You're listening to a podcast from news talks it B. Follow this and our wide range of podcasts now on iHeartRadio. It's time for all the attitude, all the opinion, all the information, all the debates of the now the Leighton Smith Podcast powered by news talks it B.
Welcome to podcasts two hundred and seventy for February five, twenty twenty five, and may I welcome you to the seventh year of the Laten Smith Podcast.
Now.
At the end of last year, I had the idea of leading twenty five with someone whose opinion would not only be interesting but also useful and not to forget, entertaining. Shane Jones, Deputy Leader of New Zealand. First, I thought qualified on all counts. We were due to record on the same day that Donald Trump was sworn in, but I had technical issues and we had about three different attempts and couldn't overcome, so it was done the next day.
But the reason I mentioned that is because he was most courteous, most obliging, in fact extremely obliging, and fulfilled
my expectations with what I thought he would provide. Now, if you're wondering why we recorded that earlier, it was because he was going to be tied up at this particular time with White TANGI matters now at the back end, following the mail room with missus producer, I draw your attention to if you don't already know what the present government is absconding from in its responsibilities, Well that's my
interpretation of the way things are coming about. I expect that most of you will be agreeable with that, but you'll have to make your own judgment call at the time. But what is taking place at the moment is I believe undesirable and incompetent and a betrayal. And I'm sure that most of you will agree, but you'll have to make up your own mind and do let me know, by the way, So in just a moment, mister Jones.
Layton Smith.
Leverrix is an antihistamine made in Switzerland to the highest quality. Leverix relieves hay fever in skin, allergies or itchy skin. It's a dual action antihistamine and has a unique nasal decongestent action. It's fast acting for fast relief, and it works in under an hour and lasts for over twenty four hours. Lebrix is a tiny tablet that unblocks the nose, deals with itchy eyes, and stops sneezing. Lebrix is an
antihistamine made in Switzerland to the highest quantity. So next time you're in need of an effective antihistamine, call into the pharmacy and ask for Leverrix lv Rix levrix and always read the label. Takes directed and if symptoms persist, see your health professional. Farmer Broker Auckland. Jane Jones is
the deputy leader of the New Zealand First Party. He has a number of number of roles covering energy, finance, oceans and fisheries, regional development and resources, Associate Minister for some and Minister for others. If you look at his history, he's got a hell of a lot of positions. Therefore, one presumes experience building and instruction, forestry, immigration, infrastructure, regional economic development which continues at the moment, trade, transport, etc. Etc.
Is also a reputation for being a talented racon term, but that may depend on your opinion of the man or what he's saying at any given time. So it is with the great pleasure I welcome you to the Late and Smith Podcast. The first of twenty twenty five, and Shane, we're releasing this on the fifth of February, the day before White Tangy Day, but we are recording
it on the twenty second of January. And there's a reason that I wanted to outline this and make it clear because yesterday both of you and I, separately and independently spent quite a bit of quite a bit of time watching the inauguration of Donald Trump in Washington, d C. So again, welcome to the podcast. What did you take out of yesterday?
Well, greetings, Yes.
Well, I went out of my way to actually watch the speech.
Live, and then I went back and listened to it again.
For me, the speech, if I start, there was an experience of unmanling af I think what Trump is giving voice to and articulating, he is giving license to people, not only in the States, but through the OECD through a lot of Western countries, to move beyond the culture of being shamed, the culture of feeling personally responsible or being burdened with a sense of being the author of injustice.
It may or may not have been perpetrated over centuries, and this has been perfected through the woke ideology, and he put all of that to the sword yesterday in that speech. And I don't think we should underestimate how that's going to unfetter and unmanicle a host of constraints that have had the effect of censoring people, had the effect of causing them to be cocoon.
And I think nothing else. That's why he won power.
And I've not heard it put like that before, and I congratulate you on it. I think I think you're absolutely right. There was plenty of discussion, plenty of print with regard to the politicization of the stepping outside the usual and arguably accepted boundaries of what that inauguration speech is, no matter who the president might might be. But that's him, from beginning to end, step outside the norm and fix
things that appear or really are broken. And there was a hell of a lot broken in the United States, and as a result, and I think that you will agree, as a result, a hell of a lot that's been broken elsewhere in the world.
I couldn't agree more.
We've got, well, we've got a situation even in our fair isles here in the South Pacific, where sure have imported some of the excesses that have lighted the United States.
And we're.
Embodied when Kamala Harris sought to be a patriotic fighter, she wasn't a fighter of freedom.
She was a far left fundamentalist.
And she ran an ideology just because she was a woman, a person of color, that people would naturally support her.
And we've got here that in New Zealand. Look at the Maori Party.
Who continually say to Winston and I that our Maori ancestry is diluted. It makes a mockery of what it means to be a champion for maldi things. I mean, Winston and I detest that foul conception of where the mild dimension in New Zealand culture and society sit. Which is why every day we stand up in Parliament, why every day we say in the media, it's a contributing, key feature of what it means to be a New Zealander.
But stop using it as a crutch, Stop turning it into a basis for a new set of moral pleadings, as if history has burdened people that they can never ever fulfill their potential. Now all of that has been put to the sword by Trump's victory, and I look forward with Wanston to continuing that message here in New Zealand. I know, look, I'm diverting a bit, but you did ask.
Me, No, you're not diverting, you're saving me to You're saving me the trouble and asking the question that to
would have let us down the same path. Having watched you on X make some commentaries where you said, amongst other things, colonialism and colonization are not responsible for jail numbers, and then talked about this is in a very short space of time, talked about responsibility as in personal responsibility to stop off loading to aspects of history and current day failings and trying to line them up as one
responsible for the other. Then you said, the Treaty of white An you should not be evoked to explain why ram raiders or other types of criminality exist. And you said a lot more, what sort of reaction do you get from that?
Well, obviously out in the wasteland otherwise known as TikTok and other such intellectual deserts, you can imagine it's pretty extreme language. But the difficulty is it's very difficult to engage on the basis of ideas because this goes for the heart of what does it actually mean to be a New Zealander. And how do you define the essence of what is the substance that holds identity and holds a society together?
And I'll tell you what corrodes.
It is the continual drip of polarizing poison that is poured out both by the Green Party and partially the deluded souls in the Labor Party, but in the Malti Party. And what, in my view is happening is that there are not enough of us in politics who are calling out that corrosive, destructive influence. I mean, it's akin to a virus and it's going to attack the essential organs of our community and society unless we can newly rail against it. So I've got a mandate from our caucus. Fortunately,
I believe in what I'm saying. My dad was one of seventeen children, like a lot of people of Kaitai area, of the Katai area and the north West, the Bobby Carbs that have been killed at birth, or a mix of the influences that made the north the Galleys, the Maldi's, the early pioneers came from the Parkers. We came from Wales in England, and it's just that we grew up in a certain way where church was important Mom and dad, and we house next to the Jaci stallone it next
to the Madai. But none of that has turned into an ideological motive or fig leaf that you use to define everything about yourself, the particularities of your identity becoming the sole basis upon which, how upon which you project whether or not you're fit for a particular role, or whether you should be considered for a particular role. And
we're just going to move beyond that. And at the moment, the left has seized upon, seized upon the treaty, and seize upon conceptions of history as meaning that you cannot be Milordi unless you go back and bring them worst interpretation of history to justify why things aren't working out to the satisfaction of some a tiny minority in the Maori world.
