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
Border failures, criticism
Hayden Donnell (RNZ): Mediawatch: A backlash over tough questions for Dr Ashley Bloomfield
Bryce Edwards (Herald): Political Roundup – How serious are the Govt’s border botch-ups?
Andrea Vance (Stuff): Big little lies: Getting to the facts in New Zealand’s border failures
Michael Morrah (Newshub): Conflicting messages over whether returnees’ bus drivers have to wear face masks
Luke Malpass (Stuff): Labour claws to defend its Covid competence
Steven Joyce (Herald): Why we’ve been failing at the border (paywalled)
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Labour must not squander voters’ trust
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Are we really being too hard on the Govt?
Tony Burton (Democracy Project): How govt depts really work – Explaining the border control debacle
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Who runs our Covid-19 border response?
ODT Editorial: Policy and action must combine
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Exclusive new poll: How have testing issues and the new outbreak affected public confidence?
Steve Braunias (Herald): The secret diary of … border testing (paywalled)
1News: Sir Brian Roche, brought in to optimise Covid-19 testing, says communication and fatigue issues are present
Newstalk ZB: Sir Brian Roche on NZ’s Covid response: “We are the envy of the world”
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Border fix-it man Sir Brian Roche says Kiwis ‘should be thankful’ for success so far
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Michael Morrah’s journalism should be celebrated – not vilified
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Why the criticism against Government’s border screw up is actually incredibly unfair – chill out Kiwis!
Dan Satherley (Newshub Nation): Why the Government’s sticking with Auckland for isolation hotels, despite the risks
George Block (Stuff): One in ten Defence Force personnel deployed in Covid-19 battle
Laura Walters (Newsroom): Military not long-term fix for border problems
National Party, NZ First Covid policies
Judith Collins (Stuff): Tough times calls for tough border measures
Dan Satherley (Newshub): National wants Kiwis overseas to find Immigration NZ-approved testing labs before coming home
Dan Satherley (Newshub): National’s COVID policies ‘would have been a disaster’ – David Parker
Grant Shimmin (Stuff): I’m not exactly barracking for this
Election
John Armstrong (1News): Why next week might be the most crucial in the election campaign
Audrey Young (Herald): Judith Collins has stabilised her wobbly start as National leader (paywalled)
Max Rashbrooke (Scoop): Democracy 2.0 : What Is On Offer In GE 2020?
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Greens & ACT are now the value parties but use completely different recruitment methods
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Helen Harvey (Stuff): Labour Party removes video from Facebook page after Act leader’s complaint
Herald: Labour’s ‘Ashley Bloomfield’ campaign ad has been taken down
Audrey Young (Herald): Labour’s ‘Ashley Bloomfield’ campaign ad draws criticism from Act
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ACT’s David Seymour says Labour acting like a ‘one-party state’ after releasing video featuring shot of Ashley Bloomfield
Newstalk ZB: David Seymour: ‘Completely unacceptable’ civil servants appeared in campaign ad
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Henry Cooke (Stuff): Delayed election sees parties scrambling for cash
Ben Strang (RNZ): Election date change lets parties and referendum campaigners spend more
Fiona Rotherham (NBR): A voters’ guide to MMP (paywalled)
Eugene Bingham and Adam Dudding (Stuff): Tick. Tick podcast: New Zealand needs to be ‘on guard’ for foreign interference in election
Alister Browne (Stuff): Winston Peters’ mercurial ideals leave voters ‘flying blind’
Michelle Duff (Stuff): What women want this election
Parliament, week in politics
Peter Wilson (RNZ): The Week in Politics: Screws turned on govt over border testing regime
Brent Edwards (NBR): Fact or Fiction: Testing problems and election delay (paywalled)
Jane Clifton (BusinessDesk): An extra month is a long time in politics (paywalled)
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Wrangling ministry machinery a challenge
Daniela Maoate-Cox and Phil Smith (RNZ): The revenant Parliament: just one job
Brittany Keogh (Stuff): Parliament website goes down, restaurant subsidy petition loses 500 signatures
