Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: China conundrum deepens for New Zealand’s diplomats, massive shakeup for polytechs signalled, and seagulls under serious threat. The relationship between the New Zealand and Chinese governments appears to be particularly strained right now. Over the course of this week, there have been a range of individual reports … Read more
As China sends abstract signals about its unhappiness with New Zealand, there are some concrete steps that Jacinda Ardern’s government can take, writes Robert Ayson of the Victoria University of Wellington Centre for Strategic Studies. At the height of the Cold War, western intelligence agencies overanalysed who was standing next to whom at Red Square parades … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Serious side of the heatwave in focus, significant concerns about water quality in Wanaka, and NZ won’t join US policy on Venezuela. You may have noticed it’s pretty warm out there. In fact, new temperature records have been set in a few parts of the country, reports Radio … Read more
There’s a big revitalisation of the racing industry on its way, with Racing Minister Winston Peters promising a raft of new measures to get people gambling more. But why, asks Joseph Plunket, should we blindly support an industry that preys on addicts? The government’s shakeup of the racing industry is on course for this year, … Read more
This year Winston Peters finally took the reins of power, albeit only for six weeks of maternity cover. Ahead of Peters’ stint in charge, Toby Manhire surveyed a truly extraordinary career This story was first published on the Spinoff in April, and originally ran in Barker’s 1972 magazine. For someone who styles himself as a straight-shooter, Winston Peters … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Foreign policy fault line opens over UN migration pact, mental health report released and waiting on govt response, and yet more leaks about the National Party. Fault lines have opened up in New Zealand’s foreign policy over whether we should sign up to the UN Global … Read more
For many years NZ First’s Shane Jones was one of Labour’s most reliably pro-business MPs. Yet today he presents as an anti-corporate crusader. Branko Marcetic assesses his record and asks whether supporters should trust his dramatic conversion. The metamorphosis of a butterfly is one of nature’s great miracles. A caterpillar, growing too big for its … Read more
New Zealand Alternative – a new, open organisation – seeks to challenge the orthodoxy, starting with a call to establish an independent Conflict Prevention Unit. Co-founder Thomas Nash explains Marking 100 years since the guns fell silent at the end of World War One, Foreign Minister Winston Peters represented New Zealand at the Paris Peace Forum … Read more
A year ago today, Bill English and Winston Peters formally tied the political knot. Toby Manhire assesses the first 12 months for the coalition and the challenge for Jacinda Ardern, leading a Labour Party left out in the cold again. They were called the Odd Couple, they were called yesterday’s men, they were called the … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Secretly recorded tape raises huge questions for National, Austrian company gets oil exploration extension, and govt won’t close ‘back door’ for Nauru refugees. The question was asked yesterday – what fresh horrors await National? Well, we got our answer, with the release of a taped phone conversation … Read more
Every great political moment births a thousand not-so-great political memes. Madeleine Chapman gets the ball rolling on the Ross-Bridges saga Politics is happening! Jami-Lee Ross began his Tuesday as the National MP for Botany and Simon Bridges’ “numbers man”. He ended the day having called Bridges a “corrupt politician”, guilty of criminal activity, and not … 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
It is useful for NZ First to race-bait by grandstanding about immigration but never useful to ever do anything about the issue, reckons Danyl Mclauchlan New Zealand First used to have this guy called Peter Brown as their deputy leader. Brown was (a) fiercely anti-immigration and (b) a migrant, having been born in the UK. It … Read more
At its 25th birthday convention on the weekend, The NZ First Party passed a remit calling for a test for new arrivals, requiring that they understood NZ values. The Respecting New Zealand Values Bill would require refugees and migrants to sit a test showing they understood what it means to be a Kiwi. One delegate, … Read more
