Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.
Today’s content
Colonial statues, place names, Black Lives Matter
Cherie Howie (Herald): Race relations commissioner Meng Foon calls for dialogue on colonisation-linked statues, place names
Jason Walls (Herald): NZ First Leader Winston Peters: Getting rid of historical statues ‘idiocy’
1News: Winston Peters outraged over ‘idiocy’ of ‘wokeism’ amid statue removal
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters lambasts ‘woke, mindless’ calls for colonial statue removals
RNZ: Winston Peters unimpressed with outcry over colonial statues
Vita Molyneux (Newshub): Green MP Golriz Ghahraman says colonial statues should be removed
Hayden Thorne (Newsroom): Don’t hide statues away to be forgotten
Tom O’Connor (Stuff): Wrecking historic monuments won’t help the Black Lives Matter cause
Tina Ngata (Stuff): Racism, monuments and ethical remembering
Jack Tame (Newstalk ZB): Tearing down statues isn’t the answer
Shane Te Pou (Stuff): Statues belong in Te Papa, not in our public places
ODT Editorial: Memorials to a foreign country
Morgan Godfery (Guardian): The removal of Hamilton’s statue is only the start, we should tear them all down
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): On chopping down NZ statues
RNZ: Controversy over NZ colonial statues long-standing
Aaron Goile (Stuff): Who are New Zealand’s statues, monuments and places named after?
Matt Shand, Aaron Leaman and Ellen O’Dwyer-Cunliffe (Stuff): Where should Captain Hamilton go?
Michael Neilson (Herald): Hamilton statue removal ‘start of’ New Zealand’s journey
Jordan Bond (RNZ): Hamilton statue’s removal raises debate over artefacts of British colonialism
Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Historian says removing Hamilton statue ‘momentous’
Benn Bathgate (Stuff): Hamilton City Council ‘weak’ for pulling down colonial statue
Kirsty Lawrence and Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Colonial statue removal sparks name debate for Hamilton
Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Local iwi call for Hamilton to be renamed amid growing controversy
Kirsty Lawrence (Stuff): Hamilton City Council takes down Captain Hamilton statue
D’Angelo Martin and Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): Hamilton statue toppled on iwi request
RNZ: Controversial statue of Captain John Hamilton has been removed
Charles Anderson (Guardian): City of Hamilton in New Zealand removes statue of British naval captain
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Captain John Hamilton statue to be removed from Hamilton’s Civic Square
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Campaign launched to pull down Parliament’s Richard Seddon statue
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Anti-racists should consider pulling down Parliament’s Richard Seddon statue – Judith Collins
Leighton Keith (Stuff): Māori Party’s call for inquiry into offensive street names, statues could impact Taranaki
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Swastikas and anti-racist graffiti appear on Captain Cook statue in Gisborne
Herald: Captain James Cook statue defaced in Gisborne
Alice Angeloni (Stuff): Calls to rethink name ‘Picton’ as history emerges of ‘cruel’ slave-owner
RNZ: Ngāi Tahu, Christchurch council commit to colonial monuments discussion
Herald: Wellington should follow Hamilton’s example and remove statues, street names, local says
Daisy Hudson (ODT): Captain Cook to be renamed
John Lewis (ODT): Protesters target two statues of historic figures
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Jason Walls (Herald): Justice Minister Andrew Little tells Black Lives Matter movement at Parliament ‘we’ve got to change’
Andre Chumko (Stuff): Young people of colour demand to be listened to, not just heard
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Masterton’s St Patrick’s Catholic Church stirs outrage after posting ‘All Lives Matter’ sign
Anan Zaki (RNZ): Principal condemns ‘all lives matter’ comment after BLM poster removed
RNZ: Thousands of NZers march for Black Lives Matter
Stuff: Thousands rallied against racism during Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Auckland and Wellington
1News: Hundreds gather in Hamilton for Black Lives Matter unity march
1News: Activists urge white people to be allies in Black Lives Matter movement – ‘Everybody has a role to play’
1News: Former Polynesian Panther says New Zealand can ‘beat racism’ if it can beat Covid-19
National Party
Richard Harman (Politik): Muller goes one way; his party another
Claire Trevett (Herald): National leader Todd Muller’s Te Puna pitch to the faithful (paywalled)
Jason Walls (Herald): National leader Todd Muller promises not to raise taxes or slash benefits if he’s prime minister
1News: Todd Muller outlines National’s first-term priorities if elected, borrows Labour’s ‘let’s do this’ slogan
Matt Shand (Stuff): Opposition leader Todd Muller puts family at front of values
Newstalk ZB/Herald: Muller promises more welfare spending, criticises former National Govt
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Todd Muller touts National Party’s government vision if elected in 2020
Scott Palmer (Newshub): National leader Todd Muller lays out vision for New Zealand in key speech
Derek Cheng (Herald): National Party leader Todd Muller’s ‘surprise’ priority: Breaking the cycle of dependency (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Muller says 120,000 jobs will be lost by the election, more by Xmas (paywalled)
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Yawn – Muller’s championing of family values is dull and looks weak
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): National MP Chris Penk’s lockdown book raises political donation questions
Craig McCullough (RNZ): National MP Chris Penk’s book derides government’s Covid-19 response
Government’s ‘Unite for the Recovery’ campaign
John Armstrong (1News): Is Jacinda Ardern utilising taxpayer-generated revenue in order to run a ‘propaganda unit’?
