Wellington bus drivers are striking today for a new collective employment agreement after two years of failed negotiations. But from tomorrow, they'll be locked out indefinitely as Australian-owned "NZ" Bus trues to cut their pay and conditions. What's really shocking here is that the Greater Wellington Regional Council has offered ...
Sebastien Chastin, Glasgow Caledonian UniversityThe availability of vaccines has brought hope for the end of the pandemic. Yet COVID deaths and cases are still surging around the world. As we try to immunise the world, the most likely scenario for the next few years is that COVID-19 will be ...
Natalie Jesionka, University of Toronto“All seeds are sacred, these seeds are connected to 10,000 years of human relationship to the land,” says Owen Taylor, co-founder of Philadelphia-based Truelove Seeds, who sells vegetable, herb and flower seeds that tell ancestral and regional stories. He adds, “seedkeeping refers to not just ...
Breaking Bold: Andrew Little's reform of the health sector smacks of the sort of desperation that seizes politicians who know very well what the solution to the problem facing them is, but, having been told they cannot choose that solution, have opted to distract us with something so huge that ...
Stuff reports that the government is considering replacing fuel-taxes and road-user charges with mass surveillance: Fuel taxes and road user charges could eventually be abolished as part of a Government review into the way it collects about $4 billion a year from road users. [...] One option being considered ...
Uncomfortable: Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, along with the rest of the Five Eyes Partners, were shocked to hear New Zealand's Foreign Minister, Nanaia Mahuta, tell the New Zealand-China Council: “It’s a matter that we have raised with Five Eyes partners; that we are uncomfortable with expanding the remit of ...
I have previously lamented that New Zealand politicians no longer believe in anything. That the energy and reforming zeal of past decades has been replaced by Much Talk and No Action. We were, I snarkily noted, living under the most inconsequential New Zealand Government since the second term of ...
As I noted back in January 2020, I am aware of the difficulties people have expressed in reading A Phuulish Fellow, and have taken steps to make the damn thing more readable. Hitherto, that has taken the form of adding pictures, and going back through the archives to ...
Tag Line Energy exchange vs. Energy change. Elevator Statement Energy change represents a change of the total global energy. Energy exchange represents an exchange of energy between two parts of the Earth’s systems, without necessarily increasing the total energy. A seesaw exchanges the potential energy of Person A on one ...
Earlier in the week Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta gave a speech on NZ-China relations, in which she said that while New Zealand would criticise China, we were "uncomfortable with expanding the remit of the Five Eyes" beyond being a security alliance. This has predictably drawn outrage from Australia and the ...
George Thomson, Nick Wilson (ASPIRE2025)Smokefree outdoor areas are not ‘business-as-usual’ for New Zealand. Current efforts for such areas are rarely backed by law. Smokers trying to quit need places where being smokefree is normal, and in particular, they need smokefree outdoor hospitality areas. Aotearoa is far behind many jurisdictions ...
As I have noted previously, I have made some substantial work on Old Phuul in 2021. But that does not mean I still can’t produce a short story now and again. In an excellent piece of news, my 6,400-word sword and sorcery piece, A Night in the Witherlands, has ...
Nanaia Mahuta, NZ’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, gave a speech that was notable for two things. On the one hand she spoke of diversifying NZ’s trade relations away from the domination of one market (read: the PRC). On the other hand she expressed a desire to return the 5 Eyes ...
The Government’s (that is, Andrew Little’s) far-reaching health reforms have been – predictably and rightly – well received by most health professionals. I judge them – and welcome them – on the basis of my own experience in chairing a Primary Health Organisation over a period of some years. My ...
The Act leader reckons the Prime Minister is already backing away from a law change. Graham Adams reports from David Seymous’ national tour on the regulation of political speech, and news of a possible citizens-initiated referendum on the topic. Former PM Rob Muldoon was fond of saying he was a ...
By Mary Morgan-RichardsEvery year, in the lead up to Anzac day (25th April) when Australians and New Zealanders remember all those who died at war, we bake and eat sweet biscuits associated with WWI. After 100 years I wanted to calculate the impact of my biscuits on global ...
Near doubling of age of oldest coherent ice core on tap? Studies of paleoclimate help us to understand our own recent creation of accidental rapid climate change and what we may expect from our blunder. Among many other sources of paleoclimate data, ice cores stand out for their near "tape ...
Samoa's independent "kingmaker", Tuala Iosefo Ponifasio, has finally made his decision, joining the opposition FAST Party. But this doesn't mean they'll be the government, because last night Samoa's electoral commission suddenly decided to create another (HRPP) MP, creating a 26-26 deadlock. The reason for this is that Samoa has a ...
This morning the government announced a major shakeup for the health system, abolishing DHBs and centralising control under a single entity. I don't know enough about health policy to comment on whether this is a good idea or not, but it doesn't bode well that the government is spinning this ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections It’s hard to lose a long-term friendship. That happened to me last year. My friendship did not survive my unwillingness to “stay in my lane.” I met my friend – let’s call him T – while I was a student at Cornwall School ...
Future Proofed: KiwiRail needs to become an all-electrically-powered, broad-gauged, and comprehensively re-equipped state-owned enterprise with state-of-the-art locomotives and rolling-stock. An infrastructure project of massive proportions and prodigious expense is required. But, when it is completed, New Zealand will have a sustainable, twenty-first century transportation network, capable of carrying both passengers ...
