John McLean: Immigration Biometric Project Exposed

On 16 June 2026, Minister of Immigration Erica Stanford angrily highlighted that the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has repeatedly and deliberately misled her about an information technology project purporting to improve biometric capability at Immigration New Zealand. Immigration NZ is part of MBIE. The project, which wasted at least $38 million of public money in less than 10 years, has been abandoned after achieving nothing.

Kerre Woodham: Overstayers and fudged immigration promises

The Government is cracking down on serious immigration breaches. It's announced it will strengthen deportation settings on the same day that Immigration New Zealand revealed there are more than 20,000 people who have overstayed their visa. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford says there are gaps in the current system. For example, under the current rules, someone who commits a serious crime can't be liable for deportation if they've held a residence visa for more than 10 years. Stanford says they're fixing that. Where migrants don't follow the conditions of their visa, she says, I've made it clear to Immigration New Zealand compliance and enforcement actions are a priority.

Jonathan Ayling: Candace Owens barred from entry into New Zealand

Late yesterday afternoon Immigration New Zealand barred Candace Owens from entering New Zealand. It seems (incredibly) the best response New Zealand now has to opinions that some find distasteful or wrong is to exclude them from the conversation entirely.