Britain’s supreme court has unanimously slapped down Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s suspension of parliament. It’s just the latest in the disaster zone that is UK politics, and Tony Burton reckons New Zealanders have good cause to feel smug. Just when you thought Brexit could not get more weird, it did. It is hard to exaggerate … Read more
Grant Robertson, a cricket fanatic whose day jobs include being minister for finance and minister for sport, raced from Wellington to northwest London on the weekend to watch the Black Caps in what turned into the greatest one-day international ever played. I don’t remember the exact moment I fell in love with cricket. That’s a … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Both PM and deputy PM in action on foreign relationships, major climate report being released today, and DOC staff facing escalating threats. Both the PM and deputy PM are in action on foreign relationships this week, with plenty of challenges to navigate. Later this week, PM … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Another major day of climate protests puts pressure on politicians, PMs fall in dramatic political weekend, and calls to stop use of remand for young people. If activism in 2019 so far has been defined by any one movement, it is climate change. And there’s every reason … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Dramatic video released in logging truck company case, tiny bit more room to move on govt debt, and primary teachers have residency rejected over low pay. A court released a dramatic video in an ongoing drama that goes to the heart of power relations in the … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. A brief note to start today’s edition: The aftermath of the Christchurch mosque attacks will always be an important set of stories to tell. Further down in today’s edition are the most important developments on that from the weekend. However, many other stories from last week need to be caught … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Brexit No Deal threat looms for Kiwi exporters, students to go on climate strike today, and families of disabled people fear support cuts by stealth. New Zealand businesses are being told they need to prepare now for the possibility of an imminent no-deal Brexit. The UK is … Read more
As the United Kingdom wakes in yet another pool of fevered Brexit sweat, here are the essential things to know – and a glossary for bluffing your way through a conversation about it all Just when you thought the USA was running away with the title of most abjectly humiliating end-of-empire flameout, Britain has surged … Read more
Lunch at Downing Street, pottery retreats with Nigella Lawson and Yotam Ottolenghi… New Zealand’s best-known chef has built quite a life for himself in London, but, now more than ever, he yearns for Aotearoa. This content was created in partnership with The Collective He’s been a top chef in London for three decades, with a … Read more
With the PM’s withdrawal agreement shot down, but Britain still set to leave the EU on March 29, a new course of action is needed – and fast, writes Leeds University political scientist Victoria Honeyman. As the clock ticks down to March 29 2019, all of the political manoeuvring, negotiating, arguing and fighting is coming … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: British PM a few hours away from vote on her future, government quietly debating compensation for coastal property owners, and Google makes Millane case blunder. UPDATE – 10.02am NZT: Theresa May has won the vote of no-confidence against her, by a margin of 200-117. The word ‘omnishambles’ … Read more
This week British PM Theresa May thought she’d finally come up with a Brexit deal that her own MPs would accept. Things didn’t quite turn out that way, writes RNZ. After two years of discussions and negotiations with the European Union (EU), British Prime Minister Theresa May announced three days ago that her Cabinet supported … Read more
Could there finally be a solution to the destructive drama of Brexit? In today’s Cheat Sheet, Alex Braae explains why even the latest plan to come out of Downing Street could be shot down. What’s all this then? Brexit was once famously described by football hooligan character actor Danny Dyer as a “mad riddle”. “Nobody’s … Read more
Our Q&A introduction to the topic of the moment. Today: Theresa May’s UK government is in crisis following high-profile resignations and disarray around plans to leave the European Union. What’s the latest? The British government has been as sober and stable as a vodka jelly since it voted two years and two weeks ago to … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Free trade with Britain moves closer, police and government at odds over drug driver testing, and EQC checks may be recalled. The PM is in London reassuring Britain that New Zealand is very keen on a post-Brexit free trade deal. The meeting between Ardern and Britain’s Theresa … Read more
Watching the New Zealand election from London, Jono Hutchison is getting a bit of déjà vu. What follows is a cautionary tale of two conservative governments picking fights with human rights. Bill English and Paula Bennett yesterday announced a big crackdown on methamphetamine and gangs. The plan came with a big price tag – $82 million … Read more
The former Labour communications chief talks to Toby Manhire about being proven wrong by Jeremy Corbyn, Theresa May’s ‘catastrophic’ deal with the DUP, and the chances of a Tony Blair comeback. Tomorrow: Campbell on the Lions tour As spin doctor in chief for Tony Blair, Alastair Campbell became a massive presence in British politics – not … Read more
What the hell just happened? The Guardian’s Richard Adams attempts to make sense of the shock UK election outcome. The UK election result is the biggest upset of conventional wisdom since, well, last November. After Trump, the Brexit referendum, Leicester City winning the premier league and the 2015 UK general election result you’d think we’d … Read more
By the logic of politics the real surprise was that the UK prime minister hadn’t called a snap election earlier, writes the Guardian’s Richard Adams. In the end Theresa May’s decision to call a snap election was a surprise but not a shock. A surprise because May herself had repeatedly and unambiguously ruled out calling … Read more
Theresa ‘I’m not going to be calling a snap election’ May has called a snap election. And Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn must be crapping himself, writes Jonathan Hutchison from London. If there’s one thing journalists and commentators ought to have learnt from the past year in politics, it is this: never ever ever predict anything … Read more
Registers of foreign workers and attacks on human rights lawyers show the poison of Trump seeping into the Conservative government’s new, cynical strategy, laments London-based New Zealander Tze Ming Mok This time last year Theresa May, not yet the prime minister of the UK, dominated the Conservative Party conference. To my outsider ears, her message … Read more