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
ELECTION, PARLIAMENT, PUBLIC SERVICE
Luke Malpass (Stuff): The power players in new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ orbit
Andrea Vance (Post): The Greens: these are not serious people (paywalled)
Damien Venuto (Herald): The Front Page: National vs Labour – Will Luxon’s campaign millions be enough to beat Hipkins?
Kevin Norquay (Press): Masks off, sunglasses on, the October election will steer New Zealand into the sunshine, right?
Tracy Watkins (Stuff): We’re wise to the same old lines and empty election promises – we’ve heard it all before
Luke Malpass (Stuff): Chris Hipkins uses Budget season to start to craft his economic story
Luke Malpass (The Post): New trains and student loan forgiveness: must be election year! (paywalled)
Richard Harman (Poliitk): The nervous Nats (paywalled)
Grant Duncan: Pre-electoral coalitions
Dan Brunskill (Interest): Chris Hipkins and Chris Luxon will battle to be the most boring, while minor parties set the agenda in Election 2023
Claire Trevett (Herald): Why PM Chris Hipkins is on a charm offensive with business – and his pivot from the age of Jacinda Ardern (paywalled)
Andrea Vance (Stuff): My key takeaways from finding out everything I could about Christopher Luxon
Andrea Vance (Post): ‘I’ve always been someone who’s come from outside’ – the life and times of Christopher Luxon
Andrea Vance (Post): National Party leader Christopher Luxon is keeping the faith (paywalled)
Stuff: A selection of revealing childhood pics of Christopher Luxon
Bridie Witton (Stuff): National’s Christopher Luxon sharpens pitch to middle-income voters as party warns of Labour’s ‘envy-driven tax-grab’
Herald Editorial: Election 2023 is with either party to win – or lose (paywalled)
Claire Trevett (Herald): The chances of Act pulling off an Epsom-style win and toppling Simon O’Connor in Tāmaki (paywalled)
Anna Whyte (Stuff): Christopher Luxon ‘not at all’ concerned about ACT’s play for Tāmaki seat
Claire Trevett (Herald): Act Party’s Brooke van Velden targets National Party’s Simon O’Connor in bid for Tāmaki electorate
1News: ACT Deputy Brooke Van Velden to compete for Auckland’s Tāmaki seat
Lucy Thomson (Newshub): ACT deputy leader Brooke van Velden to challenge National MP Simon O’Connor for Tamaki seat
Stuff: Newsable: Unveiling the tricks of political ‘spin’: Your must-read guide for the 2023 Election
Audrey Young (Herald): The top candidates for next Public Service Commissioner (paywalled)
Peter Wilson (RNZ): The Week in Politics: Australia’s citizenship deal, Green Party tensions and a tax debate
Claire Trevett (Herald): Beehive Diaries: Chris Hipkins trades Coronation wardrobe notes with Justin Trudeau and Anthony Albanese, Chris of the Week, and the ministers who share an artwork (paywalled)
TAX
Vernon Small (Post): Tax the rich? There’s a downside (paywalled)
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Taxing capital gains — Aussies can, why not us? (paywalled)
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): How the rich get rich: Seven things you missed from the IRD’s wealth report (paywalled)
1News: Q+A: National’s Willis defends party’s position on tax system fairness
Rebecca Wright and Gray Gibson: Newshub Nation debate: ACT leader David Seymour and Green MP Chlöe Swarbrick clash over future of NZ’s tax policy
Spinoff: Bernard Hickey and David Parker get down to brass tax
John Roughan (Herald): To tax or not to tax – or the third rail (paywalled)
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Taxing the wealthy? Why you should be careful what you wish for (paywalled)
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Press): French economist Thomas Piketty labels tax rate paid by wealthy Kiwis ‘depressing’
Terry Baucher (Interest): Dissecting Inland Revenue’s report on high wealth individuals with Shamubeel Eaqub
Herald: John Tamihere: ‘Tax the rich’ will be a Te Pāti Māori election kingmaker – or breaker
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): There is a class war happening in NZ, but thanks to Identity Politics we lack the vocabulary to articulate it
Damien Grant (Stuff): We should be celebrating the rich, not hitting them with more taxes
Liam Dann (Herald): Life’s not fair – does our tax system have to be? (paywalled)
Sasha Borrisenko (Herald): How IRD was empowered to research the rich (paywalled)
Jessica Mutch McKay (1News): Hipkins leaves capital gains tax door ajar
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Parties navigate fresh tax debate ahead of ‘no frills’ Budget
Herald: On the Tiles: Ruth Richardson on fiscal policy, the Budget and IRD tax report
Victor Billot (Newsroom): An Ode for .. the Minister of Taxes
TRANSPORT
Jonathan Killick (Stuff): Government to slap toll charge on new $830m road north of Auckland
Luke Malpass and Thomas Manch (Stuff): Take Five: What will new hybrid trains mean for Wellington region?
