NZ Politics Daily: 13 August 2021

Covid-19 – Government announcement on border management
Claire Trevett (Herald): PM Jacinda Ardern’s Covid-19 plan a tough love message to vaccine holdouts – the clock is ticking (paywalled)
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Jacinda Ardern shows courage in Covid fight, but will she hold her nerve?(paywalled)
Derek Cheng (Herald): The political hot potato Jacinda Ardern refused to touch – and may not need to(paywalled)
Luke Malpass (Stuff): The Covid roadmap: Underpromising, overdelivering and keeping options open
Richard Harman (Politik): Why the Government is opening the borders (paywalled)
Michael Plank (The Conversation): Phased border reopening, faster vaccination, be ready for Delta: Jacinda Ardern lays out NZ’s COVID roadmap
Michael Neilson (Herald): Government’s plans for opening ‘Fortress New Zealand’ hinge on vaccination campaign
RNZ: Govt’s border announcement ‘a wise stance’ – experts
Science Media Centre: Govt resets Covid-19 approach, announcing steps to reopen NZ – Expert Reaction
Stuff Editorial: Plans to vaccinate, educate and eliminate
ODT Editorial: Opening up the hermit queendom
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Turns out John Key was right
RNZ: Reconnecting New Zealand to the world: The speeches and statements
1 News: ‘Allies have let us down’ in fight against Covid – NZ epidemiologist
Eva Corlett and Tess McClure (Guardian): New Zealand to pursue Covid elimination strategy indefinitely, says Ardern
Claire Trevett (Herald): The plan to re-open NZ – home isolation, shorter MIQ for vaccinated travellers
Justin Giovannetti (Spinoff): The big plan for ‘reconnecting New Zealanders with the world’: what you need to know
RNZ: Risk-based border to open from early 2022 – PM Jacinda Ardern
Zane Small (Newshub): How self-isolation could work in New Zealand and why Sir David Skegg is sceptical
RNZ: National and Greens sceptical of trial to allow home isolation for some travellers
Anna Whyte (1 News): NZ to trial self-isolation for some vaccinated returnees – Ardern
Vita Molyneux (Newshub): New Zealand’s reopening plan: COVID-19 vaccine rollout brought forward, self-isolation trial for vaccinated returning Kiwis, no MIQ for ‘low-risk’ travellers
Henry Cooke (Stuff): NZ resets approach with faster vaccine roll-out, border reopening trial this year
RNZ: PM Jacinda Ardern details new Covid-19 protection measures
Eva Corlett (Guardian): ‘Light at the end of the tunnel’: New Zealand welcomes border reopening plans
Siobhan Downes (Stuff): Border opening: Who will be eligible for the self-isolation travel trial?
Lorna Thornber (Stuff): The new health declaration every traveller to and from New Zealand will have to make
Lorna Thornber (Stuff): Which overseas destinations could Kiwis visit in 2022?
Anna Whyte (1 News): Govt mulls ‘what to do’ with trans-Tasman bubble
John Anthony and Debbie Jamieson (Stuff): Tourism and business leaders welcome clarity around when and how New Zealand reopens
Tess Brunton (RNZ): NZ border reopening: ‘We need to recover, rebuild and reconnect’ – Tourism industry
Lawrence Gullery (Stuff): Reset Covid-19 plan provides turning point for tourism and business operators
Guy Williams (ODT): Border easing ‘logical’
Jem Traylen (BusinessDesk): A slow path to open NZ ‘will affect competitiveness’
Kate Gregan (RNZ): Border reopening plan ‘will give exporters confidence’ – NZ Winegrowers
RNZ: Checkpoint: Rob Fyfe optimistic about govt border news, but vaccination rates must rise
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Ministry of Health assures Kiwis rumours of imminent lockdown not true
Herald: Ministry of Health officials shut down rumours of a Covid lockdown