But of course the politicians and.
The Maori Party in other areas it using that as a recruitment device.
They're radicalized in their new generation.
Those who don't want to be radicalized are too busy paying their bills, or they're buggering off to Australia.
And there's been plenty of that. I am speaking of Australia. Arrived from Australia in nineteen eighty, so we're talking now forty five years ago.
I remember when you arrived in nineteen eighty, you and I were in a law class together. How long did you stay in that class? Ah? Sadly, you and I we were treotored by a chap called Stephen Koch, who went on, I think you might be on the Supreme Court.
And I did two years of law and then moved on.
I certainly could see in quick order I was never ever going to be a practicing lawyer, although I was attracted to concepts of law and whatnot.
But that's where I first met you.
Well, it's interesting, and what was your impression by the way.
Of yourself? Well, a memorable personality. Because I'm able to recite the fact that that's where I met you in the tutorial to do with law.
Then it seems that we have some more in common than I might have imagined. Because I got as far as the second year, yes, myself as well myself, and then decided that well, I'd always wanted to do what I what I ended up doing, so let's just leave it at that. And I moved on But what I was going to say was that when I arrived, I garnered an opinion in the first nine months, and I
told you why. I remember that because I was working for Radio New Zealand and in September, if I remember correctly, we all were taken to the Marai up on the up on the coast, oh Okay, and we and we spent we spent a weekend there, two nights, okay. Now part from the fact that on the after the after the first night, I went across the road and went to the races for the day and skipped skipped class.
I recall that we're all lined up in rows in the marais and there were a lot of people and we started at the beginning and we went down the roads one by one and everybody had to make commentary m and there was a guy who from from Radio New Zealand Rural who stood up and started apologizing for everything, everything that he could think of that I deserved to
be apologized for. And there was a response to it straight after, and it was from a woman who I understood shouldn't have been up on stage because that's not protocol, but she got up there and I don't know exactly what she said, but her tone was angry and shed asused him for much the same sort of reason that you would have done the same, and that made that
made a very big impression. Now, the real reason I mentioned this was because I have I've said on a number of occasions recently that in the in the when I got here, there was much discussion going on about race relations the Treaty of Waitangi, and nothing has changed now. If you want confirmation of that, yesterday I was told of the commentary of a man who is very successful, who said that he thought that race relations in New
Zealand now was worse than it was forty years ago. Now, this had no connection with what I've just told you about my thoughts, none at all. It was told to me by an intermediately. But that race relations in New Zealand it is worse now than it was forty years ago, you would say.
I think what he may be referring to is the echo chamber that social media represents, the.
Fact that we.
Live in a climate and a culture of microaggression and small perceived slights are immediately exaggerated and amplified. And because I wake up every day as a professional politician willing to argue my case. And if it comes to pass that a few awkward things are said by me, I don't lose any sleepover it. And if you say angry, challenging, offensive things to me, I just wear it like a boxer. I don't turn it into a new form of grievance.
But we live in a time where grievance culture too often is celebrated and.
The most sort of kind of.
Ugly examples of it are in the transgender walls, the extreme interpretation of Maori entitlements, which have completely distorted the meaning of the treaty, completely derailed the proper and appropriate place of the multi dimension as a part of New Zealand society. So I feel that where people can see that our situation is worse than maybe it was in the sixties, I think it's more a comment that the tools that you can promote and exaggerate and amplify are
a lot more potent. And it's the same as in the States and my personal experience. What has changed is the level of dysfunctionalism, the level of.
Welfare, the level of violence.
That we are not holding people responsible for these hideous acts that we see on a regular basis and with the diminution of being responsible facing.
Up to the consequences.
And I don't fully understand how the calculus works when the judges take account of various upbringing factors or your ethnicity and all that sort of stuff. I mean, I worried about it in the newspaper, but honestly I don't fully understand it. But I think it's turned into an industry, and there's a whole legal arm there's a whole legal fraternity who knows how to lessen the impact of a person's wrongdoing. And the victims, I think, just give up
and try and put their lives back together. And then these men and women who do these hideous things often don't face the full costs of what society demands that they should face. So in that way, if I can find a biblical analogy, I'm very much of the Old Testament, meaning, well, if you are, you don't know, if you know, if you know a little, these bloody, hideous things mate that we read about on a regular basis, and the punitive response seems adversely related. Sure, I mean, as a society
we should have that Christian dimension. If you're willing to change your ways and stretch my hand out of helping. But if you're not going to change your ways, I really don't care. Just get the hell out of my face. And if we condemn you to be excluded and held somewhere, I don't care.
Just get the hell out of my face.
I find my life complicated and challenging enough without suffering the prospect of you further blighting it.
You went to Yale, No, it wasn't Yale, it was Harvard and the kids Kennedy School. What did you study?
I went with my wife and four young children and spent a small fortune getting over there. I was fortunate enough to have a we scholarship, our scholarship, shall I say, from the Harkness Fellowship, And I did economics.
I did.
What else did I do? Economics? Local economy, finance strategy. I did a paper offered by an American academic called Fisher. He wrote a book, Getting to Yes on Negotiations. That
was in nineteen ninety nineteen ninety one. And as a part of the fellowship that I had been awarded, we had the ability to move around the States over a four or five month period and stayed at the campgrounds of America and visited and saw large parts of America, and I remain eternally grateful, which is why I always say, don't ever bet against America.
It's a sensible saying. I draw your attention to the fact that not just from yesterday and the executive orders in large numbers that were signed by I was going to say, the new president, well, the old new president, the new old president have already had had some effect. That it started, it started before that, it started after
the election, and a lot of things have changed. And by that I mean there is now a I saw a headline just this morning about the reduction in the reduction and withdrawal of a number of large companies from
matters like DEEI and wocism, and it's amazing. It's amazing to see this happen so quickly, because it indicates, it indicates to me that it was only ever adopted in the first place for shall we say, politically correct reasons, and to be looking to well to get the tick from wherever you needed to get the tick from the stand up and take this previous abomination that has affected so many, so many countries, so many companies, so many people, and the fact that it's changing now. It flowed down
from America in the first place. I talk about woke matters. Do you imagine that the eradication of it will follow the same path.
If we have public figures.
Like Winston who are willing to call it out on a regular basis, who are willing to expose how absurd, self serving it is, and how it's inversely related to the interests of the people that it's purported to serve.
I mean, look no further than the high.