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ACT Party demands end to Government’s ‘Unite for the Recovery’ campaign
NZ First
Claire Trevett (Herald): Can Shane Jones and his pork barrel avert NZ First election disaster? (paywalled)
Justin Giovannetti (Spinoff): Winston goes to war with the ‘woke generation’ as NZ First gets election ready
Election
1News: ‘Pumped, ready to go’ – Minor parties ready to campaign for your 2020 vote
Thomas Manch (Stuff): The battle for Ōhāriu: TOP is back, and it’s hoping to spoil a fight between Labour and National
Newstalk ZB: 100 days to go – how parties are preparing for the election
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Māori Party dividing NZ by whipping up racial tensions
RNZ: Drug Foundation stands by ad campaign
Parliament
Andrea Vance (Stuff): The endless pursuit of trivia has resulted in paralysis in our politics
Peter Wilson (RNZ): Week in Politics: Border control – the next big pressure point
Brent Edwards (NBR): Fact or fiction: Slip of the tongue, is Shane Jones New Zealand First’s saviour? (paywalled)
1News: Speaker Trevor Mallard reveals which MP he thinks deserves to be kicked out of Parliament more often
Wage subsidy
Keith Ng and Matt Nippert (Herald): The $12b question – Who got the wage subsidy? (paywalled)
Matt Nippert (Herald): Wage subsidy claimants investigate
John Anthony (Stuff): Accounting firms collect millions of dollars in wage subsidies
Tim Hunter (NBR): Metlifecare should pay back its taxpayer subsidy (paywalled)
Katie Kenny (Stuff): Very small business owners bemused by wage subsidy secrecy
NZ’s Covid-19 approach
Simon Wilson (Herald): The end of the beginning: How NZ took on Covid-19 and the challenge ahead
Collette Devlin (Stuff): Epidemiologist says officials should reveal ‘elimination day’ data
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Inside St Margaret’s rest home cluster, with NZ’s last Covid-19 case
Nikki Macdonald (Stuff): Behind the scenes in the battle against Covid-19
Bruce Munro (ODT): On the offensive: Otago Uni’s fight against Covid-19
Lana Andelane and Emma Stanford (Newshub): New Zealand’s masterclass in ‘pandemic leadership’ can be adopted by all leaders – expert
Stuff: Here’s why NZ still has ‘significant clusters’ despite being Covid-free
RNZ: Most parents worried about children at school after lockdown – survey
Zane Small (Newshub): Jobseeker numbers top 190,000 as Jacinda Ardern asks for feedback on COVID-19 response
Fiona Rae (Spinoff): So long to Ashley TV: How a nation got hooked on the daily Covid show
Border, quarantine, Trans-Tasman/Pacific bubble
Piers Fuller and Tom Hunt (Stuff): Government documents reveal money can open restricted NZ borders
Gill Bonnett (RNZ): Avatar crew allowed into NZ without basis in immigration rules
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Double-standards at the border need addressing (paywalled)
Derek Cheng and Jason Walls (Herald): Govt announces NZ border exceptions
Herald: Major NZ border rules relaxed: Essential workers allowed in, so who qualifies?
