Politics Central

Samoa was plunged into a constitutional crisis when the woman who won an election last month was locked out of Parliament and the previous leader claimed he remained in charge.
The fast-moving events marked the latest twist in a bitter power struggle that has been playing out in the small Pacific nation since it elected its first female leader. Not only is Samoa's peace and stability at stake, but also its relationship with China.
On Monday morning, Prime Minister-elect Fiame Naomi Mata’afa and her supporters showed up at parliament to form a new government, but were not allowed inside.
She and her FAST Party later took oaths and appointed ministers in a ceremony held under a tent in front of the locked Parliament, actions that opponents said were illegal.
The nation’s Supreme Court had earlier ordered the Parliament to convene. And the constitution requires that lawmakers meet within 45 days of an election, with Monday marking the final day by that count.
But Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, who was prime minister for 22 years before his unexpected election loss, doesn't appear ready to give up power. He was already one of the longest-serving leaders in the world.
TVNZ Pacific Correspondent Barbara Dreaver told The Weekend Collective that it is tied up with the courts, with the Court of Appeal hearing a case tomorrow over whether a new seat should be added.
"The HRPP want to go back to the polls, but I don't believe that will do them any favours."
There are also 14 legal cases going on around electoral seats, while the FAST Party's swearing-in ceremony has also prompted a legal challenge. 
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Samoa was plunged into a constitutional crisis when the woman who won an election last month was locked out of Parliament and the previous leader claimed he remained in charge.
The fast-moving events marked the latest twist in a bitter power struggle that has been playing out in the small Pacific nation since it elected its first female leader. Not only is Samoa's peace and stability at stake, but also its relationship with China.
On Monday morning, Prime Minister-elect Fiame Naomi Mata’afa and her supporters showed up at parliament to form a new government, but were not allowed inside.
She and her FAST Party later took oaths and appointed ministers in a ceremony held under a tent in front of the locked Parliament, actions that opponents said were illegal.
The nation’s Supreme Court had earlier ordered the Parliament to convene. And the constitution requires that lawmakers meet within 45 days of an election, with Monday marking the final day by that count.
But Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, who was prime minister for 22 years before his unexpected election loss, doesn't appear ready to give up power. He was already one of the longest-serving leaders in the world.
TVNZ Pacific Correspondent Barbara Dreaver told The Weekend Collective that it is tied up with the courts, with the Court of Appeal hearing a case tomorrow over whether a new seat should be added.
"The HRPP want to go back to the polls, but I don't believe that will do them any favours."
There are also 14 legal cases going on around electoral seats, while the FAST Party's swearing-in ceremony has also prompted a legal challenge. 
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The Act party wants to give school principals the power to award high-performing teachers potentially thousands of dollars for their work.
Under Act's policy, a $250 million fund would be divvied up annually, giving schools roughly $5000 for every full-time teacher it employs.
Act leader David Seymour said the school's principal would then award that money to high-performing teachers or use it to attract those who teach hard-to-staff subjects.
Schools would need to develop criteria to help guide its principal on how to allocate the money, Seymour said.
"It's a way of making sure that good teaching and teaching excellence is rewarded ... in the way that it would be in most sectors of the economy.
"The fact that the best and the worst teacher in New Zealand are paid the same and the only way they can be paid more is to serve time, I don't think is in the best interests of New Zealand's children or the future of our country," he said.
When asked if the reward fund could create conflict within a school, Seymour said similar schemes operated in every other part of the economy.
"When people say 'education's so different, this can't work', really? Look at the rest of the economy. Most people accept that people get paid differently in a workplace according to the policies of the workplace and I don't think education is that much different."
The New Zealand education sector's "dirty secret" is that its policy is driven by unions that want one contract for every teacher, Seymour added.
"Because they are so politically organised, they've been able to dominate education policy for decades. The Act party says it's more important that we have the flexibility to get the right teacher in front of the right classroom at the right time and the ... fund is something that will do that."
The party also proposed new standards teachers would have to meet when renewing their practising certificates.
Seymour said Act would ensure primary and intermediate teachers undertake professional development in maths, science and technology, and English, as well as te reo me ngā tikanga.
"These would include minimum standards, for example all teachers should work towards NCEA level 2 maths at a minimum. It's difficult to be inspired to excellence by someone who themselves failed Year 12."
Seymour unveiled the policies at the Act Party's Annual Conference - Honest Conversations - in Auckland.
It is the party's first conference since its best-ever election result.
Act received 7.6 per cent of the vote in the 2020 election - which meant after six years as the party's sole MP, Seymour was joined by nine new MPs.
Act members also met this morning for their annual general meeting, where they re-elected Tim Jago as the party's president.
text by Katie Scotcher, RNZ

