Labour had their lower North Island regional conference over the weekend, where leader Chris Hipkins spoke to what kind of opposition he wanted the party to be.
It came ahead of scrutiny week in Parliament. Scrutiny week is a chance for the opposition to analyse the budget line-by-line with a fine tooth comb, and raise any questions or concerns in front of a more than usual public eye.
Wire Host Caeden spoke about what kind of opposition Labour has become, and what we have learnt in scrutiny week for our weekly catch-up with Labour Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni.
23 MPs made the news last weekend for using their accommodation supplement to rent back their own homes. The accommodation supplement is an entitlement for out-of-Wellington-based MPs to have the place they stay when in Wellington covered under their employment. In some cases MPs used the supplement to pay off the mortgage of a second or third home.
Other recent political news includes the opposition to the proposed fast track legislation, and criticism of how the recently announced budget will negatively impact already marginalised groups. Caeden chat about all these topics with Labour’s Arena Williams for our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party.
They started by asking if she thinks it’s ok for MP’s to be enabled to become multiple homeowners as a result of the supplement they claim?
Last week the Government released the 2024-2025 budgets. Although there were no huge surprises, it’s drawn significant criticism for leaving behind many already marginalised communities.
Protests for Palestine are also continuing across the motu, as many including New Zealanders with whānau stuck in Gaza demand special visa pathways to bring their loved ones to safety.
This week Wire Host Caeden has a kōrero with Labour Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about the budget, and what more the opposition can be doing to support Palestinians and Palestinian Kiwis.
Labour Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni has come out against Louise Upston’s comments on welfare, calling her out for leaving out context or blatantly lying about facts.
Some of Minister Upston’s comments include conflating those who are on Job Seeker who are “work ready” and those who are on it for health conditions, as well as stating that young people who go on the benefit could stay on it for 24 years without mentioning this only applies to 0.5% of people.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party Wire Host Caeden asks about National’s comments on welfare, as well as the civil unrest we are currently seeing in New Caledonia.
They started by asking about her comparison between what National is doing to benefits today to what Ruth Richardson did 30 years ago.
On Wednesday Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni dominated political headlines with news that she is believed to be a contestant on this year's season of Celebrity Treasure Island.
The last MP to compete on a reality TV show was David Seymour, who competed on Dancing with the Stars in 2018. This appearance resulted in a now infamous video of Seymour twerking in 80s getup.
Last years Celebrity Treasure Island also drew headlines for including famous political figures, notably Tame Iti.
Political news this week has also included an announcement from Paul Goldsmith that the Government is looking at stopping election day voter enrolment due to the administrative burden.
Caeden asked about both these topics for our weekly catch-up with Carmel Sepuloni. They started by asking if she would appear in Celebrity Treasure Island.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party’s Carmel Sepuloni I ask about MPs getting a pay raise, recent polling results that showed an increase in support for Labour, and a new policy from Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka which would prioritise whānau with tamariki for social housing.
Disability communities have been rallying against a surprise change in purchasing rules in the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha. Communities have said the changes will have massive impact, despite no consultation on these changes or a formal announcement.
The Department of Conversation also recently proposed staffing cuts to meet funding demands. DoC controls a third of Aotearoa’s landmass which is all conservation land. It remains uncertain how job losses in the Ministry could impact conservation land management.
For weekly catch-up with the Labour party Wire Host Caeden spoke to Labour spokesperson for Disability Issues and Conservation Priyanca Rahdakrishnan about both of these issues.
The Ministry of Social Development is not immune to job cuts seen in other public service departments, with MSD calling for voluntary redundancies after cost-saving efforts failed to meet Government targets. For our weekly catch-up with Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni Wire Host Caeden asks her about the impact of cuts at MSD, especially amongst other Government policies disadvantaging beneficiaries.
They also ask about the Samoan Citizenship Bill led by Teanau Tuiono, and the impact of losing independent media giants such as Newshub for democracy.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party Caeden spoke to Labour Party spokesperson for Education and Women Jan Tinetti. They asked about Winston Peter’s comments comparing co-governance with Nazi Germany, the response to the Freyberg High School students performing a haka against David Seymour, and Grant Robertson’s valedictory speech yesterday.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party Caeden speaks to Labour’s Jan Tinneti about the backlash from educators towards a Government proposal to cut free lunches in schools.
They also ask about last weeks International Women’s Day, and what more needs to be down for women in Aotearoa and overseas.
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