Jonathan Barrett, Victoria University of Wellington Where should real political power and authority reside in New Zealand? Since last year’s election, that’s been the central question behind a number of significant policy reversals. Water infrastructure, health, tertiary education and tax have all been affected by the political and
Don Brash and Rt Hon Helen Clark Bassett, Brash & Hide “Just one month after the New Zealand Government hosted the Chinese Premier in New Zealand, and with no hint of a major change in New Zealand foreign policy in the National Party’s election campaign last year, the Prime
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards HEALTH Janet Hoek, Jude Ball, Andrew Waa, Anna Graham-DeMello, Richard Edwards, and Melissa-Jade Gregan (Public Health Communications Centre): Mind the gap: Associate Health Minister’s actions conflict with Ministry advice, align with tobacco industry lobbying Brett Kerr-Laurie (Press/Post): Tobacco companies
When bureaucrats start playing around with OIA requests you know there is something stinky going on. Yet that is exactly what is happening at the Tauranga City Council. The Ombudsman has been asked to rule on whether the guest list for a $40,000 private cocktail party co-hosted by
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards As the Minister for Resources, Shanes Jones is happy to declare that he’s on the side of the mining companies, proclaiming that no one “should doubt that I am the megaphone of industry in this government.” While many will appreciate his dogged championing
Bryce Edwards I am Political Analyst in Residence at Victoria University of Wellington, where I run the Democracy Project, and am a full-time researcher in the School of Government. The assassination attempt on US presidential candidate Donald Trump is a reflection on how toxic and polarised politics has become
Evil forces are at work and have been for decades. These forces are largely led by the political left. They take the form of so-called progressive policies that are aimed at destroying society as we know it. Their aim is to cause divisiveness and unrest among the population at
Republished with Permission Author: Bryce Edwards Apologies for the Substack newsletter colours today - there seems to be an error making the links green, which we will fix for tomorrow. GREENS Jack Tame (Newstalk ZB): The Greens can own the hypocrisy and push Tana out Ben Thomas (Post): Time for the
NZCPR Dr Muriel Newman established the New Zealand Centre for Political Research as a public policy think tank in 2005 after nine years as a Member of Parliament. A former Chamber of Commerce President, her background is in business and education. There are many lessons for New Zealand in last
Just as the Greens release a summary of their inquiry’s findings on Darleen Tana, her husband’s bike shop in Newmarket goes into receivership. Ex-Green MP Darleen Tana’s husband’s bike business has been temporarily closed and may be in insolvency, following allegations of worker exploitation. People
Chris Trotter Democracy Project As angry Trump supporters filed out of the Butler showgrounds, many paused to hurl abuse at the media pack. As they vented their anger upon the assembled “mainstream” journalists, I couldn’t help recalling the behaviour of an even angrier crowd as it filed out of
Joanne Crawford, Victoria University of Wellington; Chris Peace, Victoria University of Wellington and Danaë Anderson, Victoria University of Wellington The government’s recently announced review of New Zealand’s health and safety system puts the spotlight back on the 2015 Health and Safety at Work Act – and why it has
Kineta Knight Kineta Knight Booker is a highly experienced journalist based in North Canterbury. She has worked as a reporter for radio, TV, digital and print, as well as an editor of lifestyle magazines in NZ and the UK. Kineta is the Head of Content Development at Chris Lynch Media.
Tani Newton Trying to understand what is happening in Grey Street in Gisborne is like peeling the layers of an onion. Essentially the street layout is being altered in a joint effort by the Gisborne District Council and a community organisation called the Tairawhiti Adventure Trust. This follows on from
Dr Simon Smelt Israel Institute NZ Dr Simon Smelt is a retired economist. In response to NZ’s Labour Party spokespeople calling “for an immediate and permanent ceasefire” in Gaza, Smelt asks Labour the following pertinent questions: Why are you against peace? There was a ceasefire in place on Oct