Priests of American wocism, which was Disneyland. So they no doubt were channeling what they conceived to be the power culture of that time. That's coming gone now and we're going back. As I said at the beginning, we're going I mean, I think what's really needed in New Zealand And I mean, obviously we're a smaller country and we've got a village complex in many respects. However, it's often
said about Kiwis that we constantly look for affirmation. Apparently we ask people who come here or we bump into people and we ask and what do they think about us in a wall and whatnot? And what New Zealand first, and what Winston and I are very keen to do. Is that we're not going to solve our social cultural
dysfunctionalism unless we grow economically. We're not going to grow economically until we unleash the animal spirits that actually drove the innovation, the risk taking, and the frontier mentality that's almost been driven out of us through excessive regulation, the inability to call a spade a spade, the kind of censorship of language it's it is. It is truly astounding
how far it's gone. And the only way you can push back on it is that Number one, there has to be some public figures at the vanguard who are continually articulating what people are feeling. And I think there's a genuine political market there and it's one that I think that Wiston on our behalf tapped into. And it doesn't need to be particularly ascetic or offenses, but it has to be based on authenticity.
Can you name any other politicians in government at the moment that would fall into that category apart from the two of you.
Well, I mean, obviously we've got to we've got to tend, but we've got to attend our own, our own estate. Perhaps Judith Collins has got some very firm views about these things. Obviously, she showed that she's not going to
be bullied. For example, in terms of how science funding is utilized, I saw her in Parliament prior to Christmas pointing out that some of the money being allocated under the rubric of social progressivism was nothing short of a random nonsense and it was being used to advance the peculiar careers of a limited number of people who kind of set up a little echo chamber in our universities.
So that's an example. But at the end of the day, mate, we've got to get out there, we've got to put our own shingle up and convinced Kiwis that we've got the fortitude, the lucidity of thought and language to give voice to anxiety that Qui families have.
The same as I would suggest that if you went to Harvard now to Harvard Kennedy, you wouldn't you wouldn't be learning, you wouldn't be taught the same things and in the same way. And that has spread to as
far as I'm aware, every university in this country. Now there are exceptions within it, but if you take my favorite example, which is a target the people now who have been appointed to run a targo or the hangovers from a failed government of this country of most recent times, and after what they did to this country, why on earth would you want to go to an institution that is run by people that failed so dismally. Well, the
universities are in the midst of a significant crisis. Unless they can offer a product, unless they can offer an experience. We're people so much are willing to pay, but they can continue to generate value, then they are going to wither because the days are over of continually shelling peas to deliver courses that are inversely related to what the economy needs.
This is what I'm telling you. We've ended up creating factories. And those factories have been built recently on a moral philosophy, which is a type and a secular society, a type of religion as to how you should think, your thoughts, your beliefs are curated by these pharisees in these universities. And I've been upgraded. Nowhere has it been more damaging in the whole area of how the meaning of Maldi
custom Tikanga, the treaty has been trusted. This notion that you can't for example, extract Ironsand's thirty kilometers off the coast of Taranaki because it's offense of Tikkung and Maui. There is probably the most brightest example of intellectual folly. If we don't use the resources of the country, if we don't produce wealth from our natural bounty, then we're going to go broke. There's no wealth to be created from doing each other's washing or continually selling.
Property to each other. We need to use.
The kind of legacy of mother nature, exploit it, turn it into a flow of goods and services, like every other successful economy is doing. It's one oh one mate.
So the export of our products at this point of time is we're on a scale of one hundred.
Do you think, oh, we'll declined. We've declined markedly.
Remember there were always there expectation that we go to a third and beyond third.
We well below a third.
Now, look, I'm giving a major speech on the thirty first of January because we're unveiling the critical Mineral strategy and hyh and that speech which I'm giving is to asfirm that this is a government, this is a minister not going to be Caud, not going to be shouted down, not going to be intimidated about affirming and accentuating the key role that minerals should have, can have, and will
have in our economic equation. I mean the perversity that we believe that we're clean and green, but we're importing Indonesian coals, so we export jobs and import carbon. I mean it is so absurd words are likely to fail me as difficult as people.
Might think that is likely to take place.
Indeed, I'm looking at a list of gold production from nineteen ninety three to twenty twenty three in measured in killos kilograms, and there it's an all inclusive list, but it's attributed to mccraze, including production from open cast and underground operations from two thousand and eight onward. Why he includes production of open cast and underground operations from two thousand and six onward and other which doesn't really matter, but there's a lot of minuses there. In other words,
the total production is down. And if I go to more recent times, let me see twenty sixteen minus twenty two point two percent, up four point three percent, the following year down two point four percent, down eighteen point two down, twenty eight point seven. Gold production intrigues me a great deal because the gold and silver have been a hobby, if you like, if not physically so much
as interest over a lengthy period of time. And both of those particular elements have shall we say, struck gold at this particular point of time, so totally New Zealand. New Zealand has how much potential for profiting from that?
Look, I'm going to Auckland, Atlanta today to meet a delegation of investors who are coming here and they are signing off an investment program of hundreds of millions of dollars to expand gold production. They haven't just suddenly discovered gold, but what is now available in New Zealand as a regime that gives you confidence there is light at the.
End of the statutory tunnel number.
Two that there is a backchop where this type of extractive industry is no longer going to be demonized. The investors won't be stigmatized, and they will not be subject to this ongoing molestation from small groups who know how to use social media, who know how to manipulate politicians, and who try to close down these industries.
Those days Agne in a thousand million years.
I'm never going to back down to that type of green peace thuggery. And that's how you get jobs, that's how you boost economic export earnings.
We have no shortage of goal in New Zealand.
We've got Santana that is expanding in Bendigo, that's in central Otago. Coramndel is riddled with gold and sadly there's some well organized hippies and of doll blodging anti capitalist people over there who have ruled the roost for far too long, and with fast track, their views will be only one consideration that will be given due regard to
and there's not only a host of other minerals. But we have a regime now where people can make those applications and they won't be held hostage to will no longer be able to make their lives misery over years and years of delay, where they treat as a deity some obscure snail, some largely irrelevant insect, or some frog that's likely to be eaten by a captain cooker pig before it disappears under the track of a bulldozer. These fairy tales, all of this fiction is now going to be swept Aside.
Talked to us about fast Track.
Well.
Fast Track is a piece of legislation that's traceable back to the coalition agreement between New Zealand First and the National Party, and what we agreed to do with the support of the Egg Party was to create a one stop shop where large projects could make an application that would not be held hostage to buy nimbiism or suffer the problems that have constantly blighted larger projects in regional New Zealand. A panel of specialists who have competencies relevant
to the application. So if it's a mining application, we'll get engineers involved to understand geology. If it's a housing issue, will get engineers who are civilly trained. We won't have all these worthies who have done half a dozen courses and then who arrive and visit upon us fanciful interpretations of the law which makes the rest of us poorer and they suffer no accountability for their wayward decisions. So
it's kicking off this year. There'll be a variety of panels that have the authority to receive these applications and they will be processed and turned around in short order, and in my view, it will be the most permissive efficient regime certainly in all the states, including New Zealand of Australasia, and it's already captured the attention of investors
from Canada in the United States. And indeed, the first thing that Trump said in the resource management space is that he's going to pass a fast track piece of legislation.
