Utopia, you are standing in it!

A consistent theme of this blog over the 3.5 years since the Monetary Policy Committee was established has been the severe inadequacies in the way the MPC was designed, and in the way it has been staffed. Last Tuesday, Stuff journalist Tom Pullar-Strecker had an article that reported on a variety of similar concerns, informed by extensive comments from former Reserve Bank chief economist John McDermott. A particular focus was on the role of the non-executive members (“the externals”).

At the press conference for the Monetary Policy Statement asked the Governor about the externals, and if he didn’t get far (the awkward questions at that press conference were mostly left completely unaddressed), he did get from Orr an observation that of course externals were free to talk, subject to (his interpretation of) the MPC Charter provisions (agreed by Orr and the Minister) under which for the first 24 hours after…

In a recent publication (details below), Reut Itzkovitch-Malka and I investigate when parties “check” partners in coalition governments and when they “stack” via the committee overseeing a ministry. Here’s a clear case of stacking in the incoming Israeli coalition: Otzma Yehudit reportedly will get both the ministry it most wanted as well as the chair of the parliamentary committee overseeing that ministry as part of the new Israeli government.

Broadly put, when coalitions are bargained, the parties forming the government have a choice of “stacking” whereby they agree to give one party full control over certain policy portfolios, or “checking” whereby two parties are given organizational bases from which to check one another in a given portfolio. There is considerable literature in political science on questions such as these, mostly focused on the degree of authority delegated to cabinet ministers. For instance, Laver and Shepsle (1996) famously developed a model…

Although recent opinion polls have shown Labour’s support dropping below 30%, suggesting it is now the underdog going into election year, party strategists still nourish the belief the Ardern government may emerge from the general election able with allied parties to hold on to office.

They are convinced the National Party has not won back the degree of support that would indicate it is a shoo-in at next year’s poll. This, they believe, will become clear after votes are counted in the Hamilton West by-election on December 10.

They have taken heart, too, from the result of the elections across in Victoria at the weekend, where the premier Daniel Andrews swept aside the challenge of the Coalition, though with a reduced majority. Andrews, like Ardern here, had been ruthless with his lockdowns during the Covid pandemic, but although that incurred some hostility, a majority thought he did a good job.

Over the last couple of months, the National Party has been running the line that a Reserve Bank Governor should not be appointed to the normal full five-year term when Orr’s existing term expires in late March, but that rather an appointment should be made for just a year so that whichever party takes office after next year’s election can appoint a Governor of their preference. We are told (although we have not yet seen the letter) that they made this case to the Minister of Finance when, as he was required to, he came consulting on his plan to reappoint Orr.

It is a terrible idea, on multiple counts.

But what is also irksome is the idea that in making a five year appointment, for a term beginning probably at least six months prior to the election, the Minister is breaching some established convention. That is simply a nonsense…

I watched the Q&A interview yesterday with the Leader of the Opposition Chris Luxon. Monetary policy and the position of the Reserve Bank Governor came up.

It is really quite disappointing that the Minister of Finance, presumably with the acquiescence of the Prime Minister, has so politicised the situation that a Leader of the Opposition can reasonably be asked what he would expect (eg possible resignation) of the Reserve Bank Governor after the election if National wins. If he is at all serious about his answer – appoint an independent reviewer as soon as they take office and only decide after that – it is a recipe for considerable, unwelcome, market uncertainty, and further reputational risk for New Zealand and its system of economic governance.

We really should have appointees to such positions that both sides of politics can respect and trust. That has always been implicit in the model…

Stardate: 5476.3 (2268)
Original Air Date: November 8, 1968
Writer: Rik Vollaerts
Director: Tony Leader

“But things are not as they teach us.
For the world is hollow, and I have touched the sky.”

While traveling through space, the Enterprise suddenly encounters a red alert. Several missiles have been fired out of nowhere and the Enterprise engages in evasive maneuvers to quickly deflects them. Where did these missiles come from? At Warp 3, the Enterprise heads toward the missiles’ point of origin –an asteroid 2 hundred miles in diameter. Chemically the asteroid checks out, however it is curiously not in orbit like a normal asteroid, and instead it appears to be pursuing its own independent course. The asteroid –or perhaps space ship—is actually on a collision course with Daran V in approximately 396 days (a planet with a population of 3.724 billion). This poses a serious…

Stardate: None given, Kirk mentions the date is “Armageddon” (2268)
Original Air Date: November 1, 1968
Writer: Jerome Bixby
Director: Marvin Chomsky

“Federation ships do not specialize in sneak attacks!”

