Covid: Auckland community outbreak Crystal Wu (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern refuses to apologise to KFC worker, says family was told to self-isolate 1News: Auckland KFC worker with Covid-19 says she was never told to isolate, wants apology from PM Mandy Te (Stuff): Questions raised over whether people are being told they must self-isolate following Covid-19 tests Stuff: Jacinda Ardern denies KFC worker who …
Covid: Auckland community outbreak Richard Harman: Ardern’s new tough talk Claire Trevett (Herald): When will Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s patience with rule-breakers wear thin?(paywalled) Thomas Manch (Stuff): Blame and fear for the team of five million, as PM pleads for compliance Michael Baker (Herald): Why government is right to yo-yo between alert levels Joel Maxwell and Thomas Manch (Stuff): A confident Government, a spreading virus, …
Housing Luke Malpass (Stuff): Government’s slow crawl on housing continues Jason Walls (Herald): ‘Kiwis can’t outbid Kāinga Ora:’ Government grilled over $750 million house-buying bill Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): Auditor-General investigates MSD scheme which paid landlords $3k per week for ‘uninhabitable’ houses Stuff Editorial: A clue from the Aussies for Ardern Joel Maxwell (Stuff): Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr warns against ‘the FOMO’ in housing market Dan …
Housing Richard Harman: Government has little to say about housing crisis Jonathan Milne (Newsroom): Govt set to bring out big tools to manage housing pressure Miriam Bell (Stuff): Housing affordability at worst point in ‘at least 17 years’ Adam Jacobson (RNZ): New Zealand housing affordability plummets to historically low levels Zane Small (Newshub): National’s Nicola Willis in disbelief as Megan Woods reveals results of Progressive …
Child poverty report and inequality Janet McAllister (Spinoff): What the new child poverty stats tells us – and what they don’t Claire Trevett (Herald): Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s do-or-die child poverty promise (paywalled) Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Poverty figures a sigh of relief for PM – but will it last? Branko Marcetic (Democracy Project): NZ’s economic “bounce-back” is a myth – but lifting benefits would bring it closer …
Will the health reforms proposed for the Labour Government make the system better or worse? Health commentator Ian Powell (formerly the Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists) gives his analysis of what change is most necessary, and what should be avoided. The review of the Health and Disability System by the …
Just as National once produced a “rock star economy” that Grant Robertson rejected as being only for the rich, the Labour Government has produced an economic “bounce back” that leaves out the poor. Branko Marcetic argues for a rise in benefit levels to give the poor a real bounce back. Whatever you decide to …
Covid: General Tim Watkin (Pundit): The Law Of Diminishing Covid Returns: The Government’s Mood Management Task Liam Dann (Herald): Riding Dr Ashley Bloomfield’s Covid roller coaster (paywalled) Jamie Morton (Herald): Auckland lockdown was ‘frustrating’ but justified, says expert Josephine Franks (Stuff): Experts call for seven-tier alert level system as Auckland moves to level 1 Stuff Editorial: MIQ facility suggestion is poor timing RNZ: Michael Barnett urges ‘more …
Just because something is bad, doesn’t mean it’s easy to criminalise. Graham Adams argues that the proposed ban on conversion therapy is messier than many realise, and he delves into some of the difficulties facing the Government in their promise to legislate. The Greens have achieved a significant PR victory with their petition aiming …
Housing Damien Grant (Stuff): Who’s to blame for housing unaffordability? Bernard Hickey (Stuff): Should Reserve Bank overheat economy to blast free of low interest rate trap? Gareth Vaughan (Interest): You can’t lose with property mate Zane Small (Newshub): Housing Minister Megan Woods fires up when quizzed on lack of property shortage figures Gill South (Stuff): Single buyers get it rough when it comes to the housing market …
