New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.
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Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.

New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.

Today’s content

Climate change, environment
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Government extends tax break for oil rigs, despite promise not to subsidise fossil fuel industry
RNZ: Jacinda Ardern supports, does not commit to ‘climate emergency’ declaration
Bryce Edwards (Herald): Political Roundup: Climate change still contentious for farmers (paywalled)
Catherine Leining (Newsroom): A first step to pricing agricultural emissions
1News: Taxing agricultural sector before applying technology is ‘nonsense’, says National
Stuff: Earth Overshoot Day: Kiwis consume a year’s worth of resources in five months
Neville Nicholas (Stuff): Global warming predicted forty years ago, anniversary
Jamie Morton (Herald): Why the climate change crisis requires a ‘careful revolution’ (paywalled)
Abigail Smith (Stuff): Why I’m climbing Wellington’s Majestic Centre
RNZ: Greenpeace activists that scaled Wellington building arrested
Tom Hunt (Stuff): Oil activists scaling Wellington’s Majestic Centre reach target
Kya Raina Lal (Spinoff): As the oceans rise, the Pacific refuses to be left behind
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Paul Gorman (Stuff): ECan asks Govt to prioritise studies of links between nitrates and health
Robin Martin (RNZ): Questions remain over freshwater quality in Taranaki region
Cherie Sivignon (Stuff): Takaka freshwater group urges protections for Te Waikoropupū Springs
Catrin Owen (Stuff): Forest & Bird launches Environment Court appeal to protect Northland fairy terns
Matthew Littlewood (Stuff): Bid to protect 40,000ha of South Island high country from invasive weeds
Amber-Leigh Woolf (Stuff): Plastic pollution is putting NZ’s ‘clean green’ image at risk
Herald: Could ‘plastic shaming’ help NZ’s waste woes?
Kendall Hutt (Stuff): No ‘obvious signs’ of pollution in Auckland harbour after Sephora seen dumping waste

Electric vehicles, Greens attack ad
Zane Small (Newshub): Greens remove attack ad on National despite James Shaw, Marama Davidson’s defence
Anna Whyte (1News): Green Party pull ad mocking Simon Bridges’ accent after heavy criticism online – ‘Lowered the tone of the debate’
Jason Walls (Herald): Green Party co-leader James Shaw apologises for attack ad after wave of online criticism
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Greens apologise for Simon Bridges attack ad
RNZ: Greens apologise for Simon Bridges attack ad
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Simon Bridges finds Green Party attack ‘pretty funny’ but the party has pulled the ad
Sophie Bateman (Newshub): ‘Good for them’: Simon Bridges says Green Party attack ad was funny
Ben Uffindell (The Civilian): Green Party still says 16-year-olds should be able to vote, just not allowed to make their ads anymore
Henry Cooke (Stuff): National Party leader Simon Bridges refuses to commit to repealing feebate policy

Parliament
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Labour’s secret internal polling reveals National below 40 percent
Audrey Young (Herald): Bridges-Ardern curtain-raiser before Judith Collins and Megan Woods face off (paywalled)
Kate Aschoff (RNZ): The House: Youth MPs send climate change hurry-up to MPs
1News: Campaign underway to give 16-year-old New Zealanders voting rights
1News: NZ First propose referendum on euthanasia, saying ‘politicians alone should not decide’ the issue
Brian Easton (Pundit): Letter to my MP on the End of Life Choice Bill and a Referendum*

State care of children
1News: Children’s Commissioner says he’s ‘deeply disturbed’ by latest Oranga Tamariki statistics
Julie Iles (Stuff): Three quarters of harm in state care happens to Māori children: Oranga Tamariki report
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Māori over-represented in state care harm statistics
Talisa Kupenga (Māori TV): Most children harmed in State care are Māori – Oranga Tamariki report
Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (RNZ): Legality and ‘disconnection’ between Māori kids and whānau
Elizabeth Strickett (Spinoff): Listen to Māori midwives – they know more than you think
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David Fisher (Herald): Sensitive personal state ward details open to all in Archives NZ blunder (paywalled)

Political questions in Govt department surveys
Hamish Rutherford (Stuff): IRD, DOC and Stats NZ under fire for political questions in polling
Jason Walls (Herald): The State Services Commission says it is ‘disappointed’ by ‘ill-judged’ IRD survey question
RNZ: Departments review policies after SSC report into political leanings survey questions
1News: Political questions asked by Government agencies ‘ill-judged, inappropriate’ – SSC

Review of relationship property laws
Isaac Davison (Herald): Couples could share income for 5 years after breakup under Law Commission’s proposals to modernise relationship property laws
Isaac Davison (Herald): Law Commission tells Govt to ditch 50-50 split of family home
Zane Small (Newshub): Government to consider Law Commission’s recommendation of abolishing 50-50 split of family home
RNZ: Break-up laws need a shake-up, says Law Commission
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Law Commission report: Relationship break-up laws must change

