Just a couple of cents? Hardly. The opposition plan to charge for use of irrigation would impose a major burden, and it is hard to see how it would alleviate water quality problems, argues Megan Hands. There is no doubt that water management is top of mind for many of us this election, but none more … Read more
He leaves office largely unloved, but MP Peter Dunne did more than most New Zealanders realise. Russell Brown goes in to bat for the undercover drug reformer. I have spent a surprising amount of time in the past few years defending Peter Dunne. And given that the lightning response to the news of his retirement … Read more
The election has thus far been dominated by Metiria Turei’s admission of historic benefit fraud, and its impact on both Labour and the Greens. But Dr Lance O’Sullivan argues that the conversation about welfare Turei wanted to start never really happened. I’m a product of a beneficiary, of a welfare dependant family. My mum was … Read more
The latest party leader to be eaten by this election is Mr Ōhāriu. From the worm to the planking, thanks for the memories, writes Toby Manhire Three of the seven parties in the New Zealand parliament have seen a leader quit in the last three windswept weeks. Peter Dunne, leader of United Future and one … Read more
Freshwater is fast becoming one of the hottest topics ahead of the September vote. What are the main policy differences when it comes to ownership, pricing and exportation? Nicole Buxeda dips her toe in This post is the first in the Policy A Day series which launches today at Andrew Chen’s Mashed Calculus and Differential … Read more
The Town Hall campaign launch underlined the startling turnaround for the party under Jacinda Ardern, and the palpable power of momentum, writes Toby Manhire. The understatement of the day came from Jacinda Ardern herself. “I can only say that when we booked the Town Hall for this event we did not expect this,” she said, … Read more
Danyl McLauchlan writes an epic and extraordinary essay drawing threads from the past and present of political history and discourse and various books that, he says, ‘might be peripherally relevant to the 2017 General Election but to be honest probably won’t be’. This story first ran in the leadup to the 2017 election ‘Because you … Read more
If it’s your last speech in parliament, you might as well throw a little shade around, right? Sam Brooks reads the politicians’ farewell addresses so you don’t have to. When the Spinoff politics editor asked if anybody would be keen to pull out some of the best lines from the recent lineup of parliamentary valedictory speeches, … Read more
I’ve never seen such tumult in NZ politics, writes National Party cabinet minister Wayne Mapp, but what matters most remains policy – how are the alternative governments likely to proceed in five key areas? I cannot recall a time in New Zealand politics of such change and turmoil. Perhaps the closest would be Sir Robert … Read more
Pollwatch: 1 News’s Colmar Brunton survey puts the Greens out of parliament, in a nostalgic National vs Labour race. MMP was meant to make multi-party politics the norm, and so it has: we’ve never seen a majority one-party government. But the two big parties have resisted all obituaries, and the new Colmar Brunton poll for … Read more
Confused by all the online tools analysing which party you align with best? Don’t worry, Hayden Donnell is here to help. With the general election only eight weeks away, New Zealand is suddenly drowning in quizzes. Everywhere you turn on the ‘net, there’s a new web exam testing your opinion on everything from Auckland housing … Read more
Last night the Clutha Southland National Party selected Hamish Walker, a 32 year old business advisor from Dunedin, as the replacement for disgraced MP Todd Barclay. But if National think that will put to rest the questions swirling around their electorate operations in the Deep South they’re dreaming, writes Peter Newport. It’s a long drive … Read more
The deputy PM can thank the legacy of the British Empire for sparking a political crisis, writes Australian history expert Kate Hunter Confused about citizenship? You wouldn’t be the only one. Adding to the strange episode of millionaire businessman Peter Thiel being granted citizenship despite having only visiting New Zealand for 12 days, we now … Read more
Dirty Politics landed like a bombshell in the NZ election campaign of 2014. It may not have affected that outcome, but that was never the ambition. It has, however, made a big impact on our politics, argues Nicky Hager Three long years ago, during the last election campaign, the book Dirty Politics revealed a political … Read more
Boot camps, parental fines… how on earth do these policies fit the social policy framework of the National government in 2017? Simon Wilson takes a look at what the prime minister and his cabinet colleagues have been saying this year. On 14 May, prime minister Bill English told a conference of the National Party faithful … Read more
