Written by Peter Dunne, UnitedFuture Party Leader Bill English said recently that UnitedFuture was generally very reliable and approachable to work with, but that on matters we felt strongly about we could be “difficult and pressing”. In short, he said, we were exactly what a good government support partner should be. I think he summed…
Written by Damian Light, UnitedFuture Party Secretary The board has been busy working on party rejuvenation, including better defining who we are as a party and what we stand for. The AGM will be a critical stage; we’re dedicating a section of the AGM to talk through how we’ve reached this point as well as…
Written by Judy Turner, UnitedFuture Deputy Party Leader Over the last 18 months I have been part of a team, delegated to pull together a new District Plan for our District. It has given me the chance to consider first-hand, the impact of the Resource Management Act (RMA) on the way we use our finite…
Written by Quentin Todd, UnitedFuture Board of Management Member There has to come a time when we must understand all policy reviews must face the harsh reality of the future. I emphasis the word future because lately I hear politicians making strange noises about what might be the “best” solution for their review outcome. The…
Four months ago I began a public consultation process on the future of New Zealand’s Fire Service. The reason was simple – the basic structure of the Fire Service has not changed since the late 1940s, despite its nationalisation in 1975. Yet, in that time, the nature and volume of its work has changed considerably.…
UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne says he has had no substantive discussions with the Government since June regarding changes to the Resource Management Act. “At that time, I advised the Government that it should issue an exposure draft of its proposed changes, so that their full detail and implications could be properly assessed. “The Prime Minister subsequently…
Guardian political writer David Torrance says the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the British Labour Party and the earlier rise of Nigel Farage and UKIP mark the death of moderation in politics and the rise of a new breed of anti-politician, governed more by conviction than pragmatism. Leaving aside the minor point that…
Every day the government collects information about some aspect or other of our lives. Whenever we interact with a government agency, some sort of record is generated about us. A visit to the doctor, the pharmacist, the local school, the Police, paying a traffic fine, or calling ACC will have a similar effect. In the…
We’ve been on a journey over the past 12 months, and that journey is nearing its end. We’ve sought the views of our members and the public and restated the principles we stand for with our new “Why” statement. The next phase of our party’s rejuvenation will be decided at the upcoming AGM in November.…
UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne says today’s announcement that New Zealand will accept an additional 750 refugees over the next two and a half years is a positive first step. “While this move will show New Zealand is prepared to play some role in alleviating the current crisis in Europe, it should not be at the…