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Posts Tagged ‘Steven Joyce’

The govt’s lies will eventually bring it undone

Posted by Clare Curran on June 24th, 2011

This is an unashamed local post which has extraordinary national consequences.

Michael Woodhouse is the National  List member in Dunedin. He sat round a table for 18 months with local Labour and Green MPs, the Chamber of Commerce, City Council and engineering cluster group, including Hillside and it’s union reps to discuss how we could mount a strong case to keep rail enginnering work in Dunedin and grow it. That case has been ignored and dismissed as irrelevant by Steven Joyce and by Kiwirail.

If you watch the top clip it clearly shows he’s changed his mind. Michael Woodhouse is now spouting a new mantra; of quality, timeliness and price is being used as the reason why the work can’t possibly be done in NZ. It’s crap. And it’s spin. And Steven Joyce the Transport Minister knows it. But he and Kiwirail management are intent on proving that there’s such a big gap between the Kiwirail built wagons and the Chinese wagons that the work couldn’t possibly be done here. It’s a lie.

They say the discrepancy in price was 25%. I understand it’s much closer to 15% and perhaps less. If that’s so then the local build should have been in play because of the flow on effect to the economy. That’s logical and economic good sense.

Instead they are trying to cook the books and have to be exposed. Because essential Kiwi jobs and skills and a whole industry depend on it. I call it economic treachery. The true figures have to be exposed and there must be an independent review of the contract prices for the flat deck wagons.

PS: Michael Woodhouse talks about rail 3.37 minutes into his speech

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Filed under: Skills, economy, jobs
11 Comments

Is parliamentary debate a farce?

Posted by Clare Curran on June 19th, 2011

I’ve participated in a few parliamentary debates on important legislation in the last two and a half years.

As a new MP , with little prior experience of parliamentary process, it’s taken a while to get my head around the procedural stuff and some of the seemingly odd rules. Standing orders, conventions etc. Some of them are very odd. Outdated even. Others are grounded in sense and democractic principles.

I believe in the way we run our parliament. That a Bill gets put up by the government, goes to a select committee where the public get the right to submit and comment, it gets thoroughly scrutinised and commented on by officials and the members of the committee from all sides of the House. A revised version goes back to parliament, where it goes through several more stages before becoming law.

But I’m becoming more convinced that much of this process is a farce. Under this government. I don’t know enough about previous governments to comment. But I reckon it can’t have been worse than it is today.

Urgency is used frequently and consistently to push through non-urgent bills and to rush through laws that suit the government’s purpose without the public’s ability to comment. Arrogant disregard for good process and the importance of public scrutiny. And arrogant disregard for the role of Opposition.

Last Thursday an example of this has left me feeling that the concept of actual parliamentary debate is all just a farce.

Steven Joyce is a new Minister. He’s been in parliament as long as me. He’s smart. He’s described as the Minister for everything. He’s completely self assured, arrogant and brushes off public criticism on any issues as being irrelevant.

Humility, the ability to listen and take due regard are qualities I value. Steven Joyce does not posssess these.

The biggest piece of legislative change in the telecommunications sector is currently going through our parliament. Last Thursday saw us make progress in the committee stage through about half of the Bill. It is a very controversial law change. The select committee process was rushed. Labour and the Greens are vehemently opposed to the Bill in its present form. The Act Party members were opposed to it, but appear to have changed their minds. The Maori Party did a deal with the government in order to buy their support.
(more…)

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT, consultation, democracy, parliament
23 Comments

Kiwirail fail: More skilled workers will leave our shores

Posted by Clare Curran on June 9th, 2011

Today’s announcement of 41 redundancies at Hillside workshops in Dunedin will see more job losses in this country that could have been avaoided if the government believed in investing in Kiwi jobs.

Instead, people with important skills and with families, will be either unemployed, leave Dunedin and be lured to Australia, where rail engineering jobs are on the increase.

All because this government doesn’t believe that investment in the local economy is worth its while. Shame.

