Luxon has Another Hissy Fit

In a display that can only be described as petulant, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has resorted to name-calling, branding Labour leader Chris Hipkins “frickin’ Chris Hipkins” in a heated outburst over National's FamilyBoost failure. This sorry spectacle, captured during a recent TV appearance, reveals a National Party leader unable to explain away the results of his failed policies and rattled by polls showing his popularity, and that of his coalition, sliding into the doldrums.
 

Yesterday, RNZ reported:

Luxon snaps back at 'frickin' Chris Hipkins over National's FamilyBoost 'flop'

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has challenged Labour to front up with any policy at all as he comes under pressure over National's struggling childcare support scheme.

It comes after Labour revealed just 153 families had received the maximum FamilyBoost rebate, well short of the 21,000 families the government said would be eligible for the full amount when it was unveiled last year.

Speaking on his way into a Tuesday morning caucus meeting, Luxon rejected Labour's characterisation of the policy as a failure.

"I'm not taking any lectures from frickin' Chris Hipkins or the Labour Party," he told reporters. "They have no idea what to do. They put us in this mess.

It's not hard to see why voters are losing faith in Luxon's ability to govern New Zealand when all he has is bad PR stunts and blame for the opposition for his own government's socially and economically damaging policies.

For a government that promised economic salvation but has delivered little beyond finger-pointing and excuses, the latest Talbot and Mills poll should be a wake up call for Luxon to stop with the dishonest posturing, and get on with the bloody job. But instead all we get is a rattled PM doubling down with his blame Labour game.
 

Yesterday, The Post reported:

Poll suggests National headed to one-term Government

Concerning for the National-led coalition Government is the response to broader questions, including that 76% thought the economy was “not so good” or “poor” and 23% considered it “good” or “excellent”. Some 21% expected the economy to get better in the year ahead, while 37% thought it would get worse.

A slight majority, 51%, believed the country was on the wrong track, and the same number disapproved of the Government’s performance. While 38% believed the Government deserved to be re-elected, 48% thought it was time to give another party a go.

...

The Talbot Mills poll has tended to have a National-ACT-NZ First coalition ahead, though the poll suggested support for a Labour-led Government in its February and March results.

This remained the case in this newly obtained poll, which had Labour at 35%, National at 32%, the Green Party at 12%, ACT at 8%, NZ First at 7% and Te Pāti Māori at 3.8%.

Assuming Te Pāti Māori retained the six Māori electorates -- which is not a given as a by-election for Tāmaki Makaurau nears -- such a result would give a Labour-led Government the balance of power.

Luxon’s Coalition of Chaos is scrambling to pin the blame for New Zealand’s economic woes on Labour, conveniently ignoring the global context of a pandemic that sent inflation soaring worldwide. They harp on about the inflation rate in the final quarter of Labour’s tenure, as if National’s own policies haven’t fanned the flames of the current cost-of-living crisis. Stats NZ reports inflation at 2.7% for the year to June, with projections suggesting it could climb above 3%, a figure that undercuts National’s narrative of having tamed the beast.

Far from addressing the crisis, National’s policies, marked by austerity and tax cuts skewed towards the wealthy, have left ordinary New Zealanders grappling with soaring electricity bills and out of control grocery costs. Labour’s Barbara Edmonds hit the nail on the head: “Christopher Luxon promised to make the cost of living better, instead, he’s making it worse.”

Luxon isn't doing himself any favours. One minute he's saying National must “own the mess” of inflation increasing to 2.7%; the next, he lashes out at Hipkins, accusing Labour of causing the very crisis his government has failed to mitigate. This hypocrisy is staggering. National wants to claim credit for inflation dropping from its 2022 peak of 7.3%, yet dismisses the fact that the current 2.7% rate is higher than the projected 2.1%, largely due to government policies. Any increase to infaltion while wages stagnate still bites hard into household budgets, particularly those on fixed incomes.

#BHN For close to 2 years National's main push back against negative numbers was "blame Labour" but not the PM has owed inflation, all that is over #nzpol #nzpolitics pic.twitter.com/fRe5tJHA3J

— Pat Brittenden (@patbrittenden) July 22, 2025

Along with the cost-of-living crisis, where basic items such as butter has increased in price by 60% in just one year, National's much-vaunted FamilyBoost tax credit, touted as a lifeline for families, has been exposed as another complete failure, with Labour revealing that only a tiny fraction of eligible households are receiving the full $75 promised.

The pressure of these numerous missteps is clearly beginning to tell, and Luxon appears to be incapable of coping with the fallout from his own policy failures.

The coalition’s economic strategy is a house of cards. Relaxing immigration settings and giving billions to wealthy people while slashing public spending has failed to spark the promised recovery, with unemployment rising and consumer confidence tanking. The 1News-Verian poll shows just 36% of Kiwis feel optimistic about the economy, a 5-point drop since December, while 50% believe the country is heading in the wrong direction.

Luxon’s coalition, including ACT and NZ First, seems more focused on divisive culture wars than on delivering tangible relief. The Prime Minister's name-calling is a sign of desperation, not leadership. His government’s failure to address the cost-of-living crisis, coupled with their eagerness to blame Labour for systemic issues, exposes a lack of vision, vision that is desperately needed to bring New Zealand into the 21st century.

Hipkins, by contrast, has called for a focus on “bread and butter” issues such as jobs, health, and homes, while warning against being distracted by National’s divisive tactics. As the 2026 election looms, Kiwis are growing weary of National’s empty slogans and broken promises. Luxon’s outburst isn’t just a lapse in decorum; it’s a symptom of a right-wing government out of ideas and out of touch.

The Left Must Unite on Voter-Friendly Tax Reform

The left wing in New Zealand stands at a critical crossroads. As the cost-of-living crisis deepens and economic pressures intensify, Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori must unite to deliver voter-friendly tax policies that resonate with everyday voters. The current tax system, strained by inequity and inefficiency, demands reform that prioritises fairness, fosters growth, and protects those already stretched thin, such as beneficiaries, low-waged workers, and small businesses being pushed to the brink. Without a cohesive strategy that places people, and not the government, first, the left risks alienating voters and ceding ground to the current Neoliberal Government and groups like the Taxpayers’ Union, whose campaign for a cap on rates will be gaining traction among elderly homeowners, a key voting demographic.


On Sunday, The Standard reported:

 

The left should unite on tax, fast

With less than 18 months to go to the election, Labour doesn’t yet have a tax policy. The Greens do. Tax policy done badly will almost certainly stop Labour and the Greens changing this government. But they have to deal with it.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins said in March this year that too much investment was going into property rather than “productive businesses that create jobs,” but didn’t elaborate further.

When asked directly if the party would be campaigning on a capital gains tax, Hipkins said: “We’ll campaign on tax reform … now, the exact nature of that, it’s not just a simple issue of this one tax or that one tax.”

Hipkins’ election 2023 position was that “I’m confirming today that under a government I lead there will be no wealth or capital gains tax after the election. End of story.”

