Brendan O'Neill: The media’s sinister crusade against Reform

The status quo elites are weaponising ‘sleaze’ to try to kill off populism.

Two truths stare us in the face following the latest Reform UK scandal. First, Reform needs to up its game. It can’t keep shuffling slack-jawed into media stings. And second, the media really are hell-bent on nobbling this insurgent party. ‘Scandal’ is clearly their cudgel of choice for kneecapping populism. Between the amateurishness at Reform and the animus of a panicked press class, democracy really has its work cut out.

DTNZ: Milei vows to ‘recover’ Falklands

Argentine President Javier Milei has intensified Buenos Aires’ long-running claim to the Falkland Islands, declaring the British Overseas Territory to be Argentine and warning that his government will act against companies involved in a major offshore oil development.

In a nationally televised address, Milei opened with an unequivocal assertion of sovereignty over the islands, known in Argentina as Las Malvinas.

Bob Edlin: Local government academic chides Hastings council (hurrah!).....

....for its censorial hushing of code-of-conduct investigations

West Australia-based Dr Andy Asquith – it seems – has become the go-to expert on local government, when journalists check out the dubious goings-on of local authorities.

He has been referenced in media reports this week dealing with a byelection in Porirua, the Tauranga City Council’s regulatory conflict of interest, and the Hastings District Council’s egregious urge to hush its code-of-conduct investigations.

David Farrar: Petrol tax should be higher, not lower

Henry Cooke writes:

This week showcased the unfortunately strong case for depoliticising political decisions.

First, a group of politicians in Cabinet made a regrettable call that some of them were clearly regretting as they made it – delaying fuel tax hikes, yet again.

Monday September 7, 2026 

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Damien Grant: Tamatha Paul calls English ‘a bastard language’ - She’s missing the point

English is a bastard language, claims Tamatha Paul. She declared, with a confidence devoid of comprehension: “It’s a bastardisation of Greek, Old Norse, Latin…”

Seems disrespectful. Let’s break this down.

Taxpayers' Union-Curia Poll: September 2026

Labour slumps, Opportunity falls out in latest Taxpayers’ Union-Curia Poll 

Our September Taxpayers’ Union–Curia Poll has landed, and it is a pretty brutal set of numbers for Labour.

Ryan Bridge: The war in Iran isn't going anywhere

Told you when this whole thing kicked off that it wouldn't end tomorrow, and it hasn't.

This is the war between the US and Iran. It is still going on.

The biggest problem was always going to be the Strait of Hormuz, and the Strait of Hormuz is not open.

David Lillis: Holding Chief Executives and Boards to Account

An Article in Stuff

An article in Stuff of 4 September makes compelling reading (Penfold, 2026). So, one Chief Executive has gone, following a suspension. I will refrain from comment here, as I know former and/or current staff at the relevant place of work and I must be discreet. Simply, the public should note that an investigation will examine allegations of bullying, sexual and other harassment and retaliation; a culture of fear and retribution that suppressed staff from raising concerns; the handling of complaints; confidentiality and privacy practices; the use of non-disclosure agreements; and the adequacy of oversight of board and management.

Breaking Views Update: Week of 6.9.26

Monday September 7, 2026 

News:
Backing Pasifika youth to lead, create and succeed
Pasifika youth across New Zealand will have new opportunities to gain practical skills, explore future careers, and build employment pathways through a new Government partnership, Youth Minister James Meager and Pacific Peoples Minister Paul Goldsmith say.

The Government is investing $125,000 to support Pasifika Festivals Aotearoa to deliver the Pasifika Youth Producers Programme, with Creative New Zealand matching the investment dollar-for-dollar.

Centrist: Janet Dickson ruling shows New Zealand’s regulator reforms fall short

Janet Dickson faces losing her licence over a compulsory tikanga course, while Alberta limits regulators’ power to impose ideological training.

