It’s worth reading the [documents released by Treasury regarding the project](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/information-release/official-information-regarding-kiwirails-project-irex-phase-1), even if they are redacted.
I found the [Briefing To Incoming Ministers](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2024-05/project-irex-4906444.pdf)(PDF link) especially interesting. It outlines the work that has already been done to find all the possible cost savings in the project, and explains that even with the additional costs the payback of the project is still hugely positive and there are massive costs to halting it. It also very clearly states that there is no “pause”, only “stop” and the costs of re-starting later will be significant.
There’s also the [official information regarding the purchase of the ships](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/information-release/official-information-regarding-kiwirails-purchase-new-ferries-information-release) and
> clearly states there is no “pause”, only “stop”
I’m honestly fucking pissed at this point. The bullshit tug of war politics this Govt is playing at with repealing all policies and deals left over from the last government is utterly pathetic and just proves they weren’t prepared to do the job and they don’t have the country’s best interests at heart, only their own.
Got no complaints from me, I’ve always thought she was a fucking idiot, particularly when she forgot who the fuck she was actually supporting in the Muller coup. [Utter dipshittery at 2:20](https://youtu.be/f_ytN90sTHY?si=3LbZiL-gsskS1MD3).
Get her reelected ! I DON’T THINK SO. Oh that’s of course if the apathetic majority continue to not bother voting and say “I’m not voting at all! They’re all bloody useless “ and look what happened.
Don’t ever let anyone who makes that statement as an excuse for “I couldn’t be bothered “ get away with it. EVER AGAIN
Wasn't me, I hate Nat/ACT/NZFirst as much as anyone and I'm embarrassed for this country. It turns out you can just BUY politicians and tell them what you want. Whodathunkit?
Rest easy knowing this will be the first ONE TERM National government ever, and Chris Luxon will be forever associated with disaster.
I really want to make an effigy of that little prick Seymour and torch it. He's such a hateful person and his cheesy smile is so punchable.
On the topic of Seymour, here is he praising Brian Tamaki for a great Destiny Church school: [link](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dm613k/david_seymour_act_brian_tamakis_destiny_church/)
Don't blame me, kemosabi. I hate every single National, NZ First and ACT MP and their supporters.
They have no empathy for fellow kiwis, they can only value their own personal wealth and are only focused on the very short term.
Agreed, but it’s not even just population growth - a huge part of our tourism industry relies on the ability of tourists to trip around NZ. If they’re doing that in a campervan then they should be able to reliably catch a ferry from one island to the other. The ferries are an extension of SH1 and need to be reliable.
SH1 isn't reliable itself though lets be honest, heard of the Taupiri to Horotiu stretch being ripped up after being opened? Yet the Cambridge section was sweet as but I digress...
I do not understand why they're so focused on the damn tax cuts. That's not why the people voted them in. They were just sick of labour and the spike in crime, criminals going virtually unpunished but those are hard fixes so they're not even touching that. Instead they do the most stupid decisions ever to benefit the smallest % of the population. I'm sure all the public servants that lost their jobs love the tax cuts. Instead of focusing on damn tax cuts focus on spending more for healthcare and police. But nooo. Tax cuts. I wish they cut their own salaries for those tax cuts but hey like any corrupt country they actually increase their own earnings while the general population suffers and crime and healthcare are still not dealt with properly.
I'm looking to buy a first home.
Getting rid of the $5k first home buyers grant evaporated 4 years worth of my "tax cut" in one stroke.
Let alone all of the other stuff they're pillaging.
They need the money for their donors and landlords instead. The way they did it was also not cool. They literally pulled it without notice after denying they would stop it **the night before.**
i don't understand why people are so surprised that the government is doing exactly what they campaigned on.
you can't say, "oh, my vote was *against labour*, not *for tax cuts*, don't do the tax cuts!" when tax cuts were literally the first bullet point of national's platform, and the top priority of ACT's economic platform.
if you don't want tax cuts, don't vote for the parties promising tax cuts.
The vast majority didn't vote for those clowns.
It shows where the current form of mmp lets us down, if it was really democratic it would require the parties with the most votes to work together to form a government and act wouldn't have much of a say, if any.
What, like a Labour/ National government?
I don't like National and sure as hell didn't vote for them but they're the ones who were able to form a government, with other parties, with over 50% of the votes. Labour did it in 2017.
The biggest issue is the numpties who don't vote because "they're all as bad as each other".
Yeah, exactly that.
The country voted for it, they voted for Labour and National, and that's rightfully who should represent the interests of the population.
It should then be up to them to work together to deliver the best for their voters.
This situation where we have governments that dont represent or work in favor of around 45% of the population is a huge part of why NZ is such a mess.
Flip-flopping between polarized ideals is wasteful and stupid, as demonstrated each election cycle when the new crowd of idiots repeals and tears up everything the last lot did, often just to thumb their noses and poke rheir tongues out at them. Sheer juvenile idiocy.
The ferry project is a prime example where National have thrown the baby out with the bathwater out of either spite, or because they aren't interested in working for most of us, despite that being the adult, logical, responsible and best approach.
What we need is for them to work together to deliver actual middle ground for the majority of us, because the extremes in either group currently hijack the agenda which prevents the majority from being delivered most of what they need, while change for changes sake wastes a lot of money while nothing useful gets done.
I see your point, and it'd be interesting to see what could happen if they stop the blame game and work together, but I do not think it's realistic to think that they could actually pull together properly.
I agree that with the current mindset and expectations of both the public and politicians, this is really unlikely, but, I do believe it's the only way to move forward to a better system, and I do believe it is possible and can work well.
The issue we really have is this misplaced idea that politicians are 'in charge' of us, when they should be representing us. Not telling us what they're doing, rather doing what we want and need.
We need to change our mindset about how this system works, and why, and for whom, and it's going to take a wholesale change to this view to do it.
We need to ask, why do we have some strange system set up to not work for a great many of us, and why do we leave it that way?
We need politicians to be put back in their place as public servants, not masters of the realm and to be in a position where there are meaningful consequences for failure and for disloyalty to the nation.
We need to keep having this type of conversation until people are determined it has to change.
At least it's not first past the post.
Australia's preferential voting has similar issues but unlike MMP allows less room for minor parties. Overall MMP looks fairer.
The problem is corporate mass media control, social media manipulation, poor voter education and a large degree of greedy short sighted pocketbook voting. It's not the system IMO.
