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CuriousCat

@felissapien.bsky.social
740 followers 915 following 395 posts

Green. Geek. Loves books, TV and movies, politics, history, and animals. Prohibition doesn’t work, so make it legal NZ

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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 9h
“The Greens have the best policies to address the cost-of-living crisis and restore dignity and mana to our most vulnerable communities.”… By Emily Writes #nzpol www.emilywrites.co.nz/nobody-wants...
emilywrites.co.nz
Nobody wants to talk policy
It’s no secret that I’m a Greens supporter. The Greens have the best policies to address the cost-of-living crisis and restore dignity and mana to our most vulnerable communities. As the parent of a ...
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
“We can’t arrest our way out of these issues – everyone knows that after our many decades of trying this approach. We need to focus on people’s health and reducing demand.”… #nzpol accessiblenews.xyz/article/www....
accessiblenews.xyz
'Can’t arrest our way out': Charge rate for personal cannabis use triples
Chances used to be about 1 in 10; this year they're almost 1 in 3.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Hana is my MP and she’s doing a great job.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Party vote: Green Electorate vote: Te Pāti Māori
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
“Factors favouring the Greens include a clear, bold vision, popular leaders, a weak Labour Party, and global demand for change on the left. But can the party’s momentum continue with a month to go?”… By Elliot Crossan #nzpol elliotcrossan.substack.com/p/four-reaso...
elliotcrossan.substack.com
Four Reasons Why the NZ Greens Are Surging
Factors favouring the Greens include a clear, bold vision, popular leaders, a weak Labour Party, and global demand for change on the left. But can the party’s momentum continue with a month to go?
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Reposted by CuriousCat
samuel mehr @mehr.nz · 01/10/2026
this video of Chlöe Swarbrick, who leads the Greens in New Zealand's parliament, is worth your five minutes' time
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
“Why does this election feel so bleak?… On paper, this is the most exciting, nailbiting election in years... The tension is palpable. And yet even still - the atmosphere ranges from gloomy to disengaged.” By Elliot Crossan #nzpol elliotcrossan.substack.com/p/election-2...
elliotcrossan.substack.com
Election 2026: Welcome to the Unpopularity Contest
When politics becomes a contest over who is the least unpopular, it is a sign of a system in decay. But are there signs of hope for the NZ left in the 2026 general election?
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Just finished Grimm with my offspring (rewatch for me, first time for the kid). Great tv - brilliant from beginning to end.
Promo from Grimm (tv show): pictured is Nick, Hank, and Monroe.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
National moves the income risk from the state to parents. ACT moves the wage risk from business to workers and reduces the practical power of unions. NZFirst moves public anger away from property, income and bargaining power and towards racial enemies. #nzpol keenlens.substack.com/p/the-coalit...
keenlens.substack.com
The Coalition Has Stopped Hiding the Class Warfare
The Keen-Lens Macro Letter ⚡ Flash Letter New Zealand · Class, Labour & Election Politics · September 2026
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
“That is why the far right can be economically useless and politically dangerous at the same time. It does not have to repair the engine. It only has to make sure the driver blames the passengers.”… By Maurizio Piglia #nzpol keenlens.substack.com/p/the-far-ri...
keenlens.substack.com
The Far Right Does Not Need to Fix the Economy. It Only Needs Everyone Else to Fail.
The Keen-Lens Macro Letter ⚡ Flash Letter New Zealand · Political Economy · 8 September 2026
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
#nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
“But thanks to it deregistering we will no longer have any ability to understand how it is funded. And we will not know how much of a war chest it has, at least some of which may be funded from overseas.” #nzpol By Micky Savage thestandard.nz/taxpayers-un...
thestandard.nz
Taxpayers Union hides its funding
The Taxpayers Union has now gone offline so that we have no idea where its funding came from. And if Curia polling is paid for by Atlas aligned organistions.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
“Jordan Williams and David Farrar have spent twenty years learning how one poll can move another. Their Taxpayers’ Union–Curia poll just did it again.”… By Grant McLachlan #nzpol www.klaut.media/single-post/...
klaut.media
The poll that lands first
Jordan Williams and David Farrar have spent twenty years learning how one poll can move another. Their Taxpayers’ Union–Curia poll just did it again.
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Reposted by CuriousCat
Andrew Digby @digs.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
325 #kakapo! The chicks from this year's record breeding season are now juveniles and so have been added to the population. In 1995 there were just 51 kākāpō left. Recovery of critically endangered species _is_ possible with sustained effort. #kakapo2026 #conservation #parrots
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
“The thing to understand about this global creep to the right is that it lowers the base of what is deemed acceptable. Positions and processes that would disqualify a candidate fifteen years ago are now standard.”… By Tina Ngata #nzpol tinangata.com/2026/08/30/t...
tinangata.com
The Price of *Not* Entrenching Te Tiriti
We are living under the most right-wing government this country has seen in over five decades.  In three short years, we have seen decades of work dedicated to protecting the rights of tamariki and…