Indeed, interestingly, I interviewed on the podcast an American who was here last year early last year, and it's involved with why he or something a new mine or potential mine, and why he undoubtedly he or the organization that he represents will be there, will be there today. I look, there are so many other aspects of life that I want to raise with you, so let me hit on a few. I suppose you could say we touched on education with universities, but just briefly, how is the education
system in this country working? From your perspective?
Well, a fear I have, and it's a matter that's been discussed on numerous occasions with New Zealand, first amongst ourselves.
Is that we fear that.
Too much power has been taken from the principles and the key people in schools so that you do have and there and they're presenting themselves with more of These kids are presenting with more frequency, they are able to be far too disruptive and the options of dealing with their disruptiveness are limited.
So that's that's something I see in Northland.
At a deeper level, our Prime Minister is absolutely correct. We have drifted away from the quality of robust basic education that I grew up with, ensuring that you can read, write, count, and insisting that those are the essential building blocks for a well adjusted New Zealand teenager and New Zealand adult. Fine, it's good to have the ability to pursue the humanities or the sciences and the disciplines, et cetera. But the first building blocks can you count, can you compute?
Can you read? Can you write?
And if you can't do that, then the education system is simply creating a new range of criminals.
It's also reflected in the standard quality of the teachers that are failing some of those students, is it not.
Yeah, I mean, obviously teacher training is a matter that's always in the need of attention. But my mum was a teacher, okay, and then occasionally last year mom would go and help the young teachers endeavoring to get.
The wee kiddies whose parents, Oh.
I don't know what ever happens, whether they're on drugs or booze or whatever, any of the kids are lighted. So she's a very very gifted teacher and turned eighty six yesterday. Actually, so I think it's not only the quality of the trading for a teacher. It's not and there are various emolguments, but it's the environment that they're
working in. Where you have an environment and you maybe it's an issue with larger schools and you have particularly disruptive and increasingly violent kids, you cannot allow that disruptiveness to infect negatively the learning environment of the majority of your kids.
Just cannot tolerate it.
You're also Associate Minister for Finance. You've had things to say about Treasury and about the Reserve Bank. Would you like to update.
Oh, well, obviously, the party and myself with our leader, I mean, we we only see one way. We came in and we said unless we grow the economy, we're not going to overcome our obvious problems. You can't cut cut and effect growth outcomes. Sure where we find egregious examples of stupid expenditure or expenditure that there's no longer sustainable or it's unaffordable by all means.
Rationalize that.
But as I said, unless we unleash the animal spirits of entrepreneurialism, risk taking, and minimize the imposition of red tape, you're not going to get that new wave of economic renaissance in New Zealand.
And that's what Treasury now needs to focus on.
I think that I think that economic policy is beyond fiscal policy. Economic policy, I'll tell you one thing there we did and I lead, which was to enable the marine farming industry to grow by extending all current permits till twenty fifty. Just think about what I said. If you have a marine farming permit at the moment, bang, you don't need to renew it until about twenty fifty.
Well, the dough is.
Pouring in as I speak, into that segment of the New Zealand economy because people know that they won't be.
They won't be done over.
By zealous bureaucrats, they won't be gained by environmental groups or Hapoo's trying to close down their business on the spurious basis of I don't know rare sea sponges or something like that. All of those opportunities for gaming I've stopped, and we need to do the same thing with vegetable growing.
Verse.
We're about to bring vegetables in from Thailand, I'm told because vegetable growers cannot meet these exacting water quality standards that have been imposed on them. It is truly astounding that we're allowing this sort of thing to happen in New Zealand's in my view, in terms of economic policy and what treasure can help us. Shep it through. There's a lot of those statutory consent barriers. We should just be done away with them. Well, how did they such
other challenges? How did such are the challenges? How did they invade? How did they invade in the first place? Well, successive groups of politicians have blindly followed the advice of officials, not pushed back.
And past.
Blithely a variety of policy statements, and then they've been interpreted by regional and local government.
You already know this story.
I recall Building saying a few years ago that town and country planets of Auckland had more power than the Prime Minister. And of course, when the regional councilors try to rain in the town and country planets or whatever the how they're called. Now they're told, oh, you're at governess, this is executive, so then they have the ability to exercise a normalous authority.
I'll give you a perverse example in New Zealand, if you want to.
Put up a shelter about, it has to be three meters in from the road, if it's an artificial shelter about.
So just think about this.
Were meant to be looking after elite soils, so you can grow tuck up, but you're not allowed to use the three meters in from the road. You have to have a shell about if it's an artificial and three meters but if, however, if it's planting a row of trees, it can be right on the road. I mean, just stupid, my numbingly foolish things like that. And if you add them all up, it does impede productivity. But who's responsible for that. You go to the mayor doesn't even know
it's happening. You go to the councilors. They try to something about it. Oh you're going to go to the CEO, goes to the head of planning, and nothing happens, so I believe, which is what I've done for the regional sorry for resource consents for marine farming not flew away with them.
That's what's happened.
Places going to flower and those of us who enjoy eating the bounty of the ocean, We're going to see lots more of it for exports and domestic purposes.
I should ask you your your thoughts on the current debate and battle, even with regard to the ownership of the coastline.
Well, I read this morning that a judge and I have to I don't want to revisit big fight I had last year and I dismissed the judge as a communist.
I've moved on from that.
But I saw that a judge has needed to allocate customary title. I think that Court of Appeal decision that liberalized the interpretation and simplified the process for hapo's to get their rights recognized in the Seabedd and Foreshaw environment. It's being largely corrected by the Supreme Court passing and
issuing a judgment late last year. But at a deeper level, the more uncertainty that one introduces, then the more barriers you're putting in the way of those who want to invest or those who want to turn those spaces into enterprise, whether it's expanding ports, whether it's creating other enterprises, and we just can't afford it. Look, look, look, we've created a situation in New Zealand where we've got a regulatory edifice that is unaffordable for a tiny population of five
million people an economy of four hundred billion GDP. We just cannot afford to bear the dead weight burden of.
All of these regulations.
And obviously David Seymour's endeavoring to strip them everywhere I find them in my area, they are being eviscerated. I told you what I don't know marine farming. I'm about to do a similar thing with fishing. We're going to
do a similar thing with mining. But as I said, these are relatively smallest areas in our economy, but in some regions they're incredibly important because they're large scale employers and they generate doe for us and for the listeners who understand economics, said no, that exports beings, fresh money from an alternative, from an external source absolutely what the country needs.