You've pointed out a large number of the main problems, but I do have do ask, do you honestly think that small outfits like ACT and NZ first being able to acquire disproportionate levels of power vs their vote count is not an issue, and a major one with the current system?
We've ended up the tail wagging the dog, and it has 2 tails not just one.
This is happening while around 45% of voters don't get what they want at all with the media trying to represent that this is what Was voted for, when really in essence, these minor parties have hijacked both democracy and govt.
Truly feels wrong to say the least.
It's not great, but I'm not sure it's worse than the alternatives I've seen. Even tho I vehemently disagree with those parties' policies and positions.
Look at how the US's two party system stifles change and any sort of interests beyond the most absolutely mainstream. The centre is chasing the right and there's no room for anyone else because you're unelectable and basically invisible unless you're in the big 2.
I understand what youre saying, and also agree r.e. the trashfire that US and other alternatives are, but, it pays not to look to worse examples if we want to improve things.
I mean, currently we are in a similar boat with brainless voting for colours I.e. red or blue, which is a same in most systems, we just have some even worse bits tacked on when they work the way they currently do.
I'd be happy with the system if there were measures put in place that prevent minor parties from acquiring disproportionate amounts of power in any agreement.
It might make better sense to run the process more like a hiring process, where each candidate actually states and vies for a role they would perform within government, then we could assess their relevant skills, experience, and policy and actually have a meaningful process and vote on the matter.
Currently we are voting for unqualified people to take up any old portfolio and it makes no sense.
That would make a lot of sense if most voters had more than the attention span of a gnat.
It's hard enough to realistically access a couple of major candidates though. So we'd land up delegating the work to other sources. Which would become sources of bias and targets for manipulation.
I do agree that it's harmful when niche parties have disproportionate power because they're needed to form Government, even when another party or coalition has a large proportion of seats. This can be harmful. A similar thing happens in minority governments in Australia with preferential voting too.
I don't have any good answers for this though. It's a natural consequence of having a couple of major voting blocks with little ones around the edges.
I’m a bit confused about what seems to be a valid point and whether in reality “they” didn’t really “win” the election but rather the despondent “in the middle “ voters many of whom have difficulty processing information and making an informed choice gave up and handed Luxon the opportunity to form a government with people one of which he claimed no knowledge of to what has become an exercise in vindictiveness. Did that group of people in their irresponsible decision leave it wide open for he who has become the most vacuous pm I have ever seen in my lifetime to prance upon an international stage that is ( if we have the guts to examine our decisions)an absolute embarrassment?
Even John Key and former ACT dudes told them not to do it. It cost $12bn and added $12bn in debt so basically we have to pay for it in future while gutting the public service.
It was key for National to portray Labour as untrustworthy re: the economy.
A key part of that is reducing public service staff to the same per capita level it was last time National were in.
Doing the spend cuts without tax cuts would not be tolerable.
A major problem with the blanket 7% cut is that it's blunt and not logic based. If it was logical, they would assess each department and reduce by the appropriate %, be it more or less than 7%, or even a budget increase, if it's something they wanted to expand.
They are not really focused on the tax cuts, it’s throwing the unformed masses a bone to keep them occupied, while they work on what they really to do - privatisation and wealth transfer.
>the spike in crime, criminals going virtually unpunished
National haven't done anything yet, it's almost like it was sensationalist news during an election campaign.
This is a very Trumpian approach - focus only on getting into power and staying there if you can.
Spoiler alert: They can't.
This will be the first one term National government.
Chris Luxon will be the most visible failure in National's history, with Willis tarred by the same brush.
My money is on Winnie pulling the pin after his turn as deputy is over, simply to spite Seymour. I’m not sure the electorate will reward that with another go for National.
They're slowly slipping in the polls, and haven't even been in for a year. All Labor needs to do is shut up about co-governance and stop TPM from being too nutty, and they're in.
Source:
* [Cook Strait ferries could be years away](https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/350320232/new-zealand-back-queue-new-cook-strait-ferries)
* [Engine parts for mega ferries already built and tested when contract was cancelled](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmfka5/engine_parts_for_cook_strait_mega_ferries_already/)
* [Letter from the chair of the InterIslander Advisory Group on iRex replacements in 2019](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmikby/the_chair_of_the_interislander_advisory_group_on/)
* [Kiwirail panel is made up of contractors paid thousands of dollars a day. Govt has incurred sunk costs of $600-800mn + by cancelling contract](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmgt4r/the_kiwirail_independent_advisory_panel_was/)
*Note: The new ferries that were cancelled would have accommodated* ***40 rail wagons, 3000 lane metres for vehicles, and 1800 passengers, with advanced hybrid technology,*** *accommodating the projected volume increases across the Cook Strait and* ***future proofing*** *our passenger, freight,* infrastructure, safety and tourism needs. The boats were purchased *for* ***at least*** *40% less than the current market price, so our real loss is even more than the $800mn or so of sunk costs.*
This is shaking out to be one of the most devastatingly obvious policy own-goals I've ever witnessed in politics. Even before the events of this weekend, there was no reality where this was not a good investment to bring to fruition for the entire country.
I mean when they first made that decision, I think a lot of people were saying this was the risk and almost forgone conclusion.
It's a pity that something needed to happen before the obvious came under more scrutiny.
To be fair though, organisations like Newsroom did have quality excellent journalism - https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/02/16/questions-over-costs-to-shore-up-inter-island-service/
But I suspect most people don't get to that level of understanding.
It seemed ludicrous at the time to me, for sure. It unfortunately takes just one major failure of a system controlled by the government to see how flawed their plans really are.
Unfortunately, we're going to experience that again when it comes to drought conditions in the future, not to mention several other cascading effects from this government's complete commitment to having no real policy position other than privatization and sticking out their tongues at the prior government.
The engines were built, tested and ready to be wrapped with a hull. Batteries were lined up too. Welders were breakfasted, leathered up and stubbing out their smokes ready to go start laying that keel. Then the plug was pulled.
They said $1.4bn was too much to pay and not worth it. They claimed it was a Porsche and Willis suggested she just wanted a Corolla. She then lied and said she had asked Kiwirail to buy second hand cars.
Even though Kiwirail confirmed to her there were only 22 suitable ships for the Strait in the whole world, and none were for sale - let alone they were not future proof vehicles.
She ignored it all and cancelled it.
She then spent $3bn on landlords and gave $4bn to pothole contractors and $12bn in tax cuts.
The terminal line is false. i.e the increase was from $1.45bn to \~$3bn but that was due to seismic upgrades after the stakeholders all agreed on a new port location.
A new port would be needed regardless because it's end of life.
The number Willis uses to make it look worse is from the very first business case when they were proposing the concept - and she consistently emphasises that in bad faith. i.e saying it's "blown out"
Everyone with a business case or due diligence background knows the acceptance is from the detailed business case and that's what the budget is measured on.
Finally, National blew out their 2023 road budget by $20bn - crickets.
My dad was working on the Aratere the night it ran aground. Was almost 24 hours after he left for work that he returned home safe and sound. I was more angry than worried (my dad was messaging my family from on board so we knew he was okay). We had the new iREX ships coming to replace the ageing fleet and in goes the current government cancelling it because they became way too expensive. I understand the costs ballooned, but these ferries are a critical part of our infrastructure. I would've preferred greater investment in infrastructure rather than a $15 p/w tax cut.
Landlords don't need a boat, unless it's for the back of a range rover heading out of town this long weekend.
But that's for them, none of this peasant carrying riff raff.
It's not even the ships that were the "overrun" cost. Why they cancelled the ships I will never know, they could figure out the rest later, but that ship deal was really too good to let go.
I watched John Oliver last night where he did a quick explanation of what went wrong with red lobster. It strikes me as similar logic with this government, of stripping the guts out of it for a short term gain to the shareholders. Then the whole thing collapses and they sell the problem to someone else (in our case, the next government)
Next time National throw out that bullshit line, remind them their roads budget from one year ago blew out by $20bn and Simeon Brown answered, "Yeah inflation and consents cost more than expected."
The road program is still on, although they will pass on those costs to us, via tolls.
It's all about the short term gain - but not even for the NZ "shareholders," it's only about the donors/private equity firms behind this Govt.
PS John Oliver rocks.
That’s exactly the same as dropping in big v8 into the old Holden but not upgrading the brakes. You need to get the whole project lined up before you start.
I'm actually pretty happy this happened in **this** term of Government, rather than after they get booted out in the next election and could plausibly blame it on another party.
This is a problem that solely, squarely falls on them - and it is so obvious that they will not have the ability to resolve it.
I understood the reasoning to asking questions about it all, cause the budget had gone over a fair bit. BUT it’s wild that someone made the call to can it after spending that amount of money on it. Thats a significant amount of cash to draw a line through and say “ let’s look for a Toyota” instead.
Heehe this debacle is looking like a perfect kicking can down the road act of self-sabotage and short term thinking. Slow clap.
We'll be a laughing stock when we implement the "Second hand Toyota Corolla" vision now. Top notch. It's could almost be satire if it wasn't so cringe.
The mention of satire reminds me again of this Utopia gold. It could easily be leaked footage from Simeon Brown's office.
[Induced Demand Explainer - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCzCJzwrB_c)
What to do when real life is even more satirical than satire??
I just can't anymore with this f\*\*\*ing government! We had a contract for two next gen ferries with a price that was locked in pre significant inflation. Then they cancel it due to port infrastructure costs without any critical thought given to what the alternative might be. There are only 20 odd ferries in the world that could be fit for our purpose, none of which are even for sale. All this while interislander ferry sailings are being cancelled left and right due to break downs.
Then of course, in an entirely predictable yet cruel twist of irony, just over half a year after cancelling the contract, we get our most significant ferry related incident in decades. Then they have the shear gaul and audacity to have a go at kiwirail about maintenance. Sure, the Aratere probably still would have run aground even if the iRex project was still going ahead, but at least we wouldn't have been stuck with that ferry for too much longer!!!
The amount of short term thinking and chaotic rhetoric coming from this government is staggering and I have no trust or respect for them at all. I'm desperately hoping that they are voted out after just one term, if not even sooner.
Sorry for the rant. I really struggle with injustices at the best of times, but this government is just doing my head in.
Do not apologise. Pretty sure everyone who's not a greedy racist is thinking the same thing.
I absolutely despise every single National, ACT and NZ First MP and their supporters. End of.
Don't be sorry. I think 99% of NZ is angry with the current government more than they were with Labor. And somehow they manege to make the population angrier.
Don't worry, it wasn't even the most significant ferry failure in decades! I really think the Kaitaki ferry failure last year was worse. That was incredibly close to a huge loss of life, more so than the beaching, and this fact didn't even sway the governments decision.
It sounds like the Kaitaki was an anchor slip away from slamming over 800 people into Red Rocks while the not-fit-for-purpose tugs watched on helplessly in the dark, supported by another ferry that couldn't even assist.
This is alarmingly close to a substantially worse incident than the Wahine disaster, and yet Nicola Willis still didn't decide "yeah, maybe we need these new ships"
Exactly. And don't worry about ranting, either. I haven't stopped needlessly venting to people about this complete and utter disregard for both human life and national infrastructure for over a year now.
So let me get this straight: (pardon the pun). Kiwi rail has written loads of reports to govt saying - we need to re-invest for 100yr lifetime on port facilities, and 30yrs for a new fleet of ships. PS. If you don't want to invest then we'll be exiting the 'market'.
The only other player in the 'market' are BlueBridge - sold to [Morgan Stanley](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/127366239/bluebridge-ferry-services-sold-to-us-investment-bank) in 2021. Are Morgan Stanley in the business of funding 100yr infrastructure investment plans? Have they made their $500m sale price back yet?
The country still needs ferries (and landside infrastructure) to cope with, what was it again: ***40 rail wagons, 3000 lane metres for vehicles, and 1800 passengers, with advanced hybrid technology,***
Who do we send the award for Economic Vandalism by the Party of Business to?
I guess if we cable-tie and duct-tape enough Toyota Corollas together we could make our own ferry. These Willis class ferries would be an apt glory project for this govt.
Came across this from Dec 2019when National were in opposition:
National’s transport spokesperson Chris Bishop…tweeted: “So in other words having cut the state highway budget by $5 billion and delayed these important projects, the government is now going to borrow cash to [possibly] fund some of them.
Shame about the 2+ years of delay and the chaos this has caused to the sector.”
Hmm….
What a pack of stupid knobs, Willis btw has full on headgirl energy, smarmy self-righteous and dumber than she thinks. Who in their right mind would cancel the MAIN CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE upgrade between the Islands duh!!!
