Wednesday, 12 February 2025 12:25

Ruth reckons

Written by  The Hound

OPINION: Ruth Richardson, architect of the 1991 ‘Mother of all Budgets’ and the economic reforms dubbed ‘Ruthanasia’, added her two cents to the Treaty Principles Bill with a submission that essentially says it’s time to “have the sovereign authority” define the principles of the Treaty “by design” rather than continue to let them be defined “by accident” by unaccountable institutions like activists in the Courts, the Waitangi Tribunal and officialdom.

She says Parliament should define them, and she rejects assertions by some [e.g. NZ On Air’s media slush fund] that sovereignty was never ceded to the Crown, saying Article 1 clearly shows it was.

The Bill will be voted down, but its true value lies in letting smarter cookies than your old mate thrash it out in a considered, reasoned fashion, aptly demonstrated by ‘Ruth’s Reckons’.

More like this

Veg, no meat?

OPINION: Why do vegans and others opposed to eating meat try to convince others that a plant based diet is the best, when they themselves actively seek out veg-based products that taste like meat?

Who's the glutton?

OPINION: We are told there is a wine glut - production outstripping demand worldwide - and the words 'wine lakes' are being thrown around.

Colonial science?

OPINION: Science funding for the bulwark of the nation, agriculture, is in a parlous state and less taxpayer money is shelled out for it every year.

Times have changed

OPINION: Back in the 1960s and '70s, and even into the '80s, successive National government Agriculture Ministers and Trade Ministers were at the top of the cabinet rankings.

Hallelujah moment

OPINION: The new Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche has just had the hallelujah moment of the 21st century in his candid review of the NZ public service.

Featured

Editorial: Will big be better?

OPINION: The shakeup to the science sector with the proposed merger of four ag related crown research institutes (CRIs) into one conglomerate has drawn little public reaction.

Co-op boosts chilled exports to China

Alliance Group has secured greater access for chilled beef exports to China, following approval for two of its processing plants to supply the market.

Expo set to deliver in spades

The countdown is on to be one of the most anticipated events in the sheep and beef industry, the East Coast Farming Expo.

New Summerfruit NZ CEO

Dean Smith has been in the role of CEO of Summerfruit NZ for about four months, having succeeded Kate Hellstrom at the end of September.

FE survey underway

Beef + Lamb NZ wants farmers to complete a survey that will shed light on the financial toll of facial eczema (FE) at the farm level.

National

Good season for apples

Brydon Nisbet, the president of Hawke's Bay Fruit Growers Federation, says the mood of growers in Hawke's Bay is quite…

Good times return

Following several years of pain, farmers and growers are facing a decent upswing in commodity prices, say economists.

Machinery & Products

Loosening soil without fuss

Distributed in New Zealand by Carrfields, Grange Farm Machinery is based in the Holderness region of East Yorkshire – an…

JCB unveils new models

The first of the UK’s agricultural trade shows was recently held at the NEC Centre in Birmingham.

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Ruth reckons

OPINION: Ruth Richardson, architect of the 1991 ‘Mother of all Budgets’ and the economic reforms dubbed ‘Ruthanasia’, added her two…

Veg, no meat?

OPINION: Why do vegans and others opposed to eating meat try to convince others that a plant based diet is…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter