NZCPR Newsletter: State of the Nation 2026

As we begin the final year of the National, ACT, New Zealand First Coalition’s first term of Government, it is instructive to look back at the commitments they made when first elected.

At that time the country faced significant challenges as a result of six years of mismanagement by Labour – firstly under the direction of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and then Chris Hipkins.

NZCPR Newsletter: A Counter-Revolution

The National Party has performed poorly in opinion polls for the past two years. The question has been whether this would improve once their major policy platform of economic recovery became more apparent, or whether their slump is indicative of a wider malaise affecting conservative parties globally.

NZCPR Newsletter: UNDRIP Disaster

At 4.45 am New Zealand time on 20 April 2010, then Minister of Maori Affairs, Maori Party co-leader Dr Pita Sharples, announced to the United Nations in New York that New Zealand would support the UN’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

NZCPR Newsletter: A Media Crisis

Dr Julie Posetti, a Professor of Journalism at the City University of London, described the growing scandal over editorial bias at the BBC as an “existential crisis”.

She warned: “You cannot have democracy without credible public interest media.”

NZCPR Newsletter: Tribal Defiance

In the early hours of Thursday 30 October 2025, members of the northern Ngatiwai tribe gathered at the Tutukaka marina for a 22 km boat trip to the Poor Knights Islands.

Ngatiwai is a multi-million-dollar tribal business conglomerate with 8,000 members. Registered as a charity, it pays no tax. Its income is derived largely from fisheries settlements, equity holdings, managed funds, Government contracts, commercial property, and consultation fees. As of 2024, it has an asset base of over $21.3 million and a property portfolio that includes the Oceans Resort Hotel in Tutukaka, the Bland Bay campground, and the Westpac and Warehouse buildings in downtown Whangarei.

NZCPR Newsletter: The Deep State

If the “Deep State” is defined as a power-based network within a government that operates in pursuit of its own agendas and goals instead of those of the country’s democratically elected leaders, then New Zealand has a serious problem.

Land Information New Zealand typifies the problem. A visit to their website shows that two years after the Coalition Government was elected with a clear commitment that public service agencies will have their primary name in English, they still promote themselves as “Toitu Te Whenua”.

NZCPR Newsletter: Parliament’s Arrogance

A society becomes totalitarian when its structure becomes flagrantly artificial: that is when its ruling class has lost its function but succeeds in clinging to power by force or fraud.” 
– George Orwell.

Over the last two years, Jacinda Ardern’s Government has instituted a raft of unprecedented emergency restrictions aimed at safeguarding our population from Covid-19.

In March 2020, using exaggerated modelling that predicted tens of thousands of deaths, Prime Minister Ardern made a Captain’s Call to abandon the New Zealand Pandemic Plan that had kept us safe during the 2009 Swine Flu epidemic, to introduce the first ever lockdown of healthy New Zealanders.

It turns out, however, that severely curtailing individual rights and freedoms creates enormous economic and social injury, with mounting evidence now showing that lockdowns have caused more harm than good.

NZCPR Weekly: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

On behalf of the New Zealand Centre for Political Research I would like to say a huge thank you for your on-going interest and wonderful support over the last 12 months – and wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!

Without a doubt, 2021 has been a very disturbing year as we faced the reality that our Prime Minister is leading New Zealand down a pathway of extreme socialism...

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NZCPR Weekly: A Tapestry of Lies

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we provide an update on Three Waters and question the whole basis for the reforms, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Westland Mayor Bruce Smith shares with us the progress being made by local authorities in defending ratepayer rights and fighting back, and our poll asks whether you believe iwi should have any special role in water management.

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NZCPR Weekly: Code Red for Health

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we examine the health crisis – both Covid and Jacinda Ardern’s plan to introduce Maori control of health services, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Gary Judd QC explains the health reforms have been designed to benefit Maori at a cost to all other New Zealanders, and our poll asks whether Jacinda Ardern should have sought a mandate from New Zealanders before changing our health system from ‘needs-based’ to ‘race-based’.

