Good news for Eden Park! The government has announced a $45 million slush fund and opened an investigation into how it can funnel more money to it. It’s also going to form a committee investigating if it can legally force Taylor Swift to come here by methods such as kidnapping, hijacking or blackmail of some kind.
Now Western Springs has successfully fought off the stadium development there, there’s zero investment projected and zero converts planned, as every event that can and a few that can’t, must move to Eden Park.
Make no mistake, the incredible shrinking value of our currency has been the main reason why relatively few big name concert tours have been coming to New Zealand. For some time, our dollar has been struggling to breach the 60 cents American barrier. That’s pure poison, in an international concert business that’s denominated in US dollars.
We have the venues. Auckland and Dunedin both have sizeable stadiums (the Forsythe Barr stadium can host 35,000 concert goers) and Christchurch has a large stadium about to come on stream. Our currency remains the real problem.
And
All this underlines a point made in a previous Werewolf column. Events reliant on disposable income do not create wealth. They mere shift wealth horizontally across the economy…
Not really any indication of future football grounds, but likely more money funneled into Auckland and Eden Park. The allocation criteria aren’t clear as of yet.
Our $ has been lower than that for most of my lifetime and I can’t recall that being raised as an similar issue before.martinb
Gordon Campbell:
Make no mistake, the incredible shrinking value of our currency has been the main reason why relatively few big name concert tours have been coming to New Zealand. For some time, our dollar has been struggling to breach the 60 cents American barrier. That’s pure poison, in an international concert business that’s denominated in US dollars.
We have the venues. Auckland and Dunedin both have sizeable stadiums (the Forsythe Barr stadium can host 35,000 concert goers) and Christchurch has a large stadium about to come on stream. Our currency remains the real problem.
And
All this underlines a point made in a previous Werewolf column. Events reliant on disposable income do not create wealth. They mere shift wealth horizontally across the economy…
Not really any indication of future football grounds, but likely more money funneled into Auckland and Eden Park. The allocation criteria aren’t clear as of yet.
Our $ has been lower than that for most of my lifetime and I can’t recall that being raised as an similar issue before.martinb
Gordon Campbell:
Make no mistake, the incredible shrinking value of our currency has been the main reason why relatively few big name concert tours have been coming to New Zealand. For some time, our dollar has been struggling to breach the 60 cents American barrier. That’s pure poison, in an international concert business that’s denominated in US dollars.
We have the venues. Auckland and Dunedin both have sizeable stadiums (the Forsythe Barr stadium can host 35,000 concert goers) and Christchurch has a large stadium about to come on stream. Our currency remains the real problem.
And
All this underlines a point made in a previous Werewolf column. Events reliant on disposable income do not create wealth. They mere shift wealth horizontally across the economy…
Not really any indication of future football grounds, but likely more money funneled into Auckland and Eden Park. The allocation criteria aren’t clear as of yet.
Our $ has been lower than that for most of my lifetime and I can’t recall that being raised as an similar issue before.martinb
Gordon Campbell:
Make no mistake, the incredible shrinking value of our currency has been the main reason why relatively few big name concert tours have been coming to New Zealand. For some time, our dollar has been struggling to breach the 60 cents American barrier. That’s pure poison, in an international concert business that’s denominated in US dollars.
We have the venues. Auckland and Dunedin both have sizeable stadiums (the Forsythe Barr stadium can host 35,000 concert goers) and Christchurch has a large stadium about to come on stream. Our currency remains the real problem.
And
All this underlines a point made in a previous Werewolf column. Events reliant on disposable income do not create wealth. They mere shift wealth horizontally across the economy…
Not really any indication of future football grounds, but likely more money funneled into Auckland and Eden Park. The allocation criteria aren’t clear as of yet.
Our $ has been lower than that for most of my lifetime and I can’t recall that being raised as an similar issue before.martinb
Gordon Campbell:
Make no mistake, the incredible shrinking value of our currency has been the main reason why relatively few big name concert tours have been coming to New Zealand. For some time, our dollar has been struggling to breach the 60 cents American barrier. That’s pure poison, in an international concert business that’s denominated in US dollars.