The Taxpayers’ Union’s push for rate caps taps into a genuine concern: spiralling costs for homeowners, particularly pensioners, who feel squeezed by rising local government charges will be looking for relief. This resonates because it speaks to fairness, an idea the left should champion more often. However, rate caps, although they will be resonating, are a blunt instrument, potentially starving councils of the revenue needed to maintain ageing infrastructure or invest in climate-resilient systems. Labour and the Greens must counter with a bold, unified vision that balances rates and tax relief with the funding required for councils and government agencies to deliver essential services. The detail should be in-depth, but selling it should be simple and to the point.

A return to a 10% GST rate, for instance, could ease the cost-of-living burden on families, putting more money back into the pockets of those who need it most. Likewise, making the first $10,000 of income tax-free would directly support low-waged workers and beneficiaries, shielding them from a regressive tax system. Such measures would not only provide relief but also kick start the economy. Higher wages and increased benefits for low-income earners are not just moral imperatives; they’re economic necessities. People on tight budgets spend what they have on things like groceries, bills, and local services, directly stimulating demand.

A wealth tax must be implemented in such a way that doesn't give rise to criticism such as claims that it's an envy tax. The fear of capital flight, for instance, where wealthy individuals relocate to avoid taxes, has often been exaggerated in debates over wealth taxes targeting the ultra-rich. Evidence from countries like Norway, Spain, and Switzerland, suggests minimal capital flight after wealth taxes have been undertaken. In Norway, a 2022 wealth tax increase to 1.1% on net wealth exceeding NZ$3.2 million (NOK 20 million) prompted initial claims of significant departures, with estimates suggesting 30–82 high-net-worth individuals (0.01%–0.03% of Norway’s millionaire population of 236,000) left. However, updated analyses indicates the scale of Norway's capital flight was badly overstated.

 

Spain’s 2011 wealth tax, reintroduced in 2022 as a “solidarity” tax on net assets above NZ$5 million (€3 million), affects the richest 0.5% of households and has seen increased revenue with negligible flight. Switzerland’s long-standing wealth tax, ranging from 0.13% to 0.94% on net assets above NZ$170,000 (SFr 100,000), impacts a broader 10%–15% of the population due to lower thresholds but has not driven significant capital flight, with its appeal sustained by low overall tax burdens and no capital gains tax on movable assets. 

France’s pre-2017 wealth tax (ISF) saw around 370 departures in 2003 (0.02% of its wealthy population), dropping to 163 by 2018 (0.01%) after reforms, indicating limited flight. These cases show that well-designed wealth taxes, with high thresholds and robust enforcement, can limit flight risks while raising revenue, countering narratives that taxing the rich inevitably drives them away.

The top 1% of NZ owns 25% of the wealth. The top 10% owns 70% of the wealth. The bottom *half* of the country owns less than 2% of the wealth. David Seymour sees no problem with this. pic.twitter.com/YEEpAaSbrN

— antihobbes (@antihobbes) May 2, 2022

This approach contrasts sharply with National, NZ First and the ACT Parties tax cuts for the wealthy, money that has little to no economic benefit as it generally languishes in savings accounts or offshore investments. The left must champion policies that channel money to those who will spend it, driving growth from the ground up. However, they must proceed cautiously. Additional taxes, particularly those impacting small businesses, could choke off the enterprises that employ many New Zealanders. The left cannot afford to alienate the small business community, already battered by economic headwinds and domestic policies that have lead to a prolonged downturn.

The challenge is to craft a tax system that funds ambitious social and infrastructure investments without stifling growth. Councils need capital to address ageing water networks and urban development, while government agencies require resources for healthcare, education, and climate initiatives. Current tax settings, if maintained or reduced strategically, can provide this capital, but only if allocation and redistribution is undertaken wisely. Labour and the Greens must resist the urge to impose new taxes that could be seen as punitive, especially by voters wary of the government overreach we've often seen from previous administrations.

A united front is essential to sell this vision. Infighting or divergent policies risk diluting the message and handing ammunition to opponents who thrive on division. The left’s tax reform must be bold yet pragmatic, offering tangible relief while safeguarding the revenue needed for a resilient future. Reducing GST or introducing a tax-free threshold would signal a commitment to fairness, while careful stewardship of existing revenue can ensure councils and agencies aren’t left short. The left wing must sell a long term vision for the future of New Zealand capturing the public's imagination in a way that the mainstream media cannot ignore.

By uniting behind a voter-friendly platform that prioritises low-income earners, protects small businesses, and counters the Coalition of Chaos and Taxpayer Union’s narrow narrative, Labour and the Greens can reclaim the high ground on the economic debate. The alternative, fragmentation sound bites that the MSM intentionally ignore, will only embolden those seeking to dismantle the progressive direction needed to increase everybodies quality of life. The time for clarity and unity is now.

NZ Must Implement a Four-day Work Week

New Zealand finds itself at a critical juncture. With productivity growth stagnating and our brightest minds departing for greener pastures abroad, the time has come for bold shift in policy direction. The solution may be counterintuitive: working less to achieve more through the implementation of a four-day working week.

Today, RNZ reported:

 

Four-day work week reduces burnout and improves job satisfaction - study

Working a four day week reduces burnout and improves job satisfaction, a new study has found.

The research out of Boston College in the United States tested the effect of reducing employees hours to a four-day week with no reduction in pay.

The study held six-month trials reducing the working hours for 2896 employees across 141 organisations in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and the USA.

The outcomes of the trials were then compared with 12 control companies that did not transition to the shorter work week.

The researchers found that employees with a reduction of eight hours or more per work week self-reported experiencing larger reductions in burnout and improvements in job satisfaction and mental health, as compared with those at companies that maintained a five-day work week.

A small change in physical health was also seen, but the researchers said they expected this was less significant because changes in physical health take time to manifest.

 

The international evidence is compelling and mounting. Belgium became the first country in Europe to legislate for a four-day week in 2022, with Belgian employees winning the right to perform a full workweek in four days instead of the usual five without loss of salary. Microsoft Japan's pioneering trial delivered remarkable results, with overall employee productivity boosted by 40%. Across multiple studies, almost half of respondents said productivity improved either slightly or significantly, with the vast majority of organisations expressing strong interest in continuing such arrangements.

These overseas cases demonstrate a fundamental truth that traditional workplace orthodoxy has long resisted: productivity is not merely a function of hours worked but of focused, engaged, and well-rested human capital. Countries from Spain, Iceland and South Africa to the United States, Germany and Italy are implementing trials and witnessing tangible benefits including reduced healthcare costs, lower employee turnover, and enhanced recruitment capabilities.

New Zealand's productivity crisis demands urgent attention. The world has been experiencing a productivity slowdown, from which New Zealand has not been exempt, and this matters because sustainable improvements in our living standards depend upon our productivity. Recent Treasury analysis reveals the stark reality facing our nation: when an economy fails to become more productive, real wages stagnate and living standards suffer.

New Zealand Productivity

The National-led government's approach to addressing this challenge has been fundamentally misguided. Rather than investing in innovative workplace policies that could enhance both productivity and worker wellbeing, we've witnessed a regression towards policies that actively undermine both. The dismantling of fair pay agreements, weakening of worker protections, and pursuit of austerity measures that reduce public investment in productivity-enhancing infrastructure represent a backwards step that will inevitably worsen our competitive position.