Stuff website

KiwiRail plans to lay off Dunedin staff

Last updated 13:00 09/06/2011

Proposals announced today to lay off around a quarter of the staff at KiwiRail’s Dunedin engineering works have been greeted with anger by workers.

KiwiRail chief executive Jim Quinn met staff today and outlined a proposal to make redundant approximately 40 of the 172 workers at the plant - a South Dunedin landmark and one the biggest employers in the city.

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Filed under: Skills, jobs
22 Comments

Who is the real taniwha here?

Posted by Phil Twyford on June 9th, 2011

The great taniwha stops transport project story has popped up again, this time after a member of the Auckland Council’s Maori statutory board asked whether the Council had considered the impact of the rail tunnel on the taniwha Horotiu who lived in an ancient creek running past the Town Hall and down Queen St.

The modern taniwha has carved out an interesting role where modern infrastructure projects meet politics.  The Herald reports taniwha sparked public debate in 2002 when the presence of a one-eyed taniwha called Karu Tahi stopped work on the Waikato Expressway. Taniwha inspired an on-site protest during construction of the Ngawha Prison, near Kaikohe.

The taniwha story provokes very different responses on each side of the Maori-Pakeha divide. For Maori I suspect it is a part of the ongoing struggle to get authorities to engage and listen to iwi and their concerns. For most Pakeha the growing influence of taniwha is probably seen as political correctness gone mad.

But neither of those should distract from the main game here. The real threat to Auckland’s long-awaited rail link is not the Queen St taniwha. It is a roads-mad Transport Minister determined to sink the plan for a modern rapid transit system in our biggest city.

If there is a taniwha threatening the rail link its name is Steven Joyce.

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Filed under: Auckland, M?ori, Rail, transport
17 Comments

Making stuff up #3 papering over the (broadband) cracks…

Posted by Clare Curran on May 23rd, 2011

Fresh from his massive backdown/ flip flop (whatever you want to call it) on the regulatory holiday;  the central element of his broadband Bill, Steven Joyce’s latest stuff up in his flawed broadband scheme means hundreds of NZ schools… err… miss out on broadband.

More than 100,000 school students from up to 470 schools have somehow fallen into between the cracks into something called Zone 3 which isn’t covered by either scheme (Hogwarts???)

Several hundred communities miss out; such as Roxburgh, Gore, Cromwell, Alexandra, Westport, Dannevirke, Huntley, Kaitohe, Kaitaia, Matamata, Morrinsville, Opotiki, Orewa, Papakura… the list goes on.

Last week, questioned  in the House Steven Joyce said this:

The reality of the situation is that there was always a boundary between the ultra-fast broadband network and the rural broadband network, and it has always been the intention that schools within that geographical area would be tendered separately.

in response to this question from me:

Why is he using the $15 million that was allocated to connect the most remote schools in New Zealand to broadband, to now connect up to 108,000 New Zealand school students from up to 470 schools who were mistakenly left out of both his urban and rural broadband schemes, as identified in a report written by independent consultant Jonathan Brewer, and is this not just another almighty screw-up in his broadband scheme?

Steven Joyce is just making stuff up.

The NZ Herald reports on it here. The Ministry reckons it’s closer to 300 schools. Could they please find out? And could Steven Joyce tell us what he’s going to do about it?

And how it happened in the first place? Somebody stuffed up. Could it have been Steven Joyce?

See the list of schools here and the letter written to Steven Joyce and Anne Tolley from Internet NZ, Fed Farmers and TUANZ expressing concerns about it.

And see here and here for the reports written by Jonathan Brewer which exposed the issue. The map says it all.

Seems the broadband’s scheme’s full of cracks. Keen to know where the extra money’s going to come from to paper over these ones.

What’s next I wonder…

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
4 Comments

Joyce’s flip flop: it was his idea

Posted by Clare Curran on May 19th, 2011

Just so you know, it was Steven Joyce who dreamt up the replacement to his dumb regulatory holiday. Not the Maori Party. They forced the issue. Good on them for doing so.

The build up of pressure politically and from the industry was intense and it had finally got to them (the Maori Party). But the alternative was his idea. Yes it provides more transparency. That’s good. But he can’t quantify the Crown’s liability of his new provision. As usual he says trust me I know what I’m doing.

I’m not sure he does.

Its interesting that some media coverage of Steven Joyce’s massive flip flop or backdown in ditching his precious regulatory holiday in favour of a last minute contractural provision which allowed the Commerce Commission to recommend price regulation seems to think the Maor Party came up with the concept.

I don’t think so.

Simon Hendery of Tech Day has described the the Government’s flip-flop over the “forbearance” – or regulatory holiday – provisions of its telecommunications reform bill as the latest farce in what has been a shambolic legislative process. He’s right.

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
6 Comments

Joyce the new Muldoon?

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 19th, 2011

In a stupid move to get Maori Party support for his UFB legislation Steven Joyce has underwritten Telecom.

As technology changes over the next decade and cheaper alternatives become available Joyce has agreed to the taxpayer covering the difference for Telecom.

Talk about heads they win and tails they can’t lose.

This sort of subsidy hasn’t been seen since Think Big.

I will be very interested to see how this new fiscal risk is accounted for in today’s budget. It is an unspecified fiscal risk and because the decision was announced yesterday there is an obligation to include it in the budget documentation.

Looking for the rapidly applied yellow stickys.

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Filed under: broadband
12 Comments

Play of the Day – Curran nails the Minister for Telecom

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 18th, 2011

For those without broadband, the Hansard is below: (more…)

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Filed under: broadband
8 Comments

Joyce’s backdown all about certainty: to Telecom?

Posted by Clare Curran on May 18th, 2011

Steven Joyce has made his first really big stuff up.

He’s been forced to ditch the central element of his controversial anti-competitive Telco Bill. A 10 year regulatory holiday for the winner bidder of his $1.5 billion broadband scheme. 

He’s had to replace it with what appears to be an even worse stitched together last minute compromise that has been forced on him by the Maori Party.

The compromise allows the Commerce Commission to regulate pricing on fibre, but if the Commission believes prices should go lower at some point, then Steven Joyce says it’s the Government that should wear the risk, not the consumer. And he’s the one who gets to make the decision on whether to regulate.

Why would he ever agree to regulate if it’s going to cost the Crown? And what is the nature of the compensation being promised to the contractor rolling out broadband? He had no answer for this when I asked him in question time today.

This effectively insulates the contractor from any risk and sets a dangerous precedent in terms of the Commerce Commission’s ability to fairly regulate. And if you don’t believe it go and look at NBR’s story this afternoon about Telecom’s shares going up. Certainty for them. Not the Crown. Which represents you the taxpayers. So Telecom’s shareholders get certainty, but the public still doesn’t. Wonder if the Maori Party gets that.

And I wonder what the Maori Party are getting in return for rescuing National’s troubled broadband bill? Interesting that they exercised their muscle. I don’t think they realise just how anti-competitive and flawed the Bill is and how many more problems there are with it.

I’ll blog more about this later.

I also wonder how Craig Foss, the chair of the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee feels about this deal. Pretty pissed off I reckon.

This policy is too important to be rushed through at the last minute via backroom political deals. It should have been dealt with through the select committee process with considered input from the industry, so everyone could examine it and create an enduring policy that works for the industry and consumers.

Instead Joyce looks stupid. His broadband scheme’s flaws are exposed and there’s more coming.

 Labour will examine closely the detail of this last minute policy change, but we remain opposed to the Bill.

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
8 Comments

So when’s the broadband decision Mr Joyce?

Posted by Clare Curran on May 17th, 2011

Now that Steven Joyce has his anti-competitive, price rising, monopoly-creating broadband Bill heading back to Parliament, a decision was widely tipped to be imminent on who was going to win the lucrative $1.35 billion contract to deliver the new network.

Labour opposes this Bill. We will repeal parts of it should we win government. And we’ll review the ultrafast broadband and rural broadband programmes.

