Guest Post: One Thing Leads to Another

A guest post on No Minister by Kerry Butler

When those in positions of power enact a policy that is meant to be “limited” to specific groups involving exceptional circumstances, such benevolence invariably ends up extending beyond the original intent.

We‘ve witnessed a classic example of this incremental creep in Welfare.

Maori Activists are very aware of the fact that when they push for “special” treatment of whatever sort for Maoridom, that’s really just about getting their foot in the door, i.e. knowing that it will lead to more.

Breaking Views Update: Week of 12.4.26

Friday April 17, 2026 

News:
Shane Jones calls Far North councillor Davina Smolders’ co-governance complaints ‘perverse’, ‘pathetic’
Shane Jones has labelled an Act councillor’s complaints that a co-governance “takeover on steroids” was happening in the Far North as “perverse” and “pathetic”.

Following a social media firestorm sparked by Bay of Islands-Whangaroa ward councillor Davina Smolders over Māori involvement in local body politics, the Far North District Council yesterday voted to expand a Māori liaison committee.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Why are we moaning about the pharmacy announcement?

We can be a bunch of moaners in this country, can’t we?

Now, from my point of view, that announcement yesterday - which we talked about on the show - that pharmacists may soon be able to hand out a range of publicly funded medicines without patients having to go to a GP first, is a no-brainer.

Andrew Dickens: Facial recognition – the rise of Big Brother or a necessary tool?

Bunnings have begun rolling out facial recognition technology in its New Zealand stores, saying it's needed to protect staff and customers because violent incidents continue to rise, despite the fact we've got tough on crime, and we've had a bit of a crackdown. The first two stores to switch on the facial recognition technology are in Te Rapa and Hamilton South, both in the Waikato, but a nationwide rollout is planned. The company says the technology will help identify serious repeat offenders, it will reduce theft, and they do this after what they say is a sharp increase in threatening behaviour.

Mike's Minute: The reality of NZ vs Australia's fuel response

Like a school report, the International Monetary Fund forecast for the global economy arrived in yesterday's post.

No one escaped the Trump carnage. The UK in particular is in trouble, as is potentially Australia.

Australia was warned not to exacerbate wartime inflation. It was a slap down, a mark against the Government and a big reveal into the way Albanese and his cronies run the place.

DTNZ: Pharmacies set for expanded healthcare role

The Government has unveiled a proposal to expand the role of community pharmacies, allowing them to provide easier and more affordable treatment for a range of common conditions from June.

Health Minister Simeon Brown and Associate Health Minister David Seymour said the move aims to reduce pressure on GP services and improve access to care, particularly for families struggling with long wait times.

Dr Bryce Edwards: Democracy Briefing: - New Zealand's media trust is still in crisis

The annual AUT report on trust in New Zealand’s news media is out today, and the headlines reporting it are mostly positive. This is because trust is up. The decline has stopped, for now. Unsurprisingly, some media organisations are already taking a victory lap. Be sceptical.

Yes, there has been a genuine improvement. For the first time since the survey began in 2020, the number of New Zealanders who say they trust the news in general has risen: from 32% last year to 37%. Trust in the news people personally consume also edged up to 50%, from 45% in 2025. The improvement is real. But the context matters enormously, and it’s easy to lose sight of it amid the cheerful framing.

Vance Ginn: Property Taxes Invert the Moral Order of Ownership

A property deed should mean ownership, not a renewable lease from the government.

Yet that is what property taxes amount to in practice. A family can earn the income, buy the home, pay off the mortgage, maintain and improve the property, and still owe the government every year merely to retain possession of it. Miss enough payments, and the state can seize the property. That may be common. It is not normal in any morally serious sense.

John MacDonald: No one wants to pay more tax, but...

Do we need more taxes

There are two ways we can look at it. Does The Government need more tax revenue? Yes, I think it does. Which is why those tax cuts after the last election have backfired so badly.

And do we want to pay more tax? When push comes to shove, probably not. But that’s human nature, isn’t it?

Andrew Dickens: The debate over the Bendigo-Ophir mine

I want to start off with the Bendigo-Ophir mine near Cromwell, and the question is should it get fast track approval? The Australian company Santana Minerals has applied to build four open pits in the Dunstan Range near Cromwell, the largest of which would be one kilometre long and 300 metres deep, and it's alongside a two kilometre long tailings storage dam which would stay there forever.

Bob Edlin: Te Papa is now being criticised for trying to reduce staff numbers...

Te Papa (which has one fewer Treaty pieces among its exhibits) is now being criticised for trying to reduce staff numbers


Uh, oh. PoO couldn’t muster a team to report on the doings of E tū members at Te Papa Tongarewa, who rallied this afternoon to save jobs after the museum proposed a restructure that would axe 14 roles and realign dozens more across the organisation.

Members were to hold a rally at the Te Papa forecourt from 12pm to 2pm and were inviting the public to attend in support.

Thursday April 16, 2026 

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Michael Laws: Check Out The Otago Regional Council’s ‘Strategic Directions’ Policy

Think the Far North & Gore councils are co-governance worries? Check out the Otago Regional Council’s ‘Strategic Directions’ policy.

Click to view

Davina Smolders and Sean Plunket update the Far North Co-Governance Issues

Councillor Davina Smolders on updates on Far North co-governance issues.

Click to view

Elliot Ikilei: Gore District Council To Infuse Māori Values Into Their New District Plan

Elliot Ikilei and Michael Laws discuss the bizarre decision of the Gore District Council to infuse Māori cultural/spiritual values into their new district plan.

Click to view

Barrie Davis: From Sex to Gender

Winston Peters has reintroduced the Legislation (Definitions of Woman and Man) Amendment Bill as the latest in a series of legislative proposals from NZ First against “woke ideology” and “social engineering.” While the Bill is likely to fail at first reading (like the TPB), it has already shown that National are not with the program in the run-up to the 2026 election.

Ryan Bridge: The Nats will eventually back a bed tax

Tourism Minister Louise Upston is getting advice from officials on a bed tax. Christopher Luxon told us that last week.

They're not being explicit about it yet, but the idea is a no-brainer and will eventually happen.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Bunnings needed to prioritise staff safety here

If you haven’t watched the Bunnings video yet showing its staff being attacked, I recommend you go and watch it - especially if you feel uneasy about the company using CCTV for facial recognition. It’s a compilation of incidents that have occurred in its stores.

Duncan Garner: Voting And Speaking Rights Given To Unelected Iwi Up North

Duncan dives into a major shift happening right now in the Far North District Council. They have held an extraordinary meeting to give full voting and speaking rights to unelected iwi and hapu members. We look at what this means for local democracy and whether shared governance works when there is no shared electoral accountability to the ratepayers.

Click to view

Roger Partridge: Why Courts Cannot Determine the Scope of Their Own Authority

Critics of judicial overreach face an odd challenge. The most sophisticated response is not to defend the decisions – it is to deny that constitutional limits exist at all. If courts made the rules, the argument runs, courts can remake them. Last month’s column, An Inheritance Worth Defending, drew that response, among others.

Four arguments recur. On the surface they are distinct – one concerns the foundations of parliamentary sovereignty, one the proper limits of common law development, one a comparison with Australian constitutional law, and one concerns the lessons to be drawn from two landmark cases on judicial review and constitutional supremacy.