Back in December, the government purchased Ihumatāo. Officially the purchase was for a housing project, but whether any houses actually get built (and who will own them) is subject to negotiation. And now, the Auditor-General has ruled the purchase unlawful: The deal struck by the government and Fletcher Building ...
Speculation about the National Party’s leadership has died down, after a fortnight of rumours and overt positioning by supposed challengers to Judith Collins. She lives on as leader for a bit longer, and Christopher Luxon and Simon Bridges have been put in their place. National now desperately needs to focus ...
The government is planning to reform the health system. But in the leadup, they've issued new guidance for DHB members, gagging them from criticising the government: A new code of conduct banning health board members from making “political comment” may have been timed to dull criticism of imminent changes ...
Susan St John & Terry Baucher The bright line test has been extended to ten years. Tax deductibility for the cost of a mortgage for landlords is to be removed. These steps are a start, but there is more to be done. In Susan and Terry, we have two advocates ...
Cristina Pozo-Gonzalo, Deakin UniversityRare-earth metals are critical to the high-tech society we live in as an essential component of mobile phones, computers and many other everyday devices. But increasing demand and limited global supply means we must urgently find a way to recover these metals efficiently from discarded products. ...
As New Zealand and Australia celebrated its close ties with the opening of the Trans-Tasman Covid-19 bubble, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta today was looking a little further north. Shortly after those first flights had taken off, reminding us all of the world beyond our shores, Mahuta gave just her second ...
Recently I was told I needed to go to the Youtube channel of Dr Sam BaileyA and watch one of her videosB. So I did. This particular video is called The Truth About Virus Isolation, and yes it’s on Youtube, and no I’m not linking directly because I refuse to ...
This is a re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Peter Sinclair This edition of Yale Climate Connections’ “This Is Not Cool” video explores the “disinformation ecosystem” in and beyond the issue of global climate change. “How did we get here?” independent videographer Peter Sinclair asks rhetorically at the start of the ...
Once upon a time, the left fought for the universal right to freedom of speech. Today, many self-proclaimed progressives cheer on the censorship of their political opponents. But it’s not just right-wingers who suffer from cancel culture. The left itself is often the primary victim. Dan Kovalik is a labour lawyer, peace ...
For Our Own Good? Police officers knocking on New Zealanders’ doors on account of what they might think, or what they have said, is more likely to make the rest of us think we are living in Nazi Germany – not drawing lessons from it. The disharmony such heavy-handed state ...
by Don Franks Details of proposed new hate speech laws have been revealed in a December Cabinet paper obtained by Newsroom. The paper, seeking to “strengthen the protections against hate speech”, would extend existing provisions against incitement and hate speech. It would also move hate speech offences from the Human Rights Act to ...
Listing of articles linked to on the Skeptical Science Facebook Page during the past week: Sun, Apr 11, 2021 through Sat, Apr 17, 2021 Not having had a chance to garner much attention by the time last week's review was published, the last article in that batch - First-Ever Observations From ...
Every year in April, the trees start changing colour, the clocks go back an hour, and the national greenhouse gas figures are released and promptly forgotten. They take fifteen months to prepare, so by the time they come out it’s very easy for commentators to point out that they are ...
While checking my spam folder (before yeeting the contents permanently) I noticed that I’d been sent a bunch of email ‘newsletters’ from the group “Voices for Freedom.” Out of interest I opened one, just in case the contents were worth a post or two – & indeed they were. The ...
Humans are hard-wired to classify, categorise and compare, or in other words, to taxonomize. We may be born tabula rasa but quickly are taught that the world is divided into types of things, subtypes of those and assorted other categories. The operative term is “taught” rather than “realise.” Taxonomies are ...
The Labour Government received plaudits this week for its historic announcement that it will ban the live export of animals by sea. It’s said to be a world first. The decision comes after years of pressure, which increased after last year’s tragedy when the ship Gulf Livestock 1 left New ...
As one does on a Friday evening, I yesterday made a point of heading along to the Dunedin Public Library’s event, Mystery in the Library. This was a panel of local crime-fiction writers, and a follow-up to a similar one in April 2019 (no prizes for guessing why ...
Now is about the time that the Government is getting its Budget Strategy togetherIn the week before the budget – the 2021 one is to be delivered on Thursday 20 May – there is a strange ritual in which all the commentariat and lobbyists (who are not necessarily distinct from ...
Climate Change Minister James Shaw has admitted that the government is not doing enough on climate change: Appearing on Breakfast alongside Greenpeace director and former Green Party leader Russel Norman, the current Greens co-leader was asked: “Are you as Government living up to promise of delivery implicit in those ...
We can all agree that a free press (and free media more generally) are important factors in a well-functioning democracy. But I am beginning to wonder if they provide us with an unalloyed benefit. I am an avid consumer of daily news – whether delivered by the press or by ...
Yes They Can - So Why Don't They? In matters relating to child poverty, homelessness, mental health, climate change and, of course, Covid-19, the answers are right in front of the Government's collective nose - often in the form of reports it has specifically commissioned. Why can’t Jacinda and her ...