Covid-19 – Vaccination rollout
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Expert urges vaccine prioritisation of all essential workers in groups 3 and 4
RNZ: Vaccine age groups and second dose changes: What you need to know
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Gap between Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses extended to six weeks
1 News: Covid jab available to all from September; gap between doses widens
Vandhna Bhan (1 News): Expert calls for second jab delay, as Government responds to re-opening report
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Decision to jab 12- to 15-year-olds coming in next few weeks
Dan Satherley (Newshub): New Zealand ‘naïve to Delta’, at risk of ‘vicious spread’ if Kiwis don’t get vaccinated – top US doctor
Alice Angeloni (RNZ): Port satisfied with vaccine progress despite low uptake early on
Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Former National Party MP Dan Bidois backtracks after accidentally appearing to endorse anti-vax group Voices for Freedom
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Australia’s Scott Morrison called out for COVID-19 vaccine ‘failures’ after comparing numbers to New Zealand’s population

Covid-19
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Defence Force role in MIQ ‘reduces capability’ to deal with major disaster
Laura Walters (Spinoff): The study searching out Covid exposure in NZ and its long-term impacts
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Would we accept more level 4 lockdowns?
Benn Bathgate (Stuff): Bluetooth contact-tracing cards canned, Ashley Bloomfield announces
Bernadette Basagre (Stuff): Defence Force medivac Niuean MP in critical condition to Auckland City Hospital
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Critically ill Niuean MP flown to New Zealand following medical emergency

Environment, climate change, conservation
Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): The future of Act: Climate change cannot be stopped, but it can be ridden
Bernard Hickey (Spinoff): Without political ‘air cover’, climate action is all but doomed
James Shaw (Spinoff): For decades, politicians have failed on climate. Now we face our last chance
RNZ: The Detail: How much climate catastrophe can one world absorb?
RNZ: Farmers raised concerns about nutrient monitoring tool for ‘over 10 years’
Laura Hooper (Stuff): Groundswell NZ presents petition on ‘unworkable regulations’ to parliament
1 News: Māori landowners take bid to prevent 1080 drop back to court
Craig Ashworth (Local Democracy Reporting): Conservation millions also help Taranaki hapū and whānau
Jared Morgan (ODT): The Manuherikia: Twists and turns in river’s history

Energy
Brian Fallow (Herald): Power games prolong climate danger (paywalled)
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Electric Kiwi files ‘UTS’ complaint over Monday’s electricity market failure
1 News: Claims ‘market power or abuse’ at play in electricity outages
No Right Turn: The real cost of Huntly
Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Lake Onslow, a thousand pound gorilla ‘kneecapping’ a solution to Monday’s problem (paywalled)

Housing
Max Rashbrooke (Stuff): Sorry, homeowners: prices must fall
Miriam Bell (Stuff): House prices could fall 6% by the end of next year as mortgage rates rise, investment firm warns
Anne Gibson (Herald): Reserve Bank to get bigger hose as housing heat becomes ‘unbearable’
Brent Melville (BusinessDesk): ‘Unbearable heat’ in housing market (paywalled)
RNZ: Still booming: ‘House prices have continued to rise across the country’
Miriam Bell (Stuff): House prices up 25 per cent to hit new record
1 News: House prices continue to rise in July, new REINZ data shows
Sam Olley (RNZ): Housing shortage harm ‘the weight of the world’
Brent Melville (BusinessDesk): The lucky new homeowners
Geraden Cann (Stuff): Cost of property valuations jumps 20 per cent in two years
Logan Church (1 News): Homeowners fail to prove James Hardie cladding caused leaks and rot
RNZ: Leaky home owners lose case against James Hardie
Skara Bohny (Nelson Mail): Housing proposals put forward for $1b government fund
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Nelson Council approves four housing projects for Govt funding
Skara Bohny (Nelson Mail): In their words: what councillors said about housing fund proposals

Water reforms
Damian George (Stuff): Wellington City Council considers referendum on water reforms
Aaron Leaman (Waikato Times): Hamilton steps back from water reforms
Bonnie Flaws (Stuff): Up to 75,000 water suppliers could be affected by water reforms, Feds say

