If National wins ...

[iceman]

Herein lies the idiocy of interest free student loans. They are a big mistake. There is no insentive to be responsible with regards to how much you borrow nor trying to pay it back as fast as possible. An election bribe gone seriously wrong costing the country BILLIONS and our young people a lot as well. There are no free lunches so we shouldn´t try to tell them that. But Helen saw no other way of winning the elction back then !

Our daughter has one of those loans, still on the increase until she graduates. It's part of the negatives I feel about NZ, why couldn't we set procedures, economy and taxes up so that all of our tertiary students get the nearly free education they used to get? Sure, there would have been stricter entry standards than now. But the system used to work.

Your article shows that there can be fine-tuning to the repayments system, to make it more polite and complied with. Penalty interest is a bad start, if it's excessive. I have an employee who didn't complete uni a few years back, and is paying off his student loan by drip-feed via PAYE. I know he has enough money in the bank to pay it off in full, he doesn't spend anything much, literally. But the miserable sod will just pay it off bit by bit, he probably begrudges every cent, and knows it's an interest free loan.

[elZorro]

EZ, do Labour do this sort of stuff in nz
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/...mpton-marginal

Remember I told you about engagement, engagement, engagement ......

Many thanks for that W69, I think I should forward the article on. I think the same way, it's getting the cash in to do these jobs, that can be hard. You also need someone dedicated enough to work on door-door work, unpaid, for two years, and to be selected well in advance of the elections by the local party members, to allow that to happen.

Great Q&A programme today, dragged out some of the bad stuff National has been up to over the last year or so, put Andrew Little in a good light, gave me a few ideas.

[Major von Tempsky]

The Flag Referendum

. _ It's a brilliant diversion and has no show of succeeding now that Anzsac and the RSA have given the signal. But it shows John Key is open to new ideas and the electorate is more conservative than he is.

The Surplus

It's a trap for Labour, all they can say is we will spend more heavily than National and take the country deep into Deficit!

National MPs Aspirations

On the basis of 3 terms in 3 terms out, younger, ambitious National MPs are contemplating their political careers. this can only serve to heighten tensions internally. This could well boil over in late 2016. _ Healthy tensions, healthy competition.

John Keys Post PM Career

He'll be there for a 4th term just like Keith Holyoake and rather better than Helen Clark. Get used to it.

[winner69]

Many thanks for that W69, I think I should forward the article on. I think the same way, it's getting the cash in to do these jobs, that can be hard. You also need someone dedicated enough to work on door-door work, unpaid, for two years, and to be selected well in advance of the elections by the local party members, to allow that to happen.

Great Q&A programme today, dragged out some of the bad stuff National has been up to over the last year or so, put Andrew Little in a good light, gave me a few ideas.

Rewards are greater for that woman and Labour in the UK as winning seats mean everything (no MMP)

But the basic premise remains ......engagement and even more engagement from passionate people will help Labour, esp if they get those who are not sharing in the growing wealth of this country on side.

[elZorro]

The Flag Referendum

. _ It's a brilliant diversion and has no show of succeeding now that Anzsac and the RSA have given the signal. But it shows John Key is open to new ideas and the electorate is more conservative than he is.

The Surplus

It's a trap for Labour, all they can say is we will spend more heavily than National and take the country deep into Deficit!

National MPs Aspirations

On the basis of 3 terms in 3 terms out, younger, ambitious National MPs are contemplating their political careers. this can only serve to heighten tensions internally. This could well boil over in late 2016. _ Healthy tensions, healthy competition.

John Keys Post PM Career

He'll be there for a 4th term just like Keith Holyoake and rather better than Helen Clark. Get used to it.

This is more like it MVT, are you prepared to have a wager on that?

[Daytr]

Student loan issues are multi faceted. The cause is the growing cost of tertiary education which prevents some socio economic groups from even considering attending & that needs addressing. We have gone along way down the path of a flawed American model. A lot of work that was previously available to union students are now taken by foreign labour, so it doesn't help students trying to pay for their education & then there is the interest free issue which devoids responsibility. A low interest rate say at least the official cash rate probably makes sense or perhaps the rate of a 1 year fixed mortgage.

[Daytr]

The latest from Bill English. Apparently Kiwis care more about winning the rugby world cup than achieving a surplus. Perhaps they do, however as National have no control or input into the former perhaps they should actually deliver what they have promised for years & actually have responsibility for being the latter. Does English think the NZ public are idiots & buy this baloney!

[elZorro]

The latest from Bill English. Apparently Kiwis care more about winning the rugby world cup than achieving a surplus. Perhaps they do, however as National have no control or input into the former perhaps they should actually deliver what they have promised for years & actually have responsibility for being the latter. Does English think the NZ public are idiots & buy this baloney!

Yes, they do. Note they have been saying the same thing in several different ways, for the last few weeks, and they'll keep doing it, until everyone is brainwashed. This method has always worked before. By 2017 we'll all have forgotten what a budget surplus looks like. It never existed, it was never promised.

[Daytr]

Well they might but they are wrong.

Agree MVT's comedy routine is far better than homophobic slurs!

[Sgt Pepper]

I agree, and now that NZ first are better established, at this early stage I'd pick a coalition of National, Act and NZ first as the next government. NZ1st will be far more useful to Key and National with Ron Marks back in the fold, and ultimately destined to replace Winston..

The human brain is a complex organ with the wonderful power of enabling man to find reasons for continuing to believe whatever it is that he wants to believe.”
― Voltaire