Richard Edwards, Janet Hoek, Anaru Waa, George Thomson, Nick Wilson (author details*) We congratulate the NZ Government on its proposed Action Plan for the Smokefree Aotearoa 2025 goal. Here we examine the evidence for three key ideas outlined in the plan: permitting tobacco products to be sold in only ...
Punished, But Not Prevented: Though bitterly contested by those firmly convinced that the Christchurch Mosque Shootings represent something more than the crime of a Lone Wolf terrorist, the Royal Commission’s finding that no state agency could have prevented Brenton Tarrant from carrying out his deadly intent – except by chance ...
The Government has announced it intends making sex self-identification possible this year, as a priority. That would mean anyone could change the sex documented on their birth certificate by a simple declaration that they “identify” as the opposite sex. Speak Up For Women have launched a campaign encouraging New Zealanders ...
The travel bubble with Australia has not brought room for others to come into the MIQ system from overseas. Instead, spaces are being decommissioned. Why? The system is leaky. The government cannot afford to let riskier people into those spaces, because the system can’t handle them. My column in Insights ...
A Second Term Labour-led Government in New Zealand,a new Biden-led Administration in the US, a continuance of the Johnson Government in the UK: different approaches to major issues, same global problems – and discontent rising. Some warranted, some unwarranted, but as each emerges from the Covid pandemic, what ...
I will update this post as new information comes to handWhat has happened? Recently the vaccine safety watch dogs in Europe noted reports of unusual types of blood clots in people vaccinated with the AstraZeneca (AZ) COVID-19 vaccine. This prompted investigations across many countries to ascertain what, why, and ...
Alex Ford, University of Portsmouth and Gary Hutchison, Edinburgh Napier UniversityWithin just a few generations, human sperm counts may decline to levels below those considered adequate for fertility. That’s the alarming claim made in epidemiologist Shanna Swan’s new book, “Countdown”, which assembles a raft of evidence to show that ...
Just like last year, this year's General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union (EGU) will happen virtually instead of in person in Vienna. Contrary to last year, the organizers decided early on to hold their conference online and planned for it accordingly (quite a difference to last year's scramble where they switched ...
Time for a strange rant. A very strange rant. But bear with me, because this is serious business. A True Story, by Lucian of Samosata is not Science-Fiction. What on earth am I talking about? Well, it was one of those Wikipedia rabbit holes. I was reading ...
By Kate Evans for UndarkOne of New Zealand’s most spectacular fossil sites originated 23.2 million years ago. It was formed in a valley dotted with small volcanoes, when rising magma deep below the Earth’s surface came into contact with groundwater. Lava and water don’t mix — they explode. The ...
A Thorn In Their Side: As Chair of the Auckland Regional Council, Mike Lee made sure Auckland’s municipal resources remained in Aucklanders’ hands. Not surprisingly the neoliberal powers-that-be (in both their centre-left and centre-right incarnations) hated this last truly effective standard-bearer for democratic-socialist values and policies.MIKE LEE is the closest ...
It’s always something of a shock to come across a page run by a health-focused business that contains substantial misinformation. This one left me gobsmacked, given the sheer number of statements that are demonstrably untrue. And while a fair bit of the content is prefaced by the statement that it’s ...
Previously (9 February) I wrote about how business consultants Ernst & Young were used to do a hatchet job on the former senior management team at Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB). While this hatchet job was planned in 2019 its gestation was much longer. Its underlying causes involved differences in ...
Flying beneath the radar of guilt Fight or Flight: How Advertising for Air Travel Triggers Moral Disengagement(open access) by Stubenvoll & Neureiter not only takes an interesting approach to decomposing the effects of airline travel advertisements but also helps us to understand the general psychological landscape of our often conflicted ...
Yesterday I got told to “do some research” &, by extension, to think critically. The biologist in me cringed a little when I read it (and not because of the advice about doing research). Biology teachers I know suggested that perhaps everyone should take the NCEA standard that ...
Lis Ku, De Montfort University Since the onset of the pandemic, everyone from newspaper columnists to Twitter users has advanced the now idea that extroverts and introverts are handling the crisis differently. Many claim that introverts adapt to social distancing and isolation better than extroverts, with some even suggesting that ...
A friend of mine pointed me in the direction of this blog post by New Zealand’s “Plan B” group. While initially this group opposed the government’s use of lockdowns to manage covid19 outbreaks in this country, they seem to have since moved on to opposing the rollout of vaccines against ...
Twenty years after it invaded, the US is finally leaving Afghanistan. What's surprising is that it took them so long - its been clear for over a decade that their presence there was pointless and just pissing people off. But imperial pride leads to exactly this sort of stupidity. Their ...
The government has announced that it will ban the export of livestock by sea. Huzzah! A vile, cruel and unconscionable trade will be ended! But there's a catch: the ban won't kick in until 2023, giving farmers two ful years to continue to profit from extreme animal cruelty. But why ...
Today is unexpectedly a Member's Day - the Business Committee granted it early in the year, to make up for time list to government business. First up is a two-hour debate on the budget policy statement, with questions to Ministers, replacing the general debate. Then its the second reading of ...
. . Two stories which appeared almost side-by-side on RNZ’s website. Parent, Miranda Cross, was quoted as saying; “I think the expectations are that we can at least send our kids to school where they will receive an education.” An American parent would probably demand; “I think the expectations are ...
