News Briefing: 7 March 2025
FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE
Luke Malpass (Post): Suits in the White House and Phil Goff’s untenable position (paywalled)
RNZ: Peters say sacking Goff was seriously regrettable, expert says it's justified
1News: Peters says Goff's role in UK 'untenable' after Trump remark
Luke Malpass and Thomas Manch (Post): Winston Peters sacks Phil Goff as UK High Commissioner (paywalled)
Benjamin Plummer (Herald): Phil Goff sacking: Why New Zealand had to remove UK High Commissioner over Trump comments (paywalled)
David Farrar: Goff sacked
Karanama Ruru (Stuff): Phil Goff was sacked after speaking at Chatham House. Wait, what about Chatham House rules?
Jamie Ensor (Herald): Phil Goff to go as UK High Commissioner after Donald Trump comments labelled ‘deeply disappointing’
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Phil Goff sacked as NZ’s high commissioner to UK after criticising Donald Trump
Eva Corlett (Guardian): New Zealand’s high commissioner to the UK loses job after Trump comments
RNZ: Who is Phil Goff, sacked NZ High Commissioner to the UK?
Tim Watkins (Pundit): Trump's UN Vote A Defining Act That Points To Day Of Reckoning For NZ
Madison Malone (Herald):Cyber threat highest it’s ever been, ex-Five Eyes leader warns
Thomas Manch (Post): SIS 'stronger focus' on Cook Islands after China agreements, spy boss says (paywalled)
Riley Kennedy (BusinessDesk): Trump’s tariffs create uncertainty for NZ wine exporters (paywalled)
Tim Cronshaw (ODT): Farmers await forecast profits amid tariffs
1News: Salvors finish removing fuel from sunk HMNZS Manawanui
RNZ: Fuel almost removed from sunken NZ navy ship in Samoa
Tobias Macintosh (Stuff): Military tanks have paid Wellington a visit. Why?
Gaurav Sharma (RNZ): PM briefed on Khalistan 'referendum' ahead of event, OIA documents reveal
WATER, LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Tom Hunt (Post): 'Kangaroo court': Mayor's explosive response to Wellington council letter (paywalled)
Ethan Manera & Georgina Campbell (Herald): Government considering intervention over Wellington Water, Tory Whanau calls for Nick Leggett to go
Lauren Crimp (RNZ): Mayor, councillors call for Wellington Water board chairperson to resign
1News: Tory Whanau calls for water board chair to go over 'millions wasted'
Tom Hunt (Post): Call for Wellington Water chairman Nick Leggett to be fired (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Wellington Water’s problems reinforce need for water reform (paywalled)
Anne Gibson (Herald): Watercare may reduce firefighting capacity to NZ’s biggest new supermarket if terms not met (paywalled)
Justin Wong (Post): Kāpiti Coast council wants to keep water services in-house (paywalled)
Max Frethey (Local Democracy Reporting): Nelson councillors fear ‘ambushing’ Tasman on amalgamation question
Gianina Schwanecke (RNZ): New reservoir planned for Hawke's Bay
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Lois Williams (Local Democracy Reporting): Ombudsman gives councils nudge over closed meetings
Eric Crampton (Herald): Giving councils more flexibility (paywalled)
Chris Lynch: “What I’m sharing could be seen as whistleblowing”: Port worker warns job cuts risk lives at Lyttelton Port
Tina Law (Press): Developer slams council’s draft 30-year transport plan (paywalled)
Alka Prasad (Post): Local board concern as Auckland Council agencies are disbanded (paywalled)
Sandra Conchie (Bay of Plenty Times): Taxpayers Union slams Tauranga council for $5m waterfront playground
David Hill (Local Democracy Reporting): The council with no Millennials or Gen Z representatives
Bill Hickman (RNZ): Welcome to 'Bogan Town': The people of Upper Hutt embrace their 'roots'
Mary Afemata (Local Democracy Reporting): Alf Filipaina won't seek re-election for council
Laura Smith (Local Democracy Reporting): Should the night market move? And who should pay more for the new sewerage scheme?
MEDIA
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider: The battle for NZME’s boardroom - who is Jim Grenon and what are his plans for NZ Herald/Newstalk ZB owner?; Who’s in line for TVNZ top news role (paywalled)
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider: Billionaire investor Jim Grenon wants clean-out of NZ Herald owner NZME’s board (paywalled)
Pattrick Smellie (BusinessDesk): NZME board spill attempt – opponents close to 40% (paywalled)
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): Shareholder mutiny brewing at owner of Herald and Newstalk ZB
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Boardroom putsch at NZME ‘last thing media needs’ — Labour (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Union wary of Canadian billionaire Jim Grenon's NZ media influence
Gyles Beckford (RNZ): Canadian billionaire makes move to take over board of NZME
Simon Plumb (Stuff): Billionaire moves to clear NZME board, add himself, days after buying 9% stake
1News: Billionaire investor proposes overhaul of NZME's board
Spinoff: The Fold: What can we learn from NZME, TVNZ and Sky’s 2024 results?
