Jacinda Ardern is resigning!

[MrsMarkRonson]

Didn't see that coming?! I know her popularity has dipped somewhat, but I didn't think she'd leave before the election? wondering if she was being pushed out?

It's fascinating to me how widespread the irrational hatred is. While I can't see my octogenarian Aunt posting some of the things shared in that video, she quite volubly voices her hatred, same for many other members of the family. Most of them have benefitted from Labour's policies enormously. While mistakes were made toward the end of NZ's border closure, these same family members have not held other politicians to the same account for their mistakes (John Key assaulting a waitress, anyone?). One of my family members genuinely believes some of the misinformation circulating about Clarke Gayford. Not one person I have asked (see @Freedo2023 above) has been able to point me toward even the shakiest evidence for decisions Ardern or her government made that "destroyed NZ" beyond the existence of a global pandemic and economic crash. I find the normalisation of this level of scapegoating and hatred really disturbing, actually.

I do too, and that clip was a shocking insight into the online communities where this stuff is created, shared and used to rile each other up.

I obviously knew there was misogyny directed towards her, but I’d never seen it in black and white full technicolour like that, before.

I’ve said it before - social media will be the downfall of democracy.

Who in their right mind would support their partner, let alone their child, to go into politics in this environment?

It’s not even vaguely worth it. It doesn’t pay well enough, and all the well-paid (private sector) jobs don’t come with the vile abuse every day. 🤷🏻‍♀️

No decent people will stand. All you’ll be left with will be the flotsam and jetsam of society - Trump, and his ilk.

Nah they treat NZ like an escape pod for the moment. You wouldn’t turn down their money on the low risk that the entire world is gonna go to shit, would you?

This vitriol is normal tho? Look what they say about Boris and Trump, even on here. I don’t think she ever got as much flack as they did, didn’t they make a Trump baby balloon and fly it in public? Or recall that one comedienne who tweeted herself holding Trump’s severed head?

tbh you’ve got to have rhino skin to get into politics. Always has been like that

Florida is booming, 15th largest economy in the world, up from 17 in previous years! Florida is lucky to have DeSantis in charge for real.

nypost.com/2022/08/03/florida-beats-ny-in-new-business-openings-in-2021-data

That's good to know - but the last time I checked Florida wasn't a country!

I couldn't find the exact excess death rate for Florida during the pandemic, but this data suggests it was overcontributing to the overall excess death rate of the US, which is between 10 and 25%. NZ's is -10%. But hey, as long as the economy is booming everything is fine, right?

Comparable to a European country in size and population and the federal government doesn’t control state response so yeah, it actually is worth mentioning.

The economy is obviously a big consideration and the lockdowns were a huge factor in causing the economic misery now felt worldwide. A good leader needs to balance those (and other factors) and not double down on harmful policies. Even China eventually had to ‘let it rip’ as u like to put it

The difference is "letting it rip" pre and post vaccine, and you are missing the point that NZ spent very little time locked down in comparison to most countries, specifically because of Ardern's labour government policies. Relatively speaking, the "economic misery" was limited, and largely caused by overreliance on tourism and housing growth in the NZ economy, issues identified by (e.g.) Sir Paul Callaghan as problematic way before the pandemic.

Also, death is pretty bloody miserable, both for the person dying, and the people that love them.

missing the point that NZ spent very little time locked down

Auckland was pretty long wasn’t it?

The difference is "letting it rip" pre and post vaccine

Well Sweden did better than its Scandinavian neighbours that locked down pre-vaccine tho, so maybe it just didn’t make that much of a difference

and you are missing the point that NZ spent very little time locked down

They closed the borders and I knew many Kiwis absolutely desperate to get in because of family tragedies but they couldn’t. In a tiny country with a lot of overseas workers, that does in fact matter. I don’t think some will ever forgive her for that

Relatively speaking, the "economic misery" was limited, and largely caused by overreliance on tourism and housing growth in the NZ economy

Genuine question, but if not tourism what kind of economy could a tiny, isolated island hope for? Be thankful I suppose that you aren’t (for now) as poor as other Pacific Island nations because of your traditional links to the UK?

Genuine question, but if not tourism what kind of economy could a tiny, isolated island hope for?

While an important industry, international tourism is still less important to the NZ economy than domestic tourism. The country does do a few other things other than wave tourists through the arrivals gate, like, oh, export more wine to the US than any other country except France and Italy, for example?

Be thankful I suppose that you aren’t (for now) as poor as other Pacific Island nations because of your traditional links to the UK?

If you lumped every single other island in the Pacific together, they'd cover about a tenth of New Zealand's land mass. Apples and oranges.

Genuine question, but if not tourism what kind of economy could a tiny, isolated island hope for? Be thankful I suppose that you aren’t (for now) as poor as other Pacific Island nations because of your traditional links to the UK?

Um, maybe farming, which has always been a major source of income. As for the traditional links to the UK - er no, NZ has much greater links to China!

Note I said traditional

export more wine to the US than any other country except France and Italy

Forgot about NZ wine, it is very nice 🙃

She leaves the country in possibly the worst state it has ever been and just walks away.

Indeed. My NZ friend is relocating to the UK in May, she can't WAIT to get out. Ardern imposed a two-tiered society and one of the most draconian lockdowns in the world.

