Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Tamihere makes a splash with Watercare policy announcement, wind power set to boom, and breakthrough in efforts to reduce cow methane. With the election only a few months away now, it’s a good time to check back in with the state of the Auckland mayoralty … Read more
They’re hinting that new rules might make them quit their New Zealand operations, and you should feel bad about it, writes Toby Manhire In this brutal modern life there’s a lot to worry about, all the time, so it’s completely understandable if you rarely find a moment to stop and think of the downtrodden and … Read more
Late last year, the Islamic Women’s Council of NZ’s Anjum Rahman received an email urging her to join the fight against the UN Global Compact on Migration. This was her response. Recent reporting has joined the dots between groups in New Zealand targeting the UN Global Compact on Migration and neo-Nazi groups offshore. This prompted … Read more
Out of all of the people responsible for global inaction on climate change, why on earth would you point the finger at environmental NGOs, asks Danyl Mclauchlan. Medical students often succumb to a form of hypochondria called ‘intern’s syndrome’ in which they convince themselves they’re infected with the diseases they’re studying. If they’re tired and … Read more
Hawke’s Bay prides itself on good food and wine, pristine art deco buildings and having two Countdown supermarkets right across the road from each other. Alex Casey spent a weekend in the region to see just how much of it she could see. As an Aucklander, one of my all-time favourite things to do on … Read more
A week later, that Queensland house with a glass-walled ensuite bathroom is still giving Emily Writes nightmares. In this confusing and chaotic world we live in there are so many issues that are legitimately outrageous. There are so many things you see online and offline that just shock you to your core. There are so … Read more
What’re you going to be watching throughout July? The Spinoff rounds up everything that’s coming to Netflix, Lightbox, Neon, Amazon Prime and TVNZ on Demand this month. The Biggies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEG3bmU_WaI Stranger Things (Netflix, Season 3, July 4) For the few who don’t know, Stranger Things follows the adventures of several 13-year-old Dungeons and Dragons enthusiasts … Read more
On the publication of a new memoir, former prime minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer pays tribute to historian Jock Phillips. Branded a dangerous, trendy lefty by Muldoon, Phillips has for many decades kept his intellectual navigation shining brightly. Making History – A New Zealand Story is a book that contains significant insights into New Zealand’s intellectual … Read more
Rei is an internationally successful, award-winning musician who can rap, sing, produce beats, and even tell a couple of jokes. He talked to The Spinoff about Ariana Grande, meditation, and writing music as self-encouragement. The winter sun is warm, and so is Rei. He’s the kind of person who puts you at ease straight away. … Read more
Revered Japanese fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto has unveiled the jersey the All Blacks will wear when they compete in the Rugby World Cup this September. The result is… meh, writes Josie Steenhart. Not only is there no white collar on the new All Blacks jersey, released yesterday (if we don’t count the accidental sneak peek … Read more
Elle Hunt recalls her days renting in New Zealand as a time of suffering and survival. But don’t we deserve better? A case often made in favour of buying a house (as though it were something that you could simply be persuaded into) is that renting is “just throwing money down the drain”. Firstly, that’s … Read more
Calum Henderson reckons New Zealand has the most celebrity chefs per capita. Here, he tries to find the funniest. There are few things I love more in this life than taking a celebrity chef’s name in vain and using it to roast the living hell out of my nearest and dearest. It goes like this: … Read more
Ahead of taking the stage for Dragfest in Auckland, RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars winner Trinity the Tuck spills the tea on All Stars, Caitlyn Jenner, and the truth behind Taylor Swift’s new music video. Trinity the Tuck can do it all. She can lipsync, she can dance, she can serve looks, and for a … Read more
Lovepreet Brar was a migrant who scrapped his way from a one year diploma to New Zealand residency, before becoming an international bhangra hip hop star. In between, he was part of an epic and dangerous fraud. In early March 2016, Arvinder Singh left his Takanini home, nestled in a small section at the end … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Wounds caused by UN Migration Pact drama still fester, Middlemore sources concerned deadly flu cases contracted in hospital, and rat populations ballooning. It started off as little more than an obscure, non-binding agreement for the United Nations to mull over. It became a rallying call for … Read more
