Christopher Luxon, New Zealand Prime Minister 2023

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

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#3201969 1-Mar-2024 12:30

freitasm:

It's the hypocrisy. The disregard for everyone else's lives.

I know this is a politics thread, but you could read a phrase like that and just know - ah, they're talking about politicians...

and dare I say, the right wing ones who expect everybody else to make the sacrifices.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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#3202005 1-Mar-2024 13:54

quickymart:

https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/02/23/luxons-popularity-low-compared-to-other-first-term-pms/

Interesting to see Luxon's popularity at such a low level, especially considering that he modelled himself on his mentor, Key. Maybe it's because (some) voters think he's being told what to do by Peters and Seymour, rather than piloting the ship (mostly) by himself?

you may have forgotten, nobody voted him in, they voted labour out

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#3202011 1-Mar-2024 14:00

From The rich stay rich by pretending to be poor | The Spinoff

"Now, there are wrinkles to this story. Lots of MPs get an accommodation allowance because they have to spend a lot of time in Wellington and may not already live there. That makes sense, sure. And if Luxon had purchased an apartment this year in order to live in it for work, it would make sense for that allowance to be used to help pay for the costs of the apartment. But he already owns the apartment, it has few costs (there’ll be bodycorp fees, rates and insurance, so at the high end that would be $18,000 a year, but also you have an asset) and yet he is still claiming the allowance. Yes of course he is entitled to it, and as a businessman he’d know there’s no greater passive income than one you don’t even need."

"So why claim it? Why claim it when it has been proven to be a foolish political move (see: Bill English in 2009)? Why claim it when $52,000 for someone of Luxon’s wealth is barely worth the hassle? Because the rich stay rich by pretending to be poor. The rich know how to claim expenses on their tax bill for every little thing. The rich know how to use a trust to not appear to be earning money. The rich know how to present their salaries so that their kids can get student allowance at university. The rich will always, always, suggest splitting the bill at dinner. You don’t stay rich by throwing money away – or not accepting free money when it’s offered."

"But pretending to be poor for benefits only works if you’re rich. If you’re poor, you better pick yourself up by your bootstraps, stop trying to get money for nothing, and get to work."

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#3202012 1-Mar-2024 14:02

quickymart:

https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/02/23/luxons-popularity-low-compared-to-other-first-term-pms/

Interesting to see Luxon's popularity at such a low level, especially considering that he modelled himself on his mentor, Key. Maybe it's because (some) voters think he's being told what to do by Peters and Seymour, rather than piloting the ship (mostly) by himself?

He is allowing some obnoxious policies from those two.

Too many policies will have the result of increasing death, particularly in the Maori Pacifica communities.

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#3202019 1-Mar-2024 14:20

Technically $52K per year is not "endless" so it's all fine.

iPad Pro 11" + iPhone 15 Pro Max + 2degrees 4tw!

These comments are my own and do not represent the opinions of 2degrees.

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#3202078 1-Mar-2024 14:55

It's really pathetic.

A pathetic image of a "leader".

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#3202096 1-Mar-2024 15:08

Batman:

quickymart:

https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/02/23/luxons-popularity-low-compared-to-other-first-term-pms/

Interesting to see Luxon's popularity at such a low level, especially considering that he modelled himself on his mentor, Key. Maybe it's because (some) voters think he's being told what to do by Peters and Seymour, rather than piloting the ship (mostly) by himself?

you may have forgotten, nobody voted him in, they voted labour out

I must have had faulty voting papers, mine had ticks not crosses

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#3202121 1-Mar-2024 16:13

'er indoors says integrity is doing the right thing when no-one is watching. Strangely this seems to be a case of doing the wrong thing when everyone's watching.

“The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” -John Kenneth Galbraith

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#3202124 1-Mar-2024 16:24

freitasm:

From The rich stay rich by pretending to be poor | The Spinoff

"Now, there are wrinkles to this story. Lots of MPs get an accommodation allowance because they have to spend a lot of time in Wellington and may not already live there. That makes sense, sure. And if Luxon had purchased an apartment this year in order to live in it for work, it would make sense for that allowance to be used to help pay for the costs of the apartment. But he already owns the apartment, it has few costs (there’ll be bodycorp fees, rates and insurance, so at the high end that would be $18,000 a year, but also you have an asset) and yet he is still claiming the allowance. Yes of course he is entitled to it, and as a businessman he’d know there’s no greater passive income than one you don’t even need."

