NZ Politics Daily: 24 June 2024
FERRIES, KIWIRAIL
Tom Hunt (Post): Drop the politics – lives are on the line in the treacherous Cook Strait (paywalled)
Richard Harman (Politik): KiwiRail aground while Government obfuscates (paywalled)
Georgina Campbell (Herald): Interislander ferry Aratere grounding: Government to come under pressure
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Increased urgency to fund Interislander, with issues set to become more common
Luke Malpass (Post): Interislander grounding: A predictable event that could have been much worse (paywalled)
Virginia Fallon (Post): ‘The country is broken’: Tough questions emerge over Aratere grounding (paywalled)
Tracy Watkins (Post): How long till the next disaster? (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: New Zealand’s infrastructure issues caused by lack of long-term thinking (paywalled)
Liam Hehir (The Blue Review): Sunk ferries and sunk costs (paywalled)
The Standard: What the Aratere Grounding Means
RNZ: Interislander ferries: Finance Minister 'dragging her feet' on plan B, Labour says
RNZ: Greens, union blasts government canning new ferry contracts after Aratere grounding (paywalled)
Leighton Heikell (Newshub): Politicians' blame game begins over Aratere ferry grounding
Tom Hunt (Post): New Zealand to the back of the queue for new Cook Strait ferries (paywalled)
Newshub: Former Prime Minister Helen Clark takes dig at Government over Interislander running aground
Kate Nicol-Williams (1News): Dire strait: Aratere grounding exposed our stretched ferry services
Herald: Interislander’s Aratere ferry docks in Picton, investigation to begin after grounding
Newshub: KiwiRail chief executive Peter Reidy admits Interislander Aratere ferry grounding 'not good' for brand's reputation
David Williams and Ben Leahy (Herald): Interislander ferry successfully refloated, Transport Minister ‘very disappointed’ by grounding
1News: Govt 'very disappointed' in KiwiRail amid Aratere grounding — Brown
Ryan Anderson, Tom Hunt and Sam Sherwood (Stuff): Govt ‘committed to new ships’ - transport minister
Georgina Campbell (Herald): Maritime NZ investigation reveals cause of Interislander Aratere ferry’s 2023 power outage
RNZ: Aratere: Minimal damage found so far on grounded Interislander ferry
Nadine Roberts (Stuff): Aratere ferry: How a lame duck got floated
RNZ: Watch: The moment Interislander ferry Aratere was refloated after running aground
Ian Allen (Stuff): Port boss explains ‘thrill’ of seeing Aratere back off beach
RNZ: Aratere ferry grounding just the latest problem to hit Interislander's ageing fleet
Finn Blackwell (RNZ): Aratere ferry grounding: Trucking body wants assurances from government over inter-island connection
Mariné Lourens (Press/Post): Grounded ferry could have ‘serious implications’ for transport network (paywalled)
RNZ: Stricken Aratere to be placed under detention order barring it from movement after grounding
Post: Grounded interisland ferry Aratere refloated - but could be grounded for some time (paywalled)
1News: Ferry underwent maintenance weeks before grounding, officials confirm
Nick James (RNZ): Aratere ferry had steering overhaul three weeks before grounding in Picton
Newshub: Interislander boss quizzed on email boasting 'it's great to have Aratere back in service' sent on day of grounding
1News: Potentially catastrophic: 'Luck was at play' during ferry grounding
Maia Hart (Local Democracy Reporting): How the Aratere ferry grounding unfolded, a timeline
Sam Sherwood (Stuff): An unexpected night on the Aratere, and when it went ‘boom’
Nick James (RNZ): Aratere ferry grounding: Simeon Brown raised concern about KiwiRail maintenance
Ian Allen and Matthew Hampson (Stuff): Every man and his dog not impressed with ‘struggling’ ferries
Adam Burns (RNZ): Ferry grounding: Marlborough mayor calls for 'safe and resilient' Cook Strait service
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Aratere ferry grounding 'really embarrassing', Picton locals say
Herald: Interislander ferry Aratere runs aground near Picton, tug boat rescue plan shifted to this evening
RNZ: Aratere ferry grounding will cause 'issues' for inter-island freight - union
Newshub: Kiwis react to Aratere ferry grounding near Picton
Frances Chin (Post): Two ferries down, what now for Cook Strait crossings? (paywalled)
RNZ: KiwiRail board chair David McLean quits
Tom Hunt (Post): KiwiRail chair early retirement ‘unrelated’ to Aratere grounding (pawyalled)
FAST-TRACK, ENVIRONMENT, CONSERVATION
Kate MacNamara (Herald): Meet the Government’s ‘independent’ fast-track consenting advisors, their connections and interests (paywalled)
