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RNZ News
4 hours ago
- RNZ News
'It raises the IQ of both countries': How Muldoon stole a joke that was already stolen
Context - Few political one-liners are as enduring in New Zealand folklore as Sir Robert Muldoon's crack about the brain drain. Asked about Kiwis moving to Australia in the late 1970s, Muldoon famously replied that the migrants "raised the IQ of both countries". Trans-Tasman migration was surging at the time, with 103,000 New Zealanders moving permanently to Australia between 1976 and 1982. The joke has been repeated in speeches, pub banter, and the occasional barbecue argument for decades. But here's the punchline: Muldoon didn't write it - he pinched it from political cartoonist and columnist Tom Scott. However, Scott says he wasn't bothered. "I'd already stolen it," he admitted. "I couldn't get too pious". Sir Robert Muldoon served as the 31st prime minister of New Zealand. Photo: Stuff Speaking to Corin Dann in RNZ's new podcast Context , which looks at the history behind today's headlines, Tom Scott said he took the gag from Irish writer Brendan Behan. In his play The Quare Fellow Behan wrote the same thing about Irish people migrating to America. "I modified it without attribution," Scott explained. "I didn't give Brendan the credit. I took it for myself. I said, 'When Kiwis go to Australia, it raises the IQ of both countries.' And I put it in The Listener column." It was the perfect joke for the moment. The Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, introduced in 1973, had made it easy for Kiwis to live and work in Australia without visas. When Australia's economy surged while New Zealand's sputtered, thousands left for greener pastures. RNZ's new podcast Context looks at the history behind today's headlines. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi (photo), Robert Whitaker (design) Ten days after Scott's column ran, Muldoon dropped the line as if it were his own. Scott said he was only too pleased to see Muldoon borrowing from his (and Brendan Behan's) work given that, at the time, he was banned from Muldoon's press conferences. "It was doubly rewarding," Scott said, "to be a banned person and a quoted person. It was quite nice." Follow and listen to Context on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. David Lange served as the 32nd prime minister of New Zealand. Photo: Merv Griffiths. Dominion Post (Newspaper): Photographic negatives and prints of the Evening Post and Dominion newspapers. Ref: EP/1986/3948/17-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. Muldoon wasn't the only prime minister to steal Tom Scott's lines. "[David] Lange stole a lot of mine as well," Scott recalled. "In his farewell valedictory to Parliament, he said, 'Winston Peters can't be here tonight, he's been unavoidably detained by a full-length mirror.' And that was my line too. So, you know, I've had Muldoon and Lange both stealing my lines. It's quite flattering, really." Over the years, the "IQ" remark has taken on a life of its own. Many quote it without knowing its real author, assuming it sprang fully formed from the PM's famously sharp tongue. For more on the fascinating historical story of the 'Brain Drain' - including fears of farm workers fleeing for the goldfields, and anxieties over scientific migration in the 1960s - check out RNZ's new podcast Context , hosted by Corin Dann and Guyon Espiner, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
14 hours ago
- RNZ News
The Panel Plus for 20 August 2025
An extra half hour of The Panel with Wallace Chapman, where to begin, he's joined by Nights host Emile Donovan. Then Wallace talks to Jonathan Cweoth, chair of the Soutern hertiage Trust, about plans to celebrate the centenary of the 1925 New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition Dunedin. It was massive: over three million through the doors in a country of only one million people. To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
18 hours ago
- RNZ News
Pakistan Independence Day celebrations recall independence struggle
New Zealand's Pakistani community celebrated Pakistan Independence Day in major centres nationwide over the weekend, including Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. Britain ended its colonial rule of the Indian subcontinent in 1947, resulting in the division of the region into two separate nations: India and Pakistan. Pakistanis and people of Pakistani origin worldwide typically come together on 14 August to mark the independence struggle each year. Besides flag-hoisting ceremonies, celebrations included poetry recitals, cultural performances, video screenings and patriotic songs. Asif Saeed Khan, president of the Pakistan Association of New Zealand, believed it was important to commemorate the anniversary to pass on the value of hard-won freedom to future generations. Asif Saeed Khan, president of the Pakistan Association of New Zealand Photo: RNZ / Blessen Tom Pakistan High Commissioner Faisal Aziz Ahmed was full of praise for New Zealand's multiculturalism. "People here have a tremendous amount of empathy ... [it's] a place where democracy works, where multiculturalism works," Ahmed said. "As Prime Minister Christopher Luxon mentioned, both our countries have a long-standing, warm relationship," he said. "The Kiwi Pakistani community has surprised and amazed me the most," he said. "They carry in their hearts love for Pakistan, but are essentially Kiwis in their outlook, individuality, egalitarianism and their care for humanity," he said. "The community, though small in number, plays an important role in New Zealand's security, development [and] prosperity." (From left) Hina Nasir, Pakistan Association of Wellington president Asma Azhar and Pakistan High Commissioner Faisal Aziz attend Independence Day celebrations in Wellington. Photo: Supplied The anniversary events provided an occasion to celebrate community heroes who had made national headlines. "We are very proud to see our community heroes doing so well in the New Zealand society, including Muhammad Abbas, who has made his Black Caps debut, Haris Zeb, who plays for Auckland City Football Club, and Muhammad Usama Nasir, who is a regular actor at our beloved drama Shortland Street," Khan said. In Christchurch, Pakistan Association of Canterbury president Ishtiaq Ahmed appreciated the community in local regions for putting on a "vibrant display of culture, unity and pride". Canterbury's Pakistani community celebrates Independence Day on 14 August. Photo: Supplied Asma Azhar, president of the Pakistan Association of Wellington, welcomed representatives from major Pakistani community organisations as part of celebrations in the capital. Hina Nasir, a Pakistani Kiwi who attended celebrations in Auckland and Wellington, said the events "bring communities together, strengthen social cohesion and keep traditions alive". "I believe these moments give the next generations pride in their roots and remind [the] diaspora community that we can call Aotearoa New Zealand and Pakistan our collective home," Nasir said.
