New Zealand Politics Daily is a collation of the most prominent issues being discussed in New Zealand. It is edited by Dr Bryce Edwards of The Democracy Project.

Today’s content

TAX, BUDGET
Max Rashbrooke (Guardian): New Zealand’s millionaires pay lower tax rates than cashiers – it’s time to fix the system
1News: Who is missing out with Hipkins’ ‘no frills’ Budget?
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Big Tax Energy extinguished in 24 short hours
Gordon Campbell: On tax injustice, and on being prepped for war with China
Liam Dann (Herald): ‘No-frills’ – PM’s pre-budget speech could have been delivered by Bill English (paywalled)
Anneke Smith (RNZ): Rich-lister supports capital gains tax as new research opens fresh tax debate
Herald: Tax speculation: Briscoes boss Rod Duke fears capital gains would hurt middle class, second rich-lister claims IRD report makes them ‘look like criminals’
Craig Elliffe (The Conversation): Proving the wealthiest New Zealanders pay low tax rates is a good start – now comes the hard part
Liam Hehir (The Blue Review): Night of the Living Tax
Steven Cowan: Tax the Rich? Not Likely!
1News: Rich NZers’ wealth ‘irrelevant’ to cost of living crisis – Luxon
Brent Edwards and Nicholas Pointon (NBR): Tax reform needs public mandate – Prime Minister (paywalled)
Anneke Smith (RNZ): Budget 2023: Borrowing may be ‘sacrificial lamb’ for government, economist says
Russell Palmer (RNZ): No cyclone levy, capital gains or wealth tax in Budget – PM Chris Hipkins
Luke Malpass (Stuff): Labour to deliver ‘no-frills’ Budget with no new taxes – Hipkins
Felix Desmarais (1News): ‘No frills’ Budget: No cyclone, wealth or capital gains taxes
Dan Brunskill (Interest): The May Budget will not include any new taxes and will be focused on fiscal restraint, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says
Tess McClure (Guardian): New Zealand budget: Chris Hipkins promises to do ‘small number of things very well’
Russell Palmer and Giles Dexter (RNZ): Christopher Luxon: Labour’s no-frills pre-Budget commitment ‘too little, too late’

ELECTION
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Why some Nats are backing Winston Peters (paywalled)
Thomas Coughlan and Chris Knox (Herald): Herald’s poll of polls shows incredibly tight election (paywalled)
Claire Trevett (Herald): How National and Labour are placed to fight a cost-of-living election, the Chris Luxon and Chris Hipkins battle and the voters they think will decide it (paywalled)
Josie Pagani (The Common Room): Who represents the working class voters?
Josie Pagani (Stuff): Let the candidate Hunger Games begin
Duncan Garner (NBR): Deal with it: MMP means this election will be tight (paywalled)

PARLIAMENT
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Elizabeth Kerekere supporters fail to delay party vote in late night meeting
Craig McCulloch (RNZ): Bid to delay Green Party list ranking fails
Katie Scotcher (RNZ): Green Party members call urgent meeting to delay list rankings
Joseph Los’e (Herald): The clock is ticking for Māori who want to stick or switch electoral rolls
No Right Turn: Parliament needs independence from the executive

HOUSING, RENTING
Michael Neilson (Herald): National will reinstate no-cause evictions, says regulations hurting landlords and driving up rental prices
Felix Desmarais (1News): National proposes reinstating no-cause rental terminations
Molly Swift (Newshub): Labour accuses National of ‘putting the fear back into renting’ after proposal to reverse ban on evictions without cause
Felix Desmarais (1News): ‘Stripping them of their rights’: Greens on Nats’ rental proposal
Olivia Caldwell (Stuff): ‘The party of landlords’ – National’s housing policy falls flat with Queenstown renters
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): Absentee property owners blamed for Queenstown crisis
Tim Brown (RNZ): Queenstown councillor wants government to do more to solve city’s housing problems
Emily Writes: Is it time for a rent freeze?
Miriam Bell (Stuff): Migration surge puts upward pressure on rents
Imogen Wells (Stuff): Newsable: Kiwis opt for smaller homes as cost of living crisis bites
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Michael Rehm (Newsroom): Housing speculation addiction is enabled by banks
Eric Crampton (Newsroom): Cheaper housing the fix for Aussie brain drain

FOREIGN AFFAIRS, TRADE, DEFENCE
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Revealed: Senior ex US military officers land high-paying NZ government jobs
Fran O’Sullivan: (Herald): Joe Biden may also be on Chris Hipkins’ meeting list next month (paywalled)
Dileepa Fonseka (BusinessDesk): India NZ Business Council says free trade talks not a good way to reboot relations (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: Australia leaves NZ in its dust building trade with emerging economic powerhouse India (paywalled)
RNZ: Government urged to focus on growing trade with India
Chris Trotter: Top Guns
Brent Edwards (NBR): Played like a didgeridoo or trans-Tasman progress? (paywalled)
Oliver Hartwich (The Australian): Australia reaps the benefit from NZ’s decline with citizenship rules (paywalled)

