In Hamilton we have a leftie (Paula Southgate) with a National type (Andrew King) neck and neck for the vacated Mayor's spot. It could go either way by Thursday. I agree with your comment about independents, and Phil Goff would have used the blue colour to hold centre ground. He was still the Labour leader for a while, I think that rules out any chance he thought he was in the wrong party. Some people out there are delusional.. like FP.
Again National has to admit that their policy settings are a bit off.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/politi...f-new-migrants
Dropping immigrant numbers from 100,000 over 2 years to 95,000, it's a very tentative step in the right direction. After all, did any of us decide we want to increase the population of NZ by 4% a year, including natural increase? If net immigration dropped to zero, that would stop house price increases for sure. Within a couple of months or so, according to that chart I posted a while back. So announcing a policy change this far out from the 2017 elections means it's a small change, meant to show they are doing something, when really they aren't. Immigration must continue apace, if the govt wants to show a growing economy!
I'm contracting in one of these new immigrants for a few weeks. His wife is pregnant, they probably hope to stay here. I have trouble understanding him, he probably says the same about me, but he has trouble with the simplest jobs, and he works at about 1/2 the speed of a competent worker, yet he's trade trained. He's probably being paid well over twice the wage rate he got in his former homeland, but he'll need all of that for rent. I would not employ him, given the chance. Why was it a smart idea to allow him and his wife into NZ? Is this sort of process going to make us more productive here? He could well end up on the dole. I'm not sounding very Labour-Like am I? But these are National's policies, they'll end up biting us in the backside.