Joyce had his ducks in a row.  He needed to get the Bill back to the House which he’s done. Next he has to announce who’s won the big contract. The choice is between Telecom and the coalition of lines companies.

That decision was expected before the Budget. But it hasn’t happened yet. And the Budget is on Thursday.

Joyce has pushed through his Bill despite almost unanimous opposition from the industry, consumer groups, Labour, the Greens and now Act parties.

He doesn’t know how to compromise. It’s his way or the highway.

So what’s happened to the plan? How are those numbers looking?

There’s a lot riding on this.

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Filed under: broadband
7 Comments

Telco Bill info now available

Posted by Clare Curran on May 16th, 2011

For those who are waiting to read the information provided to the Select Ctte on the Steven Joyce’s Telco Bill which gives the winning bidder for the $1.5 billion broadband scheme 10 free years from regulation on pricing and other services.

Labour opposes this.

Now you can find out why

Happy to take calls 04 817 9906

Email me clare.curran@parliament.govt.nz

Tweet me @clarecurranmp

Facebook me www.facebook.com/clarecurranmp

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
7 Comments

Why Labour will repeal key parts of the broadband bill

Posted by Clare Curran on May 11th, 2011

Labour will vote against National’s broadband bill and in Government will repeal sections that we believe will have an anti-competitive effect on the telecommunications industry to the detriment of consumers.

A Labour Government will repeal the regulatory forbearance period and undertake an immediate review of the ultrafast and rural broadband schemes. We didn’t make this decision lightly.

We believe the Bill is deeply flawed and allows anti-competitive behaviour to the detriment of consumers. It blocks the influence of an independent regulator, and would result in higher prices for New Zealanders.

The Minister has revealed that it would cost an extra $400m to $600m to build the UFB network without its controversial “regulatory holiday”. So who will foot the bill? The answer is Kiwi consumers. And there will be a lot more to say on this ssue next week.

Steven Joyce’s new law delivers a sweetheart deal to Telecom which allows them to gouge profit at the expense of New Zealanders.

Providing a regulatory subsidy to the powerful incumbent is likely to chill investment from other parties not awarded the main contract. The focus should be to lift the industry as a whole. Labour supports the need to improve New Zealand’s telecommunications infrastructure to encourage productivity, innovation and export led growth.

A strong pro-competitive regulatory framework remains essential to ensure good market outcomes and high levels of investment across the industry. Should we win government, Labour will ensure broadband is truly competitive and affordable for all New Zealanders.

In question time today Joyce did what he does with everyone on every issue. Dismissed the issues and argued he knows best.

But his chickens are coming home to roost and he knows it.

This Bill has been hotly debated in the select committee for weeks now. We’ve had ongling concerns about the rushed process, the secret nature of the deals being done on broadband and about the content of the  bill. We can’t comment on it specifically until it is released back to the House, which is likely to be Monday.

I would like to put on record my appreciation of the great work done by the Labour members in the select committee, particularly David Cunliffe, the former Minister of Communications and IT who has been a powerhouse of knowledge and has fought the fight against this Bill bringing all his expertise to bear. All of Labour’s economic brains have been engaged on this issue. We are a good team. And there’s now a lot more to be done to develop good policy that will be effective.  And affordable.

It’s a pity that Steven Joyce hasn’t worked out the importance of bringing on board the industry when you want to effect a big change.

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
14 Comments

In the interests of transparency

Posted by Clare Curran on May 10th, 2011

Tomorrow the government’s contentious and anti- competitive broadband bill goes through its last stage in the select committee.

It then gets referred back to the House and will be given priority (by the Govt) to go through its second and final readings before becoming law on 30 June (at the latest).

A decision on who gets the bulk of the $1.35 billion contract to lay out the fibre will no doubt follow quickly once the Bill goes back to the House.

Steven Joyce needs to pass the Bill through all its stages quickly in order to ensure that Telecom can structurally separate in time time for the election so all the contracts can be signed and sewn up. The Bill is all about Telecom, even though the contract outcome has not yet been announced.

