WLG waterfront packed for Matariki, you love to see it! Pretty bad weather, wet and cold, but still thousands of folks watching projections onto large buildings, listening to soundscapes, eating Kai wandering around, watching these folks perform waiata 😍 Aotearoa is our future ❤️🤍🖤

Whose skeets do you read in their voice in your head? For me it’s @michaelhobbes.bsky.social @yrfatfriend.bsky.social @scubanursenz.bsky.social and @tzemingdynasty.bsky.social So basically I have to listen to you for hours regularly or have known you for a million years. Huh.

The apartments are in Napier, and Chris Bishop can be as "frustrated" as he wants. The only reason they are empty is because he decided to nobble Kāinga Ora and sell them to a community housing provider without making sure that such a buyer really exists. Ideological folly all the way down.

I guess as long as Peter Thiel still gets to vote 🤦🏻‍♀️

Mōrena we have a second Committee of the Whole (COW) for Auckland Council this week; today's Policy, Planning & Development Committee. Having 2 in 1 week is v unusual and tbh v tiring. Perhaps that's why my laptop's internet wasn't working in the Town Hall and I'm late with starting this thread?

Until midnight tonight to make a submission on why this bill is total nonsense. Tips on how to write a good submission and link to the submission portal here action.greens.org.nz/gender_bill_...

If you see Nat, ACT & NZF MPs at Matariki events you might want to ask them why they are there given their ongoing work to undermine Te Tiriti and remove public use of te Reo Māori, Māori representation, etc. There’s a word for people who turn up to photo ops for something they oppose: Hypocrite.

You think landlords or the other spends this government made with those funds are directly spending them into the economy. Study after study has shown that investing in lower income groups nearly always results in those funds then almost immediately going into our economy. “Saving”? Not so much.

Reminder: the cruelty was the point of the changes. Deeply cynical politics where ACT win both ways around, as they get to say "look it's unworkable, we told you this should just be a private thing with no govt involvement".

Pulling this one out of my thread because this speaks to how overwhelming dealing with the aftermath of the 2023 storms was for elected members and agencies, and of course locals, in the hardest hits part of Auckland (and still is). This is just one measure, as it doesn't capture rentals and KO.

Auckland Council's Governing Body (mayor + councillors) on today, at the Auckland Town Hall from 10am. Big agenda; I suspect we'll be here until 7pm. Nothing hugely controversial in itself (we have a v difficult confidential item) and we are doing the final final sign off for the budget so that.. /n

Banning social media for under 16s seems like a distraction from real regulation of social media #JustSaying

I realised as a teen that I’d been v influenced by what my Dad liked (crooners, John Denver, Rodgers & Hammerstein) and had no idea what Mum liked. I got her Elton John’s greatest hits to try to find out and I think she liked it 🤷🏻‍♀️

Remember how Govt announced they are removing voting rights from council committees for non-elected folks, by changing the Local Govt Act? And how they announced this after the select committee had reported back, so no chance for submissions on it? Well the implications for Auckland are...

OneNews misreported this at 6pm, missing this entirely! Argh!

Following up on the messiness at the end of the Transport & Infrastructure Delivery Committee, on the council's feedback on establishing national regulations for Time Of Use Charging (TOU) which is the form of congestion charging NZ is developing atm. After a debate ranging a long way from... 🧵

We all know blood quantum is super racist right? Right?? #NZPol

Anti-Australia. My cartoon in today's @theageaustralia.bsky.social

Nice to have a little win - getting the tree sorted was relatively quick after Jeremy raised it with me, but then the fence resulted in a little bit of buck shifting back and forth. Great to have it done!

Auckland Council's Transport & Infrastructure Delivery Committee (TID) is on today and at 10.04am we have started with the following members in the room: Baker (chair), Henare, Tukerangi, Winiata, Paterson-Hamlin, Fuli, Turner, Watson, Lee, Hills, Henderson, Williamson, Fletcher, Fairey, Burns...

Well, seeing other old friends does somewhat soften the blow of losing one. I fucking hate cancer.

There will be people who earn $70k a year vociferously against this, screaming "socialism!" & "communists!" even though it won't effect their income one bit. But they will get better healthcare for their elderly parents. Better education for their kids. Safer communities for their families.

