David Clark | Issue 6

Posted 11:55am Sunday 10th April 2016 by Christine Edwards

Is student behaviour really getting worse? Is Castle Street going to hell in a handbasket? If you read only headlines, you might believe it is. But the headlines were the same twenty years ago – so what has changed?   When student loans were introduced a quarter of a century ago they Read more...

David Clark | Issue 4

Posted 1:18pm Sunday 20th March 2016 by David Clark

Sometimes good things can be achieved from the parliamentary opposition benches. The fight to end zero hour contracts is a prime example. Students, employers, in fact everyone I’ve spoken to is appalled that zero-hours contracting was ever a thing.  But, where laws are weak, there is Read more...

David Clark | Issue 3

Posted 2:00pm Sunday 13th March 2016 by David Clark

Few people would be surprised to learn that the Dunedin North electorate has more students per capita than any other electorate in New Zealand. The vitality of the tertiary education sector plays a vital role in the city’s prosperity. But how many people know that it also has the most people Read more...

Michael Woodhouse | Issue 2

Posted 3:02pm Sunday 6th March 2016 by Michael Woodhouse

Imagine you’re a shopper in Tokyo. New Zealand lamb is for sale in the supermarket beside Australian lamb. Both products presently have a 38.5 percent tariff applied to them. Those who enter the TPPA will have that reduced by 9 percent, then eventually eliminated.  If Australia enters Read more...

David Clark | Issue 2

Posted 2:58pm Sunday 6th March 2016 by David Clark

Labour has a long commitment to international trade. Eighty years ago, the first Labour Government pushed for increased trade access and the opportunity to grow international markets.  Generally countries only give up barriers to trade when they believe it makes good sense for them to do so. Read more...

David Clark | Issue 1

Posted 1:48pm Sunday 28th February 2016 by David Clark

I enjoy life on campus, and all that goes with it.  I wouldn’t have spent so many years as a student here otherwise. Nor would I have returned to take up my previous job as the head of a residential College.  Otago University has been very good to me. One of the best bits about Read more...

David Clark | Issue 26

Posted 3:38pm Sunday 4th October 2015 by David Clark

Many of you will be preparing for exams. Good luck! After that come some fond farewells, summer and new challenges. Some of you will be flatting for the first time in the New Year. Some of you will be starting new courses. Some of you will be entering the job market. Whatever the change, I Read more...

David Clark | Issue 25

Posted 2:00pm Sunday 27th September 2015 by David Clark

Healthcare in New Zealand has been underfunded to the tune of $1.7 billion in recent years, according to independent economics advisory firm, Infometrics.  If you are studying health sciences, you may be directly affected by changes in our health system. The lack of funding and the loss of Read more...

David Clark | Issue 24

Posted 2:27pm Sunday 20th September 2015 by David Clark

The story of Louise Nicholas is familiar to many New Zealanders. Her battle with the police force over accounts of rape and abuse as a teenager in the 1980s was fought publicly. Since then, she has become a strong advocate for sexual violence prevention. My colleague Clare Curran, the MP for Read more...

David Clark | Issue 23

Posted 2:09pm Sunday 13th September 2015 by David Clark

I find it heart-breaking that New Zealand was so slow to welcome Syrian refugees escaping the biggest humanitarian crisis since WWII. Our existing refugee quota of 750 per annum has been in place for decades, and places us 87th in the world for generosity of welcome. When I was a schoolboy, Read more...