It’s been a secretive and difficult process. And somewhat surreal.

From the start, it’s been severely hampered by the rushed and secretive drafting process and a complete disregard for potential compromises. The Government has used the commercial tendering process as an excuse to avoid proper consultation.

Labour gave the government every chance for responsible dialogue on this legislation. Lack of transparency and honesty have been hallmarks.

Labour has done its best to provide the government with opportunities to reach a compromise solution. Broadband should be a bi-partisan policy. It’s core infrastructure. Steven Joyce has never wanted it to be so. He’s also shown complete disregard for the industry. And for the public interest.

Worse, it shows a blindness toward the imapct on consumers. The people who will likely not be able to afford his so-called ultrafast broadband. They may even find that as a result of his scheme that the broadband connections they already have go up in price.

Instead, broadband should be more accessible, cheaper and faster. That’s what this policy should be delivering. But it won’t.

Despite our repeated  attempts to make contact and to provide for extended dialogue to reach some compromise solutions, the government has rejected a bi-partisan dialogue and position.

Labour consistently attempted to ask for more time to discuss the issues in order to achieve this outcome.

The government and Joyce have been intent all the way along to pursue their deadline no matter what.

We have released this correspondence and the chronology of contact in order to demonstrate that we have acted in the country’s interests ahead of petty politics. Make of it what you will.

Tomorrow we release our position on this Bill.

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Filed under: #OpenLabourNZ, broadband, comms & IT
19 Comments

A lot more than twenty questions and still going Part IV

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 9th, 2011

1. What exactly did Brash get for his $30k?

2. Did Whale and Hooton get cash?

3. What was Lusk’s role in this?

4. Did Joyce contribute or was he just the fixer?

5. How much of it did Banks pay?

6. Was money only paid into NZ bank accounts?

7. What do Leonie Hapeta and Mark Mitchell have in common?

8. Is employing a specific consultant now a requirement to get a contested National Party selection?

9. Is there transparency during the selection process, ie did all candidates know of the consultant and his assistants roles on behalf of those employing him?

10. Does Whale get paid for all his endorsements of candidates?

11. What do Upston, Gilmore, Woodhouse, Lee Ross, Lotu Iinga, Wagner and Blue have in common?

12. Does Bill English realise that he is being undermined by these processes?

13. Did Goodfellow know his parties party’s consultant was moonlighting with Brash?

14. Has the team offered their services to any other party this year?

15. Did Key know of Joyce’s involvement, and if so did he tell his deputy?

16. What did Joyce say to Lusk last Wednesday night after they were rumbled?

More to come…………

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Filed under: Auckland, Book Reviews, New Chum, act party, asset sales, blogs, censorship, coalition management, comms & IT, national
49 Comments

Twenty questions Part III

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 8th, 2011

Simon Lusk1Simon Lusk2

1. Who is this guy?

2. At whose funeral were arrangements made?

3. Who was the matchmaker?

4. How much did Brash pay and who funded it?

5. Was support for Joyce part of the agreement?

ps. Might end up being more than twenty questions at the rate the tips are coming in.

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Filed under: Auckland, New Chum, Wikileaks, act party, asset sales, blogs, coalition management, comms & IT, humour, internet, ipredict, media, national, parliament, politics, whaling
36 Comments

Twenty questions Part II

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 7th, 2011

Williams and Lusk

1. Who are the pair in the photo above?

2. From which book is the following quote ?

Lusk then wrote: ‘Bryan, make sure you find out about what they are going to do with the Greens’. The Brethren ‘dusted up the Greens in Tasmania, did a good job there’, and so were ‘considering… going after the Greens’ in New Zealand as well. This shows that by early June National MPs had been told about the Brethren’s proposed anti-Green Party advertising and confirms the link with anti-Green leaflets that were distributed anonymously in Tasmania the year before. The September 2005 New Zealand and October 2004 Tasmanian anti-Green Exclusive Brethren pamphlets were almost identical. Lusk went on to express concern about anti-Green campaigning because he was counting on Green voters to split the vote in Napier and help his National candidate win. ‘They could hurt our chances in Napier if they go after the Greens,’ he wrote, ‘we need as many Greens votes as possible to win the electorate race.’31

Two weeks later, another Lusk email reveals that actual copies of the Exclusive Brethren election advertisements were being shown to National Party MPs. ‘Bryan some of the ads we were discussing in Napier were shown to a selection of MPs yesterday. Apparently there were some very nervous people after hearing them.’32 The reason for the nervousness was not explained.

