Fulfilling the Internet Party New Zealand Objectives
Almost two years after the catastrophic loss in the 2017 elections, what are the Internet Party Executive doing to progress the objectives of the Party? Unfortunately, the short answer to this is that little to no progress in the objectives has been made since the 2017 election.
Under the leadership of Daymond Goulder-Horobin, Jo Booth, Kim Dotcom and Suzie Dawson the Internet Party has apparently abandoned its constitution and lost interest in New Zealand. I believe the only Bill the Party has submitted on since the election has been the CPTPP. One Bill in almost two years.
To promote and enhance New Zealand’s successful transition into a leader of the digital era
Since the 2017 election IPNZ has done little to nothing to promote and enhance New Zealand’s transition into the digital era.
There are four policies in the technology section of the website and two are from 2014. One appears to be mostly from 2014 and the other one institutes a page jump. Some of the policies are also woefully out of date such as pushing for a second fibre internet submarine cable…something that started in 2016 and went live in mid 2018.
This is because the website and the policies have not been updated since 2017. There is no policy committee and the policy incubator has been shut down.
To promote and increase the value of digital commerce
No updates appear to have been made to the existing 2014 policies. Essentially the executive have done nothing to increase the value of digital commerce in New Zealand.
Recently were the submissions for the amendments of the copyright act in New Zealand. A bill which should have been of core concern to the Party but who only found about about it by a member reminding them a couple of days before the deadline.
To promote and support a Bill of Digital Rights for all New Zealanders
There was some work done on this around the 2017 election with Suzie Dawson hosting a series of Anti Spy Bill events online which got sidetracked into a series of interviews and no Anti Spy Bill was ever achieved.
To benefit New Zealand’s cultural and social development by enhancing New Zealand’s digital connectedness
Nothing appears to have been achieved. No updates appear to have been made. No submissions have been made.
To ensure that a just, equitable and transparent balance exists between personal online privacy and digital connectedness
The best and easiest way in which the Party could have progressed in any fashion with this would have been to make a submission on the Privacy Bill. This bill was almost made for the Party with the MP submitting it also the Minister for the GCSB.
The Party did nothing. They didn’t know about the bill.
To champion the freedom of access, use, and delivery of the internet and digital communications in New Zealand
Nothing has been achieved or attempted.
To promote the New Zealand government adopting digital means of communicating and to advocate for the establishment of open and e-government solutions for all New Zealanders
Nothing has been achieved or attempted.
Increase transparency and accountability within New Zealand’s security and intelligence agencies and organisations
Yet again, the Parties best chance to have any effect on these organisations would have been to submit on the Privacy Bill. They did not and an exemption was applied in the Bill for the security services.
To actively encourage the participation of young people in New Zealand’s democratic process.
The executive have talked about the membership problem of the Party (NZ members) but have failed to do anything about it.
At the last election the Party was registered with five hundred members, the next year there were forty-one. The executive have been a little shady about saying exactly what the numbers are now but in the last AGM only twelve members voted.