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Act party wants to give school principals the power to award high-performing teachers potentially thousands of dollars for their work.
Under Act's policy, a $250 million fund would be divvied up annually, giving schools roughly $5000 for every full-time teacher it employs.
Act leader David Seymour said the school's principal would then award that money to high-performing teachers or use it to attract those who teach hard-to-staff subjects.
Schools would need to develop criteria to help guide its principal on how to allocate the money, Seymour said.
"It's a way of making sure that good teaching and teaching excellence is rewarded ... in the way that it would be in most sectors of the economy.
"The fact that the best and the worst teacher in New Zealand are paid the same and the only way they can be paid more is to serve time, I don't think is in the best interests of New Zealand's children or the future of our country," he said.
When asked if the reward fund could create conflict within a school, Seymour said similar schemes operated in every other part of the economy.
"When people say 'education's so different, this can't work', really? Look at the rest of the economy. Most people accept that people get paid differently in a workplace according to the policies of the workplace and I don't think education is that much different."
The New Zealand education sector's "dirty secret" is that its policy is driven by unions that want one contract for every teacher, Seymour added.
"Because they are so politically organised, they've been able to dominate education policy for decades. The Act party says it's more important that we have the flexibility to get the right teacher in front of the right classroom at the right time and the ... fund is something that will do that."
The party also proposed new standards teachers would have to meet when renewing their practising certificates.
Seymour said Act would ensure primary and intermediate teachers undertake professional development in maths, science and technology, and English, as well as te reo me ngā tikanga.
"These would include minimum standards, for example all teachers should work towards NCEA level 2 maths at a minimum. It's difficult to be inspired to excellence by someone who themselves failed Year 12."
Seymour unveiled the policies at the Act Party's Annual Conference - Honest Conversations - in Auckland.
It is the party's first conference since its best-ever election result.
Act received 7.6 per cent of the vote in the 2020 election - which meant after six years as the party's sole MP, Seymour was joined by nine new MPs.
Act members also met this morning for their annual general meeting, where they re-elected Tim Jago as the party's president.
text by Katie Scotcher, RNZ