Time for reviewing something a bit different. Move over Tolkien adaptations, hello Japanese splatter movie. Specifically, a certain 2009 movie called Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl. I watched this one a few days ago with some acquaintances, never having seen it before, and not being familiar with the manga ...
The future of local government must empower the young people who will live with the decisions made today, by enabling them to vote, and strengthen our national commitment to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the Green Party said today. ...
Former employees of Government security and intelligence agencies should face at least a five-year stand down period before taking up private sector security contracts, the Green Party said today. ...
The Green Party welcomes the major healthcare reforms announced today by the Minister of Health, including the creation of a Māori Health Authority – Manatū Hauora Māori as we call it. ...
We’re committed to ensuring that our health system works for all New Zealanders – so we’re taking big steps to improve health outcomes, support our frontline workers, and promote equitable access to healthcare across the country and across communities. ...
I tēnei tau i Waitangi, I whakahua ake te Tira o Te Mātāwaka o te Pātī Kākāriki i tā rātau aronga matua, ki te waihanga I tētahi Manatū Hauora Māori, mā Māori te kawe, mā Māori ngā whakahaere. Ko tā te tira; Kua rongohia ngā karanga a ngā Tangata Whenua, ...
During Waitangi this year the Green Party’s Te Mātāwaka caucus announced their priority for an independent Māori Health Authority. We have heard the call from Tangata Whenua wanting any authority to be independent, and properly resourced. ...
The Greens welcome $6.6 million from the Government’s $455 million programme to increase access to mental health and addiction services for our Pasifika communities in Auckland and Wellington. ...
The Green Party is putting a Member’s Bill into the ballot today which will be a significant step towards overhauling the Social Security Act by embedding a tikanga Māori framework into the welfare system. ...
The Green Party have reaffirmed their strong commitment to the union movement in Aotearoa New Zealand by renewing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with E Tū. ...
Soon, more kids in Aotearoa will have access to the in-school mental health support that has boosted the resilience of tamariki and whānau in Canterbury. ...
The Green Party supports the open letter released today by a cross-sector coalition calling for the Government to treat all drug use as a health issue, to repeal and replace the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975. ...
Small businesses are not only the heart of our economy – they’re also the heart of our communities. They provide important goods and services, as well as great employment opportunities. They know and love their locals. And after a tough year, they need our support! ...
Green Party spokesperson for Pacific Peoples Teanau Tuiono MP, supports the demand from Pasifika communities fighting for climate action as their homelands are more at risk in the Pacific region. ...
The Green Party supports the six demands for climate action put forward by School Strike for Climate NZ, who are striking across the country today. ...
The Ministry of Justice Māori victimisation report, released today, reinforces what we already know about the impact of systemic racism in Aotearoa and that urgent action is needed. ...
Ricardo Menéndez March’s Members Bill to ensure that disabled New Zealanders do not face discrimination for having a disability assist dog was today pulled from the biscuit tin to be debated in Parliament. ...
“The Government continues to honour our commitment to survivors which we made when the Royal Commission was established in 2018, and has refined the Terms of Reference to make sure the Commission delivers its final report in 2023,” says Minister of Internal Affairs, Jan Tinetti. In December 2020, the Royal ...
New ‘very high risk’ country designation Returnees to be cohorted into MIQs The Government is taking significant additional steps to make our borders even safer, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins announced today. “New Zealand is in a strong position and Kiwis enjoy freedoms most other countries do not ...
250 new warm, dry homes officially opened in Auckland today including: • 90 public housing homes • 34 KiwiBuild homes • 43 market homes and • 83 transitional housing homes The Government’s commitment to ensuring more New Zealanders have warm, dry, healthy homes is paying off in Auckland, where the ...
Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta says an independent review of local government will explore how councils can maintain and improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders in the communities they serve long into the future. Announcing the review today Nanaia Mahuta says it will focus on how our system of local ...
New Zealand’s first government funded space mission has taken a ‘giant leap’ with Auckland University’s Te Pūnaha Ātea-Auckland Space Institute announced as the permanent host of the New Zealand based mission control centre for a global methane tracking satellite. “MethaneSAT is a really exciting opportunity to showcase New Zealand’s science ...
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern joined President Biden at the virtual Leaders’ Summit on Climate hosted by the United States overnight. The summit, held for Earth Day, brought world leaders together to galvanise efforts to reduce emissions this decade and keep the shared goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees ...
New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hon Nanaia Mahuta and Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women, Senator the Hon Marise Payne, met in Wellington today for biannual Australia-New Zealand Foreign Minister Consultations. Marise Payne’s visit is the first official visit to New Zealand by Australia since both ...
Cabinet has finalised a package of new measures to protect New Zealanders’ interests in the banking and financial system, including guaranteeing deposits of up to $100,000 per eligible institution. These measures, the final part of a comprehensive review of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act, have been the subject ...
The number of apprentices continues to grow, with people from across the community signing up for careers in the trades, Education Minister Chris Hipkins says. Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) for enrolments in tertiary and vocational study as at December 2020 shows that the number of apprentices increased by 17.6 per ...
New Zealand will open a new Trade Commission in Fiji later this year, Trade and Export Growth Minister Damien O’Connor has announced. “Fiji is New Zealand’s largest trading partner in the Pacific region”, Damien O’Connor said. “Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, annual two-way trade between New Zealand and Fiji was ...