These regressive policies have created a demoralising environment for New Zealand workers. Employment law changes that strip away hard-won rights, combined with wage policies that fail to keep pace with inflation, send a clear message: that worker wellbeing and prosperity are secondary considerations to short-term cost-cutting measures. This approach is economically self-defeating, as it not only means less revenue circulating within the economy, it also drives our most talented individuals offshore where they can access better working conditions, higher wages, and more progressive employment practices.

The brain drain accelerating under current policies represents not merely individual career decisions but a national crisis of human capital flight. When our best and brightest seek opportunities in jurisdictions that value work-life balance, offer competitive remuneration, provide better housing opportunities, and implement forward-thinking workplace innovations like four-day working weeks, New Zealand loses the very talent we've trained and need to drive productivity improvements and economic growth here in Aotearoa.

A four-day working week represents more than workplace reform; it constitutes a strategic economic intervention. By reducing working hours while maintaining productivity levels, we create conditions for enhanced innovation, reduced stress-related health costs (particularly relevant as our workforce ages) and improved retention of skilled workers. The model offers particular appeal to younger generations who increasingly prioritise workplace flexibility and well-being alongside traditional career advancement.

The path forward requires political courage to challenge conventional wisdom about workplace organisation. Rather than pursuing policies that treat workers as expendable and a cost to be minimised, we must embrace approaches that recognise human potential as our nation's greatest asset. A four-day working week pilot programme, implemented across selected public and private sector organisations, could demonstrate the productivity gains and wellbeing improvements that international evidence suggests are achievable.

New Zealand cannot afford to persist with outdated workplace models whilst competing nations embrace innovative approaches to human capital management. The choice is stark: continue with regressive policies that drive talent offshore and suppress productivity growth, or adopt progressive workplace reforms that enhance both economic performance and citizen wellbeing. The four-day working week offers a tangible pathway towards reversing our current trajectory and building a more prosperous, equitable future for all New Zealanders.

National Claims Credit for Labour’s Infrastructure Legacy

In a brazen display of political opportunism, the National-led government, under Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, has attempted to claim credit for a $6 billion infrastructure package that is little more than a re-announcement of projects meticulously planned and funded for by the previous Labour government. Far from showcasing bold leadership, Luxon’s coalition has delayed critical projects and, in some cases, slashed their budgets, all while spinning a narrative of fiscal prudence. This Coalition of Chaos isn't only riding on Labour’s coattails, but also undermining New Zealand’s infrastructure progress through cuts, cancellations and misrepresentations.

 

Today, 1 News reported:

 

Govt trumpets billions being spent on infrastructure in coming months

The Government has released an infrastructure update showing $6 billion of state-funded construction is due to start between now and Christmas.

The ministers who were visiting a construction site in Drury spoke to media this morning. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon also took part in the briefing.

Minister for Economic Growth Nicola Willis and Minister for Infrastructure Chris Bishop said in a media release that the projects would drive economic activity and create thousands of jobs across the country.

"The projects getting underway include new roads, hospitals, schools, high-tech laboratories and other government buildings," Willis said.

Consider the Ōtaki to Levin expressway, a vital roading project to ease congestion and boost regional connectivity. Labour’s Upgrade Programme in 2020 allocated $817 million for this project, with construction initially slated for 2022, but delayed due to planning and consenting processes. Under National, however, the project completely stalled, with start dates pushed out to late 2025 inflating costs by aproximately $783 million. Luxon’s government now touts this project as part of their $6 billion “new” infrastructure plan, conveniently glossing over Labour’s original funding and their own role in stalling progress.

The Dunedin Hospital redevelopment, another cornerstone of Labour’s health infrastructure investment, was budgeted for with $1.4 billion allocated in 2021, with construction underway by 2022. National’s coalition, however, delayed key phases, pushing full completion beyond 2028, cutting $200 million from the project’s budget in 2024, citing “cost efficiencies.” Yet, Chris Luxon, Chris Bishop, and Nicola Willis’ recent announcement framed the hospital as a new National Party achievement, completely ignoring their funding reductions that have strained its delivery.

School upgrades, including roll-growth classrooms, modular buildings designed to accommodate growing student numbers due to population increases, were part of Labour’s $3.9 billion education infrastructure package in 2020, with $400 million for the National Education Growth Plan to add 6,600 student places. National trimmed $150 million from this programme in Budget 2024, redirecting funds to charter schools that aren't going to be required to report student numbers. For anybody who's paying attention, National re-announcing these classroom projects as their own looks pretty damn stupid.

National’s cuts to infrastructure, particularly the cancellation of 3,500 Kāinga Ora state house builds, have triggered a severe downturn in the construction sector, exacerbating unemployment and driving thousands of skilled workers overseas. Labour’s $1.5 billion public housing investment was designed to deliver 18,000 homes by 2024, sustaining thousands of construction jobs. National’s decision to halt these builds (selling partially completed state houses and bare land to their mates at a loss), alongside $2 billion in school building cuts and cancelled hospital upgrades, has led to an estimated 15,000 job losses in the sector. A whopping 13,000 construction workers left New Zealand in 2024 alone, many to Australia, where demand remains strong. This exodus threatens the industry’s capacity to deliver future projects, as skilled tradespeople, including carpenters and electricians, are unlikely to return to New Zealand for lower wages and a higher cost of living, leaving the sector in a precarious state.

JUST ANNOUNCED: $6 billion worth of infrastructure projects are getting underway in the next few months, which will grow NZ’s economy and create thousands of jobs across the country. pic.twitter.com/yY3PLCUKkd

— NZ National Party (@NZNationalParty) July 19, 2025

National’s policy changes since taking power in late 2023 have significantly contributed to a surge in company liquidations, particularly in the construction sector, as funding cuts and economic pressures have squeezed businesses to breaking point. According to data from the New Zealand Companies Office, 2,500 businesses were liquidated in 2024, a 35% increase from 2023, with construction firms accounting for 25% of these. These figures reflect the fallout from National’s cancellation of $1.5 billion in Kāinga Ora state house builds and $2 billion in infrastructure projects, which starved the sector of work and exacerbated cashflow issues. Rising interest rates and inflation, unmitigated by National’s policies, have further strained small and medium enterprises, with the Building Industry Federation noting a 72% jump in construction liquidations in early 2023 compared to the prior year. This wave of insolvencies underscores the devastating impact of National’s austerity measures on an already fragile industry.

But what makes the National Parties credit-grabbing particularly galling is their hypocrisy in criticising Labour for policies they inherited from John Key’s National government. Open-plan classrooms, once championed by Key’s administration with $1.2 billion invested between 2011 and 2016, are now derided by National Minister's who imply that they were Labour’s misstep, despite National’s policy changes requiring their rollout, at great cost to already stretched budgets. Similarly, biking infrastructure, funded with $390 million under Key to promote sustainable transport, is now mocked as wasteful “woke” spending by a coalition desperate to rewrite its own history.

