New poetry by Piha poet Nikki-Lee Birdsey Objects 6 This time of year I try to think about what is better than beauty. Rose-pink clouds crowd the sky, crowd my page— I think of your face. I can’t fantasise like I did when I was a child, whole worlds snapping into place in an instant … Read more
Long-serving Newstalk ZB Drive host Larry Williams has hung up the headphones at Newstalk ZB, where has been at since the Palaeolithic era. Alex Braae tunes in for the farewell broadcasts. Jack Tame and David Farrar were on The Huddle with Larry Williams for the last time on Wednesday. They’d been a relatively regular pairing, … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in reality television and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. In the hangover of Married at First Sight Australia, we are overjoyed to shimmy onto the shiny lino of Dancing With the Stars NZ. Well, two of us are. Duncan only watched Laura’s dance on Instagram. Which … Read more
And she’s the only elected leader in the top 10. Jacinda Ardern has been widely praised for her leadership following the Christchurch attacks last month, but now one American magazine has put a number on it, ranking the New Zealand prime minister second in a list of the “world’s greatest leaders”. The accolade for Ardern, … Read more
Aquaman is an incredibly complex film that puts a lot of questions into your head, distracting you from the simple joy of watching Jason Momoa battle foes under the sea. Never fear, three Spinoff staffers are here with the answers you’re craving. You can watch Aquaman on Lightbox right here.
Eater of chocolate and master budgeter Madeleine Chapman lays out the recipe for a killer Easter egg hunt. Put on your Donnie Darko suit this weekend, sneak around in your own garden, then inevitably step on a marshmallow egg in August. It’s Easter, and it’s time to plan your Easter egg hunt. Build the base … Read more
Toby Manhire spends a day chasing kingis – and PM-adjacent yarns – with Fish of the Day host Clarke Gayford. Mid-week, mid-morning under a muddy grey January sky. We’re skimming into the Hauraki Gulf on a stupidly expensive boat, stacks of fishing rods wobbling away, and Clarke Gayford is getting technical. “So on the handle, as it comes … Read more
The arrival of one of New Zealand’s most beloved broadcasters on breakfast TV is very perplexing, writes Duncan Greive Four years have now passed since #savecampbelllive, one of the most bizarre episodes in our recent media history, and one which sent an iconic broadcaster into a funk from which he doesn’t seem to have emerged. … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Stephanie Post and Hayley White, co-directors of … Read more
Yesterday Starz released a promo photo for Season 5 of Outlander, and the world shifted on its axis. And breaking news: Jamie Fraser’s wig is finally perfect, writes Tara Ward. We’re crossing live to the 18th Century, where Outlander hero Jamie Fraser has been survived some terrible things. He has loved and lost. He’s been battered and … Read more
Emily Writes was disappointed by yesterday’s capital gains tax news – but after years of government inaction on housing inequality, she wasn’t surprised. I found out that Jacinda Ardern had chucked plans to impose a capital gains tax through my group chat. Each day, my girlfriends and I chat throughout the day about various things … Read more
Around this time every year, the howls of agony echo around the country – from south to north, people who enjoy a drink in moderation have just realised that religious traditions have impinged on their freedoms. But forewarned is forearmed. We present an updated guide to getting shitfaced on public holidays. Bars, supermarkets and bottle shops … Read more
This weekend, lend your eyeballs to our three new shows: Two Sketches with Toby Morris, Scratched: Aotearoa’s Lost Sporting Legends and On the Rag. Look, it’s the weekend and you’ve already watched all the things. You’ve watched Game of Thrones. You’ve watched Dancing With the Stars NZ. You’ve watched the video of the goat in … Read more
True, Jacinda Ardern has faced a few criticisms for ruling out a new capital gains tax now and for as long as she leads. But a lot of people are very, very happy. Two million dollars and a tax working group later, Jacinda Ardern has dumped the Capital Gains Tax forever, saying she still believed … Read more
A major new report on the environment delivers a grim summary of the challenges faced. Among them is the impact of growing cities, writes Alex Braae. New Zealand’s cities and towns are expanding, putting an increasing amount of pressure on both agriculture and biodiversity. That’s one of the key conclusions of the Environment Aotearoa 2019 … Read more
Along with no CGT, the Labour government is left with other tax headaches like what to do about sugar consumption, the environment, and tax thresholds that haven’t changed in a decade, writes Terry Baucher. Perhaps the Tax Working Group was fatally compromised from the outset when the taxation of the family home was excluded from … Read more
The Spinoff has scoured the length and breadth of this great nation of ours (OK, we delved into the font of knowledge that is the friends of The Spinoff, plus the good people of Kai Corner) to bring you the very best hot cross buns of Aotearoa. No doubt we missed a bunch – please … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Heavy fallout from axing of capital gains tax, cost blowout for City Rail Link, and wrongly evicted Housing NZ tenants to get debt wiped. PM Jacinda Ardern has ruled out a capital gains tax. Not only now, mind you, she’s ruled out Labour ever campaigning on it … Read more
Social enterprises don’t get tax advantages and can’t get the same kind of funding as businesses. This needs to change, says the co-author of a new report. Current company law is hampering the development of New Zealand’s social enterprise sector. This is the bottom line finding of a new report on whether existing regulatory frameworks … Read more
Jacinda Ardern’s government has abandoned the idea of a capital gains tax, and it’s a victory for self-interest and disingenuous debate, writes Jesse Mulligan Well that was fun. The Capital Gains Tax “debate” (let’s call it that, though it often felt like we were only hearing from one debating team – the one dropped off … Read more
Economist Eric Crampton on the primary school maths and abuse of the official information act underpinning Shane Jones’ provincial growth fund. It seemed a simple enough question. It was, really. So why did it take more than two months to get an answer under the Official Information Act? On 5 February, MBIE’s head of the … Read more
Massey University’s Sean Phelan and Leon Salter look at the role media played in of one the biggest controversies of the last election. Two months before New Zealand’s 2017 elections, which eventually installed the Ardern coalition government, then Green party co-leader Metiria Turei gave a speech on welfare reform. Many political commentators had predicted an easy victory … Read more
Just after 2pm today, the capital gains tax proposal was pronounced dead by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. It’s just the latest in a run of bad news for the government’s much-vaunted policy projects, writes Danyl Mclauchlan. At the start of the year Jacinda Ardern declared that 2019 was her government’s ‘year of delivery’. Last year … Read more
Russell Brown travels to Rotorua, Whakatāne and Gisborne to see what data is doing in the regions. For 650 years, people have been hushed by the sunsets of Ohinemutu. The hills to the west of Rotorua, as if gently parted by hand, let the light stay longer and lower here. It sends a blush up … Read more
Beer is a big deal in New Zealand and even as we drink less, its contribution to our economy grows. Simon Day spoke to the Brewers Association’s Dylan Firth about the industry’s growth. New Zealand loves beer – it’s been a constant and colourful part of our colonial history since the arrival of Captain Cook. The … Read more
Despite unequivocal statements from French authorities that they believe the Notre Dame fire was accidental, far-right personalities are claiming it was arson. Marc Daalder explains why. It didn’t take long. Within hours of the news breaking of a devastating fire at the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, far-right leaders were leaping on it, using dog … Read more
Madeleine Chapman interrogates Andrew Falloon as to how he managed to go so viral on Twitter. You may not recognise his name, or know he exists, but Andrew Falloon – rhymes with balloon – is the most popular New Zealander in the world this week. Falloon was never meant to be popular, and never asked to … Read more
The question is: could another National MP do better, writes Guyon Espiner for RNZ Simon Bridges isn’t running out of luck. He never had luck. It’s his caucus that is running out, running out of reasons to keep him on. The job description for Leader of the Opposition has only one KPI. Actually, it’s a … Read more
A lot of knowledge has been lost about traditional Māori attitudes to menstruation, but some extraordinary Māori women are making sure it’s not lost forever, writes Leonie Hayden Like a bolt of lightning out of the blue it sometimes occurs to me that a thing I’m doing, or feeling, is a product of colonisation. When … Read more