Damien Grant: A feel-good slavery bill that won’t catch the worst offenders

Children being sold into slavery is a terrible thing. And if New Zealand firms are involved in such activity Kiwis would want to minimise this evil.

So it was with delight that I read two outstanding lawmakers, National’s Greg Fleming and Labour’s Camilla Belich, have picked up the mantle of William Wilberforce in taking action to prevent not just slavery, but servitude, sexual exploitation, indentured labour and other similar evil.

Karl du Fresne: What's wrong with NZ journalism: No. 228 in a series

I read something by Andrea Vance at the weekend. Why? Good question. I think I read Vance to assure myself that I’m not missing anything by not reading her. Figure that out if you can.

Actually, that’s not entirely fair, because she has done some good work. I remember a column of hers from 2021 in which she gave the government a robust and deserved serve for being obsessively secretive.

Regrettably her piece yesterday, which purported to be an analysis of electorates to watch in the 2023 general election, was marred by the familiar Stuff slant. This is now so embedded that you barely notice it.