Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.  Click here to subscribe to Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup and New Zealand Politics Daily.

Today’s content

Mall terror attack
Thomas Manch (Stuff): The terrorist was a ‘highly damaged’ refugee, and efforts to help him failed
Sam Hurley (Herald): The terrorist I knew and the attack I had long feared (paywalled)
Andrew Geddis (Spinoff): Would harsher terrorism laws have prevented the mall attack?
Alexander Gillespie (The Conversation): New Zealand needs to go beyond fast-tracking counter-terrorism laws to reduce the risk of future attacks
David Fisher (Herald): Terrorist was an ‘outlier’ but security services now checking watchlist of potential threats for fresh risk (paywalled)
Anthony O’Brien (Spinoff): The Mental Health Act is not a tool to detain would-be terrorists. The very idea is dangerous
Danielle Clent (Stuff): Terrorist’s beliefs ‘not symptoms of mental illness’
Lincoln Tan (Herald): Terrorist couldn’t be detained under Mental Health Act after he refused pyschological assessment: Legal expert
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): New Lynn terror attack: Failure to use Mental Health Act criticised
Lydia Lewis and Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): LynnMall terror attack: New Zealand should have got rid of terrorist much sooner – law expert
Donna Miles (Stuff): We must be careful not to fall into the terrorism trap 
RNZ: New Zealand counter-terrorism legislation outdated – law experts
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): The ‘Achilles heel’ exposed by Auckland terrorist
Audrey Young (Herald): Questions need to be asked despite Ardern’s assurances on LynnMall terrorist (paywalled)
Richard Harman (Politik): The loophole that let the terrorist go free (paywalled)
Thomas Manch (Stuff): A terror attack that occurred while the Government was watching 
John Battersby (Herald): NZ is no better prepared for extremism now than on March 15
David Fisher (Herald): Auckland mall terror attack – The answer to stopping such attacks (paywalled)
Tracy Watkins (Stuff): We had years to prevent a terrorist attack – we deserve to know what went wrong
Herald Editorial: Lone-wolf attacks such as Countdown terror are difficult to prevent (paywalled)
John Battersby (Stuff): The realities of New Zealand’s terrorism risk
Newstalk ZB: Nothing else could’ve legally been done to detain the terrorist
Newstalk ZB: Terror expert: National security services did everything in their lawful powers to thwart supermarket attacker
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): Islamic terror attacks in the West are far less common since 2017
Dan Satherley (Newshub): New Lynn terror attack: Experts say risk of follow-up violence is low, urge Kiwis to ‘challenge’ extremist ideas
Jehan Casinader (Stuff): ‘He’s not one of us’: Jehan Casinader responds to terror attack
Joe Burton (The Conversation): New Zealand’s latest terror attack shows why ISIS is harder to defeat online than on the battlefield
Anjum Rahman (Spinoff): Aotearoa was a model in response to terrorism in Christchurch. I know we can be again
Jack Tame (Newstalk ZB): Could we have stopped the terror attack?
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): Could more have been done?
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): ISIS Terror attack – political winners & losers
ODT Editorial: Supermarket horror
Ross Meurant (Daily Blog): Why couldn’t the system keep us safe from an ISIS terrorist?
Kerre McIvor (Herald): Imagine how gutted police, courts and immigration are after supermarket stabbings (paywalled)
Herald: New Zealand authorities have failed again – mosque shootings victim Temel Atacocugu
Mark Quinlivan (RNZ): New Zealand reacts in shock to New Lynn stabbing
RNZ: LynnMall terror attack: How the world saw it
Herald: Lynnmall terrorist attack makes headlines around the world