We have the venues. Auckland and Dunedin both have sizeable stadiums (the Forsythe Barr stadium can host 35,000 concert goers) and Christchurch has a large stadium about to come on stream. Our currency remains the real problem.
And
All this underlines a point made in a previous Werewolf column. Events reliant on disposable income do not create wealth. They mere shift wealth horizontally across the economy…
Not really any indication of future football grounds, but likely more money funneled into Auckland and Eden Park. The allocation criteria aren’t clear as of yet.
I think now as well concerts are super important to artists as it’s the only way they make money. Just like DVD sales have vanished and killed mid level movies and sleeper hits like the, ahem, Shawshank Redemption, the lack of album sales on tape, vinyl or CD means if tours tank, you’ve made no money. People will stream your music on Spotify etc and you get a cent for 100,000 streams or whatever…if the exchange rate skims a further 10% or whatever, maybe it’s not worth the effort of taking a huge show with hundreds of moving parts somewhere for low returns…
Not so long ago there were lots of good reasons for touring and money wasn’t in the top 5! Well I exaggerate, but…
Historically bands brought their musical equipment and hired a lot of local stages, lights, and rigging etc Nowadays the big music extravaganzas bring a lot more of their own equipment that needs to be airfreighted, hence why NZ misses out as the numbers don't add up for it be flown in/out for 1-2 nights.
Artists who can sell 35,000 seater stadiums aren't struggling from Spotify revenues.
Well, yes but, they didn’t become artists of that magnitude by wasting their time by going on a high cost, high logistics trip to the end of the earth and then losing 10% or whatever of their revenue to exchange rates.
I am sure they will charge in USD or whatever their equivalent is. Exchange rates are more likely to affect local promoters than the artists themselves.martinb
20 Legend
Artists who can sell 35,000 seater stadiums aren't struggling from Spotify revenues.
Well, yes but, they didn’t become artists of that magnitude by wasting their time by going on a high cost, high logistics trip to the end of the earth and then losing 10% or whatever of their revenue to exchange rates.
I am sure they will charge in USD or whatever their equivalent is. Exchange rates are more likely to affect local promoters than the artists themselves.martinb
20 Legend
Artists who can sell 35,000 seater stadiums aren't struggling from Spotify revenues.
Well, yes but, they didn’t become artists of that magnitude by wasting their time by going on a high cost, high logistics trip to the end of the earth and then losing 10% or whatever of their revenue to exchange rates.
I guess the point being if tickets are high already because it’s an artists main revenue stream, plus they have to get pre-fab sets in and then the price goes up further because of exchange rate and that’s either falling on the producer or for some reason we’re creating a fund first to subsidize that.
A concert promoter says the government is being "wishful" in thinking Eden Park could host 32 concerts a year.
RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has written to Auckland Council with an eye on loosening restrictions on Eden Park's operations which he says are costing hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue.
In September, Bishop commissioned the consultancy Incite to investigate local planning rules at Eden Park, which limit the stadium to just 12 concerts a year.
The report, published on Wednesday, recommended allowing another 20 concerts every year on top of that for between 10,000 and 30,000 attendees.
The government is now seeking feedback from the public and council on the findings.
Ummmm! So Mr Bishop says we need to have an extra 20 concerts a year because we are missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars. So each concert generates an extra $10 million ?? Yeah right ! No wonder the country is in the crap with comments like that. The country gets overseas $$$ from stadium hire, hotel and restaurant for the band and crew and some local hire.The band takes the bulk of the ticket revenue OUT of the country. Its a net loss for NZ. As has been pointed out concert ticket money is discretionary spending. Its already in the system. Someone who has cash for a ticket would probably spend that money somewhere else in NZ if the concert wasnt on. Subsidising concerts is BS economics. If you want to get overseas revenue do a multi million $ overseas advertising campaign to get foreign tourists to bring foreign capital and spend it in NZ
Absolutely. They’re getting hammered on two or three other areas. Eden Park is a culture war issue because for their base it’s where Helen Clark is personally holding back the New Zealand economy. It’s a distraction tactic from a guy who used to run PR for tobacco companies.