Professional bodies are supposed to regulate professions, not politics

The Real Estate Agents Disciplinary Tribunal has upheld the registrar’s refusal to exempt Janet Dickson from Te Kākano, a compulsory 90-minute course covering Māori language and development, the Treaty of Waitangi and Māori land.

The Real Estate Authority had already signalled that it intended to cancel her licence. Dickson now appears likely to lose the right to work in real estate after 30 years. There is no allegation that she acted incompetently or dishonestly in a property transaction, or harmed a client.

Dr Benno Blaschke: When a line on a map makes housing dearer

Imagine two paddocks at the edge of a city. They have the same soil and access to the same roads and pipes.

Then town planners allow homes on one side, but not the other. The first can be worth many times more. Nothing physical has changed. The rule has.

Families pay through dearer sections, mortgages and rents.

Dr Oliver Hartwich: Hobbiton or space nation? NZ can’t seem to decide

New Zealand is barely a military power. It has had no combat aircraft for 25 years, and its ageing frigates need replacing. Lifting defence spending to 2 per cent of GDP passes for ambition. The country comes across as a real-world Hobbiton: peaceful, friendly and not very capable.

Yet one capability puts New Zealand in the club of superpowers, and it is the last one anyone would expect. Last year, only the United States and China saw more rockets leave their soil. New Zealand, with 17 launches, matched Russia.

Craig Rucker: Nepal’s tragic flood was nature, not climate

When natural disaster strikes, climate charlatans pounce.

Over 1,200 people are dead, and over 4,000 are missing after a glacier collapsed, sending flash floods into Nepal and Tibet.

Climate scientist Dr. Michael Mann (of Climategate fame) wrote in the UK Guardian that Nepal’s flood reveals “the apocalyptic future that lies in store if we fail to take dramatic climate action.”

Dr Michael Johnston: Tahatu

For young people, contemplating career options can be bewildering. It can be hard even to know what opportunities are available.

Many school leavers enrol at university by default. It is a well-trodden path. In the past, university degrees reliably led to reasonably well-paid work.

There is no guarantee that this will continue to be so. Many occupations for which university has prepared young people in the past may be largely taken over by AI.

Dr Oliver Hartwich: Town planners will finally have to answer for land prices

What is politics? According to Max Weber’s classic definition, politics is “a strong and slow boring of hard boards.”

Having worked around politics for over two decades has given me a good idea of what Weber meant by that. Achieving proper policy change is a tough business indeed.

Dr Eric Crampton: Fix ETS instead of banning carbon forestry

For practical purposes, not emitting a tonne of carbon dioxide is equivalent to pulling a tonne of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and securely sequestering it, so long as the accounting is sound.

The Zero Carbon Act consequently requires net zero for greenhouse gases other than biogenic methane. And the Emissions Trading Scheme is meant to find the least-cost mix of emission reductions and removals for the sectors it covers.

Net Zero Watch Samizdat: Will the lights go out?

UK

NESO engineer: blackouts are only a matter of time

A National Energy System Operator grid engineer claims problems with the electricity network means power cuts are only “a matter of time”. The engineer described demand, solar and wind forecasting available to control-room staff as “atrocious” and said operators lacked the information needed to anticipate movements on the network. It is less easy for NESO to monitor the output of wind farms, solar panels and batteries, compared with big fossil fuel plants.

Dr Oliver Hartwich: Birds of a feather

Voting opens today in the most important election of 2026. And no, this is not the General Election.

I am talking about Forest & Bird’s ‘Bird of the Year’. Run annually since 2005, it has become a fixture in New Zealand’s calendar.

David Farrar: Audrey on Te Pati Maori’s bottom line

Audrey Young writes:

Te Pāti Māori not only released a radical Treaty of Waitangi policy this week that would upend New Zealand’s democracy as we know it, co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said the whole policy was a bottom line, meaning it was non-negotiable.

That means Te Pāti Māori would not sign up to a centre-left Government unless it agreed to its policy, and that is the crucial factor. That’s not only a coalition killer, it will make it less likely the parties of the left are elected.