Vita Molyneux (Newshub): Internet unearths decade-old interview with Jacinda Ardern, Simon Bridges on kids’ TV show
Alert level decision
Derek Cheng (Herald): Why Jacinda Ardern’s decision today is the hardest one yet (paywalled)
1News: Leading epidemiologist wants Auckland to remain at Alert Level 3 until community cases subside
RNZ: Data modelling expert says latest Covid-19 numbers good news, but caution needed
1News: Auckland’s Level 3 lockdown likely to be extended, says data modelling expert
Dan Satherley (Newshub): The numbers behind Auckland’s path out of lockdown
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Jacinda Ardern outlines lockdown exit strategy, as Auckland remains at level 3
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): New Zealand looks on track to shift down COVID-19 alert levels – but don’t celebrate just yet
Zane Small (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern explains how New Zealand could avoid future COVID-19 lockdowns ahead of alert level decision
Auckland Level 3
Zoe Holland (Herald): 89 per cent of Auckland businesses collecting wage subsidy
Josephine Franks (Stuff): 89 per cent of Auckland businesses collecting wage subsidy
Katie Bradford (1News): Ten per cent of bars and restaurants set to close in next fortnight: Hospitality Association
Dan Satherley and Zac Fleming (Newshub): One-in-five Auckland businesses say they won’t survive another lockdown
1News: Change made to Auckland travel restrictions aimed at helping businesses
RNZ: Changes made to Auckland’s Covid-19 alert level 3 travel restrictions
Josephine Franks (Stuff): Aucklanders crowd skate parks, basketball courts, ignoring level 3 rules
1News: Police ‘generally happy’ with Aucklanders’ behaviour as country enters second weekend under Level 3
1News: Q+A: Parts of Auckland may not be in lockdown now if National was in charge – Dr Shane Reti
Georgia Forrester (Stuff): ‘Thank you Auckland’ as Jacinda Ardern says lessons learned from second lockdown
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Food parcel demand back at lockdown-scale levels in Auckland
Edward O”Driscoll (Newshub): Sikh community stepping in again as hundreds of families queue for food
NZ’s coronavirus response
Ian Powell (Second Opinion): New International Covid-19 Data Revealing
RNZ: CovidCard would prove its worth in any isolation breaches – expert
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): CovidCards work but making them mandatory would be ‘an extreme last resort’, says minister
Carmen Parahi (Stuff): ‘I was gutted’: Jacinda Ardern on her moment of despondency over Covid-19 and the words from a world leader that helped
Zane Small (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern confident in COVID-19 resurgence plan as Gerry Brownlee labels it complete failure
Kate Nicol-Williams (1News): Experts calling for masks to be compulsory for employees, public in some workplaces
Tina Law (Press): ‘Social contagion’ needed for face masks become the norm
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): 27 swabs for nearly 4000 people on Ruby Princess cruise- how NZ was put at risk
Zane Small (Newshub): NZ’s vaccine strategy: Our chances of securing lifesaving shots and whether it will be mandatory
Alison Mau (Stuff): A Covid-19 vaccine could be tantalisingly close, but will people take it?
Hannah Martin (Stuff): New Zealand looks to use saliva tests as part of Covid-19 fight
Rachel Thomas (RNZ): Young people should not bear brunt of blame for spreading virus – expert
1News:‘Consequences’ needed for people withholding information about Covid-19 infections: epidemiologist
Steve Stannard (Stuff): Covid-19 hysteria-making does our team of five million a disservice
Polly Gillespie (Stuff): Jacinda, I like you, but please shut up about the team of five million
Eleanor Ainge Roy (Guardian): ‘Very proud’: Jacinda Ardern defends New Zealand Covid response after Trump comments
Crystal Wu (Newshub): Phil Goff giggles at Trump’s ‘mystifying’ NZ COVID-19 surge remark in CNN interview
Herald: #NZhellhole – New Zealand Twitter users respond to overseas criticism
Kethaki Masilamani (Newshub): Kiwi Twitter users respond to overseas lockdown criticism with hashtag ‘NZHellHole’
Iwi-led checkpoints, border patrols
Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): Green Party supports iwi-led checkpoints
RNZ: Iwi say they will reopen Northland checkpoints near Kawakawa
RNZ: Far North Māori leaders opt for mobile patrols at borders