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Border exemption changes made by the Government
Charles Anderson (Guardian): New Zealand to relax borders for essential workers – and US America’s Cup team
1New: Relief as easing of border restrictions allows America’s Cup challengers, others into NZ
Julie Iles (NBR): America’s Cup teams and families granted entry to New Zealand (paywalled)
Laura James (1News): NZ’s marine industry losing jobs and millions of dollars due to border exemption rules
Newshub: Federated Farmers wants migrant workers on Govt’s COVID exemption ‘A-list’
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Kristin Hall (Newshub): Government to make changes to managed isolation facilities following 1 NEWS investigation
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Alert level 1 impacts exercise routines for those in quarantine
Derek Cheng (Herald): Revealed – The cost of the blanket quarantine at the border
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Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): Would a trans-Tasman bubble put it all at risk? (paywalled)
Collin Tukuitonga (Spinoff): The trans-Tasman bubble can wait. NZ and the Pacific can make a Covid-free zone
Employment
Matt McCarten (E-Tangata): We still have some way to go
Anuja Nadkarni (Stuff): Companies offering uncapped sick leave say workers don’t abuse it
Olivia Wannan (Stuff): Let’s outlaw the daily commute
Liam Dann (Herald): Death of the office? Let’s hope not (paywalled)
Laura Wiltshire (Stuff): Returning bureaucrats lifting capital’s heart beat
Guyon Espiner (RNZ): After the Virus: Work
Jess Berentson-Shaw (Newsroom): A vision for workplaces that work for all of us
Migrant workers
1News: Backpackers and seasonal workers stranded in New Zealand desperate for work
RNZ: New support hub for foreigners in Queenstown inundated
Police
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Jacinda Ardern’s big copout: Armed policing decision should never have been left up to cops
Kim Moodie (Herald): Defence Minister Ron Mark calls for independent review into police arming
Mihingarangi Forbes (The Hui): Police Commissioner Andrew Coster agrees unconscious bias still exists within police
Steve Elers (Stuff): Professionalise New Zealand police through education, better training
Blair Ensor (Stuff): Top cop under investigation after speeding to police briefing
1News: Treatment of Māori by police more than just unconscious bias in the force, psychologist says
Transport
Katie Scotcher (RNZ): Genter takes aim at NZTA over light rail project stalling
Katie Scotcher (RNZ): Greens co-leader James Shaw ‘always disappointed in NZ First’ – this time over light rail
Todd Niall (Stuff): Auckland Mayor says Light Rail caught in ‘election campaign’
1News: Regions around NZ get $60 million funding boost for rail and roading projects
Emma Russell (Herald): Local councils and KiwiRail get $60 million from Provincial Growth Fund for job creation
RNZ: NZTA facing backlog of vehicle safety exemptions it must publicise
RNZ: Lengthy waits for driver testing due to Covid-19
Rosie Gordon ( Newshub): Jetstar facing pressure to refund ‘deliberately misleading’ cancelled flights from lockdown
Peter Dowden (ODT): Glaring anomalies in otherwise great idea
Andre Chumko (Dominion Post): New city cycleway plan, and no public money needed
Media
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Mediawatch: Proposed single Māori news service alarms journalists
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Plan to turn Māori TV into ‘authoritative clearing house’ for Māori news runs into flak
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): ‘It would set fire to all the progress’: Alarm at Māori media overhaul plan
Leigh-Marama McLachlan (RNZ): Fears the future of Te Karere Māori news is on the line
1News: Māori broadcasting set for major shakeup as Government proposes single service
Māori TV: Te Māngai Pāho CEO calls for immediate change to Māori broadcasting
Martyn Bradbury: Why on earth is Nanaia Mahuta setting fire to the Labour Party?
