We are in extraordinary times where national & supply security is not only at risk, but fossil fuel reliance poses a huge economic & security threat, yet the Coalition appears completely unprepared
Looking forward to being "migrated" MT! The whole Marsden Pt Refinery bs really irritates me. I just saw Shane Jones somewhere blathering on about Megan Woods closing it. It is a lie. Are our politicians really so dumb as to not understand that having that refinery would not save us from the Iran crisis right now? And that it is an oil collection point, and always has been no more than that, with dirty oil being shipped from other countries, including the Middle East? It is still an oil collection point. They just don't do the refining any more and their private owners closed it down because straight oil was more available. Marsden Point has been a controversial project since its inception. Its construction was blighted with industrial action when eventually the whole workforce was sacked under Muldoon and Bolger. It had to be bailed out by the Lange Government in the 1980's - more public money into a private enterprise. The decision to scrap the refining was made by its private owners, not the government. Now we are planning to build an LNG collection facility, right at the time when LNG is just as vulnerable as oil.
I live on the opposite side of Whangārei harbour from Marsden Point. It is an eyesore, and reminder of the bad old days for me. Renewable energy opportunities are abundant here, but the current government seems hell-bent on regressing to fossil industries (pardon the pun).
I cannot be sure this is true, but I have also heard that Marsden Point refinery could not use NZ crude oil as it was too "heavy" so it could only use lighter crude from places like Saudi/Qatar/UAE - if that is true, then there is no extra energy security by having it open, as we still cannot get crude through the Straits of Hormuz (though Trump can presumably sell us Venezuelan crude which I believe is also lighter grade - so fortunate that Trump secured that before attacking Iran - it is almost like it was planned and sequenced on purpose!!!
Um yes - scroll down to Oil on this web[age by MBIE which publishes Energy in NZ each year - it says
"New Zealand is a producer of crude oil, with fields concentrated around Taranaki. However, the crude oil produced in New Zealand has historically been almost entirely exported. Since the closure of New Zealand’s only oil refinery at Marsden Point, all domestic petroleum needs are served by imports of refined products such as petrol, diesel, and jet fuel."
Similar to coal - we import medium-quality coal for power generation and export high-quality "coking" coal for steelmaking - we have Lignite (the worst coal) is Southland and that should definitely stay buried!!!
I have a strong sense that the mighty Mountain Tūi will continue to speak truth to power with our continuing support / subscriptions / encouragement.
We need to look out for our neighbours and keep connecting; keep communities strong; keep living our values in action every moment.
Here in Australia people have deep concerns too. Kindness, aroha and compassionate actions towards all citizens must outweigh those who insist upon extraction, exploitation and extreme wealth for the few.
Wondering how long Jack Tame will be allowed to do Q&A. Was it just before or after the election that Wynston Peters a Trump admirer, reminded Tame during an interview , that Tame did not have job security. Tame paused the interview and asked...
I heard he’s leaving isn’t he? Not sure but as good as he is, sometimes he focuses too much on the gotchas, at the same time, we need scrutiny and he is one of the very few, if not the only one, who does it so intelligently.
Maiki Sherman stood in for him once and her competency could not hold a flame to Tame.
Oh, I hope he's not leaving. I don't recall hearing that myself. Corin Dann is leaving Morning Report soon, tho, but JC is taking over his spot, and imo, Guyon Espiner is doing a good job on midday report.
I also hope the transition goes smoothly for you, MT!
Can't stand Tova in her later iterations - I recall not minding her early on, but then... 🤮 Literally turned off the TV if she was on! Perhaps in a different setting she will "find herself" again as a journalist🤞 John Campbell is great but depends what role he gets to do, as in sound bites or in depth?
We should start a petition to have Jack Tame as the moderator for the leaders' debates in the run up to the election - so then Luxon cannot dodge him forever - although, I bet, we get that National party shill, Mike Hosking, being the "moderator" again. He is so biassed it is not funny - attacking unions this week for not accepting derisory offers from government. I notice that he doesn't even claim to be a Journalist, describing himself instead as a Broadcaster, which presumably means he expects to be held to lower standards of fairness, balance and truth
I was absolutely amazed when Jack Tame spoke about the PMs refusal to come onto Q&A. I thought it was great but I wondered if the writing is on the wall for him.