One of the best Dutch design principles is "forgiving infrastructure". It expects human error and provides the physical space for a minor accident to happen safely, far away from multi-ton vehicles. No one should be sentenced to death for simply falling off a bike.

Today my friend moves into a new-build Kainga Ora home. She has been on the waitlist for 4 years. This home is everything she needs. It's warm, dry and pristine. This is what every person deserves - a home that is warm, welcoming and affordable. It also has rain water storage and a lemon tree.

Today is #ShowYourStripes day. The stripe graphics are visual representations of the change in temp measured in each country, region or city over the past 100+ years. Each stripe or bar represents the temperature averaged over a year. Here’s Akl showyourstripes.info/l/australasi...

A handy set of visualisations for anyone who cares.

RNZ canvassing economists to pick over public transport subsidies literally (like actually literally) ONE THOUSAND TIMES SMALLER than a single RON.

... sorry is this how busses are meant to work. I thought it was "I need to go somewhere so I get on" but now I'm learning that the driver attracted me with their bright plumage

Once again I am asking for AI that can fold the laundry and put it away in the correct places please and thank you.

As a local govt politician I often think of Grenfell. A terrible example of profit before people.

Did not quite make it to this as not well enough, great to see it went well 🥰🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

Actions this Saturday to support trans people in Aotearoa & protest NZ First's harmful Definitions of Woman and Man Amendment Bill:   Tāmaki Makarau: 12pm @Myers Park Kirikiriroa: 12pm @Civic Square Pōneke: 12pm @Civic Square Ōtautahi: 1pm @Bridge of Remembrance Whakatū: 2pm @1903 Square #nzpol

FTR the vote at AKL Council today on only going fwd w Option A (least development) was voted down 10 to 12. NOT by the casting vote of the chair as apparently an anti-housing councillor it has told a residents’ group tonight. A vote was incorrectly recorded & fixed at the time.

Got some unexpected health stuff going on and doctor recommends a week off. I will be online for the Policy, Planning & Development Committee meeting on Tuesday but not skeeting it. Am focusing on getting well.

For those not on Instagram, here is the pic with all the locations, dates, and times nationwide.

I’ve been reading a lot about trauma lately; for myself as I’m dealing with my own from Hard Things that happened last year, & also for my job where I am trying to help dozens of constituents w the next phases of AKL’s 2023 flood recovery, who have trauma from their experiences that night & since…

If this was genuinely about making sure your constituents have your contact details why the National logos, and why on everything, not just one say fridge magnet (which lots of elected folks do as a way to ensure locals can get in touch). This smells. And who paid? There’s also a power imbalance…

Responding to a FB comment claiming Aucklanders never wanted the CRL (and blaming Phil Goff, attn @connorsharp.bsky.social) found this highly relevant Herald article from 2011 showing high support for CRL and low support for a RONS project www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/rail-loop...

Auckland Council's Audit & Risk Committee has an independent chair and two other independent members with accounting and legal backgrounds. More on what these are and why they have non elected folks on them: ao.parliament.nz/2022/council...

Auckland Council's Governing Body is meeting again today (we had an extraordinary meeting last week to pass the budget) from 10am. You can see the agenda here (and watch video once we start): aucklandcouncil.resolve.red/portal/meeti... And on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWyY...

Oslo Pride video 🥹 🏳️‍🌈 #Pride #LoveIsLove

@foxylustygrover.bsky.social 🐾🐾🐾🐾💚

The 10yo is annoyed w the 14yo and just angrily yelled, with no irony, “won’t someone please think of the children!” I am ded.

'"People died in Australia because of automated systems that ruined people's lives and made mistakes, put people into debt," [Greens MP Ricardo] Menéndez March said. It was "extremely concerning" that the bill was being passed without consultation or scrutiny, he said.' #NzPol

Do not like. Thx @siouxsiew.bsky.social especially for the hopeful end!

This is so fucking wrong. And the bastards are pushing it through under urgency.

Not one Government party campaigned on this. Not one credible submission in support. This Government know the cost of everything and the value of nothing ☠️☠️

Crocodillian sounds far more whimsical than it is.