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
National Party suspicions around Govt response, conspiracy theories
Danyl Mclauchlan (Spinoff): The ruthless electoral politics behind National’s Covid conspiracy-baiting
David Farrier (Stuff): ‘I’m just outlining facts’: watching New Zealand getting red-pilled, in freal time
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): Gerry Brownlee just thinks it’s interesting
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): National Party not constructive with conspiracy theories
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Government has well and truly stuffed this up
Zane Small (Newshub): 50 New Zealand health experts urge political leaders to ‘resist temptation to scaremonger’ over COVID-19
Tova O”Brien (Newshub): Gerry Brownlee backtracks on comments as Government ministers hit out at spread of ‘misinformation’
Zane Small (Newshub): Winston Peters blasts Judith Collins for spreading ‘steady stream of misinformation’ over COVID-19 response
Herald: Winston Peters: National ‘undermining democracy’ with Govt consultation claims
Thomas Manch (Stuff): Green Party hits out at National ‘casting doubt’ on Covid-19 response
Amelia Wade (Herald): Greens’ James Shaw slams Collins and Brownlee’s ‘dangerous rhetoric’
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Gerry Brownlee denies COVID-19 questions make him a conspiracy theorist
RNZ: Judith Collins hits back at Grant Robertson after he called National’s Covid-19 claims ‘nonsense’
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Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Is Billy TK Shouting “Fire” In A Crowded Theatre?
Lana Andelane (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern’s message to COVID-19 conspiracy theorists
Cate Broughton (Stuff): Coronavirus: “dangerous” Covid-19 conspiracy theories on the rise
Lana Andelane (Newshub): Covid-19 social media theories debunked
Laura O’Connell Rapira (Spinoff): How to talk to whānau about conspiracies
Adam Pearse (Northern Advocate): Lockdown protest stops traffic in Whangārei
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Covid-19 deniers vandalise Christchurch’s Bridge of Remembrance
Calls for later election date
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Politicians confounded by second outbreak, as battle lines drawn for delayed Covid election
Richard Harman (Politik): Postponing the election
Grant Duncan (The Conversation): Voting is an essential service too. New Zealand can’t be afraid to go to the polls, even in lockdown
RNZ: Nine to Noon: Should the election be delayed?
Alexander Gillespie (Herald): Covid 19 coronavirus alert changes present Election 2020 challenges (paywalled)
Tim Watkin (Pundit): Another Big C Week In Politics: Community Covid, Conspiracies & Constitutional Conventions
Gordon Campbell: On Judith Collins’ apparent inability to read the public mood
RNZ: National’s election delay call purely political, says James Shaw
1News: TOP slams National’s ‘Trumpian response’ to Covid-19 outbreak, says election should remain in September
Newstalk ZB: Don Brash: ‘Delaying the election should be considered’
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): There’s more than one way to delay an election. Here’s how
Jason Walls (Herald): ‘Health first, politics second’ – NZ First leader Winston Peters open to election delay
Newstalk ZB: Judith Collins calls for PM to stop making Covid announcements
Current outbreak
Herald: Winston Peters claims Covid-19 cluster linked to quarantine breach
1News: Winston Peters claims current Auckland Covid-19 cluster could be linked to quarantine breach
RNZ: Checkpoint: Health Minister Chris Hipkins discusses efforts to find ‘patient zero’ for latest outbreak
Newstalk ZB: Health Minister: Origin of latest Covid-19 cluster still unknown
1News: Only a matter of time before mysterious Covid outbreak solved, Dr Bloomfield says
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Anna Whyte (1News): All new Covid-19 cases in NZ to be managed in isolation facilities
Matt Burrows (Newshub): All New Zealand’s confirmed COVID-19 cases to be put in quarantine facilities from now on
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Derek Cheng Herald): Jacinda Ardern won’t ease restrictions if she wants to be cautious (paywalled)
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Government faces lockdown decision as cluster grows and its source remains a mystery
Jo Moir (RNZ): Cabinet to decide future of alert levels, decision to be announced at 5.30pm
Brittney Deguara (Stuff): New Zealand will know its Covid-19 lockdown fate by Friday afternoon
Eleanor Ainge Roy (Guardian): New Zealand PM says Covid-19 outbreak will ‘get worse’ as Auckland cluster grows
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Kim Moodie (Herald): North Shore primary school student positive, Noel Leemings closed
1News: Two Auckland primary schools, preschool close amid positive Covid-19 cases
Sam Sachdeva and Dileepa Fonseka (Newsroom): Covid cases at North Shore, Mangere schools
Lane Nichols (Herald): Americold coolstore worker was on nightshifts
Michael Neilson (Herald): NZ has 17 cases of community transmission – here’s what we know about them
Melissa Chan-Green (Newshub): What we know about New Zealand’s 17 cases of community transmission
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Timeline of New Zealand’s newest Covid-19 community transmission cluster
Expert advice
RNZ: Checkpoint: Covid-19 lockdown extension likely – disease modelling expert
Nick Wilson, Amanda Kvalsvig and Michael Baker (The Conversation): Masking the outbreak: despite New Zealand’s growing COVID-19 cases, there are more ways to get back to elimination fast
John Gibb (ODT): Genomic tracing used to find source of latest outbreak
David Welch (The Conversation): Why New Zealand needs to focus on genome sequencing to trace the source of its new COVID-19 outbreak
Steve Walton (Stuff): Reasonable likelihood Covid-19 is outside Auckland, says mathematical modeller
Conan Young (RNZ): ‘Huge risk’ people won’t trust vaccines – expert
RNZ: Imported goods as outbreak source an unlikely theory – Professor David Murdoch
Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Covid-19 transmission from cool store goods ‘unlikely’ – Dr Bloomfield
Farah Hancock (Newsroom): Cold temperatures are where Covid thrives
Newstalk ZB: Can New Zealand learn anything from Australia’s lockdown?
Questioning NZ’s covid response
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Lockdown life can’t go on much longer (paywalled)
Pattrick Smellie (BusinessDesk): Covid’s other resurgence: rumour, conspiracies and doubt
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Could NZ experience ‘lockdown fatigue’?
Joel Rindelaub (Newsroom): What not to do if you want to quash a virus
Kate MacNamara (Herald): When is the cost of Covid-19 lockdown too high? (paywalled)
Bruce Munro (ODT): Global Insight: Sealing border would hit too hard
Quarantine, border management
Michael Morrah (Newshub): Nearly two-thirds of Auckland’s COVID-19 border, isolation staff had never been tested a week ago
Luke Malpass and Andrea Van (Stuff): Tick. Tick podcast: Judith Collins says border and quarantine will be central plank of National’s campaign
Brook Sabin (Stuff): Leave Auckland alone. Is it time for a radical rethink of quarantine?
Jacob McSweeny (ODT): Precautions in place at port, boss says
Contact tracing, testing
Katie Kenny and Steve Kilgallon (Stuff): Coronavirus contact tracing: Are we seeing the benefits of promised improvements?
Barry Soper (Newstalk ZB): The country didn’t take contact tracing seriously
Stuff: Sam Morgan’s CovidCard: The cases for and against
Newstalk ZB: Sam Morgan says Govt should roll out text service within days
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Andy Fyers (BusinessDesk):Auckland’s Covid-19 testing rates fell away in lead-up to community transmission outbreak (paywalled)
Hugh Collins (ODT): Auckland arrivals with symptoms booking Covid tests in Queenstown
1News: Covid testing centre to move to Eden Park from Friday amid record Auckland testing numbers
RNZ: Covid-19 testing in Auckland breaks previous single-day record
RNZ: Checkpoint: Rotorua testing centres busy after news of family’s travel
Mitch McCann (Newshub): Anxious Rotorua residents flock to testing centres amid concerns of COVID-19 outbreak
RNZ: Waikato adding extra capacity to meet testing demand
Emma Perry (ODT): Testing workload a struggle, Dunedin doctors say
Zane Small (Newshub): Green Party co-leader James Shaw ‘feeling fine’, thinks his chances of having COVID-19 are ‘vanishingly small’
Zane Small (Newshub): Green Party co-leader James Shaw awaiting COVID-19 test result after developing cold symptoms
Auckland
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Auckland Mayor Phil Goff flagged concerns with ministers of a second outbreak (paywalled)
Melanie Earley (Stuff): Few Aucklanders seem to be wearing masks in public
1News: Over 300 vehicles turned back at Auckland checkpoints in first day of lockdown
Danielle Clent (Stuff): Empty streets in Auckland as region enters day two of alert level 3
Ben Leahy (Herald): Calls for compassion for family at centre of virus outbreak
Christine Rovoi (RNZ): Pasifika health official stresses importance of being prepared
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Quarter-million children home from school in Auckland under Covid-19 alert level 3
Simon Collins (Herald): Covid 19 coronavirus: More than 99% of Auckland school students are staying at home
Iwi, regional responses
Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (RNZ): Iwi considers placing alert level 4 rules over rohe
Robin Martin (RNZ): Taranaki leaders urge Defence Force to secure region’s borders from Covid-19
Brianna McIlraith (Stuff): Taranaki mayors and iwi call Taranaki bubble if North Island moves to level 3
Supermarkets, supply chain, price gouging, consumer behaviour
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern cracking down on price gouging during lockdown
1News: Jacinda Ardern says she’ll be keeping ‘close eye’ on face mask price gouging
RNZ: Foodstuffs says shops’ grocery sales doubled throughout North Island
1News: Countdown ‘disappointed’ after supermarket staff verbally, physically abused by customer
Zane Small (Newshub): David Seymour shocked COVID-19 alert level 3 rules still ban butchers, greengrocers from serving customers
John Anthony and Denise Piper (Stuff): Police checkpoints hold up truckies but supermarkets say supply chain running smoothly
Dan Satherley and Miriam Harris (Newshub): Truckies want fast lanes in and out of Auckland to keep supply chains intact
Anuja Nadkarni (Stuff): Don’t make these shopping mistakes, Consumer NZ says
Government aide for business, economy, employment
Jenna Lynch (Newshub): Next wage subsidy scheme may not be limited to Auckland
1News: Wage subsidy, business support signalled by Government following new Covid-19 outbreak
Bernard Hickey (Newsroom): When even printing $100b is not enough