Local government
Matthew Rosenberg (Local Democracy Reporting): Invercargill mayoralty: Sir Bob Harvey speaks out on Sir Tim Shadbolt’s ‘hoarding’, offers to mediate
Matthew Rosenberg (Local Democracy Reporting): Council turmoil: call for minister to intervene
Isobel Ewing (Newshub): Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt clinging to leadership despite calls for vote of no confidence
Evan Harding (Southland Times): Shadbolt’s bullying claim ‘absolute nonsense’: Deputy mayor
1 News: Shadbolt says he was intimidated before under-fire meeting performance
Southland Times Editorial: Free speech trumps ICC’s media protocol
Tom Kitchin (RNZ): Council infighting over Māori wards exposed
Todd Niall (Stuff): Electric cars, high density housing not enough to hit Auckland emissions targets: Report
Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Hamilton councillors put Te Huia train into Auckland’s Waikato river water deal
Mike Mather (Stuff): ‘Sad’ day as councillors alter apartment design rules to foil ‘perverts’
Tina Law (Press): Council cleaners and rubbish collectors to get the living wage
David Williams (Newsroom): The danger of stadium costs, a Dunedin study
Tina Law (Press): Christchurch to get 30,000-seat stadium after council bends to the will of the people
Katie Stevenson (1 News): Council votes to add 5000 more seats to new Christchurch stadium
Nadine Porter (Stuff): Former Mana party organiser with a criminal past vies for council seat
Tim Newman (Nelson Mail): Three-ward system for Nelson elections gets backing from council
Chloe Ranford (Local Democracy Reporting): Marlborough pensioners worried rent increase will never let them ‘get ahead’
Rachel Moore (Manawatū Standard): Childcare allowance of $6k approved for Horowhenua councillors
Local Democracy Reporting: Hokitika and Hari Hari floodwalls on cards
Kerrie Waterworth (ODT): Residents reject bid to disband Wanaka Community Board

Winston Churchill portrait spat
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Winston Churchill’s grandson weighs into National-Greens portrait controversy
Newstalk ZB: Historian: Absurd, Green Party removing Winston Churchill painting in Parliament
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): Greens hate Churchill, remove his portrait

Parliament
Pete McKenzie (Newsroom): Stuart Nash received $51,000 in donations from Troy Bowker
Brent Edwards (NBR): National, Greens both seek togetherness – but in very different ways (paywalled)
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Paula Bennett: Politician, real estate director, and now entertainer

Health
Graham Adams (Democracy Project): Ardern’s winter of discontent far from over
RNZ: National frustrated as Labour stymies bid to probe ACC changes
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Call for parents to get ACC payouts when their kids get hurt
Newstalk ZB: Study reveals differing wait times, staffing issues across EDs
Matt Burrows (Newshub): Dad of suicidal 12yo girl condemns NZ mental health system as ‘huge letdown’, says Mike King’s Gumboot Friday ‘the only way we got help’
Rachel Thomas (Stuff): Health Minister ‘confident’ Govt can meet striking midwives’ demands
Hamish Cardwell (RNZ): Midwives rally in capital: ‘Women have had enough’
Robin Martin (RNZ): Delays in police vetting force midwives to stop working or work without pay
Carly Gooch (Stuff): Burnt out doctors and dentists say wellbeing ‘ignored’ by DHBs
Waatea News: Remove ‘blockers’ from health system
Cameron Grant (Newsroom):Is NZ ready for what comes after RSV?
Stephen Forbes (Local Democracy Reporting): Thousands could benefit from Medsafe approving new diabetes drug
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Drawings give first impression of hospital

Labour market, industrial relations, migrant workers
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Labour Inspectorate cracking down on courier companies mislabelling employees as contractors
Dan Satherley (Newshub): There are jobs ‘for Africa’, so why does NZ still have unemployment? An economist explains
1 News: Charges filed over Auckland port worker’s death
RNZ: Auckland port faces charges over stevedore’s death
Laura Hooper (Stuff): Mooney submits petition for MIQ placements for dairy workers
Rukuwai Tipene-Allen (Māori TV): More Māori in jobs and more getting trained
Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Employment law expert warns employers can make employees pay for broken equipment