Planned changes to terrorism laws, Govt action to date
Jo Moir (Newsroom): Race on to plug holes in terrorism laws
Jo Moir (Newsroom): Ardern wasting no time on terror law changes
Giles Dexter (Newshub): Government to speed up terrorism law changes following Auckland attack
Geraden Cann & Thomas Manch (Stuff): PM says new terror laws will be passed this month
Anna Whyte (1 News): PM wants counter terrorism law changes passed this month
Michael Neilson (Herald): Calls for law changes mount
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Timeline leading to terrorist’s attack in New Lynn
Scott Palmer (Newshub): LynnMall terror attack timeline: Jacinda Ardern reveals how Government tried to stop terrorist
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Perpetrator left New Zealand despite being on Government terror watch list
Charlotte Graham-McLay (Guardian): New Zealand stabbings: officials tried for years to deport terrorist prior to Auckland attack, Jacinda Ardern says
Giles Dexter (Newshub): Government to look at Immigration Act after terrorist fabricated refugee appeal
Sarah Robson (RNZ): Government unsuccessfully tried to strip his refugee status
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern explains why deportation hadn’t happened
Anna Leask (Herald): Government tried to deport terrorist from New Zealand – ‘no stone left unturned’
Edward Gay (Stuff): Why Auckland terror attacker wasn’t charged under terror laws despite being on watchlist
Thomas Manch (Stuff): The Government tried for years to deport supermarket attacker
Herald: PM Jacinda Ardern calls ‘facets of process’ around deportation attempts ‘frustrating’
1 News: Govt’s number one role should be protecting New Zealanders – Collins
Derek Cheng (Herald): Judith Collins defends not reviewing law years ago; calls for new law for stripping citizenship, residency
Newstalk ZB: National Party: Changes to terrorism laws wouldn’t have prevented LynnMall attack
1 News: ‘We’re with you’ – Ardern’s message to terrorist attack victims
Ben Leahy (Herald): Police fatal shooting of terrorist in Countdown supermarket facing independent investigation
Piers Fuller (Stuff): Special Tactics Group an elite police task force equipped to take on terrorists

Ahamed Samsudeen 
Katie Todd (RNZ): Missed opportunities to deradicalise LynnMall attacker, says criminologist
Herald: Auckland mall terrorist attack: Every court proceeding of terrorist revealed
Edward Gay (Stuff): Auckland terrorist was facing charges over attack on prison staff while on remand
Sam Hurley (Herald): Auckland mall terrorist was on bail, faced assault charges for attacking prison officers
Catrin Owen and Edward Gay (Stuff): Auckland terror attacker never underwent judge-ordered psychologist assessment
Sarah Robson (RNZ): LynnMall terrorist named after suppression orders lapse
Ben Leahy (Herald): Auckland mall terrorist attack: Attacker named as Kiwis of all backgrounds unite to condemn him
Jamie Ensor and Mark Longley (Newshub): LynnMall terrorist named as Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, refugee status and criminal history revealed
Catrin Owen (Stuff): Ahamed Samsudeen, the man behind Isis-inspired stabbings
RNZ: Checkpoint: Mayor frustrated details of attacker withheld by law
RNZ: LynnMall terrorist’s family: ‘We are heartbroken’
AAP: Auckland terrorist’s mother believes he was radicalised by neighbours
Anna Leask (Herald): Terrorist’s brother speaks out ‘We do not know what to do, we are shaken’
Edward O’Driscoll (Newshub): LynnMall terror attack: Family of terrorist ‘grieving’, ‘weren’t aware of what he was doing’

Community response
Qiuyi Tan (Herald): Refugees and minorities fearful after LynnMall attack, says NGO
Louisa Steyl Terror attack: Sri Lankan reverend, Imam speak out from Southland
Brannavan Gnanalingam (Stuff): Shame, fury and sadness: As a Sri Lankan, my heart collapsed when I heard of New Lynn attack
Tess McClure (Guardian): New Zealand stabbings: nation rallies behind Muslim community
Herald: New Zealand Muslims condemn ‘heinous’ act
1 News: NZ Sri Lankan Society ‘wholeheartedly condemns’ terrorist attack
Geraden Cann (Stuff): Stabbings ‘nothing to do with Islam’, community leader says
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Heartbreak and support from Muslim, Sri Lankan, Pākehā and Māori communities after terror attack
Himali McInnes (Guardian): As a Sri Lankan New Zealander, I know my adopted country can find compassion amid terror
Herald: Multicultural New Zealand rallies to condemn terror attack
Ben Leahy (Herald): Christchurch mosque victims start fundraising page for those hurt in mall terror attack
Herald: Mayor Phil Goff speaks out as victims fight for life

