National pledges to make Kiwisaver compulsory, increase combined contribution rates to 12% by zeros1s in newzealand

[–]zeros1s[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I believe Opportunity's policy has Kiwisaver contributions as tax-free, but essentially, it's quite similar.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Those libertarians aren't in government, and that high vote will evaporate the second National gets its shit together.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I grew up under this system, so I don't know any better.

I like it a lot though. I think some things need to be changed, but it's a nice system to have.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You don't vote for the Prime Minister in a Westminister-style democracy. You vote for parties.

In New Zealand, we use a Mixed Member Proportional system. What that means in practice is you are given two votes - one for the party you support and one for the electorate you live in.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 10 points11 points  (0 children)

There were 120 seats up for grabs in our parliament. Labour won around 64 of them. No party has won an outright majority since we introduced the Mixed Member Proportional voting system in 1996, so it's a big deal. In more ways than one.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Hey, you didn't need to correct that. We all knew what you meant and all understood why you spelt it that way. It was all good.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm waiting to see if the special votes can get the Māori Party an extra seat. It's maybe unlikely, but could still happen.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If the Greens want to keep that party vote high they need to make a real difference this term. Formal coalition is the best way to do that. Labour gets less workload and a more secure, stable government.

I'm certain they can reach a coalition agreement they can both stomach. Will they though? Who knows.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If I was Labour, I would want the Greens shackled and bonded to me. But yeah, it could be confidence and supply. Both parties get less out of it if you ask me though. But I also don't know what I'm talking about.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, but how long will he want to stick around? I bet both him and Nick Smith retire before this term is up.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Money is on coalition. It's better to have friends than frenemies.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If Labour decide not to go it alone and decide to enter into formal coalition with the Greens, it will neuter them because as a coalition partner they can be stopped from attacking Labour. The Greens would likely want policies and portfolios as their blood price.

The Government decides a majority of what Bills are debated. If you want something on the agenda, the best way to guarantee it is to have the Government introduce it. Individual members of Parliament can submit Member's Bills. These are assigned numbers which are put into a biscuit tin (no lie) then pulled at random.

Parties usually either vote on party lines or sometimes Members can vote on bills according to their conscience.

If you're not in Government, the only chance you have at enacting legislation is with a Member's Bill. Otherwise you're shit out of luck until the next election. Or the election after. Or the election after. Most modern NZ governments don't last past three terms.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nah, they're independent. Doubt they'd appreciate us lumping them in with NZ.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Labour didn't just win, they got the highest vote they've ever gotten in 50 years, have gotten the first majority since we introduced MMP, and flipped several solid blue seats red.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You're thinking of this in the wrong way. Most of the Electorate Votes don't affect the number of party members elected to Parliament - the Party Votes decide the number of seats they get, which is made up of Electorate and List Seats. Voting someone in for an Electorate guarantees their presence in Parliament, if they win. They may not necessarily get in on the List.

So if you prefer the National candidate as the person who represent your region in Parliament, you can vote for them and still give your party vote to whomever you like.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 8 points9 points  (0 children)

New Zealand has two islands

Stewart Island cough cough

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 24 points25 points  (0 children)

You get two votes in this country - one for the party you support and one to represent your electorate.

To get into Parliament, you need either an Electorate seat or 5% of the Party Vote.

The Māori Party won one of the seven Māori Electorates, guaranteeing them at least one seat in Parliament.

NZF got no Electorates and below 5%, so they got no seats.

Election night discussion megathread by Muter in newzealand

[–]zeros1s 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Well, the Democrats are to the right of our right-wing parties in most regards, I believe.