Just on the John Key borrowing $50bn, don't forget he also sold off some of the family silver to keep that borrowing smaller, selling 49% of 3 big power companies (Genesis, Meridian and Mercury/Mighty River Power as was), and some social housing too -
Do you happen to have any figures on how much his government sold off in total (there may have been other sales I don't recall) - because really, that should be added to the "increase in debt" figure as another worsening of the government's financial position
And then maybe we also need to look at what Labour built, in terms of assets, that added value to the government books, like building more HNZ/KO housing that National then sell off - if you go into debt to build long-term "productive" assets that also do social good, then that shouldn't be counted as adding to debt - there must be some overall number that looks at government debt minus government assets? I think I have seen one, but I recall changes in accounting practices keep "resetting the dial" so it is hard to track long term
Over on BlueSky there is a contributor on the Aotearoa economy called "Musical Chairs" who even the great Bernard Hickey finds impressive in the analysis of the statistics of this sort - they do link things like assets/infrastructure as a legitimate facet of debt, & correct the govt narrative about the "green shoots" & "recovery" by using their own data against them. Most of it goes over my head (!) but a good resource for those who are interested. There are a few good contributors from Aotearoa - including Mountain Tui 🤗 (I read but don't comment often, but more and more of the old X-crement crowd have escaped the asylum now 💪)
Thank you - see you where you land. Thank you for this last piece on here. This is a lesson on not choosing a business person as leader of a political party where they might become PM. He's woefully il lprepared to deal with the current situation.
Yes true, I noticed they didn't even feature the Poll result in 'the headlines" for 6 pm news. I swapped to 3 (even though they can be erratic) and they spent about 5-10 minutes on it at start of news.
There’s a difference between asking questions and criticism. Democracy needs smart people in the media who ask tough questios. We then form a view of the competence of governmemt based on the answers!
These are not serious people. They have NO understanding of how to run a country. The stench of their shameful policies will take too long to wash away. The sooner we see them out the better. Let's ensure we listen to experts and our people forthwith. Our politicians must be tied to their promises and held personally accountable.
Had a tear in my eye listening to Jacinda and then Winnie who is sounding more and more just a grumpy old man, even his occasional witty comments long gone.
To NOT move away from Fossil fuels now would be completely irresponsible of any government, the LNG terminal - so last century ( bit like Winnie).
👍 Sadly so much of importance to cover in your last Substack 🤷
The whole renewable energy (or lack of?) fiasco was sooooo predictable, in fact millions of people & most govts we relate to have talked about the need to be more self-reliant for decades, no matter WHERE on the globe they live! Before this 3-headed-Taniwha of disaster came in we were making a lot of progress ourselves. Some of it is more about climate resilience, some of it recognising that being at the whim of unstable suppliers and/or vulnerable supply chains is not in their interests financially or otherwise, but all realising that fossil fuels WILL run out so alternatives are essential to get in place. It is infuriating to realise that for the projected (probably conservative!) cost of building the LNG storage, we could have megawatts of local renewable energy projects, from rooftop solar on homes/buildings/farms, to the same with wind generation - I've read a few items about house-hold sized wind generators & as I tear my hair out about ANOTHER windy day in my area it seems a viable option to pursue! At least having the peaches blown off the tree just as they were ripening would have an upside 🤗 I can see bike sales going through the roof along with rising fuel prices in cycle-friendly places - too bad I gave mine away a month or so ago…
Media behaviour is very troubling at any time, but in an election year being blatantly or sneakily biased to ANY side is of concern, although the bias to the right is much more dishonest in that they pretend they are not 👿 BHN state plainly & unequivically that they lean left & are anti-rw propaganda & philosophy. Some of the other outlets are simply lazy (or under resourced?) and just repeat political press releases as if they are factual, without doing any “journalism” at all 😱 Even if it was prefaced with “this is a verbatim press release from….. which has not been fact checked by this outlet at this time - as with all political statements treat with a healthy amount of scepticism until in depth reporting by Mountain Tui has been done” 😁