Government management of outbreak, expert advice, alert level changes
Ian Powell (Stuff): Our Covid strategy has been a success – but we can’t ignore the government’s serious failings
Leah Grout, Nick Wilson, Jennifer Summers, Amanda Kvalsvig, Michael Baker (Public Health Expert): An Upgraded Alert Level 2 is Urgently Needed to Address the Delta Variant Threat
Jennifer Summers (Spinoff): What are the lessons for NZ from battles against delta around the world?
Jamie Morton (Herald):Predicting Delta’s spread with NZ’s ‘super model’
Shane Reti (Northern Advocate): NZ squandered 2019 measles lessons for Covid 19 outbreaks 19 outbreaks (paywalled)
Rachel Sadler (Newshub): Level 2 move for New Zealand outside of Auckland ‘should be safe’ this week – Michael Baker
Jimmy Ellingham and Andre Chumko (Stuff): Public health experts call for alert level 2-plus to combat Delta mutation
Adam Pearse (Herald): Experts favour move to alert level 2-plus
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Hope for Auckland as new cases slow, but experts warn of ‘long tail’
Luke Malpass (Stuff): Will it be level 2 for the country outside of Auckland?
Tom Hunt, Kate Green and Charlie Gates (Stuff): Level 2 is coming – but it might stay with us until Christmas
Grant Miler (ODT): Hopes up for some freedom
Kim Moodie (RNZ): Hopes pinned on government announcement amid warnings level 2 will be different
Damien Grant (Stuff): Life must go on, despite the Covid-19 pandemic
Matt Burrows (Newshub): Government quietly makes it harder to get a COVID-19 mask exemption card in bid to ‘prevent misuse’
ODT Editorial: Law and border
Steven Joyce (Herald): Give us hope — and then give us a plan (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: What we’ll actually need before we can ‘open up’ (paywalled)
Marty Braithwaite (Stuff): I’d rather listen to the experts than ScoMo on Covid
Luke Malpass (Stuff): How do we talk about opening up, while we’re still locking down?
Michael Wright (Stuff): Why so many people thought Delta was in the South Island
Andreea Calude (Stuff):Language Matters: Kiwi metaphors of Covid-19

MIQ, border, immigration
Liam Dann (Herald): No travel doesn’t make NZ a ‘hermit economy’ (paywalled)
Matthew Scott (Newsroom): Different mood behind doors at MIQ
Siobhan Downes (Stuff): ‘No end in sight’ for Australians stranded in New Zealand
Heather du Plessis Allen (Newstalk ZB): It’s unreasonable to berate PM for not telling us about MIQ escapee
Jenna Lynch (Newshub): Judith Collins calls on Jacinda Ardern to ‘explain herself’ over handling of alleged escapee with COVID-19
Tim Dower (Newstalk ZB): What are the lessons to be learned from the MIQ breach?
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ‘Podium of convenience’ has replaced ‘podium of truth’ – Simon Bridges
Qiuyi Tan (Herald): Man tried to get into MIQ hotel Stamford Plaza twice
RNZ: Immigration New Zealand shuts its Beijing office
Eric Crampton (Offsetting behaviour): The cost of xenophobia
Hannah Sampson (Stuff): Why cloth masks are being banned on some airlines

Parliament
Guyon Espiner (RNZ): Has any NZ prime minister faced as many crises as Ardern?
Andrea Vance (Stuff): With Covid-19 suspending normal politics, the Greens have put themselves in quarantine
Herald Editorial: Playing politics in a pandemic (paywalled)
Peter Wilson (RNZ): Week in Politics: Secret deals and the pressure of pandemic politics
Brent Edwards (NBR): Fact or Fiction: National troubles, parliamentary spats, Auckland traffic woes (paywalled)
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Judith Collins is flailing closer to politics’ death zone (paywalled)
Michael Neilson (Herald): National Party leader Judith Collins quashes leadership rumbles
Claire Trevett (Herald): Has Delta sped up the clock on Judith Collins’ leadership and what it will take for Simon Bridges to roll her (paywalled)
Jon Johansson (Stuff): Can opposition leaders win elections, or is it just a case of the incumbent losing?
Steve Braunias (Herald): The Secret Diary of … The Collins Gang (paywalled)
Sasha Borissenko: (Herald): Simon Bridges on why he’s ‘a sucker for punishment’ (paywalled)
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Simon Bridges says Judith Collins ‘doing a good job’, ‘best in the circumstances’
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: Parliament’s tiny house vs its committees
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: General debate: Bouquets and lumps of brick
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: Covid, covid, covid: a week of questions at Parliament
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Woodhouse makes trip to be far South’s only MP at Delta Parliament
Victor Billot (Newsroom): An ode for .. Judith Collins
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Hive life: Golriz Ghahraman and Nicola Willis open up about sacrifices and motivations

