Caleb Anderson: The NZ First Conundrum - and its potential undoing

Last week Shane Jones issued a warning to the Waitangi Tribunal indicating, basically, that NZ First expects them to stay in their lane.

There was something odd about this media release, both in respect of content, and in respect of timing.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: How disappointing is ACT's Constitution Act proposal?

Okay, if you voted in the last election to see a tidy-up of the creep of Treaty principles throughout our statute books, you should be very disappointed by what ACT did when it basically walked away from Treaty principles altogether.

ACT announced it's going to change the Constitution Act instead of trying to pass the Treaty Principles Bill again.

Breaking Views Update: Week of 23.8.26

Tuesday August 25, 2026 

News:
ACT releases election Treaty policy - what's in it and what's gone
ACT has released its election policies on constitutional issues, pledging to curb "activist judges", enshrine property rights, among others — but the party's defeated Treaty principles referendum is nowhere to be found.

The policy, titled One Law for All with One Future Together, was released at 1pm.

Mike's Minute: The only thing deciding this election is the economy

Right, a poll the Government should be worried about - whose fault is the economy?

The importance of this is based on the simple premise that this election is about one thing, which is the state of the place.

Is it getting better, or not?

Do you see a brighter future, or not?

Ashley Church: Could TOPs “free money” policy really work?

And is it really 'evidence based'?

In 2004, John Key described Labour’s newly announced Working for Families programme as “communism by stealth.”

For younger readers, Working for Families was a major expansion of financial assistance to families introduced by Helen Clark’s Labour Government in the 2004 Budget. It increased family income assistance, added a new payment for working parents and expanded help with childcare and housing. By the time it was fully implemented, Labour expected the package to cost an additional $1.1 billion every year, with nearly 300,000 households receiving direct assistance.

Pee Kay: Soviet Style at your Checkout!

The Reality Behind the Greens’ $10 Million Supermarket Fines

Paul McCartney wrote about it; the Beatles sang about it –

“I’m back in the USSR

You don’t know how lucky you are, boy

Back in the USSR”

Now welcome to Chloe and Marama’s nostalgic trip back to the USSR, where basic economics are replaced by socialist bureaucracy!

Tony Orman: A Major Election Issue Should be the Death of Democracy

The forgotten Number One issue this Election is the Demise of Democracy.

It doesn’t matter what the issue is because it’s with every issue.

Even the new whiz kid of technology AI is worried.

JC: Media Love Snakes and Ladders

There are two reasons for buying the Weekend Herald. Both reasons sit in the Business Section and feature two contributors: Bruce Cotterill and Fran O’Sullivan. Their articles are always timely and many are related to politics. Fran’s articles are often more specific, while Bruce paints pictures with a broader brush. Both articles over two weekends were of the National Party debacle.

I first want to talk about the media, because it was Bruce’s article that gave me the idea for my headline, as it occurred to me that virtually none of the achievements he talks about are mentioned in the media. I am aware most prefer not to watch the six o’clock news and their reasons for not tuning in are pretty obvious, including having no interest in left-wing politics.

John MacDonald: Grass verges have had their day

Grass verges have had their day.

These are the areas of grass you see on streets, between the road and the footpath, where people sometimes park their cars.

I’ll tell you why I think they should go. But first, let me tell you about some residents in the Christchurch suburb of Somerfield who aren’t happy about the city council putting in a heap of red and white markers to stop people parking on the verge.

Simon O'Connor: Reflections from the ED

A recent trip to the emergency department, and a longer stay in hospital, had me thinking about the current debate around cultural competency and indigenous knowledge.

I recently had an unexpected visit to Auckland’s emergency department, followed by a longer stay in hospital. It seems I may have brought back more than memories from a recent overseas trip.

Before anyone panics, I should immediately add that I’m now fully recovered and pose no risk to anyone. If that weren’t the case, I’d probably still be locked away in the isolation room where my hospital journey began.

Guest Post: If you rent your property short-term, tell the council and pay your rates

A guest post on Kiwiblog by James Doolan

If you own a second property, rent it regularly through Airbnb and have not told your council about the commercial use, this opinion piece is directed at you.

You may regard the omission as harmless or perhaps you’ve realised that the chances of being identified are low. Deliberately withholding information that affects your rates liability is not clever tax planning. It’s gaming the system and leaving other ratepayers to pay more. Kiwiblog readers are usually quick to condemn exactly this behaviour when it occurs in other contexts, particularly when there’s failure to disclose changes in circumstances affecting benefit entitlements.

Monday August 24, 2026 

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Wendy Geus: Biased media deflects to US whilst ignoring NZ's divisive race issue

Misogynistic fixation on Trump Aide highlights NZ's biased media's agenda - deflection to US domestic politics whilst ignoring NZ's divisive race issue

CNN's decision to go after Trump's executive assistant, Natalie Harp, who travelled with him in a decoy plane to avoid an assassination attempt, with sleazy overtones, was quickly picked up by their little cousins in NZ who will loyally print anything to tarnish Trump. They don't do investigative journalism when Trump, or New Zealand's political right, is involved.

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: The Mount Maunganui landslide report couldn't be more damning

I'm astonished, can I say, that Marty Grenfell, the boss of Tauranga City Council, thinks no one has to quit over the landslide and the damning report. And frankly, that there are not outright calls for him to quit from the mayor and the local MP.

That report, I don't know if it could have been more damning, because it told us Tauranga City Council was warned multiple times that a landslide might happen in exactly the spot where a landslide happened, as early as 1999 and as most recently as only six or seven months before the landslide.

Dr Bryce Wilkinson: When is equal unfair and when is it fair?

For many today, inequality is a dragon that public policy must slay. The accusing fingers usually point at unequal outcomes for selected things, such as income and diversity representation. But unequal outcomes in other dimensions may be celebrated; women dominate as primary school teachers, for instance.

So, when is equal unfair, and when is it fair?

Geoff Parker: Alternative Facts And New Zealand's Selective History

There is something deeply ironic about accusations that the Coalition Government wants to teach New Zealand children “alternative facts” while some of those making the accusation present an extraordinarily selective version of our history.

The latest example in a letter to the Editor of the Waikato Times 22/8/26  is the claim that Māori had already established a sovereign nation before the Treaty of Waitangi and that British involvement simply destroyed an existing system of independent government.

The historical record is considerably more complicated.

Reynold Macpherson: Rotorua's Head Start Process Has Failed - The Minister Must Take Control

Rotorua Lakes Council’s handling of the Government’s Head Start reform process has a legitimacy problem that cannot be dismissed as the unavoidable consequence of a compressed timetable.

The deeper problem is that there was enough time for some people to be involved upstream.

Judy Gill: Sacred, Tapu, Tūpuna and Floating Ghosts - When Constant Demands for Respect Produce the Opposite

INTRODUCTION

New Zealanders are repeatedly told that Māori spiritual beliefs, practices and traditions must be respected.

But when religion and superstition are presented as “knowledge”, and criticism of spiritual claims is treated as disrespect, constant demands for respect can eventually produce the opposite.

Dr Eric Crampton: The sticker sticklers that can drive me to drink

The back of the bottle of Johnnie Walker Black Label that I keep at the office has two labels.

The first company-branded label appears to be designed for international markets that use the metric system.

Roger Partridge: The two-thirds we never built

The Financial Markets Authority is having a bad year. Its chair resigned in May. Its chief executive has been suspended. And the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment is investigating its culture.

Some will see this as a failure of the FMA’s board model. It is better seen as a reminder that New Zealand only ever built one part of the system needed to govern regulators well.