Political Roundup: 29 December 2022

Items of interest and importance today

PARLIAMENT, YEAR IN REVIEW
Henry Cooke: 23 predictions for 2023
Morgan Godfery (Stuff): Top-performing minister, but you wouldn’t know it
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): The way the NZ Political Left must reframe the 2023 Election
Russell Palmer (RNZ): A dozen quirky soon-to-be laws flying under the radar in 2022
RNZ: The year in photos: From violent protests to joyous Matariki

HEALTH
RNZ: Govt announces $4m boost to drug checking at festivals, events
Mohammad Alafeshat (RNZ): ‘Say hello to ciggie houses’ – Dairies say smoking bill will backfire
Abbey Wakefield (1News): GPs concerned over elderly struggling with cost of food
Lucy Xia (RNZ): Age Concern in need of government funding to increase services for Asian seniors
Michael Fallow (Stuff): Student nursing leader calls for more representative workforce
Gabrielle McCulloch (Stuff): The fight for gender-affirming surgeries: ‘I want to crawl out of my skin’

COVID-19
Rachel Moore (Stuff): Covid sick leave squeeze on top of almost 10% vacancy rate at Te Whatu Ora Waikato
RNZ: No plans to have visitors test for Covid-19 as China relaxes travel rules, Ministry of Health says
Nadine Roberts (Stuff): Covid-19 brings a miserable festive season for some, but optimism virus wave has peaked
Sophie Harris (Stuff): Covid-19: Child among 78 deaths and 32,010 new cases before Christmas
RNZ: Covid-19 cases and hospitalisations drop, new data shows

HOUSING
Michael Neilson (Herald): Has social housing demand peaked? Ballooning waitlist now trending down
RNZ: House prices tipped to fall further in 2023

EDUCATION
RNZ: School enrolments forecast to steadily decline from 2024
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Free software programs a risk to students’ privacy – EdTech industry body
Katie Todd (RNZ): Kindies expect busier days as parents eye childcare savings

ENVIRONMENT, CONSERVATION
Herald Editorial: Taking time over farm emissions pricing (paywalled)
Brendon McMahon (Local Democracy Reporting): Pricing farm emissions can’t lead to cuts in production – West Coast council
RNZ: New fishing rules for Northland to have ‘significant implications’
Robin Martin (RNZ): Hefty fines for collecting Taranaki shellfish now Fisheries Act ban in effect
Brendon McMahon (Local Democracy Reporting): West Coast kelp beds disappearing

LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Jonathan Milne (Newsroom): On the 4th day of Christmas, what’s so special about four big water corporations?
John Weekes (Herald): Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown tells Ports of Auckland: Council will decide waterfront land’s future, not you (paywalled)
Maia Hart (Local Democracy Reporting): Marlburians less satisfied with their council but they are not alone
Diane McCarthy (Local Democracy Reporting): Ōpōtiki harbour masterplan on hold after new council overturns earlier decision

501 DEPORTEES
Caroline Williams (Stuff): High Court halts legal proceedings which could alter management of 501 deportees
RNZ: High Court reserves its decision on 501 deportee case

OTHER
George Block (Heald): Exclusive: The MPI staff fired for bad behaviour, policy breaches
Taxypayers’ Union: Revealed: Taxpayers Spending At Least $75 Million Per Year On Additional Days Off For Public Servants
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Concern over moves to tighten NZ’s data privacy regulations
RNZ: Government rolls out water safety funding but urges people ‘to know their limits’
Wena Harawira (Whakaata Māori): Hut case could cost Tūhoe $200k
Richard Wagstaff (Herald): New Zealand has a woeful record on workplace health and safety (paywalled)
Brendon McMahon (Local Democracy Reporting): Authority for new Pike River bore holes delegated to DOC
1News: Green MPs sponsor Iran protesters at risk of execution
Rachel Thomas (Stuff): Jacinda Ardern congratulates Fiji’s incoming prime minister after tense election
Newsroom: Oranga Tamariki, from the inside
Zoe Madden-Smith *Re: News): Homophobia is driving queer people out of small towns in NZ
Shaneel Lal (Herald): LGBTQIA+ acronym is anti-indigenous, majoritarian, and tedious(paywalled)
Angela Woods (Northern Advocate): New funding for Northland youth crime programmes provokes mixed reaction (paywalled)
James Halpin (Stuff): How Immigration NZ called in ‘favours’ to make a Silver Ferns series happen
Ankur Sabharwal (Stuff): 2023 – The Year of the Well-Paid Migrant
Rayssa Almeida (RNZ): Rhythm and Vines: Mixed views on Vodafone decision over Dizzee Rascal performance
Bruce Kohn (Stuff): Private secretary’s decades of service to political leaders marked by discreet silence