This is our morning round-up of the key political and government links this morning from other sites, including RNZ, NZ Herald, Stuff, TVNZ, Newshub and various blog sites.
It is broken down by portfolio and topic for ease of scanning and is designed specifically for those in Government relations, media relations, corporate relations, business development and executive teams. Newsroom Pro subscribers can have it directly email to them every morning. Just email bernard.hickey@newsroom to be put on the Newsroom Pro Monitor list.
National Party
Mitchell Alexander (Newshub): National’s leak investigation widened to include staff outside Parliament
Tracy Watkins (Stuff): Simon Bridges’ judgment call coming back to haunt him
Press Editorial: How to turn an opportunity into a disaster
Herald Editorial: Simon Bridges’ stellar rise has struck bumbling block
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): Bumbling Simon Bridges has made Jami-Lee Ross saga so much worse
Zane Small (Newshub): Simon Bridges’ ‘embarrassing’ comment breached Jami-Lee Ross’ privacy – Garner
RNZ: Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern circumspect over National MP’s sick leave
Anna Bracewell-Worrall (Newshub): Jacinda Ardern would not have used the word ‘embarrassing’ for MP’s health issue
Jason Walls (Interest): PM would not have used word ‘embarrassing’ to describe MP’s health issues, she says
Newshub: National MPs stand by Jami-Lee Ross
Greg Presland (The Standard): National’s leak problem
Business and economy
Richard Harman (Politik): Winning back business confidence
David Hargreaves (Interest): Are the bottoming levels of business confidence really pointing to a substantial economic slowdown
Chris Keall (Herald): Are businesses better off with the R&D tax credit than Callaghan’s Growth Grants?
Tim Benbow and David Snell (Interest): Government’s new R&D plan is a bold initiative
Nikki Mandow (Newsroom): R&D tax credits aren’t enough to boost productivity
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): Tax break for R&D upped to 15pc, with stop gap help for start-ups
RNZ: NZ still behind in research and development investment
1News: Government announces $1 billion tax incentive for research and development
Herald: Air NZ boss Christopher Luxon on the Government: Time for less hui, more do-ey
Herald: Will council build confidence?
Herald: Amy Adams vs Grant Robertson: Is NZ’s economy slipping behind?
Fran O’Sullivan (Herald): Business should show leadership
Fraser Whineray (Herald): A bipartisan low-carbon energy goal
Andrew Grant (Herald): What will work in the future?
Herald: Shane Jones faces tough criticism in Mood of the Boardroom as CEOs urge him to cut the bombast
Sam Stubbs (Stuff): KiwiSaver: The saviour of NZ’s economy
Michael Reddell: A bare pass mark for the Board
Tax
Jane Clifton (Listener): Why Labour’s capital gains tax dreams are turning into a political nightmare
Jesse Mulligan (Spinoff): At war with angry #nzpol Twitter on the need for a capital gains tax
John Minto (Daily Blog): Why does a minimum wage worker pay a higher tax rate than a rich lister?
Taxpayer Union’s OIA requests
David Fisher (Herald): How right-wing lobby group NZ Taxpayers’ Union used false identities to make OIA request – and how it got caught
Greg Presland (The Standard): The Taxpayers’ Union’s identity problem
Foreign Affairs and trade
Rob Schmitz (NPR): Australia And New Zealand Are Ground Zero For Chinese Influence
Zane Small (Newshub): US Ambassador warns NZ not to trust China
RNZ: NZ not condemning US over ‘cruel’ diplomat change
Mackenzie Smith (RNZ): In Tokelau, NZ must ease tensions, mend relations
Defence
Kurt Bayer (Herald): The Big Read: Commander of NZ troops killed during Battle of Baghak tells his story for first time
Patrick Gower (Newshub): How an SAS technique kept shot Kiwi soldier Craig Wilson alive
Patrick Gower (Newshub): Exclusive: Former Kiwi soldier ‘haunted’ by deaths under his command
Education and training
Katarina Williams and Jessica Long (Stuff): Ministry of Education to recruit 400 overseas secondary school teachers
Gordon Campbell: On the teachers’ struggle for better pay and conditions
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Teachers on rejected pay offer: ‘It’s difficult to focus on my teaching’
Newshub: Secondary school teachers on what they need from Government (video)
Mānia Clarke (Māori TV): More teacher strikes planned for next month
Finn Hogan (Newshub): We need to teach our kids argument and empathy – expert
Annette Beautrais and Gerard Hoffman (Stuff): Halls of residence can be unsafe environments for vulnerable students
Adele Redmond and Joanne Carroll (Stuff): Parents forced to give up work if kindergarten closes