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
“This waka hourua is an international treasure, of far more importance than the Mary Rose and all the other preserved ships around the world. It is a taonga, a treasure, that needs to be preserved and studied, and perhaps, like the Mary Rose, have a museum built around it.” #kikorangi #AoNZ #nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
“One of the key drivers of poverty for older women is time out of the paid workforce in order to provide unpaid care for a family member - a child, a spouse, an aging parent. This caregiving work is essential, but it is leaving older women in poverty.”… #nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
”What is worth asking is why a two-term minister sitting on a near-20,000-vote majority in one of National's safest seats would call a vote he could not win — and who was supposed to come out ahead once he lost it.”… #nzpol www.klaut.media/single-post/...
klaut.media
Why did Chris Penk knock himself out?
A building industry and defence minister called a confidence vote he could not win, lost every portfolio he held within hours, and left behind more questions about who benefits than about himself.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
“Time and time again we are seeing money pour into our democratic system, threatening to drown the broader public interest under narrow vested interests. Our democracy is at risk of drowning in a flood of money.” #nzpol www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/sto...
greenpeace.org
Cleaning up politics in Aotearoa for planet and people - Greenpeace Aotearoa
Something is rotten in the state of Aotearoa. We like to think of our country’s politics as pretty clean, but is it? There is fundamental tension in our political system between democracy and money. I...
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
“Atlas Network interlinked, these bodies aim to protect the right to be awful about or to targeted groups. New Zealand's version also appears to work as a "troll farm" for the government.”… By Lucy Hamilton #nzpol lucyham29.substack.com/p/beware-the...
lucyham29.substack.com
Beware the Free Speech Unions
Atlas Network interlinked, these bodies aim to protect the right to be awful about or to targeted groups. New Zealand's version also appears to work as a "troll farm" for the government.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
“These moves are described as consistency, clarity and accessibility. But, the truth is, they look like the steady removal of Māori identity and Treaty responsibility from the machinery of the state. The pattern is quite disturbing.“… By Sam Hudson #nzpol thisquality.com/the-treaty-p...
thisquality.com
The Treaty Principles Bill failed, but the Coalition’s slow removal of Māori identity continues
OPINION: David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill was defeated, but the campaign to weaken the place of Māori in public life did not end with it.
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Reposted by CuriousCat
CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
It has taken decades of work to shift towards something a little more equitable. It‘s rather demoralising that just as progress was starting to really occur, the populism of parties such as NZ First and ACT is seeking to strip back our hard won civil rights #nzpol drbex.substack.com/p/bring-back...
drbex.substack.com
Bring back the 1970s?
Yes to the universal cash supports, No to the racism and bigotry
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
It has taken decades of work to shift towards something a little more equitable. It‘s rather demoralising that just as progress was starting to really occur, the populism of parties such as NZ First and ACT is seeking to strip back our hard won civil rights #nzpol drbex.substack.com/p/bring-back...
drbex.substack.com
Bring back the 1970s?
Yes to the universal cash supports, No to the racism and bigotry
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
“For most of the postwar era the future was a promise: progress, modernity, rising incomes, children better off than their parents. Forward meant better and more. Now forward means less and worse.”… By Dr Claire Robinson #nzpol www.clairerobinson.nz/blogs/the-ba...
clairerobinson.nz
The back-to-the-future election — Dr Claire Robinson: Unleashing the Power of Political Insight
Why has the comfort of political and media survivors and rose-tinted nostalgia become such a powerful selling point in New Zealand politics right now? Between Winston Peters invoking a 1950s golden er...
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
“And just when we thought it was time to go back out into the brutal cold, Jack Tame said “wait, come back, I have something for you”. He sat us by the fire, poured us a glass of pinot, and deftly filleted Paul Henry, tableside, on live TV…” By Tina Ngata #nzpol tinangata.com/2026/07/19/w...
tinangata.com
Was That Q+A or MasterChef?
In the homestretch of the coldest of political winters, we gathered. There was a defiance about this Mataariki – more than ever, folks were determined to come together, celebrate, farewell an…
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
“Norman Kirk once said people do not ask for much: someone to love, somewhere to live, somewhere to work, and something to hope for. Fifty years later, it remains the most concise statement of what a decent society owes its citizens.”… By Nick Ruane #nzpol thestandard.nz/four-promise...
thestandard.nz
Four Promises, Fifty Years On
Norman Kirk once said people do not ask for much: someone to love, somewhere to live, somewhere to work, and something to hope for.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
”Five high energy use data centres could be dotted across the South under plans supported by a government investment agency, the Otago Daily Times can reveal.”… #nzpol Accessible article here: archive.ph/pFOXt
