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Trial Over 'Anonymous' Donations: John Banks Resigns As Minister

ACT Leader John Banks today confirmed that he has stood down from his Ministerial positions following today’s decision at the Auckland District Court.

“Last week I indicated to the Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff that I would offer my resignation should the matter relating to my 2010 Mayoral Electoral return be committed to trial,” Mr Banks said...

“I intend to continue in my role as ACT Leader and MP for Epsom, and ACT will continue to support National on matters of confidence and supply. More>>

Leaving aside the tawdry details of Auckland mayor Len Brown’s extramarital affair, the oddest feature is the timing of the revelations... More>>

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Out-Link - The unwritten rule re politics & sex: Does the Len Brown story write a new rule | Pundit
Scoop Business - Len Brown confirms 2-year affair with council board member
Len Brown - Statement from Mayor Len Brown
John Palino - John Palino - No Comment on Len Brown Affair
Adrian Maidment - Adrian Maidment Cartoon: Len Brown's Accommodation Problem
TV3 Video - Image via: 'My apologies but stand by me' - Len Brown - Slater denies political motive in Len Brown sex scandal - Auckland Mayor Len Brown confirms affair allegations

Foreign Ministers: Joint Statement On Southern Ocean Marine Protected Areas

Australia, the European Union, France, New Zealand and the United States jointly call for the establishment this year of marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Southern Ocean, in the Ross Sea Region and in East Antarctica. More>>

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Pew Charitable Trusts - Pew Commends Member's Bill to Establish Kermadec Sanctuary
TV3 Video - Shutdown freezes Antarctic research
Image via Canterbury Museum - Queen to lend early Antarctic photos to Museum

TICS: Telco Interception Bill Debated

This Government says the bill seeks to repeal and replace the Telecommunications (Interception Capability) Act 2004 in order to ensure that interception obligations applying to the telecommunications industry are clear, do not impose unnecessary compliance costs, and are sufficiently flexible...More>>

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Parliament Today - Telco Interception Bill Completes Second Reading
16/10: Parliament Today - TICS Bill Up Again
Scoop Business - Adams extends olive branch in late tweaks to intercept bill
NZ Govt - Further safeguards for TICS Bill
Labour - Curran: The chilling effect of TICs
Mana Party - Six Years On From Operation 8, Govt Still Breaking the Law
NZRise - Open letter to all Members of Parliament on TICS Bill - TICS Bill is Still Bad for New Zealand Digital Businesses
Out-Link - Telecommunications (Interception Capability and Security) Bill 2013 (2013 No 108-2): Bills Digest 2101
Martin Doyle - Martin Doyle cartoon: Losing the private bits
Out-Link - Dump spy law, IT giants urge MPs | Stuff.co.nz
Out-Link - NSA collects millions of e-mail address books globally - The Washington Post
Earlier Law and Order Select Committee - Report: Telecommunications (TICS) Bill
Background Out-Link - Next: the TICS Bill | Tech Liberty NZ

Multimedia: David Cunliffe: Kohanga Reo Trust | Euthanasia | LVRs

At his weekly pre-caucus press conference in Wellington Labour leader David Cunliffe answered questions about allegations of the misuse of credit cards by a subsidiary of the Kohanga Reo Trust, the Reserve Bank's LVRs coming into effect, and a call by a coroner for Parliament to make up its mind on euthanasia. More>>

ALSO:

Waatea News - Kohanga story not the full picture - trustee
TV3 Video - Kohanga Reo board 'not happy' with spending - Kohanga Reo National Trust spending investigated
Out-Link - Native Affairs | Māori Television
Out-Link - Twitter / MattNippert: Kohanga Reo inquiry, sparked ...

Census: Auckland Fastest-Growing Region, South Island Districts Grow Most

Auckland’s population grew by over 110,000 people since the 2006 Census, while Selwyn, Queenstown-Lakes, and Waimakariri were the fastest-growing districts in the country, Statistics New Zealand said today. More>>

ALSO:

NZ Govt - Early release of census data welcomed - Census data reveals good regional growth - Labour caught making stuff up – again
Earlier Labour - Census shows regional exodus under Nats
TV3 Video - Census: Auckland population up 8pct - Census 'will show exodus from regions'

Gordon Campbell:
On Criminalising The Partners Of Welfare Fraudsters (And The US Meltdown)

Talking of days that will live in infamy, today is when the measures that criminalise the partners and spouses of those who commit welfare fraud will come into effect. More>>

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NZ Govt - New measures begin to stop repeat welfare fraudsters
Benefit Rights Service - Appalling Processes Faced By Benefit Applicants

Compulsory Savings Mooted: Labour Backs Universal KiwiSaver

Yet again National has been shown up as completely left behind on the sustainability of our retirement debate, as the Financial Service Council’s call for a universal KiwiSaver scheme shows, says Labour Finance spokesperson David Parker... More>>

