Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Government under real pressure over testing system, thousands currently behind on mortgages, and a remarkable interview about that vile managed isolation rumour. The question of testing dominated exchanges in parliament yesterday, with the government under pressure to account for the managed isolation systems. As the NZ Herald reports, … Read more
A worker at a managed isolation facility has tested positive for Covid-19 after working for days despite showing symptoms. His case showcases another weakness in the border testing regime that has come under fire over the past week, writes Justin Giovannetti. The prime minister said people with symptoms should stay home. The director-general of health … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 18, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 6.45pm: The day in sum There were … Read more
New data from tech giant Google shows just how well Aucklanders are complying with our level three lockdown restrictions – and how their behaviour compares to those in Victoria. It’s been about a week since we learned that Covid-19 had returned to the community. A day later, on Wednesday August 12, Auckland was placed into … Read more
A new Christian party is touring the country, vowing to reshape politics in the image of their interpretation of Christianity. Alex Braae went to Marton to find out what the One Party had to say. “Maranga mai!” called One Party leader Stephanie Harawira to the congregation in front of her. “It’s time.” There is always … Read more
The racist and untrue rumour about the source of the latest Covid-19 outbreak in New Zealand began life as a much less inflammatory post on Reddit. It was deleted after a few hours, but the damage was done. Here, the man who started the rumour speaks for the first time. Last week, when a cluster … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Reaction to the election delay, questions continue over the information given over testing, and Watercare CEO resigns amid drought. As you’ve no doubt heard by now, the election will be delayed by four weeks. Here’s a report on that from Justin Giovannetti, who writes that it follows consultation … Read more
New research suggests that, contrary to received wisdom, people with little sense of control over their lives aren’t any more susceptible than others to conspiracy theories. While conspiracy theories have been around since the Middle Ages and its blood libels, in the past couple of decades they’ve experiencing something of a boom, with the rise … Read more
New Zealand has opted for an elimination strategy, but a vocal minority is calling for an alternative approach that would see an end to lockdowns and borders loosened. Dr Siouxsie Wiles explains why that would be a bad idea. Around the world, different countries are taking different approaches to dealing with the global pandemic. Here … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 17, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7pm: The day in sum There are … Read more
Much has been made of digital divide, but as Justin Latif has observed in his role as a board of trustee member of Māngere Central School, schools in the area are making big strides to ensure students aren’t left behind. It’s hard to imagine what lockdown would be like without the limitless time-consuming options provided … Read more
With parties commanding a majority insisting on a delay, the pressure was mounting, but the prime minister insists she wasn’t cornered into making the call to postpone by four weeks to October 17. Justin Giovannetti reports from parliament. By postponing the general election by four weeks until October 17, the prime minister has forestalled a … Read more
Officially, Auckland playgrounds are closed, but people are still using them because poor signage is making it hard to tell if they’re out of bounds or not. Last time New Zealand went into level three lockdown, playgrounds were one of the first public areas that were closed to the public. Not only were they closed, … Read more
Our communities need us to listen to the people who have dedicated their lives to making ours better – not those who only want to exploit our fears, writes Christine Ammunson. One in five Sāmoans died when the 1918 pandemic hit our homes. Through whispers I remember elderly aunts recalling the horror of watching the … Read more
A number of Māori and Pacific leaders are concerned that the government’s response to the resurgence of Covid-19 won’t be enough to protect their communities. Where the first Covid-19 outbreaks were predominantly among those who had travelled overseas, largely missing communities with high-density Māori and Pacific populations, the latest outbreak originating in South Auckland has … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Questions over testing of border workers, decision on delaying election to be made today, and concerns for educational progress with new lockdown. The first point to note about managed isolation facilities – we don’t necessarily know that was where this latest outbreak came from. Alternative theories … Read more
In New Zealand, as overseas, authorities are dealing with two parallel crises: the Covid-19 virus and the maelstrom of misinformation surrounding it. Hayden Donnell reports for RNZ Mediawatch. In the hours after prime minister Jacinda Ardern announced Auckland would be moving back into lockdown, Billy Te Kahika Jr did something he’d done many times before, … Read more
Winston Peters has demanded it be bumped back from September 19. Is that likely, and when might the new day be? Plus: Peters’ letter to Jacinda Ardern in full On the eighth day of 2020 the Spinoff Election Prediction Lab Committee (“Sepulchre”) predicted correctly that the election would be held on September 19. Recent events … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 16, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact us at info@thespinoff.co.nz. 7.00pm: The day in sum There were … Read more
Yelling at them or trying to make them feel guilty probably won’t work. Instead, try appealing to the values they hold dear, suggests Claire Hooker. It could be a brother or sister. It could be a neighbour. It could be a person you work with. We probably all know someone who doesn’t wear a mask … Read more
After this is all over we’ll divide our lives into before and after Covid, but in the midst of the pandemic we’re already experiencing time in a new way, writes Tanisha Jowsey. If you’ve heard of epoch time chances are you think it has something to do with 01 January 1970 and computer programming. And … Read more
There’s nothing that makes a pointless task suddenly compelling like the return of a virus-fuelled lockdown, writes Michelle Langstone. I lay on the carpet and stared at the smoke alarm sensor flashing off and on. I tried to synchronise my blinks with the tiny red light, squeezing my eyelids shut and opening them at the … Read more
With the extension of alert level three set to stretch many South Auckland families even further, Justin Latif reports on how organisations are preparing to help feed those most in need. Food banks across South Auckland are scrambling to get themselves ready for an expected surge in demand, following Friday’s announcement that the level three … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 15, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact us at info@thespinoff.co.nz. 7pm: The day in sum Seven new … Read more
The current pandemic will be a brand new experience for most, but others have been here before. Kevin Hague explains what we can learn from the LGBTQ+ community’s experience of the HIV/Aids outbreak from decades past. If there’s one group in our country who really knows about beating pandemics, it’s surely the gay community. Before … Read more
From the trusty old blue disposable medical face mask to a bandana made out of a pair of gruts, New Zealand’s TV news and current affairs shows have been a veritable parade of PPE this week. José Barbosa has compiled all the best examples here: The news that Auckland was moving back to level three … Read more
The simple rules for wearing face masks during levels two and three – and how they can effectively limit the spread of Covid-19 Lots of people might be wondering why we’re now being asked to wear face masks when we didn’t use them the first time we were stamping out Covid-19 in Aotearoa New Zealand. … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 14, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Get me on stewart@thespinoff.co.nz. 6.30pm: Super Rugby Aotearoa finale cancelled The … Read more
Theatre owners are up in arms that potential blockbuster Mulan – filmed in New Zealand and directed by hometown hero Niki Caro – is to be premiered not in cinemas, but on Disney’s streaming platform, Disney+. On an office wall somewhere hangs a picture of Disney CEO Bob Chapek – target on his head, and … Read more