Kerre Woodham: Is there a case for amalgamation?

Government ministers gave councils an ultimatum yesterday: come up with your own plans for amalgamation within three months, or the Government will do it for you. Local Government Minister Simon Watts and RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop said there was broad support from councils – some were already gung-ho and proceeding with plans to amalgamate. One of them is Nelson Mayor Nick Smith. He's long held the view that merging with Tasman is the right thing to do for his city and cites common interests and unnecessary duplication.

Breaking Views Update: Week of 3.5.26

Thursday May 7, 2026 

News:
Dedicated marae funding to be scrapped
Rural marae fear that without funding, they will struggle to provide emergency services to their communities during a state of emergency.

The government is overhauling how lottery money is distributed, leaving many rural marae concerned about their ability to serve as lifelines during future disasters.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: The BSA sealed its own fate

Well, blow me down - I did not think that Paul Goldsmith had the courage or the inclination to do something as bold as actually scrapping the Broadcasting Standards Authority.

I thought it was all talk when he kept dropping it as a possibility but it turns out I was wrong. He’s announced the BSA is gone; the laws will be drawn up in the next few months and they’ll be passed before the next election.

Lindsay Mitchell: Stanford admits Kiwis don't want to work

Immigration Minister, Erica Stanford, criticising ACT's proposed levy on immigrant workers, said it will fall to farmers to pay it. Farmers need immigrant workers because:

“There are certain regions in New Zealand where there is low unemployment or there are Kiwis who are simply not willing to do some of those jobs, be it in agriculture or aged care,” she said.

John McLean: Legal Elite Is Winning In The War For Constitutional Supremacy

Craig Stobo has been forced to resign as chair of the board of New Zealand’s Financial Markets Authority.

On 4 May 2026, National Party MP and Commerce & Consumer Affairs Minister, Cameron Brewer, accepted Stobo’s offer to resign. Brewer’s acceptance was of course code for, “If he’d refused to resign, I’d’ve booted him”.

David Harvey: The Word that Swallowed Everything

This could be seen as a companion piece to “The Art of Not Deciding” which I published on 29 April 2026. That article dealt with decision paralysis. One aspect of that is fear and accompanying that is a desire to stay safe – from criticism, condemnation. Better to do nothing than do something and be criticised for it.

In this article I look at the issue of safety and the word “safe” and how that word has been weaponised.

Let me begin with a word. Not a law, not a regulation, not even a policy — just a word.

“Safe.”

David Farrar: Chippie is brave and right

The Herald reports:

Labour leader Chris Hipkins says he is open to discussing whether New Zealand’s superannuation should be means-tested.

Hipkins told Newstalk ZB’s Kerre Woodham he would not want full means-testing of the country’s pension but added “there are questions”.

Ross Meurant: Speech at the funeral of Pat Vesey

Excuse my referring to script. I usually speak from the cuff but there are a couple of points where I need to be specific.

To the family of Pat Vesey – I extend my genuine condolences.

I emphasise “genuine” for once upon a time, Mr Vesey and I were adversaries.

Family of Pat Vesey, you know me not. But some may recall the constable-on-CIB trial - as one of the Scene Detectives - at the homicide site of Jeanette and Harvey Crewe, Pukekawa, June 1970.

Anthony Grant: Tikanga - The Unknown Law That Binds Us All

The law of Tikanga troubles me.

My concerns stem in part from my experience as a student at Auckland University in 1967 when I was enrolled to study Mãori.

Rodney Hide: The Population has Bombed

New Zealand’s fertility rate sits at 1.55 births per woman. Official Stats NZ figures for the year ended December 2025 confirm it. Replacement level is 2.1. We have been below it since 2013 and the numbers keep sliding.

This is not a local oddity. South Korea is at 0.68 children per woman — the lowest on Earth. Taiwan, Singapore, Italy, Spain and Japan scrape along between 1.1 and 1.3. Much of Europe hovers around 1.5. No major developed nation is reproducing itself.

Mike's Minute: The economic damage caused by weather warnings

This is quite possibly from our "hopeless causes" file.

But can I at least try and make the plea that we have a look at the economic damage done by trigger-happy weather offices and compliant clickbait media when it comes to storm warnings?

Cyclone Vaianu was the latest and is hopefully still fresh enough in our memories to remind us of a week's worth of hyperbole and headline nonsense that actually caused quite a lot of damage.

Not storm damage, but economic damage.

Wednesday May 6, 2026 

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New Zealand Is on the Edge

In this Lotus Eaters Daily commentary, Luca argues that New Zealand is undergoing significant demographic change, linking immigration patterns to broader debates about culture, identity, and national direction. The video reflects a critical perspective on diversity and the social tensions it can create.

Click to view

DTNZ: Govt moves to scrap Broadcasting Standards Authority

The Government is moving to disestablish the Broadcasting Standards Authority, arguing the country’s media laws have failed to keep pace with the rise of online platforms, podcasts and on-demand content.

Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith said Cabinet had agreed to progress work on shutting down the regulator and exploring industry-led self-regulation instead.

Ryan Bridge: Governments should control spending and stability

There are basically two big things governments control that affect the economy and therefore all of us; spending and stability.

They're not to be taken for granted but too often they are.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: ACT's proposal for pharmacists isn't radical, it's common sense

So at lunchtime today, I was catching up with one of our advertisers just across the road, having a cup of tea. He owns a health-adjacent business and we got chatting about community pharmacies - like the one I go to - and what they can do to survive at a time when the big players, like Chemist Warehouse, are taking over.

Rodney Hide: Standover Tactics - $180 Million for a Gold Mine

An iwi group allegedly demanded $180 million from Santana Minerals to approve the Bendigo Santana gold mine in Central Otago. This is not consultation. It is standover tactics enabled by our planning laws.

ACT Resources spokesman Simon Court has called it exactly what it is. Documents and meetings show iwi representatives pointed to a previous seven-figure payout for a hydro project as the benchmark. Pay up or face opposition. The company calculated the lifetime “contribution” at around $180 million. Kā Rūnaka say $180 million has not been their “focus,” but they have not denied the report.

Ani O'Brien: Who is right about the India Free Trade Agreement ?

Not a disaster. Not a breakthrough. Just a trade deal.

The public debate over New Zealand’s Free Trade Agreement with India has been waging since New Zealand First announced they would not be supporting it. Depending on who you listen to, it is either a significant breakthrough that opens New Zealand up to one of the world’s most important emerging markets, or a rushed, low-quality deal that gives away too much while delivering too little in return. Both sides are telling a version of the truth. But neither, on its own, is sufficient to understand what has actually been agreed.

Rodney Hide: What is the New Zealand government's Debt Limit?

Sir Niall Ferguson’s “Ferguson limit” is the point at which a nation spends more on debt interest than on defence. Cross it and the fiscal arithmetic begins to erode the ability to project power or even maintain basic sovereignty. The United States crossed it for the first time in nearly a century in 2024. New Zealand beat them to it.

Our latest numbers are damning. Core Crown interest payments are running at around $8.9 billion a year. Defence spending sits at roughly $3.3 billion. We are not close. We are already deep into Ferguson territory. Interest alone now dwarfs law and order spending as well. The debt service bill is larger than entire departments.

Lindsay Mitchell: How MSD treats covid fraudsters is revealing

For the last four years, the Ministry of Social Development, the main agency for the Wage Subsidy Scheme, has relentlessly reported on people who committed fraud during the Covid period. For example: