This commendable and realistic decision again underlines that it is the police, not government, who are largely responsible for the reduction in cannabis prosecutions over the past 15 years, writes Russell Brown. The news that New Zealand police have discontinued the annual Helicopter Recovery Operation, which has, each summer for more than two decades, teamed … Read more
With new strains of Covid-19 bearing down on our shores, Pattrick Smellie of BusinessDesk looks at the challenges 2021 has in store, and what can be done to prepare. In the three weeks that New Zealanders have been at the beach and ignoring Covid tracer app sign-ins, the threat of Covid-19 has grown exponentially. Where … Read more
The current number of members of parliament is starting to get too low for the job we expect them to do, argues Alex Braae. As a general rule, with the possible exception of their families, nobody likes backbench MPs. But it’s nevertheless time we accepted that parliament should have more of them. There’s no exact … Read more
The lack of Māori language or symbolism on the SuperGold Card isn’t just a design issue – it’s emblematic of the overwhelming whiteness of Aotearoa’s superannuant population, writes former race relations commissioner Joris de Bres. I’ve enjoyed the SuperGold Card since I retired eight years ago. I appreciate the free public transport, the odd discount … Read more
Who could have predicted the stand-off at Waikeria prison? Absolutely anyone, writes Emilie Rākete of People Against Prisons. The Waikeria uprising protesters have come down safely from the rubble of the prison unit they destroyed. The last smouldering embers have been extinguished. As a member of the prison abolitionist group People Against Prisons Aotearoa, I … Read more
Summer reissue: Tara Ward wades bravely into one of the thorniest January questions: how late is too late to greet someone with a cheery ‘Happy New Year’? First published January 23, 2020. New Zealand’s breakfast TV shows returned to our screens on Monday, with their jubilant hosts throwing out “Happy New Year” wishes like an … Read more
Summer reissue: Crowd entertainment at sports games is a hard task, but please let’s stick to T-shirt cannons and on-field japes instead of watching strangers smooch, eh? First published July 13, 2020. Funny kiss cam footage is a key element of any viral fail video compilation. A “she’s my sister” sign pulled out of a … Read more
Summer reissue: This is yet another tab clogging up your browser, and that’s fine, writes Sam Brooks. First published March 13, 2020. Welcome to this article! Chances are you didn’t read it immediately after it was published. It’s one of however many tabs filling up whatever browser you happen to be using on whatever device … Read more
Summer reissue: In an effort to bring The Spinoff’s favourite format – the ranking – to its knees, Alice Webb-Liddall ranks the most boring thing she can think of: borers. First published October 29, 2020. If something is to be named after me when I have passed away after a lifetime of goodwill and national … Read more
Summer reissue: Some observers are questioning whether there are sufficient Facebook livestreams to support the goal, writes chief caring correspondent Danyl Mclauchlan. First published November 24, 2020. Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its members – click here to learn more about how you … Read more
Summer reissue: After last weekend’s Bledisloe Cup match, Justin Latif asks why we’ve fallen out of love with drop kicking. First published October 17, 2020. October 6, 2007 was truly one of the darkest days of my life. To many New Zealand sports fans, just hearing the words “two thousand and seven” elicits cold sweats … Read more
Summer reissue: We should be unanimously outraged that in seven short years the number of Māori women on remand has doubled, in part thanks to a pernicious reform. What will you do about it, asks Awatea Mita. First published 3 July, 2020. In December this year, it will be six years since I was released … Read more
Summer reissue: As the American media giant comes under fire for its treatment of POC contributors, it’s time to talk about the whiteness of food media in Aotearoa, say Jean Teng and Charlotte Muru-Lanning. First published June 13 2020 A wave of consciousness around racism is sweeping the globe at the moment. Protests that started … Read more
Summer reissue: Alie Benge signed up to a dating app with a sense of dread. What she found restored her faith in people – and in love itself, she writes, in the first instalment of a new series following her dating journey. First published August 29, 2020. I went into the first lockdown a hardcore … Read more
Every year in our summer politics review we encourage our esteemed commentators to throw all caution to the wind and make a wild prediction. Most will be gloriously off-beam. But usually at least one is on the money … Read more from our political year in review here. Contrary to expectations, the huge new intake … Read more