🤔As I've said before, Luxon is probably most valuable in achieving a change of govt if he stays as PM because he is so appallingly incompetent, and a replacement wouldn't change things for the better for the ordinary folks between now & the election as far as I could believe, so his best contribution is making himself redundant 😂🤞🤞🤞
🙋 In closing, your voice will be missed on Substack MT - would we have your permission to post extracts & links to your new home so others can find you there ⁉️
In the meantime, goodnight & thanks for all the fish… 🦄🫂
Looking forward to being "migrated" MT! The whole Marsden Pt Refinery bs really irritates me. I just saw Shane Jones somewhere blathering on about Megan Woods closing it. It is a lie. Are our politicians really so dumb as to not understand that having that refinery would not save us from the Iran crisis right now? And that it is an oil collection point, and always has been no more than that, with dirty oil being shipped from other countries, including the Middle East? It is still an oil collection point. They just don't do the refining any more and their private owners closed it down because straight oil was more available. Marsden Point has been a controversial project since its inception. Its construction was blighted with industrial action when eventually the whole workforce was sacked under Muldoon and Bolger. It had to be bailed out by the Lange Government in the 1980's - more public money into a private enterprise. The decision to scrap the refining was made by its private owners, not the government. Now we are planning to build an LNG collection facility, right at the time when LNG is just as vulnerable as oil.
I live on the opposite side of Whangārei harbour from Marsden Point. It is an eyesore, and reminder of the bad old days for me. Renewable energy opportunities are abundant here, but the current government seems hell-bent on regressing to fossil industries (pardon the pun).
Yes, great point Zana, and unfortunately, too many lies surround Labour and Marsden Point too so the right have been effective at propaganda
I cannot be sure this is true, but I have also heard that Marsden Point refinery could not use NZ crude oil as it was too "heavy" so it could only use lighter crude from places like Saudi/Qatar/UAE - if that is true, then there is no extra energy security by having it open, as we still cannot get crude through the Straits of Hormuz (though Trump can presumably sell us Venezuelan crude which I believe is also lighter grade - so fortunate that Trump secured that before attacking Iran - it is almost like it was planned and sequenced on purpose!!!
Do we have NZ crude oil? I didn't think so.
Um yes - scroll down to Oil on this web[age by MBIE which publishes Energy in NZ each year - it says
"New Zealand is a producer of crude oil, with fields concentrated around Taranaki. However, the crude oil produced in New Zealand has historically been almost entirely exported. Since the closure of New Zealand’s only oil refinery at Marsden Point, all domestic petroleum needs are served by imports of refined products such as petrol, diesel, and jet fuel."
https://www.mbie.govt.nz/building-and-energy/energy-and-natural-resources/energy-statistics-and-modelling/energy-publications-and-technical-papers/energy-in-new-zealand/energy-in-new-zealand-2025
Similar to coal - we import medium-quality coal for power generation and export high-quality "coking" coal for steelmaking - we have Lignite (the worst coal) is Southland and that should definitely stay buried!!!
Um yes you are right, But Marsden Point refined mostly imported crude.
A wonderful, too true, article Mountain Tui. Thank you so much and I can’t wait to migrate with you as an avid subscriber.
Dark days ahead, I’m thinking.
Keep well. Keep safe.
Kia Kaha.
Nga mihi / Kia kaha e hoa!
Hear hear John.
I have a strong sense that the mighty Mountain Tūi will continue to speak truth to power with our continuing support / subscriptions / encouragement.
We need to look out for our neighbours and keep connecting; keep communities strong; keep living our values in action every moment.
Here in Australia people have deep concerns too. Kindness, aroha and compassionate actions towards all citizens must outweigh those who insist upon extraction, exploitation and extreme wealth for the few.
