News Briefing: 20 May 2025
TE PĀTI MĀORI SUSPENSION
Matthew Hooton: Can Luxon lead on TPM shambles?
Russell Palmer (RNZ): Parliament faces a debate primed for filibuster in Budget week
Derek Cheng (Herald): Te Pāti Māori voices in Parliament on Budget Day in doubt after compromise talks fail (paywalled)
Catherine McGregor (Spinoff): Parliament braces for showdown over suspension of Te Pāti Māori MPs
Lloyd Burr (Stuff): How the Te Pati Maori suspension debate could play out
Liam Hehir (The Blue Review): Unprecedented, yes. Arbitrary, no. (paywalled)
1News: Luxon: No compromise on Te Pāti Māori decision, rejects ‘racism’ claims
Emma Andrews (RNZ): Iwi says Te Pāti Māori suspension a 'punishment for being unapologetically Māori'
Lillian Hanly (RNZ): PM on haka punishment: 'If they want to muck around, so be it'
Greg Presland (The Standard): Privileges Committee recommendations are partisan, indefensible and racist
BUDGET, TAX
Julia Gabel & Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Government unable to tell whether anyone has received full tax rebate (paywalled)
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Budget 2025: Why this year in particular it may not pay to rush to judgment (paywalled)
Alice Neville (Spinoff): Budget 2025: Where might the cuts land – and how deep will they be?
Georgie Craw (Spinoff): What kind of economy produces the highest adolescent suicide rate? Ours
Ruth Hill (RNZ): Budget could be 'matter of life or death' for some patients, advocate says
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Budget 2025: Christopher Luxon says allowing higher depreciation write-off for businesses ‘not an unattractive idea’ (paywalled)
Luke Malpass (Post): Budget 2025: Government won’t nickel and dime its way to surplus (paywalled)
David Chaplin (BusinessDesk): Budget 2025: Clipping KiwiSaver’s wings or letting it fly (paywalled)
Adam Pearse (Herald): Budget 2025: Government to spend $600m for ‘overdue’ rail upgrades
RNZ: Budget 2025: $600m for upgrading rail network
Brent Edwards (NBR): Budget to invest $600m more in the rail network (paywalled)
Thomas Manch (Post): Budget 2025: $604 million for rail improvements (paywalled)
RNZ: Budget 2025: What's been announced so far
Andrew Bevin (Newsroom): Budget announcements unlikely to fire up business confidence
RNZ: Willis announces tax change proposals to bring more foreign investment
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Budget 2025: Government to give $75m tax break to foreign investors and tech workers (paywalled)
NBR: Budget money to cover proposed tax changes for foreign investors (paywalled)
Pattrick Smellie (BusinessDesk): Willis damps down talk of a huge depreciation change (paywalled)
Natalia Albert: Budget 2025, Socialism, Neoliberalism, and the Greens Budget
Hayden Wilson (Herald): Budget 2025’s tricky balance of surplus and growth challenges (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Accountant concerned by potential new tax
PARLIAMENT
Chris Trotter (Interest: A political party caught speaking out of both sides on its mouth on key issues will soon find itself in big trouble
Danyl McLauchlan (Listener): Right hand man: David Seymour on Te Tiriti, being Deputy PM & Act’s next move (paywalled)
Audrey Young (Herald): The varied faces of NZ think-tanks: Who fronts them and what they do (paywalled)
Jamie Ensor (Herald): MPs’ property portfolios: Christopher Luxon sells investment houses, politicians with overseas interests
Grant Duncan: Is it time for politicians to look self-critically in the mirror?
Jamie Ensor (Herald): Labour’s Chris Hipkins calls Greens’ Budget ‘huge spend-up’, ‘unrealistic’ – but agrees with some elements
Steven Cowan: Chris Hipkins: The rich are people too
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: The Governor General is deep in the DNA of Parliament
Alex Casey (Spinoff): Everything we learned from the Jacinda Ardern movie trailer
RNZ: Jacinda Ardern talks 'imposter syndrome' at Yale University's graduation
Sanjana Hattotuwa: Beyond Parliament: Antipathy’s amplification through political speech in Aotearoa New Zealand
REGULATORY STANDARDS BILL
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Thousands of Regulatory Standards Bill submissions not read by ministry
1News: ‘Treaty Principles 2.0’ – law experts concerned by regulatory bill
RNZ: Regulatory Standards Bill to be introduced to House
Thomas Manch (Post): Cabinet approves draft of Regulatory Standards Bill (paywalled)
Roimata Small (E-Tangata): The wisdom is in the contrast
Melanie Nelson (E-Tangata): The ‘dangerous’ bill has been updated, but how?