HON ANDREW LITTLE SPEECH Morena tātau katoa. Tēnā tātau kua karahuihui mai nei i tēnei ata, Ki te whakarewa te rautaki hauora matua o Aotearoa, Kia hua ko te oranga pai o te motu. Tena tatau katoa. INTRODUCTION Welcome. Today, I am laying out for you a plan to ...
All DHBs will be replaced by one national organisation, Health New Zealand A new Māori Health Authority will have the power to commission health services, monitor the state of Māori health and develop policy New Public Health Agency will be created Strengthened Ministry of Health will monitor performance and advise ...
We talk a lot about being a transformational Government. Some imagine this statement means big infrastructure builds, massive policy commitments all leading up to a single grand reveal. But this is what I see as transformation. Something quite simply and yet so very complex. Māori feeling comfortable and able to ...
On Wednesday morning, Minister of Health Andrew Little and Associate Minister of Health (Māori) Peeni Henare are announcing major health reforms. You can watch the announcement live here from 8am Wednesday. ...
New research into the probability of an Alpine Fault rupture reinforces the importance of taking action to plan and prepare for earthquakes, Acting Minister for Emergency Management Kris Faafoi says. Research published by Dr Jamie Howarth of Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington today, shows there is a ...
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta and Defence Minister Peeni Henare today announced that New Zealand is deploying a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 Orion maritime patrol aircraft in support of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions on North Korea. The Resolutions, adopted unanimously by the UNSC between 2006 and 2017, ...
The Transmission Gully Interim Review has found serious flaws at the planning stage of the project, undermining the successful completion of the four-lane motor north of Wellington Infrastructure Minister Grant Robertson and Transport Minister Michael Wood said. Grant Robertson said the review found the public-private partnership (PPP) established under the ...
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today that Australian Foreign Minister Hon Marise Payne will visit Aotearoa New Zealand for the first face-to-face Foreign Ministers’ Consulations since the COVID-19 pandemic began. “Australia is New Zealand’s closest and most important international partner. I’m very pleased to be able to welcome Hon Marise ...
Hundreds more families who were separated by the border closure will be reunited under new border exceptions announced today, Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi said. “The Government closed the border to everyone but New Zealand citizens and residents, in order to keep COVID-19 out, keep our economy open and keep New ...
Hon Nanaia Mahuta, Foreign Minister 8.30am, 19 April 2021 [CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY] Speech to the NZCC Korihi Pō, Korihi Ao E rongo e turia no Matahau Nō Tū te winiwini, Nō Tū te wanawana Tū Hikitia rā, Tū Hapainga mai Ki te Whai Ao, Ki te Ao Mārama Tihei Mauri ...
The Government is supporting a new project with all-wool New Zealand carpet company, Bremworth, which has its sights on developing more sustainable all-wool carpets and rugs, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor announced. The Ministry for Primary Industries is contributing $1.9 million towards Bremworth’s $4.9 million sustainability project through its Sustainable Food ...
New Zealand is providing further support to Timor-Leste following severe flooding and the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. “Our thoughts are with the people of Timor-Leste who have been impacted by the severe flooding and landslides at a time when the country is ...
A ceremony has been held today in Gisborne where the unclaimed medals of 28 (Māori) Battalion C Company soldiers were presented to their families. After the Second World War, returning service personnel needed to apply for their medals and then they would be posted out to them. While most medals ...
The Government is committed to increasing the number of mothers who breastfeed for longer to give babies born in New Zealand the best start in life. The Ministry of Health recommends that babies are exclusively breastfed for the first six month but only about 20 percent of children at this ...
New Zealand has today added its voice to the international condemnation of the malicious compromise and exploitation of the SolarWinds Orion platform. The Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau, Andrew Little, says that New Zealand's international partners have analysed the compromise of the SolarWinds Orion platform and attributed ...
An expert consenting panel has approved the Queenstown Arterials Project, which will significantly improve transport links and reduce congestion for locals and visitors in the tourism hotspot. Environment Minister David Parker welcomed the approval for the project that will construct, operate and maintain a new urban road around Queenstown’s town ...
Economic and Regional Development Minister Stuart Nash says a landmark deal has been agreed with Amazon for The Lord of the Rings TV series, currently being filmed in New Zealand. Mr Nash says the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) secures multi-year economic and tourism benefits to New Zealand, outside the screen ...
The Government welcomes the findings from a rapid review into the health system response to lead contamination in Waikouaiti’s drinking water supply. Sample results from the town’s drinking-water supply showed intermittent spikes in lead levels above the maximum acceptable value. The source of the contamination is still under investigation by ...
Transport Minister Michael Wood today marked the start of construction on the New Zealand Upgrade Programme’s Papakura to Drury South project on Auckland’s Southern Motorway, which will create hundreds of jobs and support Auckland’s economic recovery. The SH1 Papakura to Drury South project will give more transport choices by providing ...
CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā karanga maha o te wa, tēnā koutou, tēna koutou, tēna tātou katoa. Ki ngā mana whenua, ko Ngāi Tahu, ko Waitaha, ko Kāti Māmoe anō nei aku mihi ki a koutou. Nōku te hōnore kia haere mai ki te ...