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NZCPR Weekly: The Fatal Flaw

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we discuss the failure of ‘co-governance’ and describe how Wai 262 – another key He Puapua objective – is being included in legislation, research, and trade deals to create new profiteering opportunities for the tribal elite; our NZCPR Guest Commentator Paul Verdon outlines his concerns about the inclusion of a haka written by a mass murderer in a trade deal with the UK, and our poll asks whether you agree that Maori should be given special rights and privileges as the “guardians” of New Zealand’s flora and fauna.

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NZCPR Weekly: Delta Comes Knocking

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we raise concerns about the impact of the surge in Covid cases that will result once Jacinda Ardern introduces her traffic light system in mid-December and we recommend as many people as possible oppose the new Pae Ora Bill to segregate New Zealand’s health system by race, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Professor John Gibson shares his investigation into the effectiveness of mass vaccination programmes around the world, and our poll asks whether the restructure of the health system be shelved.

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NZCPR Weekly: The Great Climate Reset

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we examine the raft of new restrictions resulting from the UN’s COP26 climate conference and we raise awareness of an important consultation process that will have a serious impact on our economic wellbeing, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Barry Brill highlights the hypocrisy of the Glasgow climate jamboree, and our poll asks whether New Zealand should be moving faster on climate change reforms than the major emitters.

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NZCPR Weekly: We Don't Love You Anymore Jacinda

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we outline why the public are losing their trust in Jacinda Ardern’s Government – and would like her to resign, our NZCPR Guest Commentator, Mark Hanson outlines a new type of Act of Parliament that would repeal all new laws, regulations and appointments through one Bill, and our poll asks whether you believe the concept of a Repeal Bill to remove unmandated and destructive law changes has merit.

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NZCPR Weekly: The Blame Game

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we outline how a ‘blame game’ is being used by the Government to justify authoritarian rule over Three Waters and Covid-19, our NZCPR Guest Commentator, leading Australian clinical immunologist Emeritus Professor Robert Clancy, explains the importance of early treatment protocols for Covid – as well as vaccinations – to prevent sickness and hospitalisation, and our poll asks whether New Zealand doctors should be free to prescribe whatever treatment and preventative remedies they choose for the treatment of the virus.

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NZCPR Weekly: Dividing Our Country

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we investigate the Government’s race-based agenda and raise concerns about the divisive impact it is having on New Zealand, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Anthony Willy outlines the danger of introducing tikanga into the law, and our poll asks whether you believe all references to ‘race’ and ‘ethnicity’ should be removed from legislation and regulation.

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NZCPR Weekly: Covid Wins

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we examine the Government’s Covid-19 strategy and question the Prime Minister’s authoritarian approach, our NZCPR Guest Commentator UK journalist Ross Clark shares his Daily Telegraph critique of our PM’s performance, and our poll asks whether you think it is possible to contain the Delta outbreak.

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NZCPR Weekly: Labour’s Health System Failure

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we investigate the Government’s proposed health reforms and raise concerns about the wisdom of pressing ahead with structural upheaval during a deadly pandemic, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Ian Powell explains the Government campaigned on consolidating District Health Boards, but is now planning to abolish them – without any consultation or justification, and our poll asks whether you believe the underlying reason for the Government’s plan to abolish District Health Boards is better health for New Zealanders or tribal control of the health system.

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NZCPR Weekly: Trust in Labour Falling

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we examine Labour’s fall in the polls and provide an update on the Three Waters reforms, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Gary Judd QC questions the Government’s plan to give control of services essential for the health and wellbeing of New Zealanders to Maori, and our poll asks whether you believe the real motivation behind the Three Waters reform is to improve water services, or give control of water to Maori.

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NZCPR Weekly: A Dangerous Time for New Zealand

Dear NZCPR Reader,   

In this week’s NZCPR newsletter we reflect on the danger to New Zealand caused by government funding of the media and we share our interview with Sky News, our NZCPR Guest Commentator Bruce Cotterill outlines why a free and independent press is a critically important foundation to a democracy, and our poll asks whether you trust media that have received funding from the Government’s Public Interest Journalism Fund.

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