On Saturday night, Australia defied the pollsters and re-elected its widely despised right wing government. Is it any wonder that Sydney resident Nick Snelling is feeling pretty devvo right now? Dear New Zealand, We’re really sorry. It wasn’t meant to go down like this, promise. Thanks for your ongoing patience, particularly when it comes to … Read more
What happened with the polls, and what does the shock Coalition victory tell us about attitudes to climate change and the power of vested interests? Political analyst and pollster Stephen Mills writes The re-election of the Australian Coalition government was a shock to pundits, pollsters and the parties themselves. A triumphant returning prime minister, Scott Morrison, … Read more
The Australian left will need to do a far better job of connecting with voters – and what they really care about – if they’re ever going to regain power, writes Australian political historian Geoffrey Robinson. The Australian election result was a triumph for the Coalition and a defeat for pundits. The result is even … Read more
All the polls pointed to a Labor win in Australia yesterday. That’s not what happened at all, writes Michelle Grattan. The Coalition has been re-elected in a shock result in which Labor lost seats in Queensland, Tasmania and NSW and failed to make more than minimal gains nationally. But former prime minister Tony Abbott has … Read more
It’s Scomo versus Shorten as Australians go the polls today, ending an all-pervading campaign. New Zealander Paul Davies has been watching it from his sofa Billboards have been defaced, eggs thrown and vile old Facebook posts dug up. It’s difficult to ignore the plethora of election coverage that has bombarded us over recent weeks – … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Major transport plans announced for Wellington, fears some forests will be unprotected from mega mast, and complexities of drug driver testing outlined. A major, decades long investment has been announced for Wellington’s transport network. It’s a mix of incremental short term upgrades focused largely on those not … Read more
Our old mates the Australians are going to the polls on Saturday. What should we watch out for over here? Alex Braae has a cheat sheet for all the Trans-Tasman political nerds out there. What’s all this then? New Zealanders, all let us rejoice, because one of the weirdest democracies in the world is about … Read more