Jessica Roden (1News): Social media platform 'defied' order to remove suppression breach
FERRIES, TRANSPORT
Brent Edwards (NBR): Govt nearly $800m in the red over cancelled interisland ferries (paywalled)
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Winston Peters woos jilted Interisland ferry builder Hyundai with Korean War talk
Oliver Lewis (BusinessDesk): Company for procuring Cook Strait ferries officially registered (Paywalled)
Louis Collins (RNZ): MPs prepare to brave the response to congestion charging
Brook Sabin (Stuff): Air NZ is weak — its new CEO needs to deliver cheaper fares and growth
RNZ: Air New Zealand chief executive Greg Foran resigns
1News: Greg Foran to step down as Air New Zealand chief executive
Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): Air NZ CEO Greg Foran resigns, global search for replacement under way (paywalled)
Roeland van den Bergh and Kevin Norquay (Post): ‘Exceptional leadership and grit’: Air NZ CEO Greg Foran resigns (paywalled)
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Auckland public transport subsidies soar to $750m over five years
ODT Editorial: Cycling revolutions (paywalled)
FOREIGN INVESTMENT, ECONOMY
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Christopher Luxon has just one job next week (paywalled)
Rob Campbell (Post): The real agenda behind the Government’s economic moves (paywalled)
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Billion-dollar improvement in Government books – but billions left to go
Rebecca Stevenson (BusinessDesk): All that glitters is golden as tech heavyweights target NZ's new investor visas (paywalled)
Ella Somers (Interest): Stats NZ says environmental taxes dropped 21% to $5.2 billion in 2023
RNZ: Inland Revenue will continue calls causing fears over scammers
ADRIAN ORR’S RESIGNATION, RESERVE BANK
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Nicola Willis gets advice on overriding Reserve Bank’s bank capital rules championed by Adrian Orr (paywalled)
Jonathan Milne (Newsroom): Hiding in plane sight? The mystery of why the Governor cashed in his chips
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Post): Orr, Trump fade to the background as central bankers get technical in capital (paywalled)
Michael Reddell: $11 billion and out
Tim Hunter (NBR): Orr was right to step down from RBNZ (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: Next Reserve Bank Governor needs to have more than just the right qualifications (paywalled)
Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): Willingness may trump availability in RBNZ governor search (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): What got more expensive under Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr's watch?
Jenny Ruth: RBNZ’s chair and board should also go (paywalled)
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Adrian Orr leaving is excellent
John MacDonald (Newstalk ZB): Orr's job was to re-build the rock star economy - not be the rock star
Kerre Woodham (Newstalk ZB): It's hard to find anyone sorry Adrian Orr's gone
Brianna McIlraith (Stuff): Why do we have an inflation target of around 2%?
PARLIAMENT, WEEK IN POLITICS
Peter Dunne (Newsroom): We don’t know who Luxon is or what he stands for
Audrey Young (Herald): Phil Goff let himself and Govt down with reckless Donald Trump comments (paywalled)
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Tourism NZ slogan getting taken much too literally
Greg Dixon (Listener): Does “Marmite” Luxon just hate the poor? (paywalled)
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: Urgent debate on Andrew Bayly resignation - Prosecution and defence
Karl du Fresne: A tip for Luxon: ignore your media coaches
Joel MacManus (Spinoff): Echo Chamber: Is Winston losing his edge?
Tom Day (1News): Labour set to reshuffle shadow cabinet with new role for Andersen
Adam Pearse (Herald): Labour leader to reveal caucus reshuffle, Auckland portfolio set to change hands
Duncan Garner: Slam Dunc podcast: Is Luxon National’s Biggest Liability?
Laszlo Szollosi-Cira: Whispers on Luxon’s replacement
SCHOOL LUNCHES
Lucy Xia (RNZ): Investigation launched after student reportedly burnt by school lunch
Sam Smith (Stuff): Student taken to hospital after being burnt by hot school lunch
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Complaints about lunches frustrate principal whose students go without
Dr Bex: School lunches are more than food
Martin van Beynen (Press/Post): Marmite sandwich quip resonates with average punters (paywalled)
John MacDonald (Newstalk ZB): The PM just doesn't get it, does he?