British broadcaster BBC, seen as a respected source of news and information around the world, is facing questions at home about its integrity following a scathing report on its explosive 1995 interview with Princess Diana.
Britain's justice secretary said Friday that the government would review the rules governing oversight of the BBC after an investigation found that one of its journalists used "deceitful behaviour" to secure the interview and the corporation obscured this misconduct for 25 years.
Princes William and Harry, Diana's sons, excoriated the BBC late Thursday, saying there was a direct link between the interview and their mother's death in a traffic accident two years later as she and a companion were being pursued by paparazzi.
The interview on the Panorama program came under renewed scrutiny after Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, complained that journalist Martin Bashir used false documents and other dishonest tactics to persuade Diana to grant the interview. As a result, the BBC commissioned an investigation by retired Judge John Dyson, who released a 127-page report on his findings Thursday.
"It wasn't just the decision of a reporter or a production team, there were decisions made much further up the chain about the conduct of these individuals that have now proved, according to Lord Dyson, to be unfounded and wrong,'' Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told the BBC. "And therefore, government does have a responsibility to look very carefully to see whether the governance of the BBC does need reform in the light of these devastating findings."
The BBC, founded in 1922, is Britain's publicly funded but editorially independent national broadcaster. The rules governing its operations are set out in a royal charter that requires the corporation to be impartial, act in the public interest and be open, transparent and accountable. A mid-term review of the BBC's governance is scheduled to begin next year.
Even before the Dyson report, the BBC was under pressure from some members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative Party who believe the broadcaster has a liberal bias. Johnson said he was concerned about the findings and hoped that the broadcaster would make sure "nothing like this ever happens again.''
At the heart of the scandal were documents made to look like bank statements, falsely suggesting that members of Diana's inner circle were being paid to spy on her.
Spencer alleged that Bashir used the documents to gain his trust so Spencer would introduce the journalist to Diana. He also alleged that Bashir made up stories about the royal family to strengthen Diana's belief that there was a conspiracy against her.
When graphic designer Matt Wiessler, who had been commissioned by Bashir to create mocked-up documents, saw the program, he immediately made the connection between his commission and the interview. He brought his concerns to BBC management, but he has long contended that they made him a scapegoat.
He said there is a culture within the BBC that "the little people'' don't need to be addressed. His business faltered after the BBC blacklisted him from assignments.
"Only under duress do we get some sort of apology and some sort of acknowledgement," he told the BBC.
Amid the outcry following the report, the BBC's director-general, Tim Davie, said the broadcaster "should have made greater effort to get to the bottom of what happened at the time and been more transparent about what it knew.''
But the BBC also insisted that it had strengthened rules making it possible to outpoint failings.
"There has been radical change over the past 25 years. We now have a thorough and industry-leading whistleblowing scheme, which provides clear and independent routes to raise concerns and, if necessary, direct access for whistle-blowers to a non-executive director on the BBC board,'' the BBC said. "That is very different to the past. ''
In the...

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

British broadcaster BBC, seen as a respected source of news and information around the world, is facing questions at home about its integrity following a scathing report on its explosive 1995 interview with Princess Diana.
Britain's justice secretary said Friday that the government would review the rules governing oversight of the BBC after an investigation found that one of its journalists used "deceitful behaviour" to secure the interview and the corporation obscured this misconduct for 25 years.
Princes William and Harry, Diana's sons, excoriated the BBC late Thursday, saying there was a direct link between the interview and their mother's death in a traffic accident two years later as she and a companion were being pursued by paparazzi.
The interview on the Panorama program came under renewed scrutiny after Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, complained that journalist Martin Bashir used false documents and other dishonest tactics to persuade Diana to grant the interview. As a result, the BBC commissioned an investigation by retired Judge John Dyson, who released a 127-page report on his findings Thursday.
"It wasn't just the decision of a reporter or a production team, there were decisions made much further up the chain about the conduct of these individuals that have now proved, according to Lord Dyson, to be unfounded and wrong,'' Justice Secretary Robert Buckland told the BBC. "And therefore, government does have a responsibility to look very carefully to see whether the governance of the BBC does need reform in the light of these devastating findings."
The BBC, founded in 1922, is Britain's publicly funded but editorially independent national broadcaster. The rules governing its operations are set out in a royal charter that requires the corporation to be impartial, act in the public interest and be open, transparent and accountable. A mid-term review of the BBC's governance is scheduled to begin next year.
Even before the Dyson report, the BBC was under pressure from some members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative Party who believe the broadcaster has a liberal bias. Johnson said he was concerned about the findings and hoped that the broadcaster would make sure "nothing like this ever happens again.''
At the heart of the scandal were documents made to look like bank statements, falsely suggesting that members of Diana's inner circle were being paid to spy on her.
Spencer alleged that Bashir used the documents to gain his trust so Spencer would introduce the journalist to Diana. He also alleged that Bashir made up stories about the royal family to strengthen Diana's belief that there was a conspiracy against her.
When graphic designer Matt Wiessler, who had been commissioned by Bashir to create mocked-up documents, saw the program, he immediately made the connection between his commission and the interview. He brought his concerns to BBC management, but he has long contended that they made him a scapegoat.
He said there is a culture within the BBC that "the little people'' don't need to be addressed. His business faltered after the BBC blacklisted him from assignments.
"Only under duress do we get some sort of apology and some sort of acknowledgement," he told the BBC.
Amid the outcry following the report, the BBC's director-general, Tim Davie, said the broadcaster "should have made greater effort to get to the bottom of what happened at the time and been more transparent about what it knew.''
But the BBC also insisted that it had strengthened rules making it possible to outpoint failings.
"There has been radical change over the past 25 years. We now have a thorough and industry-leading whistleblowing scheme, which provides clear and independent routes to raise concerns and, if necessary, direct access for whistle-blowers to a non-executive director on the BBC board,'' the BBC said. "That is very different to the past. ''
In the...