There are two areas that that are of a considerable concern. Let me let me deal with electricity first, the power supply and the government. The government launched a review to ensure electricity market is fit for purpose. The one person that I that I rely on for solid, sound, sensible, accurate information it says. It says we are on the verge of total total collapse. Mm hmm, well you've I might have exaggerated that, but only very slightly.
Yeah, now you've followed what I said I once den I in New Zealand. First, we've long concluded that the current structure that represents electricity industries no longer fit for purpose. It was, it was introduced and it's calcified since the mid to late nineties. Sadly, we only got six percent six percent of the vote last time around, so we're unable to bring our.
Reform agenda, which was substantial.
And where I'm the Associate Minister of Energy and there's a new guy, Minister Watts. I'm hoping he brings substantial wattage rhythm and the options that may be contained in the reports by the Commerce Commission and the Electricity Authority, that we make a move on them, because it's going to have a deathly.
Impact on our economy.
If our economy, if our if security continues to diminish, but affordability.
Continues to spin out of control.
And I put productivity problems in New Zealand at the feet of energy before I put it anywhere else.
I've not heard anybody say that before. They may have, but I haven't heard it. And it's sound and principled and correct. The new rules to be introduced that require fuel companies to hold at least ten days of jet fuel near the country's busiest airport to provide resilience against supplied disruptions currently either being introduced or have been introduced. You update me.
Yeah.
So, several years ago there was an incident south of Fargada where a digger ruptured the pipeline coming out of Marston Point.
That pipeline was eventually.
Repaired and a report was inevitably produced. Amongst other things, it called for the fuel companies to store more fuel for aviation purposes on site somewhere near the airport. Fast forward five or six years jacket happened. So at the end of last year told the fuel companies the game's up, passing regulations. If you want to stay in New Zealand, you have to do it, and surprise, surprise, they all
agreed to do it. The sad thing is that they've been promising to do it for the last five or six years, but for reasons I don't even go into all this program, it never happened.
Is it a good thing to do?
Well, it's never a good thing to rely on regulation, certainly when market participants keep promising to do it. But anyway, that's why it's going to take places. We're going to boost our resilience.
All right. Was the destruction of that pipeline and its entirety warranted.
Well, the pipeline was ruptured somewhere near Marson Point.
It still exists. Now.
The difficulty is, in the event that we have a similar outage, we need to have a backup source of fuel. That's the guts of it. There will now be a backup source of fuel. I'm not saying that the pipeline will be molested again, but hey, one needs to have contingencies, and that's basically what the outcome is.
Indeed, in conclusion, let's go back to where we started.
Sure, the.
New president who was the old president. It's waste of time saying that. Now Trump yesterday late last night signed an executive order with regard to the World Health Organization. America is pulling out of it. It's also pulling out of the Paris Accord as well, which was to be expected. But the World Health Organization is the one that attracted my attention most of all because I agree with Well. I agree with his interpretation of things and his attitude
toward it. I don't know about you exactly, but I would I would welcome a government that withdrew New Zealand from the WY show.
Yeah.
Well, I wrote an article before we came back into politics pouring spawn upon that organization and basically saying that it had failed New Zealand of course, but it's a sort of place where you're likely to find Helen Clark and her ilk so they don't like the way New
Zealand first thinks about these things. But look, we're definitely doubting Thomas's about the usefulness and quite frankly, the fact that the World Health Organization has proven to be an institution that undermines the sovereignty of nations like New Zealand. As the position of the party, but once again you have a situation where New Zealand first, until we can
garner more electoral support at a future election. Our ability to unilaterally force any governments that were a part of to withdraw from international global organizations.
Heah, as should I say? As we can progress?
But any of your listeners, they simply have to google our historic position and they'd see that we're very much doubting Thomas's about that particular organization?
Was that article you wrote published and.
The New Zealand Herald. Yes, was published in the New Zealand Herald. So when was that off? Say, let me think twenty twenty three, maybe August, September, July, somewhere back there. I've got a lot of I got an enormous amount of feedback for it.
It's worth following up. Put it that way.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I would say so.
Now, if you were to draw up a list of matters that we haven't touched on, I suspect it would be fairly lengthy. And I know what's I know what's going to happen, that there's going to be requests for more. So can I get a commitment from you down the track?
Yeah?
No, I've always regarded a sort of peer in your pocket. But I've always regarded Laton your style of journalism, but also you're an interrogative style as being very rare and extremely extremely valuable for those of us who occupy not only positions of public importance, but I also enjoy listening to public public discourse. You have a great role to play and I'm and I'm up for talking to you again, mate, I mean obvious white HONGI.
This year.
We will will be served up some polarities. David will come defending the work that he's doing in relation to the Treaty Principal's Bill. The Maori Party will turn up with a various set of verbal diarrhea flows, which will be a type of recruitment device and further evidence of trying to radicalize a new generation.
But the vast majority of.
Us, Mate, will be in the middle, wanting to focus on the economy and focus on the issues that draw people together, because we know that Boss, our constitution and the Treaty and entitlements are very important and citizenship must be always defended. Unless we can continue to grow the economy, we're not going to have the surplus to maintain the quality of life that we've taken for Grunted.
Very well, stated, I suspect no, I don't. I would like to think that what we've witnessed so far in Washington, in the last in the last couple of days, and even back to back to the election, would have an influence on some leadership in not just New Zealand, but in Australia specifically outside of outside of our borders, because there is inspiration needed and there are some people who need a good kick in the backside. I appreciate your commentry.
I don't adjust to flattery well, but I will suggest that my wife will accept it with gratitude.
Ah go make you take care.
Bye, Thank you Shane, by bye.
Missus producer, Welcome Back Later, Podcast number two hundred and seventy. You've had about sixteen weeks up only twenty twenty five. Did you have fun? Why do you look?
I think we had great a tremendous amount.
I don't know about we. Did you have fun?
Great fun? Every day is a good day. And we had a wonderful Christmas and New Year, spent it with wonderful friends. Christmas and then you are their close friends.
This was in This was in Sydney, and we sort of overdid things of it On the occasion.
Speak for yourself, buddy.
That was coming home too early.
We had a great time, and I hope everybody else did too, because it's been a lovely summer.
All right.
So Podcast two hundred and seventy, let's see what we've got.
Laighton Gin says in twenty twenty four, we learned three important lessons from history. First, miracles do happen. Despite the constant defamation from mainstream media, the weaponization of law by the Democrats, and the second assassination attempt on his life. Donald Trump's return as the forty seventh president of the US is nothing short of a miracle. Secondly, one person can make a difference. You mentioned Robbie Starbuck, a Hollywood music video director who turned into a one manned army
against DEI. He and his team manage to pressure Walmart Harley, Davison Ford, and many others to abandon their DEI policies. And Thirdly, boundaries are compulsory for human flourishing. We have to protect children from being castrated by trans ideology, protect the country's borders from unwanted immigrants, and protect free speech from being stifled. In twenty five, I look forward to three things firstly that Justin Trudeau will be deposed in Canada.
