Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage. You can sign up to NZ Politics Daily as well as New Zealand Political Roundup columns for free here.
Today’s content
Health system braces for influx of cases, home isolation required
Zane Small (Newshub): Modelling shows 5300 COVID-19 cases per week in 2022 – here’s how infected will be cared for
Rowan Quinn (RNZ): Covid patients at Middlemore Hospital will soon be triaged in a tent
Eva Corlett (Guardian): New Zealand modelling shows Covid cases could peak at 5,300 a week in Auckland next year
RNZ: Watch: Health Minister Andrew Little on hospital preparedness for Covid-19
Benn Bathgate (Stuff): National’s Shane Reti jabs at Health Minister Andrew Little over reform plan costs, ICU numbers
Lloyd Burr (Magic): Andrew Little faces criticism from listeners saying DHB & hospitals will “crumble” under wide spread COVID
No Right Turn: Labour’s 2023 election manifesto
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): Contact tracing may crumble at 20% of promised capacity
RNZ: Checkpoint: GPs ‘not quite’ ready for care of high-risk Covid-19 cases
Eleisha Foon (RNZ): Pasifika GP’s face pandemic burnout
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Derek Cheng (Herald): Covid 19 Delta isn’t going anywhere; Govt revamps how to handle cases as daily numbers climb
Richard Harman (Politik): No MIQ space for expected Covid surge (paywalled)
Anna Whyte (1 News): Future use of Covid home isolation ‘always part of the plan’ – Robertson
Nicole Bremner (1 News): ‘Here to stay’ – Govt’s new plan will see Covid cases managed at home
Jenée Tibshraeny (Interest): ACT questions why the Government is preparing to let people with Covid-19 self-isolate, while overseas arrivals unlikely to be infected have to queue up for MIQ
Govt Covid strategy, expert warnings, Auckland
Thomas Manch (Stuff): Government’s Covid-19 policies set to drastically change within weeks
Keith Lynch (Stuff): What the end of the pandemic looks like
RNZ: ‘Race against time’: Outbreak must be slowed to allow time for more vaccinations – epidemiologist
1 News: NZ ‘in a race against Delta’ to stop outbreak spiralling
Maxine Jacobs (Stuff): Māori leaders brace for impact as Government continues to ignore vaccine priority call
Jamie Tahana (RNZ): Māori health coalition urges return to Covid-19 elimination strategy
Kristin Hall (1 News): Māori, Pacific health experts call for Level 4 in Auckland, Northland
Michael Neilson (Herald): ‘Māori are paying the price’ as Government accused of ‘giving up’ on controlling outbreak
Peter Dunne (Newsroom): Government now needs to dangle hope
Steven Cowan (Against the Current): Aucklanders are to blame
Luke Malpass (Stuff): The elimination edifice is being dismantled — the Government might as well lean into it
Katie Todd (RNZ): Aucklanders call for clarity: ‘We can’t have grey rules and then expect people to follow them’
RNZ: Opposition parties urge people to stick to alert level rules
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Thousands of infections a week, even at 90 per cent vaccination rate
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Grant Robertson urges Aucklanders to stick to rules after ‘large number’ of cases reported from indoor gatherings
Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Invasion of the (Covid) Body Snatchers
Zane Small (Newshub): Public Health Director Caroline McElnay’s puzzling COVID-19 rules reminder cleared up by Ministry of Health
Hannah Martin (Stuff): 71 new cases in Delta community outbreak ‘sobering’ but not unexpected
