The pathway to more privatisation

"If they weren’t all so capable, the Government could be accused of cronyism", wrote Audrey Young a couple of days ago.

The quote should have won a Partisan Excuse Award at the Atlas Awards - but you know how it goes.

Audrey was smoothing over the horror spreading across New Zealand after TVNZ's BeenADick Collins revealed the cushy high paying gigs that current National Party MPs had dished out to former National Party MPs.

Much of the nation reeled in horror when it was reported that Chris Bishop had appointed Steven Joyce on a $4,000 per day short term contract for leading a panel advising the Treasury on the design of a new infrastructure agency promised by the Government.

That agency connects projects with investors = Huge Money.

The rest of the former Nat MPs clipping the taxpayer ticket at this particular point in our economic cycle - were not much worse off - around $2,500 per day.

The obscenity of this kind of money being doled out to mates while National is at the same time promising to deeply cut consultant jobs in the Public Service - taking away support for the carers of the disabled - and offering a $2.15 per week tax cut to those who really need some relief - was not lost on the majority of Kiwis.

It was all so bloody wrong.

Christopher Luxon said something like - we should not conflate money for mates with austerity for the bottom feeders. They are two different things - gotta keep em separated. One rule for mates another for the masses.

There was a wider crony context here - when it came to Joyce and I am not referring to flying dildos smashing into his face in blurred slow motion.

Many recalled a June 2023 tale about how Steven Joyce was paid nearly a Million Kiwi Dollars between December 2019 and December 2022, totalling $966,000 - signed off - by Waikato University professor Neil Quigley ( Son of Derek - co-founder of ACT 1994 along with Roger Douglas ).

In July 2023, Christopher Luxon announced a National government would spend $300m on a new medical school at Waikato University, which would only admit students with a degree and require them to study for four years, rather than the five required for undergraduates.

There was a stink about the University losing it's political independence over this perceived crony business - but some lucky players in the private sector are lining up to get awarded a big juicy contract out of this development.

My guess would be somebody affiliated with the NZ Initiative - so it was no surprise when in February 2024, the University of Waikato and Ministry of Health signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop a third New Zealand medical school in the Waikato region.

The University is now working with the National Led Government on the next steps in establishing the medical school, including a business case, with a view to the first intake of 120 students starting in early 2027.

You may recall that Joyce is also the guy who reportedly failed his economic papers and who was laughed out of town over his fictitious $11.7 Billion hole in 2017.

National could not find an economist who agreed with Joyce at the time. Perhaps it was this very special kind of "competence" that Audrey is so impressed with I suppose?

Clearly to Audrey, Steven Joyce is worth every penny, and he has a regular column in the NZ Herald, where his points of view are consumed and well known to her.

Audrey also admired Murray McCully ( $2,200 per day thanks to Erica Stanford ) and I quote :

"McCully seems a little over-qualified to conduct a review of school property systems, along with his co-reviewers Mark Binns, the chair of Crown Infrastructure Partners, and civil engineer Tracey Haszard. The high-powered team spells one thing: they won’t be producing a report setting out the blindingly obvious - that building costs have blown out and derailed the Ministry of Education’s building programme. It will be a major rethink of who should be responsible for school property planning, building and maintenance." - wrote Audrey Young.

Yes "a major rethink of who should be responsible" sounds like the steps towards "PRIVATISATION" again - and over the past weeks some of you may have recalled similar comments - "who should be doing this?"

emanating from National politicians - signalling the usual neoliberal Atlas Network pathways to privatisation.

But I found this even more delicious ...on 6 June 2015, Audrey Young wrote about McCully in relation to the Saudi Sheep Scandal :

"Mr McCully is known as something of a cowboy who does things his way or not at all. His paper to the Cabinet was clearly written in his own office without some of the usual cautions that would accompany a paper with more rigorous input from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Most seriously, it gives no caution to the Cabinet about how the $4 million could be seen as a facilitation payment which, while legal in New Zealand, is considered bribery in many countries." - Audrey Young NZ Herald 6 June 2025.

"If they weren’t all so capable, the Government could be accused of cronyism" - ha ha ha.

Thirdly Sir Bill English was appointed by Chris Bishop on 18 December 2023 ( $2,500 per day for about 100 days ) to lead a review into Kāinga Ora - which includes the remit and performance of Kāingo Ora functions as well as including operating scope, organisational form and structure, governance, and subsidy and funding arrangements with the Crown. Smells like a partial privatisation - as parts of the public service territory are hocked off to local housing developers. Sir Bill's report is due today.

In 2009, Sir Bill ( just Bill at the time ) was receiving about NZ$900 a week as part of a living allowance for ministers, to live in his own NZ$1.2 million Wellington home. The double dipper from Dipton eventually paid the money back but in 2017 Sir Bill admitted that he had been aware of the illegal recordings made by Nat MP Todd Barclay - and the settlement, and thus Sir Bill was implicated in the scandal.

Pretty capable indeed Audrey!

None of this Neoliberal crony behaviour and steps towards privatisation, come as any surprise when you consider the way the Atlas Network has such a grip on the Nat front bench of Cabinet - not to mention Act.

Heck they even have a seat as Chair of NZME - who Audrey depends upon for a living.

There were other contracts doled out too - like Goldsmith ( the over stepper at Te Papa ) appointed Roger Sowry - a former National Party deputy leader ( from 2001 to 2003 ) onto the Ministerial expert panel to come up with a Plan B for the Cook Strait ferries after Willis cancelled the replacement ferries at some huge cost.

Breaking contracts is expensive and as per usual Willis had no idea how much when she rushed to break them.

I think we should remain very vigilant and track who gets their hands on the money as a result of these "reviews and inquiries" as a result of the cronysim on display.

That would be a great project for an investigative journalist - especially the links back to the Atlas Network.

"If they weren’t all so capable, the Government could be accused of cronyism", wrote Audrey Young a couple of days ago.

The pathway to more privatisation

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