody phones up with a case LISA Is it all about though Bernard Hickey, is have with killing our kids, it's perhaps the Kahui twins is not applied here, but when people are using a defence to allowing this law to stay on the books, that should be is the entire community, so a compromise along the lines of fact Plunket, Barnardoes, all the credible organisations said exactly as Sue did, please don #x2019;t introduce an amendment that prescribes how to hit our children, because parents about alternative ways, it will undermine that education process that you spoke about before, so this is actually, the amendment to section 59 is actually about protecting children in extreme situations.
As Sue said before, every time a parent actually takes their child out Thursday or Friday, technically they're breaking the law, are the Police marauding in and arresting them for that, of course not. When high profile rugby players hit their mate them, of course not. Commonsense prevails and it will bring you here into the conversation again.
Phillip Field Pacific Island parents, are those legitimate investigate, that is what we expect the Police to do. There don #x2019;t want that to happen, we all try our best as a for support, but a lot of people are thinking that maybe against smacking, and now maintains there's not change of stance, well demonstrably there is a change of stance, so LYNNE Lisa can I respond to that? That is absolute nonsense, and in fact to do the right thing is not still the same.
Parents will not be #x2013; I'd love to get child at the supermarket, it simply won't happen. Every prosecution, any government intervention always has to be in in here because he is an anti smacking proponent. Do you enough, could it be argued that Labour is sitting a little LISA But this bill still would, according to Sue Bradford allow you to give a light tap or a smack, so does it go far enough?
issue, we're really talking about people who are abusing the law to abuse their kids, and I don #x2019;t think it's a problem dragged out of their homes, that #x2019;s simply not true, and the final word. You don #x2019;t believe in smacking either but RICHARD I don #x2019;t think this is the right bill no, the problem that we're also having to address, okay Police throwing them in gaol or taking them to court, but they're going to have to investigate if they get complaints, but it's the waste of time, the waste of resources. talents for the future.
One of the driving forces behind the forum was Bridget Liddell, a woman with a long list of directorships to her name, including Sky City and Fisher Paykel. Now based in Seattle Ms Liddell advises Australian American market, she joins me now. Good morning, to being to the nitty gritty then, how do New Zealanders become more competitive in a globalised world, how can they be wonderful base to build on, we've a very very strong brand, different, we're very lateral the way we approach things, we take creative approaches to problems, we have some excellent clutter in the US market, it's a very bland offering often they have ingenuity, they have different approach, but what market in the States, how do you get your foot through the BRIDGET Well I'm in conjunction with NZTE, New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, we have a network of advisors in the US, in fact we've got a lot of evidence that if you good advice and open doors for you, point you in the right direction, that it makes a massive difference.
you have to be there to press the flesh, somebody from your the people, the types of skills that are suitable for that money get you success? necessarily, no, the answer is no, you need a combination of country like New Zealand, it's a big step and it needs to be big money, it needs to be adequate money. say in your market?
success stories in the US, Fisher Paykel Appliances, Antells Care, Pumpkin Patch, Glide Path, the baggage handling company is just massively successful, Orion Health Care in healthcare IT, Peace Software. say like Pumpkin Patch if we can look at that as an example, as such, it's children's clothing so what makes them special in that market? BRIDGET Interestingly the colours, the designs, the materials, are just #x2013; you go into the average LISA So it is innovation, must maybe not as we combination of fabrics, it's great, really LISA Alright let's bring our panel in here, Bernard Hickey, a subject close to your heart.
I'm curious about, these success stories, is there any one high aspiration about the market, this is not something you do between you know two and five on a Friday, this is a really serious project. It can of course if things don #x2019;t go right it can be very detrimental, so you need to take it very seriously, prepare the strategy, prepare the financing, adequate resources, and especially as what often happens you inadequate resourcing. So it's very important to be ambitious, to be aggressive about what it is that you want the market place, putting a lot of work into thinking it through and using the networks that we have, that we can Zealand, how important would that be in improving the links that market, is it an irrelevance or would it actually be agreements and by tariff barriers and the like.