Charlie Mitchell (Press/Post): Extinction has always been our policy (paywalled)
Danyl McLauchlan (Listener): Bowing to Ag sector demands could have dire consequences (paywalled)
Grant Duncan: One poll, two different takes on Fast-Track Bill
RNZ: Fast Track bill has more supporters than opponents - Taxpayers Union-Curia poll
Newshub: Taxpayers' Union poll shows strong support for Fast-track Approvals Bill
Jeffrey McNeill (The Conversation): Resource management is always political – the Fast-track Approvals Bill is just honest about it
Arena Williams, Stuart Smith (Stuff): We need to do things quicker in NZ
David Williams (Newsroom): Inside DoC’s restructure on the Chatham Islands
Emma Ricketts (Listener): New push to extract minerals raises thorny issue: could it lead to greener future? (paywalled)
Tom Powell (Stuff): A big bill coming due
PARLIAMENT
Brian Easton (Pundit): Mainstreaming Māori
Grant Duncan: Why Labour lost
Anne Salmond (Newsroom): In this waka together
Mike Grimshaw (Plain Sight): Buggered, knackered, no.8 – and she’ll be right…
Whena Owen (1News): Q+A: Branded van raises new questions amid Manurewa Marae claims
Andrea Vance (Post): Manurewa Marae subject of complaints during local council elections (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: What does the Matariki and the new year hold for Māori politics? (paywalled)
Peter Wilson (RNZ): The Week in Politics: Scrutiny Week takes off while PM's plane gets grounded
Tom Pullar-Strecker and Thomas Manch (Post): The highs and lows of ‘scrutiny week’, an opportunity not fully seized by MPs (paywalled)
Alexia Russell (RNZ): The Detail: Scrutiny Week's scoreboard
Greg Dixon (Listener): Waiting for the great leap forward (paywalled)
James Nokise (Post): Plenty to check out as ‘Skrutz Week’ comes to an end (paywalled)
Newshub: Green MP Darleen Tana reportedly in charge of migrant exploitation-accused business' wages
RNZ: Former Green MP Golriz Ghahraman to be sentenced for shoplifting
Catrin Owen (Stuff): Former MP Golriz Ghahraman to be sentenced for shoplifting
Bruce Cotterill (Herald): MPs behaving badly: why do we sweat the small stuff? (paywalled)
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Steve Abel, the influential Green MP who chained himself to a helicopter
PUBLIC SECTOR
Rob Stock (Post): How coalition Government is resetting Crown entities to end Labour’s social agenda (paywalled)
Lauren Crimp (RNZ): Government still hasn't slashed enough public service jobs - David Seymour
Chelsea Daniels (Front Page): Public sector cuts: The latest on thousands of jobs as redundancies hit the millions
Felix Desmarais (1News): Public service bosses can't run from questions
Bill Hickman (RNZ): Ministry of Education staff 'constantly in tears' during 'unfair' job loss process
Teuila Fuatai (E-Tangata): A difficult time to be a Māori public servant
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Winston Peters (Herald): Where were Don Brash and Helen Clark during Labour’s engagement on Aukus? (paywalled)
Anneke Smith (RNZ): Christopher Luxon gets a 'C' on Japan trade trip
Ian Taylor (Herald): Christopher Luxon and the C-Listers: An open letter to the Prime Minister about trade delegations (paywalled)
Steve Braunias (Newsroom): The secret press conference of the PM
Victor Billot (Newsroom): An Ode to .. C-listing Luxon
1News: Q+A: Full interview: Judith Collins on NZDF challenges, AUKUS, PM's plane
Te Aniwaniwa Paterson (Te Ao Māori News): Rimpac goes against ‘every core value we have as Māori’, activist says
Louisa Cleave and Paula Penfold (Stuff): 'Red flags': Experts' concern over NZ security company takeover
Louisa Cleave and Paula Penfold (Stuff): Former Chinese Consulate-General staffer claims ongoing surveillance after ‘escape’
Suzannah Jessep (Newsroom): Why Asia is so critical to New Zealand’s future
RNZ: Samoa citizenship bill: Committee receives over 24,000 public submissions
Dileepa Fonseka and Murray Jones (Newsroom): Business of Education: Indian students face stark rejection rates in NZ (paywalled)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
1News: New Zealand's recent local government drama
Moana Ellis (Local Democracy Reporting): Concern councillors facing growing workload, pressure and abuse earn under $30k
Helene Ritchie (Post): Wellington City Council should hold onto airport shares
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Ratepayers suffering from Wellington City Council fumbling over airport stake (paywalled)
Deborah Morris (Post): You can’t park there, or there ... or there (paywalled)