POLICE
David Fisher (Herald): The real problem with police, number plate surveillance and facial recognition technology (paywalled)
David Fisher (Herald): A mother speaks of her grief and pain after her 501 son was killed in an ‘unjustified’ police shooting
Adam Hollingworth, RNZ (Newshub): Independent Police Conduct Authority finds officer not justified in fatally shooting man in 2021
1News: Officer ‘not justified’ in fatal shooting of 501 deportee – IPCA

MEDIA
RNZ: Mediawatch: Stuff to put up first paywalls for news
Stuff: Stuff launches new digital sites as start of a new era
Shayne Currie (Herald): Lobbyist Mark Unsworth and RNZ’s Guyon Espiner in battle over MPs guide; Three Today FM stars may get reprieve; PR boss’ extraordinary column; Stuff’s paywall and the NZ Herald’s response (paywalled)
Maria Slade (NBR): The left-wing take on ‘rejuvenating your bathroom’ (paywalled)
Stuff: Broadcaster Sean Plunket charged with publishing report of restricted court proceedings
Ethan Griffiths (Herald): Broadcaster Sean Plunket charged with court document breach

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WATER REFORM
Katie Ham (Stuff): What has Auckland mayor Wayne Brown’s austerity policy killed off so far?
Finn Blackwell (RNZ): Auckland Council budget cuts: Protester laments possible loss of youth programmes
Stephen Forbes (Local Democracy Reporting): Council approves plan to develop Drury into Napier-sized city
Andrew Bevin (Newsroom): Councillors approve ground-breaking 30-year developer levy
Tina Law (Press): Low morale continues to plague Christchurch City Council staff
Liz McDonald (Press): Lyttelton Port Company chairperson and director quit after critical report
Kristy Frame (RNZ): Wellington City Council seeks public feedback on 30km speed limit
Jill Herron (Newsroom): David Parker to councils: how does your garden grow?
Martin Gregory (International Socialists): A Left critique of Three Waters after Labour’s change of plan
Arena Williams and Stuart Smith (Stuff): We deserve safe, reliable and affordable water services – why is that so hard?
Simon Botherway (Herald): Three Waters a risk to NZ’s investment reputation (paywalled)

TRANSPORT
Justin Hu (1News): ‘Horrified’: Overhead rail option to slice apart Auckland suburb
Hayden Donnell (Spinoff): Meet Dean Kimpton, the man with the most impossible job in Auckland
Seni Iasona (Newshub): Police arrest four Restore Passenger Rail protesters

BUSINESS, EMPLOYMENT
Simon Bridges (NBR): The ‘Power of No’ impacting NZ’s film industry (paywalled)
Brodie Stone (Herald): Jason Momoa’s Chief of War series had to pull filming at Northland’s Kauri Mountain (paywalled)
Hamish McNicol (NBR): Worker exploitation and minimum employment standards (paywalled)
Andrew Nicol (NBR): Will superannuation still be around in 20 years? (paywalled)
Rob Stock (Stuff): ANZ joins long list of banks ticked off for anti-money laundering failures

PRIMARY INDUSTRIES
RNZ: Draft Fisheries plan targets jobs, tech, medicine and cosmetics
Kelvin McDonald (Whakaata Māori): Māori forestry: Government to co-invest in onshore wood processing

HEALTH
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): After year-long delay, ministry scraps Covid survey
Farah Hancock (RNZ): Ministry of Health abandons Covid-19 infection survey
RNZ: Te Whatu Ora spent $26,000 on lawyer fees over baby blood donor case
Diane McCarthy (Local Democracy Reporting): GP shortage among reasons advanced against development
Cecilia Robinson (Herald): We must resolve our healthcare debt

EXTREME WEATHER
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Repair bill from cyclone and Auckland floods at least $9b, Treasury estimates
Alice Wilkins (Newshub): Auckland Anniversary floods three months on: Streets still empty, residents given no indication when to return
Katie Green (RNZ): Post-cyclone pain: Anguish over rates rise impact for Napier residents, businesses

OTHER
Grant Schofield: A falling out of love letter to the university (….we need to talk)
David Harvey: Fear and hatred – Books for our time
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Treasury forks out thousands to hire overseas workers for roles
Brigitte Morten (NBR): Labour’s reform agenda has bruised our public service (paywalled)
Alex Penk: The apocalypse at Albert Park
Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (1News): Concern co-governance debate helping spread anti-Māori views
Katie Doyle (Stuff): Australian politician Jacinta Price claims Waitangi Tribunal holds ‘veto power’ over New Zealand Government
RNZ: Carbon neutral 2050: Delaying climate action will cost New Zealanders more, scientist says
Ireland Hendry-Tennent (Newshub): New study reveals how New Zealand’s food supply would cope in nuclear winter
Gill Bonnett (RNZ): Immigration New Zealand visa system asks 70-year-old if she’s pregnant, and for CV