News Briefing: 26 February 2025
REGIONAL ECONOMIC ZONES, ENERGY
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Government mulls bespoke regional tax and concessions to spur growth (paywalled)
RNZ: Special economic zones could boost NZ's fuel security - energy minister
Tom Pullar-Strecker (The Post): Marsden Point set to become NZ's first ‘special economic zone’(paywalled)
Dan Brunskill (Interest): Jones proposes Special Economic Zone for Marsden Point refinery
Oliver Lewis (BusinessDesk): Government floats special economic zone for Marsden Point (paywalled)
Jamie Gray (Herald: Meridian, NZAS invoke power cut deal for Tiwai
Anan Zaki (RNZ): Mercury customers face near 10 percent rise in power bills
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Mercury to hike electricity prices by almost 10%, ups payout to shareholders (paywalled)
RNZ: Mercury Energy's earnings fall on lower generation, higher costs
FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE
Gordon Campbell: On Why Our China Panic Is About To Get Expensive
Maria Siow (South China Morning Post): Were China’s ‘unprecedented’ naval drills in Tasman Sea ‘signal’ to Australia, New Zealand?
Jo Moir (RNZ): Peters to seek answers from China over warships, Cook Islands deal
RNZ: Winston Peters needs to address Cook Islands-China deal during meeting - Helen Clark
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Winston Peters arrives in China amid heightened tensions
Shanti Mathias (Spinoff): The tense backdrop to Winston Peters’ trip to Beijing, explained
Tom Peters (World Socialists): New Zealand government whips up hysteria over Chinese naval exercise in Tasman Sea
RNZ: What we know about the Chinese vessels conducting military exercises in the Tasman Sea
RNZ: Chinese warships in Tasman Sea inch closer to Australia
1News: Virgin pilot sounded alarm on Chinese live fire drill in Tasman Sea
John MacDonald (Newstalk ZB): Spend up large on defence, we have no choice
Ryan Bridge (Newstalk ZB): Prepare for a defence-focused budget
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): China ties behind Kiribati-NZ impasse, opposition leader says
Giles Dexter (RNZ): Christopher Luxon intent on 'stepping up tempo' in trade, education ties with Vietnam
Jason Walls (Newstalk ZB): Christopher Luxon poised to meet Vietnam’s ‘Big Four’; plays down China tensions
Ananish Chaudhuri (Newsroom): We will all be poorer from Trump’s tariff wars
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Govt extends expiry date for Russia sanctions
Thomas Manch (Post): 'Nationally significant' espionage trial to resume (paywalled)
PARLIAMENT, GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC SERVICE
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider: 'You've made a complete meal of this' - Hosking-PM interview turns into a farcical 3 minutes (paywalled)
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Handling a scandal: Did Chris Hipkins do things differently?
RNZ: Christopher Luxon says he would have fired Andrew Bayly had he not resigned
Sam Smith (Stuff): PM says he would have sacked Andrew Bayly had he not resigned
David Chaplin (BusinessDesk): Bridging the Bayly gap: The unfinished financial services reforms (paywalled)
Anna Whyte (Post): Who is the ‘new’ minister Scott Simpson? (paywalled)
Jem Traylen (BusinessDesk): What exactly is the Business of Government? (and more … ) (paywalled)
Tom Day (1News): MPI withdraws staff from NZ First Minister's office after complaints
Jamie Ensor (Herald): Ministry stops sending workers to NZ First minister Mark Patterson’s office amid complaints, issues between staff
RNZ: MPI staff pulled from Rural Communities Minister's office
RNZ: David Seymour to be acting Prime Minister
Anna Whyte (Post): Mega ministry and union reach tense milestone in year-long bargaining (paywalled)
Michael Wright (Press/Post): The Government’s in-house liquidator is 1000% busier than five years ago (paywalled)
Will Johnston (Stuff): Minister calls in a favour and stays with New Plymouth MP
PRIMARY INDUSTRIES, ENVIRONMENT, CONSERVATION
Andrew Bevin (Newsroom): NZ blocks South Pacific seamount protections two years running