Transport Minister Michael Wood today marked the completion of upgrades to State Highway 20B which will give Aucklanders quick electric bus trips to and from the airport. The State Highway 20B Early Improvements project has added new lanes in each direction between Pukaki Creek Bridge and SH20 for buses and ...
The Government is putting in place a review of the work being done on animal welfare and safety in the greyhound racing industry, Grant Robertson announced today. “While Greyhound Racing NZ has reported some progress in implementing the recommendations of the Hansen Report, recent incidents show the industry still has ...
The infringement fee for using a mobile phone while driving will increase from $80 to $150 from 30 April 2021 to encourage safer driving, Transport Minister Michael Wood announced today. Michael Wood said too many people are still picking up the phone while driving. “Police issued over 40,000 infringement notices ...
Pacific people in New Zealand will be better supported with new mental health and addiction services rolling out across the Auckland and Wellington regions, says Aupito William Sio. “One size does not fit all when it comes to supporting the mental wellbeing of our Pacific peoples. We need a by ...
New measures are being proposed to accelerate progress towards becoming a smokefree nation by 2025, Associate Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced. “Smoking or exposure to second-hand smoke kills around 12 people a day in New Zealand. Recent data tells us New Zealand’s smoking rates continue to decrease, but ...
More children will be able to access mental wellbeing support with the Government expansion of Mana Ake services to five new District Health Board areas, Health Minister Andrew Little says. The Health Minister made the announcement while visiting Homai School in Counties Manukau alongside Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Associate ...
The Government’s COVID-19 response has meant a record number of people moved off a Benefit and into employment in the March Quarter, with 32,880 moving into work in the first three months of 2021. “More people moved into work last quarter than any time since the Ministry of Social Development ...
A stocktake undertaken by France and New Zealand shows significant global progress under the Christchurch Call towards its goal to eliminate terrorist and violent extremist content online. The findings of the report released today reinforce the importance of a multi-stakeholder approach, with countries, companies and civil society working together to ...
Racing Minister Grant Robertson has announced he is appointing Elizabeth Dawson (Liz) as the Chair of the interim TAB NZ Board. Liz Dawson is an existing Board Director of the interim TAB NZ Board and Chair of the TAB NZ Board Selection Panel and will continue in her role as ...
The Government has announced that the export of livestock by sea will cease following a transition period of up to two years, said Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor. “At the heart of our decision is upholding New Zealand’s reputation for high standards of animal welfare. We must stay ahead of the ...
The union for local government workers welcomes Minister Nanaia Mahuta’s planned review of the sector, but more of a focus on worker participation is needed. The Public Service Association represents nine thousand local government staff around ...
It’s the speech that keeps on giving. This gives the lie to advice we were given on the art of delivering a memorable speech: an audience remembers best the first five minutes of a speech and the last five. In the case of Nanaia Mahuta’s dragons-and-taniwha speech, at Point of ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Verna Smith, Senior Lecturer in Public Policy, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington It is rare to get excited about institutional reform, but the government’s announcement of wholesale changes to the health system has the potential to be transformative. The ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Erin Harrington, Senior Lecturer in English and Cultural Studies, University of Canterbury This review contains spoilers for the first three episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale season four. Dystopian drama The Handmaid’s Tale is at a crossroads. Four years on from its critically ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Rowan Light, Lecturer / Project Curator – University of Auckland / Auckland Museum, University of Auckland While economists and politicians have celebrated the opening of the trans-Tasman bubble and its promised relief for struggling businesses, it’s also a reminder of something we’ve ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Georgia McWhinney, Honorary Postdoctoral Associate, Macquarie University We think we know a lot about Australian and New Zealand soldiers’ health in the first world war. Many books, novels and television programs speak of wounds and war doctors, documenting the work of both ...
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington.AUCKLAND1 The Mirror Book by Charlotte Grimshaw (Vintage, $38)Linda Herrick over at Stuff has joined the titillating conversation ...
There will be no health sector shakeup as long as its fetish for acronyms is allowed to continue unfettered. Elsewhere, Jacinda Ardern's level of waffle exceeded the five slice capacity. James Elliott has the news of the week. In many countries there would be unbridled panic and alarm if you watched ...
Hutt City Council and the Dowse Art Museum today hosted the Minister of Local Government Hon Nanaia Mahuta for her announcement of a review into the future of local government. Lower Hutt Mayor Campbell Barry has welcomed the review, saying it will support work ...
“The independent review of local government announced today is a genuine opportunity to address a wave of serious issues across housing, transport and water by strengthening the ability of councils to execute, address long standing infrastructure funding ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Navid Constantinou, Research Fellow, Australian National University Scientists already know the oceans are rapidly warming and sea levels are rising. But that’s not all. Now, thanks to satellite observations, we have three decades’ worth of data on how the speeds of ocean ...
The Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry was advised yesterday of Cabinet’s decision to “narrow its scope by removing the requirement for it to look at modern day care policy settings”. The Royal Commission will speak to the Minster of Internal ...
Greenpeace is calling out Jacinda Ardern’s lack of action on emissions from agriculture as the Prime Minister speaks at the Leaders Summit on Climate convened by US President Biden. In a speech during the summit, Ardern encouraged all countries to put a price ...
The New Zealand government is introducing a new category of a "very high risk country" - including India, Brazil, Pakistan and Papua New Guinea - to further bolster the country's defence against Covid-19. ...
Grey Power commends the Minister of Health on what appears to be the most progressive and well-structured health system review for many years. The initial document presented by the Minister on Wednesday 21 April 2020 embraces many issues that Grey Power has ...
The government is expected to announce a further bolstering of the border, with passengers arriving on high-risk flights to be kept in separate managed isolation hotels from other arrivals. ...
An aspiring film-maker gets the opportunity to share her vision for a new movie – but then the studio decides to get involved. Dunedin team Bus of the Undead talk us through their VF48Hours invitation movie, Pitches Be Crazy.Daniel Macshane estimates he spent around 43 hours working on his team’s ...
These are perhaps the most exciting times for cancer care in our nation’s history, writes epidemiologist Jason Gurney, who welcomes the shake-up to the ‘greater good’ approach that’s been so disadvantageous for Māori.On my first day as a paycheque-drawing epidemiologist, my boss – who would later become my friend and ...
A poem from Nina Mingya Powles’ Ockham-shortlisted collection Magnolia 木蘭.Maggie Cheung’s blue cheongsam Maggie Cheung’s blue cheongsam is patterned with pink peonies. Dark magenta, dark magnolia, a colour that is edible. Nests of deep green leaves extend from the base of each fat flower, their edges painted gold. ...
The dragon, the taniwha - and the kangaroo? This week the Australian and New Zealand foreign ministers shared a podium and China was very much the dragon in the room. ...
An independent review of local government will explore how councils can maintain and improve the wellbeing of New Zealanders in the communities they serve, long into the future. ...
Australia Week: It’s the age-old question: which fictional soap neighbourhood would you most like to live in? We know you’ve thought about it, but Tara Ward has thought about it more than most. To mark the opening of the trans-Tasman bubble, The Spinoff is casting an eye across the ditch all ...
A new play about the lead-up to the first lockdown, built from interviews with Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson and Michael Baker, is a window into the unfathomable responsibility of political power.It felt pretty surreal to be sitting in a packed theatre for the opening night of Transmission, Miranda Harcourt and ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Robert Norman, Professor of Reproductive and Periconceptual Medicine, The Robinson Institute, University of Adelaide An expensive IVF technique, routinely offered in fertility clinics around the world, offers no extra benefits to standard IVF in the vast majority of cases, our new research ...
The Future for Local Government initiative must make the most of a historic opportunity to set communities up for success now and in the future, as it looks into the roles and responsibilities of councils amid a flurry of major policy reform, says Local ...
Saturday 24 April marks World Veterinary Day and this year New Zealand veterinarians find themselves facing another year of significant stress and challenging workloads. There are many reasons for this including the fact that veterinarians were classified ...
Catherine Woulfe’s son’s school is nothing fancy. But it’s theirs. Auckland’s new zoning rules will mean her daughter, when she turns five, will have to go to a different one – and that’s heartbreaking.I just saw a map that puts us 100 metres out of zone for the primary school ...
Greenpeace is today condemning a large-scale irrigation consent as ‘locking in overstocking of the land with dairy cows which is bad news for our climate, a guarantee of more water pollution and a risk to human health.’ Environment Canterbury has ...
They might be the most popular companion animal in New Zealand, but cats are not so popular in the wild. Stray and feral cats are a widespread problem across the country, with numbers estimated to be in the millions. At this scale, they not only ...
Those of us who govern are acutely aware of the problems inherent in the requirement to mind our own patch, not everybody else’s, writes Auckland DHB chair Pat Snedden.This week’s health announcements signalled a big day in a number of ways. Health minister Andrew Little took time in a thoroughly ...
Some parents are starting petitions to send their kids to their closest school; others are beating down the doors of government to be allowed to drive across town. ...
Health Minister Andrew Little says the reforms the government has announced this week will mean for the first time New Zealand will have “a truly national health system”. The new system will consist of a national health organisation, a Maori health authority, and a new public health authority to centralise ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Fiona McLeod, PhD Candidate, The University of Queensland The revival of interest in Anzac since the 1980s has depended in part on the repositioning of soldiers as victims. We rarely celebrate their martial virtues, and instead note their resilience, fortitude and suffering. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Gregory Moore, Doctor of Botany, The University of Melbourne On Anzac Day each year, Australians remember those who served and died in wars and conflicts. We may attend a dawn service, go to a march or lay a wreath at a war ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Philip Adams, Professor at the Centre of Policy Studie, Victoria University The European Union has committed to very significant emission cuts — 55% on 1990 levels by 2030, and zero net emissions by 2050. To help it get there without too much ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Richard Holden, Professor of Economics, UNSW Breaking down the old boys’ club in business, government and other organisations is intrinsically important. Ensuring greater diversity in organisations – on gender, racial, ethnic and other lines – is, simply put, the right thing to ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Véronique Duché, A.R. Chisholm Professor of French, The University of Melbourne Modern warfare produces both trauma and boredom in equal measure. During the first world war, one way troops found solace was by writing and reading magazines created by soldiers, for soldiers. ...
Welcome to The Spinoff’s live updates for April 23, bringing you the latest news updated throughout the day. Get in touch at stewart@thespinoff.co.nz8.00am: High risk arrivals will be kept together in MIQ as India flight ban tipped to endThe government is tipped to end the ban on flights from India ...