Vaccine rollout, mandatory vaccination
Gordon Campbell: On the messaging to the vaccine hesitants
1 News: Border workers face being out of a job if not vaccinated by month’s end
John Anthony (Stuff): Auckland Airport introduces compulsory Covid-19 vaccination policy for front line staff and new employees
Kimberly Jarvis (ODT): Mandatory Covid vaccination: rights compete against duties
Eric Crampton (Stuff): University, employer vaccination mandates could be illegal – and that is wrong
Will Mace (NBR): Compulsory vaccinations a minefield for employers (paywalled)
Katie Townshend (Stuff): Employers seek help to navigate vaccination ‘minefield’
Grant Bradley (Herald): How Auckland Airport vaccinated staff before deadline (paywalled)
Maia Hart (Stuff): Picton backpackers mandates Covid-19 vaccination for all guests 
Derek Cheng (Herald): The vaccination is finally going gangbusters – but for how long? (paywalled)
Will Trafford (Māori TV): ‘Oh, heck no!’ Government denies ‘failure’ of Māori vaccine rollout
Moana Ellis (Local Democracy Reporting): Lowest vaccination rates ‘must lift’ to avoid devastation of 1913 and 1918 epidemics
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Associate Minister of Health Peeni Henare promises priority for Māori 
should COVID-19 vaccine stocks run low
Jessica Tyson (Māori TV): Māori and Pasifika not required to book at any Whānau Ora vaccination provider
Rukuwai Tipene-Allen (Māori TV): A drive to save lives
Bill Ralston  (Herald): Failure to ensure prompt vaccine supply the Govt’s worst mistake (paywalled)
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Vaccine rollout (paywalled)
Newstalk ZB: Vaccine expert: ‘Critical’ for under 12’s to get vaccinated
Jo Moir (Newsroom): Vaccination centre next to MIQ to shut
Newstalk ZB: Police Minister can’t say if cops who arrested MIQ escapee were fully vaccinated
Rukuwai Tipene-Allen (Māori TV): Who is vaccinating the homeless?
Molly Houseman (ODT): Sharp rise in vaccination no-shows
Stuff: Health boss ‘delighted’ with vaccine response
Jane Matthews (Stuff): Taranaki man with immunocompromised daughter pleased to see thousands fully vaccinated over weekend 

Health system
Nicholas Jones (Herald): Will the health system cope with Delta? (paywalled)
Nicholas Jones (Herald): Frontline workers under ‘extraordinary pressure’, Health Minister Andrew Little says
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Patient ‘powerless’ after DHBs told private hospitals to defer surgeries
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Kiwis warned not to self-treat with ivermectin as import attempts grow
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Hospital was ill-equipped to deal with cases
RNZ: Patients waiting too long for cancer diagnoses under Covid-19 restrictions – doctor
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Cancer waiting list reduction at risk
Tim Chambers and Simon Hales (Public Health Expert): Public health response to report on potential risk of nitrate from drinking water
Nikki Macdonald (Stuff): Families shuttled around country in desperate search for neonatal beds
Jenni Stephenson (Public Health Expert): The end game should not be just Smokefree 2025 but also Vapefree
Louisa Steyl (Stuff): Health boss raises safety concerns over midwife shortage
Dave Macpherson (Daily Blog): The definition of incompetence
Esther Ashby-Coventry (Stuff): PSA takes legal action against South Canterbury District Health Board

