Jacinda Ardern today announced an executive line-up without Kelvin Davis as deputy prime minister, but with five Māori in cabinet and another three Māori MPs in the wider executive. Shane Te Pou on what it means – and what must come next. Labour’s new cabinet gives more power to more Māori ministers across a whole … Read more
A special poem by Labour’s deputy leader Kelvin Davis, following in the tradition of political verse started by David Cunliffe. A year ago I started a tale A story with a chapter yet to unveil Of a world of light and some pretty ugly taniwha Of a guy called Kevin Davies And a joke that’s … Read more
We know Jacinda Ardern will be the PM, but what else needs to get sorted out in the coming weeks? Alex Braae runs down the questions we’ll get answers to soon, along with a few that you might be wondering about. The voters deliver the mandate, but then it’s up to the politicians to figure … Read more
From Te Rerenga Wairua at the top of the country, right down to Rakiura, we’re taking a look at our seven Māori electorates and the candidates contesting the seats. First up: the electorate of Te Tai Tokerau. Te Tai Tokerau is our northern-most Māori electorate. Its boundary begins on the north side of the Auckland … Read more
Budget 2020: The tourism sector was holding out hope for a lifeline to come in the form of yesterday’s budget. It didn’t come, and now its leaders say they’re drowning. Members of the beleaguered tourism industry say the support they’ve been offered is a drop in the bucket compared to what is necessary given the … Read more
On this day two years ago, Jacinda Ardern delivered a powerful, acclaimed speech at Waitangi. She implored her audience then, as she has again in recent days, to hold her to account on delivering for Te Ao Māori. We’ve taken that speech and held it up against the Labour-led government’s achievements to date. In February … Read more
An investigation has been launched after an epileptic inmate was left in a soiled cell following a seizure over the weekend. An inmate was left traumatised and covered in excrement overnight following an epileptic seizure at Christchurch Men’s Prison. The man, who The Spinoff has chosen not to name, collapsed in his cell around 10.30pm … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Deep wounds shown by Captain Cook vandalism, expert fact checks claims around electric cars, and police deployed to fight non-existent crime wave. A Gisborne Captain Cook statue has been vandalised, and the message painted on it shows the depth of tensions that will surround the 250th … Read more
Last month the Waitangi Tribunal heard submissions on the current prisoner voting ban, something New Zealand’s Supreme Court has found to be in breach of human rights. Carmen Hetaraka asks: if now isn’t the time for the government to act, then when? “When you start you’ve got all these principles. And in the political process, … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Destiny Church rejected for prison rehab programme, Kāpiti Council sends sea level message to homeowners, and funding boost to solve Census snafu. Corrections minister Kelvin Davis has ruled out working with Destiny Church’s Man Up programme in prisons, reports Newsroom. Destiny says the programme can help turn lives … Read more
The moment is now for tough conversations about justice reform, and it is vital that increased use of diversion for those with mental health issues is part of those conversations, writes Nicola Corner from JustSpeak For the past few months, we’ve seen a lot of much needed discussion come out in the justice space. In … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: ERA hits out at teacher demands ahead of strike, police want new terrorism powers, and Supreme Court makes big call on prisoner voting. The week of rolling primary teachers strikes begins today, with teachers under pressure after a rebuke from the Employment Relations Authority. Radio NZ reports the … Read more
For 15 years justice advocate Roger Brooking has been campaigning for prison reform with an increasing sense of despair. Now, for the first time, he sees reasons to be hopeful. The Labour government is in a tricky situation with regard to justice reform. Justice Minister Andrew Little and Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis want to reduce … Read more
Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee and Ben Thomas ruminate on the New Zealand political cud. Simon Bridges has come under fresh pressure after botching a press conference around the resignation of MP Jami-Lee Ross, which both insist is unrelated to the inquiry into a leak of the National leader’s expenses details. The Gone By Lunchtime trio … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: PM starts new week after three on the back foot, Herald launches economic inequality series, and huge house building programme announced for Mt Roskill. The Prime Minister starts the week after a few that she’d probably rather forget. Three weeks in a row now have finished with … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Pike River case could be reopened, public service workers to vote on strike action, and police accused of behaving like a private security force. Police could reopening the Pike River mine case, and criminal charges may follow, reports Newshub. The government’s top investigator has been in Greymouth, … Read more
In today’s Cheat Sheet, what exactly turns a prison into a mega-prison? And how do the just-announced plans for Waikeria Prison fit in? What’s all this then? Plans have finally been released for what’s going to happen at Waikeria Prison, the lockup near Ōtorohanga in the middle of the North Island. Under the previous government’s … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: The government has partly made up its mind on the mega–prison, Māori wards fall short in regional votes, and midwives say the budget boost was too little, too late. The government has made a decision to not expand Wakeria Prison into a so–called mega–prison, but is … Read more
In opposition, Kelvin Davis was a vocal advocate for an overhaul of the lock-’em-up approach. In government, will he walk the talk, or cow to the reactionaries, asks criminologist Liam Martin Construction is set to begin next year on the biggest prison New Zealand has ever seen. A facility for 2000 prisoners is to be … Read more
New Zealand’s prison population is ballooning, and no politician seems to have any good plan to stop it – except Labour deputy leader Kelvin Davis, writes Di White. For almost two decades there has been a ring fence around prison policy in New Zealand. It’s a high fence – you can’t climb over it by … Read more
The Spinoff’s Gone By Lunchtime trio frantically gather their thoughts following the exit of Labour leader Andrew Little, who has been replaced by Jacinda Ardern, with Kelvin Davis as her deputy, with just over 50 days to an election. Within seconds of watching Jacinda Ardern conduct her first press conference as Labour leader, Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee … Read more
Following Andrew Little’s resignation, Jacinda Ardern has been unanimously elected as Labour leader, with Kelvin Davis as her deputy. Here’s a quick survey of the pros and cons. At her first press conference as leader of the Labour Party, Jacinda Ardern has promised to run “the campaign of our lives”. She and new deputy Kelvin … Read more
A pantheon of observers of New Zealand politics were asked to cast their minds over 2015, select champs and flops, ups and downs, and the story to look out for in 2016. Today, Part One: The Champs. We asked our experts to rank the three best performing individuals in politics for 2015. Below, read the … Read more