3. Hint for question 2 here.

4. Who was a go to man between National and the Brethren?

5. How did the other guy get swipe access to Parliament to be Brash’s factotum?

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Filed under: act party, asset sales, coalition management, national
28 Comments

Twenty questions Part I

Posted by Trevor Mallard on May 6th, 2011

pp2

1. Whose party was this?

2. Who is the person in the background?

3. Did Farrar know there were in fact three celebrations on that night at the same party when he decided to go?

4. List the celebrations.

5. Did Farrar report back to Bill English afterwards?

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Filed under: act party, coalition management, national
32 Comments

Why Joyce is determined to crash through

Posted by Clare Curran on April 27th, 2011

Adam Gifford at the Herald succinctly sums up why Steven Joyce is so intent on ignoring all opposition and calls for compromise on his broadband scheme which looks as if its becoming a white elephant.

Steven Joyce prides himself on being a pragmatic guy. That’s what he told this year’s Telcon conference, anyway – that’s he’s surrounded by people who like talking but he’d like to be remembered as a guy who does stuff.

That must be why he’s giving Telecom and Vodafone $285 million to build a rural broadband network that relies on technology nearing its use-by date, which won’t deliver the promised speeds.

If nothing else, it gives his boss John Key the chance to jump in an airforce helicopter for an election photo-op at some remote location.

Yesterday a group of 11 telcos and groups such as fed farmers proposed a compromise on Joyce’s urban broadband scheme. They argued that instead of Joyce insisting on his regulatory holiday which locks out the Commerce Commission  as independent umpire on price setting for fibre for nearly 10 years, it be replaced with an Australian style special access undertakings system.

They’d done a lot of research. Labour gave it qualified support but needs to look more closely at it. Any compromise solution is worthy of consideration. Joyce of course dismissed it straight away as he dismisses everything. He knows best. Says its all about certainty and there cant be any delays.

Wonder why? Because he has to keep his timetable on course or the contracts can’t get signed with Telecom before the election. And, this is the killer, the whole scheme falls over unless he sticks to the regulatory holiday.

Because that’s the sweetener for the winning bid. 10 years free of independent scrutiny on pricing and a whole lot of other services. Locking up our network to an anti-competitive monopoly. And we’re going to let this happen?

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Filed under: broadband
16 Comments

If it smells like a dog…

Posted by Clare Curran on April 23rd, 2011

Pretty disappointed with Vernon Small’s analysis in today’s DomPost of the Mediaworks debacle, where he lets Steven Joyce off the hook and by implication the rest of his government for any dodgy goings on in giving Mediaworks a $43m loan to defer radio licences.

Small neglects to mention that it wasn’t just Joyce involved. What about Key, Brownlee and Coleman’s involvement? That’s quite a lot of Ministers.

It’s my understanding that Joyce may not have been the first point of call from Mediaworks. There certainly were others involved in pushing for that decision against departmental advice. That doesn’t make him any less culpable for his government’s decisions. But the issue isn’t just about Joyce.

It’s about how a government can be so lacking in transparency about how such a deal was entered into.

And whether it should have been entered into at all.

And what it represented.

Instead Small says this:

You might even wonder if the pressure applied to local subsidiaries by the financial requirements of their overseas owners – in this case MediaWorks’ owners Ironbridge – should be ignored for fear it will be used to “game” extra concessions from the Government.

But describing the arrangement in the strong terms the Opposition has adopted goes too far in an effort to make a sow’s ear out of a silk purse.