A landing party beams down to Beta XII-A, a distant human colony located near the border with the Klingons. However, upon arrival they quickly discover that the entire colony has mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Dr. McCoy notes that a distress call had mentioned an attack from an unidentified ship. As they walk around this craggy, deserted planet, a non-corporal ball of light is strangely hiding in the shadows, but only we in the audience are seemingly aware of its presence. Out of the blue, a Klingon battle cruiser appears followed by a landing contingent led by Kang (Michael Ansara). He claims that Kirk has illegally attacked his cruiser, which Kirk denies. In turn, kirk accuses…

Sound engineering, not ideology sits at the heart of our reliable and affordable power supplies. However, in the veritable blink of an eye, engineers have been given the flick, so too, our good friends logic and reason.

Australia might register as geographically significant and claims to be a world player, but still retains the mentality of its convict roots. Not to say it’s driven by the mindset of the prisoner but, rather, it’s the bullish ignorance and conniving malevolence of their jailers that’s more often on show.

Cruel and witless best describes Australia’s approach to energy policy, not so much a ‘policy’ but a set of ideas deliberately designed to destroy and thereby de-industrialise this country.

Power prices are already rocketing out of control; routine power rationing is the norm when the sunset and/ calm weather coincides with periods of peak demand. Think breathless 42° C late afternoons when air…

Part I is here.

In that introductory post, I said this part would probably be broken down in two subparts, and indeed that will be the case. This subpart will focus on the existence of tikanga into the common law of New Zealand prior to the Ellis decision. The second subpart will look at how radically the Ellis decision changed that.

To refresh, tikanga is described as:

I’m going to hold any comment on whether this should form part of our legal system until the final post in this series. For now, let’s look at how tikanga sat within our legal system prior to Ellis. A lot of this next information comes directly from the Supreme Court as opined in the decision. I have provided the decision (below) and readers can read from paragraphs [92] – [116]. It is relatively simple reading.

This will be sufficient for this subpart…

Any enquiring mind has already rumbled the fact that the grand wind and solar reset is a great ‘green’ fraud. Wind turbines, solar panels and mythical mega-batteries require more energy to produce than they’ll ever repay.

Miners love it, of course, with the insatiable demand that’s been generated by delusional autocrats and cynical rent-seekers. Although, perhaps, not so much the kids in the Congo dragging cobalt out of muddy pits with their bare hands.

At the heart of the ‘wind and solar will save us’ myth is a yawning gulf of ignorance concerning the energy and resources required, is the subject dealt with by Frances Menton below.

They Can’t Make Green Energy Using Only Green Energy
Manhattan Contrarian
Francis Menton
17 October 2022

Not being a dope, you likely realized a long time ago that it was going to take a lot of energy to manufacture the components of the…

The government repealed blasphemous libel laws three years ago but now looks set to re-introduce something remarkably similar. It is an amendment that not even the Royal Commission has recommended.  THOMAS  CRANMER writes-

As the government was labelled “reckless and irresponsible” on Wednesday for attempting to rush through 24 bills, some without public consultation, the chances of bad law being made is extremely high.

Already this week we have seen the Prime Minister and her Cabinet colleagues so badly exposed on the Water Services Entities Bill, that it has required Minister Mahuta to make an amendment in an effort to quell growing public concern about the scope of the Bill.

That amendment, by the way, is merely a drafting sleight of hand that doesn’t change the substance or scope of the Bill but more on that next week.

Given the speed at which the government is moving we can be sure…

The Counsellors of State Bill cleared the House of Lords yesterday. Counsellors of State are members of the Royal Family who carry out the Sovereign’s functions if they are ill or absent from the United Kingdom, and this Bill would add the Earl of Wessex and the Princess Royal to the pool of people who are eligible to serve. [1]

Under the Regency Act 1937, the Queen Consort and the first four people in line for the Throne who are of legal age are eligible to be Counsellors.[2] Because the Prince of Wales’ children are too young, the Duke of York and the Duke of Sussex remain on the roster. This is awkward given that neither one is a ‘working royal’ and Prince Harry also lives in America. While the King can excuse someone if they will be absent from the UK, he can’t substitute anyone in their…

The makers say: ‘To charge the battery, we take CO2 at near atmospheric temperature and pressure and we compress it. The heat that is generated during compression is stored. When we exchange the thermal energy with the atmosphere, the CO2 gas becomes liquid.

To generate and dispatch electricity, the liquid CO2 is heated up and converted back into a gas that powers a turbine, which generates power. The CO2 gas is always contained and the entire system is sealed. We don’t use any exotic materials.’
— Looks like another net user of power.
– – –
Italian startup Energy Dome, maker of the world’s first CO2 battery, is officially entering the US market, says Electrek.

Energy Dome’s battery uses carbon dioxide to store energy from wind and solar on the grid.