Andrew Little

Jami-lee Ross spoke on the third reading of the Employment Relations (Secret Ballot for Strikes) Amendment Bill.

He sledged Winston Peters from the get go, then Andrew Little and Trevor Mallard…he has promise….with all that sledging. Good to see good hard sledging of members opposite.

Meanwhile the bill has passed 61-60, and New Zealand workers now have a little bit more freedom and democracy with the forcing of unions to now hold secret ballots for strike action.

The next time the Maritime Union calls for strike action they will now have to have a secret ballot. No longer will the bruthas be able stand over the members.

Well done Tau Henare for ensuring a good start is made on reforming our industrial relations landscape for the better.

Andrew Little is a pretender to Labour’s throne and often touted as a future Prime Minister.

That will be a big task for the man who thinks employers are parasites.

ᔥ Stephen Franks

Stephen Franks analyses how the latest Pullar/Boag story fed to Phil Kitchin affect Trevor Mallard and Andrew Little. It isn’t looking good for them, which is ironic in that the duck season starts this weekend.

A month ago I predicted a win for the Hon Judith Collins in her law-suit over the claim that she or her office had leaked ACC information.

Catching up on several week’s papers I thought of how sick Messrs Mallard & Co must have felt on seeing Phil Kitchin’s latest report on the ACC/Pullar affair.  Their source might seem a less reliable witness for pleading justification in light of at least one misleading ACC internal report.  Phil is such a good journalist I read his report as a fair indication of ACC scrum twisting. Where there is some there is usually more.

Trevor Mallard could be getting advice right now to settle this, even if it involves a complete and abject apology and withdrawal. I hope the Minister makes them pay all her costs, plus some, to cover the risk she took, plus some more against RNZ for its low-grade coverage of the Mallard allegations without balancing comment.

The EPMU has filed their 2005 Audited Accounts, signed off by Andrew Little.

Congratulations to EPMU for filing their 2005 accounts (7 years late but it’s a start).

That leaves the EPMU to file the audited accounts for 2006….six years late.

The 2005 accounts by the way showed an $855,000.00 LOSS.

If Andrew Little can’t run a union then how can he presume to run a country?

Transtasman has the following to say about Labour:

The Labour caucus must be a peaceful place to be these days for those who don’t seem to be doing much. A handful of MPs are showing some spirit, among them Jacinda Ardern, Sue Moroney, David Cunliffe, David Parker, Chris Hipkins, Phil Goff and Clare Curran. There’s hardly a peep from Nanaia Mahuta since she was given the education portfolio in a peace-making move after the leadership contest, Shane Jones is an invisible man, Parekura Horomia has lapsed into silence, Phil Twyford wakes up sometimes, Maryan Street is taking her health portfolio seriously but isn’t making much of an impact, not much would be heard from Andrew Little if Judith Collins wasn’t suing him for defamation and Rajen Prasad maintains a profile which isn’t on the radar. Deputy leader Grant Robertson, a very sharp operator, has to leave most of what he would like to say to David Shearer. When Robertson is front man because Shearer isn’t around he’s way better at putting Labour’s case and it’s being noticed. Shearer is at the dangerous point where, if he doesn’t start to shape up, rumours are going to start he’s going to ship out.

Yikes!

I have looked into the CTU accounts and I cant find Helen Kelly’s remuneration package.

Following on from the HSU scandal in Australia it made me wonder whether she is in the 1%, earning vastly more than her ‘workers’.

And what about Andrew Little? When he was wearing three hats what did he earn? EPMU Salary? Labour President?

With those dodgy accounts plus the two years of missing accounts there could be a real hole in the EPMU accounts that needs some serious explaining.

The more I look the murkier it seems.

Chris Hipkins has decided as Chief Whip for Labour to ask 259 written questions.

He asked three questions of every minister:

Has he or his representatives had any written communication with Simon Lusk within the last six months in his Ministerial capacity; if so, on which date or dates and what was the nature of the communication?

and;

Has he or his representatives had any oral discussions with Simon Lusk within the last six months in his Ministerial capacity; if so, on which date or dates and what was the nature of the discussion or discussions?

and;

Has he or his representatives met with Simon Lusk within the last six months in his Ministerial capacity; if so, on which date or dates and what was the nature of the discussion or discussions?

This of course is following up the line of questioning in the house of Judith Collins by Trevor Mallard where he accused Judith Collins firstly of leaking details of the Pullar case to Simon Lusk and then Andrew Little did the same except he accused Judith Collins of leaking to me. They then both repeated their claims outside of the house and this has resulted in a defamation action against them.

