Top Scoop Stories 5th March, 2009 News Summary

Monday, 9 March 2009, 2:34 pm
Article: The Scoop Editor

LEAD STORY

------------

Royalist U-Turn: New Zealand Reinstates Knights & Dames Honours
Arise Royalists: Prime Minister John Key has announced that titles are to be reinstated in the New Zealand Honours system. This situation existed when the New Zealand Honours system was first established in 1996 and the first two levels of the New Zealand Order of Merit were titular. This will mean the return of the titles of Knight and Dame Grand Companion (GNZM) and Knight and Dame Companion (KNZM/DNZM). More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00110.htm

ALSO:

Keep Honours Independent - Greens [2]

Dames and knights restored to NZ honours system [3]

Selwyn Manning Discusses NZ Reinstating Sir & Dame Titles [4]

Goff claims 'Sir' and 'Lady' titles do not reflect kiwi values [5]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00114.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/multimedia/tv/national/19323.html [3]

[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00109.htm [4]

[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/multimedia/tv/national/19340.html [5]

------------

NZ POLITICS

------------

Electoral Commission Releases 08 Party Election Expenses
More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00091.htm

ALSO:

McCully’s wrong priorities help put off US deal [2]

NGOs launch campaign on plan to mix trade & aid [3]

McCully axes $1.95m Pacific aid programme [4]

McCully asked to explain NZAID plans [5]

Time for greater focus on the Pacific - McCully [6]

McCully’s comments about NZAID cavalier at best [7]

NGOs ask what Murray McCully is trying to fix [8]

Careful Consideration Of Aid Programme Required [9]

Manning on NZAID Cuts + Climate Change Myths! [10]

Anonymous Govt misinformation destabilising ACC [11]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00118.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00083.htm [3]

[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00087.htm [4]

[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00023.htm [5]

[6] - http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0902/S00325.htm [6]

[7] - http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00053.htm [7]

[8] - http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00030.htm [8]

[9] - http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00028.htm [9]

[10] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00078.htm [10]

[11] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00078.htm [11]

Health: Labour Blames Ryall For Surgery Cuts
Reports that Health Minister Tony Ryall is directly responsible for the West Coast District Health Board cancelling patients’ elective surgery are deeply concerning, Labour Health spokesperson Ruth Dyson says. “I was horrified to read that West Coast DHB had been unable to provide patients with outsourced orthopaedic operations because of a Ministerial directive to save money.” More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00111.htm

ACC: Scheme Does Not Suck As Much As You Might Have Heard
Anonymous government spokespeople are deliberately undermining ACC while it appears that the Board Chair has been stopped by the Minister from making any public comment, CTU Secretary Peter Conway said today. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00078.htm

ALSO:

ACC innocents scape-goated [2]

PM confirms ACC board sackings [3]

Fiji: Full Suspension If No Progress By Sept 2009 [4]

Fiji On A Roadmap To Somewhere [5]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00084.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/multimedia/tv/national/19356.html [3]

[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00068.htm [4]

[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0805/S00012.htm [5]

Environment: Scientific Ethics To Get The Chop?
Labour environment spokesperson Nanaia Mahuta says the Maori Party must speak out urgently against the planned scrapping of the Bioethics Council which is likely to happen on Monday. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00099.htm

Media: New Political Show With Espiner, Holmes & Arseneau
TV ONE’s new Sunday morning political show, Q & A will be presented by TVNZ’s political editor, Guyon Espiner; political analyst, Therese Arseneau and the country’s most popular broadcaster, Paul Holmes. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00050.htm

ALSO:

Goodnight to Kiwi Broadcasting Jobs [2]

TVNZ jobs more important than dividend [3]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00096.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00101.htm [3]

Gordon Campbell: Did The Finance Guarantee Scheme Need A Mascot?
If a firm stopped taking deposits last September, and was heavily exposed in the current economic climate to a major loan to a Queenstown property developer, you’d think that might be ringing a few warning bells, wouldn’t you? Yet on 13 January Mascot Finance got Treasury’s nod for entry into the retail deposit guarantee scheme whereby it gets all its failed investments paid out by the taxpayer. More »[1]

[1] - http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/05/campbell-treasury-put-us-on-the-hook-to-banks/

ALSO:

Mascot Finance covered by deposit guarantee Scheme [2]

Receivers appointed to Mascot Finance [3]

Reserve Bank, Treasury comments on Mascot Finance [4]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00019.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00018.htm [3]

[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00143.htm [4]