Ummmm! So Mr Bishop says we need to have an extra 20 concerts a year because we are missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars. So each concert generates an extra $10 million ?? Yeah right ! No wonder the country is in the crap with comments like that. The country gets overseas $$$ from stadium hire, hotel and restaurant for the band and crew and some local hire.The band takes the bulk of the ticket revenue OUT of the country. Its a net loss for NZ. As has been pointed out concert ticket money is discretionary spending. Its already in the system. Someone who has cash for a ticket would probably spend that money somewhere else in NZ if the concert wasnt on. Subsidising concerts is BS economics. If you want to get overseas revenue do a multi million $ overseas advertising campaign to get foreign tourists to bring foreign capital and spend it in NZ
Bishop's comments are based off an Independent University of Auckland report.
There is no given that a person's discretionary spending on an EP concert, would be channelled somewhere else into the domestic NZ economy as an alternative.
Since the Covid buying binge ended, the NZ economy has staggered along and consumer spending has basically ground to a halt. Ask any furniture or spa pool retailer. But once the borders reopened Kiwis couldn't get wait to go travelling overseas again. It's the one spending sector that has remained strong from 2022 (borders opening) to now - Overseas travel.
Taylor Swift bypasses NZ, thousands of Kiwis (Air NZ put on extra flights) jump on a plane to Sydney & Melbs to spend their hard earned in Oz. NZers spend millions in Australia each year on short trips across the Tasman attending events from Bathurst to the Melbourne Cup to an opera at that big building in Sydney Harbour.
It's the same logic all around the world as to why cities scramble to entice artists, sports events etc to come to their cities. Pretty much every State Govt in Australia is trying to get the Matildas to play in their patch by offering financial assistance to the FA through their State Tourist boards.
And then there is just the hard to measure stuff of living in a city that's perceived as really vibrant and exciting. I remember when younger, coming across Euro backpackers in NZ, and asking for their thoughts on Aotearoa. 'Beautiful to visit, but a bit too quiet and dull to live in, we are off to work in Sydney' - was fairly common.
I mean these are yes young folks in their 20s, a bit like us all going to London in our droves at a similar age. But hey NZ is in a competitive market for trying to entice in young skilled immigrants. Not every construction engineer from Manchester wants to do quiet bush walks like NIMBY Helen. Some just want get on the lash and watch Oasis live.
"Put simply, it shows how events at the stadium support local businesses, create jobs, attract visitors, and ultimately enhance Auckland's global profile," the report said.
Concerts delivered the largest returns, it said.
"A typical large concert adds around $8.3 million to Auckland's GDP, supports 114 [full time equivalent] jobs, and generates $4.3 million in household incomes per event night.
"Medium-large concerts also have substantial impacts, averaging $6.4 million GDP, 88 [full time equivalent jobs], and $3.3 million in household incomes per event night."
Ummmm! So Mr Bishop says we need to have an extra 20 concerts a year because we are missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars. So each concert generates an extra $10 million ?? Yeah right ! No wonder the country is in the crap with comments like that. The country gets overseas $$$ from stadium hire, hotel and restaurant for the band and crew and some local hire.The band takes the bulk of the ticket revenue OUT of the country. Its a net loss for NZ. As has been pointed out concert ticket money is discretionary spending. Its already in the system. Someone who has cash for a ticket would probably spend that money somewhere else in NZ if the concert wasnt on. Subsidising concerts is BS economics. If you want to get overseas revenue do a multi million $ overseas advertising campaign to get foreign tourists to bring foreign capital and spend it in NZ
Bishop's comments are based off an Independent University of Auckland report.
There is no given that a person's discretionary spending on an EP concert, would be channelled somewhere else into the domestic NZ economy as an alternative.
Since the Covid buying binge ended, the NZ economy has staggered along and consumer spending has basically ground to a halt. Ask any furniture or spa pool retailer. But once the borders reopened Kiwis couldn't get wait to go travelling overseas again. It's the one spending sector that has remained strong from 2022 (borders opening) to now - Overseas travel.