Wondering how long Jack Tame will be allowed to do Q&A. Was it just before or after the election that Wynston Peters a Trump admirer, reminded Tame during an interview , that Tame did not have job security. Tame paused the interview and asked...
"Is that a threat Mr Peters?
I heard he’s leaving isn’t he? Not sure but as good as he is, sometimes he focuses too much on the gotchas, at the same time, we need scrutiny and he is one of the very few, if not the only one, who does it so intelligently.
Maiki Sherman stood in for him once and her competency could not hold a flame to Tame.
Oh, I hope he's not leaving. I don't recall hearing that myself. Corin Dann is leaving Morning Report soon, tho, but JC is taking over his spot, and imo, Guyon Espiner is doing a good job on midday report.
I also hope the transition goes smoothly for you, MT!
Thank you Vicki!
Also understand John Campbell will join RNZ and Tova O'Brien will join TVNZ I understand
Can't stand Tova in her later iterations - I recall not minding her early on, but then... 🤮 Literally turned off the TV if she was on! Perhaps in a different setting she will "find herself" again as a journalist🤞 John Campbell is great but depends what role he gets to do, as in sound bites or in depth?
SOMEBODY'S got to focus on the gotchas! No other journo has the cojones to
In Tame's case, unlike an adversarial lawyer, he is prepared to backtrack and move on if the interviewee does answer the question.
I hope not! I love Jack and his questioning… he is the best in a long while! That Luxon runs away says mountains!
Please Jack, do not abandon us!
I couldn't stand watching if she took over T. It will revert to a fluff piece for sure.
We should start a petition to have Jack Tame as the moderator for the leaders' debates in the run up to the election - so then Luxon cannot dodge him forever - although, I bet, we get that National party shill, Mike Hosking, being the "moderator" again. He is so biassed it is not funny - attacking unions this week for not accepting derisory offers from government. I notice that he doesn't even claim to be a Journalist, describing himself instead as a Broadcaster, which presumably means he expects to be held to lower standards of fairness, balance and truth
I'd sign that petition
I was absolutely amazed when Jack Tame spoke about the PMs refusal to come onto Q&A. I thought it was great but I wondered if the writing is on the wall for him.
Mr. Waffle. "take your medicine", yet the forecasts keep getting worse...worse than before they were in government.
The forecasts have only got worse.
"what I'd say to you....."
waffle. waffle. waffle.
Can someone throw a marmite sandwich at him sometime please - softer than a silicone dildo that Stephen Joyce got, but just as telling
Just on the John Key borrowing $50bn, don't forget he also sold off some of the family silver to keep that borrowing smaller, selling 49% of 3 big power companies (Genesis, Meridian and Mercury/Mighty River Power as was), and some social housing too -
Do you happen to have any figures on how much his government sold off in total (there may have been other sales I don't recall) - because really, that should be added to the "increase in debt" figure as another worsening of the government's financial position
No I don't have that total Martin, but it's a great point...I'll think about it some more. Thanks
And then maybe we also need to look at what Labour built, in terms of assets, that added value to the government books, like building more HNZ/KO housing that National then sell off - if you go into debt to build long-term "productive" assets that also do social good, then that shouldn't be counted as adding to debt - there must be some overall number that looks at government debt minus government assets? I think I have seen one, but I recall changes in accounting practices keep "resetting the dial" so it is hard to track long term
Over on BlueSky there is a contributor on the Aotearoa economy called "Musical Chairs" who even the great Bernard Hickey finds impressive in the analysis of the statistics of this sort - they do link things like assets/infrastructure as a legitimate facet of debt, & correct the govt narrative about the "green shoots" & "recovery" by using their own data against them. Most of it goes over my head (!) but a good resource for those who are interested. There are a few good contributors from Aotearoa - including Mountain Tui 🤗 (I read but don't comment often, but more and more of the old X-crement crowd have escaped the asylum now 💪)
Sadly this is what neoclassical economics which seems to exist to serve the neoliberal dispossession of a countries assets is all about.
From social housing sell offs to infrastructure a clear pattern of failure emerges.
They sold about 20% stake in Air NZ too raising I think about 365 million in 2013?