"So why claim it? Why claim it when it has been proven to be a foolish political move (see: Bill English in 2009)? Why claim it when $52,000 for someone of Luxon’s wealth is barely worth the hassle? Because the rich stay rich by pretending to be poor. The rich know how to claim expenses on their tax bill for every little thing. The rich know how to use a trust to not appear to be earning money. The rich know how to present their salaries so that their kids can get student allowance at university. The rich will always, always, suggest splitting the bill at dinner. You don’t stay rich by throwing money away – or not accepting free money when it’s offered."

"But pretending to be poor for benefits only works if you’re rich. If you’re poor, you better pick yourself up by your bootstraps, stop trying to get money for nothing, and get to work."

That's such a dumb article. The position that it'd be all good for him to claim the allowance if he had a mortgage is just stupid.

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#3202129 1-Mar-2024 16:38

Handle9:

That's such a dumb article. The position that it'd be all good for him to claim the allowance if he had a mortgage is just stupid.

There are a LOT of people both in public and private on fixed term contracts who do NOT get any kind of housing allowance.

They do not get a golden handshake when they leave, the pension plan is not gold plated, their healthcare is their problem, etc etc etc etc.

Being an elected person is basically a fixed term contract, and at the end of it, your contract may or may not be renewed, if you do not like the offered remuneration then do not apply for the job.

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#3202130 1-Mar-2024 16:39

Handle9:

That's such a dumb article. The position that it'd be all good for him to claim the allowance if he had a mortgage is just stupid.

I tink the idea is completely different. The allowance is to help with living expenses in a place where you don't have residence.

The PM has a residence in Wellington. It existed before being in government, so it was not acquired to execute his job. Therefore it's not an expense that would require "help" with.

If the law doesn't explicitly say "You cannot claim if you have a home in Wellington" then at least the spirit of the law should be considered.

It's like saying the EV subsidy was bad for the country, until he was caught with two cars bought with that subsidy, then dumping this on his wife.

For someone who keeps talking about the taxpayer money, he is just not walking the talk.

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#3202132 1-Mar-2024 16:45

sir1963:

Handle9:

That's such a dumb article. The position that it'd be all good for him to claim the allowance if he had a mortgage is just stupid.

There are a LOT of people both in public and private on fixed term contracts who do NOT get any kind of housing allowance.

They do not get a golden handshake when they leave, the pension plan is not gold plated, their healthcare is their problem, etc etc etc etc.

Being an elected person is basically a fixed term contract, and at the end of it, your contract may or may not be renewed, if you do not like the offered remuneration then do not apply for the job.

If you have a job that requires you to work in multiple locations you get reimbursed for the expense of travel and extra living costs in the second location. Luxon is MP for Botany and of course has to be present in Wellington. His primary residence is in Auckland.

It's entirely reasonable that the cost of travel and away from home living costs are covered. If they weren't it would mean that only the rich could be MPs.

The final sentence is silly. He has been offered remuneration, he's accepted it. No one is disputing he is entitled to the allowance under his contract.

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#3202135 1-Mar-2024 16:47

Just came out of a meeting where work struggling to meet the required budget cuts. Everyone was clapping about a worker who brought in coffee for everyone to use.

Then to read about a housing allowance stuff... chefs kiss. Smells of I got mine attitude.

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#3202136 1-Mar-2024 16:49

freitasm:

Handle9:

That's such a dumb article. The position that it'd be all good for him to claim the allowance if he had a mortgage is just stupid.

I tink the idea is completely different. The allowance is to help with living expenses in a place where you don't have residence.

The PM has a residence in Wellington. It existed before being in government, so it was not acquired to execute his job. Therefore it's not an expense that would require "help" with.

If the law doesn't explicitly say "You cannot claim if you have a home in Wellington" then at least the spirit of the law should be considered.

His primary residence is in Auckland. The spirit, and intent, of the allowance is to cover the expenses related to living away from his primary residence. He's not doing anything more than that. He has used private capital to pay for his flat, that doesn't mean that it doesn't cost him to own and maintain that residence. He'd likely be better off selling it and using the money for other investments.

It's a beat up because people don't like Luxon.

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#3202140 1-Mar-2024 16:56

Enough people must like him, he got voted in as PM, didn't he?

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/pm-christopher-luxon-says-hes-entitled-to-52k-accommodation-allowance/RHF2L5U45ZFTXM5JK5PI7EENRU/

^ reading his comments here, I get the impression he doesn't think Premier House is nice/good enough for his standards and he would rather live in his own (subsidised) place instead.

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/510589/luxon-s-criticisms-of-profligate-spending-come-back-to-bite

Like I said before, yes, okay, this is legal and within the rules. But when he's asking everyone else to make cuts everywhere they can think of but he doesn't do so himself, this is not a good look. It's not a beat-up. It's a double standard, plain and simple.

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