RNZ: Passenger rail ripe for revival: ‘We’ve got to get in the queue’
1News: 18 new passenger trains for Lower North Island commuters
RNZ: New fleet of trains for Kāpiti Coast and Wairarapa
Erin Gourley (The Post): Warning of capital commuter chaos with only half of train services running
Isaac Davison (Herald): Kiwirail bosses called into Beehive to explain major disruptions to Wellington rail services
Justine Wong (Stuff): Wellington train disruption could now last days instead of weeks
Anna Whyte (Stuff): $61m bus driver funding from Government yet to be spent
RNZ: Majority of surveyed greater Christchurch residents back mass rapid transport system
RNZ: Road transport industry says roading investment strategy desperately needed
Jarrod Gilbert (Herald): The surprising benefits of lowering the speed limit (paywalled)
1News: Kaitaia would be ‘marching in the streets’ if airport closed
HEALTH
Fiona Ellis (ODT): Public, private healthcare divide decides brothers’ fate after cancer diagnosis
RNZ: Impact of delay in care a common reason for complaints, health watchdog says
Rachel Thomas (The Post): Under-pressure doctors have more than a millennium of leave owing (paywalled)
Claire Trevett (Herald): Nursing shortage: Ayesha Verrall accuses National’s Shane Reti of misleading on nurse exodus
Anna Whyte (Stuff): National promises to pay more than $22K off nurses’, midwives’ student loans
RNZ: National’s health policy: Bonding scheme for nurses and midwives
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): National announces bonding plan to incentivise nurses, midwives to stay in New Zealand
Lauren Hendricksen (Newshub): Health industry experts worried National’s plan to keep nurses, midwives in New Zealand won’t go far enough
1News: National pledges $22k student loan help for nurses, midwives
Sapeer Mayron (Stuff): Community pharmacists call for end to ‘devastating’ prescription fee
Nikki Macdonald (Press): ‘An absolute scandal’: why are women paying for critical pregnancy scans?