Tom Dillane (Herald): TVNZ set to cut 100 jobs to find $10m while they recruit new head of news
Andre Chumko (Stuff): TVNZ looks to cut 100 jobs to save costs – report
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Television channel Three owner MediaWorks posts big loss
Duncan Bridgeman (Herald): MediaWorks posts $25.1m loss, casts doubt on ability to keep going
Dita De Boni (NBR): MediaWorks set to breach bank covenants (paywalled)
Paul McBeth (BusinessDesk): MediaWorks in talks with lenders as covid whacks earnings (paywalled)
Sam Hurley (Herald): Stuff, Nine and NZME return to court over potential release of redacted material
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Mediawatch: ‘Arms Down’ demands win the day
Gavin Ellis: That existential crisis again
Politics and sport
Martin Devlin (Newstalk ZB): Politics has no place on the sports field
1News: Cheers echo throughout Dunedin stadium as Grant Robertson thanks essential workers for Covid-19 efforts
Keith Woodford (Interest): Rugby’s role in a greater South Pacific strategic reset
Local government
Brad Flahive (Stuff): Auckland Council proposes selling shares in airport and port
Jo Holmes (Herald): Auckland Council trying to guilt-trip ratepayers into forking out more (paywalled)
Stephen Forbes (RNZ): Ōtāhuhu community fights plans to stall town upgrade
Dominic Harris (Stuff): Top Christchurch council boss salaries dwarf average worker pay
Grant Miller (ODT): Hobbs not prepared to give up
Luisa Girao (ODT): Invercargill City Council staff fear repercussions of restructuring proposal
1News: Proposed Fale near Parliament aims to celebrate Pacific people’s contribution to NZ
RNZ: Aurora Energy’s network changes only a start, mayor says
RNZ: Aurora Energy upgrade will now cost $383 million
Health
Stuff Editorial: Ambulance service should not be dependent on charity
Dan Satherley Newshub Nation): Health Minister David Clark admits institutional racism in health system
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Government announces $92.6m for health system to cope with COVID-19
1News: Govt announces $92 million investment into health services as part of Covid-19 response
RNZ: NZ Govt unveils plan to improve Pasifika health
Jason Walls (Herald): Midwives reimbursed as part of Government’s $100 million health package
Hamish Cardwell (RNZ): Nurses Union wants safety assurances after concerns about millions of masks
RNZ: Quality concerns over 4.9m masks in New Zealand – Ministry of Health
Richard Blaikie (Newsroom): Fortune favours the prepared nation
1News: Need for mental health services could double due to Covid-19, professor says
Tracy Neal (RNZ): Academics call for end to alcohol industry-backed youth education programme
Eric Crampton (Stuff): It’s time to think seriously about paying blood donors
Tracy Neal (Stuff): Study finds young adults slipping through gaps for rheumatic fever treatment
Nicky Pellegrino (Newsroom): Vaping: helpful or harmful?
Education
1News: Two-thirds of NCEA exams able to be done online after big funding boost from Govt
Jason Walls (Herald): Government spends $4m to boost creative learning programme and hire 300 art teachers
Simon Collins (Herald): International students look to NZ after Covid crushed
Simon Collins (Herald): Work dries up for teachers as borders stay shut for international students
Dan Satherley and Emma Stanford (Newshub Nation): University head begs for return of international students
Derek Cheng (Herald): National wants new international students back in NZ – but with new work restrictions
Jake Kenny (Stuff): Honesty and technology needed to crack down on online exam cheats
Alison Mau (Stuff): AUT ‘toxic’ culture claims: Harassment ignored at university for decades
Child welfare
Claire Breen (The Conversation): The state removal of Māori children from their families is a wound that won’t heal – but there is a way forward
RNZ: ‘No way’ Oranga Tamariki allowed to take babies from hospital – Waitematā DHB
Melissa Chan-Green (Newshub): Human barricade at Waitakere Hospital stops newborn babies being taken from mothers
Environment
Rachel Thomas (RNZ): International marine expert claims she was ignored over advice on saving dolphins
1News: Clarke Gayford gifted cardigan by knitting activists to highlight plight of NZ dolphins
Jean Bell (RNZ): Rangitoto channel dredging: Move to reject submissions ‘extraordinarily undemocratic’
Lois Williams (RNZ): West Coast Regional Council opposes air quality changes over coal heating
Stuff: Southlanders determined to save their beloved Waiau River
Andre Chumko (Stuff): Capital landowners lawfully clear native bush without resource consent
Katie Todd (RNZ): Residents seek better monitoring of coastline as landfill rubbish spreads
RNZ: Tree protest group lay complaint over violent threats
