Articles by John MacDonald
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Opinion
John MacDonald: How do we pay for new roads without tolls?
Wednesday, 13 August 2025, 5:21pmLike anyone, if I can get something for free - I’ll take it. But if it’s something I have to pay for, then I’ll pay it. Which...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Here's why Luxon and Hipkins are neck-and-neck
Tuesday, 12 August 2025, 12:53pmIf I asked you who you would rather go and have a beer with, Christopher Luxon or Chris Hipkins, who would you choose? I’d...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: The stadium train is an excellent idea - let's make the most of it
Monday, 11 August 2025, 1:00pmTOPIC 1 EDITORIAL: STADIUM TRAIN I love this plan for an express passenger train to get people into Christchurch for events...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: All aboard the speed hump bandwagon
Friday, 8 August 2025, 2:22pmYou can tell council elections are coming up, because that’s the only reason the Christchurch City Council is going to start...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: The pawns in Chris Bishop's privatised RUC regime
Thursday, 7 August 2025, 1:03pmWhen I heard Transport Minister Chris Bishop talking about the Government’s changes to the road user charges system, I had...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Is climate change a major issue in Christchurch?
Wednesday, 23 July 2025, 1:07pmPhil Mauger is back on board the climate change bandwagon today – just like he was before the last election. I remember...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Philanthropic funding for new medical school? Pfft
Tuesday, 22 July 2025, 1:14pmLet's start with the positives in the news that the Government is pressing ahead with a new medical school at Waikato University....
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Opinion
John MacDonald: The "overqualified" jobseekers behind the dole numbers
Friday, 18 July 2025, 12:50pmThere’s no doubt the news that the number of people on a benefit in New Zealand is up to the 400,000 mark will have some...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: The Govt's moral obligation to get rid of open-plan classrooms
Thursday, 17 July 2025, 1:20pmEducation Minister Erica Stanford is my politician of the day for announcing that the Government isn't going to be building...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: If you see Shane Jones, tell him he's dreaming
Wednesday, 16 July 2025, 1:08pmAssociate Energy Minister Shane Jones says we live in uncertain times and, because of that, we need to crank up the Marsden...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: This is one piece of Rogernomics that makes sense
Tuesday, 15 July 2025, 12:49pmHow about this for an idea? Instead of the tax people pay on the first $60,000 of their income going to the government,...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Import gas or cross our fingers and hope?
Friday, 11 July 2025, 2:33pmNot as straightforward as it sounds. That’s pretty much the message coming through loud and clear in this new report which...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Boris Johnson fronted-up to a Covid inquiry - Chris Hipkins should too
Wednesday, 9 July 2025, 1:05pmLabour leader and former Covid-19 Minister Chris Hipkins thinks phase two of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Covid-19...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Why do families earning $200K-plus need govt. support?
Tuesday, 8 July 2025, 1:09pmIsn’t it funny how the Government likes to talk about government support needing to be based on need, but seems to forget...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Snake oil political promises have just been given a life line
Thursday, 3 July 2025, 12:42pmWhen there’s an election campaign happening, how much do you care about the cost of the policies the political parties are...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Will police and judges deliver what the Govt wants?
Wednesday, 2 July 2025, 1:01pmThe Government has obviously decided that its law and order week. It started with tougher sentences for people who attack...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: How would you feel about paying more tax?
Friday, 27 June 2025, 1:03pmHow do you feel about the prospect of paying higher income tax rates and more GST? I think it’s inevitable. So does the...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Attention motorists, more user-pays is on the way
Thursday, 26 June 2025, 12:50pmThe Infrastructure Commission's draft 30-year plan is the kind of big picture thinking we’ve been saying is needed, instead...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Weapons in schools are the canary in the mine
Wednesday, 25 June 2025, 12:56pmIf we choose to ignore or downplay this new information out today about kids taking weapons to school, we’ll be doing it...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Capping council rates isn't a solution
Tuesday, 24 June 2025, 12:45pmChristchurch Mayor Phil Mauger is in campaign mode for this year’s elections, saying that he thinks the Government might...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: The Govt.'s into local decision-making - when it suits
Thursday, 19 June 2025, 3:10pmThe Government’s been making it increasingly clear over time that it doesn’t really give two-hoots about local democracy....
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Opinion
John MacDonald: We need a one-size-fits-all life jacket rule
Wednesday, 18 June 2025, 12:49pmHow weird is it that there are different rules or expectations regarding life jackets, depending on where you are in the...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: A closer look at our mental health hospitals is overdue
Tuesday, 17 June 2025, 1:22pmIt was bad enough that a patient at Hillmorton Hospital who had threatened to kill was still allowed to come and go and ended...
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Opinion
John MacDonald: Police cameras yes - with a couple of provisos
Monday, 16 June 2025, 3:13pmI’ve surprised myself a little bit with my reaction to the news the police are looking at introducing body cameras. Generally,...