Sources at Middlemore Hospital have expressed concern that two patients may have died after catching the flu when being admitted. As flu season applies pressure to hospital resources around the country, there are concerns two patients may have died after catching influenza at Middlemore Hospital, according to two sources spoken to by the Spinoff. When … Read more
To anyone paying attention, the inequity embedded in the health system is undeniable. A new report from the Waitangi Tribunal lays that bare. Gabrielle Baker explains the findings, and what the government needs to do to prove it takes them seriously Two-and-a-half years after it pinpointed health as a priority for investigation, the Waitangi Tribunal … Read more
New Zealand writer Sherryl Jordan’s elated, transcendent novel for young adults, Winter of Fire, was first released in 1992. A quarter-century later, fans’ pestering has paid off and it’s back in bookstores. This makes Catherine Woulfe very happy. And below, two more Winter of Fire megafans share what the book means to them. It’s hard … Read more
If you’re addicted to watching Claire whip up gourmet Twinkies and Brad ferment garlic while you eat microwaved pasta in your pyjamas, then this is the list for you. First the world was given The Beatles, the cast of Friends, the Paris, Nicole, Britney and Lohan era, One Direction and Zayn, the Kardashians and BLACKPINK. … Read more
One of New Zealand’s great pop maestros returns, the rein (geddit?) of Lil Nas X continues, and sci-fi series Stranger Things inspires a superb single: welcome to The Spinoff Music’s best songs of June 2019. International ‘Jealous’ by Ingrid Michaelson Ingrid Michaelson’s new single hits on two obvious truths and subverts a third. Truth the … Read more
If your property manager tries to charge you a ridiculous ‘cleaning’ charge when you leave your place, there’s something you can do, writes Sam Grover – and he should know, because he did it. The other week, I saw a story about a property manager named Whittle Knight and Boatwood Estate Agents who took a … Read more
Today the law against single use plastic bags goes into effect. One less thing to feel guilty about? Well, maybe, writes Pallas Hupé Cotter. Trips to the grocery store have never been my favourite thing. I’m not someone who flips through cookbooks as a pastime, dreaming of what I can create in the kitchen (I … Read more
When random attacks are only a moment’s inattention away, government officials learn to watch their step when committing anything to the written record, writes Tony Burton. My guess is that even those who follow politics will struggle to remember the kerfuffle when a 2011 Official Information Act (OIA) request found an email ‘from Treasury’ that … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Raft of new laws taking effect today, a messy story of inner city homelessness unfolds in Auckland, and secondary school teachers accept offer. Some news you can use today: we’re going to start with a roundup of some of the bigger July 1 law changes. It’s … Read more
I have worked for the last 15 years or so as a professional in various parts of the environmental movement. And I’m sorry. I was one of the people who told you changing your light bulbs or buying organic couscous would make things OK. I was wrong and I knew I was wrong at the … Read more
Spoiler: it’s New Zealand. Julienne Molineaux explains the strange relic in the local body electoral system. The principle of one person, one vote doesn’t apply for local elections. In fact, you don’t even need to be a person to have voting rights. Welcome to the ratepayer roll. While the ratepayer roll accounts for less than … Read more
For the latest episode of The Offspin podcast, we’re joined by writer, musician and cricket tragic Samuel Flynn Scott, to process the utterly insipid Black Caps loss against Australia. Well, that was rubbish. The Black Caps utterly failed to show any spine against Australia, leaving their Cricket World Cup campaign dangling precariously as we approach … Read more
The Aotearoa-born breed is having a moment in the spotlight, thanks to The Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Peter Quill. Kunekune pigs are great and all, but why should I care about them now? A big overseas celebrity has mentioned them – why else? Newlyweds Chris Pratt and Katherine Schwarzenegger have welcomed two kunekune pigs into … Read more
In our Q&A series, The Lightbulb, we ask innovators and entrepreneurs to tell us about how they turned their ideas into reality. This week we talk to The Curator’s Marica Frost who went from dealing with refugee law to building a free virtual wedding planner from scratch. First of all, give us your elevator pitch for … Read more