Julie Jacobson (Post): Fight on to save City-to-Sea Bridge (paywalled)
Frances Chin (Post): Leak covers major Wellington road after water main bursts (paywalled)
ODT Editorial: A damp squib on the winter solstice (paywalled)
Evan Harding, Louisa Steyl and Debbie Jamieson (Stuff): Invercargill mayor gives ‘middle finger’ to council decision
Ben Tomsett (Herald): Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark denies request from councillors to resign over Code of Conduct complaints
RNZ: Invercargill mayor Nobby Clark refuses to resign
Matthew Rosenberg (Local Democracy Reporting): Who is Nobby Clark? A brief history of Invercargill’s controversial mayor
Max Frethy (Local Democracy Reporting): The hunt for a cemetery big enough to last 100 years
Lauren Crimp (RNZ): Libraries cut hours as councils face double-digit rates hikes
Susan Botting (Local Democracy Reporting): Whangārei councillors slam mayor over Palestine refusal
RNZ: Auckland orchestra shocked over proposal to halt restoration of heritage buildings
ECONOMY, TAX
David Hargreaves (Interest): We're halfway through 2024 and New Zealand is doing it tough
Janet Wilson (Post): Recession or not, NZ must solve its productivity crisis (paywalled)
Murat Ungor (Newsroom): No long-term prosperity without productivity
Matthew Hutching (RNZ): 'Such a burden': Parents hit with unanticipated tax bill (paywalled)
Terry Baucher (Interest): New Zealand Tax Podcast – The Minister of Finance hints at review of charitable tax exemption; Inland Revenue targets smaller liquor outlets; How effective marginal tax rates act as disincentives
Good Ideas: Some Kiwis are about to face a tax rate of 128%. What do we do about this? (paywalled)
HEALTH
Malcolm Mulholland (Post): When a budget is a matter of life or death (paywalled)
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Big Budget 2024 health spending question may be answered next week (paywalled)
Jenna Lynch (Newshub): How the Government is likely to fix its broken cancer drug promise
RNZ: Hope, uncertainty among patients as Cabinet considers Pharmac funding boost
Rachel Thomas (Post): ‘I need that promise’: Cancer patient fears for Government drugs policy (paywalled)
RNZ: Cabinet to consider Pharmac boost for promised cancer drugs
RNZ: Call for more meningococcal vaccines to be included in Pharmac funding boost
Rob Campbell (Post): We need to look at health funding through a health lens (paywalled)
Steve Maharey (Post): Social insurance of health would contribute to social solidarity(paywalled)
Isaac Davison (Herald): Hiring freeze ‘absolutely’ affecting frontline jobs, union says, as doctor vacancies go unfilled
Benedict Collins (1News): Scarce hospital jobs for grad nurses 'great problem to have' - health boss
Tony Wall (Stuff): ‘Terribly short-sighted’: Govt cuts struggling health watchdog’s budget
ODT Editorial: Questions remain on hospital rebuild (paywalled)
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Smoothing down feathers and riding out budget blowouts (paywalled)
Ruth Hill (RNZ): Pharmacy group warns patients may face more consultation charges
Pokere Paewai (RNZ): Trust, understanding vital to lifting Māori and Pasifika vaccination rates - researcher
RNZ: Environment, inflation contribute to 'sharp increase' in Pacific child obesity - researcher
Jimmy Ellingham (RNZ): Internal investigation confirms pregnant woman died after delayed ICU admission
HOUSING
Janhavi Gosavi (Re:News): NZers can’t afford to keep their homes warm and it affects renters more
Claire Dale (Newsroom): Tiny house or granny flat? What a difference a name makes
Miriam Bell (Post): The return of the granny flat: the lowdown
Timo Neubauer (Stuff): We subsidise suburbia. But should we invest in affordable housing instead?
Kymberlee Gomes (RNZ): Rents dropping, housing stock on the rise: What is happening with the NZ housing market this week?
POWER
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Transpower's power pylon maintenance 'backlog'
RNZ: Energy Minister orders Electricity Authority review into pylon collapse
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Why Transpower's press conference backfired this morning
Wayne Brown (Post): Heads should roll over ‘dumb’ pylon failure (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): The $60 million cost of the Northland power cut
RNZ: Northland power cuts: Temporary tower being installed
RNZ: Storms forecast, power restored to Coromandel
Newshub: Entire Coromandel Peninsula loses power
Juha Saarinen (Interest): Could the massive Northland power outage have been mitigated with large capacity batteries?
