This is edition 2025/85 of the Ten@10 newsletter.
Welcome back. It's 2025 and 20 years since I started writing about politics and anything else that took my fancy. Thank to my VIP members for making this site what it is today. In July we will be having a 20th birthday celebration. Stay tuned for more announcements.
This is the Ten@10, where I collate and summarise ten news items you generally won't see in the mainstream media.
Enjoy!
1. Verrall's Tobacco Bill a chink of light in the lobbying gloom
Bryce Edwards
- 🚬 Corporate influence: Recent political agendas dominated by powerful corporate interests, particularly tobacco lobbyists, influencing policy behind closed doors.
- 🛑 Tobacco industry dominance: The rollback of New Zealand's smokefree policies raises concerns over tobacco industry's unchecked power in politics.
- 💡 Tobacco Transparency Bill: Labour MP Ayesha Verrall’s bill aims to address tobacco industry influence and increase transparency in lobbying.
- 📜 Key provisions: The bill mandates greater transparency, with ministers and officials declaring links to tobacco companies, and prevents the "revolving door" between government and industry.
- 👀 Public trust: The bill could restore public trust, revealing potential connections between political parties and tobacco interests.
- 📰 Criticism from TINZ: Transparency International NZ dismisses the bill, calling it a PR stunt and downplaying corporate lobbying's influence on health policies.
- 💼 Systemic issue: Critics argue the bill only scratches the surface and that lobbying reform should target all industries, not just tobacco.
- ⚖️ Broader lobbying reform needed: Advocates call for a more comprehensive lobbying law, with calls for a public register of all lobbyist meetings and tighter regulations on political donations.
- 🚪 Long-term goals: Verrall's bill could set a precedent for future lobbying reforms, with hopes it will eventually extend to other harmful industries.
- 🔦 Slow progress: Despite past promises for broader lobbying reforms, the current government's actions have been sluggish, with New Zealand lagging in transparency rankings.
- 🔑 A step forward: While the Tobacco Transparency Bill is a positive move, a broader and more comprehensive lobbying reform is necessary to ensure true policy integrity.
