John Key MP National Party Finance Spokesman

26 August 2004

Growth blunder should leave Minister red faced

"Statistics Minister John Tamihere might like to believe he is a 'red blooded male', but after today's botch-up of the first quarter GDP figures he will be red faced as well," according to National Party Finance spokesman John Key.

Mr Key is reacting to news that first quarter GDP numbers have had to be revised downward after 'the detection of a processing error in Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) first quarter residential building work data'.

As a result, March quarter GDP (gross domestic product) has now been revised to 2.1% from the previously reported 2.3%.

"It looks as though Mr Tamihere's casual attitude is slipping into his Ministries and the quality of work they produce," says Mr Key

ENDS

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>