In lots of other sectors especially you know apparel, the food, there Clark is going to be meeting George Bush, does that kind of thing do us any good, is that going to do New Zealand business any good that face time? extremely strong in the US, it's hard to over emphasise how much of a positive image New Zealand has there, and some we are a serious country, we have global intentions for our 'Economy #x2013; reason to change government? the public needed a reason to change the government, well this week we went in search of that reason, the plight of a lucky few in New Zealand are simply too rich to care.
economy, the official cash rate is up and inflation won't go away. Apparently this is all our fault for spending too much money and especially for buying too many houses, but as one social commentator once put it, we don #x2019;t know how lucky we are in this country, so are things really as bad as we keep being told? moment, there are enough red Ferraris in Auckland to spell Ferrari.
If you bought a house in Gisborne last year it's value now will be about 27% higher, property investment is Bollard, but in the upmarket Auckland suburb of Remuera through to your formal lounge, formal area #x2026;. and it's nice sit there and eat, you #x2019;ve got the big gas fire and then the market? and a half #x2013; million ?
Yeah. So it's very reasonable. Four and a half million is reasonable?
listen to the economy what they say, when people want to developer David Henderson, it seems interest rates don #x2019;t absolute crap you know, why we put interest rates up in New Zealand heavens knows you know, housing isn't the only thing in New Zealand, and in fact this housing is a product of supply and demand, putting interest rates up for housing doesn #x2019;t buy you anything, it doesn #x2019;t even get you a piece of land now really, either from the million up to the difference surely it doesn #x2019;t matter who's in power, but money under Labour, moreso than what they do National, and in fact that just seems to be the way it is. The government that they'd ever get replaced is out of shear boredom, not you #x2019;ve got a spare four million that is. If Harold our panel has to say on that, coming first to Richard Long, kicked out, it'll be shear boredom is he whenever he puts it up it hits exporters, there needs to be an idea Helen Clark shoots him down, but talking about differences, John Key has actually come up with some RICHARD That #x2019;s right, it's always Agenda that brings these things up isn't it?
Yeah so therefore you get return on that, your return on that is better so capital gain which is housing, so that may be an option particularly the young, what we've seen is a huge shift of wealth really but from the young to the old. Anyone who was owning property around 2002 is now rich, anyone who isn't can't get into the market, there is a whole swathe of voters who are now locked out permanently. If you have a look at the numbers, if you're on an average wage in New Zealand, to and that means you just can't afford it, it's impossible, housing, out of what is the New Zealand dream.
is the solution then? who was right to increase interest rates last week. We've that he had to do it, but he needs some help, he needs some LISA Extra tools in the toolbox, reduce its spending, 17% spending growth in three years.
some strong ones on corrections there, new prisons, growing population of prisoners, you're gonna need more of RICHARD Well if the really bad guys, if the really accommodate them, so we're going to have put up with that, we know that have gone wrong, in fact in about 30 years in getting away without either a couple of sacrificial heads, this out really? about real estate as we referred to before, everyone now is that backyard. It's interesting just not far from Te Kauwhata we've got the power pylons going through, that is wealth, net wealth, over 90% of our net wealth is now tied up in our real estate, it has warped the public policy debate in many different ways, like for example this prison.
doing so well #x2013; well anyone who's owing property, it's the property owning class who are doing well, if you're an interest rates, pushing up the currency, exporters are struggling, it was interesting to talk about how to get into America, our exports have basically stagnated in the last three years, you wouldn #x2019;t believe it but two years ago our exports to China fell, and that actually says a lot about the structure of the economy, we've become a property owning, property investing consumer of local services, but for National, Richard? morning, that #x2019;s Richard Long and Bernard Hickey. Find this interesting?
If so then - Top U.S. law enforcement official Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez engineered a Pearl Harbor Day for eight Republican appointed federal prosecutors.
From one end of the country to the other, previously well regarded prosecutors were summarily fired (allowed to resign) on December 7, 2006. Chief of the Office of U.S.
Attorneys, Michael Battle spread the news. In a rare case of the messenger shooting himself, Battle abruptly decided that he too would resign after the firings turned into a major scandal this month. See.
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The good news - If the Holt bill (HR 811) passes into law, it will be the first time since Feb.14, 1899 that paper ballots will be required in federal elections. Americans will finally regain their right to a paper ballot, to verify their ballot, and to correct their ballot, if necessary.
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.. - It did.
Her name was Sibel Edmonds. This is her story, as she told it to me. Edmonds discusses what she knows, whom it implicates, and what she's been through and what hope there is in the new Congress to start an investigation.
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Col.(P) Craig T.Trebilcock -
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