Secondly that more woke companies go broke, starting with Jaguar, and third lee that I get to listen to Leyton Smith's podcast three hundred. I know it's been said many times by others, but it's worth repeating. Thank you for doing God's work and speaking truth to power in your podcasts later you make every Wednesday a real joy. Can't wait for this year.
And here we are in this year of twenty twenty five, and it's only the beginning. I listened intently to your replay podcast. Now before I go on, I've got a number of letters on this particular podcast that was replayed. I'm not going to read them all because you can share them or share them response, but it was very interesting.
I listened intently to your replay podcast The best of Professor Paul Merrick on January fifteenth, following Your Query, he mentioned that prior to the pandemic, he was a regular reader of publications such as Scientific American, The Lancet, and other related publications, but has since realized that much of the information appears to have a bias. Your query relating to his views on Staatens is of concern to me because, as my own doctor has suggested, I consider their use
due to my personal cholesterol levels and atrial fibrillation. Best regards from Karl. The one thing I would say, and this applies to everyone when it comes to statin's. I know I've had my thing to say about them. I would put it this way. As far as advice is concerned,
and I don't give advice, it's my personal thoughts. What you need to do is, if you're concerned about staatens is research them for all your worth, talk to as many medical people as you get the chance to, and make your own decision, because there are people around who swear by them. Actually, I know somebody who's been on one for twenty years and recons It's kept all Leydon.
Liz says, firstly, best wishes for a happy, successful and healthy New Year. I emailed you last year when you celebrated fifty years in broadcasting, saying that I hoped to achieve the same thing in my own career. In April this year, the gold card will arrive. And although that through years of tax paying I have earned it, I'm
fortunate enough not to have to rely on it. At the ripe old age of sixty four, I have been promoted to head a fifty million New Zealand dollar business, something I am so pleased to have achieved while I still have health and mental capacity on my side. As a very wise old and still working boss of mine said when I told him, the news age is nothing only a number. What is important is passion, energy and talent.
As I head into twenty twenty five in my new role, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't just a little nervous. However, his words and your example will stay with me as I take on the challenge of driving our business forward. Liz, from me somebody of a similar age, I salute you. It's amazing.
I guess who got their goal card over Christmas? Now from Steve, Welcome back, Laden and missus producer. I trust that you had a great refreshing break and a recharge to tackle the year ahead. I have no doubt that this coalition will live or die by its performance in this calendar year. The Maori nonsense of partnership and co governance must be put to bed once and for all.
When mari Elites can finally be forced to accept and understand the treaty was signed by hundreds of individual chiefs and not a united nation deserving recognition as a unified country pre European settlement. If they were unified, then why is there not one settlement encompassing one nation. It has become tiresome that we still have Marie government named entities. This coalition needs to live up to its promises. The year needs to put climate change to bed once and
for all. CO two is the source of oxygen through photosynthesis and is zero point zero four of the gas. So when will these thick, uneducated individuals start telling the truth. I wish my wife and I were twenty years younger so we could leave this joke of a country. I wish you all the best and keep up the good fight. Steve plenty of value in that letter, and you're going to get plenty of what you want. Well it it
feels that I've said this elsewhere. It feels like the I don't know that the douve has been lifted off the bed in the height of summer and we are free to say what we want to, and damn it we will.
Leyden Brett says, isn't it interesting the world over that the same basic manipulations of people goes on today as it always has. Nothing new under the sun. These things are extremely well known and well studied, yet we keep falling prey to manipulation as if we are unaware entirely, and humanity has learned nothing from its own history, which
we keep repeating. It's like humanity can't or won't break free of our primitive hard wiring and bad habits, even though we have the potential within us to do so. In New Zealand, we suffer from long term poor governance, yet can't seem to find our way out of the cycled trap. The blind leading the blind, as it were, What will it take to shift us out of our malaise and find a path firmly anchored in integrity, wisdom and highest good? Are we even brave enough to undertake
such a journey? That's from Brett.
Brett very well said what do we need? Not do we need? Isn't hasn't it? I mean this is being said all along, but seeing that we've been away and not had a chance to broadcast, I will just keep saying it in various ways.
We need clever people from overseas who want to come and live here.
We need to add to thee and people with money, and people with money who wish to dispense with it appropriately.
Business acumen is what we need.
We need fewer people with no brains.
Okay, well that's short and sharp.
Thank you so much, Latent for replaying your interview with Paul Merrick. I was fortunate enough to listen to your first interview with him when his book Cancer Care was banned from Amazon. Listening to your introduction to this replay was very welcoming, with you stating the book is now available on Amazon again, the second edition which I received today. Nathan, I hope that you get out of it, or you've got out of it what you're looking for. Let me know.
Layton David says, maybe the answer to the woes of education are summed up in this quote from Winston Churchill. Schools have not necessarily much to do with education. They are mainly institutions of control where certain basic habits must be inculcated in the young. Education is quite different and has little place in school, and one might say that
until the end University, says Dave. The children are pupils and on entry to higher education, the term student may become applicable depending on results.
So I listened to your podcast with Michael Johnson of the New Zealand Initiative. I ah, this is a very good email listener from Rob. I listened to your podcast with Michael Johnson of the New Zealand Initiative. I recently retired as a UK trained educational psychologist who worked in New Zealand for fifteen years and can inform you as to the reasons for the many failures within the educational
system here. There is a lack of standards and a consistency so that school and classrooms range from excellent to appalling. This was described in a Radio a New Zealand article and podcast which I contributed to in twenty nineteen. If your ideological views are a barrier to such a national mandate over regulation, I would point out that the Leaky Homes FIESCO was quickly resolved with a building code of practice, short to the point and said with some.
Experience Latin Chris says, welcome back to a world that seems saner now that President Donald Trump has brought common sense to the Oval Office. The attached article and he attaches something to you from the spectator Laton from the thirteenth of July. It's oddly prophetic, he says, as to the lead policies of Donald Trump. The article describes a coming populist revolution, which I think started at the fifth
of November election in the States. Perhaps news A politicians would do well to understand what their people really want, lest they fulfill Jordan Peterson's prediction of a silk war sparked by people feeling hated on because they have the wrong color of skin. That's from Chris and he says success is when you look back and the memories make you smile.
Just re listening to some old podcasts podcast two sixty one with Anthony Willie. In this one you mentioned some new climate change research that had just been released. Just wondering if you could please direct me to it. Listen intently to your podcast and re listen to a few, especially now as there is a gap in new releases. Keep up the great work. Don't know what we would do without your diligent work. Regards to missus producer. Also she is a delight to listen to. Peter Peter Peter,
thank you, Anita. I don't know that I've heard from Peter before, but I could have. It's been quite a few Peter, appreciate all of that. With regard to that podcast two sixty one, I honestly cannot remember what it was, but if I get a chance, I will re listen to podcasts two six to one and see if that can direct me. But I'm going to have to find some spare time somewhere. I don't know quite how I'm going to do it.