1News: Hopes West Coast towns will see benefits from potential mining boom
David Williams (Newsroom): Tough nitrate limits put to iwi farm leader
Yolisa Tswanya (Northern Advocate): Taumata Arowai assesses Kāeo water crisis after 10 years under boil notice
Monique Steele (RNZ): First herds of special interest bids 'very close' - Game Animal Council
HEALTH
Rachel Thomas (Post): Pharmac prolongs culture review, as minister refuses to publicly back CEO (paywalled)
Bernard Hickey (The Kākā): ‘I didn’t want to smile’: How unaffordable and inaccessible dental care damages the daily lives of so many, and why dental care should be available for all
RNZ: 'Dangers' to increasing prescription supply to 12 months, Royal NZ College of General Practitioners medical director says
Bill Hickman (RNZ): Gender affirming care: Law firm's letter an 'attempt to intimidate', GP group says
David Farrier: Franks Ogilvie Law's Threat to Health Professionals
David Farrier: Breaking: Legal Threats Made to Gender-Affirming Health Professionals
Natalie Akoorie (RNZ):'I was chosen for my vulnerability'': Abuse survivor wants sculptor's work removed
Tom Peters (World Socialist Website): New Zealand nurses union promotes racial divisions
COVID-19, COVID INQUIRY
Michael Baker, Amanda Kvalsvig, John Donne Potter, Matire Harwood, Nick Wilson (The Conversation): 5 years on, COVID remains NZ’s most important infectious disease – it still demands a strong response
Paula Penfold (Stuff): Covid Inquiry hit by top level resignations
RNZ: Covid-19 inquiry executive director and assisting counsel resign
TREATY PRINCIPLES BILL
Joel Maxwell (Stuff): Treaty Principles Bill: ‘If this law was kai it would be an ACT school lunch’
Lyric Waiwiri-Smith and Joel MacManus (Spinoff): Treaty principles bill hearings, day nine: Tory Whanau challenges government priorities
Adam Pearse (Herald): Treaty Principles Bill: Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau warns of local government impact as submitters call for apology
Lillian Hanly (RNZ): Treaty Principles Bill 'pollutes' the idea of a future together - submission
CRIME
Adam Pearse (Herald): Citizen’s arrest powers to be expanded amid rise in retail theft
Gaurav Sharma (RNZ): Labour criticises retail crime advisory group spend
Bridie Witton (Stuff): Retail crime plan set to be revealed by Government
Ryan Bridge (Newstalk ZB): Is violent crime really dropping?
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown calls for pause on $60m Victoria St linear park project
Dita De Boni (Post): Port of Auckland almost doubles interim profit as operation gets back into pre-Covid groove (paywalled)
Georgina Campbell (Herald): Wellington City Council supports move to delist heritage buildings more easily
Melissa Nightingale (Herald): Wellington mayor Tory Whanau cancels monthly slot on Newstalk ZB’s morning show with Nick Mills
Sam Smith (Stuff): Tory Whanau pulls out of monthly radio slot
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): Regional deal to be sent to govt; doubt remains
Grant Miller (ODT): Pipes’ state ‘not well understood’ (paywalled)
Libby Kirkby-McLeod (RNZ): Residents told they were 'widely consulted' over controversial Tauranga marine precinct sale
Laura Smith (Local Democracy Reporting): Rotorua considers new bottle store freeze to tackle alcohol harm
Lois Williams (Local Democracy Reporting): Soaring cost of combined plan shocks Coast councillors: 'This is a disaster'
Laura Smith (Local Democracy Reporting): Tāpu lake: The battle over a sewerage pipeline
Linda Hall (Local Democracy Reporting): Councillor clashes with mayoral hopeful, makes jibe about European holiday
Moana Ellis (Local Democracy Reporting): Kerbside food scrap collection to be rolled out in Whanganui
Will Harvie (The Press): Double ECan rates hit for some, but lower rise than expected
Sinead Gill (Press): Protection for central Christchurch venues another 18 months away (paywalled)
Jonathan Leask (Local Democracy Reporting): Mid Canterbury SPCA backs tougher rules on desexing and microchipping cats
Martin Edmond (Newsroom): A brief history of Michael Laws’ war on the Sarjeant Gallery
Glen Morgan (ODT): We test drivers, so how about councillors?