Health and disability
Meriana Johnsen (RNZ): Almost half of NZ girls get period before high school – report
Ruby Macandrew (Stuff): Call for sanitary bins in primary schools across New Zealand
Megan Sutherland (Newshub): Calls for sanitary bins in primary schools as 8yos getting periods
Julie Chapman (Stuff): Kiwi girls as young as 8 are struggling with period poverty
Tom Pullar-Strecker (Stuff): NZ unlikely to follow Australia in axing ‘tampon tax’, says expert
Emma Russell (Herald): After-hours doctors’ fees for children skyrocket at two Auckland clinics after DHBs cut funding
Belinda Feek (Herald): Man incensed over $100 fee for copy of medical files; GP backs down
Cate Broughton (Stuff): Disabled Lower Hutt man has ACC compensation re-instated, avoids eviction
Laine Moger and Shabnam Dastgheib (Stuff): Anti-vaccine billboard complaints taken to ASA Complaints Board
RNZ: Concern as hospital anaesthetic staff in Whangārei strike
Jennifer Eder (Marlborough Express): ’Pop-up’ clinic at emergency housing finds children without doctors
Matthew Tso (Stuff): Hutt DBH funds mental health workshops for community’s ‘frontline’ workers
RNZ: DHB to offer discounted parking tickets at hospital
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Waitemata DHB takes action after parking costs furore
Laine Moger (Stuff): AUT counsellor accused of ‘the worst’ counselling in alleged sex assault case
PIers Fuller (Stuff): Work begins on Wairarapa Hospital’s bracing
Ian Town (Stuff): New approach brings different health professions together to learn
Matthew Tso (Stuff): Hutt DBH funds mental health workshops for community’s ‘frontline’ workers
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Government rejects cross-party co-operation on mental health, for now
Euthanasia
Ruby Macandrew (Stuff): Fiery words as David Seymour and Bill English debate euthanasia bill
Lucy Bennett (Herald): Bill English debates David Seymour on End of Life Choice Bill
Drugs
Megan Sutherland and Annabelle Tukia (Newshub): Health Minister David Clark wants to reclassify synthetic drugs into Class A category
Sam Sherwood (Stuff): Health minister wants synthetic cannabis reclassified after Christchurch death
Logan Church (RNZ): Checkpoint: Dodgy synthetic drugs blamed for Christchurch death
Sam Sherwood (Stuff):Authorities investigating suspected synthetic cannabis death
Newshub: Two deaths from suspected bad batch of synthetic drugs in Christchurch
Herald: Christchurch death suspected to be related to synthetic cannabis
Immigration
Tim Watkin (Pundit): What value do we put on the values worth valuing? How New Zealand First has it wrong
RNZ: NZ values bill: ‘This is actually the antithesis of racism’ – NZ First MP Clayton Mitchell
James Nokise (RNZ): Secret New Zealand values immigration quiz
Steve Kilgallon and Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): The Big Scam: Migrant ‘thanks God’ for opportunity to stay
Lincoln Tan (Herald): Great-grandmother, 80, detained at airport after Immigration says she’s ‘too sick’ to be visiting daughter in NZ
Matthew Ronsenberg (Stuff): Man who arrived as asylum seeker leaving after life in NZ failed to deliver
Zane Small (Newshub): Afghan refugee battered by racism, hardship plans to leave New Zealand
Housing
Branko Marcetic (Newsroom): Long read: Meth-testing’s ‘wild west’ – Part two
Clare Curran (Southland Times): Have your say on renting law
Benn Bathgate (Stuff): ’The meth got to her’: Tamati Coffey hears horror stories from landlords
Eva Corlett (RNZ): Residents of closed Grey Lynn boarding house have nowhere to go
Nicole Lawton (Stuff): Fighting as notorious Auckland boarding house closes its doors for good
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Tenants have fewer rental properties to choose from
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Your guide to NZ housing market’s ‘new normal’
Oliver Lewis (Stuff): Anglican Care retirement village exit causes ‘extraordinary’ stress – resident
Employment
Amy Ross (Stuff): Understanding pay equity requires robust, rigorous analysis
Newshub: Sexist double standards in public service – report
1News: Taboo of not discussing what you earn could be self-defeating for Kiwi workers, says union
Justice
Sophie Bateman (Newshub): Māori over-represented in prisons due to colonisation – report
Laura Walters (Newsroom): Prison system crisis averted
Bayley Moor (Stuff): Children’s school holiday programme with dad in prison
Tess Brunton (RNZ): Ōamaru courthouse to reopen after years of facing closure
Stuff: Convicted killer David Mahia has died in Invercargill
Technology
Stuff: Data for sale
Margo White (North & South): Is your phone eavesdropping on you?