Screenshot of the title of an article in the Otago Daily Times - More Data Centres Planned For South by Mary Williams. Accessible article link in post.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
“A little-noticed presidential national security directive is now the legal engine behind a wave of terrorism prosecutions against left-wing protesters. That domestic campaign now has an international dimension.“ #nzpol theconversation.com/the-trump-ad...
theconversation.com
The Trump administration’s global campaign against ‘radical left terrorism’ is built on a national security memo without congressional approval
Almost a year after President Trump authorized preemptive law enforcement measures based on political or ideological beliefs, a wave of terrorism prosecutions against left-wing protesters has begun.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
“The same Tuesday ACT unveiled its newest star candidate, the Herald confirmed the party’s own former president had pleaded guilty to further sex offending. Coincidence, or convenient timing?”… By Grant McLachlan #nzpol www.klaut.media/single-post/...
klaut.media
Was Paul Henry ACT's dead cat?
The same Tuesday ACT unveiled its newest star candidate, the Herald confirmed the party’s own former president had pleaded guilty to further sex offending. Coincidence, or convenient timing?
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
“The bombing of the Rainbow Warrior was moment that shocked our nation, but it also solidified our fierce commitment to peace, independence, and standing up to defend nature. Today, that proud legacy is under threat. The war machine is back.”… #nzpol www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/sto...
greenpeace.org
41 Years After the Rainbow Warrior: Why Aotearoa Must Continue to Stand Up - Greenpeace Aotearoa
Forty-one years ago today, state-sponsored terrorism shattered the quiet of Auckland Harbour.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Same suits, new story - and everything National hopes you've forgotten. National is back on the trail asking voters to forget the record & judge them instead on a new set of promises. In a nutshell: they are asking voters for a political do-over. #nzpol wonderoutloud.substack.com/p/the-nation...
wonderoutloud.substack.com
The National do-over
Same suits, new story — and everything National hopes you've forgotten.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
In the decade to 2024, borrowing for course fees rose 31%, borrowing for living costs rose 98%: Young NZers are increasingly borrowing to eat while they study. Next time Seymour warns against burdening our children with debt, enjoy the inversion. #nzpol andrewdicksonnz.substack.com/p/sixteen-bi...
andrewdicksonnz.substack.com
Sixteen Billion Dollars of Nothing
A thought experiment for Labour: move the student loan book from one ledger to another and watch what happens.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
“When a man does it to a woman, we know exactly what we are looking at. When the state proposes to do it to the poor, we call it welfare reform and put it in a conference speech.”… Great article and thread. #nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
The work we did with kākāpō is now not possible because the govt has said that our funding should go to science that makes money. Members of our current govt have said that if an endangered species is in the way of a mine or a new road then it’s goodbye #nzpol peterkdearden.substack.com/p/on-kakapo
peterkdearden.substack.com
on Kākāpō
and extinction
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Article link here: werewolf.co.nz/2026/06/gord...
werewolf.co.nz
Gordon Campbell On Being Thankful That Someone Is Talking About Income Inequality – werewolf
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
At the very least, the Greens tax package should frame the way that the other parties address income inequality – if not this, then what? Because as things stand, the current economic settings are doing more to perpetuate the burden of inequality – and child poverty – than alleviate it. #nzpol
Screenshot of the title of an article: Gordon Campbell on Being Thankful That Someone is Talking About Income Inequality. Link here: https://werewolf.co.nz/2026/06/gordon-campbell-on-being-thankful-that-someone-is-talking-about-income-inequality/
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
The govt… introduced a bill that rewrites the Conservation Act to make commercial exploitation DOC's primary legal purpose - then set a six-week submission window and called it consultation. Five million hectares. The Tararuas. Lewis Pass beech forest. #nzpol keenlens.substack.com/p/the-conser...
keenlens.substack.com
The Conservation Amendment Bill is not about funding DOC. It is the corporate-state writing its mandate into law — and five million hectares of ancient forest just became a balance sheet item.
New Zealand · Conservation Amendment Bill · June 2026
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Andrew Digby @digs.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
The final #kakapo chick (Pearl-4B) from this year's cohort has fledged the nest (defined as roosting outside the nest for the first time). There are 91 chicks alive. They won't be counted towards the population until they're 150 days old. 📸 Petrus Hedman #conservation #kakapo2026 #parrots #birds
A kākāpō chick receiving a health check on a person's lap. Credit: Petrus Hedman
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
“What and who does this government ‘care about’… It certainly isn’t the poor or those struggling to make ends meet on underpaid jobs… If you examine the actions the government has undertaken ever since they got into power, it’s clear that they only care about the ‘wealthy and sorted.’” #nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