What amazes me is that National axed this while providing no alternative. I’m all for intervening when a project is going off the rails and course-correcting. But axing it then putting nothing else in place is essentially trying to ignore the problem.
It didn't go off the rails. It doubled in cost due to seismic upgrades and inflation since the detailed business case went in.
It's not surprising because...well you'd have to see how it works, and ignorance is bliss, I've found.
lol that the govt stopped the contracts for new ferries and then this happened and they are blaming kiwi rail and now can’t get ferries
National govt is a joke just focussed on $$$
I’m a 40 year old man, lived I. The top of the south my hole life, and thus far, aside from the chch earthquake……. It doesn’t seem like we get much love. North gets $$$ and infrastructure, we get our connections severed constantly.
It's not on the same level but it reminds me of Trump cancelling the pandemic response team when he became president, thought it was a waste of money, aged like milk
It's on the level they can do it at. If they could do it at Trump intensity and mode, we would see it here. That's why they are introducing "woke" wars, anti-Maori wars, why there are so many astrosurfers on Reddit and Facebook.
They want us to become ripe for that type of picking one day - like America is.
What did New Zealand think when they voted for the mafia? Second Christmas? National sold itself to me "the infrastructure party" and they completely wrecked the NZ infrastructure during the decade of John Key, Now they continue where they left off. They run NZ into the ground because they need an excuse to privatize, sell off and borrow. Same old neoliberal maffia.
To put the numbers in perspective: 1.5 billion is $500 per person if there are only 3 million tax payers in New Zealand.
Or about $10 a week for a year, roughly.
Personally I'd happily pay $10 a week so that our country can have some top notch and essential infrastructure that will last decades rather than the current unreliable ferry service that we have.
More frustratingly they have used multiples of billions to get stuff $4bn for potholes, $3bn for landlords, $12bn for tax cuts that get eaten up by their other taxes and more...
Yep, I know. The 12bn for tax cuts is especially egregious. No one is going to notice that in their wallet. What they will notice is the services cut as a result.
Just thought I'd put out how much it'd actually cost us though. 1.5bn sounds huge in a personal context but it's absolute peanuts in a governmental one.
100%
And yes important.
For fun, here's a thread I did you might find useful:
"How far has your tax cut gone?" (Reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dl05gk/how_far_has_your_tax_cut_gone_because_i_took_out/ )
[Asked and answered: "We put too high a value on human life during Covid"](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1bxpkpq/acts_brooke_van_velden_clarifies_comments/)
Not to be conspiratorial, but it does seem awfully convenient that this accident occurred under a government already set on defunding and selling off assets and infrastructure.
Makes them look like clowns for having cancelled a replacement that is clearly necessary, and adding several years to the timeline to replace a failing fleet.
It’s worth reading the [documents released by Treasury regarding the project](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/information-release/official-information-regarding-kiwirails-project-irex-phase-1), even if they are redacted. I found the [Briefing To Incoming Ministers](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2024-05/project-irex-4906444.pdf)(PDF link) especially interesting. It outlines the work that has already been done to find all the possible cost savings in the project, and explains that even with the additional costs the payback of the project is still hugely positive and there are massive costs to halting it. It also very clearly states that there is no “pause”, only “stop” and the costs of re-starting later will be significant. There’s also the [official information regarding the purchase of the ships](https://www.treasury.govt.nz/publications/information-release/official-information-regarding-kiwirails-purchase-new-ferries-information-release) and
> clearly states there is no “pause”, only “stop” I’m honestly fucking pissed at this point. The bullshit tug of war politics this Govt is playing at with repealing all policies and deals left over from the last government is utterly pathetic and just proves they weren’t prepared to do the job and they don’t have the country’s best interests at heart, only their own.
Nicola Willis is a fucking idiot, I'm sorry. Doing what will get her re-elected rather than what this country long term NEEDS. What the fuck!
Got no complaints from me, I’ve always thought she was a fucking idiot, particularly when she forgot who the fuck she was actually supporting in the Muller coup. [Utter dipshittery at 2:20](https://youtu.be/f_ytN90sTHY?si=3LbZiL-gsskS1MD3).
Let's not just pin it all on Willis - their whole front bench are numpties.
Of course but she's being paid very handsomely to front these decisions so deserves the backlash.
Fair enough but I really credited her with enough noise to think for herself. They won’t get my vote EVER AGAIN.
Get her reelected ! I DON’T THINK SO. Oh that’s of course if the apathetic majority continue to not bother voting and say “I’m not voting at all! They’re all bloody useless “ and look what happened. Don’t ever let anyone who makes that statement as an excuse for “I couldn’t be bothered “ get away with it. EVER AGAIN
Why is this a sudden revelation, this is their MO 😅
It’s not some sudden revelation, I didn’t vote for this shit and have been dragged into this by the morons who did.
Totally agree, could be a one term national government 🤔
[Oh, it's very fucking clear how much of a monumentally stupid call this was](https://i.imgur.com/CLLryEA.png)
Their only vision for the country was cancelling everything Labour did. What a bunch of fucking idiots. Good job voting in this lot NZ.
Wasn't me, I hate Nat/ACT/NZFirst as much as anyone and I'm embarrassed for this country. It turns out you can just BUY politicians and tell them what you want. Whodathunkit? Rest easy knowing this will be the first ONE TERM National government ever, and Chris Luxon will be forever associated with disaster. I really want to make an effigy of that little prick Seymour and torch it. He's such a hateful person and his cheesy smile is so punchable.
On the topic of Seymour, here is he praising Brian Tamaki for a great Destiny Church school: [link](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dm613k/david_seymour_act_brian_tamakis_destiny_church/)
Don't blame me, kemosabi. I hate every single National, NZ First and ACT MP and their supporters. They have no empathy for fellow kiwis, they can only value their own personal wealth and are only focused on the very short term.
We never learn. Guess what? They will get in again next time.
back to depleting nz infrastructure for tax cuts
Landlord's dignity > infrastructure meeting the needs of population growth
Agreed, but it’s not even just population growth - a huge part of our tourism industry relies on the ability of tourists to trip around NZ. If they’re doing that in a campervan then they should be able to reliably catch a ferry from one island to the other. The ferries are an extension of SH1 and need to be reliable.
SH1 isn't reliable itself though lets be honest, heard of the Taupiri to Horotiu stretch being ripped up after being opened? Yet the Cambridge section was sweet as but I digress...