Here's National's Minister of Education, Erica Stanford, stupidly implying that open-plan classrooms were Labour's idea:

"So multiple govt's over multiple years who've been flip-flopping around without any evidence, but the evidence is clear that these classrooms are not optimal."

Not to be outdone, Luxon’s standout moments of mendacity shine through in his rhetoric. In his State of the Nation address, he claimed Labour left a $200 billion “hole” in transport commitments, a figure easily debunked and described by Labour leader Chris Hipkins as “absolute nonsense,” noting it equates to half of New Zealand’s GDP. Labour’s transport plans, funded at $2.68 billion annually through three-year cycles, were sustainable, with tools like value capture in development. National, however, cut rail funding from $1.2 billion in 2023 to $466 million in 2024, undermining projects like the Auckland Strategic Rail Programme, only for Winston Peters to re-announce select rail investments to try and save face.

The Coalition of Chaos, fractured by tensions between National, ACT, and New Zealand First, seems united only in its desperation to obscure Labour’s legacy. By delaying projects, cutting budgets ($200 million from Dunedin Hospital, $150 million from education infrastructure, and $734 million from rail) and re-announcing them as their own, Luxon’s government reveals a stark lack of original vision or planning ability, which they continuously try to obscure by blaming Labour for their own failures.

New Zealanders deserve better than a dishonest government that lies to claim credit while dismantling the foundations laid by the previous Labour led government. If Luxon truly wants to “get New Zealand back on track,” he might start by acknowledging the tracks Labour funded and the cuts his coalition continues to make to our vital infrastructure.

The Persistent Stain of Sexism Within the NZ Police Force

The New Zealand Police have long prided themselves on being a cornerstone of community trust, tasked with upholding law and order with impartiality. Yet, recent allegations of a pervasive "boys' club" culture within the Northland detective ranks expose a troubling undercurrent of sexism that undermines this mission. Senior police manager Bridget Louise Doell, with three decades of service, has laid bare a toxic workplace marked by gossip, exclusion, and bullying during an Employment Relations Authority hearing in Whangārei. Her claims of being sidelined by a predominantly male detective team reveal a systemic issue that not only harms individuals but also cripples the operational efficacy of the police force.


Today, RNZ reported:

Senior police manager alleges 'boys' club' culture among Northland detectives

A senior police manager alleges she was met with swirling gossip, private group chats and a pervasive "boys' club" culture when she stepped into a leadership role overseeing the predominantly male detective team in Northland.

The allegations now form the basis of an Employment Relations Authority (ERA) hearing in Whangārei this week.

Bridget Louise Doell, a senior police officer with three decades of experience, was seconded to the crime area manager role in 2020, overseeing senior detectives in the criminal investigation branch (CIB) at Whangārei police station.

The role involves operational oversight of inspectors, but Doell's evidence has been that the transition was met with resistance.

Over the next three years, she claims she was sidelined by detectives, describing a toxic workplace culture marked by gossip, exclusion from key decisions, and repeated allegations of bullying.

Doell’s experience is not an isolated incident. A 2021 Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report found that a quarter of police staff had faced abuse, bullying, or harassment, with sexism and a "boys' club" culture identified as significant drivers. The report highlighted shocking examples: female officers being demeaned as "the girls" or assigned menial tasks, and one case where a topless photo of a female officer was circulated without consent. These behaviours, often dismissed as "banter," foster an environment where women are marginalised, their contributions undervalued, and their authority undermined. Such a culture erodes morale and deters capable women from pursuing leadership roles, weakening the force’s diversity and perspective.

The operational impact of this sexism is profound. Effective policing relies on trust, both within the force and with the public. When female officers like Doell are excluded from key decisions or face resistance from subordinates, as she alleged when detective inspectors bypassed her to meet with the Crown Solicitor, it disrupts the chain of command. This undermines case management, delays justice, and risks errors in investigations. The 2021 IPCA report noted instances where bullying officers failed to provide backup to colleagues in the field, a direct threat to operational safety. If officers cannot rely on their team due to discriminatory attitudes, the ability to respond to emergencies or complex investigations is compromised.

Historical cases further illustrate the depth of the problem. The 2007 Commission of Inquiry into Police Conduct, sparked by Louise Nicholas’s allegations of sexual violence by officers, exposed a culture of cover-ups and misogyny. Despite promises of reform, the persistence of similar issues nearly two decades later suggests a failure to address root causes. In 2014, a police unit faced scrutiny after two staff were suspended for sending lewd footage to a colleague, alongside bullying allegations. These incidents reflect a pattern where sexist behaviour is not just tolerated but normalised, eroding public confidence in the police’s ability to handle sensitive cases, particularly those involving gender-based violence.


Last year, RNZ reported:

Female police officer harassed by senior, investigation flawed - IPCA

A senior police officer sexually harassed a female officer, but an internal investigation process was flawed, the independent police conduct authority has concluded.

The woman officer complained to police at the end of a two-month secondment where she was in the senior officer's section under his supervision, prompting an internal police investigation as well as an investigation by the independent police conduct authority (IPCA).

She said the senior officer - labelled as Officer A in the IPCA report - had frequently made inappropriate comments towards her, including some that were sexual. And that this had increased to the point she was concerned his behaviour could become physical and felt unsafe working with him, the IPCA said in a summary report.

In 2021, Star News reported:

 

'Boys club': Sexism, bullying, nepotism highlighted in review of police culture

Nepotism, cronyism and gaslighting have contributed to pockets of toxic culture in the New Zealand police, a new report into bullying and abuse has found.

Despite issuing scathing criticisms and outlining stories of abuse and harassment, the Independent Police Conduct Authority said recent police reforms show promise.

Two interviewees said when they were out in the field and radioed for immediate backup because they were at risk, bully officers failed to provide back-up.

"The interviewees subsequently verified that these other officers had been in radio contact and not involved in any other urgent job," the IPCA added.

In 2017, Stuff reported:

Lynley Tulloch: Police standards, sexism and social sadism

This programme of reform in 2007 was intended to shape the future direction of the police service. The report stated that police misconduct must be "dealt with professionally, expeditiously, and in a manner that gives both complainants and the general public no reason for concern".

Just this year another report was released documenting the police response to this Commission of Inquiry. Commissioner Mike Bush acknowledged that police deserved scrutiny over their behaviour. He said that there had been a lot of work done in attitudinal change in police culture over the past 10 years.

Clearly nothing, despite a number of investigations and reports, has really improved. The cost of this culture extends beyond internal dysfunction. Public trust is the bedrock of effective policing, yet how can victims of sexual assault or domestic violence have faith in a force that struggles to confront its own biases? The IPCA has acknowledged progress under Police Commissioner Andy Coster, with action plans to address toxic behaviours. However, the recurrence of these issues in Northland suggests that reforms are either superficial or inconsistently applied. Without rigorous, transparent processes to root out sexism, the police risk perpetuating a cycle of distrust that directly creates inefficiency.

To restore faith, the New Zealand Police must prioritise systemic change. This means not only disciplining offenders but also dismantling the structures that enable a "boys' club" mentality. Leadership must model inclusivity, and recruitment and promotion processes should actively counter bias. Even though the Police are desperate for new recruits, the operational stakes are too high for half-measures. A police force that fails to respect its own cannot hope to protect and serve the public with integrity. Until sexism is confronted head-on, the stain on the force’s reputation, and its inability to deliver justice, will only worsen.

The Jevon McSkimming Scandal Raises Serious Questions

The recent revelations about former Deputy Police Commissioner Jevon McSkimming have sent shockwaves throughout New Zealand. The discovery of child sexual exploitation and bestiality material allegedly found on his work devices is not just a personal failing but a systemic betrayal of public trust, a betrayal that must not be swept under the carpet. It demands a full inquiry into how McSkimming went undetected and raises serious questions about whether he was part of a wider network of depravity within the New Zealand Police Force.


Yesterday, RNZ reported:

Revealed: Child exploitation and bestiality material allegedly found on former Deputy Police Commissioner Jevon McSkimming's work devices

Child exploitation and bestiality material were allegedly found on former Deputy Police Commissioner Jevon McSkimming's work devices, it can now be revealed.

The revelation comes after a High Court judge dismissed an application to prevent media reporting the nature of the alleged objectionable material.

McSkimming resigned as the country's second most powerful cop in May amid separate investigations by the Independent Police Conduct Authority and police.

His resignation came a week after RNZ approached him, via his lawyer, with allegations about material found on his work devices.

RNZ earlier revealed pornography found on McSkimming's work devices was being investigated as alleged objectionable material.

His lawyer Linda Clark was then granted a rare "superinjunction" by Justice Karen Grau that prohibited reporting that disclosed the nature of the allegedly objectionable material, as well as the existence of the injunction itself.

McSkimming’s ascent to Deputy Commissioner, a position of immense power, was procedurally endorsed by then-Prime Minister Chris Hipkins in 2023, following a Public Service Commission selection process that apparently missed the rot beneath the surface. This isn’t the first time the police vetting system has failed us. Most notably, the 2018 inquiry into the appointment of Wally Haumaha exposed significant flaws in the vetting process, including inadequate scrutiny of candidates’ backgrounds and conflicts of interest. Haumaha’s interference during the 2004 Operation Austin, an investigation into historical rape allegations against police officers Clint Rickards, Brad Shipton, and Bob Schollum, whereby he downplayed their crimes, was unbecoming of an officer of the law.

Haumaha, who worked closely with the serial Police rapists in Rotorua during the 1980s and 1990s, reportedly dismissed victim Louise Nicholas’ allegations as “nonsense,” suggested officers “stick together,” and described Shipton as a “big softie” and Schollum as a “legend” with women, remarks that downplayed the numerous serious sexual assault allegations against his colleges. This type of culture within the Police is likely widespread and clearly hinders accountability, evidently resulting in only 4.2% of all sexual assault victimisations (reported and unreported) being prosecuted, and just 1.2% resulting in convictions. Who is to say that such a sick culture that treats all complainants as liars isn't also in play when victims are making allegations of bestiality or pedophilia against Police officers?

Recommendations from the Haumaha inquiry, intended to tighten oversight, appear to have been ignored or inadequately implemented. How else could someone like McSkimming, allegedly harbouring such grotesque proclivities, slip through the cracks?

The McSkimming case isn't an isolated blemish. New Zealand has seen other high-profile figures caught with objectionable material or involved in sexual offending. Tim Jago, former president of the ACT Party, was convicted of eight counts of indecent assault after being found guilty of sexually abusing two teenage boys in the 1990s whom he knew through an Auckland surf lifesaving club that he was defrauding. He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison in November 2024. Ron Brierley, a celebrated corporate raider knighted in 1988 and known for his close ties to powerful politicians like former Prime Ministers Robert Muldoon and Jenny Shipley, pleaded guilty in 2021 to possessing over 11,000 images of child sexual abuse after his 2019 arrest in Sydney.

Then there's Anthony "Aussie" Malcolm, a former National Party MP for Eden and Cabinet minister who died in September 2024, who was under police investigation at the time of his death following multiple complaints of historical child sexual abuse, including allegations he sexually assaulted a teenager in 1992. Not to mention former Auckland councillor David Tamihere, (John Tamihere's brother) who was convicted in the 1990s for possessing child abuse material.

More recently, Michael Forbes, deputy chief press secretary to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, resigned in June 2025 after a questionable police investigation revealed he recorded audio of Wellington sex workers without their consent and amassed intrusive photos and videos of women in public and private settings.

These cases underscore a disturbing pattern: sexual predators in positions of power are evading accountability due to vetting systems that appear woefully inadequate.

As well as a large question mark over the organisations that have allowed such despicable individuals to attain positions of power, the decisions these individuals made, whether in policy, governance, or law enforcement, must now be thoroughly re-examined. Were their judgments clouded by their sick depravities? Did their access to sensitive material enable them to undertake further crimes? Did the access they had to various government and police systems allow them to cover-up their crimes or, worse, protect others who share similar criminal interests? The public deserves answers to these very serious questions.

The possibility that McSkimming’s actions were not isolated but part of a broader pedophile network within the police cannot be easily dismissed. Speculation on social media has raised concerns about systemic corruption, with some alleging that the police under former leadership failed to pursue certain offenders due to institutional rot. While these claims largely remain unverified, they fuel public distrust and highlight the need for a thorough investigation into whether McSkimming’s alleged crimes were enabled or concealed by others within the force. The pattern of his offending points to the conclusion that McSkimming has been offending for a long time. So why wasn't he caught earlier?

The police are entrusted to protect our most vulnerable, yet McSkimming’s case suggests a betrayal at the highest levels. A full, independent inquiry is therefore non-negotiable. It must probe not only how McSkimming, and potentially other police officers, evaded detection but also whether the recommendations from the Haumaha inquiry were deliberately sidelined. Why were routine audits of police device usage paused in 2020, as Commissioner Richard Chambers admitted? Why were internal controls so weak that staff could bypass them to access inappropriate content? These are not mere oversights; they point to a culture of negligence that must be dismantled.

Politicians and police must face stricter vetting, with ongoing monitoring to ensure those in power are held to the highest of standards. The Policing Act is clear: a Deputy Commissioner must be a fit and proper person. McSkimming’s alleged actions might mock that standard, but we cannot allow the taint of such depravity to linger or poison the rest of the New Zealand Police force.

A public inquiry, coupled with a review of decisions influenced by those implicated in such scandals, is essential to restore trust. New Zealand must confront the spectre of pedophiles within positions of power head-on, rooting out any networks that may lurk within our institutions. The safety of our children and the integrity of our justice and political systems depend on it.

Tama Potaka Hides Homelessness Report as Crisis Deepens

In a move that reeks of political obfuscation, Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka has sat on a critical homelessness insights report for over a month, refusing to make it public while claiming he’s still “seeking official advice” on its contents. This delay isn't just bureaucratic dawdling; it’s a calculated attempt to bury inconvenient truths about the National-led government’s role in exacerbating New Zealand’s homelessness crisis.

On Wednesday, Stuff reported:

Labour pushes for Potaka to release homelessness briefing amid concerns over rising numbers

Labour is demanding the release of a government briefing on homelessness, warning it may confirm that record-level homelessness has worsened under the National-led coalition’s watch.