I'm looking forward to Leyden having his next holiday because now that he's back, he is in the studio twenty three hours a day. Yes, and you enjoy it so much, Layton, don't you?
Twenty two hours a day. I enjoy it. The other hour is a reserve for frustration, Leighton.
The last one from me is from Paul. As a chef by trade, albeit one who has been in and out of the hospitality sector for over thirty years. It was comforting to reflect whilst listening to the conversation with the great Tony Estell. I have worked as a chefferd and around Auckland for years. To Tony Astell reflect on his time as the chef at Antoine's brought forth a flood of memories In the restaurants where I worked. The conversation occasionally broached the subjects of the best restaurant and
chef in Auckland. On many occasions, the answers were unanimous. Tony Astell and Antoine's. Your conversation with Tony was a nice change from some of the more serious topical discussions over the last year. All those discussions were of massive importance, but chatting with your friend Tony Astell was a great way to end this year's series of podcasts. And then Paul says, I look forward to next year's run of podcasts.
And again here we are, and wasn't.
Tony listening to Tony fantastic?
Tony was the first person in the worl. We've made a meal of this at the time as our pardon the pun. Tony was the first person to do it from the studio here. Now that's at least one more.
We walked past Antoine's what was Antoins the other day, didn't we? And I hope it's a very six tessful business because somebody else is in there. But it was so sad to see that it was.
It's not a restaurant he bought, It's a tailor shop.
Yes, exactly. It's a shame anyway, Tony's wonderful.
Finally, this was sent to me by someone. Well, I'll read I'll read it. I sent an email long ago but never received acknowledgment. So this time I found a definitive way great living in a country was no parliament in operation. Trudeau truly, yes, he's writing from Canada. Trudeau truly has screwed Canadians into the ground. Over nine years, He's rejected over half a trillion dollars of investment, purely because he's been captured by his Prime Minister's Office advisor,
mister Butts, who has to be a communist. Tragic is how tragic is how I describe Canada today? Three point listen to this. Three point seven five million visits in twenty twenty four to just one Ontario food bank alone. Hundreds lined streets in a line in the snow just to hopefully sign up for a doctor who offered five hundred new patients for the opportunity. One man in the line hadn't been able to get on a doctor's patient list for ten years. These people have no doctor, So
you get the picture. Trump tariff threat goes down this Saturday for every one. Canadian government has done nothing to stop precursors for fentanyl manufacturing coming through Vancouver Port and subsequently used by Mexican cartels in BC Canada to manufacture fentanyl then shipped to the US and everywhere else there that you're still above ground. Apparently our souls live on, so I may bump into you in the afterlife. God bless you, you old bugger. I hope this gets to you.
The plumber Bill wrote to me quite a while back. He did, and I'm positive that I responded to him, but it was a goodbye letter, so you'll never hear from me again. Well, here you are, and I think you're realizing that I might have had a point or three when you decided to go. And it's sad, but I miss you. I have to say that there's a lot of people I miss, but I do miss you, and I do think about you more more than you
think of me. So there this is produced. On that note, we shall see you next week.
By the way, I've just googled Liz who wrote the letter. She's just starting the new business.
Liz.
I want to know what you're doing now, and you look amazing. You do not look anything like sixty four. I'm off now.
It's just a beauty consultant with you know.
We people have to we sixty four year olds have to stick together.
You look younger by the day. Anyway, we shall see you next week, shall we?
Yes?
Is that all right?
It's the date?
Okay, Maybe we'll put it together better next week. It's probably not. It's been so exciting getting back. So let me pick up on some issues that are very important and need much more attention, and I'll do it this way. I was at dinner recently, and also at the dinner was and I was sitting next to me actually was a twenty three year old from overseas, and the subject came up about what bothers young people these days, and the one thing he said, nothing bothers me, really, except
I'm concerned about climate change. And he wasn't addressing me at that time, but I said to him when he paused, I said, where did you get this information about climate change that's got you so upset? He didn't seem that upset, to be honest, but he said that that was his greatest concern, and he said, well, from school. And I asked him what they were taught, and basically he outlined
what we all know. So I told him he had been misled badly, and he said, well, where am I going to find the information that will back up what you're saying? So I thought about it for a couple of minutes, and I suggested to him that he listened to the two podcasts that we did in the early days with doctor Tim Ball, because both of them were very good, and I know that he has now would have listened to them because he was very keen. He said, and if you got any books, I'll get them and
I'll read them. So I recommended Tim Ball's book. I went through my list of books at home, my pilot books on this particular subject. I thought, no, Tim Ball's actually very good. Well he was, because he's now deceased, sadly, and I want to quote you from the Deliberate career eruption of climate science by Tim Ball, and I could read your half the book, but I won't. There have, been, of course, other sad deceptions throughout history, but all of
them were regional or at most continental. The deceptive idea of human generated CO two causes global warming or climate change impacted every person in the entire world. Thus it reflects Marshall mcclewan's concept of the global village. This book shows how the deception was designed to be global by involving every nation through the agencies of the United Nations. Historians, with the benefit of twenty twenty hindsight, will wonder how such a small group was able to achieve such a
massive deception. There are several reasons why the public was deceived, and there's nine of them. They're all short. The objective and therefore the science were premeditated. The scientific focus was deliberately narrowed to CO two from the start. Accountable government agencies were involved and in control science and political structures and procedures were put in place to enhance the deception. Actions were taken to block or divert challenges. The people's
natural fears about change and catastrophe were exploited. You think the public's lack of scientific understanding, especially with regard to climate science, was exploited. You think times two. People find it hard to believe a deception on such a grand scale could occur. That's a very important one. People find it hard to believe a deception on such a grand scale could occur, and finally number nine opponents were ruthlessly attacked,
causing others to remain silent. Then I turned the page and is using examples, considered this brave but late admission by German physicist and meteorologist Klaus Echard plus plus plus And here is what Klaus Eckhart plus wrote ten years ago. I simply parroted what the IPCC told us. One day I started checking the facts and data. First, I started with a sense of doubt, but then I became outraged when I discovered that much of what the IPCC and the media were telegus was sheer nonsense and was not
even supported by any scientific facts and measurements. To this day, I feel shame that as a scientist I made presentations of their science without first checking it scientifically. It is sheer absurdity to think we can get a nice climate by turning a co to adjustment. Knob now Timbore comments, if someone so knowledgeable about the subjects of meteorology and atmospheric physics can be so readily deceived, it is not surprising that the general public was deceived to scores the
effectiveness of the deliberate and carefully orchestrated climate science deception. However, it also underscores the problems of writing a book that identifies what they did and how it was done. Just a short take from the deliberate corruption of climate science, and you can still buy the book. Of course, Timball died. I think it was in twenty one, very sadly well, not too long after we interviewed him with regard to his victory over Michael Mann. Now let's turn attention to
something a little more local across the Tasman. Ala Moran wrote in on January twenty nine, actually wrote in Spectator magazine, to rescue our economy, quote unquote, Trump signed Day one orders to end all Biden restrictions on energy production, terminate his insane electric vehicle mandate, cancel his natural gas export ban, reopen anwrn a lee Asca, the biggest site potentially anywhere
in the world, and declare a national energy emergency. So he terminated Biden's Green New Deal, pulled out of the Paris Accord, and castigated the Davos elites who could do nothing more than acquiesce in his triumphant procession. Among the measures is a freeze on two hundred and eighty billion dollars for green energy said to have a very negative effect, and the Wall Street journalist declared climate change ideology is dying and the corporate world is reacting. Goes On gives
some from examples, including in Australia. Now when we come to some New Zealand matters, and they're very recent, firstly by data publication on January twenty nine, headline Luxon's credibility on the line was tomorrow's climate target announcement. There we go to what followed. Simon Watts just harpooned the Prime Minister's Going for Growth plan was published on the twenty sorry published on the thirty first of January. Added is
damning from the New Zealand Taxpayers Union. At eight pm last night, presumably to avoid pickup on the morning news shows, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts released New Zealand's twenty thirty five nationally determined contribution to combating climate change under the Paris Agreement. The target, which locks unavoidable agricultural omissions into New Zealand's international targets, are even more ambitious than the twenty thirty targets made when Jacinda Aderner James Shaw flew
to Glasgow. They will cost future taxpayers literally tens of billions of dollars in penalties. The Taxpayers Union executive director Jordan Williams said Adern's fifty percent emissions reduction by twenty thirty target was ludicrous. Treasury estimates that in just five years taxpayers will be on the hook for up to twenty four billion, that is twelve thousand per New Zealand household.