HOUSING, PROPERTY INDUSTRY
Bryce Edwards (The Integrity Institute): A Case study in the dark arts of lobbying
Rob Stock (Post): Owners of low-rise buildings around transport hubs need to be ‘rated out of ownership’ (paywalled)
RNZ: Wellington scheme using office blocks for affordable housing expanded
RNZ: Dunedin students told not to put up with run-down flats as rentals inspected
1News: Inspectors to check conditions of Dunedin student flats
Stuff: Dunedin student flats targeted in tenancy law crackdown
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Stop mucking around - remove the foreign buyer ban
1News: Q+A: 'Backbone of NZ' should get hand to buy first farm - National MP bill
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): How many years would you have to skip coffee to save enough to buy a house?
HEALTH
Janet Hoek, Anna Graham DeMello (Public Health Communication Centre): How did Government and Opposition MPs justify and oppose repealing the smokefree endgame measures?
Michael Morrah (Herald): Luxon backtracks on claim about 100 Uber drivers as overseas doctors
RNZ: Patients paying over $200 to visit after-hours in Palmerston North
Tim Hunter (NBR): Govt’s urgent care boost misses the point, says GP group (paywalled)
ODT: After-hours boost details awaited
ODT: Southland doctor shortages leading to burnout
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): ACC ‘pauses’ $45m sexual abuse initiative as questions hover over $3.6b liability (paywalled)
Patrice Dougan (NZ Doctor): From lived experience to peer support – NZ’s first mental health minister Matt Doocey on what makes him tick (paywalled)
Kevin Norquay (Post): Grandma's fine — it's her grandson who’s lonely (paywalled)
Adam Burns (RNZ): Brain injury support group appalled 'Run it' collision sport events held in Auckland
ENVIRONMENT
Robin Martin (RNZ): NZ wildlife and construction projects at centre of urgent Wildlife Act changes
Cécile Meier (BusinessDesk): Government faces backlash over proposed glyphosate residue hike (paywalled)
Andrew Bevin (Newsroom): Herbicide review bad for business, Harraways says
David Williams (Newsroom): $2.6m-plus on water case ‘a waste of money’
No Right Turn: Climate Change: Now what?
POLICE, JUSTICE
Jared Savage (Herald): Super injunction’ lifted but media still barred from publishing details of ‘objectionable material’ allegations against former deputy commissioner
Sam Sherwood (RNZ): RNZ gagged by former deputy police commissioner Jevon McSkimming
Edward Gay (Stuff): Former top cop granted gagging order preventing publication of objectionable material allegations
Katie Ham, Edward Gay, Luke Malpass, Blair Ensor and Mike White (Stuff): The remarkable rise and fall of a top cop embroiled in a scandal
Herald: Police response to family violence questioned: NGOs considering ’stab vests’ for staff
Herald: Family and sexual violence prevention minister warned of ‘declining police responsiveness’
Sam Sherwood (RNZ): Police Commissioner initiates review into preventing misuse of police tech
Tracy Neal (Open Justice Reporting): Legal aid: What is it and who’s entitled to it
No Right Turn: Chipping away at National’s gang-patch ban
EMPLOYMENT, PAY EQUITY
Sasha Borissenko (Herald): Employment law changes are a setback for NZ workers (paywalled)
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Demand for private mediation grows due to tough labour market and Govt backlog
Fiona Rotherham (NBR): What’s behind there rise in employee surveillance and tracking? (paywalled)
Ani O’Brien: Triggered by an ACT social media post
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WATER
Andrea Vance (Post): Wellington council paid over $12,000 to welcome new boss (paywalled)
Emma Ricketts (Stuff): From Begonia House to a new water entity: Big decisions loom for Wellington City Council
Tom Hunt (Post): Hint of seventh Wellington mayoral candidate to fight for bus lanes (paywalled)
Matt Burrows (Herald): Real Life: Andrew Little ‘persuaded’ to run for Wellington mayor by ‘crescendo’ of support
Dave Armstrong (Post): Behaving drivers costing council coffers (paywalled)
Joel MacManus (Spinoff): Windbag: Why Wellington’s vibe shift is coming in 2026
RNZ: Auckland War Memorial Museum closure: 'We are working as quickly as we can'
David Long (Stuff): Auckland Council removed this landmark’s rubbish bins, locals say the trash is piling up
David Long (Stuff): Controversy over Hindu temple proposal in South Auckland highlights planning and cultural tensions
Emily Ireland (Local Democracy Reporting): ‘Not in my backyard’: Submitters push back on council’s Pain Farm wastewater plan
Shilpy Arora Gaikwad (Stuff):
NZ’s most beautiful town slammed for spending $100k on ‘ugly’ dinosaur sculpture
Brooke Black (Timaru Herald): Council shares amended restructure proposal with fewer roles to go
EDUCATION
Harriet Laughton (Post): Confidence in early childhood at an 'all-time low’ (paywalled)
RNZ: Labour asks Auditor General to consider cost burden in school lunches probe
Amanda Gillies (RNZ): The Detail: In classrooms, money lessons that matter
Stewart Sowman-Lund (Post): Is a four-day school week the future of education?