Education
Nicholas Boyack (Stuff): Education Minister promising to end unpopular decile system
Josephine Franks (Stuff): NCEA overhaul: Parents and public invited to workshops on changes
Chris Morris (ODT): Campbell Park claims persist
Infometrics: Chart of the month: Māori education critical to unlocking opportunities
John Lewis (ODT): Exam breaches on rise in Otago-Southland
Elena McPhee (ODT): Worry Govt plan may hit campus

Gun law reform
John Battersby (Stuff): We need a register, but not just so it seems like we’re doing something
Lew Stoddart (RNZ): Make entry into registry easy as possible for gun owners
Thomas Manch (Stuff): Caution over firearm register as advocates back firearm law reform
Jenna Lynch (Newshub): Newshub uncovers loophole in the Government’s gun ban
Laura Walters (Stuff): Govt gun law blunder embarrassing
Derek Cheng (Herald): Gun law reform: ‘I made a mistake’ – Police Minister Stuart Nash
1News: Prime Minister and Police Minister admit mistake in gun law change announcement
RNZ: Firearms register a ‘pointless exercise’ – former police officer
James Fyfe (Newshub): Venue, time change for Auckland gun buyback event
Mandy Te (Stuff): Auckland’s second gun buy-back event set for this weekend
1News: Council of Licenced Firearms Owners argues that gun register won’t keep Kiwis safe
ODT Editorial: Gun reform could heat up
Dominion Post Editorial: Govt can’t let real criminals out of its sight in sweeping gun law change

Workplace safety
Boris Jancic (Herald): Work safety watchdog WorkSafe turns to cancer deaths with $57m budget boost
RNZ: Government boosts WorkSafe funding by $60m

Tobacco industry
Māori TV: Te Ao with Moana: Vaping – “It may not be healthy at all”
Māori TV: Te Ao with Moana: Vaping – ‘It’s attacking & attracting our rangatahi’
Māori TV: Te Ao with Moana: Philip Morris NZ official statement to Te Ao with Moana

Health
Melissa Nightingale (Herald): Te Kiri Gold doctor struck off over unapproved clinical trials on cancer patients (paywalled)
Nicholas Jones (Herald): Maternity crisis: Health Minister David Clark hints extra help for Middlemore will be announced soon
Libby Wilson (Stuff): Too many senior doctors, or not enough? Spat over numbers at Waikato DHB
Samantha Gee (Stuff): Nelson Marlborough Health more than $11m behind budget
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Measles outbreak: Hospitals seeing ‘complex’ admissions as national number rises to 349
Giles Dexter (Newshub): Surgical mesh victims slam Ministry of Health for ‘completely underestimating’ problem
Kaitlin Ruddock (1News): Kiwi women living with complications from surgical mesh describe day-to-day struggles
Herald: Aged-care workers in New Zealand face same brutal conditions as described by Aussie worker

Ihumātao
Tom Furley (RNZ): Ihumātao protesters remain at site entrance after evictions
Don Rowe (Spinoff): ‘I’ve had my tangi’: Police descend on the occupants of Ihumātao
Ryan Anderson and Imogen Neale (Stuff): Three protesters arrested at south Auckland’s Ihumātao
RNZ: Three people arrested at Ihumatao
RNZ: Protesters at Ihumātao served eviction notices
Newshub: Police called to help evict protesters from Auckland’s Ihumātao housing development
Māori TV: “No arrests at this stage” police release Ihumātao statement (+ gallery)

Local government
Todd Niall (Stuff): Can Auckland’s election be a generation game?
John Banks (Herald): Auckland deserves better from mayor and council (paywalled)
Sam Hurley (Herald): Serious Fraud Office accuses ex-Auckland Council worker of taking bribe for goods contract
Edward Gay (Stuff): Auckland Council worker charged with taking bribes for IT contract
Bernard Orsman (Herald): How your rates are spent: How a giant sculpture is taking Auckland parks into the future (paywalled)
RNZ: Muslim leaders request clarification on swimwear policy at public pools
Ripu Bhatia (Stuff): Human rights lawyer Deborah Manning leads fight over Western Springs pines
Tina Law (Press): Christchurch Adventure Park close to going bust before ratepayer bailout, reports reveal
Dileepa Fonseka (Dominion Post): City with a broken heart: Civic Square key focal point for election issues in CEO pre-election report
Nikki Preston (Herald): Hearing for SkyCity’s pokie application to go ahead; complaint about mayor being dealt with separately

Police
Vaimoana Tapaleao (Herald): Officer’s move to fire warning shots at offender unjustified: Independent Police Conduct Authority
RNZ: Warning shots fired near fleeing driver were unreasonable – IPCA
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Report finds police should not have fired warning shots during Huntly chase