1News: Economy taking $400m hit a week at current alert levels
Herald: What your employer can and can’t do over alert level 3 lockdown (paywalled)
Bob Jones: Irrationality
Marta Steeman (Stuff): Retailers wanting rent relief told they have to extend leases in return
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Hairdresser chain: NZ commercial landlords stingy on rent help
James Fyfe (Newshub): New survey shows Labour gaining support from small and medium businesses
National Party
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): National’s happy camper Collins ready for battle
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Tick. Tick podcast: Judith Collins walks back National’s debt target, saying its ‘aspirational’ and not ‘set in stone’
Peter Dunne (Newsroom): Welcome to the twilight zone
Labour Party
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Jacinda Ardern on true transformation, and Covid-19’s silver lining
Josh Van Veen (Democracy Project): The Transformation of Jacinda Ardern
Election
Bronson Perich (Māori TV): Hosting elections in prison: what prisoners will go through
Tim Newman (Nelson Mail): Labour and ACT strong performers in top of the south political survey
Bronson Perich (Māori TV): Kelvin Davis proud of government achievements for Tai Tokerau
Deena Costser (Taranaki Daily News): NZ Outdoors Party puts up Te Tai Hauāuru candidate
Euthanasia, Cannabis referendums
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Euthanasia referendum: What drugs are used in assisted dying, and how do they work?
Anuja Nadkarni (Stuff): Cannabis referendum: Is now a good time to invest in cannabis stocks?
Housing
Simon Wilson (Herald): Election diary: Who’s doing what about the housing crisis? (paywalled)
Sophie Cornish (Stuff): Gang members in nearby emergency accommodation linked to anti-social issues in Wellington’s ‘Pigeon Park’
Transport
Phil Pennington (RNZ): NZTA leaked report reveals high-level failings, conflicts of interest
Lorna Thornber (Stuff): ‘An eerie experience’: Thousands of Air New Zealand customer cancellations result in near-empty flights
RNZ: Air New Zealand halts flight bookings to Melbourne, Brisbane
Herald: Air NZ puts bookings to Australia on hold due to new restrictions
Health
Brittany Keogh (Stuff): Twice as many teenagers with ‘significant’ depressive symptoms in 20 years: study
Eleisha Foon (RNZ): Mental health study on young people shows they don’t feel heard
Sela Jane Hopgood (RNZ): Mental health support for Pasifika receives funding
Local government
Laura Walters (Newsroom): Push for Electoral Commission to run local elections
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): A quarter of Napier City Council staff have ‘checked out’ or do ‘the bare minimum’
Mike Mather (Waikato Times): Beloved political pioneer Hilda Ross pulled into Captain Hamilton debate
Tracy Neal (RNZ): Young councillor says four-year local government term would help oust ‘useless’ councillors
Harry Lock (RNZ): Wellington convention centre named Tākina, botanic gardens area named Paekākā
Mandy Te (Stuff): One of Wellington’s important future buildings, the convention and exhibition centre, officially named Tākina
Lois Williams (Stuff): West Coast council staff email accounts hacked
Chloe Ranford (RNZ): Ward residents oppose proposed freedom camping site
Other
Katarina Williams (Stuff): Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s Facebook Live use gets thumbs up in British study
David Farrar: The damning timeline against Martin Matthews
Todd Niall (Stuff): America’s Cup allegations: High Court closes door on new details
1News: Far North counsellor says public support for convicted child rapist will scare victims off reporting crime
ODT Editorial: Sexual Violence Bill in limbo
Spinoff: Meet the cast of Youth Wings, a new political documentary series coming soon
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Christchurch attack victims, family members from overseas in managed isolation before gunman’s sentencing
1News: Mosque attack victim devastated after request for overseas family to join him at sentencing denied
Ben Strang (RNZ): Police add almost 1300 officers to ranks, but fall short of 1800 target
RNZ: Three Waikato farmers fined a total of $116k for illegal effluent discharge
Eloise Gibson (Stuff): Detecting cow burps from space — NZ’s role in global satellite mission
RNZ: The Detail: Rubbish responsibility – keeping stuff out of landfill
Jim Boult (ODT): Airport for Tarras plan fine, so long as it doesn’t happen
Herald: New book reveals friendship between Jacinda Ardern and Meghan Markle