Newstalk ZB: Far North iwi set up checkpoints to stop Auckland motorists
Māori TV: Northern iwi chairs concerned about thousands trying to cross borders
Pacific communities, Covid-19 and ethnicity
Collin Tukuitonga (E-Tangata): Covid and ethnicity — ‘a difficult balancing act’
Eleisha Foon (RNZ): Pasifika need extra help dealing with Covid’s harsh reality – councillor
Sela Jane Hopgood (RNZ): Pacific community come out in force during Covid-19 testing
Elana Curtis (E-Tangata): Time for a new recipe for pandemic management
Sela Jane Hopgood (RNZ): ‘Covid-19 doesn’t discriminate, and neither should we’ – Komiti Pasefika
Emma Cropper (Newshub): Pacific community on edge as five new COVID-19 cases linked to its churches
Lockdown legality
Damien Grant (Stuff): PM’s abuse of power during lockdown a warning to us all
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Simon Bridges had a ‘chuckle’ after learning he was right to challenge lockdown’s legality
Anti-lockdown demonstration
Vita Molyneux and Dan Satherley (Newshub): Anti-lockdown, vaccination and 1080 protesters take over Auckland’s Aotea Square
Vita Molyneux (Newshub): Watch protestors march down Queen Street in anger over lockdown
Health
Virginia Fallon (Stuff): ‘We have totally failed’: Rheumatic fever: The Third World disease entrenched in New Zealand
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Funding gaps force clinicians ‘to play God’ when allocating life-changing hearing devices
Elizabeth White (Newshub): Over 10,000 Kiwis face increased surgery waiting lists due to COVID-19 lockdown
Helen Clark (Stuff): New Zealand’s smoke-free gains among my proudest achievements, but there’s more work to do
Caitlin Ellis (Newshub): Lunch date with Ashley Bloomfield up for auction on Trade Me
Canterbury District Health Board
Cate Broughton and Dominic Harris (Stuff): Jacinda Ardern promises action to stop further meltdown of Canterbury health board
Cate Broughton (Stuff): Adversarial’ culture drove Canterbury’s chief medical officer to quit
Katie Todd (RNZ): Canterbury DHB remains quiet on Friday as doctors call for government intervention
RNZ:Canterbury DHB woes: ‘Somebody needs to come to their senses’
Newstalk ZB: Concern Canterbury DHB’s cost-cutting measures will lead to job losses
Politicising suicide
Tim Brown (RNZ): Suicide commentary unhelpful to Queenstown, mental health experts say
1News: Speculation suicide rates will increase due to Covid-19 ‘unhelpful’ – Carla na Nagara
Euthanasia and cannabis referendums
Ben Strang (RNZ): Referendum campaigners look for clarity after election date change
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Not a free-for-all: ins and outs of the new legislation
Mike Houlahan (ODT): No assistance for euthanasia at hospice
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Legalising cannabis about ‘getting mature’ – NZ Drug Foundation
Caitlin Ellis (Newshub): Otago University researcher outlines how alcohol is more harmful than cannabis
Mike O’Donnell (Stuff): Cannabis referendum a sideshow, not the main event
John Gibb and Grant Miller (ODT): Rector’s cannabis post on shaky legal ground
Voting age, youth voting patterns
Brittany Keogh (Stuff): Low numbers of youth voting linked to social isolation
Andrew Geddis (Pundit): Don’t Let Our Youth Go To Waste
RNZ: Lower voting age means ‘stronger democracy’ – teen
Conspiracy theories, misinformation, social media
Tracy Watkins (Stuff): We can all do our part to halt the onslaught of Covid-19 misinformation
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ‘Know what you’re sharing and what the potential impact is’: Peeni Henare on the spread of COVID-19 misinformation
Susan Strongman (RNZ): When a relative falls down a conspiracy theory rabbit hole
Emmaline Pickering-Martin (E-Tangata): Rumours, racism, and privilege
Anuja Nadkarni (Stuff): Influencers turned conspiracy theorists: Risk to brands expose
Christchurch mosque shooting
ODT Editorial: Victims’ voices paramount
Charlotte Graham-McLay (Guardian): New Zealand braces for mosque gunman’s sentencing
1News: Fears Christchurch mosques terrorist will use court as hate speech platform at sentencing
Lisa Davies (1News): Victims prepare to face Christchurch terror attacks gunman in court ahead of sentencing
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Mosque shooting terrorist arrives in Christchurch for sentencing
Holly Carran (Newshub): Large number of police in Christchurch ahead of mosque shooting sentence