Sport
Hamish Bidwell (RNZ): Opinion: Silver Ferns stymied by their own sport
Adrian Seconi and Steven Hepburn (ODT): Lack of money patently unjust or just fact of life?
Kevin Norquay (Stuff): Netball World Cup: Silver Ferns are sadly undervalued and underpaid
Herald: Netball World Cup 2019: Jacinda Ardern challenges sponsors to pay Silver Ferns World Cup bonus
Herald: Netball World Cup: ANZ ‘happy to contribute’ to Silver Ferns prizemoney fund
Laura Dooney (RNZ): Netball World Cup prize money: ‘There needs to be recognition for the value of womens sport’
Stuff: Netball World Cup: Jacinda Ardern praises Silver Ferns ‘fossils’ in Parliament

Abortion
Zane Small (Newshub): How Labour and National will approach abortion law reform
Lily McElhone (Salient): Legalising Abortion Is Still Best Option, Even for Pro-Lifers
Anna Whyte (1News): Groups on both sides of abortion debate bring their messages to Parliament
Vita Molyneux (Newshub): Protestors march through Wellington streets in support of reproductive rights
Katie Scotcher (RNZ): Protesters call for abortion to be removed from Crimes Act
Tema Hemi (Māori TV): Womens rights to an abortion

Housing
Jason Walls (Herald): Government pushes out the unveiling of the KiwiBuild reset until late August
Emma Dangerfield (Stuff): Poor design blamed for ‘depressing’ Housing NZ units lacking sunlight
Luisa Girao (ODT): Invercargill housing issue worsens

Christchurch mosque shootings
1News: Using ACC to treat Christchurch terrorist attack victims’ PTSD wouldn’t be fair to others, Ardern argues
Sophie Cornish and Kurt Bayer (Herald): Christchurch mosque shooting: Cost tops $6m for Canterbury DHB
Charlie Gates (Stuff): Former race relations commissioner slams inquiry into Christchurch mosque shooting

Transport
1News: Jacinda Ardern calls Simon Bridges’ attacks on Government’s transport plans ‘laughable’ in spirited transport debate
Michael Morrah (Newshub): Mechanics take NZTA to court over licence suspensions
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Shortage of truck safety certifiers puts pressure on industry
Astrid Austin (Hawkes Bay Today): Greg Murphy to Julie Anne Genter: NZ’s road safety priorities are ‘broken’ (paywalled)
Deena Coster (Stuff): $200m Mt Messenger bypass appeal hearing wraps up in Environment Court
Lisette Reymer (Newshub): ‘Families have been shattered’: Compensation refused for businesses impacted by City Rail Link construction

Primary industries
Tracy Neal (RNZ): Govt unveils changes to biosecurity and animal tracing
Eric Frykberg (RNZ): Biosecurity funding overhaul: Scant detail worries farmers
David Williams (Newsroom): Deeply flawed system a cause for concern
Andrea Fox (Herald): M. bovis cattle disease fight: We’re winning so far, says Government (paywalled)
Peter Bodeker (ODT): Eliminating ‘M.bovis’ tough but correct call
RNZ: M bovis levy comes into effect in September

Other
Danyl Mclauchlan (Spinoff): Piketty’s Capital comes to the big screen, urging us to make the world less terrible
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): 12 eye-watering facts about the new British prime minister, Boris Johnson
Neal Curtis (Newsroom): A new dawn of the worst and most injurious
Friedrich Soltau (Newsroom): What happened to the UN sustainability goals?
1News: ‘My vote’s only as good as my neighbour’s’ – PM tight-lipped on cannabis voting intentions
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Regulator softens power price hit for Aucklanders
Tim Woodhill (Stuff): Friend or foe: with countries, it isn’t that simple
RNZ: Jacinda Ardern to visit Tokelau
Maria Slade (Spinoff): Where Kiwis donate their money, and why starving children in Africa don’t rate
Lois Williams (RNZ): Ngāpuhi negotiations await replacement of non-viable Tūhoronuku mandate – Little
Meriana Johnsen (RNZ): Iwi to negotiate with Crown for return of Pink and White Terraces land
Deena Coster (Taranaki Daily News): Select committee report on Parihaka bill backs name protection
Karl du Fresne (Stuff): Still no justice for Trades Hall bomb death
Lida Ayoubi adn Melanie Johnson (The Conversation): NZ considers changes to copyright law as part of promise to help end global ‘book famine’
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Iain Lees-Galloway to decide former child gang member’s New Zealand residency
RNZ: Sir Edward Durie, Donna Hall win defamation suit against Māori TV
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Why Trade Me suspended accounts selling ‘Make Ardern Go Away’ hats
Sophie Bateman (Newshub): Australian commentators say Jacinda Ardern doesn’t deserve the Nobel Peace Prize
RNZ: Kaiako stands in solidarity with Mauna Kea protestors
Madison Reidy (RNZ): Lawyers, accountants report 250 suspicious transactions to police
John Weekes (Stuff): Former prisoners speak out after ‘nightmare’ invasive searches at Auckland Region Women’s jail
Stuff: Christchurch gas explosion: Investigation could take a year to complete
Hamish Rutherford (Stuff): Nine will ‘focus on the long term’ with bids for Stuff below fair value
Tze Ming Mok (Spinoff): Violent racist guilty of violent racist attack. The law says: nah, no hate crime

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