In 2018 the New Zealand First Party reached its quarter century. Today at the party convention in Tauranga, its first and only leader, Winston Peters, delivered this address, titled Defying History: The Past as Prologue Today marks a celebration of the New Zealand First Party’s first 25 years. And what a time it has been. From … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Waka jumping bill could become law tonight, internal report into Meka Whaitiri’s conduct leaked, and sports doping testing system under scrutiny. The Electoral Integrity amendment bill is making its way through Parliament, and could well become law tonight. Commonly known as the waka-jumping bill, it would mean … Read more
No platform has caused as much career havoc as twitter.com. Madeleine Chapman looks back (but not that far back) on New Zealand politics’ best worst tweets. This story was published in September 2018. There’s no greater marketing tool than the words “This tweet has been deleted”. The thrill of imagining what once was and is … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: 12 priority points outlined by the government, new airport proposed for Central Otago, and a brilliant feature on the myth of meritocracy through education. The coalition government has moved to address a raft of negative stories about their cohesion with an event in Auckland. Leaders and MPs … Read more
There has been a growing effort in NZ to silence those who feed racial division. So where’s the clamour from the Greens and the rest on the deputy prime minister, asks Liam Hehir Under the show, the struggle. Deep down, deeper than honour, deeper than pride, deeper than lust, and deeper than love, lies the … Read more
The prime minister sought to rally the troops and assert unity among the three parties of government today, but there wasn’t much substance to get your teeth into, writes Toby Manhire The question hanging in the air after Jacinda Ardern’s big speech this afternoon: what even was that? It had been trailed as “Next steps … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Milk and money spills at Fonterra, Coasters told they’ll have to leave after threats from rising seas, and deputy PM Peters addresses coalition rift rumours. In the end, Fonterra’s year turned out to be worse than a lot of people were predicting. The dairy cooperative has announced … Read more
Not for the first time, NZ First has scuppered government plans – and the party’s leader keeps proving he has all the leverage, writes Danyl Mclauchlan Well, it happened again. Back in June the justice minister, Andrew Little, announced plans to repeal the Three Strikes legislation, only to have Winston Peters publically humiliate him by … Read more
It’s being called the most pure MMP government in history. Does that just mean Winston Peters’ party gets to pull swifties on Jacinda Ardern whenever they feel like it? Coalition governments, by their very nature, require compromises and negotiations. But over 2018, it has seemed like NZ First have been doing a lot more negotiation, … Read more
The NZ First leader defends his party’s approach to coalition negotiations, explains why they went with Labour and, of course, upbraids the media. This is the second in a series of extracts from the new VUP collection Stardust and Substance, which is published today. Read Jacinda Ardern’s review of ‘the most extraordinary year of my … Read more
Winston Peters says the Orion is to implement UN sanctions, but that’s only half the story, writes former Green MP Keith Locke We all know the erratic nature of Donald Trump’s policy towards North Korea. One moment he’s threatening a military assault. The next moment he’s all buddy-buddy with Kim Jong-un. So why on earth … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: PM put on the back foot over refugee quota, police reject pay offer, and some juicy local government drama unfolds in Cromwell. Plans to increase the refugee quota appear to be in jeopardy, after a public intervention from deputy PM Winston Peters, reports Newshub. Mr Peters set events … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Spy agencies want ways around encrypted devices, rift opens in government over refugee quota, and Bridges rules out supporting compulsory te reo. Internet NZ has issued a warning against a Five Eyes push to force vendors and service providers to give law enforcement more access to … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: NZ MPs have ringside seats to Australian chaos, Catholic Bishop of Dunedin apologises to city, and red zone ‘quake outcasts’ to be paid out. It’s all going off in Australian politics right now, and in a weird coincidence, some New Zealand MPs have had ringside seats. Deputy … Read more
A requirement that NZ First MPs cough up almost a third of a million dollars if if they are expelled or resign from caucus but stay in parliament is draconian and chilling, argues National MP Nick Smith The revelation that Winston Peters has binding contracts over his MPs requiring them to personally pay $300,000 in … Read more