Police checkpoints, community checkpoints
Tamati Tiananga (Māori TV): Māori truck driver calls for tighter travel restrictions on roads under alert levels
Mare Haimona-Riki (Māori TV): Northland communities prepare checkpoints for midnight level drop
Tumamao Harawira (Māori TV): Ngāti Hine take lessons from the past in setting up checkpoint
Peter de Graaf (Northern Advocate): Legacy of 1918 pandemic drive SH1 checkpoint volunteers

Cases, demographics
Emma Russell and Chris McDowall (Herald): Covid hospitalisations soar compared to last year’s outbreak
1 News: Covid-19 case on Middlemore ward ‘disturbing’ – Robertson
Jane Nixon (1 News): ‘Major stuff-up’ – Patient in Middlemore surgical ward tests positive for Covid-19
Jessie Chiang and Sharon Brettkelly (RNZ): The Detail: Using the right language for Covid communication
Sapeer Mayron (Stuff): Faith groups finding their feet online again in lockdown

Contact tracing, testing
Rowan Quinn (RNZ): Officials concerned about sharp drop in testing numbers
Andrew Chen (The Conversation): NZ is introducing mandatory record keeping to help contact tracers, but is the data protected enough?
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Hipkins backtracks on protecting contact tracing data
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): The saliva testing debacle

Misinformation
Charlie Mitchell (Stuff): Three weeks inside a rabbit hole of dangerous misinformation
Jarrod Gilbert (Herald):  Disinformation, conspiracy theories and the solutions
Jane Matthews (Stuff): Taranaki doctor under investigation after being accused of spreading misinformation about Covid-19 
Nik Dirga (RNZ): Misinformation pandemic will endure longer than Delta
Chloe Fergusson-Tibble (E-Tangata): Fighting the anti-vaxers: ‘We need to wānanga’

Lockdown compliance, enforcement, rules
1 News: Police receive over 10,000 reports of lockdown gatherings
Peter de Graaf (Northern Advocate): Protest organiser Karen Brewer bailed to Mid North home
Tom Hunt (Stuff): Parking wardens ticketing the rare cars in empty Wellington streets
Sandra Conchie (Herald): Rules around funerals change again (paywalled)
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Government to consider looser rules on funerals and burials at alert level 4
Karen Coltman (Stuff): Remuera butcher defies lockdown rules
Yashas Srinivasa (Stuff): Woman trespassed from Timaru Countdown for abusing staff
Tina Law (Stuff): ‘Be kind’: plea to Christchurch residents as lockdown noise complaints surge
Carly Gooch (Stuff): Face masks creating anxiety and stress in the Deaf community

Wage subsidy, business, economy
Debbie Jamieson (Stuff): Shareholders want reluctant Skyline to repay wage subsidy after $56m profit 
Duncan Bridgeman (Herald): Air NZ, McDonald’s franchisees among biggest wage subsidy recipients so far (paywalled)
Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): Yes, the supply chain grinch will probably steal Christmas again
Andrea Fox (Herald): SOS petition for Govt Covid support for SMEs inspires hope Beehive will respond
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Firms report fresh problems applying for wage subsidy after Thursday night botch
Tamsyn Parker (Herald): Wage subsidy glitch: Accountant shocked by MSD response to system outage (paywalled)
Tamsyn Parker (Herald): Wage subsidy headache: Website outage blamed on technical glitch
RNZ: Apology for businesses hit by wage subsidy glitch
Zane Small (Newshub): National MP joins chorus of frustrated businesses after unexpected closure of wage subsidy applications
Anuja Nadkarni (Newsroom): Businesses still waiting for wage subsidy payment as first round ends
Keiller MacDuff (Stuff): Concerns temp workers slipping through gaps in wage subsidy scheme
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Newer firms no longer shut out from resurgence support scheme
Brent Edwards (NBR): Green Party supports more help for small businesses hurt by lockdown (paywalled)
Gavin Oliver (Herald): Tourism needs Government support to bounce back (paywalled)
Christopher Niesche (Herald): A shot in the arm for Australia’s economy from October (paywalled)
Rob Stock (Stuff): Waikato couple Dave Orr and Heather Logie lost more than $1 million to Covid-19 when their shuttle business collapsed
Evan Harding (Stuff): Embattled business owner sees light at end of Covid-19 tunnel
Amanda Cropp (Stuff): The fashion industry is struggling with shipping delays, huge freight costs, and home-workers opting for track pants over office attire
Anne Gibson (Herald): Auckland landlord Masfen Group gives tenants rent breaks (paywalled)
Jonathan Milne (Newsroom): Building supplies crisis: Tradies hit the nail on the head
Katy Jones (Stuff): Parents asked to donate fees to early childhood centres in lockdown

