Which parties spent the most on Facebook and Google, and was it really all worth it in the end? The election is over and the results are in: Labour swept the polls, National lost big, and the Greens and Act are set to return to parliament with an even bigger cohort of MPs than they … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Advance voting surges ahead of final week, poll shows John Tamihere in with a chance at Tāmaki Makaurau, and insights into modern drug smuggling revealed. With a week to go before election day, hundreds of thousands of people have already got their vote done and … Read more
Leaders of the Greens, Act, Māori Party and NZ First joined in a rambunctious exchange in Auckland last night. Toby Manhire was there. Had I disappeared off-grid to live in a cave 10 weeks ago – and don’t think I wasn’t tempted – then returned last night to the Newshub “powerbrokers” debate, I’d have confidently … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Changes rippling through architecture of local government, ‘yellow flag’ case causes concern about Auckland outbreak, and health select committee to reconvene. To lead us off today, a roundup of a few stories taking place at local government level. It keeps going while the rest of the … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Questions over testing of border workers, decision on delaying election to be made today, and concerns for educational progress with new lockdown. The first point to note about managed isolation facilities – we don’t necessarily know that was where this latest outbreak came from. Alternative theories … Read more
With the election campaign about to get under way, minor party leaders are furious at being shut out of one of the biggest possible stages for their policy platforms. Alex Braae reports. TVNZ’s multi-party election debate is once again the subject of controversy, not because of who will be on the stage, but who won’t. … Read more
The Mana Movement has effectively ceased to exist as an independent party as it turns all its resources over to the Māori Party. But in a strange twist, Mana could still be on the ballot. One of the most decisive political rifts over the last decade has finally come to an end with Mana Movement … Read more
It’s election year, but thanks to the not insignificant matter of a global pandemic, we’ve barely heard from the minor parties. So we decided to give them a chance to explain how they would have handled the Covid-19 response had they been in parliament. Getting attention from the opposition benches is hard enough in politics. … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Term 2 starts with kids at home, media takes spotlight at ERC, and lockdown concern for those in overcrowded housing. Going back to school is always hard, but the start of term two has been something else entirely. With schools still closed because of Covid-19, and … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Quarantine announcement expected today for arrivals, John Tamihere accused of test-seeking dishonesty, and Cyclone Harold smashes Pacific. An announcement is expected today on mandatory 14-day quarantine for all arrivals at the border, in an effort to prevent outbreaks of Covid-19. That comes from Newshub’s political editor Tova O’Brien, … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Predator Free 2050 strategy launched, govt to roll out economic response to Covid-19, and Armed Response Teams in the spotlight. The strategy outlining how New Zealand will become predator-free by 2050 is being launched today. The idea, a vision of the late Sir Paul Callaghan and … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: What the UN climate refugee ruling means, Whānau Ora funding battle escalates, and what’s going on with Ihumātao? A United Nations ruling on an i-Kiribati man who sought asylum as a climate refugee in New Zealand could have global implications. Ioane Teitiota was denied asylum and deported in … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Strong public support for midwife petition, Waipareira Trust defends massive Tamihere campaign donation, and most of the bodies on Whakaari now found. A petition for community midwives to get better funding and pay has absolutely taken off. Radio NZ reports the petition, which is hosted on the … Read more
Phil Goff was returned to office by a huge margin on Saturday. How will he put that mandate to use this term? Hayden Donnell asks the questions. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Phil Goff is … Read more
But he did play a crucial role in helping journeyman Andy Foster knock over Justin Lester. Team Gone By Lunchtime size up the local elections, gaze plaintively at the dramas in the NZ First Party, and ask how bad the new poll is for Jacinda Ardern. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire discuss the … Read more
Hayden Donnell identifies who did well, and who got massively owned, in the 2019 local elections. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here. Most of these winners and losers lists fail to capture the nuances of election humiliation. … Read more
Sorry about not covering everything that happened these local elections. To make it up to you, we’ve compiled all the stories we missed into an ultimate election-ending list. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click here. When people think … Read more
We asked the two leading Auckland mayoral contenders to write a ‘final pitch’ to voters. This is what John Tamihere wrote. You can read Phil Goff’s pitch here. (Important note: if you’re voting by post, get your papers in the mail today, Tuesday. If you don’t have papers, or can’t get them in the mail … Read more
We asked the two leading Auckland mayoral contenders to write a final pitch to voters. This is what Phil Goff wrote. You can read John Tamihere’s pitch here. (Important note: if you’re voting by post, get your papers in the mail today, Tuesday. If you don’t have papers, or can’t get them in the mail … Read more
In the last public debate of the Auckland mayoral campaign, the three leading contenders fronted up to a crowd of rates-averse elderly people – and an unlikely hero emerged. Hayden Donnell reports. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism, click … Read more
Penny Hulse is retiring after a 27-year council career. She talked to Hayden Donnell about the reasons she stood down, the councillors she can’t stand, the Tamihere vs Goff battle, and her secret to staying sane during even the worst council meetings. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Difficult decision looms for govt over Ihumātao, NZDF story scrutinised at inquiry, and innovative new bus service to be trialled in Timaru. This is far from the end of the story about what will happen to the land at Ihumātao. A major development took place … Read more
Last night Auckland mayoral contender John Tamihere said “sieg heil” when answering a question on diversity. Sadly that has forced us to put together a cheat sheet on how to not say Nazi phrases in debates. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and … Read more
An Auckland mayoral candidate has broken the internet* by announcing a plan for a monorail around the central city. Who is Craig Lord, and is he serious? Alex Braae spoke to him shortly after his campaign launch to find out. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming … Read more
This year’s crop of local election signs range from the inspired to the utterly terrifying. Professional illustrator Toby Morris delivers his analysis of the best and worst designs. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Faces, faces … Read more
John Tamihere opposed gay marriage and once called homosexual sex ‘unhealthy and violating’. Now he wants us to ‘move on’. Hayden Donnell follows him to a Rainbow Auckland debate. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. The afternoon … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Foreign interference fears rise around donations, anti poverty group disgusted at tobacco company approach, and Labour MP Clare Curran to depart in 2020. The National Party has denied MP Todd McClay facilitated a major party donation while he was the trade minister, reports Radio NZ. The allegation … Read more
Some people say it’s confusing. Others think it’s boring. But running all its elections under an STV system could be the single most effective way for local government to fix its lack of diversity and woeful voting turnout, argues Hayden Donnell. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about … Read more
John Tamihere’s rates freeze proposal was criticised from all sides yesterday, but does it have any political support? We contacted Auckland’s councillors to find out. On the bright side for John Tamihere, his latest announcement wasn’t boring. The mayoral contender’s promise to freeze rates for three years drew dozens of headlines, as journalists and commentators … Read more