Taylor Swift bypasses NZ, thousands of Kiwis (Air NZ put on extra flights) jump on a plane to Sydney & Melbs to spend their hard earned in Oz. NZers spend millions in Australia each year on short trips across the Tasman attending events from Bathurst to the Melbourne Cup to an opera at that big building in Sydney Harbour.
It's the same logic all around the world as to why cities scramble to entice artists, sports events etc to come to their cities. Pretty much every State Govt in Australia is trying to get the Matildas to play in their patch by offering financial assistance to the FA through their State Tourist boards.
And then there is just the hard to measure stuff of living in a city that's perceived as really vibrant and exciting. I remember when younger, coming across Euro backpackers in NZ, and asking for their thoughts on Aotearoa. 'Beautiful to visit, but a bit too quiet and dull to live in, we are off to work in Sydney' - was fairly common.
I mean these are yes young folks in their 20s, a bit like us all going to London in our droves at a similar age. But hey NZ is in a competitive market for trying to entice in young skilled immigrants. Not every construction engineer from Manchester wants to do quiet bush walks like NIMBY Helen. Some just want get on the lash and watch Oasis live.
"Put simply, it shows how events at the stadium support local businesses, create jobs, attract visitors, and ultimately enhance Auckland's global profile," the report said.
Concerts delivered the largest returns, it said.
"A typical large concert adds around $8.3 million to Auckland's GDP, supports 114 [full time equivalent] jobs, and generates $4.3 million in household incomes per event night.
"Medium-large concerts also have substantial impacts, averaging $6.4 million GDP, 88 [full time equivalent jobs], and $3.3 million in household incomes per event night."
What independent like Bill English’s independent report? Or the stunning ‘independence’ of the reserve bank? Even Trump hasn’t f’d with the central bank that badly. That should be an enormous scandal and resignations of the finance minister and others. But NZ.
And dear Coochie mate, the NZ Knights were never winning the league and Taylor Swift was never freaking coming here. That was a PR lie.
I know you gotta go into bat for your team, but you are just giving examples of exactly why this crap is a winner: a) It fires you up to take cheap shots at Helen Clark. Current reference, but the base digs that sharke. b) it avoids you talking about the bollocks that is RONS or the privstisation and downgrading of our health system or the failure to solve the country’s infrastructure or inflation issues by making councils or individuals bear all the costs. Prices go up and those avoiding responsibility wage fingers.
Your quotes don’t back up any increase in the pie or the economy at all.
They show money that might have gone into a local restaurant, or brewery or venue in the provinces being sluiced up into Auckland. And not all of Auckland. The AirBnbs of people who own property and Eden Park, who is already mugging the council and the government and trying to grab any public festival or event.
114 jobs is great. If that’s not a highly massaged bollocks hypothetical stat. But this government has seen 30,000 onto the scrap heap, real jobs gone, while blaming them for it with no evidence, because they’ve cut infrastructure, investment and the normal sustainable underpinnings of a long term economy.
Spending on necessities create sustainable growth, and that’s 30,000 people cutting back on necessities.
Oh yeh- it was John Key whose cycle ways legacy is now evil because culture war. And considering the money pumped into the 100% pure branding, we’re now underfunding maintenance on our great rides and great walks. That’s certainly some export dollars we’re risking. Not hypothetical ones.
And failing to build and plan around the CRL, failing to have public housing and proper mental health treatment so people end up living downtown rough, doesn’t show much care for the nightlife of a city either. It takes the fun out of it somehow…As does Chris Bishop coming to the music awards and loudly calling any te reo boring.
They don’t care about the nightlife, they care about getting as much cash to Eden Park as possible and avoiding people asking why so many of the doctors, nurses and teachers in the country are furious with them.
And why they give concessions to the booze industries in areas with problem drinking and opposition from the communities and police saying violent crime would likely rise.
Eden Park should look at themselves. And they should have had realistic council scrutiny, not a meeting at the Northern Club. Why didn’t they get AFC at Eden Park? How is the OFC pro league really going to benefit from a huge empty stadium? Why is Auckland rugby and cricket wanting to move?
They don’t match community need- they’re a stadium designed for the All Blacks, Rugby World Cups and (Women’s )World Cups. That’s it. They’ve removed the features that suited test cricket. It’s a bad venue for other cricket, with short boundaries.