Act Party leader David Seymour is concerned the Government is using race at the centre of education.
He's taking aim at Ministry of Education's programmes, including Te Hurihanganui, addressing racism in the education system and improving outcomes for Māori learners and their whānau.
Seymour says he wants to know why it's teaching primary school children about white privilege.
"The Ministry of Education is saying that students should be profiled by race and made to apologise for their racial background. It's astonishing stuff."
His comments come after a student at a Whangārei primary school had to stand up in front of their classroom and say what they had done to acknowledge their white privilege.
But advocates of strategies to "de-colonise" Aotearoa's classrooms say rather than "racialise", such topics actually help dismantle the systemic racism that already exists, and holds back non-Pākehā students, particularly Māori.
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National's claiming South Island water assets are set to be co-owned by Ngai Tahu.
Party leader Judith Collins says the Government is proposing to transfer 50-per cent of publicly-owned water assets, to the iwi.
It's the latest in a series of questions raised by the Opposition Leader, over Labour's interpretation of honouring the Treaty.
Collins says the plan was presented to 23 mayors, and would consolidate all water infrastructure in the South Island into one organisation.
She says mayors have told her, that local councils who have purchased infrastructure through ratepayers, would get no compensation for this.
However, Ngai Tahu is rubbishing the claims. 
Chair of the Ngai Tahu freshwater group Dr Te Maire Tau says it's deceptive and wrong.
He says if Collins had bothered to ask them about the proposal instead of seeking headlines, she would have had the facts sooner.
Tau says the tribe hasn't called for ownership of the assets.
Listen above as Judith Collins discusses the latest claims with The Weekend Collective

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National's claiming South Island water assets are set to be co-owned by Ngai Tahu.
Party leader Judith Collins says the Government is proposing to transfer 50-per cent of publicly-owned water assets, to the iwi.
It's the latest in a series of questions raised by the Opposition Leader, over Labour's interpretation of honouring the Treaty.
Collins says the plan was presented to 23 mayors, and would consolidate all water infrastructure in the South Island into one organisation.
She says mayors have told her, that local councils who have purchased infrastructure through ratepayers, would get no compensation for this.
However, Ngai Tahu is rubbishing the claims. 
Chair of the Ngai Tahu freshwater group Dr Te Maire Tau says it's deceptive and wrong.
He says if Collins had bothered to ask them about the proposal instead of seeking headlines, she would have had the facts sooner.
Tau says the tribe hasn't called for ownership of the assets.
Listen above as Judith Collins discusses the latest claims with The Weekend Collective

Act Party leader David Seymour is concerned the Government is using race at the centre of education.
He's taking aim at Ministry of Education's programmes, including Te Hurihanganui, addressing racism in the education system and improving outcomes for Māori learners and their whānau.
Seymour says he wants to know why it's teaching primary school children about white privilege.
"The Ministry of Education is saying that students should be profiled by race and made to apologise for their racial background. It's astonishing stuff."
His comments come after a student at a Whangārei primary school had to stand up in front of their classroom and say what they had done to acknowledge their white privilege.
But advocates of strategies to "de-colonise" Aotearoa's classrooms say rather than "racialise", such topics actually help dismantle the systemic racism that already exists, and holds back non-Pākehā students, particularly Māori.
LISTEN ABOVE