HOUSING
Katharine Moody (Interest): Regulation of the private rental market could be the only way to avoid the plague of homelessness seen in many parts of the world
Rob Stock (Post): Public left out in hazard levies consultation (paywalled)
Mary Argue (RNZ): Pensioners in quake-prone council housing block feel stuck in limbo
Joel MacManus (Spinoff): Inside the legal fight over Wellington’s character areas
Emma Ricketts (Stuff): Fundamental disagreement at core of Wellington character housing dispute
Stuff: New Zealand rental prices rise, but surge in listings could ease pressure
Greg Ninness (Interest): The number of new homes being built in Auckland continues declining
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): How much you need to earn to buy a house in NZ's cheapest region
TRANSPORT, INFRASTRUCTURE
Annemarie Quill (Stuff): The regions where bus fares could be hiked by 500%
Emma Ricketts (Stuff): Wellington off-peak transport fares could go up 20%
Tom Hunt (Post): Wellington dream of electric bus fleet by 2030 seems over (paywalled)
David Long (Stuff): West Auckland city's 'poor cousin' as no funds to remove level crossings ahead of CRL opening
Mary Williams (ODT): NZTA cuts funding, Hollyford road access at risk (paywalled)
Olivia Wannan (Stuff): The case for a tolled motorway through the Remutakas
RNZ: Consortium looks to take control of Northport
Robin Martin (RNZ): Tar-sealing of Tangarakau Gorge marks end of an era
Jessica Rosen (1News): Nelson Airport one step closer to future runway extension
EDUCATION
RNZ: Primary teachers to get fast-tracked residency
Louise Ternouth (RNZ): Eleven days of butter chicken: Principals report more problems with school lunches
Mark John (ODT): Cheesed off: ‘on all levels, a disaster’ (paywalled)
Hanna McCallum (Post): Te Pūkenga in the black as student numbers grow (paywalled)
POVERTY
David Farrar: Jacinda’s record on child poverty
Ian Taylor (Stuff): Our forgotten moko only ever get one childhood
EMPLOYMENT, BUSINESS
Fiona Rotherham (NBR): The pros and cons of split shifts for workers (paywalled)
Susan Hornsby-Geluk (Post): How big earners should expect to be hit by change in employment law (paywalled)
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Telco One NZ getting some grief from Kiwis over Elon Musk link (paywalled)
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Should we be buying the closed mills?
RNZ: Off-shore online stores, Temu, Shein, 'significant worry' for NZ retailers
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Temu mania: Online shopping grows at expense of bricks-and-mortar
IMMIGRATION, MIGRANT WORKERS
Steve Kilgallon (Stuff): Migrant who sank Darleen Tana's career faces unhappy exit from NZ
RNZ: Immigration NZ announces one-time increase in parent visa quota
Steve Edwards (Coast & Country News): Waikato dairy farmer’s cautious optimism over migrant visa rule changes
DESTINY CHURCH, NZ CHURCHES
RNZ: Labour MP Phil Twyford alleges office targeted over his stance on Destiny Church
1News: Labour MP claims rubbish dumped outside office linked to Destiny stance
Rip Bhatia (Stuff): Labour MP discovers ‘load of rubbish dumped outside office door’
David Farrier: The Rot of NZ's Biggest Churches
FOREIGN INVESTMENT
Brent Edwards (NBR): Seymour argues foreign investment should be as open as trade (paywalled)
RNZ: Overseas Investment Act changes will bring much needed investment - BusinessNZ
TOURISM
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): Increasing opposition to tourism predicted
RNZ: Warning of hostility to Queenstown Lakes councillors over tourist pressures
Alan Granville (Stuff): ‘Everyone Must Go!’: Controversial NZ tourism slogan hitting the mark with its intended audience, Australians
BANKS
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Is it up to banks to cut their margins to give better interest rates?
Tim Fitzgerald, Julian Brown & Tristan Hutchinson (Interest): NZ First's 'woke banking bill' could represent a significant incursion into the contract between financial institutions and their customers
ECONOMY
Richard Prebble (Herald): Relying on flawed data undermines Reserve Bank decisions (paywalled)
Bernard Hickey (The Kākā): Paul Conway Interview: RBNZ wary of any administered inflation spiral
OTHER
ODT Editorial: We doth protest too much/not enough? (paywalled)
RNZ: Prisoners served dinner as early as 2.30pm in Northland, report finds
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): The tax perk you might have forgotten about
Sam Sherwood (Stuff): ‘My healing can start’: Complainants react to review of historical sexual abuse by former MP
Hamish McNicol (NBR): Former senior ComCom lawyer sets up competition law firm (paywalled)
Mandy Henk (Spinoff): We are in an information war – and we are losing
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Wellington basketball team owner, restaurateur Nick Mills given another three weeks to settle tax debts after deal falls through
Kurt Bayer (Herald): Apocalypse now: Doomsday bunker secretly installed on New Zealand property – confirmed (paywalled)
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