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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Rodney Hide to privatize water - how’s that change feeling NZ?


You know that unspecified, wasn’t clear on policy ‘change’ NZ was sold at the last election? How’s it all feeling now NZ? Let’s see…

-Manufacture a crises at ACC and privatize it,
-Vast new surveillance powers for the Pork and Meat Boards,
-The power for the Police to break into your home, plant spy cameras and film you all without a warrant,
-Force you to take a test the cop subjectively decides if you have passed or not to take blood from you to see whether you have any THC in your system even if you are not impaired by that THC.
-The annexation of Auckland to force through under Rodney Hide a massive privatization agenda on Council assets…

What was that last one? In all the heat and sudden wake up of the mainstream media about what National are quietly ramming through Parliament comes this new revelation that Hide is now planning to privatize our water.

Hide opens door to privatised water deals
The Government is planning to make it easier for private companies to take over water and wastewater services from councils. Local Government Minister and Act leader Rodney Hide yesterday said "flexibility in delivery of water services" was part of changes to the Local Government Act 2002.
The Government wants to extend the 15-year limit on water-service contracts to 35 years and allow companies to build, own and operate new water and wastewater treatment plants during the contract period.
The law will also be changed to stop councils controlling the management of privately run water services, although they will retain final say on pricing and policy.


Un-fucking believable. How’s that change feeling NZ? If you voted Labour in 2005 and voted National in 2008 or you you lived in Auckland and voted Labour in 2005 but didn’t bother to vote for them out of disgust in 2008, then you will be kicking yourself.

It was never National’s secret right wing agenda we should have feared, it was their out in the open duplicity towards their right wing agenda we should have feared.

10 Comments:

At 29/10/09 12:10 pm, Blogger Chris said...

It worked in Britain.

Just saying, out of all the industries that were sold off, privatised, capital funded with PFI, run with PPP, the ones that worked really well were the utilities, especially water.

The big risk is poorly drafted legislation that puts the balance of power in the hands of the companies. Certain things need to be set in stone only to be amended by Act of Parliament and not Order-in-Council: for example, the pricing and policy should be strictly controlled, and access to water should never be removed under any circumstances.

 
At 29/10/09 12:23 pm, Blogger Bomber said...

Yeah but Chris, this blog is over flowing with recent examples of this Government ramming throulgh ill thought out little discussed legislation. 35% of Parliaments legislation time right now has all been done under urgency. WTF man, wtf!

 
At 29/10/09 12:38 pm, Blogger Chris said...

But DPF says it's okay!

I think this is one of the bills that couldn't pass under urgency, or would at least raise some serious suspicions if they did it. I'd hope, anyway, because it's not just grabbing swabs from a mouth, it's massive restructuring involving local government rather than a central government arm implementing a policy.

 
At 29/10/09 5:44 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

"it was their out in the open duplicity towards their right wing agenda we should have feared."

'We' being the 30% of votors who supported labour. A minority in other words. Democracy sucks sometimes.

 
At 29/10/09 6:02 pm, Blogger Bomber said...

'We' being the 30% of votors who supported labour. A minority in other words. Democracy sucks sometimes.

Wow, according to the brave anonymous poster no one voted for the Maori Party, the Greens, Progressives or NZ First, So National won 70% of the vote did they Anon? I think Phoebe said it best when she demolished your neo liberal wet dream earlier today in her post http://tumeke.blogspot.com/2009/10/somnambulists.html

 
At 29/10/09 10:26 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Water will be the key political issue in NZ by the middle of this century.

 
At 29/10/09 11:01 pm, Blogger Chris said...

'We' being the 30% of votors who supported labour. A minority in other words. Democracy sucks sometimes.

34% in the 2008 election. National tallied 45%, so only an effective majority with their coalition partners, and now pushed around by the likes of very minority party Act, who didn't even cross the threshold and only have their shot at power thanks to Hide's electorate seat.

Majority rule in action, eh?

 
At 30/10/09 6:41 am, Anonymous Anonymous said...

and now pushed around by the likes of very minority party Act

Why the political naivety?
Act is enacting laws that National approve, but could/would not pass themselves.

Is National vetoing Act?

No?

Thats because they want those laws implemented, but not by them.
They intend to go hard-core in their second term, so are keeping their powder dry and letting their coalition partners take the rap.

 
At 31/10/09 5:48 pm, Blogger peteremcc said...

Um, Labour did this in the last term.

National are just extending the term that the lease can be for.

 
At 31/10/09 6:19 pm, Blogger Bomber said...

Um, I didn't agree with 15 years and I sure as hell don't agree with 30 years Petermcc

 

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