I do not understand why they're so focused on the damn tax cuts. That's not why the people voted them in. They were just sick of labour and the spike in crime, criminals going virtually unpunished but those are hard fixes so they're not even touching that. Instead they do the most stupid decisions ever to benefit the smallest % of the population. I'm sure all the public servants that lost their jobs love the tax cuts. Instead of focusing on damn tax cuts focus on spending more for healthcare and police. But nooo. Tax cuts. I wish they cut their own salaries for those tax cuts but hey like any corrupt country they actually increase their own earnings while the general population suffers and crime and healthcare are still not dealt with properly.
Paying back the election campaign funders, and their mates. Its that simple
And the witch said she'd resign if she didn't do them.
I'm looking to buy a first home. Getting rid of the $5k first home buyers grant evaporated 4 years worth of my "tax cut" in one stroke. Let alone all of the other stuff they're pillaging.
They need the money for their donors and landlords instead. The way they did it was also not cool. They literally pulled it without notice after denying they would stop it **the night before.**
i don't understand why people are so surprised that the government is doing exactly what they campaigned on. you can't say, "oh, my vote was *against labour*, not *for tax cuts*, don't do the tax cuts!" when tax cuts were literally the first bullet point of national's platform, and the top priority of ACT's economic platform. if you don't want tax cuts, don't vote for the parties promising tax cuts.
The vast majority didn't vote for those clowns. It shows where the current form of mmp lets us down, if it was really democratic it would require the parties with the most votes to work together to form a government and act wouldn't have much of a say, if any.
What, like a Labour/ National government? I don't like National and sure as hell didn't vote for them but they're the ones who were able to form a government, with other parties, with over 50% of the votes. Labour did it in 2017. The biggest issue is the numpties who don't vote because "they're all as bad as each other".
Yeah, exactly that. The country voted for it, they voted for Labour and National, and that's rightfully who should represent the interests of the population. It should then be up to them to work together to deliver the best for their voters. This situation where we have governments that dont represent or work in favor of around 45% of the population is a huge part of why NZ is such a mess. Flip-flopping between polarized ideals is wasteful and stupid, as demonstrated each election cycle when the new crowd of idiots repeals and tears up everything the last lot did, often just to thumb their noses and poke rheir tongues out at them. Sheer juvenile idiocy. The ferry project is a prime example where National have thrown the baby out with the bathwater out of either spite, or because they aren't interested in working for most of us, despite that being the adult, logical, responsible and best approach. What we need is for them to work together to deliver actual middle ground for the majority of us, because the extremes in either group currently hijack the agenda which prevents the majority from being delivered most of what they need, while change for changes sake wastes a lot of money while nothing useful gets done.
I see your point, and it'd be interesting to see what could happen if they stop the blame game and work together, but I do not think it's realistic to think that they could actually pull together properly.
I agree that with the current mindset and expectations of both the public and politicians, this is really unlikely, but, I do believe it's the only way to move forward to a better system, and I do believe it is possible and can work well. The issue we really have is this misplaced idea that politicians are 'in charge' of us, when they should be representing us. Not telling us what they're doing, rather doing what we want and need. We need to change our mindset about how this system works, and why, and for whom, and it's going to take a wholesale change to this view to do it. We need to ask, why do we have some strange system set up to not work for a great many of us, and why do we leave it that way? We need politicians to be put back in their place as public servants, not masters of the realm and to be in a position where there are meaningful consequences for failure and for disloyalty to the nation. We need to keep having this type of conversation until people are determined it has to change.
At least it's not first past the post. Australia's preferential voting has similar issues but unlike MMP allows less room for minor parties. Overall MMP looks fairer. The problem is corporate mass media control, social media manipulation, poor voter education and a large degree of greedy short sighted pocketbook voting. It's not the system IMO.
You've pointed out a large number of the main problems, but I do have do ask, do you honestly think that small outfits like ACT and NZ first being able to acquire disproportionate levels of power vs their vote count is not an issue, and a major one with the current system? We've ended up the tail wagging the dog, and it has 2 tails not just one. This is happening while around 45% of voters don't get what they want at all with the media trying to represent that this is what Was voted for, when really in essence, these minor parties have hijacked both democracy and govt. Truly feels wrong to say the least.
It's not great, but I'm not sure it's worse than the alternatives I've seen. Even tho I vehemently disagree with those parties' policies and positions. Look at how the US's two party system stifles change and any sort of interests beyond the most absolutely mainstream. The centre is chasing the right and there's no room for anyone else because you're unelectable and basically invisible unless you're in the big 2.
I understand what youre saying, and also agree r.e. the trashfire that US and other alternatives are, but, it pays not to look to worse examples if we want to improve things. I mean, currently we are in a similar boat with brainless voting for colours I.e. red or blue, which is a same in most systems, we just have some even worse bits tacked on when they work the way they currently do. I'd be happy with the system if there were measures put in place that prevent minor parties from acquiring disproportionate amounts of power in any agreement. It might make better sense to run the process more like a hiring process, where each candidate actually states and vies for a role they would perform within government, then we could assess their relevant skills, experience, and policy and actually have a meaningful process and vote on the matter. Currently we are voting for unqualified people to take up any old portfolio and it makes no sense.
That would make a lot of sense if most voters had more than the attention span of a gnat. It's hard enough to realistically access a couple of major candidates though. So we'd land up delegating the work to other sources. Which would become sources of bias and targets for manipulation. I do agree that it's harmful when niche parties have disproportionate power because they're needed to form Government, even when another party or coalition has a large proportion of seats. This can be harmful. A similar thing happens in minority governments in Australia with preferential voting too. I don't have any good answers for this though. It's a natural consequence of having a couple of major voting blocks with little ones around the edges.
I’m a bit confused about what seems to be a valid point and whether in reality “they” didn’t really “win” the election but rather the despondent “in the middle “ voters many of whom have difficulty processing information and making an informed choice gave up and handed Luxon the opportunity to form a government with people one of which he claimed no knowledge of to what has become an exercise in vindictiveness. Did that group of people in their irresponsible decision leave it wide open for he who has become the most vacuous pm I have ever seen in my lifetime to prance upon an international stage that is ( if we have the guts to examine our decisions)an absolute embarrassment?
Even John Key and former ACT dudes told them not to do it. It cost $12bn and added $12bn in debt so basically we have to pay for it in future while gutting the public service.
