The Bulletin: Mallard under pressure over legal costs

Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Trevor Mallard under pressure over legal costs, questions over why border testing review is still under wraps, and Massey academics speak out against cuts. Speaker Trevor Mallard is under pressure over the costs of paying out to end a defamation dispute. In the wake of the … Read more

The Bulletin: Idiots abroad infuriated by NZ’s Covid response

Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Assessing some of the bizarre recent international interventions on NZ’s Covid policy, documents reveal what ministers knew about border staff testing, and Gerry Brownlee under pressure for deputy spot. Apologies in advance, because I don’t normally make a habit of using the Bulletin to magnify … Read more

Siouxsie Wiles: How to strengthen the post-isolation Covid rules

The case of a person who tested positive almost a week after leaving managed isolation has highlighted the need to keep tracking those who have been through MIQ, writes Siouxsie Wiles. Over the weekend, the Ministry of Health reported a case of Covid-19 in Auckland that is not related to the current Auckland cluster. Before … Read more

New frontiers: border control becomes election battleground

The Covid-19 resurgence has pushed border policy to the heart of the election campaign. Justin Giovannetti writes from parliament on the rival visions. In an uncertain future with Covid-19 still present and the next pandemic lurking around the corner, a new border agency, more testing and faster contact tracing will keep the country safe, insists … Read more

The week New Zealand’s border failed

Seven days ago New Zealand was basking in a Covid-free glow. But over the week, holes sprung in the managed isolation system, with a scramble to assert authority seeing the military called into an oversight role. Spinoff political editor Justin Giovannetti recounts an extraordinary few days in NZ’s Covid-19 response story. A sense of victory … Read more

The Bulletin: Normality beckons at level one

Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Decision coming soon on move to level one, housing market in a weird place, and manslaughter charges laid against officers after custody death.  As has been the way with these moves, we got an announcement of what the new alert level will be like, before … Read more