And now Western Springs is going to be a music and rugby venue too. We’re subsidising both sides of the ‘market’ competition. And both seem to have enormously flawed models.
I mean we’ve talked all this out in these stadium threads for over ten years.
A cities’ economy is more than untaxed property investment and a heavily subsidised Eden Park. It needs housing, infrastructure and transport plans that match up. And the fact its transport has done so well, since the 90s is no thanks to this lot. You cut incomes, you cut services , you fail to investment even to simply match depreciation and your economy doesn’t grow or it’s illusory growth with only immigration sustaining it.
Nothing like two people who don’t live there fighting over Auckland’s future!
Ugg. Avoiding work. Maybe can call it sick leave 😉. Coffee and lunch time.
Anyone who tuned in to watch the last two 20/20 matches at Eden park in the last week or heaven forbid actually attended the games, would find it hard to disagree with you.
Man I don't know where to start, trying to follow that spiel is like trying to read Shakespeare scribbled on a pinball as it's whacked around a machine by a very angry 6 year old.
I will say that if an economic report researched by a NZ University can't be a benchmark of Independent thought, what hope is there.
At the end of the day the majority of Aucklanders, including those in Mt Eden want more events hosted there. The proposed Quay Park stadium was sadly shown to be a fools paradise, that was not even close to being it's touted fully privately funded model. Auckland and NZ are going to have to make do with EP.
Might as well grow it's income stream as much as possible to help finance (service the increased debt) it's planned upgrades.
Man I don't know where to start, trying to follow that spiel is like trying to read Shakespeare scribbled on a pinball as it's whacked around a machine by a very angry 6 year old.
I will say that if an economic report researched by a NZ University can't be a benchmark of Independent thought, what hope is there.
At the end of the day the majority of Aucklanders, including those in Mt Eden want more events hosted there. The proposed Quay Park stadium was sadly shown to be a fools paradise, that was not even close to being it's touted fully privately funded model. Auckland and NZ are going to have to make do with EP.
Might as well grow it's income stream as much as possible to help finance (debt servicing) it's planned upgrades.
Don’t start with an insult. That’s lazy and beneath you. But I will give you angry when I’ve seen progress made across Auckland meeting this mob’s bizarre culture wars.
The stadiums are all fool’s paradises except for AFC’s self funded Western Springs. Why’s that an argument for giving them more money? You can’t live within your means and you’ve adapted to be LESS useful to most community needs, might as well keep loading up our credit card for them.
And the arguments you stated simply refer to growth in Auckland’s economy. It’s unclear exactly what is being said, except everyone seems to want more concerts and money in Kingsland. Even the guys who live there.
Why? Because since the number of concerts went up to 12 they’ve only had 3 concerts anyway. Leisure spending goes up when the economic fundamentals are good and growth is strong.
Come on mate. He’s throwing a misdirect for how badly they’re managing everything else.
Cripes, I might even need to read the report. I concede I don’t know how independent it is, but it’s about how useful its conclusions are.
If you’d said the film funding, I might have granted you that, despite treasury really, really hating it. That seems like, touch wood, given how much that industry is evolving and de-volving, at least a chance of a pay off.
That could benefit a bunch of places across the country, including studios in Auckland and Welly and locations.
Also, out of interest backing the Mainland sale? I feel like that’s not a long term focused decision either. Hallmark our times.
With all that disposable income sloshing around, though, perhaps the Dudes and the Exponents could do 5 or 6 shows at EP for those in Fonterra…700 new jobs right there…
Anyone who tuned in to watch the last two 20/20 matches at Eden park in the last week or heaven forbid actually attended the games, would find it hard to disagree with you.
Have never seen such a stadium so empty in NZ.
I would’ve gone if I’d been in Auckland! Probably…though childcare costs are almost as much as private schooling in NZ, housing is expensive and you have to have a car… But hey all the MPs and especially the PM are rich on property and their mates are hoovering up the childcare market, and this government loves cars and roads almost exclusively. (There’s a little love left for tobacco and alcohol.)