Again, what is the evidence for the claim "worst possible state"? Even if you only focus on economics that simply isn't true. Also, I would like evidence for the claim that Sweden has "done better" than its Nordic neighbours post closures.

And yes, NZ had closed borders for a long time. I was one of the people desperate to get in. At the end of that process, my citizenship rights were essentially completely and probably illegally revoked (people where I were could not even apply to enter NZ). That doesn't change the fact that NZ itself, even Auckland, which spent 100 days in lockdown, spent very little time in lockdown. It also does not mean I think Ardern or her government (because lets face it, she didn't run the country singlehanded, no-one does) are the worst EVAAARRRRR like so many people on here are claiming.

Another thing NZ exports, and what Paul Callaghan made very good arguments for doing more of, is ideas. Commercial bungy jumping, the dish drawer (made loads of money in Israel as it makes it easier to keep kosher), jet boats, the cool cap technique for protecting preemie brains? All from NZ. Callaghan's argument was that actually, both tourism and farming produce low value for the human effort, and that high value, low volume components and ideas were the best way forward.

"tradtional" has nothing to do with it, and as a pp mentioned the Pacific Islands are so much smaller than NZ that you can't compare them. The UK really has little relevance to most people in NZ, we are in the Asia Pacific region and that is far more important to us. People in the UK seem to think the UK is more important to NZ than it actually is.

Well that is your friend's choice, but every day here I hear British accents (and I live in a rural town, not a city) so obviously it is very much two way traffic. If you are trying to tell us the UK doesn't have a two-tiered society I suggest you read a few MN threads. As for the state of the NHS my DF is in hospital at present, having been taken there by an ambulance because he was delirious, and the ambulance arrived in a short space of time. He has had several scans to find the problem and is now on a ward and being looked after extremely well -all this in less than a week.

As for the person who said She leaves the country in possibly the worst state it has ever been and just walks away. - how old are you? I can remember times far worse than they are now, including a time when many farmers walked off their farms and had to start all over again, and when I purchased my flat interest rates were in the 20% range.

Worst possible state? Worse than Robert Muldoon left it in - on the verge of bankruptcy? Do give over.

People in the UK seem to think the UK is more important to NZ than it actually is.
I've never had this impression at all. NZ is certainly still very keen to recruit people from the UK in some sectors though - mine in particular. However, my experience of living and working in NZ was that salaries, opportunities for career progression and standards of living are generally low when compared with the UK. My family in NZ would agree with this too.

Curious to know more about this if you're happy to oblige.

Domestic tourism hasn’t bounced back as presumed it would as people just don’t have the excess funds to afford it. Food prices (not inflation related) went up on November by 11% just as one example.

I went to the hairdresser yesterday, couldn’t do that during all of the nz lockdowns. She is struggling to be able to afford re-stocking of shelf products.

i re-fixed a loan the other week. Our preferred customer rate is 6.49%. Floating is well into the 7% mark. It’s jumped in one year from the 3.50% odd I had it fixed at for 1 year.

Internationally even when borders opened very few airlines serviced NZ. It’s still starting up now, emirates have announced their CC flights will shortly recommence. I’m booked to go to Aussie in May, $nzd300 more each ticket whereas pre covid booking early meant a good price. Not any more…

International shipping wasn’t allowed into nz and it’s my undersydbdjng there’s still 200 ships outside waiting to be allowed to dock and unload. Nz imports a huge amount of product and shelves have been bare. We do have a lot of empty containers though which probably adds to the world wide shortage as the ships simply stopped coming to NZ during lockdown.

an incredible number of hospitals businesses went under. Landlords still wanted their rent but as cafes and the like were not able to open, the business owners had no choice but to close the door and terminate employment.

agriculture is facing massive issues such as three waters proposal and it’s possible the incoming PM will make changes. This is a major issue but clearly from various news items was JA’s pet project, which her party colleague may back away from.

Cost of fert and sprays has gone through the roof. Chook feed went up by $400 per tonne so now nz eggs are being exported as the major supermarkets will not increase their payments from $3 per dozen. To set up a new shed without chooks is now over $1m. It’s a big outlay and when Singapore and Dubai pay a substantial amount more for nz eggs, it’s a no brainer for the chook farmer.

building industry was suffering from a one dominant supplier issue anyhow, and the govt ‘allowed’ and Aussie supplier to send in some containers of elephant board (gyprock) to assist with shortages. We are still having to pre order our materials from major suppliers

pre Christmas a chicken kebab stick (marinated pieces of chicken on a stick) was $2 each. I was a bit hungry so stopped at a takeaway for a couple. $4 each now.

i have an aged relative living in a care home and during lockdowns, I was unable to visit. She said she wouldn’t have cared to have caught covid and they should have stayed open, but the impact of loneliness for people like her not being able to have relatives visit was massive.

these are only a few examples of where NZ finds itself now. The Who said lockdowns were not a long term solution to fighting covid and no one in power here was listening. As I said previously the police were charged with the responsibility of driving through supermarket car parks to ensure we all were wearing masks and keeping our distance. People were being stopped along roads that were no where near internal borders and questioned as to their movements.

that’s not a democratic or “kind” society in operation right there.