Summer reissue: In April, a six-month armed police trial ended that sparked a small but insistent public outcry. Later, as the Blacks Lives Matter resistance took hold, it became an urgent part of the movement in New Zealand to challenge the systemic racism and individual prejudices within NZ Police that could lead to disproportionate numbers … Read more
If there’s one lesson to take from our widely praised Covid-19 response, it’s that real societal change is possible – as long as the political will is there, writes Matt Bartlett. One of the most remarkable and under-reported aspects of New Zealand’s response to Covid-19 is how the government eliminated homelessness during the lockdown period. … Read more
‘A kick in the face for Christmas’ – that’s how Catherine Delahunty, chair of Coromandel Watchdog of Hauraki, describes the news that her group must pay almost $80,000 in costs after losing its bid to stop a toxic waste dump near Waihi. It’s the week before Christmas and I am trying to buy grandchildren presents … Read more
New Zealand’s supply of vaccines to the Pacific may cap a critical role in the region’s rising geopolitical tensions, writes Pattrick Smellie of BusinessDesk. Last week’s announcement New Zealand has secured enough vaccinations not only for its own population, but for Pacific Island “neighbour” nations, is significant for more than just the fact that we have a … Read more
The weakness of the Royal Commission report is that it treats Islamist extremist terrorism and extreme right white nationalist terrorism as different categories, when in fact they are part of the same problem, argues former Green MP Keith Locke. Much of the commentary on the Royal Commission report into the Christchurch terrorist attacks falls short … Read more
Illustrator and creative Evie Kemp on a powerful – and unexpectedly moving – summer swimwear campaign. This story was first published on Ensemble magazine. I didn’t expect an Instagram post of a woman in a bikini to bring me close to tears. Not least one without a long-winded caption about body acceptance, but just a … Read more
In recent years social media has helped give a voice to survivors of abuse, often denied them by the justice system. But group mentalities are fickle, and the best intentions can sometimes perpetuate more harm. Jogai Bhatt looks back at a fraught year of social media justice. Warning: includes images of swastikas and other far … Read more
Did a group of plucky young New Zealanders really save the Pacific from nuclear testing with some boats, bravery and beer? Not quite, write Sylvia Frain and Rebecca H. Hogue. Who doesn’t love a beautifully made commercial that makes us feel good about New Zealand and our place in the world? The latest in this … Read more
An NCEA history exam this year included a poem by Lionel Terry, a white supremacist and cold-blooded murderer. Chris Tse, who wrote a book inspired by Terry’s victim, explains why the exam question has caused such hurt within the Chinese New Zealand community. I have a complicated history with Lionel Terry, and it pains me … Read more
Countries that signed up to the Paris agreement promised to review their efforts every five years, but already New Zealand has stumbled, writes Bronwyn Hayward. Saturday marked five years since the Paris Climate Agreement was signed. That agreement was the moment that the world’s governments (196 countries) finally agreed climate change was real, was happening … Read more
The UN’s ‘Nelson Mandela rules’ state that you can take away someone’s liberty, but not their humanity. New Zealand’s punitive abuse of Māori and Pacific peoples in prison is trampling all over that, writes Meg de Ronde, executive director of Amnesty International New Zealand. There’s an oft-used quote attributed to Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela: “It is said … Read more
In New Zealand classical music, the writers of words are routinely hidden from view. If they care so little, why not settle for humming the melody, asks NZ’s inaugural poet laureate, Bill Manhire. I watched the Whānau London Voices concert the other day, and admired the initiative and spirit of the venture, as well as … Read more
As New Zealand’s property market breaks new records, and politicians wring their hands about what to do, Child Poverty Action Group’s Frank Hogan suggests it’s actually the worst time to promote schemes to get people on the housing ladder. The New Zealand housing market has never looked more like a Ponzi scheme than it does … Read more
The extraordinary adventure that is Australia’s attempt to make Facebook and Google pay for news has reached its climax, writes Hal Crawford, and it’s still possible the world’s smallest continent will end up with one of the world’s worst internet experiences as a result: no Google search and no news on Facebook. The “News Media … Read more