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: India’s Covid situation and the travel ban decision, lockout hit for striking Wellington bus drivers, and Australian PM to visit NZ. Plus: A feature on a major carbon-farming landowner that is quietly growing.There will be an announcement today on the ...
Recent studies reveal surprising changes in the Ross Sea region, a choke-point in ocean circulation. David Williams reports As the three-masted British ship Erebus sailed south in Antarctic waters with the slightly smaller Terror in January 1841, commander James Clark Ross, the world’s most experienced polar explorer, saw a low ...
Business & Investing: NZ to join other OECD nations with a substantive deposit guarantee scheme, Plus: Australia's diplomatic standoff with China worsens ...
The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care has asked for three emergency funding top-ups because it had blown the $56 million budget- meant to last another two years. ...
Hanging out in central Christchurch, waiting for a mate, St Bede’s teenager Jamayne Feast and his two friends filmed and posted a short music clip. Now they are famous.A moment of boredom, a 15-second capella, and #FliFlaFlo has hurtled one Christchurch teenager into instant fame.It was school holidays, ...
Jane Patterson, COO for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in NZ, talks to Ashley Stanley in part three of LockerRoom’s video series, The Big Four, with the women leading the four global sporting events here over the next two years - three World Cups and the IWG Women and Sport conference. Jane Patterson ...
This week's biggest-selling New Zealand books, as recorded by the Nielsen BookScan New Zealand bestseller list and described by Steve BrauniasFICTION 1 Inside the Black Horse by Ray Berard (David Bateman, $34.99) "The TAB made me the area manager in South Auckland, supervising 50 gambling outlets...My book Inside the ...
As long as we make decisions on the basis of discretion or intuition, like the banning of flights from India, many of these decisions will invariably fall prey to bias - no matter how well-meaning we are, writes Ananish Chaudhuri In the aftermath of New Zealand banning flights from India, I have been ...
A year ago, Justin Giovannetti left Canada to join his fiancée (and The Spinoff) in New Zealand. Today, his home country is confronting another debilitating wave of Covid-19.In the year since I left Canada I’ve been asked if I miss home. I don’t, and the reason is simple: The home ...
Australia Week: There’s no contest quite like New Zealand vs Australia, no matter the sport. Alex Braae runs through some of the most and least exciting trans-Tasman rivalries.To mark the opening of the trans-Tasman bubble, The Spinoff is casting an eye across the ditch all week – read our ...
New Zealand’s approach to migration has helped create a low-wage, low-productivity and low-wellbeing society for most. Bernard Hickey looks at why a quadrupling of temporary work visas in 15 years caused such grief, and how these visa rules should be changed to make everyone better off.In the latest episode of ...
Joe Biden's international climate summit and the UK's big new commitment to cutting emissions puts the heat on New Zealand to get serious about our climate commitments, writes Rod Oram ...
Cooks PM Mark Brown agrees to postpone inbound travel, as visiting NZ health officials inspect delays to in-country PCR testing New Zealand has put the kibosh on Cook Islands plans to unilaterally open its borders to tourists next week. The firm message to the island nation's bullish new leader has been condemned by ...
The Government's newly announced health plan heralds a massive change in the system. But commentators say its success depends on what's in the detail. Work is starting immediately to overhaul the health service in the first stage of three-year reforms aimed at dealing with a system under stress. Health Minister ...
Asia Pacific Report newsdesk A West Papuan envoy who was gagged while addressing the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues two years ago is due to speak again today. For six years, John Anari, leader of the West Papua Liberation Organisation (WPLO) and an “ambassador” of the United Liberation ...
By Lagi Keresoma in Apia Samoa could end going back to the polls should a tie of 26/26 between the Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) and the Fa’atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) party ensue. The caretaker Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, told the media yesterday of the ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra The numbers of Australian citizens and permanent residents allowed to return from India and other COVID “high risk” countries are to be restricted. With COVID surging in India, the cases in quarantine among people arriving ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra We shouldn’t be surprised at the Kevin Rudd-Malcolm Turnbull bromance. After all, we saw the same with Malcolm Fraser and Gough Whitlam. The stronger the earlier political antipathy, it seems, the closer the later collaboration. ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michael Clarke, Associate Professor, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University The Morrison government’s decision to scrap Victoria’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) agreement with China was based on Australia’s new Foreign Relations Act, which says the foreign minister may ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stefan Broer, Head of molecular nutrition group, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, Australian National University From time to time, generally when there’s a public case of a hunger strike, people ask me how long a person can survive without food. The ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Shams Rahman, Professor of Supply Chain Management, RMIT University The 2013 Dhaka garment factory collapse, killing more than 1,100 workers and injuring 2,600 more, is the clothing industry’s worst ever industrial incident. It is not just the body count, though, that made ...
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Craig Mark, Professor, Faculty of International Studies, Kyoritsu Women’s University As tensions with China continue to grow, Japan is making moves to join the “Five Eyes” intelligence-sharing alliance. This week, Japan’s ambassador to Australia, Shingo Yamagami, told The Sydney Morning Herald he ...
In a judgement released yesterday , the Judicial Control Authority for Racing fined greyhound trainer Angela Turnwald $3,500 and disqualified them for four months in a doping case. The case was bought by the Racing Integrity Unity after the greyhound ...
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