“Everyone is saying that homelessness is going up at unprecedented levels,” Labour’s housing spokesperson Kieran McAnulty said. “Given that he [Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka] is the only one - alongside the prime minister and the minister of housing - that is denying homelessness is going up, I’m not surprised he’s pretty reluctant to release the report.”

Potaka received the latest homelessness insights report from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) last month, part of a regular six-monthly series monitoring the effects of government housing policy to reduce the number of people living in emergency housing through toughening the entry criteria.

But he has yet to make the document public, saying he is still seeking official advice on its contents, although he has acknowledged anecdotal evidence pointed to a rising trend.

 

As the streets of Auckland and Wellington swell with those left without shelter, the government’s refusal to release this data speaks volumes about it prioritising optics over people.

The Coalition of Chaos' policies have systematically dismantled the safety nets that once offered hope to the most vulnerable. Their aggressive push to slash emergency housing numbers, celebrated by them as a 75% reduction in households living in motels (from 3,141 in December 2023 to 591 by January 2025), masks a grim reality.

While Tama Potaka trumpets that 2,124 children have moved from motels to “homes,” the government admits it doesn’t track where 20% of these families, roughly 510 households, have ended up. The evidence points to a spike in rough sleeping, with Auckland Council reporting a 53% rise in people living on the streets between September 2024 and January 2025. Wellington’s Downtown Community Ministry also noted a 33% increase in rough sleepers from October to December 2024.

Changes to emergency housing eligibility have tightened the screws on those already at breaking point. Stricter criteria mean applicants are increasingly declined or deemed ineligible, with some turned away because their decision to flee domestic violence was seen as “contributing” to their homelessness, a grotesque misinterpretation that Potaka has publicly disavowed but still persists.
 

On June 16, Stuff reported:

Tama Potaka denies blame on homelessness, as Women’s Refuge raises alarm

Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka is denying his policies are to blame for reports of increased homelessness or domestic violence victims being denied emergency housing.

...

Women’s Refuge says access to emergency housing an issue

Potaka was also questioned about reports the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) had denied emergency housing to women attempting to escape domestic violence.

Last week, Stuff heard from charities across the country that raised concerns about difficulties accessing emergency housing for people leaving violent homes.

The Ministry of Social Development’s scrapping of the first phase of its “early interventions” programme, meant to prevent homelessness, was ludicrously justified by an overwhelming workload tied to Jobseeker benefit changes, leaving vulnerable Kiwis to fend for themselves. These policies, coupled with the government’s refusal to reinstate a legal obligation for MSD to grant emergency housing, have created a revolving door of hardship.

Compounding this crisis is National’s gutting of state housing. Thousands of planned public housing builds, with Kāinga Ora halting the development of 212 housing projects that would have delivered 3479 new homes, have been cancelled, with funding for community housing providers slashed to a measly 750 new places annually. This is a far cry from the ambitious programmes under the previous government, which, while not perfect, recognised the need for a robust public housing stock to address the 112,496 people (2.3% of the population) estimated to be severely housing deprived in the 2023 Census.

#BHN Is the Govt hiding homeless numbers | Cost of living gets worse | Seymour wants karakia gone https://t.co/HW9RyR409y

— Pat Brittenden (@patbrittenden) July 17, 2025

National’s preference for private sector solutions and community housing providers, while starving Kāinga Ora of resources, has left a gaping hole in the housing safety net. Mainstream media, with few exceptions, have been complicit in this silence, generally failing to hold Potaka and the government to account for withholding this report.

This lack of scrutiny allows National to manipulate the narrative, presenting their emergency housing cuts as a success while ignoring the human cost. Worse, the government’s broader pattern of dismantling statistical transparency, evident in their lax tracking of where families go post-emergency housing and cancelling of future Censuses, suggests a deliberate strategy to obscure data as homelessness and other social conditions worsen.

New Zealand deserves better. Potaka’s refusal to release this report isn't just a failure of transparency; it’s a betrayal of the approximately 100,000 Kiwis, including 60,000 Māori, grappling with homelessness. The government’s policies, stricter emergency housing rules, cancelled state house builds, and a punitive welfare system, are driving people to the streets. It’s time for accountability, not obfuscation. But we are unlikely to see any change for the better while National is in power.

Luxon Doesn't Think the Proud Boys are Terrorists

In a highly questionable move, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has allowed the Proud Boys, a far-right group with a track record of extreme violence, to slip off the New Zealand terrorist watch list. Despite advice from the NZ Police and other government agencies, Luxon’s administration opted not to renew the designation under the Terrorism Suppression Act 2002, effectively decriminalising support for a group linked to the January 6 US Capitol riot that caused nine deaths, including the deaths of five police officers.

Earlier this month, RNZ reported:

It's no longer illegal to be a proudly violent Proud Boy

It started as a fringe movement in the United States - a group of self-described "Western chauvinists" known as the Proud Boys.

A bunch of them were jailed after the 6 January US election riots, and they have now been pardoned by President Trump.

Their legacy of far-right extremism, violent rhetoric, and polarising influence has raised questions not just in American courtrooms but on Kiwi shores too.

"They have been organising in New Zealand, although they deny that is the case," Stuff investigative journalist Paula Penfold tells The Detail.

"Now, the terrorist designation that they were given [in New Zealand] in 2022 has been allowed to expire, and we don't yet know the reasons for that to have been allowed to happen, we don't yet know whether the Proud Boys are still active in New Zealand, but we think it's pretty important that our authorities should find out."

Founded in 2016 by Gavin McInnes, the Proud Boys quickly gained notoriety for their involvement in violent street clashes, their role in the 6 January Capitol riots, and their unwavering embrace of conspiracy theories.

This decision, shrouded in secrecy, raises serious questions about the National-led government’s priorities and its troubling alignment with extremist ideologies. As we dissect this choice, we must also confront broader patterns of complicity, from ACT’s flirtations with white supremacists to National’s cosy relationship with Trumpian politics, and the urgent need to curb the influence of fascists in Aotearoa.

The Proud Boys’ designation, established in 2022, was a response to their role in the Capitol riot and their crypto-fascist tactics. Yet, Luxon’s inaction suggests a troubling dismissal of his own agencies expert advice and previous decisions made by the Jacinda Ardern administration.

Why would he take such a risk? Evidence points to political expediency. National’s coalition with ACT and NZ First, the most right-wing New Zealand government in decades, may be reluctant to alienate conservative voters by targeting far-right groups. 

But questions remain. Why would, for instance, the National coalition of chaos fail to designate the Proud Boys, a group who murders police officers, as terrorists while putting other white supremacist groups on the list?

Last week, the NZ Herald reported:

Extremist white supremacist group behind race war plots remains on NZ terrorism watchlist

A violent neo-Nazi hate group with international reach has been relisted as a terrorist entity by the New Zealand Government, amid ongoing efforts to prevent extremist ideologies from taking root or operating within the country.

The Base is a white supremacist “militant accelerationist paramilitary group” that advocates for the violent overthrow of existing governments to establish white “ethnostates”.