RNZ: Aged Care Association calls for health overhaul to safeguard older people
RNZ: Smaller Covid waves, but still ‘major uncertainties’ – Michael Baker
Indira Stewart (1News): Paramedic sacked over jab continued to be face of St John campaigns
Niva Chittock (RNZ): Rangiora after-hours clinic delayed until early 2025, meeting told
Niva Chittock (RNZ): Christchurch Hospital parking woes idle on
EDUCATION
1News: Q+A: Many universities could face job cuts this year, AUT leader warns
Quintin Jane (Spinoff): The government’s ‘she’ll be right’ attitude to universities is failing a generation
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Te Pūkenga hopeful work-based funding change will offset other income drops
Lee Kenny (Press): Student families move house after ballot closes to secure place at top Christchurch school (paywalled)
Ireland Hendry-Tennent (Newshub): Harrowing reality of financially strained students: ‘Emotionally burnt out’ and surviving on rice as cost of living skyrockets
Karen Rutherford (Newshub): Disappointing statistics show fewer New Zealand students passing NCEA
1News: Students lose over 100 teaching hours in 12 months
Te Rina Kowhai (Newsub): Why Kura Kaupapa is telling Government it needs more funding, doesn’t want to be assimilated into mainstream
Siena Yates (E-Tangata): The Haka Party Incident
HOUSING
1News: Minister defends lack of spending to tackle homelessness
RNZ: Bishop says National’s landlord tax breaks and no-cause terminations ‘pro-tenant’
1News: National’s new rental proposal ‘us vs them’ – Renters United
Ireland Hendry-Tennent (Newshub): Rents for apartments, small houses soar as median rent remains at record high
Ryan Boswell (1News): Rental demand pushing up Christchurch house prices
Caroline Williams (Stuff): 350 apartments for renters only proposed for Auckland’s North Shore
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Huge new 255-home subdivision proposed for Napier
RNZ: Community feedback sought on proposal to rezone land near Queenstown for housing
ENVIRONMENT
Eloise Gibson (Stuff): A Fonterra staff member was asked to help shape a crucial climate policy. Why? It’s unclear
Ella Stewart (RNZ): ‘Our tīpuna knew when to move’ – The difficult conversations about managed retreat for Māori
Anne Salmond (Newsroom): Is the ETS an environmental ponzi scheme?
Hamish Cardwell (RNZ): What’s wrong with the Emissions Trading Scheme?
Rob Oram (Newsroom): The crucial missing advice for next Emissions Reduction Plan
Karen Nairn (Newsroom): Political short-termism plagues climate action
Diane McCarthy (Local Democracy Reporting): Gloomy snapshot of climate change future in Bay of Plenty
RNZ: Australian mining company reapplies for consent to start West Coast open-cast mine
Olivia Wannan (Stuff): Energy boffins scold Government for scrapping biofuels
Jack Santa Barbara (Newsroom): Green growth approach to climate change will do more harm than good
Steven Ratuva (E-Tangata): Young Pacific minds, big dreams to save the planet
EXTREME WEATHER
Newshub: New Zealand needs to ready itself for ‘new norm’ of natural disasters, Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier says
RNZ: Hawke’s Bay Civil Defence cyclone response ends after 77 days
1News: Willie Apiata raises $220K in cyclone aid for East Coast communities
ECONOMY, COST OF LIVING, PERSONAL FINANCE
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Nearly one in five kids are living in food insecurity, research shows
Rob Stock (Stuff): MP hopes to cap how much lenders can strip from debtors’ benefits
Lana Andelane (Newshub): Cost of living: More than half of NZ parents report ‘disheartening’ lifestyle changes to afford food, research finds
1News: Why food is a rip-off in New Zealand compared to Australia
Charlotte Muru-Lanning (Spinoff): Let them eat tinned fish and dried lentils
AUSTRALIAN CITIZENSHIP DEAL
Hayden Donnell (RNZ): Citizenship celebration turns sour in record time
Mike Munro (Herald): Australian citizenship and why you’d have to be mad as a cut snake to swallow David Seymour’s line (paywalled)
Mike O’Donnell (Stuff): Australia’s higher cost of living means you’re not necessarily going to be streets ahead
Carla Jones (Stuff): I moved to Australia 12 years ago. I don’t see myself coming home to NZ
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Australia’s military ambition raises challenges for NZ
Dileepa Fonseka (BusinessDesk): The prime minister’s ‘best little trading nation in the world’ (paywalled)
Farida Refaat (1News): ‘We need support’ – Sudanese community gathers in Aotea Square
