Let’s call this what it is: a rule-of-law rollback for the sake of two banks’ bottom lines. If a well-connected litigant can get the legislature to retroactively rewrite the law in their favour, how can the public have confidence in the independence of justice?
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards PARLIAMENT, WEEK IN POLITICS Andrea Vance (Post): Firm owned by Taxpayers’ Union boss behind Green Party attack billboards (paywalled) Bryce Edwards (The Integrity Institute): Dirty Politics 2.0? Lobbying in the Shadows ODT Editorial: Lobbying for lobbying controls (paywalled) ODT: Civis: Orange is a
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards DEFENCE, FOREIGN AFFAIRS, TRADE Gordon Campbell (Scoop): On Marketing The Military Threat Posed By China Sarita Davis (Herald): $12 billion defence spend could halve child poverty by 2028 (paywalled) Phil Pennington (RNZ): Access to space systems 'critical on the modern battlefield' Giles
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards PARLIAMENT, THREATS TO POLITICIANS Russell Palmer (RNZ): Winston Peters declines Benjamin Doyle's invitation to speak directly Andrea Vance and Charlie Mitchell (Post): Businessman behind toxic online Benjamin Doyle campaign (paywalled) Bridie Witton and Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Green MP Benjamin Doyle dismisses social
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards ABUSE OF POLITICIANS Anneke Smith (RNZ): Research finds rape threats against female MPs common Chelsea Daniels (Herald): Front Page: Female MPs in NZ report frequent death threats and harassment Stuff: Female MPs report widespread abuse and threats, study finds Anna Whyte (Post): Research finds
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards DEFENCE Anneke Smith (RNZ): New Zealand has joined the arms race - law professor Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Govt’s defence spend comes with darker edge Sam Smith (RNZ): Government hikes defence spending amid ‘tectonic shifts’ in geopolitics Thomas Coughlan (Herald): What the $12b defence
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards GOVERNMENT Anusha Bradley (RNZ): Minister Andrew Hoggard’s sister lobbied him opposing tougher baby formula rules Bryce Edwards (The Integrity Institute): Andrew Hoggard’s conflicts of interest and NZ’s culture of complacency David Fisher (Herald): Winston Peters to deliver ‘roast’ as Whale Oil’
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards FOREIGN AFFAIRS, TRADE, DEFENCE Jenna Lynch (Stuff): Don’t poke the bear: NZ’s calm amid confusion over Trump tariffs Rob Stock (Post): US documents show it knows its 20% tariff claims for New Zealand are false (paywalled) Richard Harman (Politik): Trump lies about
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards HEALTH Anusha Bradley (RNZ): How multinational dairy companies convinced ministers to back away from new rules for baby formula Jessica Rosen (1News): Why a senior doctor felt he had no choice but quit Nelson Hospital RNZ: Nineteen month wait to see a specialist: '
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards TE PĀTI MĀORI Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Tikanga stand off: Te Pāti Māori refuse to front up to committee over haka Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira, Layla Bailey-McDowell and Lillian Hanly (RNZ): Te Pāti Māori MPs refuse to attend Parliament's Privileges Committee hearing over haka protest
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards OPEN GOVERNMENT, PARLIAMENT Jem Traylen (The Integrity Institute): Still a “game of hide and seek” – 30+ years of OIA shenanigans Richard Harman (Politik): When moral authority is not enough (paywalled) David Farrar: Chief Ombudsman assesses agencies on OIA compliance John McLean: Official Information Regress
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards SOCIAL COHESION AND DISCONTENT Bryce Edwards (The Integrity Institute): NZ’s trust crisis – A Revolt against oligarchy 1News: Q+A: Report sheds light on social cohesion in New Zealand Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Do you know what people on benefits actually get? Jamie Morton (Herald)
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards New Zealand is in the throes of a trust crisis. The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer – an annual global survey of confidence in institutions – delivers a stark warning: public faith in the country’s core pillars of society has plummeted. Trust in government is down
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards JUSTICE, CRIME, POLICE Martin Van Beynen (Press/Post): What planet are the Greens on? It’s not called reality (paywalled) Emmy Rākete, Grace Gordon and Peyton Bond (Spinoff): Is Tamatha Paul in ‘la-la land’? Here’s what the evidence says Barry Soper (Newstalk ZB)
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards JUSTICE, CRIME, POLICE Glenn McConnell (Stuff): What a Green MP said about police, and why it’s being called ‘nutty’, ‘stupid’ and ‘la la land stuff’ Grant Duncan: The Green Police Lillian Hanly (RNZ): Green MP Tamatha Paul doubles down on criticism of police