RNZ: Tech giants oppose proposed Australian law seeking private data
Local Government
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): Debate over sale of Napier Port could lead to referendum
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Council proposing to sell up to 49 per cent of Napier Port so it can cope with growth
Lisette Reymer (Newshub): Gisborne District Council in talks over what will replace Gisborne’s Captain Cook statue
Jimmy Ellingham (Stuff): Palmerston North City councillors should hold their debates in the open
Todd Niall (Stuff): Auckland Council wins $12 million claim against Westgate developer
Nick Truebridge (Stuff): John Tamihere slams Auckland Mayor Phil Goff’s criticism of housing plan as ‘bizarre’, ‘unfair’
Aaron Leaman and Libby Wilson (Stuff): Hamilton Mayor Andrew King’s ‘controversial’ river city vision
Gerald Piddock (Stuff): Hamilton City Council buys five riverside properties as part of Victoria on the River expansion plan
Christina Persico (Stuff): Māori significance first priority in new road names in New Plymouth
Transport
Michael Hayward (Stuff): New electric scooters allowed on footpath and road, but not cycle lanes
David Chaston (Interest): Regressive petrol taxes drive pump prices to record highs even though crude oil prices are 40% below record highs
Anna Bracewell-Worrall (Newshub): Reality of Government: No plans to scrap car registration fees
Simon Smith and Torika Tokalau (Stuff): Government considers scrapping car rego fees – a ‘giant revenue gathering device’
Damien O’Carroll (Stuff): What your vehicle rego really does – and it’s not your registration
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Deaths prompts safety upgrade of 11 rail level crossings in Auckland
Mitch McCann (Newshub): ’We miss him so much’: Grieving family’s relief at Auckland’s new rail safety measures
1News: Teen jogger’s tragic death inspires $7.6 million in upgrades to Auckland rail crossings
RNZ: Auckland gets funding boost for safety gates at rail level crossings
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Major investment in Auckland rail safety ‘to save lives’
Karl du Fresne (Dominion Post): A glittering career reaches the end of the line
Thomas Mead (Newshub): Wellington’s striking bus drivers to keep working for gold coins
Damian George (Stuff): Angry protesters storm regional council meeting over Wellington bus drivers’ dispute
Māori TV: Hamilton bus drivers strike again
Michael Neilson (Herald): Auckland Transport called out over poster appearing to reference Treaty of Waitangi
Damien O’Connell (Stuff): Parents confused by child safety restraints
RNZ: ID now essential for Jetstar’s domestic flights
Environment and conservation
Laurel Stowell (Herald): Why our most popular streams are too polluted to swim in
Michael Daly (Stuff): ’Extinction crisis’ can be reversed, but saving species with very low numbers complex
Amber-Leigh Woolf (Stuff): New Zealand ‘seriously lagging behind’ on deposit schemes to reduce rubbish
Finn Hogan (Newshub): Extended Interview: Rod Oram: How will climate change affect our economy?
ODT Editorial: Support predator plan
1News: Dunedin gets $4.3 million funding to help rid city of pests that threaten native wildlife
RNZ: Predator-free project receives $4m
AAP: Weasel ruffles feathers at Wellington kiwi haven
Lydia Lewis (Newshub): Dead Māui’s dolphin discovered to be pregnant
Johnny Moore (Stuff): If we can’t save our native birds, how will we tackle climate change?
Breanna Barraclough (Newshub): Bird of the Year brings in independent scrutineer to prevent voter fraud
Luke Appleby (1News): Photo-taking tourist narrowly avoids charging sea lion near Dunedin, prompting stern warning from DOC
Samantha Motion (Bay of Plenty Times): Call to ban dogs from two Tauranga parks to protect birdlife
Melissa NIghtingale (Herald): Porirua Adventure Park’s impact on environment ‘very minor’
RNZ: Predator wasp considered in eucalyptus-pest battle
Sarah Dowie (Southland Times): Recreation under assault
Human Rights Commission
Jason Walls (Herald): Justice Minister Andrew Little names new Human Rights Commissioner
David Farrar: Labour appoints a Corbynite as NZ’s Chief Human Rights Commissioner
Primary industries
RNZ: Nine to Noon: Fowl play? Chicken industry labelling ‘misleading’ says SAFE
Andrea Fox (Herald): Fonterra hold on raw milk market still 80 per cent despite predictions
Gerard Hutching (Stuff): Farmers are paying too much for fertiliser: soil scientist
Matthew Littlewood (Stuff): Serious concerns over long, dry summer see farmers asked to take less water
Farah Hancock (Newsroom): To GE or not to GE
Other
Paula Penfold and Eugene Bingham (Stuff): Gloriavale review: Crown Law rejects second inquiry in death of Prayer Ready
Alex Braae (Spinoff): Socialism is back, baby, and it doesn’t want your vote
Don Rowe (Spinoff): How Ngāi Tahu turned a landmark settlement into a billion dollar iwi empire
RNZ: Niue premier says leeches comment ‘idiotic’
Shabnam Dastgheib (Stuff): Government’s Families Package not a solution for Auckland’s poor, agencies say
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): New York glamour shots by Augusto ad agency will hurt Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
Waveney Russ (Spinoff): Metiria Turei: Beyond politics
Robin Martin (RNZ): Oil and gas traffic in Taranaki dangerous and destroying rural lifestyle – residents
Jackson Thomas (Stuff): Former broadcaster Tony Veitch officially signs off from NZ media, and moves to Bali
Fiona Connor (Newshub): Controversial NZ broadcaster Tony Veitch launches wellness retreat in Bali