Christine Rovoi (Stuff): Pacific yet to receive foreign aid promised by US President Joe Biden
James Perry (Whakaata Māori): Dame Naida Glavish to represent Aotearoa at King Charles’ coronation
IMMIGRATION
Janet Wilson (Stuff): It’s time to unclutch the pearls and start planning for immigration
Gill Bonnett (RNZ): Recovery visa sold for more than $30,000 by unlicensed agents, immigration adviser says
Gill Bonnett (RNZ): ‘Open and shut’ immigration cases taking years to resolve
CRIME, JUSTICE
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Ginny Andersen to tackle National’s tough talk on crime
Rayssa Almeida (RNZ): ‘I come to work every day ready to fight’ – K Rd shop owners’ despair
Michael Neilson (Herald): Cannabis drug possession discretion laws appear to benefit Pākehā most, surpassing Māori for first time as Greens again call for decriminalisation
Nick Truebridge (Newshub): Young mother pleads with Corrections to allow in-person prison visits
MEDIA
Tim Murphy (Newsroom): MediaRoom: Stuff’s three-legged paywall
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Stuff takes paywall plunge
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): Inside Stuff’s bold, unconventional new paywall plan
Riley Kennedy (BusinessDesk): Boucher: readers paying for news ‘important’ (paywalled)
Stuff: Stuff launches The Post, The Press and Waikato Times digital sites
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Mediaworks wanted its nine news staff to apply for four roles, none did, source says
EREBUS MEMORIAL
RNZ: ‘God willing I’ll still be around when it is constructed’: Families desperate to see Erebus memorial built
Adam Hollingworth (Newshub): Location of controversial Erebus memorial to be moved after wild weather damages park
RNZ: Erebus memorial scrapped despite engineers’ recommendation to build wall below site
Will Trafford (Whakaata Māori): Erebus memorial scrapped at Taurarua / Dove-Myer Robinson Park
1News: Erebus memorial to be moved from Parnell site
INSURANCE INDUSTRY AND GENETIC TESTING
RNZ: Geneticist Andrew Shelling calls for ban on insurers accessing genetic tests
Ireland Hendry-Tennent and Demelza Leslie (Newshub): Calls for ban on insurance companies using genetic testing information as doctors warn it puts Kiwis at risk
RNZ: Insurance companies accused of using genetic tests to deny coverage, hike premiums
Simon Shepherd and Gray Gibson: Newshub Nation: Genetic standards for insurance inherently unequal against indigenous communities – expert
BUSINESS, EMPLOYMENT
Matt Nippert (Herald): Wage subsidy fraud case sees high-rise apartment frozen (paywalled)
Gareth Kiernan (Press): Labour market weakness could be months away yet
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Unemployment expected to remain near record lows, for now
Katrina Shanks (Stuff): Employers can – and should – do more to boost retirement savings
Jonty Dine (RNZ): Second port worker death reinforces need for inquiry – unions
1News: Ports charged over worker deaths in April last year
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Union does not trust FENZ’s data after high-risk asbestos found at central Auckland fire station
Brianna Mcilraith (Stuff): Amazon proposes job cuts in NZ but is still committed to opening its $7.5b data centre next year
PRIMARY INDUSTRIES
Anna Whyte (The Post): Fishing plan just ‘kicking the can down the road’ on bottom trawling, critics say (paywalled)
Seni Iasona (Newshub): Matt Watson says bottom trawling is ’embarrassing for New Zealand’, calls for ban
1News: M. bovis eradicated from last farm in New Zealand – ministry
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Sefan Speller (Stuff): Who should pay for local body politicians’ parliamentary aspirations?
Tim Murphy (Newsroom): Mayor Wayne Brown called out on Auckland election voter fraud claim
Tina Law (Press): Christchurch businesses accuse council of acting as a ‘handbrake’ (paywalled)
Laura Smith (Local Democracy Reporting): Rotorua draft annual plan: Citizens Advice Bureau fears for future as council proposes funding cut
Brendon McMahon (Local Democracy Reporting): Material from diseased Nelson site dumped at private West Coast landfill
OTHER
Ian Powell: What does being left-wing really mean?
Claire Charteres (E-Tangata): Putting rights on hold
Dale Husband (E-Tangata): Hilda Halkyard-Harawira: Getting things done
Annemarie Quill (Stuff): The city where people are paying NZ’s highest power bills
RNZ: Gun owners should be part of National’s firearms conversation – rifle association
RNZ: National Party firearms policy released at Northern conference