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Two Auckland sub-clusters have 100+ cases, in north and south suburbs
Auckland border breaches
Michael Morrah (Newshub): Government orders border exemption review after two women flee Auckland for Blenheim
Jessica Roden (1 News): Auckland women appear in court after breaking Level 3 rules to travel to Blenheim
Anna Leask (Herald): Auckland sex workers caught at Blenheim motel without travel exemptions
Zoe Holland (Herald): Police arrest Aucklander who allegedly travelled to Wānaka during lockdown
Matt Brown (Herald): Auckland sex workers caught at Blenheim motel appear in court
Karina Cooper (Northern Advocate): Women who travelled to Northland ‘probably’ not going to say any more, MoH reveals
Emma Stanford and Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Far North Mayor John Carter lashes out at Northland travellers refusing to cooperate
Mandatory vaccination, incentives
Rachel Thomas (Stuff): No guidance for employers of health workers as vaccine mandate deadline looms
Jamie Gray (Herald): NZ businesses want mandatory vaccination in all industries – survey (paywalled)
Derek Cheng (Herald): Majority support for ‘no jab, no job’ across several sectors – new poll
Stephen Forbes (Local Democracy Reporting): Calls for Auckland DHBs to get tough on employees who refuse vaccination
Vicki Anderson (Stuff): Summer music festivals ‘in limbo’ over Covid-19 vaccine certificates
Stephanie Ockhuysen (Stuff): Vaccine certificates a challenge for free events like Festival of Lights, New Plymouth mayor says
RNZ: Kura Kaupapa and Kohanga Reo leaders confident they’ll get staff vaccinated
Tamati Tiananga (Māori TV): No vaccination, no moko, Māori tā moko artist says
Joanne Naish (Stuff): Skydives, rugby tickets and free phones – but experts say vaccine incentives won’t work for all
Vaccine rollout, anti-vaxxers
Chris Trotter (Bowalley Road): CTU missing from the anti-Covid action
Matthew Scott (Newsroom): Prof Rod Jackson: ‘Don’t be a dick, get the prick’
1 News: Is your region at the top or bottom of the Covid-19 vaccination ladder?
Rowan Quinn (RNZ): Northland underdogs put in hearty effort and boost numbers
Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): Reti reveals barriers stopping Northland Māori from getting vaccinated
Michael Neilson (Herald): How an iwi-led Covid-19 vaccination programme has achieved some of the country’s highest rates
1 News: Cautious reopening possible before vaccine rates reach 90%: epidemiologist
1 News: Baker: Vaccines used before germ theory was even found
Dr Paul Salmon, Dr Neil Mortimer, Dr Curtis Walker, Prof Rod Jackson, Dr Marianne Empson, Dr Adrian Seine & Dr Alistair Brown (Herald): Seven experts’ opinion: Almost every eligible New Zealander can safely receive Pfizer vaccine
Sam Olley (RNZ): DHB concerns about anti-vax pathologist
RNZ: Tāmaki Makaurau pulling out all stops for Super Saturday vaccination drive
Māori TV: Fleet of ‘Vax Vans’ hits road ahead of National ‘Vaccination Day’
Janine Rankin (Stuff): Vaxathon drive promises giveaways for people who get vaccinated
Hamish McNeilly (Stuff): Ice creams, meat and free waxings – how the south does Super Saturday
Dan Satherley (Newshub): People getting jabbed under others’ names in vaccine ‘scam’ – report
RNZ: Nanogirl: Communication key to battling Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy
Dubby Henry (Herald): Raglan Area School allows antivax meetings – says it’s trying to avoid division
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): What do people want from Sandra Goudie?