“Mark Mitchell built a career on the cosy traffic between cops and a political party. Now he is shocked - shocked - that Labour has done the same.”… By Grant McLachlan on Klaut #nzpol www.klaut.media/single-post/...
klaut.media
Who polices the Police Minister?
Mark Mitchell built a career on the cosy traffic between cops and a political party. Now he is shocked — shocked — that Labour has done the same.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
PoO’s interest in this laudable exposure of the perks of being a politician was heightened by our awareness of a stoush between Stuff and the Speaker. And what was the focus of the story that prompted the Speaker’s ire? Accommodation allowances. #nzpol pointofordernz.wordpress.com/2026/06/06/t...
pointofordernz.wordpress.com
The Press and politicians’ perks – the spotlight goes on Brownlee while he considers the fate of Stuff journos
Bob Edlin writes –  Checking on what’s doing in the country today, PoO spotted this on The Post website, on the top row of items on the menu under “News / Ā-motu” –
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
“He earns $320,600 a year. He owns six properties. He was offered a free apartment inside Parliament. He said it wasn't comfortable enough. Then he billed you $237,000 to sleep in his own home - and threatened the journalists who found out.”… #nzpol
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
I got some cool gifts for my birthday yesterday. The Green Party tshirt was an awesome surprise. Perfect timing for the election 🥹
Photo of my birthday gifts - Green Party NZ T-shirt in Kelly green, Kaylee Frye Funko pop (Firefly, new release with parasol), Captain Mal Funko pop (Firefly, new release), Ghostface Funko pop (Glow in the Dark), and, a dvd of Survivor: Philippines tv show.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Our country is rapidly becoming an oligarchy - a system based on government by and for the super-rich. A key indicator of emergent oligarchy is growing control of the media and the political system by the super-rich. #nzpol elliotcrossan.substack.com/p/wealth-wea...
elliotcrossan.substack.com
Wealth, Weather, Winston and Willis
Budget 2026, the rise of oligarchy and the best government money can buy
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
As of March 2026, there were 4,537 people held on remand. Each is costing the taxpayer about $414 per day. This means the large share of the remand population that poses no threat to public safety is costing taxpayers nearly $1 million every single day. #nzpol theconversation.com/it-costs-a-m...
theconversation.com
It costs a million dollars a day to keep low-risk defendants on remand. More prisons aren’t the answer
Budget 2026 spends $503 million on expanding prisons. But 41% of the prison population are people on remand and more than half are released once their case is heard.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
“Why is it that entitlements won over years via union activism can be challenged by employers who wish to change the goal posts to suit themselves, whilst those of the ruling classes remain largely untouched?”… #nzpol mfriend.substack.com/p/entitlements
mfriend.substack.com
Entitlements
And how the poor have been systematically denied them
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Upston is effectively arguing that ordinary people asking for help with rent or housing costs are a burden on taxpayers, while her own taxpayer-funded accommodation support is somehow legitimate and untouchable. That’s the moral contradiction. #nzpol bryanbruce.substack.com/p/minister-o...
bryanbruce.substack.com
Minister Of Me Not You
28 May 2026
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
“Stuff’s Glenn McConnell asked New Zealand’s biggest political donors why they give. He should have asked what they got.”… #nzpol www.klaut.media/single-post/...
Screenshot of the title of an article published on Klaut Media by Grant McLachlan called, ‘Donations don’t follow policy. Policy follows donations.
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
#nzpol
“ Over the past year the Bar Association has raised with the Government the way in which the  legislative power of Parliament has been used with retrospective effect on existing rights and claims.  The trend is disturbing, particularly where legislation may be rushed through with limited time to  consider and debate its content, and whether there are truly circumstances justifying making laws  with such an effect.  

It is an important part of our system that the laws made by Parliament are forward-looking with  retrospective legislation reserved only for exceptional circumstances. This principle of law-making  provides for certainty for everyone to order their affairs and act on existing law.  

The principle also respects the role of the courts in deciding cases on the meaning of laws and under  the common law of New Zealand. New Zealand has been well served by this balanced constitutional  settlement.  

If retrospective legislation becomes a regular occurrence or norm, citizens will not know with any  certainty what their rights are. The certainty and stability provided by the established way in which  law is made for all is put at risk, and the important role of the independent court system is  undermined.”…

An excerpt from the article by Paul David KC - President of NZ Bar Association
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CuriousCat @felissapien.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
“Over the past year the Bar Association has raised with the Government the way in which the legislative power of Parliament has been used with retrospective effect on existing rights and claims. The trend is disturbing.”… #nzpol www.lawfuel.com/nz-law-news-...
lawfuel.com
NZ Law News – Bar Association warns of growing risks to rule of law
The New Zealand Bar Association | Ngā Ahorangi Motuhake o te Ture is urging the Government to  reconsider proposed legislation by taking a broader view of
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