Opinions

Charles de Gaulle once commented that politics were far too important to be left to the politicians. It appears our diplomats have adopted the same view about diplomacy, if the case of the disgraced Malaysian diplomat is any guideline.

Just when it seemed almost impossible, there has been a new twist in the Donghua Liu saga.

 It is worth remembering that one of the most important roles an electorate Member of Parliament has is to advocate on behalf of constituents when they have an issue with the government or one of its agencies.

At some point in the next five to 10 years, the BandAid of current health funding is going to either snap or wear out, and governments will simply not be able to bridge the gap.

“Rich boys and their toys” usually describes the obsession of wealthy men to use their wealth to achieve something they can do only through their wealth, because they lack the ability to ever be likely to do otherwise. The success of magnates like Alan Bond and more recently Larry Ellison in winning yachting’s America’s Cup by bankrolling campaigns rather than any innate sailing ability of their own comes quickly to mind, but they are by no means exclusive examples.

At one level, all of us are migrants – it is just a matter of when we arrived here. At another, if you believe New Zealand First’s bigots and Labour’s xenophobes, we are being overrun today by hordes of migrants arriving here with the expressed purpose of buying up all our houses.

UnitedFuture is New Zealand's only party that supports a "legitimate combination of wanting economic freedom and as much ability for people to live their own lives as they can; but also balancing that by having the state there to assist in time of need." - Peter Dunne, Leader of UnitedFuture.

Despite constant claims that New Zealand follows an independent foreign policy, the truth is that we have never been far from the cringe factor.

"Oafish, boorish behaviour, misuse or ignoring altogether of established procedures, is never acceptable or justifiable, whatever the circumstances."

Among the many extraordinary Parliamentary events this week was the surge of moral hysteria and sanctimony that accompanied the passage of two very simple amendments to the Psychoactive Substances Act.