Canterbury Mornings with John MacDonald

Do you feel better off than you did three years ago?

With it being election year, that’s the question politicians are going to be asking you. It’s the question I’m asking you too in light of the latest unemployment numbers - which are the highest in more than a decade.

That’s the overall number. In Canterbury, things are a little bit better. The unemployment rate here is down and we’ve got 12,000 extra jobs. That was in the three m...

I think the Government is making a terrible mistake ditching the second practical test for new drivers.

I like some of the changes it’s making to the driver licensing system. But getting rid of the second practical isn’t one of them. I’ll tell you why. But, first, what bits do I like? And what is missing from the changes? 

For starters, I like the idea of a zero-alcohol limit for all new drivers. At the moment, this only appli...

How on earth did we get to the point where we’ve got schools saying today that kids are starting school without some of the most basic skills?

And when they say basic, they mean basic. According to the Auckland Primary Principals’ Association, there are five-year-old kids starting school who can’t talk, who can’t feed themselves and who haven’t been toilet trained.

I think I’ve got a partial solution to this problem. Which would me...

I am liking the sound of a law change being introduced in New South Wales, where they are no longer going to allow good character references to be factored into court sentences.

You know the drill. Someone is found guilty of a crime, they get their mates to write to the judge saying what a great person they are and how they’ve done all these good things.

The judge reads all these glowing references and, when it comes to handing dow...

Talk about déjà vu. 

The smell from the burnt-out wastewater treatment plant at Bromley has been a shocker this week and people have had a gutsful. 

City councillor Yani Johanson says making people wait for another three years is totally unacceptable and the council needs to get it sorted sooner.

I think it’s ridiculous that it has taken over four years for the problem to still exist.  I agree that it should be fixed...

Before the weekend, questions were already being asked as to why the campground at Mt Maunganui wasn’t evacuated before last week’s devastating landslide.

That will be one of the things looked into as part of this independent investigation the local council is initiating. There will be all sorts of questions and, hopefully, a lot of answers.  

But there is one thing we know for sure already. We don’t need an investigation to t...

I reckon we should have signs up at our international airports saying: “Welcome to the people’s republic of pushovers”.

Because of our crazy ACC system which, a lot of the time, makes those of us living here fight tooth and nail but tells anyone coming here for a visit that they can tie themselves to bungy ropes, jump on skis, do whatever they want - and we’ll pay for their treatment.

It seems even crazier when we’ve got ACC announ...

If you bump into Chris Hipkins today, can you tell him he’s dreaming?

Because, now that we know this year’s election is happening on 7 November, Chris Hipkins is saying that Labour can get more than 40 percent of the party vote and form the next government.

He also wants Labour to win back Auckland.

He’s dreaming. Because I don’t think voters, generally, are ready yet to give Labour another chance. And I don’t think voters in Auckl...

Phil Goff agrees with the Christchurch City Council's response to a Government proposal of capping rates to no more than 2 to 4 percent per year.

Goff says the Government is not performing in lowering the cost of living, but a rates cap is not the right answer.

The former Mayor of Auckland told John MacDonald the Government sees local councils as an "easy target".

Christchurch City Council has responded to the Government's proposal...

Hats off to the Christchurch City Council.

Which is telling the Government today that its idea of forcing a cap on council rates increases is “unrealistic and unworkable”.

Which is a polite way of saying “rates caps are a daft idea, so just drop it right now”.

And that’s what I think too. I’ve always thought it’s a daft idea to force local councils around the country to increase rates by no more than 2 to 4 percent each year. It so...

In his state of the nation speech yesterday, Christopher Luxon continued the great New Zealand tradition of kicking the retirement age can down the road.

He said raising the retirement age was “inevitable”. But that was it. And, when I say kicking the can, it was more like nudging the can with his foot really. Because what the Prime Minister and every other politician should be doing, is showing some fortitude and accepting that tw...

The personal responsibility brigade will be going ape over Pharmac looking into funding weight loss drugs.

This wouldn’t be for anyone wanting to lose a few kilos here and there. This would be for people who are obese and at risk of serious health complications. Around 200 potentially serious health complications, actually. Such as Type 2 Diabetes.  

I think it’s a no-brainer. Because we h...

After yesterday’s half-year fiscal update from the Government, the canary in the mine is gasping for air and the elephant in the room is walking all over everything.

And economist Cameron Bagrie is saying that we can’t ignore either of them - particularly in relation to the long-term outlook and what it means for superannuation and retirement planning.

He says, with Government debt forecast to blow-out long-term, we need to accept ...

You would think that, having had a major terror attack here, we’d be the last people that needed to be told after what happened in Bondi on Sunday night that we’re too complacent. 

But that’s what security experts are saying. That New Zealand remains complacent and naive, despite 51 people being killed in the mosque attacks in Christchurch in March 2019. 

And I think we are getting to the point where we need to have armed...

I’m glad I’m not a volunteer firefighter. Because, if I was, I would be brassed-off that an attempt to get volunteer firefighters the same ACC cover as full-time firefighters has gone nowhere.

A petition calling for the change has been rejected by a parliamentary select committee because it doesn’t want to set a precedent. The committee is trotting out all the usual platitudes but the fact remains that volunteer firefighters have j...

Australia pressed go yesterday on the social media ban for kids under-16 and a Parliamentary select committee here thinks we should do the same.

I don’t. Nor does retired district court judge David Harvey, who is saying today that a ban would be a cop-out for parents. He says it would be another example of outsourcing parental authority to the state.

He might have a point, but I think a lot of parents are to blame for the problem p...

Chris Hipkins is hitting out at the Taxpayers' Union as it prepares to launch a campaign against Finance Minister Nicola Willis. 

The lobby group is questioning Willis's track record on the economy. 

Willis has responded, challenging chair and former finance minister Ruth Richardson to a debate. 

The Labour Leader told John MacDonald the Taxpayers' Union has a view of "entrenched privilege". 

He claims the organ...

There’s a lot to take in with these planning law changes. But what it comes down to is the Government wants people to be able to do more with their own property with less red tape. 

If you want to do something that has no impact on anyone else, you’ll be able to do it. Your house, your castle. 

That’s where there could be a few sticking points, because who determines what impacts others and what doesn’t? But overall, I li...

These researchers calling today for a ban on alcohol marketing and sponsorship sound to me like they’re living in the past.

Maybe it’s the circles I mix in. But I reckon things have come ahead leaps and bounds when it comes to our drinking culture in New Zealand.

And before you start yelling “what about things like crate day mate?” - I’m not saying we’ve got it perfect. But I think we’ve moved on from any decade before the current ...