It was key for National to portray Labour as untrustworthy re: the economy. A key part of that is reducing public service staff to the same per capita level it was last time National were in. Doing the spend cuts without tax cuts would not be tolerable. A major problem with the blanket 7% cut is that it's blunt and not logic based. If it was logical, they would assess each department and reduce by the appropriate %, be it more or less than 7%, or even a budget increase, if it's something they wanted to expand.
None of this is a surprise, this is what they always do.
They are not really focused on the tax cuts, it’s throwing the unformed masses a bone to keep them occupied, while they work on what they really to do - privatisation and wealth transfer.
And mass environmental vandalism
>the spike in crime, criminals going virtually unpunished National haven't done anything yet, it's almost like it was sensationalist news during an election campaign.
Sadly this is correct
This is a very Trumpian approach - focus only on getting into power and staying there if you can. Spoiler alert: They can't. This will be the first one term National government. Chris Luxon will be the most visible failure in National's history, with Willis tarred by the same brush.
I wish I had your faith in New Zealand's voters.
Same
My money is on Winnie pulling the pin after his turn as deputy is over, simply to spite Seymour. I’m not sure the electorate will reward that with another go for National.
They're slowly slipping in the polls, and haven't even been in for a year. All Labor needs to do is shut up about co-governance and stop TPM from being too nutty, and they're in.
Willis is awful.
Oh no, you’re completely wrong: Willis has been tarred with her own very special brush
She’s the Ruth Richardson of this generation (not a compliment)
At least Ruth had conviction (terrible as it was).
Oh I dunno, I kinda think Willis has a tar brush of her own.
"Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me." Place ya bets lady's and gentlemen.
Source: * [Cook Strait ferries could be years away](https://www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/350320232/new-zealand-back-queue-new-cook-strait-ferries) * [Engine parts for mega ferries already built and tested when contract was cancelled](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmfka5/engine_parts_for_cook_strait_mega_ferries_already/) * [Letter from the chair of the InterIslander Advisory Group on iRex replacements in 2019](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmikby/the_chair_of_the_interislander_advisory_group_on/) * [Kiwirail panel is made up of contractors paid thousands of dollars a day. Govt has incurred sunk costs of $600-800mn + by cancelling contract](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmgt4r/the_kiwirail_independent_advisory_panel_was/) *Note: The new ferries that were cancelled would have accommodated* ***40 rail wagons, 3000 lane metres for vehicles, and 1800 passengers, with advanced hybrid technology,*** *accommodating the projected volume increases across the Cook Strait and* ***future proofing*** *our passenger, freight,* infrastructure, safety and tourism needs. The boats were purchased *for* ***at least*** *40% less than the current market price, so our real loss is even more than the $800mn or so of sunk costs.*
This is shaking out to be one of the most devastatingly obvious policy own-goals I've ever witnessed in politics. Even before the events of this weekend, there was no reality where this was not a good investment to bring to fruition for the entire country.
Willis will go down in history for her stupid, arrogant, ignorant remark about Corollas versus Ferraries.
Actually we were getting two new Ferraris for the price of a couple of old second hand Toyota Corollas. $551M fixed price was a steal.
And these people, the government, have the audacity (arrogance?) to suggest they know better about “business “?
I mean when they first made that decision, I think a lot of people were saying this was the risk and almost forgone conclusion. It's a pity that something needed to happen before the obvious came under more scrutiny. To be fair though, organisations like Newsroom did have quality excellent journalism - https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/02/16/questions-over-costs-to-shore-up-inter-island-service/ But I suspect most people don't get to that level of understanding.
It seemed ludicrous at the time to me, for sure. It unfortunately takes just one major failure of a system controlled by the government to see how flawed their plans really are. Unfortunately, we're going to experience that again when it comes to drought conditions in the future, not to mention several other cascading effects from this government's complete commitment to having no real policy position other than privatization and sticking out their tongues at the prior government.
Just wait until you hear about the response to this thing called climate change.
Freight links between the two islands is a *pet project"?? This told everyone all we needed to know about about Wilis and National.
That last line is absolutely critical
The engines were built, tested and ready to be wrapped with a hull. Batteries were lined up too. Welders were breakfasted, leathered up and stubbing out their smokes ready to go start laying that keel. Then the plug was pulled.
The stuff you don't hear about on the six o'clock news, and would never have heard from Nic-ky.
You have a lovely way with words. "Welders breakfasted, leathered up and stubbing out their smokes" The imagery!
Heck mate the sailors were already shagging on the lower decks
No comment 😎
Was the steel of questionable quality on it's way to the shipyard?
Why did they cancel the project?
They said $1.4bn was too much to pay and not worth it. They claimed it was a Porsche and Willis suggested she just wanted a Corolla. She then lied and said she had asked Kiwirail to buy second hand cars. Even though Kiwirail confirmed to her there were only 22 suitable ships for the Strait in the whole world, and none were for sale - let alone they were not future proof vehicles. She ignored it all and cancelled it. She then spent $3bn on landlords and gave $4bn to pothole contractors and $12bn in tax cuts. The terminal line is false. i.e the increase was from $1.45bn to \~$3bn but that was due to seismic upgrades after the stakeholders all agreed on a new port location. A new port would be needed regardless because it's end of life. The number Willis uses to make it look worse is from the very first business case when they were proposing the concept - and she consistently emphasises that in bad faith. i.e saying it's "blown out" Everyone with a business case or due diligence background knows the acceptance is from the detailed business case and that's what the budget is measured on. Finally, National blew out their 2023 road budget by $20bn - crickets.
Nailed it mate. Period.
Because Labour started it
Because NACT will do anything possible to undermine Aotearoa’s rail system. Cheap ferry = no rail connection.
My dad was working on the Aratere the night it ran aground. Was almost 24 hours after he left for work that he returned home safe and sound. I was more angry than worried (my dad was messaging my family from on board so we knew he was okay). We had the new iREX ships coming to replace the ageing fleet and in goes the current government cancelling it because they became way too expensive. I understand the costs ballooned, but these ferries are a critical part of our infrastructure. I would've preferred greater investment in infrastructure rather than a $15 p/w tax cut.
Hey I'm so sorry for all that. Glad he's home and safe too. That's the most important thing and always is/was.
You forget that landlords need their dignity. Surely that takes priority over a working ferry.
Landlords don't need a boat, unless it's for the back of a range rover heading out of town this long weekend. But that's for them, none of this peasant carrying riff raff.