Lucy Warhurst (Newshub): Lazy recycling habits costing local councils hundreds of thousands of dollars
Danielle Clent (Stuff): Orewa Beach seawall defence gets green light after lengthy court battle
Housing
Lee-Anne Duncan (Spinoff): How lockdown helped get Wellington’s rough sleepers off the streets
1News: Government to spend $40m to underwrite delayed Wellington KiwiBuild development
Aaron Leaman (Stuff): Housing bosses to front over Flagstaff state housing project
RNZ: Rotorua housing shortage: Council and iwi strategy touts thousands of new homes
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Time for banks to do their bit for housing market
Ireland Hendry-Tennent (Newshub): Real Estate Institute calls for end to rent, eviction freezes as landlords struggle with COVID-19 financial hit
Jo McKenzie-McLean (Stuff): Queenstown rental property prices in post-coronavirus freefall
Trade
Herald: Trade Minister David Parker puts digital signature to digital services trade deal with Singapore and Chile
Brent Edwards (NBR): Digital trade agreement open to other countries to join (paywalled)
Guy Trafford (Interest): FTAs in the time of rising protectionism
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Concerns ‘mislabelled’ milk powder might taint NZ reputation
Economy, business
Liam Dann (Herald): GDP data to show economy on its way into recession (paywalled)
1News: What it actually means when the Government starts ‘printing free money’
Rob Stock (Stuff): Government opposes temporary GST cut to make ‘Aston Martins cheaper’
Bevan Hurley (Stuff): Soaring sharemarket bears little relation to deepening unemployment crisis
Gareth Vaughan (Interest): Covid-19 emergency Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme could be permanent
Greg Ninness (Interest): Empty business premises are the most visible indicator of economic malaise and we are likely to see more of them
Brent Edwards (NBR): Infrastructure Commission says Covid-19 impacts 30-year plan (paywalled)
David Hall (Stuff): How to build a smart and responsible recovery
Newstalk ZB: Why a Capital Gains Tax isn’t needed to boost economy
Paul McBeth (BusinessDesk): Pall hangs over manufacturers as activity perks up in May
RNZ: May manufacturing levels bounce to those seen during GFC
Grant Robertson (Stuff): There are tough times ahead, but with a clear focus on recovery we will get through it together
Janine Starks (Stuff): Let’s not waste biggest economic advantage we’ll ever have
Katarina Williams (Dominion Post): Covid-19 taking the sparkle from Wellington’s Golden Mile
Immigration
Bess Manson (Stuff): Scores of refugees in limbo as quota system in holding pattern due to Covid-19
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Family sells business, house, belongings to move to NZ – but now stuck
Gill Bonnett (RNZ): ‘We’re stuck’ – Frustration as stranded family endures life in a shed
Other
Liz Gordon (Daily Blog): Should we have stayed in the Labour Party?
Christine Rose (Daily Blog): Statues not the only edifices to fall?
Newshub: Duncan Garner blasts ‘injustice’ for Māori under Helen Clark’s Government
George Block (Stuff): Defence Minister defends huge military spend amid economic downturn
Dan Satherley (Newshub): David Clark ‘very keen’ to stay as Health Minister – but voters want him gone
Jehan Casinader (BusinessDesk): Pike River re-entry was not just about politics
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Rob Fyfe departs – when offers of goodwill get the cold shoulder
Newstalk ZB: Rob Fyfe departs business advisory role with ‘no thanks’ from PM
Britt Mann (Stuff): Golriz Ghahraman on growing up, Guy Williams, and the power of protest
Newstalk ZB: Green MP Golriz Ghahraman details journey in new memoir
RNZ: Taonga degrading in leaky Canterbury Museum – director
1New: Greece opens for Kiwi tourists but international travel still not advised
Charlotte Muru-Lanning (Spinoff): The fight to save Ngāruawāhia’s historic food pits
Derek Cheng (Herald): Act leader David Seymour: NZ First not saviours but enablers of gun law changes
RNZ: Standing Room Only: Covid-free NZ – the answer to the film industry’s prayers?
RNZ: Aged care staff unfamiliar with Covid-19 epidemiological terminology – report
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Eight years to check National War Memorial after warning from engineers
Mihingarangi Forbes (The Hui): Released prisoner misses out on seeing dying wife one last time by just a few hours
Guy Williams (ODT): 60 positions expected to go at hotels
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Bill’s semantics can affect industry a lot
Terry Baucher (Interest): The Week in tax: wage subsidy extension, CGT back on the agenda, and time to top up your KiwiSaver contributions
Victoria Young (BusinessDesk): Joyce awarded $269,000 in costs in NBR defamation suit (paywalled)