Trevor Mallard of course maintained his ongoing defamations against my good friend Simon Lusk and now he has used taxpayer resources and Chris Hipkins as Chief Whip to ask 259 written questions trying desperately to confirm Trevor Mallard’s defamation of Simon Lusk.

Well it has turned into a major embarrassment, both for Chris Hipkins and for Trevor Mallard because the reply to almost every question is a simple “No”…or referring to previous “No”. Some are not yet answered but I can well imagine that the answer is going to be the same. An emphatic “No”.

Chris Hipkins has single handedly destroyed Trevor Mallard’s defence in his defamation case as not a single minister has had contact with Simon Lusk and they have put that on the record in the responses to his 259 questions.

Simon Lusk can justifiably feel very aggrieved that he has been defamed in such a way by Trevor Mallard and now by the actions of Chris Hipkins.

The Labour party is covered in shame.

If I was Simon Lusk I would apply to The Speaker to have a personal statement recorded in the Hansard addressing this outrageous attack on him by Trevor Mallard and Chris Hipkins.

So much for David Shearer’s promise of avoiding gotcha politics, this time it is a person not even in parliament. It shows that once again that Trevor Mallard can do just whatever he wants without fear of consequences. Labour is now essentially run with Trevor Mallard pulling the strings.

David Shearer time as leader can now be measured in months.

The Overseas Investment Office has amended their report on the Westpac Farms formerly owned by the Crafar family and given it to the ministers responsible for making the decision, Jonathan Coleman and Maurice Williamson.

There is a great deal of whinging out there about the deal because some think it is the government selling the land. It is not, it is Michael Stiassny the receiver who is selling the land.

This is highly ironic considering he gave a donation to Andrew Little in his forlorn attempt to win new Plymouth.

However the two ministers need not fear much. When fevered pinkos such as Tim Watkin say:

What should the government do? Should it approve Shanghai Pengxin’s $200 million offer for the 16 farms? Of course it should; and it will. As the law stands, it’s right and proper. Sure, Justice Forrie Miller’s ruling may have raised the bar, forcing foreign investors to offer more benefits to New Zealand than previously. But nothing he said should be sufficient to scupper the deal.

…then you know the argument is over.

Or is it?

Word has reached my ears that Jonathan Coleman has gone squirrelly on the deal. It seems he is worried about his electorate vote going south. He is obviously deluded and easily swayed by lippy pinkos on TV and radio. On the election results he has a majority of 9.379 and National won the party vote by 8,999.

Jonathan Coleman needs to remember that in two years time the voters of Northcote electorate will have forgotten he was one of the approving ministers. He must be mindful of all New Zealanders in making his decision not just the vocal minority in his electorate. That is why he is in the big job…to make tough decisions.

While the voters of Northcote electorate will most certainly forget he was a deciding minister there are others amongst us that won’t forget cowardice in the face of duty. Going squirrelly isn’t an option.

Yesterday Trevor Mallard and Andrew Little were talking up a storm and suggesting that Judith Collins wouldn’t go ahead with legal action. One thing I know about Judith Collins is that she says what she means and means what she says,. So it is little wonder that she has gone and got the meanest, nastiest defamation lawyer in New Zealand to prosecute her defamation case against Mallard and Little.

Judith Collins is going ahead with her defamation action against two Labour MPs and Radio New Zealand.

Papers will be filed next week against Labour MPs Trevor Mallard and Andrew Little, as well as the state broadcaster.

Collins has revealed this morning she’s hired Auckland QC Jonathan [sic] Miles to lead her defamation case against Mr Little, Trevor Mallard and Radio New Zealand.

Ms Collins says she’s prepared to go through the process because people expect MPs to have standards.

“I believe it’s a good case and that’s the advice I’ve got but it’s a very difficult process and it’s not something people should engage with lightly and I noted that’s been said to me,” she told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking.

NewstalkZB needs to update their website. It is Julian Miles not Jonathan.

ᔥ NewtalkZB

Judith Collins has popped the bubbles of all the pundits out there wasting endless posts about how outrageous it would be if the Government paid for her defamation actions. It turns out she never even asked cabinet to pay:

ACC Minister Judith Collins has confirmed she is to continue defamation action against two Labour Party MPs and Radio New Zealand.

However, she has not asked Cabinet for funding.

Collins is taking legal action over comments made about how ACC claimant Bronwyn Pullar’s name was made public.

The comments relate to the leak of sensitive information about Bronwyn Pullar’s ACC claim.

Meanwhile Mallard has continued with his defamations unabated on Red Alert. The last time he displayed this appalling behaviour he’d just been dumped by his latest root. looks like Mallard is going solo again.

On the weekend he was skiting on Facebook about what discovery might reveal…but the coward has removed the post.