Aotearoa or New Zealand?
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Simon Bridges hits out at Government’s ‘compulsive’ use of ‘Aotearoa’, says he’s not ‘an Aotearoan’
Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (RNZ): The racist aftermath of the Aotearoa debate

Immigration
1 News: MPs urged to allow overstayers compassionate residency pathways
Danielle Clent (Stuff): ‘So thrilled’: Auckland girl with autism facing deportation granted visa

Business
RNZ: What really grinds your gears? Top five consumer complaints
Marta Steeman (Stuff): Consumer NZ to complain to the Commerce Commission about potentially misleading advertising by retirement villages
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Here’s what board directors are being paid

Primary industries
1 News: NZ’s dairy industry kills two million calves a year, but they don’t have to
RNZ: Damning report of Overseer programme prompts Hawke’s Bay to change approach

Sport
Hamish Bidwell (RNZ): Olivia Podmore’s death must prompt rethink on attitudes to sport
Melanie Carroll (Stuff): Troy Bowker comments will force Hurricanes to act, says sport management expert
Will Trafford (Māori TV): Sponsor to Hurricanes: Boot racist board member
RNZ: Strong stance urged against ‘insulting, racist’ Hurricanes board member

Transport
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Police and IPCA disagree over tow truck safety issue
Phil Pennington (RNZ): IPCA on police tow truck report: ‘People deserve to be worried’
Georgina Campbell (Herald): Race to finish Transmission Gully: Waka Kotahi NZTA brings in experts and independent chair
RNZ: Transmission Gully deadline: Dozens of incomplete tasks revealed
Cherie Sivignon (Stuff): Tree felling in Motueka sign of ‘silo thinking from the 60s’

Media
Emily Brookes (Stuff): MediaWorks fined over ‘denigrating’ comments about Māori
Herald: MediaWorks fined $3000 after Magic Talk host John Banks supports racist call
Bryan Gould: The Herald’s uncertain reporting

Police
John Bishop (Stuff): When the police fail us, but nothing happens
RNZ: Officer’s decision to chase car before fatal crash was ‘flawed’ – IPCA

Education and training
Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Government’s school lunch programme helps most disadvantaged kids, inconclusive about school attendance
RNZ: Otago Uni’s Wellington campus shut due to earthquake risk

Conversion therapy
Eddie Clark (The Conversation): Why New Zealand’s proposed law banning conversion practices is so unlikely to criminalise parents
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Why cancelling Judith from Pride might be a really dangerous decision

Crime
1 News: Nats join Adesanya in calling for tougher ‘coward punch’ laws
Elizabeth Binning (Herald): Gangs, 501 deportees, excess drinking: Sharp rise in post-lockdown city violence

International relations
Thomas Manch (Stuff): New Zealanders concerned about ‘killer robots’ as Government pushes against new arms race
David Cumin (RNZ): The only viable, realistic path to peace for Israel, Palestinians

Other
Kurt Bayer (Herald): New Zealand Government reviewing cases of Afghan interpreters amid Taliban resurgence
Thomas Manch (Stuff): Government to reconsider plea for help from Defence Force-employed Afghan citizens
Charlotte Cook (RNZ): Long wait for rehab, psych help in prison: ‘It’s quite dire’
Anne Gibson (Herald): PlaceMakers’ customers get price rise warning up to 15%: freight, raw material costs cited (paywalled)
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Tradies, plumbers in short supply as skills shortage deepens
Karl Puschmann (Herald): TVNZ’s series The Panthers teaches us what school didn’t (paywalled)
James Croot (Stuff): The Panthers: TVNZ’s evocative, provocative retelling of a turbulent time
Michelle Duff and Kirsty Johnston (Stuff): ‘We can’t rely on the police’: Māori women on edge after escalating threats