Political Roundup: 13 October 2022

Items of interest and importance today

GOVERNMENT AND PARLIAMENT
Ernie Newman (Stuff): Kris Faafoi’s unwelcome move into lobbying
Herald: Editorial: Kris Faafoi from Cabinet Minister to lobbyist – when is too soon?(paywalled)
Ben Thomas (Stuff): Business should be wary of thinking it can predict a future without Labour
Ripu Bhatia (Stuff): ACT’s proposal for Treaty referendum is ‘virtue signalling’, says Government
Jo Moir (Newsroom): Te Pāti Māori underwhelmed by prospect of government
Peter Dunne: Fixing potholes vs. leading the world
Jason Walls (Herald): $45 million in three years: Government defends speed limit review spend
Moana Ellis (Local Democracy Reporting): Parliamentary milestone: New MP’s swearing-in will make political history
Caitlin Rawling (Newshub): Former Prime Minister John Key says he would’ve voted for Donald Trump in 2016 US election

CLIMATE CHANGE
Michael Neilson (Herald): Emissions plan: National leader Christopher Luxon says it will ‘decimate’ sheep and beef farming – James Shaw says criticism ‘confused’
Luke Malpass and Anna Whyte (Stuff): National promises to repeal potential farming emission changes
John MacDonald (Herald): Our farming sector shouldn’t be the world’s guinea pigs(paywalled)
Owen Jennings (Herald): Farmers are mired in deep confusion and muddle policy(paywalled)
Mike Hosking (Newstalk): The Government is shafting rural New Zealand
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Fears for regional economic decline and ‘ghost towns’ from agricultural emission pricing proposals
Brent Edwards (NBR): The Government faces a rural backlash over climate plan(paywalled)
Andrea Fox (Herald): Why Māori are likely to be disadvantaged by agriculture emissions pricing system
Rachel Smalley (Today FM): Explaining the convoluted emissions charge
Guy Trafford (Interest): Fed Farmers shouldn’t be too surprised
Imran Ali (Herald): Agricultural emissions: Federated Farmers – three out of five Northland beef farms in danger of closing (paywalled)
Jayden Holmes (Today FM): Transport Minister Michael Wood labels Wellington protest as ‘idiotic and counterproductive’

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, THREE WATERS, AND ELECTIONS
Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): The Grapes aren’t sour – They’re just not the centre-left’s
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Making bitter wine with Comrade Trotter – why Wayne Brown winning is bad
Morgan Godfery (Guardian): New Zealand’s local elections appear to show a backlash against Ardern. The reality is more complex
Mark Thomas (Newsroom): The dire state of NZ local government
Shane Te Pou (Herald): Voters want new ideas and inspiration (paywalled)
Guy Trafford (Interest): Governance by motivated special interest groups?
The Facts: Alpha-bias- surnames in the top 3 won >50% of elections
Thomas Cranmer: Three Waters and One Mountain of Debt
David Farrar: Cranmer on Three Waters and Te Mana o te Wai
Simon Wilson (Herald): The councillors who could be on Wayne Brown’s team(paywalled)
Emma Hatton (Newsroom): Transport Minister plans to meet new mayors ASAP
Todd Niall (Stuff): Which projects can Auckland’s ‘Fix-it’ mayor really fix?
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown at war with development arm, which is fighting back

ECONOMY, EMPLOYMENT AND INEQUALITY
Esther Taunton (Stuff): About half of the total household wealth is owned by the richest 10%
Melanie Carroll (Stuff): Breaking down the top 1% in NZ and the world
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Reserve Bank recommends removing housing order from its remit
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Reserve Bank open to being made to prioritise inflation(paywalled)
RNZ: Reserve Bank: Feedback shows majority don’t think climate change should be in any future remit
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Beyond ‘maximum sustainable employment’? Reserve Bank staff turnover hits record 22% (paywalled)
Michael Reddell: Accountability document with no accountability
Ian Llewellyn (BusinessDesk): Govt policy uncertainty a brake on electricity investment, says regulator (paywalled)
Peter Griffin (BusinessDesk): A Big Tech telco tax could backfire badly (paywalled)
Maria Slade (NBR): What is an employee? Government about to change definition(paywalled)

IMMIGRATION
Michael Neilson (Herald): Government immigration announcement sees skilled migrant, parent categories reopen
Bernard Hickey: Wood loosens migration settings again
Corazon Miller (1News): Govt’s plan to reunite migrant families earns bittersweet reaction
Amelia Wade (Newshub): Immigration Minister restarts visas – but system’s already struggling with current workload
Liam Dann (Herald): Brain drain: Signs of recovery but immigration challenges remain(paywalled)
Richard Harman: Wood opens immigration up (paywalled)
Dita De Boni (NBR): Immigration ‘reset’ set aside as skilled migrants welcomed back(paywalled)

HOUSING
Miriam Bell (Stuff): ‘Painful’ housing market correction: No end in sight, says QV
William Hewett (Newshub): New Zealand house values record first annual decline in over decade but positive news for first home-buyers
RNZ: National average house price down for first time in decade

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Tamsyn Parker (Herald): Kiwi corporate leaders warned of ‘sonic boom’ risks as China-US relationship falters (paywalled)
Anna Fifield (Stuff): As China’s Xi consolidates power, NZ’s choices become more stark
Lloyd Burr (Today FM): Why is the NZ government allowing 18 of Putin’s diplomatic core to remain in NZ?
Herald: Russian embassy pokes fun at New Zealand’s sanctions on social media
Molly Swift (Newshub): Russian Embassy in New Zealand mocks new trade ban on vodka and caviar

OTHER
Baz Macdonald (Re:News): Thou art ‘boring as sh*t’: Is Shakespeare relevant to NZ in 2022?
Damien Venuto (Herald): After US changes, calls grow for cannabis laws to evolve
Tom Hunt (Stuff): Wellington leading what is tipped to be another national Covid wave
Hamish Bidwell (Herald): I have fears for the future of free speech (paywalled)
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): You wont believe this new attack on Free Speech – UoA Greens cancel all debates if they can’t have trigger free safe spaces