------------

BUSINESS SCIENCE & TECH

------------

International Trade: US Postpones Free Trade Negotiations With NZ
New Zealand research and education network ARENA today welcomed news that the United States has postponed trade negotiations with New Zealand pending an overall review of US trade policy, and says that the New Zealand government should follow suit. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00075.htm

ALSO:

McCully’s wrong priorities help put off US deal [2]

Back To The Future For The United States? [3]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00118.htm [2]

[3] - http://scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0903/S00076.htm [3]

Coporate Citizenship: Fonterra Moves To Lift Effluent Compliance
Fonterra plans to re-direct staff resource to help in providing advice to the minority of farmers who have been identified as needing support. The company is also introducing a milk payout deduction system for those who receive an infringement notice or prosecution for an effluent offence from a Regional Council. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00129.htm

ALSO:

Fonterra insults environment, and farmers [2]

Fonterra’s Effluent Compliance Targets Too Little [3]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0903/S00100.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0903/S00096.htm [3]

Another Day...: Restructuring At Nelson Pine Industries
Nelson Pine Industries Ltd today announced a restructuring of its production operations in response to difficult market conditions resulting from the worldwide financial crisis... The company regrets that this change will result in approximately 60 staff positions becoming surplus to production requirements. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00115.htm

ALSO:

Nelson Pine layoffs a blow to region [2]

Zoo offers adventurous night in Africa [3]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0903/S00117.htm [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/AK0903/S00097.htm [3]

Business.Scoop: Bollard May Not Cut As Deep As RBA Holds Rates
Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Alan Bollard may not cut the 3.5% official cash rate by as much as expected next week after his counterpart in Australia held its benchmark rate unchanged at 3.25% even as that economy contracted. More »[1]

[1] - http://business.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/05/bollard-may-not-cut-as-deep-as-rba-holds-rates/

Currency: NZ Dollar Climbs Above 50 US Cents On Chinese Plan
March 5 – The New Zealand dollar rebounded over 50 U.S. cents from a six-year low as global stocks rallied on speculation China will inject more money into its economy. More »[1]

[1] - http://business.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/05/nz-dollar-climbs-above-50-us-cents-on-chinese-plan/

In The Name Of Science: Reasons For Putting Telescope In Vineyard Entirely Technical
Auckland astronomers are involved in a new high technology telescope which has just been installed on a Marlborough vineyard. It will be used to study the birth of the universe and to search for distant planets. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/SC0903/S00004.htm

------------

COMMENT

------------

Gordon Campbell: Murray McCully’s attack on New Zealand’s foreign aid programme
These days, much of our foreign aid should be being directed into providing a safety net for the poor. If you count the oil price rise in 2007 and the large hike in world food prices... More »[1]

[1] - http://gordoncampbell.scoop.co.nz/2009/03/09/campbell-mccully%e2%80%99s-attack-on-nzs-aid-programme/

Ron Callari: Obama Seeks Advice From The Twitterverse
From the start of his campaign, Barack Obama has distinguished himself as the articulate, tech-savvy candidate who utilized social networking to his advantage. As a direct result, he generated wide support from the online digerati, who collectively comment ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00115.htm

Duncan Graham: Australian Boot Camp Tried – And Failed
Opponents of the National Government’s boot camp policy usually draw on problems in the US, a nation with a completely different set of law-and-order values. Consequently comparisons are flawed. The critics don’t need to go so far: The idea was tried ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00116.htm

Julie Webb-Pullman: Raul’s Revamp
Last week’s changes in Cuba’s Council of Ministers have unleashed a torrent of speculation and conjecture in the international press ranging from the minimally considered, to the sublime and ridiculous. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00117.htm

Uri Avnery: Remember Ophira?
THIS WEEK I had a nostalgic experience. I met a parliamentary delegation from one of the European countries. What turned this meeting into a special occasion for me was its location. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00112.htm

Elizabeth Ferrari An Interview With Andy Worthington, Author Of “The Guantánamo Files”
Andy Worthington, a London-based journalist, is the author of The Guantánamo Files: The Stories of the 774 Detainees in America’s Illegal Prison , and has written over 300 articles about Guantánamo in the last two years, for publications including ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00107.htm

Ramzy Baroud: Was Hamas The Work Of The Israeli Mossad?
While various Western governments are struggling to define a possible relationship with the Palestinian movement Hamas, some progressive and leftist circles are also uneasy regarding their own perception of the Islamic movement. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0903/S00090.htm

------------

LIFESTYLE

------------

Education: Massey Announces Plan To Rule The Skies
Massey University has shown its commitment to having a world-leading aviation school with the announcement of an $8 million agreement to buy 14 new aircraft for its School of Aviation. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED0903/S00028.htm