The previous Labour Govt took Govt debt from under 20% to over 40% of GDP. They added 15,000 tax payer funded public servants with no noticeable measured improvement in the core Govt responsbilities of Health, Education and Policing.
Houses are now more affordable for first home buyers under the Luxon Govt, than the Ardern one. But hey best just whisper that, or the narrative is spoilt.
The unemployment figures and economy growth figures ain't the data to look at. That's already in the past. Employer hiring plan and spending plan surveys show that an economic and employment improvement is slowly underway and will gather pace into 2026 and 2027. With immigration subdued, private sector employers could quickly find it hard to find skilled staff as the economy picks up. Wage & price inflation will become an issue. Lock in 4.99% 5 years fixed on that home loan why you can.
It's all just the traditional NZ political cycle at play. Red team wins spending is increased, and more folks get a .govt.nz work email address. Blue team wins and they try to reverse all that. Next year, or hunch is in 2029 red team wins, and the cycle begins all over again.
As they say in Australia, when Labor is in power Canberra house prices get a boost.
But back to EP. Now that Quay Park has been thrown into the dustbin, it's a return to the Mt Eden ground as NZ's National Stadium. As flawed as it is, that's what it will have to be.
Surely having as many events there as possible, maximising the revenue there as much as possible is the way to go. Even if the EP 2.0 upgrade plans are binned, the large annual general maintenance spend at the ground ain't going to go away.
Statistics, damn statistics. I'll rephrase, but basically the signs are that economy is now going to slowly head upwards. The bottom has been reached??
The latest stats show yes unemployment has hit 5.3% up from 5.2%
ANZ's monthly Business Outlook report, as summarised this week by Tony Alexander. TA is better than most at predicting where things may go.
Back in 2021 he was telling everyone to fix their loans 2.99% at 5 years. But most got lured in by the 1-2 year rates of 2.19% or lower. TA saw the big worldwide inflation monster looming post the Covid sugar hits, but most didn't listen.
Anyway the talking thumb and his cabinet will be quietly hoping TA's predictions come to pass.
Last Thursday ANZ released their monthly Business Outlook report. This is a useful and reasonably timely set of data which usually attracts attention for the 1. level of business confidence about the economy and 2. their expectations for how their own activity levels will look in a year’s time.
Those two measures improved in October to net 58% and 45% positive respectively from 50% and 43% last month. The ten year averages are -7% and +17% respectively so the latest and recent results are very good. They provide a firm basis for accepting a view that the economy is going to nicely improve over the coming year. But I like to look underneath these headline numbers at three other main things. First, are businesses willing to back their view by hiring more people. A net 15% have just said yesversus an average of 8%. This is good but not stellar.
And moving away from whether sending any more public money Eden Park’s way is worth the disruption down Sandringham and Balmoral roads.
New Zealand public debt has been good compared to international statistics. As you point out, it was ready for the pandemic and kept companies going, and yes, keeping the businesses going. Not so worried that you joined the pay it back movement I take it?
Yes that inflation pushed house prices up too.
But also there was a raft of measures that encouraged clean, healthy rentals, renters rights and provided for investment in building public housing that helped increase housing supply and make the experience of renting more tolerable for those outside university years and/or trying to raise a family.
All that imperative to make sure renters had homes without black mould and so on, gone from legislation. The support to go to the landlord to get things done to minimum standards.
As for investment in our country, which seems to be a bad thing outside roads, from the Kaka:
The capital investments in the September quarter were at least $267 million less than forecast in the May Budget and were less than half the depreciation recorded in the accounts for the quarter of $2.101 billion.
Government spending isn’t bad, especially in a small economy. It’s one way to balance out the shocks from outside the economy. But much of the slow growth has been the fault of daft decisions, such as the finance minister’s choice to cancel a ferry contract and replace it with a worse one for later. And there are things we need to invest in.
And if nonsensical spending is a worry here are some incredibly poor value investments which will have extremely high opportunity costs for generations: the 40-50 billion dollars simply on roading. And they changed the way the business case was calculated so they still look bad, but not so bad.
Not of our roading, not of our transport, but of all our infrastructure, including any preparation we need for climate change resilience and adaptation.