ALSO:

Financial Services Council - Time to Agree on Policy to Provide Comfortable Retirement - Plan to Make a Comfortable Retirement Affordable for NZers - Peter Neilson Speech to Future of Super Conference - Jenny Shipley Speech to Future of Super Conference
NZ Property Investors' Federation - NZPIF rejects the Financial Services Council’s claim
TVNZ - Q+A John Brogden Interview Transcript 13/10/13

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MOST READ HEADLINES

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Local Elections: Kiwis Urged To Get Behind Newly Elected Mayors
Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) President, Lawrence Yule, has congratulated New Zealand’s newly elected and re-elected mayors, councillors, and local and community board members and urged the public to get behind them... More>>

ALSO:

Wellington.Scoop - Everybody counts – a clear mandate to work together, says re-elected mayor - Celia Wade-Brown defeats John Morrison, wins second term as mayor of Wellington
NewsWire.co.nz - Wade-Brown lays out vision for her second term as capital's mayor - Jack Yan still wants to influence Wellington despite loss - John Morrison turns to fishing after losing mayoralty race - More: NewsWire.co.nz
NZ Govt - Successful candidates congratulated
Labour - Time for Nick Smith to listen up
Greens - Green sweep in best ever local Government results for Party
Auckland Council - Auckland Council election progress results - Auckland Council election progress results - local boards
Wellington City Council - Celia Wade-Brown wins Wellington Mayoralty
Christchurch City Council - Lianne Dalziel highest-polling candidate for Mayor - Christchurch City Elections 2013: Preliminary results are in
Northland Regional Council - Five new faces for Northland Regional Council
Waikato District Council - Waikato District Council preliminary elections results
Thames Coromandel District Council - Thank you Thames-Coromandel
Palmerston North City Council - Palmerston North Preliminary Election Results
Hamilton City Council - Hamilton Election progress results
Nelson City Council - Nelson has a new Mayor
Waikato DHB - Hamilton Has Spoken: We Want Fluoride - Strong fluoride support from affected Waikato residents
Hawkes Bay DHB - Hastings has spoken - Yes to fluoride
John Minto - TV failure leaves election to corporate-funded campaigns
City Vision - Strong result for City Vision and centre-left
Conservative Party - Strong Result Confirms Conservative Direction
Roskill Community Voice - Roskill Community Voice humbled by historic result
Wellington Labour Party - Councillor Eagle re-elected on “people first” platform
Jenny Rowan - Mayor Accepts the Will of the Electorate
Tauranga Chamber of Commerce - Chamber comment on Tauranga City election result
Institute Of Directors - IoD urges councillors to adopt best practice
Business Central - Business Central welcomes central region councils
Wellington Chamber Of Commerce - Chamber congratulates mayor, expectations high
Climate Justice Taranaki - Frack democracy, let's drill!
TV3 Video - Len Brown backs electronic voting - Hamilton votes in support of fluoride - Three former MPs become mayors - Lianne Dalziel wins Christchurch mayoralty - Len Brown elected for second term

Judgment: High Court Throws Out Minister's Phillipstown School Decision
"These failures of process mean that the Minister has not lawfully merged Phillipstown with Woolston. Her decision is declared unlawful and is not valid." More>>

ALSO:

NZ Govt - Phillipstown decision
Labour - School win a victory for wider community
Greens - Time to leave Phillipstown in peace
Phillipstown School - Phillipstown School Considers Its Next Steps
NZEI - Court ruling on Phillipstown School overturns injustice
Yani Johanson - Phillipstown School: Victory for the community and democracy
QPEC - Putting the public back into public education
TV3 Video - Leave Phillipstown School alone, says Turei - Phillipstown Primary celebrates win - Govt's decision to merge Phillipstown school overturned
Martin Doyle - Parata caught in the Act
Out-Link - Prime Minister announces plans to merge Phillipstown School with the High Court

Gordon Campbell: On The Cunliffe Speech, And The Mark Lundy Decision
The style of David Cunliffe’s speech to the Council of Trade Unions conference yesterday was almost as important as the content. Plainly, Labour now has a leader able to deliver a message consistent with the party’s core values, in a clear and articulate fashion... More>>

ALSO:

Hamish Cardwell - David Cunliffe: Minimum and Living Wage Pledge
Hamish Cardwell - Metiria Turei's speech to the CTU Conference
Hamish Cardwell - Helen Kelly's Speech to CTU on “Insecure” Work in NZ
Alastair Thompson - Preview: "Under Pressure", Cunliffe's CTU Biennial Speech | 500 Words
Labour - Solutions needed to improve lot of insecure workers
NZ First - Peters: Political Panel - NZ CTU Biennial Conference
Greens - Green Party - Living wage campaign for parliament cleaners
Mana Party - Harawira joins ‘Clean Up the House’ campaign
CTU - Over 635,000 New Zealand workers in insecure work
PDF - "Under Pressure" - Summary Report
Q+A - Government focussed on keeping wages low, Labour says - Aussie wages higher because of strong collective bargaining - Q+A Panel Discussion - In response to Andrew Little interview