Hot Air Ballooning: University Nightglow Supports Earth Hour
Waikato University is preparing to again welcome thousands of people for the annual Balloons over Waikato NightGlow event on March 28. The NightGlow is the culmination of the Balloons over Waikato event, which sees thousands of people flood onto the ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0903/S00130.htm

WOMAD: Te Uhi Ta Moko Artists Are Back
Te Uhi a Mataora – Toi Maori Aotearoa, a collective of the country’s top Maori Ta Moko Artists, are pleased to be invited again by Tui Ora Ltd to display their talent and skills at this years WOMAD festival. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0903/S00126.htm

Exploration: Hillary Expedition Grants Announced
A new route on a remote peak in Antarctica and a caving expedition aiming to reach record depths under New Zealand are among the challenges seven groups of adventurous kiwis are tackling in this year’s SPARC Hillary Expeditions. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0903/S00112.htm

Coziness: It's Curtain Time For Cold Houses
The Home Energy Advice Centre in Wellington in partnership with Refugee Services and Lewis’s Curtain Specialists will be running their second free workshop on how to make your curtains more effective this weekend. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0903/S00110.htm

Music: Lawrence Arabia's Aural Britzkrieg To Storm NZ
With his multi-talented band, Broadsword, in tow… Lawrence Arabia finally returns to New Zealand to tour his new album, “Chant Darling”, which is out March 9 on Honorary Bedouin/Rhythmethod. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/CU0903/S00104.htm

------------

WORLD

------------

Queensland: Resources In Place As Cyclone Hamish Heads South
Additional Emergency Management Queensland personnel and thousands of sandbags and tarps are now in place in major centres between Mackay and Hervey Bay as Tropical Cyclone Hamish continues to move south parallel to the Queensland coast. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00182.htm

Iraq War: Limited Troop Withdrawal From Iraq Protested
TAMPA, FLORIDA, Sunday, March 1, 2009: Socialist activist Brian Moore joined other antiwar protestors on radio Friday to criticize President Obama's delayed (19 months) and limited troop withdrawal from Iraq (50,000 to remain) as ''totally unacceptable.'' ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00178.htm

Animal Welfare: Rhino-Tiger’s Losing Battle In Kaziranga Reserve
ASSAM’S wildlife reserve with international fame is presently in the media headline, but again for wrong reasons. Kaziranga National Park, which is more popularly known as a safe heaven for the endangered one horn rhinos and also Indian tigers grabbed ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00164.htm

Terrorism: Northern Ireland Attacks
The United States condemns the attack in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, last night that resulted in two deaths and injuries to others. Our condolences go out to the families of the slain soldiers. We call on all parties in Northern Ireland to unequivocally ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00175.htm

Zimbabwe: Number Of People Affected By Cholera Reaches 88,000
United Nations, New York: Some 88,000 people have now been affected by cholera in Zimbabwe, the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) announced today, noting that the number of new cases reported weekly is dropping. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00143.htm

ALSO:

Sudan's president says warrant is conspiracy [2]

Darfur: fears of crisis if aid agencies leave [3]

Sudan Must Reverse Expulsion Of Aid Groups [4]

ICC Arrest Warrant Issued For Sudanese President [5]

Save the Children asked to suspend ops in Sudan [6]

[2] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/multimedia/tv/world/19293.html [2]

[3] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/multimedia/tv/world/19297.html [3]

[4] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00112.htm [4]

[5] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00110.htm [5]

[6] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00130.htm [6]

King of Pop: Wacko Jacko Performs For The Last Time
Michael Jackson has announced today that he is returning to the stage for a historic 10 shows at the O2 Arena performing in London for the last time. The King of Pop performs his greatest hits for the event of the summer, the concerts of 2009 and ... More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00133.htm

Industry: Tourism Industry Set To Bounce Back
New York, Mar 6 2009 2:10PM In spite of the hit that tourism is taking during the current global economic crisis, the industry will recover and be stronger than ever, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) announced today. More »[1]

[1] - http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0903/S00140.htm

ENDS

Scoop

Scoop Independent News

Scoop is NZ's largest independent news source; respected widely in media, political, business and academic circles for being the place on the internet for publishing "what was really said", and for the quality of its analysis of issues.

Contact Scoop

Editorial - editor@scoop.co.nz
Twitter - @ScoopNZ
Facebook
YouTube
Services - services@scoop.co.nz
Phone - 04 910 1844

Top Scoops Headlines

Top Scoop Stories 5th March, 2009 News Summary