Live Breaking News & Updates on ந்ஸ் முதல் அடித்தளம்
Stay updated with breaking news from ந்ஸ் முதல் அடித்தளம். Get real-time updates on events, politics, business, and more. Visit us for reliable news and exclusive interviews.
'We need big money out of our democracy': Greens swipe at Labour over tickets to meet Ardern msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Labour Party donation case: Six appear in court to face SFO charges (Photo / NZ Herald) Mon, 24 May 2021, 2:03PM Six people charged by the Serious Fraud Office over allegations of an unlawful Labour Party donation have had their first day in court. The accused were called before Judge Brooke Gibson and a full press gallery of journalists this morning in the Auckland District Court. This isn t a jury trial is it? Judge Gibson joked of the reporters sitting in the jury box. Not a very good jury, he uttered. Much of what was discussed during the 20-minute hearing, however, was suppressed by the judge, including the identities of the accused. ....
Peter Wilson Analysis - For a government that s acutely aware of political risk the action it took to curb public service pay was a bewildering aberration. Jacinda Ardern flanked by Grant Robertson, left, and Chris Hipkins, right. Photo: RNZ / Dom Thomas I can t make any sense of it, said Heraldcolumnist Shane Te Pou, a former Labour Party activist. How can the modest fiscal savings involved possibly offset the obvious political cost of inflicting an effective pay cut on tens of thousands of frontline workers who, after all, comprise a significant chunk of Labour s base? That was typical of the reaction at the beginning of this week to last Wednesday s announcement. The criticism became a torrent until the government met unions and, as Stuff reported, hit the reset button. ....
“As the matter is before the courts, we won’t be making any further comment,” Salmond said. In July 2020, SFO director Julie Read did not elaborate on the particulars of the investigation, which appeared to have blindsided the party. Michael Bradley Chief Executive & Director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), Julie Read. At the time, Labour Party President Claire Szabo said the party had not been advised of the specifics of the inquiry into the donations. However, she noted that two men being investigated by the SFO over donations they made to the National Party had also made donations to Labour. She said donations were above board. ....
That sends a message to us in the political system that we should be looking at the way our regime works. Clearly, it s not currently, so let s do something about that, Ardern told reporters on Thursday. Some of these issues that are being investigated across four different parties relate to donations that have been made to them and haven t always implicated the parties themselves. But I think that still is incumbent on us to go away and say this isn t a good environment for anyone - for any political party, but also not for New Zealanders. They want to have confidence in the system so let s look at the law. ....