Few hobbies have captured the mainstream imagination in 2020 quite like roller skating. Jihee Junn explores the many reasons why. Just down the road from Auckland’s Glenfield mall is the ActivZone Indoor Sports Arena, an inconspicuous-looking building which, many years ago, used to be a Chipmunks play centre. These days though, it’s the self-proclaimed “home … Read more
Real estate firms are hanging on to millions in wage subsidies despite a red-hot housing market recovery since June, reports Brent Melville of BusinessDesk. Three of the country’s leading realtors — Harcourts, Bayleys, and Barfoot & Thompson — claimed a combined $8 million in wage support for more than 1,000 employees when pandemic-induced lockdowns were … Read more
As we emerged, blinking, from the first lockdown, essa may ranapiri said they might write a response to the wonderful poetry published by Māori writers over that strange time. They did not want the work “dumped in the world and forgotten” – they wanted it seen, held high, lit up. Here is that piece. He … Read more
Businesses in an iconic central Auckland food court continue to face threats of closure from their landlord. Now they’ve turned to the public for help. Several besieged businesses at Elliot Stables have failed to come to a resolution with their landlord, the Icon Group, which last month issued Property Law Act (PLA) notices giving the … Read more
An extract from The Nature Activity Book, which we strongly urge you to invest in for the school holidays. Books editor Catherine Woulfe writes: Written by teacher, scientist and head of the National Aquarium Rachel Haydon and gorgeously illustrated by Pippa Keel, our review copy of The Nature Activity Book landed just before Auckland’s latest … Read more
Determined to write New Zealand’s first Covid book, Paul Little chronicled the lives of more than 20 New Zealanders under lockdown as rural domesticity took over his own. It all started with a mysterious virus causing a global pandemic that threatened the lives of millions of people, my writer wife and I losing our long-standing … Read more
She’s head girl, a viral star, a poet. But none of those credentials can ever capture the force of nature that is Aigagalefili ‘Fili’ Fepulea’i-Tapua’i. Portraits by Edith Amituanai. The sky above Aorere College is a brilliant blue. Sunlight gets into every corner of the campus, and music spills out into the morning from a … Read more
The second instalment of Patrick Gower’s On… series is about the one issue that has touched all of us this year. But the documentary seems almost as fascinated by Gower himself, writes Sam Brooks It seems strange, on the day that Auckland comes out of a lockdown, its second, to be watching a documentary about … Read more
With the past few weeks yielding some serious government botch-ups, the lead up to the election is going to be fraught with blame, frustration and needless cries of conspiracy, writes Pattrick Smellie of BusinessDesk. As of this morning, Monday August 31, there are just under seven weeks to go to polling day, assuming the election … Read more
For some, the loss of even fleeting touch heightened a sense of distance and dislocation far beyond the effects of the official isolation imposed on us. Jennifer Little looked to nature for a remedy. You couldn’t even pay anyone to touch you. Codified connection with another human through professional massage was banned. With so many … Read more
New Zealand’s Covid-19 lockdowns triggered intense panic buying of flour, toilet paper and canned foods. In response, one of our largest grocery companies decided to cut its product range, writes Rebecca Stevenson for BusinessDesk. Foodstuffs’ store owners have narrowed the range of products sold as a result of the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown. Foodstuffs North Island … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 27, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and the return of Covid-19. Auckland is in alert level three until 11.59pm on Sunday. The rest of NZ remains in level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum The … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 26, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ is in level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.15pm: The day in sum … Read more
Two weeks into Auckland’s second lockdown, Sam Brooks reflects on the strange distortion of time in alert level three. I remember exactly where I was when Lockdown: The Sequel was announced. Actually, no. I remember exactly where I was when it was announced that Jacinda Ardern and Ashley Bloomfield were going to be making a … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 25, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ is in level two. More details here. Official information here. Get me on stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7.00pm: The day in sum There … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Sentencing begins today for Christchurch mosque shooter, cabinet to decide on alert level moves, and polling shows public still largely behind government Covid response. Sentencing will begin today for the perpetrator of the terrorist attack committed on March 15 at two Christchurch mosques last year. In … Read more
A trip to the bookshop ends in calamity – and an encounter with the calm, candid and kind medical staff of North Shore Hospital. As a great admirer of Hilary Mantel’s writing, I looked forward to reading the final novel in her trilogy set in Tudor England, The Mirror & the Light. I drove down … Read more
The prime minister spoke to South Auckland and Pasifika media this afternoon. Justin Latif reports. Jacinda Ardern has paid tribute to the South Auckland family at the centre of the recent Covid-19 outbreak in Auckland, as well as the Pacific community for the way it has responded to the call to get tested. The prime … Read more
With Covid-19 making employment more elusive than ever for disabled people, those in the sector are pushing for sweeping and overdue changes. The official statistics may paint a mild picture of New Zealand’s unemployment, but for many people, the reality is as cold and as disappointing as a job application rejection letter. As the economy … Read more
Despite the economic downturn, recent months have seen more everyday New Zealanders investing their money than ever before. But why? What with all the financial uncertainty of Covid-19, it’s a surprise anyone would choose a national lockdown as the time to start investing. But that’s exactly what 24-year-old Hanoz* did back in March. Stuck at … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: A big decision on what comes next, an important ruling on the lockdown legality, a power pair installed to troubleshoot the testing regime, and how concerned should we be about air crew? Six days ago, when the prime minister announced that Auckland would remain in alert … Read more
In choosing to lead with the threat that Covid-19 poses the High Court makes it abundantly clear that it is going to cut the government a lot of slack when reviewing the overall legality of its actions in response, writes Andrew Geddis. Probably the most famous opening to a court judgment is to be found … Read more
As racist and unfounded rumours swirl, how is the family at the centre of New Zealand’s newest Covid cluster and the wider South Auckland community responding? Justin Latif reports. A week after the announcement that members of a south Auckland household had tested positive for Covid-19, the family is getting the support it needs, according … Read more
Just over a week ago, Auckland had a full slate of live events going ahead. But this week and next? Silence. Sam Brooks reports on how returning to lockdown has affected Auckland’s live scene. If you were an Aucklander leaving the house on Tuesday morning, you might have been leaving that house with a full … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 17, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact me at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz 7pm: The day in sum There are … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for August 16, bringing you the latest on New Zealand news and Covid-19 as it returns to the community. Auckland is now in alert level three and the rest of NZ level two. More details here. Official information here. Contact us at info@thespinoff.co.nz. 7.00pm: The day in sum There were … Read more
There’s nothing that makes a pointless task suddenly compelling like the return of a virus-fuelled lockdown, writes Michelle Langstone. I lay on the carpet and stared at the smoke alarm sensor flashing off and on. I tried to synchronise my blinks with the tiny red light, squeezing my eyelids shut and opening them at the … Read more
With the extension of alert level three set to stretch many South Auckland families even further, Justin Latif reports on how organisations are preparing to help feed those most in need. Food banks across South Auckland are scrambling to get themselves ready for an expected surge in demand, following Friday’s announcement that the level three … Read more
From the trusty old blue disposable medical face mask to a bandana made out of a pair of gruts, New Zealand’s TV news and current affairs shows have been a veritable parade of PPE this week. José Barbosa has compiled all the best examples here: The news that Auckland was moving back to level three … Read more