What this data meant was kids could read like the Amiga 500 of 35 years ago. They can recognise and produce sounds. They can’t understand anything, analyze anything or respond. We’re congratulating ourselves on our kids being 30-40 years behind current simple AI.
Gotta save some energy for the double header here bud!
But can’t agree with all the great venues across a very spread out city that EP should get first pick at events which might be better suited elsewhere. TINA never worked for me.
Chris Bishop MP has just anounced that the govt has decided to buy English striker Harry Kane from Bayern Munich for an undisclosed sum. Mr Bishop said that Kane will play for the Wellington Phoenix. Mr Bishop said the arrival of Kane will create world wide attention to NZ. Our surveys have shown that the crowds to Phoenix games will quadruple generating 10's if not 100's of millions of extra revenues and creating 100's of jobs. I suggest people read an excellent book "Why Nations Fail, The origins of power prosperity and poverty" Basically the most prosperous nations are those who have a healthy, well housed and well educated populations. In addition they have govts that prioritise high quality infrastructure....transport, communications etc. Govt schemes that try to pick winners in a market economy i.e subsidising overseas musicians, rarely work. Just in case some people missed it, the Harry Kane report is satire...you have to spell it out these days
Successive NZ Govts of either hue have failed on housing. Phil Twyford and KiwiBuild the most obvious example. But the downturn in the construction sector has been market driven. It's the private sector not government which by far does the most building. Developments just haven't stacked up financially the last few years (spiralling materials costs, bank interest rates doubling or more, no buyers, falling prices).
But there is a hardly a housing shortage currently. Some parts of the country if anything have an over supply of town houses and apartments. National net migration was less than 14K 12 mths June 2024-June 2025. Basically nothing compared to the immediate 12 mths post Covid border opening of 135K influx.
Building will pick up as the economy picks up, all part of the normal cycle.
Labour's Healthy Homes scheme was a very good thing. For too long NZ's rental homes have been bad quality. But I think the current Govt have retained most of that legislation??
What's happening with Kainga Ora (KO) I don't know enough about. But the new '3 strikes' policy is a good thing. To live in public housing is a privilege, from being in a reasonably wealthy country. In Peru if you can't find somewhere to live yourself, your extended family takes you in. And if you fudge up that, you are on the street. Ain't no state safety net there.
So why should your neighbours (often other KO tenants) have to put up with awful anti social, or downright scary behaviour. Yipe very tricky when kids are involved, but then kids living in a home with loud 24 hour parties, violence, gangs etc etc is a path to nowhere. So maybe the threat of an eviction, will cause at least some to try change.
And for sure almost every government worldwide increased their national debt coping with the pandemic. But with Robertson in charge, for NZ the debt binge went bigger than most. The 5th largest percentage increase among 33 industralised nations, according to this Canadian report. Isolated Aotearoa with the big advantage of totally closed borders, and a health system that compared to most countries wasn't massively overwhelmed. Basically GR and the Reserve Bank went too long with the sugar hit.
And for sure Governments need to spend. But you go too far, you risk a credit rating downgrade, with increased borrowing costs for the government and private sector.
Man I don't know where to start, trying to follow that spiel is like trying to read Shakespeare scribbled on a pinball as it's whacked around a machine by a very angry 6 year old.
I will say that if an economic report researched by a NZ University can't be a benchmark of Independent thought, what hope is there.
At the end of the day the majority of Aucklanders, including those in Mt Eden want more events hosted there. The proposed Quay Park stadium was sadly shown to be a fools paradise, that was not even close to being it's touted fully privately funded model. Auckland and NZ are going to have to make do with EP.
Might as well grow it's income stream as much as possible to help finance (service the increased debt) it's planned upgrades.
I’m with you Coochiee. I don’t think some realise just home much spending happens around events, not just in the stadium itself. Most of my firmed have flown to Australia , North American and Europe this year to see events that NZ deliberately makes too hard to do like concerts at Eden Park.
