CoveragePost
December 12, 2019
In his big-spending infrastructure announcement yesterday, Grant Robertson reinforced what many political commentators say about him – he’s electorally smart, but way too conservative to be a genuine leftwing minister of finance. Robertson does what is right for winning votes, but not necessarily what is in the interests of the country or even Labour’s own ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: The Govt’s smart but conservative spending announcement" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/12/12/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-the-govts-smart-but-conservative-spending-announcement/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: The Govt’s smart but conservative spending announcement">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
December 6, 2019
The latest allegations of a corruption scandal involving a Cabinet minister suggests this government is far too loose when it comes to providing access to power for friends and associates. Kris Faafoi is in trouble because of his alleged role in helping a mate with an immigration matter when he was the Associate Minister of ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Should Kris Faafoi be sacked?" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/12/06/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-should-kris-faafoi-be-sacked/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Should Kris Faafoi be sacked?">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
December 5, 2019
What is it about reforming laws around money and politics that makes politicians so inclined to stuff it up and act undemocratically? From Helen Clark’s notorious Electoral Finance Act (2007) – which the party eventually voted to repeal, given it was so anti-democratic and unworkable – through to yesterday’s announcement of a so-called ban on ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: What’s driving the urgent clamp down on foreign donations?" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/12/05/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-whats-driving-the-urgent-clamp-down-on-foreign-donations/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: What’s driving the urgent clamp down on foreign donations?">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
December 5, 2019
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Grant Duncan, Associate Professor for the School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University In October 2017, 37-year-old Jacinda Ardern became prime minister of New Zealand. The world looked longingly at a young and inspiring female leader who had unexpectedly catapulted the Labour Party into office. Ardern ... <a title="Left-leaning Australians may look to New Zealand with envy, but Ardern still has much work to do" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/12/05/left-leaning-australians-may-look-to-new-zealand-with-envy-but-ardern-still-has-much-work-to-do-128227/" aria-label="Read more about Left-leaning Australians may look to New Zealand with envy, but Ardern still has much work to do">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
December 3, 2019
Labour chose a pākehā over a Māori as president at its annual conference in the weekend. Some believe this could have ramifications for a sector of the party and a demographic feeling ill-served by the party and the Government. Commentators have argued that this is symptomatic of bigger problems in the Labour-Māori relationship, which could ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Labour risks losing the Māori vote" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/12/03/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-labour-risks-losing-the-maori-vote/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Labour risks losing the Māori vote">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
November 28, 2019
A thorn in the side of National, former MP Chester Borrows punctured his party’s “law and order week” before it even started, by framing its new crime and punishment stances as ignorant and dangerous. Appearing in the media early in the week, he painted National’s discussion document as populist, opportunist, and a knee-jerk response where ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: National’s law and order populism savaged" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/11/28/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-nationals-law-and-order-populism-savaged/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: National’s law and order populism savaged">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
November 25, 2019
A consensus is building around the need for reform of New Zealand’s rules governing political party donations and spending. Many commentators are asking whether our electoral laws are fundamentally broken and, if so, how they should be changed. Currently the leading ideas appear to be to clamp down further on donations, better regulate loans to ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Fixing the problems of money in politics" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/11/25/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-fixing-the-problems-of-money-in-politics/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Fixing the problems of money in politics">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
November 21, 2019
New Zealand is officially one of the least corrupt countries in the world. But it could be argued that our political system is still biased in favour of the wealthy. Here – as in other countries – wealthy individuals and businesses are able to disproportionately influence policy decisions and the distribution of resources in their ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: What’s going on with NZ First’s mysterious donations?" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/11/21/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-whats-going-on-with-nz-firsts-mysterious-donations/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: What’s going on with NZ First’s mysterious donations?">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
November 19, 2019
Chlöe Swarbrick’s “OK boomer” retort in Parliament has proved to be the spark that set alight a dry field of latent generational angst. The debate over the remark rolls on and on, revealing that generational warfare is a growing cleavage in New Zealand. Increasingly, political problems of housing, inequality, climate change and so forth, are ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Why “OK boomer” generational warfare is a dead-end" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/11/19/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-why-ok-boomer-generational-warfare-is-a-dead-end/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Why “OK boomer” generational warfare is a dead-end">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
November 7, 2019
Winston Peters is well known for being belligerent, complaining and prone to political conspiracies. It’s easy to write-off his current High Court trial as hubris and score-settling. Peters is suing former National Cabinet Ministers and heads of government departments for their alleged role in his embarrassing 2017 scandal when his pension overpayments were made public ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Winston Peters puts dirty politics on trial" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/11/07/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-winston-peters-puts-dirty-politics-on-trial/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Winston Peters puts dirty politics on trial">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
October 14, 2019
The results of the local government elections appear to show that New Zealanders are generally supportive of a more diverse range of representatives, having voted in greater numbers for candidates from traditionally under-represented groups. The elections have therefore modernised our councils in a small but very significant way, helping address some long-standing imbalances in representation. ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: The demographic shift in local government elections" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/10/14/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-the-demographic-shift-in-local-government-elections/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: The demographic shift in local government elections">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
September 16, 2019
The National Party is in trouble again for its Facebook advertising campaigning. Late last week, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled against one of the party’s social media ads targeting the Government’s vehicle efficiency feebate scheme. The authority ruled it was “likely to confuse or deceive consumers”. The ad had claimed that the feebate scheme ... <a title="Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Electioneering on Facebook under scrutiny" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2019/09/16/bryce-edwards-political-roundup-electioneering-on-facebook-under-scrutiny/" aria-label="Read more about Bryce Edwards’ Political Roundup: Electioneering on Facebook under scrutiny">Read more</a>
