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Newsletter: New Zealand Politics Daily – December 05 2018

Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.

The Beehive and Parliament Buildings.

Mental Health and Addiction Inquiry report
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Nothing will come from another mental health inquiry
Press Editorial: The report’s in, now the real work starts
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): Politics, money and lives – Govt torn three ways on mental health
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Mental Health Inquiry report: Government should have had an action plan
1News: Mental Health Foundation says ‘significant omissions’ in major inquiry
Stuff: Experts react to the release of Government’s Mental Health and Addiction Inquiry
Oliver Lewis and Cate Broughton (Stuff): Sector welcomes mental health inquiry report, awaits government action
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Suicide victim Nicky Stevens’ family blasts Government’s mental health targets
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Parents of Nicky Stevens welcome report but call suicide target ‘weak’
RNZ: New Zealanders plead for help from failing mental health system
Kyle MacDonald (Herald): Time to put people at heart of mental health system
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Drug Foundation backs move to treat personal drug use as health issue
Bob McCoskrie: Mental Health Inquiry Will Worsen Mental Health With Soft Approach On Drugs
Ruby Macandrew (Stuff): Mental Health and Addiction report: What you need to know
Te Aniwa Hurihanganui (RNZ): Mental Health Inquiry: What it means for Māori
Talisa Kupenga (Māori TV): Mental Health report “not radical enough” for Māori
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Too important to be political football
RNZ: Mental health inquiry: ‘We’re treating this with urgency’
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Government will respond to mental health report in March
1News: Government inquiry finds serious flaws in New Zealand’s mental health system
Zane Small (Newshub):‘Outdated and inadequate’: Govt mental health inquiry paints damning picture
Stacey Kirk (Stuff): Major new target to boost access to mental health services, top recommendation from inquiry
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Mental health shake up urged
Chris Bramwell (RNZ): Mental health report recommends re-think on drug charges
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Report of the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction released
Teuila Fuatai (Newsroom): Mental health inquiry: change long overdue
Māori TV: Mental Health Act outdated – Inquiry
Spinoff: Once in a generation’: The crucial passages from the mental health inquiry
Eleanor Ainge Roy (Guardian): Crisis in New Zealand health services as depression and anxiety soar
Fiona Connor (Newshub): Father-of-three loses eight-year battle with mental health

Maggie Barry bullying allegations, Parliamentary inquiry
Craig McCulloch (RNZ): Maggie Barry bullying claims: Ex-staffer speaks out
Newshub: Exclusive: Leaked email reveals Maggie Barry told parliamentary staff to do National Party work which could be unlawful
RNZ: New leak didn’t come from National MP – Bridges
Jason Walls (Herald): Internal National Party email advising MPs on what to reply to bullying questions has been leaked
Derek Cheng (Herald): National MP Maggie Barry says she was cleared of bullying claims
1News: ‘I create a positive environment for all staff’ – National’s Maggie Barry speaks out over bullying allegations
Chris Bramwell (RNZ): Maggie Barry asks for investigation into staff recordings
Zane Small (Newshub): Simon Bridges stands by Maggie Barry over bullying denial
Peter Wilson (RNZ): Bullying and bad behaviour: Parliament’s perfect storm
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Winston Peters blames ‘language Nazis’ for bullying scandals
Jamie Ensor (Newshub): Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters can’t be sure he hasn’t been a bully

Environment and conservation, waste
The Conversation: 12 years from climate change disaster, can we change our fate?
Paul Gorman (Stuff): Brutal climate-change challenges will put an end to ‘magical thinking’
Peter Matheson (ODT): Next generation needs climate change action
No Right Turn: Climate Change: National are still dragging their feet
Sally McKechnie (Stuff): Vanuatu v the developed world: Taking climate change inaction to court
David Farrar: No small nations do not make up 30% of emissions
1News: Greenpeace investigation allegedly finds scattering of NZ waste being processed in ‘illegal’ Malaysian factories
Greg Roughan (RNZ): Hard truths about recycling – it’s mostly PR
Amber-Leigh Woolf (Stuff): Cash-for-trash bottle refund scheme petition presented at Parliament
Stuff: Gated community discharges human waste into Hamilton stream
Herald: Hamilton body corporate fined for dumping poo in stream