Supporter of the world's best football teams: Waikato..., Kingz FC, NZ Knights, The Nix, The Argyle & of course the All Whites
Why a subsidy for concerts at Eden Park? Why not for concerts in Wellington or Dunedin? Its corrupt Auckland politics. Concerts dont happen at EP because the business model does not stack up. I think that when the new, state of the art, covered stadium in Christchurch happens then that will be the go to venue for overseas acts in NZ. Eden Park is a dog. Stop wasting money on it
And then rates and other charges rise all over the country, so some are facing inflation. All while the right continues to campaign against rate rises and insists that places affected by climate change are likely to be on their own from here. No more helping out flood or landslide victims. Which depresses everything and decreases the housing stock, increases insurance and uncertainty. Are we going to see failing water infrastructure because no one will pay for it? Because spending is a sin…
And you can’t try and tell me that if spending money is inflationary, canceling a bunch of money you were going to spend and sacking a bunch of people isn’t deflationary.
When your PM and your Finance Minister (think Key and English, Clark and Cullen, Birch and Bolger, even though you dislike them Ardern and Robertson) aren’t in the top ten ministers rated by Mof the B in your government that’s something of a message.
I admire you going into bat for your team. But this lot- it’s not quite the Black Caps under Geoff Howarth in South Africa, (but a few of them took responsibility for things!). It’s not far off though.
Kāinga Ora is a provider of last resort. They’re going to have problems. No one is there from choice or from a life plan. For example all the people living with trauma and head injuries as a result of state ‘care’. Throwing them out or not providing is abdicating responsibility in my world view. They’ve moved from public housing to downtown Auckland, and now instead of taking responsibility there’s a bill to move them elsewhere. Why would that be better for everyone?
There’s a lot of talk about how there’s fewer people on benefits or waiting lists, but they have no idea what’s happened to them and there’s an increase in homelessness.
And to quote on the housing crisis: So is the housing crisis over? Experts have offered a resounding “no”.
The housing market could only be viewed as affordable if compared with “the Mount Everest of house prices”, Olsen said. Around 40% of the average household income is spent on mortgages – more affordable than the peak years at about 47% but not affordable overall.
That suggests there probably still is a problem with housing supply too. And yeh part of the drop is some intensification happening. The Unitec development Twyford publicised is available in part! It’s uneven across the city but part of it is housing consented under the last government and when there was a bi-partisan deal in 3 storey buildings. Narrative undisturbed? Now that’s ripped up and the Nimbys are back in force.
I always worry about safe parks in walking distance for apartment kids. And supermarkets in walking distance for the elderly. Well lit, visible entrances etc.
This all sounds a bit pre-pre match.
But honestly, mate, I long to wake up to some news from home that makes sense. The Nix signing Kane seems more likely. Today it was the turn of Pakuranga, a place with I think a six lane highway with a McDonalds on each side because there’s no getting across all that traffic, and Simeon Brown has got his traffic design hat on removing an cycle functionality at a late stage or after the thing was finished. Similar to his work on the Mahurangi interchange, because it made accommodations for kids cycling to school. Just for bleeding culture war reasons.
Why a subsidy for concerts at Eden Park? Why not for concerts in Wellington or Dunedin? Its corrupt Auckland politics. Concerts dont happen at EP because the business model does not stack up. I think that when the new, state of the art, covered stadium in Christchurch happens then that will be the go to venue for overseas acts in NZ. Eden Park is a dog. Stop wasting money on it
Capacity and access to facilities. Bar Auckland, NZs cities are town sized by world standards. The small county I live in has a population greater then any part of NZ bar greater Auckland, and yet no cities within it.
Supporter of the world's best football teams: Waikato..., Kingz FC, NZ Knights, The Nix, The Argyle & of course the All Whites
Why a subsidy for concerts at Eden Park? Why not for concerts in Wellington or Dunedin? Its corrupt Auckland politics. Concerts dont happen at EP because the business model does not stack up. I think that when the new, state of the art, covered stadium in Christchurch happens then that will be the go to venue for overseas acts in NZ. Eden Park is a dog. Stop wasting money on it
Capacity and access to facilities. Bar Auckland, NZs cities are town sized by world standards. The small county I live in has a population greater then any part of NZ bar greater Auckland, and yet no cities within it.
Really? Like pastoral English greenfields of yore! There must be a some pheasant shoots and a bit of fox hunting?
