Christopher Luxon, New Zealand Prime Minister 2023

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Forums › Politics › Christopher Luxon, New Zealand Prime Minister 2023

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#3288173 30-Sep-2024 13:26

freitasm: But tell us again how this government is planning for the future.

Roads. The greatest roads ever. You won't believe how great the roads will be. They will be great roads, apparently.

SaltyNZ

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#3288186 30-Sep-2024 13:56

gzt:

freitasm: But tell us again how this government is planning for the future.

Roads. The greatest roads ever. You won't believe how great the roads will be. They will be great roads, apparently.

Yuuuuge roads

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quickymart

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#3288387 30-Sep-2024 20:57

An, uh, interesting (one might say scathing) look at what this government deems "affordable" and "unaffordable":

https://thespinoff.co.nz/politics/27-09-2024/the-things-that-are-unaffordable-and-the-things-that-arent

Hint: not hospitals, oh no. But roads? Endless cash for those 🙄

sen8or

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#3288421 1-Oct-2024 09:17

What would be interesting to find out is what the cost to build the hospital would be if functionality was at the forefront rather than design aesthetics from an architect looking to enhance his/her portfolio?

Is it also a classic case of project over-reach. Start with a simple, affordable, functional plan. Get it approved. Then various interest groups (whom arguably should have been consulted before approval) add their 2c worth along with an expensive list of "must haves" to start ballooning out the budget and back the Govt into a corner.

If the project had started and sought a $3bio project, would a Govt of either persuasion have given it the go ahead?

elpenguino

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#3288492 1-Oct-2024 10:50

sen8or:

Do we need a running thread of broken promises and/or plain stupid actions?

- Smoke free / excise tax thing - stupid, unnecessary and short sighted. There was very limited upside to this change, and it may or may not be true about the driving of tobacco sales underground, but thats a fairly weak argument against the known negative impacts of smoking.

- Speed Limits - How long have the police and/or road safety campaigned on slowing down in higher risk areas. I'll admit to not agreeing with some of the lower limits on various open roads and the 30km/h limit in Christchurch central streets is painfully slow, but a blanket removal of these along with an extra 20km/h on certain roads is plain dumb, all to save commuters a few minutes on their journey?

For balance, we'll also need to include the positive things they have done

- Anything?

The list will grow quickly. Luxon promised more cops but his shock economic policies are driving them overseas so there's fewer now. Cos cops need to eat too.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/522664/doubts-government-can-achieve-promise-of-500-extra-police-as-numbers-keep-falling

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ezbee

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#3288559 1-Oct-2024 13:27

Hospitals are expensive to build due to functional requirements, also subject to inflation as other building costs.
They are also probably one of the least disposable buildings expecting to have a very long life.

Designers and contractors who hope to win the business would know that it had better be cheep.
They would know from any history dealing with NZ, this is not Dubai, or Sydney or Melbourne.
No one would equate NZ with infrastructure spend luxury. :-)

Hospitals 'here' won't look like Apple HQ, or Olympic Stadia, no strange Beehive shapes our Parliament saddled itself with ?
Looks pretty much the usual brutal box with the current shiny glass and whatever cladding that is not expensive.
https://www.tewhatuora.govt.nz/health-services-and-programmes/infrastructure-and-investment/new-dunedin-hospital

They do have unavoidable special very practical requirements.
Size of hallways and rooms, mobility, beds and various items of large equipment you have.
All sorts of considerations for infection control in surfaces ventilation and the variety of equipment.

Hospitals need to have a lot of services like lines for various gasses.
A host of wiring for power and data for various items of monitoring equipment down to the number of sanitary facilities.
A lot of skilled building trades required. Cost probably includes all the equipment as its a bit useless without it.

Its really important that the structure is robust to serve for generations without turning into a home for mold and vermin.
You probably ideally want this building to be still standing and operating in a natural disaster.

Just build the damm thing, train more to staff it.
It adds to GDP, makes the the place more attractive for your skilled people to stay and attract skilled migrants to the South.
Adds to your capability to grow GDP faster. If you are GDP freak.

This is good for the economy overall.

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GV27

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#3288707 1-Oct-2024 17:27

ezbee:

Just build the damm thing, train more to staff it.

Agree 100% with this. Make a song and dance about the cost increases under Labour and the gulf between when they said it would be done and when they started... but do all that and also still build it.

Committing to it now doesn't mean you can't still bitch out the previous government for it getting to this point.

Ferry docksides are less emotive and frankly less essential that hospitals. And if they're going to cancel everything that the previous government got wrong, they're literally not going to build anything.

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#3288814 1-Oct-2024 22:22

GV27:

And if they're going to cancel everything that the previous government got wrong, they're literally not going to build anything.

No need to be so negative. They're also cancelling everything the previous government got right.

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quickymart

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#3288875 2-Oct-2024 07:10

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/529583/casey-costello-s-tobacco-tax-cut-plan-stalled-as-device-pulled-from-shelves

Oh no, the tobacco tax cut bs plan hits a snag!

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#3289884 2-Oct-2024 09:14

quickymart:

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/529583/casey-costello-s-tobacco-tax-cut-plan-stalled-as-device-pulled-from-shelves

Oh no, the tobacco tax cut bs plan hits a snag!

Oh, no! How is Philip Morris going to take advantage of a National tax break if this Labour law requires tobacco heating devices to have safety measures?

Will National remove safety measures? Will National repeal the law?

Stay tuned!

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GV27

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#3289900 2-Oct-2024 09:48

SaltyNZ:

No need to be so negative. They're also cancelling everything the previous government got right.

I hope we're not paying them for the full day on that one. That'd a morning's meeting over coffee and then hitting the links for seven hours.

It's quite possible that National are going to run out of policy before the end of this year. They need some actual stuff to move along so that they can provide cover for Costello's endless stuff-ups.

Family members now suggesting that if Luxon can't sack her for this kind of repeated offence without Winston walking away, then the coalition agreement basically makes Winston the defacto PM.

It's hard to disagree at this point.

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sir1963

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#3290162 2-Oct-2024 18:19

GV27:

SaltyNZ:

No need to be so negative. They're also cancelling everything the previous government got right.

I hope we're not paying them for the full day on that one. That'd a morning's meeting over coffee and then hitting the links for seven hours.

It's quite possible that National are going to run out of policy before the end of this year. They need some actual stuff to move along so that they can provide cover for Costello's endless stuff-ups.

Family members now suggesting that if Luxon can't sack her for this kind of repeated offence without Winston walking away, then the coalition agreement basically makes Winston the defacto PM.

It's hard to disagree at this point.

Perhaps we should be calling Winston "Albert"....fits in with Who's in NZ First...

quickymart

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#3290171 2-Oct-2024 18:40

GV27:

Family members now suggesting that if Luxon can't sack her for this kind of repeated offence without Winston walking away, then the coalition agreement basically makes Winston the defacto PM.

Which family you mean? Luxon's or yours?

quickymart

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#3290301 2-Oct-2024 22:53

Actually, quite a few people are calling for her to quit:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350438196/resign-growing-calls-casey-costello-lose-portfolios-over-heated-tobacco-products

sir1963

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#3290315 3-Oct-2024 05:08

quickymart:

Actually, quite a few people are calling for her to quit:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350438196/resign-growing-calls-casey-costello-lose-portfolios-over-heated-tobacco-products

Well we now know who is the REAL PM... having the "PMs confidence"....

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