Thank you - see you where you land. Thank you for this last piece on here. This is a lesson on not choosing a business person as leader of a political party where they might become PM. He's woefully il lprepared to deal with the current situation.
Yes, we need to choose wisely. Not be distracted by an arrogant, overconfident “I’m’sorted’ approach and inability to govern for all.
It's a bit rich of TVNZ to criticise Luxon over his disastrous week, after days of completely ignoring the latest poll and the fallout from it...
Did Goldfarb instruct the Board to ignore it all?
Yes true, I noticed they didn't even feature the Poll result in 'the headlines" for 6 pm news. I swapped to 3 (even though they can be erratic) and they spent about 5-10 minutes on it at start of news.
There’s a difference between asking questions and criticism. Democracy needs smart people in the media who ask tough questios. We then form a view of the competence of governmemt based on the answers!
Snap election, anyone?
Check you're registered to vote.
Checked yesterday - even though I haven't moved house for 13 years!
No snap election till I've got my mokopuna enrolled for the election. Please.!!
Can that even be a "thing" if the date has already been announced? It was discussed elsewhere, but didn't see an answer....
Great work MT. See you on Ghost soon. 😁
These are not serious people. They have NO understanding of how to run a country. The stench of their shameful policies will take too long to wash away. The sooner we see them out the better. Let's ensure we listen to experts and our people forthwith. Our politicians must be tied to their promises and held personally accountable.
However if Peters and Luxon go down Jack will be sure to rise
Had a tear in my eye listening to Jacinda and then Winnie who is sounding more and more just a grumpy old man, even his occasional witty comments long gone.
To NOT move away from Fossil fuels now would be completely irresponsible of any government, the LNG terminal - so last century ( bit like Winnie).
Best luck for a smooth move away from the substack nazi bar. See you in your new digs soon!
👍 Sadly so much of importance to cover in your last Substack 🤷
The whole renewable energy (or lack of?) fiasco was sooooo predictable, in fact millions of people & most govts we relate to have talked about the need to be more self-reliant for decades, no matter WHERE on the globe they live! Before this 3-headed-Taniwha of disaster came in we were making a lot of progress ourselves. Some of it is more about climate resilience, some of it recognising that being at the whim of unstable suppliers and/or vulnerable supply chains is not in their interests financially or otherwise, but all realising that fossil fuels WILL run out so alternatives are essential to get in place. It is infuriating to realise that for the projected (probably conservative!) cost of building the LNG storage, we could have megawatts of local renewable energy projects, from rooftop solar on homes/buildings/farms, to the same with wind generation - I've read a few items about house-hold sized wind generators & as I tear my hair out about ANOTHER windy day in my area it seems a viable option to pursue! At least having the peaches blown off the tree just as they were ripening would have an upside 🤗 I can see bike sales going through the roof along with rising fuel prices in cycle-friendly places - too bad I gave mine away a month or so ago…
Media behaviour is very troubling at any time, but in an election year being blatantly or sneakily biased to ANY side is of concern, although the bias to the right is much more dishonest in that they pretend they are not 👿 BHN state plainly & unequivically that they lean left & are anti-rw propaganda & philosophy. Some of the other outlets are simply lazy (or under resourced?) and just repeat political press releases as if they are factual, without doing any “journalism” at all 😱 Even if it was prefaced with “this is a verbatim press release from….. which has not been fact checked by this outlet at this time - as with all political statements treat with a healthy amount of scepticism until in depth reporting by Mountain Tui has been done” 😁
🤔As I've said before, Luxon is probably most valuable in achieving a change of govt if he stays as PM because he is so appallingly incompetent, and a replacement wouldn't change things for the better for the ordinary folks between now & the election as far as I could believe, so his best contribution is making himself redundant 😂🤞🤞🤞
🙋 In closing, your voice will be missed on Substack MT - would we have your permission to post extracts & links to your new home so others can find you there ⁉️
In the meantime, goodnight & thanks for all the fish… 🦄🫂
Thank you MT
He’s afraid of you Jack.