Foreign affairs and trade
AP: New Zealand to allow smoother border access to South Koreans
RNZ: NZ has not provided aid to North Korea in 10 years – PM
Harrison Christian (Stuff): South Korean president talks North Korea sanctions, Pacific reset with Jacinda Ardern
Keith Locke (Herald): Our defense policy and exercises align us with the US against China
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Looming tech cold war could impact NZ
Juha Saarinen (Herald): Huawei mess was entirely predictable
Collette Devlin (Stuff): Winston Peters increases diplomatic footprint in the Pacific
RNZ: Government has its ‘eyes wide open’ on China: Winston Peters
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): The global migration agreement causing a stir
Derek Cheng (Herald): UN migration agreement criticised for hindering NZ sovereignty
Collette Devlin (Stuff): Government still to decide on United Nations migration pact, but National says it wants NZ out
Scott Palmer and Jamie Ensor (Newshub): National wants out of controversial UN migration pact
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Kelvin Davis to attend George HW Bush’s state funeral

Health
1News: ‘I’m sad and scared’ – breast cancer sufferer gives emotional plea to select committee over funding
Ruby Macandrew (Stuff): I’m sick of seeing my friends die: Breast cancer fighter’s desperate plea for medication
Mānia Clarke (Māori TV): Mulholland supports calls for PHARMAC Inquiry
Emma Russell (Herald): Revealed: Junior doctors running ED night shift unsupervised
1News: What you need to know about meningococcal and the emergency vax programme starting today in Northland
RNZ: Emergency vax clinics open in north to combat menW
Rotorua Daily Post: No change to Bay of Plenty and Lakes districts’ meningococcal vaccine recommendations
Ruth Nicol (Stuff): Surgical mesh deemed unsafe for one medical problem is being used for another
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Public advised to visit GP first after nearly seven-hour wait at Middlemore emergency department
1News: Nurses ‘angry and scared’ after recent attacks at mental health facility in Christchurch
RNZ: Short-term fix to protect nurses: more security
Katarina Williams (Stuff): Medical alarm confusion ends in elderly Wellington woman’s death
RNZ: Adverse comments likely in alarm inquest findings
Jarrod Gilbert (Herald): Fitness programme Patu Aotearoa a step into the light
Phil Taylor (Herald): Fear of blindness prompts Vanuatu sea voyage to Fred Hollows Foundation ‘Outreach’ clinic
Phil Taylor (Herald): Battling superstition – the life of a Fred Hollows Foundation eye nurse in Vanuatu

Education
Martin van Beynen (Stuff): Inland Revenue loses track of thousands of Kiwi student loan debtors in Australia
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Teachers blame numeracy and literacy focus: ‘Science gets pushed to the side’
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Science educator shocked by children’s poor science results
Adele Redmond (Stuff): Four in five students are not prepared for high school-level science, study finds
Leigh-Marama McLachlan (RNZ): Treaty of Waitangi ‘not taught enough’ and not taught well
Herald: Wairau Intermediate School blasted for ‘sexist’ disco policy
1News: Māori, Pasifika students get access to top Auckland schools with homes in zones – ‘I saw the difference between the haves and the have nots’
Matthew Tso (Stuff): Trade training grads not up to demands of new technology says engineer
Teuila Fuatai (Newsroom): Damon Salesa: Pākehā are Pacific Island people too
1News: Teachers reject Government’s latest offer on pay and conditions
Jessica Long (Stuff): Teachers and principals vote on Government’s latest contract offers
Herald: Primary teachers and principals reject Ministry of Education’s latest offer
RNZ: Primary teachers and principals to vote on strike action
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Teachers’ strike: Primary principals and teachers reject latest pay offer
Josephine Franks (Stuff): Meet Lara: The principal doubling as teacher, librarian, counsellor and plumber 

Child welfare, abuse
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Abuse survivor complained to school and was told to leave or be expelled
Maria Grace (Spinoff): The one-man battle to help parents keep their kids safe online
CPAG: Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy welcomed by CPAG but levers for change needed

State Sector
Jared Savage (Herald): Wally Haumaha: State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes confirms new review into how Justice and Corrections handled bullying allegations
Jane Patterson (RNZ): Beehive caught off guard by change of government
No Right Turn: Redacting their dirty laundry
Herald: New appointment means half of public sector chiefs are women
RNZ: Half of public service chief executives are now women

Parliament
1News: ‘The Government wants to screw the scrum’ – will it become easier for support parties to get into Parliament?
Phil Smith (RNZ): Tuesday’s things to do: Reserve bank guidance, job rules & medical dope
Jason Walls (Herald): Speaker Trevor Mallard apologises for saying Simon Bridges’ comments were ‘smart-arse’
Watch: Speaker Trevor Mallard apologises after accusing Simon Bridges of making ‘smart a***’ comments in Parliament
Zane Small (Newshub): ‘Smart-ass’: Speaker Trevor Mallard calls out Simon Bridges during Question Time
Newstalk ZB: Trevor Mallard slams Simon Bridges for ‘smart arse’ comments
Zane Small (Newshub): Lightning strikes: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stranded at Auckland Airport

