It is the National Party leader’s job to oppose the government. But as a second case of Covid-19 in New Zealand is confirmed, he should tone down the anecdotal criticisms, and rein in MPs explicitly urging people to panic-buy, writes Siouxsie Wiles, an associate professor in molecular medicine and pathology. Dear Simon I do understand … Read more
We live, supposedly, in the most open era in New Zealand history. Yet right now scandal swirls around donations to National and New Zealand First. The other large party, Labour, also has form. As part of our week-long series on electoral funding, Money Talks, Max Rashbrooke asks: how has it come to this? This series … Read more
In a few hours polls will begin closing in states participating in Super Tuesday, the mega-primary when 14 states vote on the Democrat nominee to meet President Trump in the general election this November. Korey Te Hira explains why Super Tuesday matters, and breaks down the complicated rules that govern which candidate emerges a winner. … Read more
All this week on The Spinoff, a series of articles examine the crisis in our electoral funding rules. How did we get here? How might we fix it? Here Liam Hehir sets out how a donations regime of compulsory anonymity might actually work. For the last little while, I’ve talked to anyone willing to listen about … Read more
From the US primaries to the New Zealand election campaign, the battle of the memes is something to take very seriously, writes Sarah Austen-Smith. Simon Bridges is single-handedly killing every last Māui dolphin. Jacinda Ardern is personally stealing from you to pay for her promises. In the wild west of political memes, almost nothing is … Read more
All this week on The Spinoff, a series of pieces examine the crisis in our electoral funding rules. How did we get here? How might we fix it? Today, Action Station’s Laura O’Connell Rapira argues that the existing system simply cements the interests of the richest and most powerful. This series is made possible thanks … Read more
Today The Spinoff launches a week-long series on politics and funding. With a host of donations under scrutiny, we’ll ask: how did we end up in this predicament, and how might we fix it? Launching the series, Otago University law professor and electoral law expert Andrew Geddis explains why the subject is of such fundamental … Read more
The New Zealand First MP’s attack on ‘students that have come from India’ comes as another prominent New Zealander completes a visit to India embracing, well, students that have come from India. This morning on Newshub Nation, the minister for the regions and verbal jukebox Shane Jones took aim at Indian students, and their impact … Read more
At a tense press conference in Sydney, the New Zealand prime minister has just issued a stark challenge to Australia over its treatment of NZ citizens. Here’s what she said. We appreciate that many Kiwis have taken up the opportunity to live and work in Australia – many more than has happened in reverse. Not … Read more
The series, a collaboration between Spinoff Members and Verb Wellington, kicks off with a discussion on politics and the media. As all right thinking people know, there are a mere 204 days until the general election. To get in the mood, we’re launching a new series of live events. And not just events: events in … Read more
New Zealand’s travel ban on China has been extended another week. The president of the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations argues for a student exemption. The loss of lives and poor health caused by coronavirus is devastating. We must acknowledge the families, across the globe, who have lost loved ones or who are supporting … Read more
The first issue of the Otago student magazine for 2020 had barely hit campus before it was making headlines in the wider media. The cover was censored by Facebook, and a furious editorial denounced party politics, promising to give them a miss. Josie Adams speaks to editor Sinead Gill about a sparkling, sweary start to … Read more
A new index ranking ‘soft power’ praises ‘a shining example of how to build a tolerant and inclusive society in the face of adversity’ – and offers a rejoinder to sneers at the prime minister’s appearances in international media, writes Toby Manhire. At the end of last week of Jacinda Ardern appeared on the cover … Read more
New child poverty figures were released today by Statistics NZ. A press release from the prime minister boasts, ‘18,400 children lifted out of poverty’. National meanwhile claims ’20k more children in poverty under Jacinda Ardern’. Can they both be right? As ever, the numbers are more complex (and malleable) than they seem. Leonie Hayden and … Read more
A long-awaited bill to regulate vaping has been unveiled at parliament. Here’s the skinny. What does the bill do? The bill, which associate health minister Jenny Salesa is calling “the most significant change to New Zealand’s smokefree laws since they were introduced 30 years ago”, will introduce a complete ban on the sale of vaping … Read more