Employment
Sarah Steele and Dilan Thampapillai (Herald): How the OnlyFans controversy revealed gig workers’ bind
Kate MacNamara (Herald): New Zealand workers find greener pastures on Canadian farms
Zoe Hunter (Herald): The end of 9 to 5? How Gen Z is changing the way we work (paywalled)

Inequality, charities, domestic violence
Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): The unequal costs of lockdown will come back to bite us
Janet Wilson (Stuff): There’s something wrong when we’re feeding the world, but our own people go hungry
CPAG: Government response to lockdown poverty “inadequate” and “sluggish”
Māori TV: Leave your bubble if it’s unsafe
Will Trafford (Māori TV): Booze abuse again tops lockdown callouts

Afghanistan
Keith Locke (Daily Blog): The urgent need for New Zealand aid to Afghanistan
Guardian: ‘We are in darkness’: diary of a NZDF interpreter left behind in Kabul
Danielle Zollickhofer (Herald): ‘I don’t want my family tortured by the Taliban’: Interpreter who worked for NZDF makes desperate plea
Andrew McRae (RNZ): Helen Clark tells Kiwis to raise their voice: ‘Afghanistan needs our help now’

Education
Mike Bedford (Spinoff): Why I’m worried about early childhood centres operating under Covid alert level three
Herald Editorial: The kids are alright – home learning needn’t be stressful (paywalled)
Sarah Catherall (Stuff): ‘Parents are not expected to be teachers’: Facing the struggle of home learning during lockdown
ODT: Online uni exams not expected to cause problems
Lee Kenny (Stuff): University of Otago exams to be held online to prevent Covid disruption

Primary industries
Nadine Porter (Stuff): Federated Farmers calls Groundswell protest organisers ‘crazy’
Pat Baskett (Newsroom): NZ’s dairy problem: Growing crops to feed animals to feed humans was never economic
Laura Smith (ODT): Grazing advice heeded

Local government
Diane McCarthy (RNZ): Councils call for feedback on three waters reform
Whanganui Chronicle: Whanganui District Council releases questions to the Government regarding Three Waters programme
Tim Newman (Stuff): Concerns raised over benefits of 3 Waters reforms for Nelson
Susan Botting (Northern Advocate Local Democracy Reporting): Three waters: Whangārei District Council breaks rank, leads Northland counterproposal
Muriel Newman (NZCPR): Time to pull the plug on three waters
Frank Newman (NZCPR): Three waters: Lifting the veil of complexity
Bruce Smith (NZPR): Part 3 of the Westland District Council Mayor’s Three Waters journey
Miriam Bell (Stuff): Union claims former Ports of Auckland CEO got big payout 
Andrea Fox (Herald): Auckland mayor Phil Goff angry at big payout to former port CEO Tony Gibson (paywalled)
Matthew Rosenberg (Local Democracy Reporting): What’s eating Invercargill deputy mayor Nobby Clark?
RNZ: ‘An awful lot of improvement’ in Invercargill City Council progress review – Deputy says
Mike Mather (Stuff): Hooked on some feelings: Misgivings over ‘perceptions’ has councillors divided over safety survey
Molly Houseman (ODT): ORC Petition with minister
RNZ: Wānaka looks to secede from ‘Queenstown-centric’ decision making
Guy Williams (ODT): Average rates increase lower than planned
Luisa Girao (ODT): Plan aims to boost plastic recycling
Luisa Girao (ODT): Mixed feelings over proposed Stewart Island levy rise
Nicholas Boyack (Stuff):Lower Hutt’s RiverLink: The $700m project to fix a river and a city