Housing
RNZ: Payouts for flawed meth testing regime: ‘If we’re unsuccesful, we won’t give up’ – Housing NZ
Jenée Tibshraeny (Interest): ‘Seasoned public servant’ appointed boss of big new housing ministry
Debbie Jamieson (Stuff): Questions raised over whether KiwiBuild can help Queenstown’s housing woes
Nicholas Boyack (Stuff): 153 homes announced for long vacant HNZ Epuni land

Chorus
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Communications Minister Kris Faafoi following Chorus’ investigation ‘with interest’
Chris Keall (Herald): Labour Inspectorate charges two Chorus subcontractors
Joe Gallagher (Stuff): Ultrafast broadband network ‘built on the cheap’
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Allegations of bribery and ‘improper behaviour’ investigated in broadband roll-out

Employment
Southland Times: Tender mercies? Southland councils are testing more than the market
Bonnie Flaws (Stuff): Workplace Bullying: what are your rights?
Peter Cullen (Stuff): Some employers are getting too personal with health questions
Karin Lasthuizen (Newsroom): Ethics starts at the top
Matt Brown (Stuff): Kiwis ‘too good’ for seasonal work as employers cry out for skilled fulltime staff
Paul Mitchell (Stuff): Job losses loom as RCR Energy Dannevirke workers get pre-Christmas shock
David Loughrey (ODT): South Dunedin restaurant in trouble for work practices
Herald: Dunedin pair to pay $11,500 for breaching employment law

Christmas
Melanie Taylor (Stuff): Christmas is for kids, not adult agendas
Stuff: Santa-free parade not much of a Christmas present for the kids
Paula Hulburt (Stuff): ‘Heart-breaking’: Family budget service to close before Christmas
Jay Hall  (Spinoff): ‘Black Pete is a symbol of slavery, oppression, racism and ignorance’

Charity
Bryan Gould: Making charitable gifts and paying taxes
Josie Mitchell (North & South): Night riders: The Sikh community’s Free Kitchen helps the homeless
Ewan Sargent (Stuff): Charity group: Don’t donate white pants
1News: Charity group says women don’t want your white pants

Transport
Joel McManus (Stuff): Auckland vehicle inspector suspended over dodgy WoFs
RNZ: Further 4000 drivers may have dodgy warrants
Herald: NZTA warns more Kiwi motorists to get their cars’ Warrant of Fitness rechecked
Jono Galuszka (Manawatū Standard): Cycleway for Manawatū Gorge replacement highway pitched as win-win for cyclists and motorists
No Right Turn: NZTA, ANPR and privacy

Primary industries, animal welfare
Matthew Littlewood (Timaru Herald): Live cattle export operation under way in Port of Timaru
1News: Northland farmer filmed allegedly hitting cows with steel pipe facing charges
Herald: Charges laid over cows beaten with pipe and other implements
1News/Sky: Heartache and trauma’ – many farmers say human toll of eradicating M. bovis too high
Heather Chalmers (Stuff): New national food standard to rid markets of phoney organic produce
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): Hawke’s Bay feedlot battle: Strategist hit with legal costs
RNZ: Maize crops sick, seeds failing
Cherie Sivignon (Stuff): Tasman council takes no legal action against forestry after storm damage

Treasury wellbeing indicators
Richard Harman (Politik): How Treasury is changing the way Government works
Thomas Coughlan (Newsroom): New Zealand in four charts
Jason Walls (Herald): Finance Minister says the Treasury’s new set of wellbeing indicators is a ‘significant step forward’
Jenée Tibshraeny (Interest): Treasury releases first version of Living Standards Framework Dashboard that will help inform Grant Robertson’s ‘Wellbeing Budget’
Audit Blog: Well-being from the centre of government and well-being “on the ground”…

Construction industry
Nikki Mandow (Newsroom): Some thoughts on solving our construction sector woes
Anne Gibson (Herald): Construction sector ‘house of cards’: Corbel Construction failure tip of iceberg, lawyer says
Anuja Nadkarni, John Anthony and Chris Hutching (Stuff): Another big building player folds: Corbel Construction in liquidation
Chris Hutching (Stuff): Corbel subbie owed $700k didn’t know about longstanding problems
RNZ: Christchurch-based building company Corbel fails
Madison Reidy (RNZ): City Rail Link pulls $500m contract off the table

