Labour govt 2020-23

[nztx]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/132...t-at-the-pumps

'The country is stuffed': Petrol pain is back and not just at the pumps

Ahead, a man whose already topped up his van has now turned his attention to a collection of containers, filling them to the brim and pausing between each one to shrug a “sorry” at the waiting cars.

“This is going to save me about $15 at most,” says Crewe from his Holden, adding he’s not angry at his fellow motorists but at what they’re being forced to do.

“The country is stuffed... When you’ve got people queueing to save a few bucks on gas, it proves it.”

And, as budgeting advisors warned the double blow will only worsen the lives of already struggling New Zealanders, Kiwis rushed to pumps around the country amid warnings not to stockpile.

“People can’t afford to live any more. We're living week-to-week like everybody else, and cutting back where we can, but it’s not like I can say, ‘I can’t come to work because I can’t afford to get there’. Petrol is a necessity.”

Lara Dolan, chief executive of the Māngere Budgeting Services Trust, says that’s exactly the problem: transport is essential and Kiwis don’t have any fat left to trim from their expenses.

“What we can see is people currently spend about $50 -$100 per week on petrol... Bear in mind, those who access our service are already struggling.”

Dolan says that while the return of the fuel tax might seem paltry when compared to other costs, its effect shouldn’t be downplayed. ”It might only add up to $15, but that’s $15 people just don’t have.”

brought to everyone .. by a bunch of incompetent Labour clowns

[nztx]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/cri...dreds-affected


'Held to ransom': Immigration boss targets growing migrant scam, hundreds affected

A rapidly-growing immigration scam targets overseas workers who pay big bucks to come to New Zealand, only to find themselves out of a job once they’ve arrived. Steve Kilgallon investigates.

“Sometimes,” says Liu*, “we think it would be better to jump into the sea.”

He’s been left penniless and starving by a new immigration scam that could be affecting hundreds of new migrants – with a senior official from Immigration NZ (INZ) admitting the problem is “number one on my list”.

A statement from the newly-appointed Immigration Minister Andrew Little did not directly answer a question

Time for one of those "They are managing okay" moments - Andy ?

In reality they probably properly skrewed .. but in eyes of a few asleep in Govt Beehive Seats .. that means okay and time to go back to snoring and dreaming away as if nothing happened

[iceman]

In 2013 there were approx 3.4 million vehicles on our roads.
By 2023 that figure had increased to estimated 4.5 million vehicles on our roads.
That's whats gone wrong.

You don't think the extra million plus vehicles might have something to do with the increase in road toll ?
Would have thought the answer to that one was glaringly obvious.

Also remember back in the first decade of 2000's the road toll was higher than it is now.

And I should add, our infrastructure, roads, bridges, motorways haven't been able to cope with the increase.

https://www.statista.com/statistics/735099/new-zealand-currently-licensed-vehicles/

Excuses excuses excuses for the failures wherever we look at this Government.
You may have missed the fact that safety features in cars have improved immensely in the last few years and many of us are now driving cars that are highly unlikely to crash into other cars or other road users barring some idiotic out of control moves.
The increased road deaths in NZ has come despite Waka Kotahi's ridiculous speed reduction campaign, not to mention the very expensive and infamous "Road to Zero" waste of time & money.
At the same time we have a Government that in 5 years has not started any new roading projects.

I just had a quick look at Norway with a similar population as NZ and slightly fewer cars and the trend is steadily down https://www.statista.com/statistics/...nts-in-norway/

[iceman]

Meanwhile, other countries are starting to phase in EV road charges to recognise that EVs also use roads & transport infrastructure and need to contribute to their upkeep.

Not so in NZ as this clueless Labour government know only to sting motorists via a multitude of charges via fuel at the pump.

As an EV owner, I find it ridiculous that we do not contribute our fair share to road building and maintenance. With the technology available in new EVs today, it is easy to implement online and automatic road user charges per km traveled..

[Blue Skies]

As an EV owner, I find it ridiculous that we do not contribute our fair share to road building and maintenance. With the technology available in new EVs today, it is easy to implement online and automatic road user charges per km traveled..

Im not sure what the fuss is about, as I understand it (& happy to be corrected) the EV road user charges exemption has only been extended to next March, to incentivise NZ's fleet transition to EV's & hybrids which helps us reach our emissions targets.
It has less than a year to go.

Interested to see National's road user charges based on km's travelled, which overlooks the impact different size & weight & emissions of vehicles, have on road surfaces, other drivers & emissions targets.

[Daytr]

As an EV owner, I find it ridiculous that we do not contribute our fair share to road building and maintenance. With the technology available in new EVs today, it is easy to implement online and automatic road user charges per km traveled..

All combustion engine car owners subsidise the trucking industry with the damage to roads caused by trucks far out weighing the contribution collected through RUC.

But let's focus on EVs that are actually good for the environment and light on road wear.
If trucks paid their fare share, the argument for more rail would be a lot stronger.