Metiria Stanton Turei (ODT): Impoverished school lunch scheme robs kids of learning (paywalled)
TREATY, TE AO MĀORI, RICHARD PREBBLE’S WAITANGI TRIBUNAL RESIGNATION
Joseph Los’e (Herald): Richard Prebble’s Waitangi Tribunal exit a ‘political stunt’, says Willie Jackson
Michael Bassett: Academic Arrogance
Robert MacCulloch: Prebble is right to resign from Waitangi Tribunal. Wellington
Russell Palmer (RNZ): Te Tari Whakatau: Renaming of Te Arawhiti reflects smaller role
Lyric Waiwiri-Smith (Spinoff): Fifty things I learned from nearly 80 hours of submissions on the Treaty principles bill
Mihingarangi Forbes (RNZ): Mata: State of the Māori Nation - An extended interview with Willie Jackson
Tony Wall (Stuff): Employment law expert says iwi directors treated ‘outrageously’
André Chumko (Post): Hundreds of unresolved taonga tūturu cases
HOUSING, PROPERTY MARKET
Lillian Hanly (RNZ): 'Almost a trap' - Advocates say near impossible to get into emergency housing as homelessness increases
David Hargreaves (Interest): Mortgage woes may be with us for longer than we hoped
Greg Ninness (Interest): Residential building costs up by just 1.5% in year to February
Greg Ninness (Interest): Average NZ dwelling value increased slightly in February, CoreLogic says
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Housing downturn over, Corelogic says
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Property investors say multi-offer situations unfair
David Chaston (Interest): Home loan rate offers coalesce around their cycle minimums
HEALTH, COVID-19
Gordon Campbell (Scoop): On Why GP Practices Are In Crisis
RNZ: Bowel cancer free screening age lowered to 58, funding pulled from Māori programme
Stuff: Bowel cancer screening age of eligibility lowered
1News: Bowel cancer screening age to be lowered to 58
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): Autistic man in seclusion ward stuffs paper in ears to escape 'distressing' noise
RNZ: Practice guidelines for midwives 'too broad' - MPs
RNZ: Long Covid warning: 'Silent organ damage is a real problem'
Charlotte Pleasants (Post):What it was like spending 14 days in MIQ (paywalled)
Lucy Xia and Maia Ingoe (RNZ): Surgeries deferred because of power outage at Greenlane Clinical Centre
RNZ: Greenlane Clinical Centre delays surgeries over power outage
Natalie Akoorie (RNZ): Health NZ apologises to abuse survivor after ignoring John Middleditch sculpture complaint
RNZ: Global shortage of ADHD drugs hitting NZ patients
Rachel Thomas (Post): ‘Thankless role’: Lab worker strike expected to affect 123,000 tests (paywalled)
Natalie Akoorie (RNZ): Brain tumour registry: 'We're missing across the whole research spectrum'
CRIME
Lane Nicholas (Herald): Auckland businessman found guilty of money laundering in connection with $2m investment scam
Gaurav Sharma (RNZ): No relief in violent crime victimisations at retail outlets year on year
ENVIRONMENT, PRIMARY AND EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRIES
Richard Harman (Politik): Surprise at the GE Committee (paywalled)
Stephanie Ockhuysen (RNZ): NZ Merino Company suppliers have two farmers suspended after animal welfare investigation
Sam Olley (1News): Fonterra drops 'carbon zero milk' claim from product
Keiller MacDuff (RNZ): Push for recycling scheme re-emerges, with broad support for bottle deposit
RNZ: Verdict not yet reached over Restore Passenger Rail protests
BUSINESS, CONSUMER AFFAIRS
Stuff: Consumer NZ calls for ban on card payment surcharges
RNZ: Revealed: Exactly how many hours New Zealanders wait on hold each year
RNZ: Business confidence in Auckland remains in doldrum
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Work and Safety have something to answer for
Alka Prasad (Post): Boycotted KiwiSaver scheme’s Gaza investments ‘compliant’, ASB says (paywalled)
Miriam Bell (Post): Market turbulence should not spook KiwiSavers (paywalled)
IMMIGRATION, MIGRANT WORKERS
Finn Blackwell (RNZ): 'Broken' Tongan family facing deportation asks minister to let them stay
Shannon Pitman (Open Justice Reporting): Kaipara cannabis operation: Five migrant workers jailed over $3m grow house bust
PRIDE, RAINBOW CROSSINGS
Ashleigh McCaull (RNZ): Wellington gears up to celebrate Pride festival despite protests
RNZ: Wellington crossing painted in transgender flag restored to original
Bill Hickman (RNZ): Group behind pride colours on Wellington crossing comes forward
OTHER
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Average Jobseeker beneficiary claims welfare payments for more than three years
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Researcher outlines plan for higher tax on well-off pensioners
Anna Whyte (Post): Clouds still hang over Oranga Tamariki, new leadership brought in (paywalled)
Peter de Graaf (RNZ): Government puts $435,000 towards Mangawhai tornado clean-up
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): Govt needs to ‘pony up the infrastructure’ for growth (paywalled)
RNZ: $200m bill for Auckland to secure America's Cup hosting rights