James Fleury and Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Thames-Coromandel Mayor Sandra Goudie ignores Government’s call to get vaccinated
Sharnae Hope (Stuff): Mixed views on Coromandel mayor’s decision to say no to Pfizer
Miriam Burrell (Herald): Thames-Coromandel mayor Sandra Goudie’s anti-Pfizer views ‘won’t help us get vaccinated’, Grant Robertson says
Herald: Thames-Coromandel mayor Sandra Goudie on why she refuses the Pfizer vaccine
Herald: Marlon Williams’ epic response to anti-vaxxer
Stuff: Hit 90 per cent vaccinations rates or say goodbye to summer, says deputy mayor
Kane Takawe (Stuff): Getting vaccinated brings freedom that much closer
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Social media used to reach Māori in vaccination drive
Stuff: New Zealand’s sports stars push for people to get vaccinated
Michael Neilson (Herald): New Zealand MPs now 90 per cent fully vaccinated (paywalled)
Madeleine Chapman (Spinoff): Exclusive: Stuart Nash attempts to explain his shirtless vax pic
Testing, contact tracing
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Ministry of Health slips below ‘gold standard’ for COVID test result turnaround
Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Testing companies say Ministry of Health should contract, not commandeer (paywalled)
Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): Ministry of Health gave saliva testing provider ‘the metaphorical finger’ during outbreak
Eric Crampton (Offsetting Behaviour): No accountability in Covid-land
1 News: 25 businesses to import, use rapid antigen tests
Damien Venuto (Herald): New Zealand businesses to import 300,000 rapid Covid tests
Zane Small (Newshub): Ashley Bloomfield grants coalition of businesses exemption to import 300,000 rapid antigen COVID-19 tests
RNZ: Businesses given green light for rapid antigen tests
RNZ: IT expert says My Covid Record app at risk of security breaches
Eric Crampton (Offsetting Behaviour): Contact details
Hannah Kronast (Newshub): Auckland vaccination centre, businesses found to still have open sign in sheets despite privacy advice
Alert level compliance, rules
Hamish Cardwell (RNZ): Increase in people exploiting mask exemptions while vulnerable people denied entry to shops
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Health worker in isolation after COVID patient ‘lied’ about exposure history
1 News: Police still trying to find Covid-positive Auckland woman
Stuff Editorial: Covid’s dangerous rule-breakers must face consequences
Herald Editorial: A tale of two approaches in times of Covid (paywalled)
MIQ, immigration, border
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): 750 people apply for 150 self-isolation spaces
1 News: Seymour calls for end to ‘Hunger Games’ of MIQ booking
Ben Leahy (Herald): Returning Kiwi can barely move in ‘prison cell’-sized managed isolation room
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Healthcare worker shortage a ‘hot mess’ — National
Herald: Mood of the Boardroom: Border restrictions are ‘a mixed blessing’ (paywalled)
Environment, climate change, conservation
Hamish Cardwell (RNZ): Climate plan ‘a slap in the face for current and future generations’
Brent Edwards (NBR): Is PM’s ‘nuclear-free moment’ as urgent as responding to Covid-19? (paywalled)
Chris Trotter (Daily Blog): Don’t Blame James
Gerhard Uys (Stuff): Climate change: Are Australia’s wildfires New Zealand’s future?
Brian Fallow (Herald): Big changes in the way we get around (paywalled)
Dave Frame and Adrian Macey (Newsroom): Kicking the can on methane
RNZ: NZ ranked 9th in net zero emission readiness index
1 News: Greater scale, speed needed to respond to climate emergency – Shaw
Tess McClure and Eva Corlett (Guardian): Climate study linking early Māori fires to Antarctic changes sparks controversy
Stuart Smith (Stuff): Farmers can be New Zealand’s front line climate heroes
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David Williams (Newsroom): Shrub-killing farmer’s $12m gain on sale to Crown
RNZ: The Detail: Our throwaway society can’t last forever
Rachael Kelly (Stuff): Regional council concerns farmers will carry more stock to pay for fencing rules
Chloe Ranford (Stuff): Study flings mud at farmers and foresters
Business, economy, wage subsidy
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Jump in number of Auckland businesses shutting doors in lockdown, data shows
Grant Bradley (Herald): Youth adventure accommodation businesses beyond breaking point (paywalled)
David Hargreaves (Interest): NZ’s inflation is set to hit another 10-year high, but the key question will be whether this is a short run thing or the start of a lasting wage and price spiral
Māori TV: Bank leader determined to help rangatahi build businesses
MMP at 25, Electoral law review, Parliament, Government