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): Te Pukenga break-up Bill being introduced (paywalled)
MEDIA
Shayne Currie (Herald): Auckland University economics professor Robert MacCulloch ends blog, says politicians have threatened future prospects (paywalled)
David Harvey: Below the Parapet: Professor MacCulloch Leaves the Room
David Farrar: Journalist arrogance
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Announcing: The Bradbury Group – NZs best weekly political argument
News Publishers’ Association: Voyager Media Awards 2025 Winners & Finalists
Kamahl Santamaria: Voyager 2025 Media Awards: even gongs need some context
INFRASTRUCTURE
RNZ: Competing Otago Port proposals 'frustrating', says Associate Regional Development Minister
ODT Editorial: Where to for Otago inland ports? (paywalled)
Tim Scott (ODT): Inland port decision result of regional planning failure: MP (paywalled)
RNZ: Inland port at Mosgiel receives $8m government investment
Luka Forman (RNZ): Demand increasing for land unaffected by Auckland's water infrastructure constraints
TRANSPORT
Oliver Lewis (BusinessDesk): Private ferry operators and infrastructure investors had 'strong appetite' for Cook Strait opportunities (paywalled)
1News: Cook Strait ferry Aratere to retire by August 30
Nick James (RNZ): Aratere to be retired by end of August
Patrick Reynolds: AT directors at risk?
Tim Scott (ODT): Hillside reopening sign of ‘belief’ (paywalled)
Kelvin McDonald (Te Ao Māori News): Iwi ‘appalled’ by pulling of reo Māori stop-go sign
Herald Editorial: Drug-driving crackdown: Let’s do what it takes to make roads safer and save lives (paywalled)
BUSINESS
Brianna McIlraith (Stuff): Foodstuffs ‘cheapest supermarket’ claim is called ‘disingenuous’
Alka Prasad (Post): Small business Budget wishlist: Tax cuts, R&D and getting Kiwis spending (paywalled)
RNZ: Service sector index drops signalling soft economic recovery
David Hargreaves (Interest): Services sector still not surfacing
RNZ: Manufacturing sector recovery continues at steady pace but caution lingers
Madison Malone (Herald): Rocket Lab’s Sir Peter Beck not giving up on Mars despite Trump ‘killing’ Nasa mission
ENERGY
Ian Llewellyn (BusinesDesk): Dwindling gas supply will bite industrial users this year warns regulator (paywalled)
Stephen Tindall (Post): The time is now: Working together to build a hydrogen future for Aotearoa
Paul Ridley-Smith (BusinessDesk): Commerce Commission dithering over Manawa deal cost some shareholders millions of dollars (paywalled)
RNZ: Transpower u-turns on sale of NZ's only gas trading platform
OTHER
Tim Hunter (NBR): DIA mum on Austrac Entrain follow-up (paywalled)
Charlie Mitchell (Press/Post): A dilapidated shed with a radioactive secret (paywalled)
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Oranga Tamariki security contract unfair - New Zealand Security Association
Anthony Grant (LawNews): Government announces big payout for those abused in state care, despite Supreme Court’s finding on fiduciary obligation
Christine Ammunson (E-Tangata): Helping survivors of abuse to find answers
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Long-standing Nelson Tenths case back in court
Moana Ellis (Local Democracy Reporting): Treaty settlement renames sites in central North Island
1News: Man guilty of 'deliberate and wide-reaching' wage subsidy fraud
Eric Frykberg (Interest): Dairy industry making steady though sometimes controversial progress at eliminating killings of baby calves
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Whānau Ora commissioning agency Te Pūtahitanga o Te Waipounamu farewells staff
Lucy Xia (RNZ): Why did it take so long for an emergency alert to be issued during Auckland's Easter floods?
Kevin Norquay (Post): How female bullying graduates from schoolyard to boardroom (paywalled)
Gabi Lardies (Spinoff): Meet the kaiāwhina who volunteer to keep protesters safe
Sarah Helm (Post): Bold action required in face of meth surge (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: Meth crisis needs a collaborative approach (paywalled)
Hamish McNeilly (Stuff): Police release images of former white supremacist gangster’s cache of printed weaponry
Moera Tuilaepa-Taylor (RNZ): A life of service: celebrating the career of Luamanuvao Dame Winnie Laban