[Blue Skies]

Excuses excuses excuses for the failures wherever we look at this Government.
You may have missed the fact that safety features in cars have improved immensely in the last few years and many of us are now driving cars that are highly unlikely to crash into other cars or other road users barring some idiotic out of control moves.
The increased road deaths in NZ has come despite Waka Kotahi's ridiculous speed reduction campaign, not to mention the very expensive and infamous "Road to Zero" waste of time & money.
At the same time we have a Government that in 5 years has not started any new roading projects.

I just had a quick look at Norway with a similar population as NZ and slightly fewer cars and the trend is steadily down https://www.statista.com/statistics/...nts-in-norway/

That's right, put over an extra million vehicles on our roads between 2013 & 2022 , 800,000 extra people, and the 124 higher road toll is all this governments fault!
And "most of us are driving cars that are highly unlikely to crash into other cars...." Really ?

C'mon mate, next you'll be telling us this weather, like everything else is all this govt's fault.

For a National ACT supporter, how about advocating for a bit of personal responsibility.

(And btw overall our road toll has been trending downwards, its lower now than it was in the early 1990's/ early 2000's but there will always be outlier years.)

[Logen Ninefingers]

Labour seem to now be running an ‘open borders’ immigration system, anyone and everyone flooding in & invariably there are very nasty scams emerging as a result. A Peruvian woman says: “But the agent promised that after one year, I could get residency and sponsor my parents and brother to move here too.”
So she was to come here for a year, then the parents and the brother get a ticket to NZ to burden our health and transport and housing infrastructure that they have paid nothing towards.
The immigration system itself is the scam: a scam on behalf of the greedy property industry, skin-flint employers, and our lazy and ineffectual government. A scam against NZ citizens who paid taxes all their lives for our hospitals, roads, wastewater services etc etc etc.

——————

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/hold-h...NEAXF5OZDQV4Y/

‘A 24-year-old Peruvian woman who has resorted to sex work to repay loans she took out to move to New Zealand is among a spate of South American immigrants being duped by job and visa scams.

The head of an organisation helping victims says she is aware of about 250 people from South American countries who have arrived here since the beginning of the year on work and visitor visas — many of whom are victims of scams promising jobs that lead to residency.

The Peruvian woman borrowed close to $32,000 from gang-related loan sharks to pay an agent for an allegedly high-paying job and visa arrangements. After landing in New Zealand from Lima with just a visitor visa, the woman quickly realised there was no job and she had been scammed.

The woman’s South American family had thought she would be their ticket out of poverty, but they are now facing death threats after missing a payment of a loan amount that is increasing by the day. In desperation, the 24-year-old has turned to sex work - which is unlawful for migrants in New Zealand on temporary visas - to repay the debt.

The Peruvian woman said she was promised a job paying $43 per hour to manage Spanish-speaking migrant workers at a construction company.

“We needed about $32,000 to pay for the visa, agent’s fee, job offer, flight and one month’s accommodation. But the agent promised that after one year, I could get residency and sponsor my parents and brother to move here too,” she said.

“The only way we could get that money was to borrow from illegal money lenders, who are linked to gangs in Lima. When I arrived in Auckland in May, there was no job, no accommodation, nothing.”

The woman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said gang members threatened to shoot her father after they missed their first payment.

“I couldn’t stop crying, and when I shared my story with a Chilean lady I met at the backpackers where I stayed, she introduced me to sex work,” she said.

“I am desperate, I don’t know what else to do. I want to go home to be with my family, but if I do that, then maybe all of us will be dead.”’

[Getty]

All combustion engine car owners subsidise the trucking industry with the damage to roads caused by trucks far out weighing the contribution collected through RUC.

But let's focus on EVs that are actually good for the environment and light on road wear.
If trucks paid their fare share, the argument for more rail would be a lot stronger.

An incorrect statement, and a common myth.

Even a small diesel car at an average weight of 1.16 tonne on 4 skinny tires as fitted, lays on the road at the same pounds per square inch, as a 44 tonne loaded truck sitting on 28 tires of at least double the width, and greater the circumference.

LTA, the waka people who collect Road User Charges have calculated this correctly.

If you further calculate that the car will have a horsepower ratio of at least 68 per tonne versus 10 to 14 for the truck, the car is far more likely to break traction, a wheelie, especially with front wheel drive, versus the truck, even though the truck is driven proportionately through less wheels.
If you further consider the truck spends some of its time running empty, or partly loaded, vs the 1.16 tonne tare weight car carrying 440kg of people and shopping, the trucks are seriously subsidising the cars!

Going back to the original statement, petrol combustion cars pay no RUCs whatsoever, so are getting a free ride, compared to the trucks!

Historically, 5 sixth of the cost of diesel has been in taxes, so the trucks are well and truly getting rorted!

[fungus pudding]

An incorrect statement, and a common myth.

Even a small car at an average weight of 1.16 tonne on 4 skinny tires as fitted, lays on the road at the same pounds per square inch, as a 44 tonne loaded truck sitting on 28 tires of at least double the width, and greater the circumference.
.

So a kid on a pogo must be causing a heap of damage! Ban them.