The group’s ideology is said to be “rooted in extreme racism, antisemitism, and the belief in an impending race war”.

It is active in the US and Canada, with reports of training cells in Europe, South Africa and Australia.

The group, also known as TB, was first designated as a terrorist entity in New Zealand in June 2022 alongside another US group, the Proud Boys.

The decision also appears to align with diplomatic pressures from the Trump administration, which has pardoned Proud Boys members, even those who murdered police, and downplayed their threat. Many Proud Boys are reportedly linked to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), engaging in human rights abuses by abducting law abiding migrants and detaining them in concentration camps without due process. Allowing such individuals, some convicted of killing police, freedom to travel to New Zealand is reckless and indefensible. Clearly, fascists with blood on their hands should be barred from our shores, full stop.

This isn’t an isolated incident. The National-led government’s flirtation with extremism is part of a broader and uglier pattern. ACT leader David Seymour, for instance, has accepted donations from individuals openly advocating for violence against Muslims, including those boasting about bombing mosques. Such associations aren't mere oversights; they signal a willingness to court extremist support for political gain.

Similarly, the recent invitation of James Lindsay, a US commentator who peddles debunked “white genocide” conspiracies, to speak at ACT’s 2025 Rally underscores how far-right ideologies are being promoted and platformed by our right-wing politicians. Lindsay’s rhetoric, cloaked in free speech dogma, fuels division and emboldens white supremacists to hate on minority groups.

 

In 2022, Salon reported:

Meet James Lindsay, the far right’s “world-level expert” on CRT and “Race Marxism”

In a Feb. 5 appearance on Glenn Beck’s talk show — which Beck called “probably the most important podcast perhaps that we’ve ever done” — self-proclaimed critical race theory expert James Lindsay issued a dire warning. While discussing dark right-wing theories about “The Great Reset” and Democratic-run reeducation camps for the unvaccinated, Lindsay warned that a severe reckoning was at hand for the world’s elites: “It’s coming for them. They’re going to lose all of their power. They’re going to be exposed for crimes the likes of which we’ve never seen in human history.”

...

In 2018, as a math PhD running a business that fused massage therapy with martial arts, and a supporting character in the foundering New Atheism movement, Lindsay became a national name by pulling off a deft hoax that made liberal academics look dumb. Along with two co-conspirators, Helen Pluckrose and Peter Boghossian, Lindsay drafted 20 fake research papers with outlandish premises — to research canine “rape culture” at dog parks, or a proposition that men use dildos on themselves to overcome transphobia — and submitted them to a series of often obscure scholarly journals.

Around a third of the papers were accepted, and in 2018, the hoaxers, all of whom then called themselves liberals — although Boghossian was closely associated with accused white supremacist and “race realist” Stefan Molyneux, who has argued that Black people are “collectively less intelligent” than other races — revealed the experiment as an exposé on the terminal wokeness of academia, particularly the identity-oriented fields that the three called “grievance studies.”

 

When government-aligned parties amplify such divisive voices, they legitimise hate, undermining the social cohesion Aotearoa prides itself on.

Luxon’s government also helps to promote extremist views while also mirroring the Trump administration’s playbook, particularly in its erosion of indigenous rights. National’s coalition has pushed unpopular policies like the review of the Treaty of Waitangi, which undermines Māori sovereignty and echoes Trump’s marginalisation of Native American communities. This alignment isn’t coincidental.

As Trump pardons Proud Boys and weakens democratic norms, National’s soft stance on far-right groups suggests a shared ideological drift. Both governments prioritise appeasing conservative bases over protecting marginalised communities, whether it’s Māori here or migrants in US detention (concentration) camps. This convergence is a stark warning: when leaders downplay extremism, they pave the way for its normalisation.

The need to reduce white supremacist influence in New Zealand has never been more urgent. The Proud Boys, with their history of violence and ties to authoritarian regimes, are not a theoretical threat. Their lapsed designation risks emboldening local white supremacist sympathiser.

Aotearoa must not become a haven for fascists or a stage for their propaganda. Luxon’s government must reverse course, heed the advice of their security experts, and reinstate the Proud Boys’ designation as terrorists without further delay. Beyond that, it must reject the influence of extremists, whether through donations to ACT or invitations to divisive figures.

New Zealanders deserve a government that stands firm against hate, not one that cuddles it for political points. This is a moment for vigilance. The National-led government’s actions, ignoring advice, platforming extremists, and aligning with Trump’s racist agenda, threaten the values of inclusivity and justice that define Aotearoa. We must demand accountability, reject fascism in all its forms, and protect our communities from those who would divide us. The Proud Boys belong on the terrorist watch list, and white supremacists belong nowhere near our politics.

Was MethaneSAT Deliberately Compromised?

New Zealand’s MethaneSAT, launched with fanfare in March 2024 to tackle methane emissions, has become a troubling case study in corporate overreach and government opacity. The satellite’s abrupt failure in June 2025, attributed to a mysterious loss of power, raises serious questions about the role of Blue Canyon Technologies (BCT), a subsidiary of the controversial RTX Corporation (formerly Raytheon), which took control of the satellite in March 2025. This move, shrouded in secrecy, reeks of a deliberate attempt to undermine a mission that threatened the fossil fuel industry’s interests, with our National-led government seemingly complicit in the affair.
 

Today, RNZ reported:

 

Space Minister Judith Collins goes to ground over alleged government failures managing NZ's first space mission

Space Minister Judith Collins has gone to ground over alleged government failures managing New Zealand's first official, taxpayer-funded satellite mission.

Last year, Collins welcomed the launch of MethaneSAT as "a milestone in the development of New Zealand's space sector".

However, since the methane-hunting satellite lost communication with its owners, she has refused to answer questions on whether there would be any form of review of New Zealand's involvement in the mission.

...

Several experts RNZ has spoken to in the space industry lamented the choice to spend tens of millions being involved in a third party project, rather than making the country's first space mission something designed and launched from New Zealand.

Political leaders declined to front on calls for a thorough review.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has blamed Labour for overseeing the initial investment and referred follow-up questions to Collins. That's despite the launch and orbit happening under the current government.

Collins has repeatedly refused to comment and referred all questions, including questions abut whether the government would hold a review, to the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), which houses the country's Space Agency.

MethaneSAT was designed to deliver precise, high-resolution data on methane emissions, a potent greenhouse gas, with a focus on exposing leaks from oil and gas operations. The satellite could have also potentially tracked the release of the potent greenhouse gas from agriculture. Such transparency is anathema to industries that thrive on obfuscation, preferring to downplay their environmental impact while lobbying for deregulation.

The National government, under Christopher Luxon, has shown a troubling alignment with these interests, delaying accountability, rolling back climate policies and championing fossil fuel exploration. This cosy relationship casts a shadow over the decision to hand control of MethaneSAT to BCT, a company with no stake in New Zealand’s environmental goals but a clear lineage in RTX’s defence empire, notorious for its ethical and legal transgressions.