Josh Van Veen, Jack Vowles, Jennifer Curtin, Lara Greaves, Sam Crawley (The Conversation): Anniversary of a landslide: new research reveals what really swung New Zealand’s 2020 ‘COVID election’
Henry Cooke (Stuff): The chaotic transition into a new political world almost killed off Labour
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Why MMP is our worst mistake (paywalled)
Stuff Editorial: Not perfect government but better than the others
Graeme Edgeler (Stuff): Why the case for a four-year parliamentary term is unconvincing
Gordon Campbell: On the epic fails of Kris Faafoi
Abbey Wakefield (1 News): Wellington dad buys MP’s famous red ute
Taxpayers’ Union: Taxpayer Talk: Exclusive polling and analysis with David Farrar (podcast)
Justice
Farah Hancock (RNZ): Minimum wage earners, pensioners no longer qualify for legal aid
Edward Gay (Stuff): Chief Justice asks judges for information including ethnicity, gender and sexuality
Health
Ian Powell (Second Opinion): Funding of high-needs primary healthcare needs an overhaul
Dianna Vezich (Newshub): Estimated 133 women may unknowingly have breast cancer after level 4 delayed routine mammograms – Breast Cancer Foundation
Mare Haimona-Riki (Māori TV): Largest child development study offers questions in Te Reo
Inequality, lockdown hardship, charities
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Need for food parcels doubled in level 4 – Auckland City Mission
1 News: Rising inflation, pandemic making household budgets tighter
Ella Stewart (RNZ): Auckland aged-care residents struggling with isolation in lockdown
Kerre McIvor (Newstalk ZB): Let’s show a bit of humanity for those in aged care
Matthew Scott (Newsroom): Charity for the terminally ill on its death bed
Local government
Gary Hamilton-Irvine (Herald): Hastings District Council: Milestone reached for introduction of Māori seats (paywalled)
Alice Angeloni (Local Democracy Reporting) Kiwifruit growers take Gisborne District Council to High Court over land valuation method
Housing
RNZ: Whai Kāinga Govt programme to help iwi build 1000 new homes
Carmen Hall (Herald): ‘Horrific’: Iwi’s fury after houses destined for desperate families demolished (paywalled)
RNZ: Housing market bounces back from lockdown – figures
Miriam Bell (Stuff): House prices fell 6.5 per cent, sales 9.7 per cent last month
Greg Ninness (Interest): Rapidly rising housing rents behind the growing interest in build-to-rent schemes
Skara Bohny (Stuff): Record high prices matched to low sales in Nelson Tasman housing market
Mandy Te (Stuff): Work on Wellington City Mission’s new $40m community hub begins
RNZ: Construction on Wellington City Mission’s new facility begins
Education and training
RNZ: Auckland lockdown: More than half of students drop off radar at some schools
Amy Wiggins (Herald): St Peter’s Cambridge senior leaders initially denied staff bullying allegations, WorkSafe report reveals (paywalled)
Katie Harris (Herald): NZ broadcasting school confirms multiple bullying and harassment allegations against staff (paywalled)
Media
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Media Council ‘limited’ in handling foreign language media
Sri Krishnamurthi (Asia Pacific Report): How NZ’s Public Interest Journalism Fund can help ‘normalise’ diversity
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): Media Council upholds Newshub complaint
Kirsty Lawrence (Stuff): MediaWorks correct to uphold complaint about anti-Semitic comment, BSA says
Stephen Parker (Newsroom): Reporters disciplined under BBC clampdown on virtue signalling
Other
Toby Morris (Spinoff): The Side Eye’s Two New Zealands: The Pacific Pay Gap
Gareth Vaughan (Interest): Transparency International homes in on New Zealand foreign trusts
Bronson Perich (Te Karere): 50th anniversary of reo Māori petition to be celebrated
Marena Mane (Māori TV): 1972 Māori language petition takes top place for 50th anniversary
Melanie Reid and Bonnie Sumner (Newsroom): OT places children with assaulting caregiver
Abuse in state care: One woman’s early life – ‘beaten up, neglected, rejected’
Andrew McRae (RNZ): One woman’s early life in state care: ‘Beaten up, neglected, rejected’
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): ACC staffer shocked man she complained about still working with survivors
Sam Hurley (Herald): The rise and fall of Ron Brierley: From famed corporate raider to infamous criminal (paywalled)
Emma Hatton (RNZ): Tech start-ups hit by ‘illogical’ change of R&D funding
James Nokise (Stuff): The season when the political feathers fly is back
Tina Morrison (Stuff): Govt awards $11.5m contract to investigate feasibility of Lake Onslow power scheme
Herewini Waikato (Māori TV): First road traffic signs in Te Reo Māori – Taihoa, Haere
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Westport flood: 450 homes still unlivable or damage