Justice, corrections
Te Kuru o te Marama Dewes (Māori TV): How can the criminal justice system be more effective?
Catrin Owen (Stuff): Inmate’s rights breached over prison fight as visiting justice failed to allow him a lawyer, court rules

Police
RNZ: Strangulation legislation enforced on day one
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Auckland man arrested under new family harm legislation, charged with strangulation
Stuff: Woman left alone in cells at New Plymouth District Court for almost six hours
RNZ: Police criticised after woman left unattended in cells for hours
RNZ: Police chase leaves two dead in Christchurch
George Block (ODT): Officer rainbow-friendly face of police

Jan Antolik/Karel Sroubek residency decision
Collette Devlin (Stuff): Karel Sroubek’s estranged wife is ‘afraid for her life’
Derek Cheng (Herald): Political attacks increase fears for Karel Sroubek’s wife – National
Newstalk ZB: Winston Peters criticised for over comments about Karel Sroubek’s wife

Children banned from cafe
Kate Hawkesby  (Newstalk ZB): Banning kids from cafes won’t solve the problem
Newshub: Nelson’s Abbey Road Burgers, Bar and Café cops criticism for banning children
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Nelson cafe owner vows to stand by his child ban until Kiwi kids are ‘educated’
Meghan Lawrence (Herald): Nelson restaurant says it’s ‘been like heaven’ after decision to ban children

Local government
Christina Persico (Stuff): New Plymouth councillor told off for backing Confederate flag during radio show
Damian George (Stuff): Wellington’s CBD liquor ban could be extended, but drunken Kilbirnie revellers can stay
Dave Armstrong (Stuff): Buses, trains, taxis, parking machines – nothing in Wellington seems to work
RNZ: First hydrogen fuel station planned for Ports of Auckland
Tommy Livington (Stuff): Man takes Auckland Council to Court of Appeal over destruction of Biggie the dog

America’s Cup
Todd Niall (Stuff): Report reveals Auckland Council’s $100m extra spend on America’s Cup works
Mandy Te and Todd Niall (Stuff): Government commits extra $22.5 million for America’s Cup infrastructure
Jason Walls (Herald): Government announces extra millions for America’s Cup
RNZ: Extra $22.5 million approved for America’s Cup
Nick Truebridge (Stuff): Team New Zealand boss accuses minister of ‘mischief making’ during crunch time America’s Cup talks

Other
Thomas Manch (Stuff): What it will take to die: setting a straight path down the ‘slippery slope’
Hamish Rutherford (Stuff): Shane Jones’ $10m Westland dairy loan could turn out to be costly for New Zealand
Patrick Gower (Newshub): Revealed: Experienced miner Tony Forster will be the first back into Pike River Mine
Rob Stock (Stuff): Call to link NZ Super age to ‘health expectancy’ could mean working until 70
Sam Sherwood (Stuff): Coroner calls for increase of alcohol purchasing age following death of drink-driving teen
Alison Mau (Stuff): Navy rape survivor hails Defence Force promise to talk first with victims, rather than fighting them through the courts
Thomas Coughlan (Newsroom): Govt departments spend up on Facebook and Google
Barry Soper (Newstalk ZB: Is NZ becoming a politically correct society of sycophants?
Mackenzie Smith (RNZ): NZ Pacific research institute to be overhauled
Derek Cheng (Herald): Jacinda Ardern named among world’s most powerful women
Alice Webb-Liddall (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern named in world’s most powerful women list
Zane Small and Mitchell Alexander (Newshub): Judith Collins trumps Simon Bridges in Twitter’s top-mentioned New Zealand politicians
1News: Twitter reveals the top topics Kiwis talked about this year – and the ‘Golden Tweet’ about our PM
Damian Vaughan (Spinoff): Music doesn’t just happen: Why you should care about the Copyright Act review
Imogen Neale (Stuff): Auckland tow truck driver closes boot, hooks up car with guide dogs inside
Cherie Sivignon (Nelson Mail): Waimea dam approval ‘sad day’ for Tasman, says group
Herald: PM reveals plans for Baby Neve’s first Xmas
Spinoff: Four different perspectives on reproductive rights
RNZ: Call for immediate probe of Trivago travel website
Duncan Bridgeman (Herald): 9 Spokes desperate for cash, reveals Callaghan grant

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