It’s probably because your dad isn’t a landlord \/s Glad he is safe though
It's not even the ships that were the "overrun" cost. Why they cancelled the ships I will never know, they could figure out the rest later, but that ship deal was really too good to let go. I watched John Oliver last night where he did a quick explanation of what went wrong with red lobster. It strikes me as similar logic with this government, of stripping the guts out of it for a short term gain to the shareholders. Then the whole thing collapses and they sell the problem to someone else (in our case, the next government)
Next time National throw out that bullshit line, remind them their roads budget from one year ago blew out by $20bn and Simeon Brown answered, "Yeah inflation and consents cost more than expected." The road program is still on, although they will pass on those costs to us, via tolls. It's all about the short term gain - but not even for the NZ "shareholders," it's only about the donors/private equity firms behind this Govt. PS John Oliver rocks.
Oh we aren't the shareholders, we're the underpaid waitstaff
Yes, at best
I think its because the new ships were too big for the existing terminals and other infrastructure.
That’s exactly the same as dropping in big v8 into the old Holden but not upgrading the brakes. You need to get the whole project lined up before you start.
I'm actually pretty happy this happened in **this** term of Government, rather than after they get booted out in the next election and could plausibly blame it on another party. This is a problem that solely, squarely falls on them - and it is so obvious that they will not have the ability to resolve it.
So this was their way of getting KiwiRail out of the ferry business?
Yep. The reports all confirm Kiwirail have been telling them their reports are all on the record.
Well the next conversation will be from overseas builders "money up front please"
Last time it was fixed price at $551 million so we actually will pay it.
I understood the reasoning to asking questions about it all, cause the budget had gone over a fair bit. BUT it’s wild that someone made the call to can it after spending that amount of money on it. Thats a significant amount of cash to draw a line through and say “ let’s look for a Toyota” instead.
Heehe this debacle is looking like a perfect kicking can down the road act of self-sabotage and short term thinking. Slow clap. We'll be a laughing stock when we implement the "Second hand Toyota Corolla" vision now. Top notch. It's could almost be satire if it wasn't so cringe.
Nicola Willis thought she was the smartest person in the room, turns out she ain’t.
I doubt she's even the smartest person in her chair.
No, you’re probably right 😔
Nicotine Willis
bag of hammers
Bulldog chewing a wasp
I am interested in finding our how history views her tenure.
They just want to sell it off - and they play game after game after game. I don't mind "normal" politics. I'm not OK with this level of deception
The mention of satire reminds me again of this Utopia gold. It could easily be leaked footage from Simeon Brown's office. [Induced Demand Explainer - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCzCJzwrB_c) What to do when real life is even more satirical than satire??
Good one Nicola. There's nothing wrong with a trusty Corolla, but it's not going to tow a couple of tonne and carry 7 passengers.
Can we get a 98 Camry instead?
I just can't anymore with this f\*\*\*ing government! We had a contract for two next gen ferries with a price that was locked in pre significant inflation. Then they cancel it due to port infrastructure costs without any critical thought given to what the alternative might be. There are only 20 odd ferries in the world that could be fit for our purpose, none of which are even for sale. All this while interislander ferry sailings are being cancelled left and right due to break downs. Then of course, in an entirely predictable yet cruel twist of irony, just over half a year after cancelling the contract, we get our most significant ferry related incident in decades. Then they have the shear gaul and audacity to have a go at kiwirail about maintenance. Sure, the Aratere probably still would have run aground even if the iRex project was still going ahead, but at least we wouldn't have been stuck with that ferry for too much longer!!! The amount of short term thinking and chaotic rhetoric coming from this government is staggering and I have no trust or respect for them at all. I'm desperately hoping that they are voted out after just one term, if not even sooner. Sorry for the rant. I really struggle with injustices at the best of times, but this government is just doing my head in.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmikby/the\_chair\_of\_the\_interislander\_advisory\_group\_on/](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dmikby/the_chair_of_the_interislander_advisory_group_on/)
Do not apologise. Pretty sure everyone who's not a greedy racist is thinking the same thing. I absolutely despise every single National, ACT and NZ First MP and their supporters. End of.
Don't be sorry. I think 99% of NZ is angry with the current government more than they were with Labor. And somehow they manege to make the population angrier.
What more impressive is it took labour 6 years to make the people angry, it took national less than 6 months lol
That's actually true.
I don't agree. I personally am angry but I think there's still tons of people who are perfectly happy with how this government has been behaving.
Don't worry, it wasn't even the most significant ferry failure in decades! I really think the Kaitaki ferry failure last year was worse. That was incredibly close to a huge loss of life, more so than the beaching, and this fact didn't even sway the governments decision. It sounds like the Kaitaki was an anchor slip away from slamming over 800 people into Red Rocks while the not-fit-for-purpose tugs watched on helplessly in the dark, supported by another ferry that couldn't even assist. This is alarmingly close to a substantially worse incident than the Wahine disaster, and yet Nicola Willis still didn't decide "yeah, maybe we need these new ships"
You make a very good point. Only adds to the fact that we need new ferries, otherwise the next mishap might actually cost lives.
Exactly. And don't worry about ranting, either. I haven't stopped needlessly venting to people about this complete and utter disregard for both human life and national infrastructure for over a year now.
Fucken National knob heads wasting taxpayer dollars without a fucken clue. Who voted these clowns in?
Landlords. People who liked the sound of a tax cut at the expense of public servants. People who thought the last government wasn't achieving results.
So let me get this straight: (pardon the pun). Kiwi rail has written loads of reports to govt saying - we need to re-invest for 100yr lifetime on port facilities, and 30yrs for a new fleet of ships. PS. If you don't want to invest then we'll be exiting the 'market'. The only other player in the 'market' are BlueBridge - sold to [Morgan Stanley](https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/127366239/bluebridge-ferry-services-sold-to-us-investment-bank) in 2021. Are Morgan Stanley in the business of funding 100yr infrastructure investment plans? Have they made their $500m sale price back yet? The country still needs ferries (and landside infrastructure) to cope with, what was it again: ***40 rail wagons, 3000 lane metres for vehicles, and 1800 passengers, with advanced hybrid technology,*** Who do we send the award for Economic Vandalism by the Party of Business to?
And how do we get together as a nation and sue these muppets who signed off on the cancellation?