Housing
Melanie Earley (Stuff): Auckland woman and young son slept in car due to black mould in Kāinga Ora home
Jono Galuszka (Stuff): Whanganui homeless fear loss of campsite ‘home’ and proposed bylaw
John Lewis (ODT): Gender discrimination woes
Catherine Harris (Stuff): Auckland property market remains buoyant under lockdown: agency
Lawrence Gullery (Stuff): Builders face ‘shortages all over the place’ thanks to ‘berserk’ housing market and Auckland’s lockdown

Media
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Mediawatch: Media confront thorny questions raised by terror attack
Andrew Gunn (Stuff): Got a piping hot take on Covid? Get in the queue
Colin Peacock (RNZ): TVNZ’s long-serving boss creates a vacuum
Dita De Boni (NBR): Media commentator asks if history is repeating as TVNZ CEO resigns (paywalled)
RNZ: TVNZ chief executive Kevin Kenrick resigns after nine years at the helm
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): Confronting new research shows just how fast traditional media lost young NZ

Climate change, environment
Olivia Wannan (Stuff): Soaring demand to pollute blows Government’s first limit on carbon units
RNZ: Govt’s emissions trading scheme hit by speculators eyeing up ‘easy money’
Andrew Bevin (NBR): Pundits seek change to ‘dysfunctional’ ETS after carbon prices soar
No Right Turn: Climate Change: We need a total carbon budget
Amber Allott (Stuff): Canterbury meets just two of more than 30 water quality goals set a decade ago
Jamie Morton (Herald): Why have there been so many big floods? Insurance cost is $180 million and counting (paywalled)
Amber Allott (Stuff): The new leaders of change: The time to act on climate change is now
Richard Harman (Politik): Upton and Salmon’s problems with David Parker’s resource management reforms (paywalled)
David Williams (Newsroom): The highs and lows of DoC’s Lou Sanson
Bruce Munro (ODT): Lou Sanson: Caring for here

Justice
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Complaint laid over actions of senior judges in Oranga Tamariki case
Dale Husband (E-Tangata): Judge Mike Mika: I just smile now
Māori TV: Justice Christian Whata appointed Law Commissioner
Simon Bridges (Newsroom): On Arthur Taylor – ‘His book betrays a rank hypocrisy’

KiwiSaver, retirement
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Higher tax for working pensioners: ‘There’s no easy solution’
Rob Stock (Stuff): Covid taught us to love KiwiSaver, but also revealed some of its flaws
David Boyle (Stuff): How many Kiwis has KiwiSaver saved?
Rob Stock (Stuff): Why are there so many people in KiwiSaver who aren’t saving at all?
Rob Stock (Stuff): Lifting the pension age is the perfect way for Government to raid KiwiSaver

Other
Brian Easton (Pundit): Are We Undermining Science’s Credibility?
Karl du Fresne: Three things I’m scratching my head about this morning
Alison Mau (Stuff): The harsh new Texas abortion law should be a warning to us all
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): The future of gas: chewing over the green-hydrogen cooked sausage
Jamie Gray (Herald): Genesis Energy defends transfer pricing policy after Electricity Authority ruling (paywalled)
Kristin Hall (1 News): Enough chances for greyhound racing industry – animal welfare advocates
Eva Corlett (Guardian): New Zealand and Australia prepare to do battle (again) over treasured and lucrative Mānuka honey
Khylee Quince (Stuff): When litigation was filed in the name of a key food source
Craig Hoyle (Stuff): I experienced gay conversion therapy. Here’s why it should be banned
RNZ: Aotearoa has its warmest winter on record, with warm spring forecast
Tainui Stephens (E-Tangata): Calling out hatred
Juressa Lee (E-Tangata): The tainting of New Zealand rugby
Will Harvie (Stuff): Nurseries struggling to keep up with ‘extreme’ demand for native plants
Lana Andelane (Newshub): Nearly $700k to be forfeited to Crown following Wellington Mongrel Mob inquiry
Daisy Hudson (ODT): 300 police calls to MSD since 2016
Jason Young (Newsroom): China’s push for common prosperity
Jane Bowron (Stuff): What if the south did the splits?