It’s called ‘CANZUK’, and it’s a bad idea. New Zealand should not be suckered in by dreams of Empire 2.0, writes Lewis Holden. The clock struck 11 on January 31, 2020 and it was all over. Britain was out of the European Union after 47 years. Under the much-maligned Brexit deal there’s still another 11 … Read more
Twenty years ago, Auckland’s streets were ruled by diesel-hating narcs. Josie Adams looks back at the short-lived 0800 SMOKEY campaign. For five chaotic weeks in 2000, the Auckland Regional Council experimented with extreme, multi-level peer pressure. The goal: to get cleaner-burning fuel into Auckland cars. The method: turning citizens against each other in a whistle-blowing … Read more
A rare visit by a prime minister of Papua New Guinea to New Zealand highlights a strong friendship, but one which could be closer, writes Johnny Blades for RNZ. Papua New Guinea’s James Marape has embarked on a state visit to New Zealand. It’s the first visit to New Zealand by a sitting PNG prime … Read more
Fresh on the heels of this morning’s news about the prime minister handing someone a bottle opener, The Spinoff can reveal that Jacinda Ardern once offered a man a banana. Jacinda Ardern once offered an Auckland man a banana, according to a tweet viewed by The Spinoff. The MP who would go on to become … Read more
Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire inhale the stench of donation scandal enveloping NZ First and National. Can the prime minister avoid the pong? Winston Peters, his New Zealand First Party, and whatever the New Zealand First Foundation is are just part of a wider donations controversy that seems set on gobbling up the … Read more
The government has announced a ban on electricity retailers using promotions to lure back customers who’ve changed companies. Flick Electric’s Nikki Cockburn explains why this is a victory for consumers and competition. Progress on the Electricity Price Review (EPR) might be slow – especially when it comes to putting recommendations into action – but yesterday … Read more
When it signed onto the Paris Climate Agreement, New Zealand pledged to increase its net greenhouse gas emissions by 10% across the 25 years to 2030. The latest government report shows with current policy settings it is on track to increase them by more than 20%. The challenge is acute and urgent, write Russel Norman … Read more
Simon Bridges reckons those on the average wage shouldn’t be hit by a 33-cents-in-the-dollar tax. And they’re not. Not even close. Alex Braae explains. It takes an incredible political talent to announce that you disagree with a policy setting, and have that critique be so powerful that it retroactively becomes government policy. National leader Simon … Read more
Across the prime minister’s Monday morning broadcast interviews, there was one overwhelming theme: the behaviour of NZ First and Winston Peters, who happens also to be the deputy prime minister. With turmoil engulfing government coalition partner NZ First and deputy PM Winston Peters, the logical next person to ask for a view was Jacinda Ardern. … Read more
Winston Peters was once the one who could plausibly rail against the self-interest of the establishment. Today that seems laughable, So where are the real critics offering reform, asks Danyl Mclauchlan. Politics is messy. It’s chaotic; most things happen for complex combinations of reasons and these are not always obvious, and the best explanations you … Read more
The challenge keeps knocking on Jacinda Ardern’s door: is there a limit to Labour’s patience with its embattled NZ First partner? Magic Talk serves up plenty of news stories to its parent website, Newshub. Usually it’s on-air tirades and flaming rows, amplified further online. But this week it hit the jackpot, delivering a big and … Read more
Minerals giant Rio Tinto has once again provoked the fury of the government over their operations down in Southland. So what’s going on, and why are people so angry? What’s all this then? This story is all about dross. Not the dross that gets put out by global corporations as PR when they find themselves … Read more
When a politician apparently can’t get a fair hearing in the media, how do you get the truth out? Political commentator Ben Thomas braves the wobbly audio to watch Winston Peters’ efforts to clear up questions around the NZ First Foundation donations scandal by doing a Facebook live. Private sector media companies have plenty to … Read more
An extraordinary week at the national broadcaster ends with a complete backdown on plans to downgrade RNZ Concert and make music staff redundant. Toby Manhire speaks to staff and Helen Clark, and asks: has RNZ’s embarrassment translated into RNZ getting a budget boost? Last Wednesday RNZ music staff were summoned to a meeting to hear … Read more