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Christchurch mosque attack sentencing: The event that shocked New Zealand
1News: Man who lost his wife in Christchurch terror attacks planning not to attend terrorist’s sentencing
David Williams (Newsroom): Gunman is biggest victim, attack survivor says
RNZ: Sunday Morning: Christchurch mosque shooting widow: ‘I am my husband’s voice’
Economy
John McCrone (Stuff): A kinder, greener, fairer economics to replace neoliberalism? Questioning New Zealand’s chances of making the move
Rod Oram (Newsroom): Less Covid, more confidence
Andy Fyers (BusinessDesk): Towns that tourism forgot: The uneven impact of the covid recession (paywalled)
RNZ: Move to negative interest rates will depend on health of economy – RBNZ chief economist
Liam Dann (Herald): Grant Robertson says $14 billion untouched – lockdown hasn’t changed fiscal outlook (paywalled)
Jenée Tibshraeny (Interest): TOP Leader Geoff Simmons on why the RBNZ should pay us $250/week for six months so those with debt can repay it and those without debt can splash cash
Business
Nita Blake-Persen (RNZ): $2b in wage subsidies for businesses that have not paid company tax
Laura James (1News): The Warehouse accused of taking advantage of lockdown to push through restructure
Brent Edwards (NBR): Kiwi firms urged to address any human rights abuses in supply chains (paywalled)
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Air New Zealand needs Government’s help to fly (paywalled)
Duncan Garner (Newshub): Duncan Garner: Tough road ahead for Air New Zealand to recover from COVID-19 pandemic
Employment
Brian Fallow (Interest): A central government funded universal jobs guarantee should receive serious consideration
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Māori women took hit in first wave of Covid-19 job losses, Stats NZ data shows
Education
Dylan Cleaver (Herald): ‘We sold our souls for a few dollars’: The shopping list of concerns about televising school sport (paywalled)
John Boynton and Mihingarangi Forbes (The Hui): Education Minister Chris Hipkins challenged over lack of online resources for low-decile schools
John Boynton (The Hui): Effectiveness of spend-up on learning TV questioned
Khylee Quince (Stuff): Covid inequities are showing up in school leaver figures
Laura O’Connell Rapira (Spinoff): The real conspiracy is that education is for the rich
Greg Ninness (Interest): The lockdown appears to have had only a minor impact on overseas student numbers so far and may have had no impact on migrant worker numbers
Brent Edwards (NBR): National wants safe border before considering international education (paywalled)
Lee Kenny (Stuff): Mega polytech has 21 staff with chief executive in their title
Anna Whyte (1News): Green’s Chlöe Swarbrick pushes for more support for students amid Covid-19
Jehan Casinader (BusinessDesk): Here’s a crisis worth reading about
Neil Boland and Stephen Dobson (Newsroom): Pandemic shifts some education myths
Grant Miller (ODT): Concerns over proposed med school quotas
Sam Sherwood (Press): University of Canterbury launches investigation into lecturer’s online comments
Housing
Debrin Foxcroft (Stuff):A decade of saving and above average income required to buy a house in Auckland
Damian George (Stuff): Disagreement over call for city council to help tenants living in damp and mouldy homes
Sally Kidson (Stuff): Close to Home: Why we should care about the housing market in Nelson Tasman
Amy Ridout (Stuff): Close to Home: The dog-eat-dog world of renting a home
Nina Hindmarsh (Stuff): Close to Home: renters locked out of Golden Bay housing market saturated in holiday homes
Tim Newman (Stuff): Close to Home: Nelson’s housing market ‘ballistic’ since level one, agent says
Eva Corlett (RNZ): Thousands default on mortgage payments, others rush to get home finance
Primary and extractive industries
Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Case against Energy Minister in court as gas company claims exploration ban ‘breached rule of law’ (paywalled)
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Streams of green: The worst ‘dirty dairy’ offending of 2019/20
Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): Taranaki meat company charged for ammonia spill that killed thousands of eels
Southland Times Editorial: Ministers and farmers should join ES freshwater hui
Piers Fuller (Stuff): Wonderful wool, our ‘supermaterial’, is at a crossroads – adapt or disappear
Matthew Theunissen (RNZ): Auckland Covid-19 borders causing problems for farmers south of the city