Suggestions that Mr Joyce, the communications and information technology minister, had some sort of conflict of interest in helping out the Brent Impey-led company (that Mr Joyce established) survives only till you know that Mr Joyce and Mr Impey are . . . errr . . . not close.

I dunno what other terms one could use to describe it. Dodgy and cronyism seem pretty tame to me. And making Steven Joyce into some kind of maligned being is a bit rich. Look at what’s going on in two of his other portfolios.

There’s currently an Auditor General inquiry  into the link between former National Party Minister Pansy Wong’s husband Sammy and the deals being done by Kiwirail and the Chinese rail company that Wong was associated with. It appears that the Govt has backed off sending the major Auckland electric trains contract to China North Rail (decision in the last few days), but there are other major flatdeck wagon deals likely to go their way.

This week we discover that Joyce’s current chief Ministerial adviser on broadband was named as the chief adviser to Telecom during a major anti-competitive deal in the early 2000s. This has resulted in Telecom receiving a record $12 million fine and the adviser, Bruce Parkes, being named in the court judgement. Did Joyce know about this case when Bruce Parkes was employed? Did he care? It appears not.

But it’s interesting that Joyce’s broadband scheme is being accused of the same anti-competitiveness right now.

Re Mediaworks, the essence of Small’s analysis seems to hinge on the fact that Brett Impey from Mediaworks and Joyce are no longer close. That may well be. I reckon I know why. It’s not really the point. Because Joyce’s relationship with Mediaworks goes back a long way.

And TV3 and the mediaworks radio stations wield considerable influence on our news screens and airwaves. And it is election year.

Another interesting thing. Did Broadcasting Minister Jonathan Coleman attend a Mediaworks board meeting a few months ago? Was the future of TVNZ7 discussed? What else was discussed? Would have loved to have been a fly on the wall.

Oh, and then a week ago former Jim Bolger press sec Richard Griffin was made chair of the Radio NZ board. Keep them quiet and compliant will no doubt be his brief.

TVNZ has already been instructed it is no longer a public broadcaster.

So much for independent, vibrant, critical analysis and public broadcasting.

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Filed under: #OpenLabourNZ, broadband, broadcasting, comms & IT, media
21 Comments

Halt broadband decisions Joyce and Key

Posted by Clare Curran on April 20th, 2011

The integrity of the government’s broadband schemes in urban and rural NZ are under question. The chief adviser to Steven Joyce has been named in a court decision yesterday as implicated in advising Telecom on anti-competitive practices which have resulted in a $12 million fine.

I understand this the biggest fine ever to come from a Commerce Commission decision.

This official, Bruce Parkes is the man who has designed, and will oversee, the government’s broadband schemes. Both schemes have come heavily under fire for their potential to be anti-competitive and to not result in good outcomes for consumers.

Labour does not mention officials by name generally. However, this case is different.

The urban scheme contains a 10 year regulatory holiday from Commerce Commission oversight on pricing and other key matters which would drive competition on our newest fibre network.

There have been serious questions raised about the rural scheme, which the government conveniently announced today, handing it to… wait for it Telecom and Vodafone. Creating another monopoly for rural New Zealand and very likely resulting in higher prices for rural New Zealand down the track and less ability for competition to cocur.

Steven Joyce bats away all criticisms as irrelevant. This is however too big for him.

Read here was Computerworld has said. Read here what TVNZ has reported.

Labour has today said the government must call a halt to any decisions on broadband rollout following revelations that the man responsible for designing it is at the centre of anti-competitive findings against Telecom which saw the company fined $12 million in the High Court yesterday.

A cloud now hangs over the government’s broadband scheme. There are serious questions about its integrity with regards to compeitition and regulation.

An independent review must urgently be conducted of both the process and system of the rural broadband initiative (RBI) and the Ultrafast Broadband scheme (UFB).

Labour calls on the Prime Minister John Key and the Minister responsible Steven Joyce to stop broadband decisions right now.

The review should be undertaken by an international expert as the New Zealand industry is too involved and interconnected on these issues.

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Filed under: broadband, comms & IT
17 Comments

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