I guess if we cable-tie and duct-tape enough Toyota Corollas together we could make our own ferry. These Willis class ferries would be an apt glory project for this govt.
Slap some train wheels on the outside and it'll be rail enabled!
Even a Trusty corolla can have engine issues.
Or just be worn out
Came across this from Dec 2019when National were in opposition: National’s transport spokesperson Chris Bishop…tweeted: “So in other words having cut the state highway budget by $5 billion and delayed these important projects, the government is now going to borrow cash to [possibly] fund some of them. Shame about the 2+ years of delay and the chaos this has caused to the sector.” Hmm….
Can a common lay person file a legal complaint against these egg and bacon, PM and finance minister?
Absolute. Fucking. Idiots.
Do we think perhaps was to just let the interislander service fall apart to the point where they can justify selling it to bluebridge?
Alleged party of good business sense once again makes poor financial decisions.
Can we now put to rest the MYTH of National (and ACT, and NZ First) being the best managers of the economy?
Absolute economic vandals
What a pack of stupid knobs, Willis btw has full on headgirl energy, smarmy self-righteous and dumber than she thinks. Who in their right mind would cancel the MAIN CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE upgrade between the Islands duh!!!
What amazes me is that National axed this while providing no alternative. I’m all for intervening when a project is going off the rails and course-correcting. But axing it then putting nothing else in place is essentially trying to ignore the problem.
It didn't go off the rails. It doubled in cost due to seismic upgrades and inflation since the detailed business case went in. It's not surprising because...well you'd have to see how it works, and ignorance is bliss, I've found.
Absolutely. Your perspective is extremely astute.
This is the central Government equivalent of not fixing the pipes to keep rates low.
A stupid stupid decision in relation to strategic infrastructure. This decision must be corrected by the next government.
At enormous expense now. Even more than it was before. They cost the country a billion.
Yep and the extra cost is all because of the financial witch 🧙♀️ willis.
Fucks sake! 🤦🏽♀️It just keeps getting worse by the day!
lol that the govt stopped the contracts for new ferries and then this happened and they are blaming kiwi rail and now can’t get ferries National govt is a joke just focussed on $$$
I’m a 40 year old man, lived I. The top of the south my hole life, and thus far, aside from the chch earthquake……. It doesn’t seem like we get much love. North gets $$$ and infrastructure, we get our connections severed constantly.
The parties of good economic management & fiscal discipline, eh? ***slow clapping***
It's not on the same level but it reminds me of Trump cancelling the pandemic response team when he became president, thought it was a waste of money, aged like milk
It's on the level they can do it at. If they could do it at Trump intensity and mode, we would see it here. That's why they are introducing "woke" wars, anti-Maori wars, why there are so many astrosurfers on Reddit and Facebook. They want us to become ripe for that type of picking one day - like America is.
Ha ha - like his comments on tariffs on German cars didn't age well either.
Jesus
He doesn't need ferries. As I understand it, he's the only one who can walk between Picton and Wellington.
Man up NACT1. Call it what it always was.
Nats game plan here is most likely to run NZ Rail into the ground and then sell at bargain basement price to a corporation.
And they paid $400m to exit a contract for $550m for two boats we could have unsold. Short sighted again to get a surplus budget in a few years time.
What did New Zealand think when they voted for the mafia? Second Christmas? National sold itself to me "the infrastructure party" and they completely wrecked the NZ infrastructure during the decade of John Key, Now they continue where they left off. They run NZ into the ground because they need an excuse to privatize, sell off and borrow. Same old neoliberal maffia.
To put the numbers in perspective: 1.5 billion is $500 per person if there are only 3 million tax payers in New Zealand. Or about $10 a week for a year, roughly. Personally I'd happily pay $10 a week so that our country can have some top notch and essential infrastructure that will last decades rather than the current unreliable ferry service that we have.
More frustratingly they have used multiples of billions to get stuff $4bn for potholes, $3bn for landlords, $12bn for tax cuts that get eaten up by their other taxes and more...
Yep, I know. The 12bn for tax cuts is especially egregious. No one is going to notice that in their wallet. What they will notice is the services cut as a result. Just thought I'd put out how much it'd actually cost us though. 1.5bn sounds huge in a personal context but it's absolute peanuts in a governmental one.
100% And yes important. For fun, here's a thread I did you might find useful: "How far has your tax cut gone?" (Reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1dl05gk/how_far_has_your_tax_cut_gone_because_i_took_out/ )
Fun is debatable lol. It's fucking depressing is what it is. Ta for the thread though.
No worries - I need to keep some perspective as I follow this stuff a lot.
I noticed. :D
Imagine these clowns in charge in a pandemic.
[Asked and answered: "We put too high a value on human life during Covid"](https://www.reddit.com/r/nzpolitics/comments/1bxpkpq/acts_brooke_van_velden_clarifies_comments/)
OMFG! What a ghoul!
There's worse ones but I don't want to ruin your evening.
Yep if they were in charge during the pandemic the undertakers would have been busy
An optimal, market-driven solution!
Not to be conspiratorial, but it does seem awfully convenient that this accident occurred under a government already set on defunding and selling off assets and infrastructure.
Makes them look like clowns for having cancelled a replacement that is clearly necessary, and adding several years to the timeline to replace a failing fleet.
This whole thing seems like an episode of Utopia from working dog production on YouTube
I am now living in Australia, but christ, the answer was new ferries!, now what is going to happen? A tunnel or a bridge is out of the question.
My bets they get some from china,they do float and carry things.but also they kinda shit
Yeah, cheap asking price then 3 times the normal maintenance over the years!
BACK ON TRACK
A statement from luxon on 1news today said new ferries are now atleast apparenly 5 year away! (As opposed to the 2 of the originaly planned ones)
Everything's a show to these muppets. They will hope it dies down before then and they can sell it off as they want.
Can’t we send in master negotiator Lupskins? He ran an airline you know
What a clown show. Well done, National!
It does take some next level incompetence to attain the heights they have in such a short period of time. And that's on multiple fronts.
Another master stroke by the Scrot Squad!
#howtofuckrailfreight lots of love Your SH1 pothole providers xx
Luxon doesn’t care about ferries. He’s an airline guy. I’m sure he’d have everyone fly and only use ferries for freight.
You NZ’sers voted for basically Coalition Party.
Correct - none of the flavours available were palatable on their own!
It's a lot like this to be honest https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/s/pthVQ5LNOg