According to epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker, the decision to end the second Auckland lockdown after just three days was a ‘calculated risk’. The possibility of undetected community transmission cannot be ruled out. In the United States, modelling by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found that the virus is mostly spread by …
Covid: General Matthew Hooton (Herald): Jacinda Ardern’s boldest and most adept Covid move yet (paywalled) ODT: Editorial – Trust and politicians in the Covid era Richard Harman: Living with covid Lisette Reymer (Newshub): New Zealand should stop living in fear of COVID-19 – expert Henry Cooke (Stuff): National says move out of alert level 3 lockdown is ‘bold’ and ‘ambitious’ Keith Lynch (Stuff): The ‘edge’ cases and when …
Covid: Auckland outbreak decisions Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Contact tracing ‘Ferrari’ will be enough to contain future outbreaks Jamie Morton (Herald): Shift to Level 2 ‘not cautious enough’ – expert Science Media Centre: Auckland jumps down to Alert Level 2 – Expert Reaction Jason Walls (Herald): Auckland’s lockdown exit comes with a Jacinda Ardern warning Richard Harman (Politik): Living with covid Rowan Quinn (RNZ): Community surprised as Auckland moved …
Australia-NZ dispute over terrorist suspect in Turkey Dan Satherley (Newshub): Judith Collins defends Australia’s move to dump terrorist problem on New Zealand Tova O’Brien (Newshub): How Australia snookered New Zealand and angered Jacinda Ardern Audrey Young (Herald): Australia fails to meet its own ‘fair go’ test (paywalled) David Fisher (Herald): Isis bride grew up in Australia – now they’re sending her to New Zealand(paywalled) …
Covid outbreak: Lockdown decisions Michael Morrah (Newshub): New Zealand’s new COVID-19 outbreak ‘detected later than it could’ve been’ – expert Audrey Young (Herald): Political focus turns to whether lockdown was caused by border failure(paywalled) Justin Giovannetti (Spinoff): The critical factors that will determine if lockdown is lifted Marc Daalder (Newsroom): New variants could push Level 3 to its limit Steve Braunias (Guardian): Summer in Auckland …
Covid: New community outbreak Jo Moir (Newsroom): The border will never be unbreachable Audrey Young (Herald): The best place to judge Ardern’s lockdown is from a rear view mirror (paywalled) Josh Van Veen (Democracy Project): Ardern’s Year of Reckoning? Richard Harman: The advisors behind today’s lockdown decision Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Police set up Auckland checkpoints to stop non-essential travel Herald: Covid 19 coronavirus: National, Act respond to Auckland …
For most New Zealanders, the Covid-19 pandemic ended on 8 June 2020. That was the day Jacinda Ardern declared New Zealand had ‘eliminated’ the virus. Tragically, 22 people were dead but 1,482 others had recovered to full health. For the first time since February there were no more active cases in the community or at …
The Minister of Local Government has struggled to make her case for a law change under urgency. Graham Adams gives his analysis. Although veteran MP Nanaia Mahuta undoubtedly has many sterling qualities, the debate over Māori wards shows that a keen sense of irony doesn’t appear to be among them. The Minister of Local …
A new analysis of the careers that MPs held before they were elected reveals New Zealand’s 53rd Parliament represents an extremely diverse range of work and life experiences. The research, by BlacklandPR and the Democracy Project, identified over 200 different careers, and over 500 individual jobs among Parliamentarians. The five most popular careers for MPs …
Parliament’s tie-wearing rules Metiria Turei (Spinoff): Why the parliament necktie fight is so much more than some petty squabble Peter Dunne: Waititi wins Caroline Daley (The Conversation): The tie that binds: unravelling the knotty issue of political sideshows and Māori cultural identity Jason Walls (Herald): I spy with my little tie: Which MPs embraced the new tie-optional rules in Parliament? Jessica Mutch-McKay (1News): Hei-tiki …
Parliament’s tie-wearing rules Katie Scotcher (RNZ): Speaker rules tie requirement to be dropped from Parliament Scott Palmer (Newshub): Ties no longer required in Parliament as ‘appropriate business attire’ – Speaker Trevor Mallard Claire Trevett (Herald): Parliament’s great tie-breaker and why Rawiri Waititi got no support from Labour’s Māori MPs (paywalled) Jo Moir (Newsroom): Te Paati Māori finds some oxygen after radio silence Stuff: Editorial – To …