As the breakneck pre-election pace continues, the Gone By Lunchtime committee convenes to discuss the big issues such as cabbages. With Ben Thomas marooned in Wellington, Duncan Greive pod-hops to join GBLT’s Toby Manhire and Annabelle Lee, but we do take a moment to call and sing him a song. With Metiria Turei having resigned, the Green Party … Read more
Election 2017 will see New Zealand’s growing ethnic communities play a greater role than ever in choosing the next government. Ahead of the final leg of the campaign, Don Rowe is speaking to the editors of their leading newspapers. Today he talks with David Soh, editor of the Mandarin Pages. How are you planning to cover … Read more
Coverage of politics generally, and this election particularly, is assailed for focusing too much on personality, and not enough on policy. In an attempt to redress that, we’re excited to unveil a major new project to help you get to grips with the rival parties’ policies and so decide how to cast your vote. Here the Spinoff’s Toby Manhire introduces Policy. … Read more
Hamilton City Councillor Garry Mallett is the subject of a formal complaint over allegations he used the words ‘fags’ and ‘homos’ while on council business. But he has defended any use of such terms, and warned the Spinoff against getting ‘sucked into this politically correct vortex’, reports Angela Cuming. A Hamilton City councillor accused of … Read more
What’s the best response to the threat to political norms – and, some say, to democracy itself – posed by President Donald Trump? According to the NZ-born, New York-based political philosopher Jeremy Waldron, it’s civility, reason and restraint. Max Rashbrooke talked to him during a recent visit back home. If the world is going to … Read more
The advent of Jacindamania has prompted hopeful comparisons between Ardern and other photogenic, likeable liberal leaders, including Canada’s Justin Trudeau and France’s Emmanuel Macron. If that turns out to be true, the NZ left is going to be sorely disappointed, argues Branko Marcetic. It’s a good time to be the centre-left. The seemingly dreary Andrew … Read more
The spectre of war with Kim Jong-un is back in headlines after a rhetorical exchange that has included Donald Trump threatening “fire and fury”. How serious are the threats from Pyongyang, and what does it mean for New Zealand, asks Asia-Pacific expert Van Jackson This is how they say people fall asleep, or fall in … Read more
In the wake of Metiria Turei’s resignation as Greens co-leader there has been much discussion about a perceived tension between the emphasis on social justice or environmental issues. Don Rowe tracked down Greens icon Nándor Tánczos to get his thoughts. Nándor Tánczos is undeniably one of the grooviest cats to ever make their way into the … Read more
What will National do if the wheels start to come off its campaign? How will Jacindamania cope with Labour policies that are not progressive? And what about those head-to-head leader debates? Simon Wilson looks at potential turmoil to come. 1. Jacinda Ardern will have to explain Labour’s immigration policy Did everyone forget Labour’s record on immigration? … Read more
In our video series Kiwis of Snapchat, comedian Tom Sainsbury sources exclusive Snapchat footage of Kiwi citizens making the news. Today: Green Party leader James Shaw is hopping mad about losing co-leader Metiria Turei. Click here for all our Kiwis of Snapchat videos. This content is entirely funded by Simplicity, New Zealand’s only nonprofit fund … Read more
More than ever, New Zealand’s ethnic communities can play a crucial role in elections. In the first of a Spinoff series, Don Rowe talks to Sandeep Singh, editor of the Indian Weekender. There are now almost 200,000 Kiwi-Indians living in New Zealand, and for 120,000 readers, the Indian Weekender is a newspaper of choice. This year they’re dedicating … Read more
Three years ago today Dirty Politics was published, lighting the fuse on an extraordinary election campaign. Hayden Donnell looks into what the cast of Nicky Hager’s book have been up to since. It seems impossible, but there was a time when politics was even worse than it is now. Today our most fractious political debate … Read more
Pollwatch: Under Jacinda Ardern, Labour has powered back to the future in the new Newshub poll, as an embattled Green party slides. But are National impermeable? And should we be talking about a disaster for NZ First, too? Toby Manhire weighs it all up. There is something distasteful about fighting over a political corpse. “We … Read more
Just over three weeks after making an emotional admission at the Greens conference, Metiria Turei has resigned as her party’s co-leader. Young Greens co-convener Meg Williams pays tribute. I’ve had messages from friends this evening who are sitting in lectures, driving in cars, sitting at their desks at work, walking on the street, trying to … Read more