The prime minister has announced Auckland will go into alert level three, and the rest of the country alert level two, after four cases of the coronavirus were detected in a family with no known link to overseas travel or existing cases. Via the Science Media Centre, the experts on what it means. Shaun Hendy: … Read more
After 101 days without any reported community transmission in New Zealand, cases without any link to overseas travel have been reported. Auckland will go into alert level three as of noon tomorrow, for a period of three days, until midnight on Friday. The rest of the country goes into alert level two. It follows four … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Concern from the Cook Islands over travel bubble, inquiry clears Iain Lees-Galloway of any spending impropriety, and Oranga Tamariki facing further damaging report findings. A draft agreement on a travel bubble with the Cook Islands is close to being finalised, the PM revealed yesterday. Stuff reports it … Read more
It’s become fashionable among some political circles to advocate for a laissez-faire approach to debt, on the basis that the government can issue as much debt as it likes – for as long as it likes. But there’s one big drawback to ‘just print more money’ argument, writes Pattrick Smellie of BusinessDesk. Ask a New … Read more
A Productivity Commission report finding was based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of disease transmission dynamics, and now that error has itself been transmitted in the media and into the election campaign, write Nic Steyn, Mike Plank, Alex James, Rachelle Binny, Audrey Lustig and Shaun Hendy of Te Pūnaha Matatini. On May 2, … Read more
During the worst days of the Covid-19 outbreak in New Zealand, Matamata was right at the heart of it all. Alex Braae went to the Waikato town to ask people how they’re getting on now. On the signs heading out to the Hobbiton Movie Set about 10 minutes away from the Waikato town of Matamata … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Labour launches campaign while National releases list, frantic final days at parliament wrapped, and new poll shows Shane Jones in trouble in Northland. Some would say the campaign has been underway for months in a proxy form, but officially, it’s now all on. The parliamentary term … Read more
Celebrity agent Ryan Serhant is promoting the sale, a snip at $24 million. It looks so good, why let pesky details like closed borders and foreign buyer bans stop you? Along with panoramic views, adventure sports and fine wines, the New Zealand pitch for super-wealthy Americans now includes the lure of zero Covid in the … Read more
A small proportion of Covid-19 patients continue experiencing symptoms long after they test negative. Freya Sawbridge, one such ‘Covid long hauler’, describes what it’s like. Four months have passed and I’m onto my fifth relapse. The room is eerily still yet my mind spins like the stripes of a barber’s pole. My brain pulsates and … Read more
The introduction of a $3,100 fee for returning New Zealanders will disadvantage Māori disproportionately, Phoebe Carr (Ngāti Awa, Ngāi Tūhoe) and Max Harris argue. The government has once again failed to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi by rushing through legislation to introduce exorbitant managed isolation fees for returning New Zealanders. This fee will have massive … Read more
After initial concerns about low testing rates in South Auckland, Counties Manukau DHB has the second-highest testing rate in the country. Ōtara Health chief executive Sosefina Paletaoga explains her organisation’s role in achieving this. Covid-19 has affected us all in different ways, and for us in Ōtara, it has highlighted existing issues, but also reinforced … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Preparing for a possible return of the pandemic, SFO prevents JLR document release, and stoush over National candidate selection deepens. I say possible in the headline there, because we can’t know for sure that community transmission of Covid-19 absolutely will come back. But at the moment, … Read more
Over lockdown, mental health hotlines saw a massive spike in calls and texts from distressed New Zealanders. Their numbers still haven’t returned to normal, and growing research suggests demand won’t be going away anytime soon. In April and May, Lifeline experienced a 25% increase in calls and texts from people in distress. For many, lockdown … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Many stories told by latest unemployment figures, Bloomfield says return of community transmission almost inevitable, and major tenancy reform package passes. First of all, it’s pretty clear that the top-line unemployment figure going down is a misleading picture of the state of the economy. Yesterday new … Read more
Welcome to Election Live for August 5, bringing you the latest on election 2020 and other breaking news. For key dates in the election season click here. For all you need to know about the cannabis referendum click here. For the assisted dying referendum click here. Policy launching soon. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 6.45pm: … Read more
In the wake of National’s leadership woes, The Spinoff sat down with the party’s most popular face in recent history to talk Covid-19, Judith Collins – and why he thinks our border should be more ‘flexible’. John Key is confident about our country’s future. In part, that’s because he tunes in each morning to Newstalk … Read more
The latest round of economic data won’t carry Judith Collins and the National Party into the promised land, and she’ll need to come up with something else to save her chances, writes political commentator Ben Thomas. The government has delivered an economic miracle! How else to describe today’s labour market statistics for the June quarter … Read more
New Zealand’s unemployment rate has just fallen, defying experts and flying in the face of everything we expected. But according to Stats NZ, the devil is in the detail. What’s all this then? In a bizarre turn of events, New Zealand’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has actually fallen from 4.2% to 4% for the June … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: IPCA and police at odds over decision not to charge officer, Canterbury DHB in crisis, and Shane Jones job creation claims disputed. The Independent Police Conduct Authority has issued a call for charges for an officer who used excessive force in the course of a … Read more
Putting the entire state under stage four restrictions, rather than just Melbourne, would give Victoria the best chance of success, writes Siouxsie Wiles. The restrictions in place for metropolitan Melbourne now are in some ways stricter than those that were in force during New Zealand’s Covid-19 lockdown. A curfew is in place and most people … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 4, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum New rental regulations are set to pass under urgency today, as parliament enters its final sitting week. Owlcatraz shut … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Tauranga’s “combative” mayor on ropes after texts revealed, former firefighters reveal multiple sexual assault and harassment complaints, and new report details serious climate risks to NZ. Tauranga’s mayor is embroiled in some chaotic infighting around the Council table, and it could get uglier now that … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 3, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum National won’t have selected its new Auckland central candidate in time for the electorate’s first debate. Hopeful candidate Nuwanthie … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Exploring the rapid rise of Billy TK’s NZ Public Party, report finds senior military officers misled ministers over Operation Burnham, and Lake Taupō water monitoring to be led by iwi. Within the space of a few months, Billy Te Kahika Jr has gone from being … Read more
People like me already don’t know when we will see ‘home’ again, thanks to the forthcoming border fees, writes Jai Breitnauer. We don’t need to be judged for it too. About eight weeks ago we got a message we had been dreading – my father-in-law was in hospital having been in a motorbike crash. Of … Read more
As the state of Victoria continues to record shocking new Covid-19 numbers – 671 cases today – a strict new stage 4 lockdown is being imposed. Adrian Esterman, an epidemiologist at the University of South Australia, explains what that means. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has announced that metropolitan Melbourne will move to “stage 4” restrictions … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 2 where we bring you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. 6.10pm: The day in sum Melbourne entered a strict NZ-style level four lockdown, including a curfew, while regional Victoria will begin level three restrictions from midnight Wednesday. … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 1 where we bring you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. 7pm: The day in sum A second traveller to Australia from New Zealand has tested positive for Covid-19. There are now three cases from New Zealand that … Read more
Over the last few days, reports have emerged of people travelling from New Zealand and testing positive for Covid-19 upon arrival at their destination. First in South Korea and now in Australia. Dr Siouxsie Wiles explains what these positive tests could mean. They’re false-positives As Toby Morris and I have explained before, there are different … Read more