Though a government scheme to get rid of school donations is yet to begin, schools are looking for ways to push its rules to the limit. Radio NZ’s education correspondent John Gerritsen asked principals how funding changes will affect their schools. There are serious question marks over the future of lemon slice at Pakuranga College. … Read more
What, for example, is a pitchfork wrapped in tinsel doing over there, leaning up by an umbrella? Toby Manhire writes a speculative article. A tumultuous week for Winston Peters and his New Zealand First Party has seen story after story raise troubling questions around donations. He’s not happy about it. What do you do when … Read more
Don’t get sucked in by the jovial banter and the sausage sizzle with Jacinda Ardern. Stephen Colbert is an international criminal mastermind who must be stopped. New Zealand is fizzing today with the exciting news that someone from another country has noticed that we exist. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert aired the first part … Read more
David Farrier has been writing about clamping enthusiast Michael Organ for nearly three years. In this latest installment, the logical thing finally happens: the New Zealand government rolls up its sleeves and changes the law. Catch up with the extraordinary saga of the clamp-happy Bashford Antiques: Parts I to V are here When Michael Organ … Read more
If what has been reported is both true and not a breach of the rules for political donations, then New Zealand’s reputation for being squeaky clean looks like a joke, writes electoral law expert Andrew Geddis. Anyone paying attention to New Zealand political parties and how they run their election campaigns has been able to … Read more
New Zealanders like to claim moral superiority over their Australian neighbours when it comes to how asylum seekers are treated. But this belief is not based on reality, writes Tim Maurice of the Asylum Seekers Support Trust The local news media has welcomed Iranian asylum seeker Behrouz Boochani into New Zealand like a celebrity. There … Read more
Leaks of NZ First Foundation records raise big questions about the party’s funding, and there’s every chance of more to come. A glance at history suggests the scale of the problem. An early election may not be a bad idea at all, suggests Danyl Mclauchlan It’s happening. During its time in government New Zealand First … Read more
Former prime minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer QC has published two books with Andrew Butler calling for a written, codified constitution that sets out ‘in an accessible form and a single document the fundamental rules and principles under which New Zealand is to be governed’. A road trip and consultation attracted hundreds of submissions, but relatively … Read more
In a powerful rebuff to critics who question whether the prime minister is willing to use her political capital, this morning she powerfully demonstrated her commitment to New Zealand culture. For two years, my professional life has been devoted to winning respect for the lowbrow, beaten-up, off-brand artefacts that truly define New Zealand. Things like … Read more
Early on Thursday NZ time, the Trump impeachment inquiry kicks into high gear, as the previously closed-door proceedings are replaced with televised public hearings. Here’s the lowdown. What’s about to happen? Just over seven weeks since Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, televised hearings are … Read more
The government’s reform of 1989’s Tomorrow’s Schools legislation has been announced today, and it’s promising changes for students, teachers, principals and boards. What is “Tomorrow’s Schools”? In 1989, the government introduced the Tomorrow’s Schools reforms, which meant all schools became much more independent, giving Boards power over almost all school decisions, including those to hire … Read more
The candidates to tackle Donald Trump are very keen on the New Zealand prime minister. It could be because Vogue called her “the anti-Trump”. It could be the desperate shortage of tolerable left-leaning leaders in the Anglosphere. Or it could be because everyone knows it’s illegal to be mean about people from New Zealand. Whatever … Read more
Vernon Tava, the leader of the Sustainable NZ party, used to be part of the Greens. So how did he fit in there? Former MP Catherine Delahunty shares her impressions of him from then, and analyses where his new party will fit in. I first met Vernon Tava when he joined the Greens in Auckland. … Read more
The Zero Carbon Bill is bland and ineffective. Don’t fall for the spin, argues Steve Abel of Greenpeace. It was hard to not be buoyed by our House of Representatives, seemingly aligned in their commitment to climate action, at last week’s passing of the Zero Carbon Act. Bold expositions of pride and parliament united across … Read more