English & Māori Versions Made Official: Geographic Board Welcomes Decision On Islands' Names
New Zealand Geographic Board (NZGB) Chair Dr Don Grant today welcomed Land information Minister Maurice Williamson’s decision to formalise the English and Māori names of the two main islands of New Zealand. More>>

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Key Wrong On Copper Price: No Evidence Chorus Could Become Insolvent
The Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges have reported to the Coalition for Fair Internet Pricing indicating that they have found no evidence to support New Zealand prime minister John Key’s assertion that Chorus Ltd could become insolvent if his government’s proposed copper tax is not introduced. More>>

ALSO:

Scoop Business - NZX lashes inaccuracies in Chorus solvency coverage
Labour - John Key out of tune on Chorus claims - John Key must apologise over Chorus
Coalition for Fair Internet Pricing - Clarification Sought On Chorus Before Markets Open
Digitl - Did we just spend $1.5 billion on a network for Sky TV?

Auckland: 6,000 Homes In First Batch Of Special Housing Areas
Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith and Auckland Mayor Len Brown today announced the first batch of Special Housing Areas that will progressively bring to market 6,000 new homes across the city under the Auckland Housing Accord. More>>

ALSO:

Scoop Business - First 6,000 sections proposed under Auckland’s SHA policy - NZ property values rise at 8.4% annual pace in Sept, QV says
Auckland City Council - Special Housing Areas to deliver more affordable homes
Labour - Govt creates McMansions not affordable homes
Greens - No commitment to affordability in National’s housing plans
NZ Bankers' Association - Land for more houses good for Auckland housing supply
Property Council Of NZ - Special Housing Areas A Move towards Progress
QV Valuations - Lending restrictions now in place as values continue to rise

Scoop Business: Retirement Commissioner Says Link Pension Age To Lifespan
Offering 16 draft recommendations in the 2013 Review of Retirement Income Policies discussion document, Maxwell says the government needs to nut out policy within the next four years then provide a long period of notice to bed in those changes. More>>

ALSO:

Retirement Commissioner - Focusing on the future for retirement income
Labour - Time for National to get head out of the sand
United Future - Retirement Commissioner’s Review “Disappointing"
Financial Services Council - Recommendations on Retirement Policy Make Good Sense
NZ Bankers' Association - Retirement income review provides practical way forward

Gordon Campbell:
On The Media’s Duty To Evaluate The Trans Pacific Partnership
One downside of so called ‘objectivity’ is that it can turn the media into a simple megaphone for those in power – especially in situations where the media chooses to effectively abandon its role in evaluating the information it is being fed. The reportage on the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a good case in point. More>>

ALSO:

Latest Gordon Campbell - On that alluringly elusive TPP trade deal
Werewolf - TPP : The Parley in Bali - TPP : No Ifs, No Butts
Out-Link - TPP: This is a fight worth joining • Speaker • Public Address
Trans-Pacific Partnership Leaders Statement - Trans-Pacific Partnership Leaders Statement
APEC - APEC Leaders Statement
The White House - Press Conference by the President October 8 2013
Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network - TPPA leaders' statement hides deep divisions
Federated Farmers - TPP a matter of when and not if, farming leader says
Joint Press Release - Bali keeps TPP on right track, say NZ businesses
TV3 Video - Key, Putin meet briefly at APEC - Key says momentum building for TPP deal - Key, Xi discuss Fonterra scare at APEC - NZ's products are safe, Key tells China

IRD Transformation: Dunne Concerned Local Firms Shut Out
... He says it was always his intention that local firms would have a major role in the process, and he would be “extremely disappointed” if this was not now to be the case. More>>

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Greens - IRD transformation project needs to be open to NZ firms
Earlier NZ Govt - Expressions of Interest - Business Transformation programme
Inland Revenue Department - Expression of Interest for IRD's Transformation programme

Crown Law: Privy Council Orders Lundy Retrial
On 7 October 2013 the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council delivered its decision allowing Mt Lundy's appeal against his convictions for the murder of his wife Christine and daughter Amber. More>>

ALSO:

NZ Police - Police response to Lundy Privy Council judgement
TV3 Video - Lundy retrial ordered by Privy Council - Privy Council quashes Lundy convictions

Leaders' Meeting Next: APEC Joint Ministerial Statement
Our economies have taken a number of important policy actions that have helped to contain key tail risks, improve financial market conditions and sustain the recovery... More>>

ALSO:

Werewolf - TPP : The Parley in Bali - TPP : No Ifs, No Butts
APEC - Ministers: Ensure resiliency in the Asia-Pacific
Earlier coverage - APEC and the TPP
NZ Govt - Key Notes: Towards a safer New Zealand - PM: APEC Business Advisory Council appointment
Greens - APEC an opportunity for Key to raise plight of Arctic 30 - NZ needs to ensure West Papuan APEC protestors are safe
Professor Jane Kelsey - Obama cancels APEC trip, TPPA trade-off talks torpedoed
Joint Press Release - Open Letter to John Key on Tobacco
Anne Noonan - Three West Papuans occupy Australian consulate in Bali
AFTINET - TPP: Anti-gas mining groups say no to investors suing govts
Fonterra - Fonterra Welcomes Katherine Rich Appointment
BusinessNZ - International business event coming to Auckland
TV3 Video - Key downplays Obama's APEC absence - Obama's absence felt at APEC meeting
Image Out-Link - Twitter / johnkeypm: Addressing the International ...

Werewolf 42: Refugees - Doing Less, For Fewer
Recent releases under the Official Information Act (OIA) highlight the New Zealand government’s attempts to turn the refugee resettlement allocation away from being a tool to give shelter to those in most need. Instead, the allocations have reduced refugee intakes from Africa and the Middle East – apparently in order to save money- using a curious double-talk of opportunity and inclusion. More>>

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Werewolf Issue 42

Werewolf: TPP - The Parley In Bali
Necessity is – supposedly – the mother of invention. The political leaders who are gathering in Bali for the APEC meeting are certainly in need of miracles. More>>

ALSO:

Also in Werewolf Gordon Campbell - TPP : Tobacco - No Ifs, No Butts
It's Not Right - Wake-up call to National as 5000 sign TPPA petition in 3 day - Kiwi celebs call for release of the TPPA text
NZ Govt - PM to attend APEC and the East Asia Summit - Groser: Address to the National Press Club of Japan
Greens - Greens support push for TPP transparency
Jane Kelsey - Key must stop misleading NZers that Parliament has power over the TPPA
Q+A - Jessica Mutch interviews Metiria Turei - In response to Metiria Turei interview
NZ International Business Forum - Japan Forum points to increasing inter-dependence - New Zealand Business at Apec Bali
Public Health Association - PM urged to ensure New Zealanders’ health not signed away
Werewolf - Issue 43

Family Carers: High Court Decision That Ministry Of Health Acted Unlawfully
The Human Rights Commission welcomes yesterday’s High Court decision upholding the rights of disabled people and their families to seek compensation for the Ministry of Health not paying family carers to provide disability support services to disabled family members, notwithstanding rushed budget day legislation. More>>

ALSO:

NZ High Court - High Court Decision on Margaret Spencer Case

Burial Law: Law Commission Asks Whether Family Court Best Forum For Burial Disputes
The Law Commission is seeking public feedback on how the law should respond to disagreements over the most appropriate way to farewell the dead and deal with their physical remains. More>>

ALSO:

Law Commission - Major Reforms Proposed For NZ’s Burial and Cremation Law - Law Commission Assesses Case For Licensing Funeral Sector
Image Out-Link - Burial of Saint Lucy - Caravaggio - WikiPaintings.org

Insulation: 235,000 Homes Warmed Up
235,000 homes have been insulated under the Government’s Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart programme, well above the original target set. More>>

ALSO:

Greens - Plenty more to do on home insulation
Maori Party - Maori Party welcomes insulation of 235,000 homes

Protestors Charged: Amnesty Call For Russia To Drop ‘Absurd And Damaging’ Piracy Charge
“These absurd piracy charges are completely unfounded against activists who appear to have been engaged in peaceful protest. They make a mockery of the Russian justice system and should be dropped immediately,” said Grant Bayldon, Executive Director of Amnesty International New Zealand. More>>

ALSO:

Greenpeace - Crowds Expected at Russian Embassy Event in Wellington - Piracy Charge Against Arctic Activists 'An Assault' - Greenpeace International to appeal Russian court rulings
Amnesty International - Amnesty concerned about detention of Greenpeace activists

Private Prisons:
Problems At Mt Eden 'All Too Predictable'
News that more than half of 20 new staff at Serco’s Mt Eden prison have reportedly left their jobs amid fears for their safety is an unfortunate but predictable consequence of the Government’s privatisation agenda, Labour’s Corrections spokesperson Jacinda Ardern says. More>>

ALSO:

Serco Australia - Claims staff have left because of safety incorrect

NZ Govt - New prisoner reintegration service to get under way
Rethinking Crime and Punishment - New Prisoner Reintegration Service a Bold Move
JustSpeak - Including 17-year-olds in Youth Justice System a Strong Investment

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