The government has now signed us up for another bill for five years later to not only lock this cost in but go even harder for twenty thirty five is economic sabotage. What city's cabinet colleagues are not going to be around in a decade to have to pay the bill, but are doubling down on Paris at the very time,
the very time our trading partners are pulling back. Robert McCulloch, by the way, professor of economics at Auckland's University, wrote a very good piece Christopher Luxon's Ministry of Economic Development may as well be a ministry of silly walks. I recommend its reading. There is one more from the Taxpayers' Union. The National Party was once seen as the Party for farmers,
but it seems that's no longer the case. The Taxpayers Union can confirm that CLI Change Minister Simon Watts refused multiple requests by New Zealand's largest farming group to meet ahead of his decision to ramp up the countries already twenty four billion dollar Paris Agreement contributions. Taxpayers Union spokesman James Ross said, what is Simon Watt's job because if it's taking a balanced approach to stakeholders, is not doing it. Quote.
Publicly disclosed ministerial diaries show Minister Watts is happy to get cozy with anti agriculture activist groups like Greenpeace, the World Wildlife Fund and the Ayata Rower Circle, but his staff would not even reply to emails from Federated Farmers. Nor did Watts meet with Beef and Lamb or even a Chamber of Commerce in formulating his Paris target agriculture
accounts for half hour missions. Forget just Mann policy. Not meeting with major stakeholders in the industry the minister has announced he plans to decimate is either extreme arrogance or severe incompetence. Well, how about a combination of both national MPs We're more than happy to join protest marches against James Shaw and Jacinda Adurn's climate policy. It's one thing to get into government and adopt the same policies, It's quite another to ghost the stakeholders who got you there.
And finally, if you'll bear with me, because I think it's important. I received this from Ellen Mandeno or Mendano from the Methane Science Accord, who asks and says I would appreciate it if you could please share this press release from the Methane Science Accord regarding the recent emissions reduction targets. Thank you in kind regards. Now, I don't think I've ever spoken with Helen, or certainly never met her, but I looked at it, read it, and I thought
this must be shared. New Zealand government nagh eve and confused. New Zealand farmers are aghast at the environmentally ignorant and economically inept greenhouse gas emissions targets announced by the coalition government last week, even worse than previous targets from the Green Party playbook. The Nets have now shown their anemically weak understanding of science and have instead taken the impotent
option of simply demanding higher generic targets. We thought we had a coalition who understood the economy, who could see through rampant extremism in climate change positioning, and would acknowledge the fact that Kiwi farmers are the best in the world producing more food with lower emissions. We are the only sector in the world that actually utilizes a greenhouse gas as part of our food production through photosynthesis process
and the only sector with an offset. Pasture raised livestock are net sequesters of greenhouse gases, but is ignored by our own sector as this doesn't suit their current ideology. These targets are not only unnecessary and misguided, they now fast track the destruction of the integrity of our world class red meat protein production as we loom towards feed additives and expensive interference with natural methane processes through a
myriad of pointless vaccines, boluses and misguided genetics. The real shame is the waste of taxpayer money and science resources that will be diverted even further toward chasing methane fairies. ILike that toward chasing methane fairies instead of genuine R and D. The government is asking for a fight on
this and a fight they will get. We will need individual farmers mobilized in order to do this, as our own sector leaders have simply appeased and agreed all in the name of gaining accolades, funding and avoiding embarrassment around the one billion dollars that has been squandered on methane reduction to date. Us to Watts needs a cold bath of reality. At the very same time that his own
government demands increased production and growth. He has just cut the wings off the golden goose that would have paid for hospitals and healthcare that we already cannot afford. The sad reality is that all New Zealanders will pay for these misguided targets through even higher energy and food costs and continued slower economic growth. Prepare for more pine trees
at a further decline in our sector. From James Smith, Methane Science Accord founding member, New Zealand Representative, Global Farmer, Roundtable environmentalist and free range farmer. The very, very powerful and potent and I repeat myself commentary and I hope it inspires many of you to react accordingly. Who would have thought that this government that got swept to power would have taken such a dumb, ignorant idiotic approach. Now,
I do you think that's too dramatic? You're not yet aware of the damage that's being done by this supposedly supposedly conservative government or is that an exaggeration? Now, anyone from the government is welcome to get in touch and we'll talk further if you wish to defend it. But on the fact or on the basis that Simon wants mite even talk to the biggest farming people, I don't
expect any acknowledgement. And on that happy note, we shall depart from podcasts number two hundred and seventy but it's time for people to speak up more than they ever have before. I'm still stunned that this government is taking this approach. Now, if you want to correspond with us, go for your life later at NEWSTALKZB dot co dot nz and Carolyn with a why don't forget crol Yn at NEWSTALKZB dot co dot Nz. We shall return in a few days with podcasts number two hundred and seventy one.
Until then, thank you for listening, thank you for your patience, and love to hear from you, and we'll talk soon.
Thank you.
For more from US Talks at b Listen live on air or online, and keep our shows with you wherever you go with our podcasts on iHeartRadio