As parliament voted all but unanimously to pass the Zero Carbon Bill into law last week, climate change minister James Shaw credited Generation Zero for its very existence. Here, Jenny Coatham explains how the youth-led climate action group pulled off such a monumental task. Our generation has been described as having “climate anxiety” – a … Read more
Vernon Tava’s Sustainable NZ Party launched over the weekend, to media fanfare. But has their pitch for centrist environmentalist voters lost touch with the changes in political reality? For a party that he criticises constantly, Vernon Tava will have a tough time escaping the shadow of the Greens. It’s a curious position for the leader … Read more
This afternoon the House of Representatives voted all but unanimously to enact the bill designed to make New Zealand net carbon zero by 2050. Some think the bill imperfectly soft. Others – including the largest party in parliament, the opposition National Party – think it imperfectly harsh. But its cross-party passing is, whichever way you … Read more
Oranga Tamariki’s review into their own practices of uplifting newborn babies, spurred by a Newsroom investigation from June, has been released today. Here’s why it happened and what it says. Why was there a review? In June, Newsroom released a video showing the attempted uplift of a Māori newborn from his 19-year-old mother in the … Read more
Shane Jones’ inflammatory remarks on arranged marriages have caused outrage, frustration and hurt among the New Zealand-Indian community, writes Gaurav Sharma. Let’s start with a story. The story of my wife and me – a scientist and a journalist, young and professional, contributing members of a society. Also, an Indian couple. We moved to New … Read more
In withdrawing from the Paris agreement, Donald Trump is breaking with a tradition of political leadership and the best of humanity. But others are surging forward, writes Green Party co-leader James Shaw. At the height of the Cold War, President John F Kennedy proclaimed that all of us should have “the right to live out … Read more
The 60 wise delegates of Botany chose their next National Party candidate last night, and they picked the man touted as a future leader to take on the blazing, unpredictable incumbent, Jami-Lee Ross. Toby Manhire was there to watch the anointment. As the sun disappeared over the fairways, upstairs at the Pakuranga Golf Club last … Read more
New Zealand typically looks to Scandinavia for inspiration on improving our justice and corrections systems. But a prison expert says it’s actually Texas that can show us the best way to bring down our jail population. Ben Brooks spoke to Alex Braae about his research. If you ever have to conjure up what justice looks … Read more
The prime minister is in Thailand for the East Asia Summit. RNZ’s political editor Jane Patterson sets the scene. The last-minute cancellation of Apec in Chile has left the East Asia Summit (EAS) in Thailand as the new main game in town. The two summits are usually held close together; Apec is viewed as the heavy-hitting event, … Read more
There is a profound asymmetry in the power dynamic between offshore tech companies like Google, Facebook and Viagogo and a domestic regulator in a country like New Zealand. But that doesn’t render us impotent, argues the privacy commissioner, John Edwards Last year in Auckland, a young English backpacker, Grace Millane hooked up with a man … Read more
What does a celebrity have to do to get a slice of our paradise? Like the kid in primary school with the yummiest lunch, everyone wants a piece of New Zealand. More specifically, when Americans (and Brits and Australians) don’t like an election candidate, they threaten to move to New Zealand. The day after George … Read more
Once again, Britain is going to the polls in an attempt to dig themselves out of the utter mess they’re in around Brexit. Will this one finally sort it all out? What’s all this then? A dream outcome for those who want nothing more than the chance to see big, dramatic elections: The home of … Read more
Proponents of the End of Life Choice say that controls on euthanasia will make it safe for all. But the reality is that euthanasia will be impossible to fully regulate, argues Jannah Dennison. The End of Life Choice Bill has now made its way through the Committee Stage, and with the issue poised to be … Read more
Transport minister Phil Twyford is under fire again, and is facing calls to be sacked over delays around Auckland’s light rail system. Should he stay or should he go? Alex Braae assesses the arguments. The drums are beating for Phil Twyford. The failure to get the government’s Auckland light rail plans out the door, and … Read more
An open letter signed by more than 150 New Zealanders under 30 who specialise in biological or environmental science says the current law hinders efforts to tackle the climate crisis, and urges the Greens to change their position and take a lead on reform. A group of more than 150 young New Zealand scientists has … Read more