Green MP's attempt to enter NZ for 'national security' has to be a joke
This week it was revealed that Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March applied for an emergency MIQ slot not once, but twice: first as a ‘critical health service’, and again as 'required for national security'.
We were first to break the story of Mr Menéndez March bring isolation on 9 February, meaning the MP has had more than two weeks to front up with the full detail of his queue-jumping attempt. Instead, New Zealanders only found out this week thanks to a Parliamentary question from National's Chris Bishop.
We can only assume Menéndez March chose to be secretive because he knew his grounds for an emergency slot were laughable. He’s a minor party spokesperson for Food Safety – hardly a critical health worker. Even more bizarre was his appeal to ‘national security’. How does jetting in a socialist from Tijuana help to secure New Zealand’s national security?!
You might enjoy this piece from our very own Neil Miller:
Gracefully returning from Mexico, the third most deadly hotspot for COVID-19, suddenly I am confronted by a border guard demanding all this paperwork about quarantine, isolation, and contact tracing that apparently I, a busy Member of Parliament, should have filled in “months ago”. “Months ago?” – who can understand such bureaucratic jargon?
Responding to the frontline staff, I point out the obvious absurdity in his argument. “Next”, I quip, “you will be saying that Kiwis should not travel to Mexico at all.” He produces a piece of paper from the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade saying exactly that. However, I spot that it is almost a year old. I cannot be expected to keep up with these historical edicts about the country of my birth and long intended travel destination. I am a list MP.
Jokes aside, Menéndez March’s ongoing failure to front-foot this affair stinks of a lack of humility and a disregard for the taxpayers who fund his salary.
We revealed the cost of Winston Peters' farewell bash
Working with the NZ Herald we revealed in an exclusive that Winston Peters was thrown a $12,000 farewell party by the new Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta and her Ministry.
The taxpayer-funded bill covered catering, event furniture hire, and technical costs. Guests included the Prime Minister, other Ministers, diplomats, and their spouses.
Considering venue hire was free, that's a hell of a lot of good food and top shelf grog. Apparently Winston Peters didn't even want a party, so perhaps Mahuta was trying lure him there by appealing to his expensive tastes.
We dug into this story because we were intrigued that a new Minister would throw a party for the Minister they effectively ousted. MPs get paid for three full months after they lose their jobs. In Mr Peters' case, he'll be paid a very generous MP's pension for the rest of his life. Despite that, Nanaia Mahuta thought Mr Peters needed an extra knees-up!
When media asked the Prime Minister what she thought of the $12,000 bill, she said she was 'surprised' and would double check the figure. Bad news Jacinda, it's confirmed by the Ministry right here...
Why is David Parker commissioning voodoo economics from Treasury?
Yesterday Stuff ran an alarming headline reading 'More than 40% of millionaires paying tax rates lower than the lowest earners, Government data reveals'.
However, the whole report (or 'Government data') is the economic equivalent to 'junk science'.
Here's why: Revenue Minister David Parker got Treasury to estimate how much tax wealthy people pay as a proportion of their ‘economic income’. Economic income is a totally different concept to accounting or tax income. It includes unrealised gains in asset values – which means it's hardly income at all.
If your house value goes up by $50,000 in a year, but you have no intention of selling, that’s not income – it's just inflation. It would be madness to tax that gain.
The same goes for stocks – in fact, stock values can fluctuate widely from year to year. Someone may see a large ‘economic gain’ one year but lose that gain the next. Taxing that original phantom gain would punish people taking calculated risks, and would see tax revenue collapse during a downturn.
It's incredibly concerning that, despite the Government's "no new taxes" promise, the Revenue Minister is casting around for excuses to introduce new taxes on wealth. These taxes may be intended to whack the rich, but in practice they'll punish small-time investors, homeowners, and Kiwisaver members.
Finance Minister must rule out departure tax
The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has released a new report calling for a "departure tax".
The tax would see New Zealanders and tourists charged up to $155 every time they leave the country.
It's a terrible idea. It would be a kick in the guts for families looking forward to their first overseas holiday when COVID-19 restrictions lift. It would increase costs of international business, creating an incentive for trans-Tasman companies to consolidate their offices in Australia.
It would discourage New Zealanders from taking international holidays, hammering Pacific nations that rely on visitors from our country. Other countries like Australia may even be tempted to retaliate with departure taxes of their own, meaning fewer tourists venture to our shores.
Regardless, Labour promised New Zealanders they would not introduce any new taxes beyond those that they campaigned on last year. The proposed departure tax would clearly break this promise.