POLICE, CRIME, YOUTH WELFARE
Julia Gabel (Herald): Labour, Greens respond to new youth offender sentencing category, boot camps
Dianna Vezich (Newshub): Labour, Greens fired up over Government's young offender crackdown, boot camp plans
1News: Q+A: Section 7AA: Children's Minister pressed for evidence on repeal
1News: New measures announced to curb anti-social behaviour, youth crime
Newshub: Government announces more cops in Auckland CBD, reveals how boot camps will work
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Cops back on the beat: Police set up new Community Beat Teams
RNZ: $1m investment pays off with sharp drop in crime in Rotorua - mayor
Sam Smith (Stuff): Why central Auckland is crying out for more police
Jarrod Gilbert (Herald): Police need to set a higher standard, even if the crooks don’t change (paywalled)
SUPERMARKETS
Rob Stock and Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): North and South Island Foodstuffs merger decision postponed until October (paywalled)
Ella Somers (Interest): ComCom pushes out Foodstuffs merger decision – again
RNZ: Foodstuffs North and South Islands proposed merger on hold
Gregor Thompson (BusinessDesk): ComCom extends decision on Foodstuffs merger ... again
Ella Somers (Interest): Foodstuffs South Island’s annual net revenue surges $267 million
BUSINESS
Dan Brunskill (Interest): Bayly tells Commerce Commission to take more aggressive legal action against suspected anti-competitive behavior, even if it ends up losing some court cases
Hamish McNeilly (Stuff): Dunedin casino seeks 15-year licence renewal
Chris Keall (Herald): Megaupload’s Mathias Ortmann, Bram van der Kolk banned from being company directors until 2028
Joel MacManus (Spinoff): Windbag: Wellington thinks it has found its next superstar industry – climate tech
EMPLOYMENT
Virginia Fallon (Post): Big Boss is watching: An employer’s right to spy (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Applicants say job hunting like 'The Hunger Games' as labour market tightens
Ashleigh McCaull (RNZ): The three industries with job gaps Māori are key to filling
MEDIA
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Mediawatch: Pressing On - papers past and future
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider: Dame Jacinda Ardern film - former PM backs official new US documentary, raising questions over NZ Film Commission’s taxpayer-backed project (paywalled)
Tim Selwyn (Daily Blog): The late late news – Goodbye TV Journalism
Duncan Garner (Listener): I spent two days down a rabbit hole - here’s what I found
Sam Smith (Stuff): Bringing back gonzo journalism with the Department of Information
EDUCATION
Stephanie Martin and Dr Michael Johnston (Newsroom): The teaching profession straying from university capture
Emma Stanford (Stuff): Education Ministry won’t budge on pilot student loans, despite struggles to meet demand
KEITH LOCKE HAS DIED
RNZ: Former Green MP Keith Locke dies, age 80
David Farrar: RIP Keith Locke
1News: Former Green MP and activist Keith Locke dies
Anna Whyte (Stuff): Former Green MP Keith Locke dies
OTHER
Adam Pearse (Herald): Winston Peters’ demand Sport NZ re-writes transgender policy disappears in ‘no comment’ vortex
Newshub: National denies breaching Coalition agreement on 'disgraceful' NZ First transgender sport policy
Damien Grant (Stuff): Free speech is about protecting ideas and values
Joel Maxwell (Stuff): Grit your teeth and repeat after me: I am grateful this Matariki
Annabel Ahuriri-Driscoll (RNZ): Does One NZ’s new ad campaign connect? Many adopted people might not think so
Soumya Bhamidipati (RNZ): District Courts will do their best to speed up - chief judge
Stuff: More deaths and injuries expected on Auckland roads due to Government's plans
Andrew Bevin (Newsroom): A small win for youth in care just the start for bank account access
Newshub: King Charles, Queen Camilla to skip New Zealand in down under tour - reports
Poppy Clark (Stuff): PM gives King Charles and Camilla an ‘open invite’ to Aotearoa
Stuff: Extra $3.1m for visitor centre on Taranaki Maunga
RNZ: Christ Church Cathedral lowers seismic rating to lessen $114m rebuild shortfall
Cartoons
Thank you for being a paid subscriber - your subscription helps us cover the costs of putting out the Democracy Project Substack newsletters. The service is 100% funded by our subscribers. We are always searching for further funding to make the service financially sustainable. If you can afford to contribute more to help, please consider making an additional donation via our Victoria University of Wellington fundraising page: https://www.wgtn.ac.nz/engage/giving/donate/areas/democracy-project
The reverse Midas touch, the enshitification of New Zealand