For a whole lot of Auckland notables, the hottest ticket in town this week has been a trip to see the unveiling of Waiheke Island’s new electric buses. Alex Braae was there to see it. For dignitaries around Auckland, ribbon cuttings this year have been few and far between. And who wouldn’t want a morning … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Agreement reached in principle for Auckland to take Waikato water, beneficiary debt to MSD balloons, and Opportunities Party lose candidate in key seat. An agreement has been reached in principle for Auckland to take water from the Waikato River. As Radio NZ’s Jordan Bond reports, it is an … Read more
Auckland has made painstaking progress toward becoming a functioning modern city. Now its councillors may put that in jeopardy for a proposal that will save ratepayers an average of 47 cents a week. Hayden Donnell reports. In the depths of the Covid-19 lockdown, Auckland’s councillors started coming under pressure from a familiar antagonist. It was … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Kiwibuild buyers left facing years of delays, calls for relaxation of alert levels and travel, and new details emerge in NZ First Foundation saga. Despite a reset of the policy last year, Kiwibuild is still proving to be problematic. A disastrous new story has emerged from One … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Covid-19 officially declared to be a pandemic, abortion clinic Safe Zones stripped from legislation, and Hauraki Gulf under extreme biodiversity pressure. Overnight, the World Health Organisation officially declared that the Covid-19 outbreak has become a pandemic, reports AP News. That’s a term defined as a disease spreading … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: New poll sets scene for election year, scale of public support for Weta Group revealed, and Phil Goff’s emails for sale. Each poll is just one snapshot, but this particular one is very interesting. The Newshub Reid Research poll has Labour and the Greens with a collective two-seat … Read more
Inspired by Winston Peters’ dog and muse, Beau, a range of other dogs have urged their politician owners to get them in the Spinoff gallery. Drool away. For the second time in a week, The Spinoff is bringing together New Zealand’s politician and dog communities in celebration. On Tuesday we published the epochal, soft-hitting, smash … Read more
In the second part of a new event series looking at the future of Auckland, The Spinoff and Auckland Council host In My Backyard: Glen Innes, to ask what the suburb can teach the rest of the city about housing. Hayden Donnell looks for inspiration and innovation on how to house the city’s future. Auckland Council’s Unitary … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Phil Goff puts CCOs on notice, PM Ardern in Bangkok for crucial summit, and Greenpeace criticises continued fracking amid UK moratorium. Auckland mayor Phil Goff starts his second term facing a range of challenges, particularly around Council Controlled Organisations. CCO unaccountability appeared to be one of … Read more
Smoke continues to billow in downtown Auckland 24 hours after fire broke out in the incomplete complex. Shortly after 1pm yesterday came the first reports of a fire on the site of the SkyCity New Zealand International Convention Centre in central Auckland. That brought a massive mobilisation of emergency services, evacuations of surrounding buildings and … 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
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
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
The power balance of the incoming Auckland Council could be decided by two overheated local debates about a golf course and a carpark. 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 here. Albert-Eden local board member Graeme … 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
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
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Govt rejects idea to ban petrol car imports in 2035, firefighters say they’re facing a workforce crisis, and Tamihere pledges rate freeze. A strange sort of stoush erupted at the end of last week around petrol and diesel car sales. On Friday, Newsroom reported that the ministry of … Read more
Phil Goff’s rival has already pledged an 0800-Jacinda homeless hotline and an 18-lane harbour bridge. What’s next? The two most important people in the 2019 campaign for the Auckland mayoralty faced each other down on Wednesday night across the desk in the NZME debate: Bernard Orsman and Simon Wilson. Correction: it was of course mayor … Read more
As Auckland attempts to encourage greener alternatives to car use, a huge new car park is rising beside Les Mills’ flagship inner-city gym. Josie Adams asks Les Mills CEO Phillip Mills how it tallies with the company’s clean, green brand. Les Mills Victoria Street has 12,000 members, and up to 700 visitors during peak hours. … Read more
Phil Goff has kept a low profile compared with his headline-grabbing opponent in the early stages of the Auckland mayoral campaign. Hayden Donnell heads along to see if the mayor can win back the spotlight at his campaign launch. The Spinoff local election coverage is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Mayors launch bids to return in Auckland and Wellington, Hamilton’s skyline could change significantly, and support for cannabis legalisation plummets in poll. Two incumbent mayors have launched their re-election campaigns over the weekend, with a bigger fight on their hands than they may have expected. In … Read more
The Spinoff is covering local elections across the country with a new pop-up section. To kick things off, Hayden Donnell went to a mayoral debate at Grey Power on the North Shore of Auckland. This feature was made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click … Read more