Brent Melville (BusinessDesk): Just how exposed is Zespri to Chinese ‘counterfeit gold’ (paywalled)
Environment
Dominic Harris (Stuff): Water bottling industry to face fresh scrutiny under plan to ban new ventures
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Water bottling consents moratorium voted in by New Zealand councils
Catherine Delahunty (E-Tangata): Moving from tokenism to respect
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): World champions: Five women working to save us from climate change disaster
ODT: Putting the fantastic back in plastic
Media
Atakohu Middleton (Stuff): Backlash over Māori Television’s interview with Don Brash
RNZ: Saturday Morning: Buying a media business for $1: Stuff’s Sinead Boucher
Koroneihana celebrations
RNZ: Kiingi Tūheitia urges for kotahitanga in first koroneihana live stream
Bronson Perich (Māori TV): Kiingi Tūheitia calls on all Māori to vote this year
Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): PM honours Kiingitanga response to Covid-19 in Koroneihana address
Local Government
RNZ: Local Government New Zealand elects Stuart Crosby as new president
Tom Dillane (Herald): Proposal for Government to buy 50 per cent stake in Ports of Auckland from council
Pattrick Smellie (BusinessDesk): NZX partial-listing Auckland’s best port option? (paywalled)
Transport
Joel Maxwell (Dominion Post): Transmission Gully to open by September 2021 after lengthy negotiations
Dan Satherley and Miriam Harris (Newshub): End of the road in sight for Transmission Gully construction
Charlotte Cook (RNZ): Transmission Gully: Govt orders review, NZTA says there are ‘lessons to learn
Georgina Campbell (Herald): Transmission Gully budget blowout: Government asks for review
Brent Edwards (NBR): Coalition points the finger at National over troubled Transmission Gully project
Robin Martin (RNZ): Checkpoint: Taranaki couple fear bypasss will force them out of their home
Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Commuter train could be at risk under National, Labour MP says
Tourism
Susan Botting (RNZ): New Zealand’s $33.2 million Hundertwasser Art Centre faces losses as international tourists disappear
RNZ: NZ firms face uncertain wait after STA Travel ceases trading
Royal Commission into Abuse in State Care
David Williams (Newsroom): Abuse inquiry opens Lake Alice chapter
RNZ: Marylands School abuse inquiry: ‘It’s about time’
Justice
Ella Prendergast and Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Children’s Commissioner report calls for criminal responsibility age to be lifted from 10 to 14
Jenny Harper (Stuff): Former Māori prison chief calls for change
Jehan Casinader (Stuff): ‘Absolutely broken’: sexual violence advocate Louise Nicholas dumped by Government
Rachel Thomas (RNZ): Govt drops victim advocate Louise Nicholas: ‘It’s back to battle we go’
New Zealander of the Year
Crystal Wu (Newshub): New Zealander of the Year nominee: Celebrity cat ‘Mittens’ makes global headlines
Jack Guy (CNN): Mittens the cat could become New Zealander of the Year
News18: Mittens the Cat Might Beat NZ PM Jacinda Ardern to Become ‘New Zealander of the Year’
Emily Olle (7News): Mittens’ the cat, of Wellington, in the running for New Zealander of the Year
Stewart Perrie (Ladbible): Cat Named Mittens Is In The Running To Become New Zealander Of The Year
Other
Rob Mitchell (Stuff): Life’s good inside the Wellington bubble, national survey reveals
Katie Kenny (Stuff): Concerns about company awarded New Zealand’s internet filter contract
Lana Andelane and Ella Prendergast (Newshub): Concerns raised over police complaints process, treatment of victims of police misconduct
Tracy Neal (RNZ): Regions query if Provincial Growth funding is fair
Dileepa Fonseka (Newsroom): Seasonal worker scheme run like ‘Cuba
Mandy Te and Tom Hunt (Stuff): Wellington’s Miramar, including Shelly Bay, re-imagined as a national heritage park
Melanie Carroll (Stuff): Is 27,000 charities too many when they’re struggling to survive?
Olivia Caldwell (Stuff): It’s a wild ride on the political campaign trail in the deep south
RNZ: Calls to scrap KiwiSaver default fund scheme
RNZ: NZ announces next High Commissioner to the Cook Islands
Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Government probe into America’s Cup funding coming to a head
Kirsty Johnston (Stuff): ‘I was a shell of a human’: Why family violence victims don’t just leave
Bonnie Sumner (Newsroom): Social workers fear OT control of staff testimony
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): Airport no stranger to debate in community
