Election Live, August 5: Two new Covid cases; returnee charges to start mid-month

Welcome to Election Live for August 5, bringing you the latest on election 2020 and other breaking news. For key dates in the election season click here. For all you need to know about the cannabis referendum click here. For the assisted dying referendum click here. Policy launching soon. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 6.45pm: … Read more

Siouxsie Wiles: Victoria’s lockdown ‘an endless game of Covid-19 whack-a-mole’

Putting the entire state under stage four restrictions, rather than just Melbourne, would give Victoria the best chance of success, writes Siouxsie Wiles. The restrictions in place for metropolitan Melbourne now are in some ways stricter than those that were in force during New Zealand’s Covid-19 lockdown. A curfew is in place and most people … Read more

Live updates, August 4: First TV debates announced; Lees-Galloway sorry for ‘hurt and humiliation’

Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 4, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum New rental regulations are set to pass under urgency today, as parliament enters its final sitting week. Owlcatraz shut … Read more

Live updates, August 3: ‘Say yes to the test’ – PM reiterates plea

Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 3, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum National won’t have selected its new Auckland central candidate in time for the electorate’s first debate. Hopeful candidate Nuwanthie … Read more

‘State of disaster’ declared in Melbourne. What will the new lockdown look like – and how did it come to this?

As the state of Victoria continues to record shocking new Covid-19 numbers – 671 cases today – a strict new stage 4 lockdown is being imposed. Adrian Esterman, an epidemiologist at the University of South Australia, explains what that means. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has announced that metropolitan Melbourne will move to “stage 4” restrictions … Read more

Live updates, August 2: ‘State of disaster’ declared in Victoria; Curfew implemented in Melbourne

Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 2 where we bring you the latest on New Zealand news, politics and the Covid-19 crisis, updated throughout the day. 6.10pm: The day in sum Melbourne entered a strict NZ-style level four lockdown, including a curfew, while regional Victoria will begin level three restrictions from midnight Wednesday. … Read more

Siouxsie Wiles: Four possible scenarios for the Australian and South Korean travellers

Over the last few days, reports have emerged of people travelling from New Zealand and testing positive for Covid-19 upon arrival at their destination. First in South Korea and now in Australia. Dr Siouxsie Wiles explains what these positive tests could mean. They’re false-positives As Toby Morris and I have explained before, there are different … Read more

‘Give us some hope’: Stranded visa holders beg for more government help

As the global pandemic drags on, an already precarious situation for New Zealand migrants is becoming increasingly fraught, reports Maria Hoyle. Romi Aggarwal speaks softly and calmly, choosing her words with care. Still, her emotion is tangible when she talks about being separated from her family. “Jacinda Ardern recently celebrated her daughter’s second birthday. She … Read more

Spread the word: The rules of contagion are more important than you think

The R number, the classic measure of how easily an infectious disease spreads, is how New Zealand crushed community transmission. But it’s also a clever guide to a much bigger picture, writes Jenny Nicholls. Predicting how the global Covid-19 pandemic will progress can seem impossible, with graphs of cases from other countries beginning to look … Read more

Siouxsie Wiles & Toby Morris: The race for a Covid-19 vaccine, explained

Well over 150 vaccine candidates for Covid-19 are in development, and they take a myriad of forms. Siouxsie Wiles helps make sense of the different approaches, with illustration by Toby Morris. For more Siouxsie-Toby collaborations, see here. With the exciting news that two Covid-19 vaccine candidates (Oxford/AstraZeneca and CanSino Biological Inc/Beijing Institute of Biotechnology) have … Read more

Heroes and monsters of health

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen doctors and nurses cast as heroes battling a villainous virus. It may be well-intentioned, but it’s a narrative that serves no value, writes ICU doctor Alex Kazemi. In a foyer in Southampton General Hospital in the UK hangs a one-metre-square artwork, donated by the street artist Banksy during the time … Read more

Siouxsie Wiles: A ray of light amid Covid clouds – what the vaccine news means

Results of two vaccine trials are in and the news is encouraging. Siouxsie Wiles explains what it all means, and what happens next. As the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 approaches 15 million, with more than 600,000 deaths around the world, there is at least some positive news on the vaccine front. The results … Read more

Three in four New Zealanders think the country will overcome Covid-19

Our Covid-19 outlook is still one of the most positive in the world. But with new cases emerging in recent weeks, our optimism levels have taken a hit.  Jacinda Ardern yesterday delivered a speech announcing the “next steps” for New Zealand’s Covid-19 response, and what will happen in the event of a community case being … Read more

Live updates, July 15: Collins replaces Woodhouse with Reti, urges ‘stop being so jolly woke’

Hello, my name is Stewart Sowman-Lund and I’m the new editor of The Spinoff’s Live Updates. Thank you for having a read. If you have any feedback, please get in touch with me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz. 7.30pm: The day in sum New National leader Judith Collins gave more than a dozen media interviews across her first … Read more

Judith Collins is the new leader of the National Party, Gerry Brownlee is deputy – live updates, July 14

Read the latest Spinoff coverage of NZ politics here. 10.00pm: ‘We’re just going to have the most fun as we take back the country’ – Judith Collins “We are a team that is absolutely determined to take the fight to the government,” said Collins, speaking without notes. “It is absolutely imperative that the New Zealand … Read more

Live updates, July 13: SFO investigating Labour donations; 30 deportees returning this week

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 10-12: Nikki Kaye on National’s week from hell; new facility to house arriving deportees

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 9: ‘Permanent police presence’ at facilities; Hong Kong relationship under review

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 8: Man with Covid-19 absconded from hotel isolation; helicopter trust disputes Boag’s story

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 7: National MP admits leaking Covid-19 data to media

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 6: Covid privacy breach probe launched; one new case in quarantine

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 3-5: Three new cases of Covid-19; Ardern addresses Labour faithful

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 2: Public funding for America’s Cup halted; compassionate exemptions set to return

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, July 1: No new Covid-19 cases for second day; PM says stay on guard

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, June 30: Auckland’s use of Waikato River fast-tracked; PM says opening borders too dangerous

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Live updates, June 29: Two new cases in managed isolation; $150 million of PPE funding announced

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Why ‘being kind’ is not enough: NZ needs to front up to its anti-Asian problem

While the pandemic has certainly exacerbated anti-Asian sentiment, New Zealand has a long history of turning a blind eye to racism of this kind. The culture of silence is maintained by both sides, says Liang Cui, but she knows first hand the importance of speaking out.  When the first case of Covid-19 was discovered in … Read more

Live updates, June 26-28: Four new cases of Covid-19; royal commission interviews mosque shooter

For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level one – read about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is made possible thanks to donations from Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff … Read more

Review of managed isolation reveals ‘system under extreme stress’

The government’s review of managed isolation facilities paints a picture of an under-resourced, uncoordinated and ad hoc system. Here’s what you need to know.  What’s all this then? Housing minister Megan Woods and defence official Air Commodore Darryn “Digby” Webb were put in charge of New Zealand’s managed isolation and quarantine facilities last week, following … Read more