The transfer of control to BCT in March 2025, ostensibly to address “operational challenges,” was a baffling move. Why entrust a critical climate mission to a subsidiary of RTX, a corporation mired in scandals? RTX has a rap sheet that includes a $950 million settlement in 2024 for defrauding the U.S. Department of Defense with defective pricing, bribing Qatari officials to secure contracts, and violating export controls by leaking sensitive technology to China, Russia, and Iran.

Their environmental record is equally grim, with toxic waste contamination in Florida and Arizona. RTX’s weapons, including cluster munitions and missiles used in Yemen and Gaza, have fuelled civilian suffering, while their “pain ray” systems used on civilians raise further ethical alarms. BCT, as part of this conglomerate, inherits a legacy of untrustworthiness, making the initial contracts and their control of MethaneSAT deeply suspicious.

Equally troubling is the lack of transparency from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and Defence Minister Judith Collins. MBIE’s refusal to answer questions about the transfer or the satellite’s persistent issues, frequent safe mode entries, thruster malfunctions, and a paltry data output, smacks of a cover-up. Collins, typically forthright, has been conspicuously silent, leaving New Zealanders in the dark about a $29 million taxpayer investment. This opacity fuels speculation that the government prioritised corporate interests over accountability, especially given Raytheon's questionable history and National’s fossil fuel-friendly stance.

The satellite’s “problems” before its planned handover to the University of Auckland’s Te Pūnaha Ātea Space Institute in June 2025 are equally perplexing. Reports of issues due to Solar Cycle 25’s peak in 2024–2025 seem convenient excuses. MethaneSAT is the only reported satellite to fail due to solar activity during this period, despite thousands of others navigating the same conditions. This singularity raises red flags: were these issues genuine, or a pretext for BCT to assume control?

The apparent absence of any proper mechanism for NZ authorities to oversea systems during these transfers or robust checks and balances during the satellite’s construction by BCT is glaring. Manufacturing faults are now cited as a cause of failure, yet no independent oversight ensured the satellite’s integrity. This smells of negligence, or worse, deliberate sabotage to protect oil and gas industry interests from MethaneSAT’s data, that would have highlighted methane emissions with pinpoint accuracy.

Rocket Lab, which operated MethaneSAT’s mission control until March 2025, adds another layer of intrigue. Their current PR campaign, which even includes promotional propaganda from Auckland's Mayor, Wayne Brown, consisting of founder and CEO Peter Beck insisting that they avoid military entanglements, is patently false. Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket, HASTE suborbital vehicle, and Photon spacecraft bus support U.S. and U.K. defence contracts, including hypersonic weapons testing (HASTE), military communications satellites (SDA’s Tranche 1 and 2), and rapid cargo delivery for conflict zones (Rocket Cargo). These technologies clearly bolster U.S. operations, contradicting Rocket Lab’s claims of neutrality. Their ties to Lockheed Martin, a weapons giant, further undermines their credibility.

The MethaneSAT debacle is a stark reminder of how corporate and government interests can converge to undermine public good. The farming and oil and gas industry’s aversion to accurate methane data, National’s fossil fuel bias, and RTX’s chequered history suggest a troubling narrative: a satellite designed to hold polluters accountable may have been deliberately compromised. Until Collins and MBIE provide answers, New Zealanders are left to wonder whether our climate ambitions were sacrificed on the altar of geopolitical games and corporate greed.

Health NZ Caught Faking Wait Times

In a nation that prides itself on fairness and transparency, the National-led coalition’s handling of New Zealand’s health system is nothing short of a scandalous betrayal. Reports emerging from Nelson Hospital suggest Health New Zealand (Te Whatu Ora) may have instructed hospitals to concoct “ghost appointments”, non-existent bookings designed to artificially deflate wait time statistics.

This grubby tactic is a desperate attempt to prop up the coalition’s pre-election promise of slashing hospital wait times, a pledge now crumbling under the weight of their own incompetence, uncovered manipulations and chronic under-funding.

Yesterday, 1 News reported:

 

Nelson Hospital accused of making 'ghost' appointments for patients

Documents released to 1News by the senior doctors union and Nurses Union show an email exchange between a clinician at Nelson Hospital and a manager.

In late June the clinician wrote that they had noticed some "unusual activity" with patient bookings. "It looks like there are 23 long wait patients listed as booked for a clinic scheduled for tomorrow under (redacted). However, the clinic doesn't exist as she is on leave."

A copy of the booking system for June 24, with the patient's details redacted, shows the patients were booked in for five minute slots with the note "DO NOT CONTACT PATIENT".

After the clinician again raised concerns, the manager emailed back: "We have received clear messaging from the commissioner that no patients are to be waiting longer than two years for an FSA by [June 30] and need to have a plan to be seen".

"So by creating the virtual clinic I was able to create a space for those patients to be held until booked." The email ends with: "please be assured as clumsy as this may seem, I am trying to do the right thing by everyone".

The public deserves better than such patronising deceit. The allegations are as insidious as they are unsurprising. Senior doctors and the Nurses Union have sounded the alarm, reporting “unusual activity” in Nelson Hospital’s booking system, where patients were “parked” in fictitious clinics only to be shuffled to real appointments later.

Health NZ’s Dr Derek Sherwood had the gall to call this a mere “administrative workaround,” as if fudging data to make wait times appear shorter is just another day at the office. Unfortunately for him, this is clearly a manipulation and cynical ploy to mask the coalition’s failure to deliver on their grandiose health promises. The Health and Disability Commissioner is now watching, but one wonders if Simeon Brown and his cronies will wriggle free with their usual bluster, particularly as there's very little mainstream media attention being given to this issue.

However, it's not hard to see the government’s fingerprints all over this scandal. While overseeing a health system in crisis, their obsession with optics over outcomes is painfully clear. The coalition’s outsourcing of 10,579 elective procedures to private hospitals by June 2025, at a cost of $50 million, is another sleight of hand. As RNZ reported, senior doctors slammed this move for creating a “false impression” of reduced wait times. Private providers cherry-pick straightforward cases, leaving complex patients languishing in under-resourced public hospitals.

On March 25, RNZ reported:

 

Outsourcing being used to pretend hospital wait times are being fixed - doctor

According to Health NZ Te Whatu Ora, there were 222 patients waiting for gynaecology surgery in Northland, of whom nearly half (101) had waited longer than the target of 120 days, 64 more than six months and eight more than a year.

Bailey said the backlog had been building for several years, partly driven by population increases - Northland is one of the fastest growing regions in the country - workforce shortages, industrial action by nurses, junior doctors and anaesthetic technicians, and then finally the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We've never caught up since."

He and his team had offered to do extra surgery sessions to help clear the backlog - but Health NZ would not pay for it.

"We can't actually run weekend lists because they are nitpicking about pay for theatre nurses."

When surgery was outsourced, those most in need of treatment tended to miss out, he said.

The last time Northland referred patients to a private hospital in Auckland - about a year ago - many were declined because they were "too complex".

It’s a numbers game, not a solution, and it reeks of the same dishonesty as the “ghost appointments” fiasco. Meanwhile, over 74,000 patients wait beyond four months for specialist assessments, and 37,000 for treatment. These figures expose the coalition’s hollow rhetoric for what it is: a cruel mirage that is impacting New Zealanders lives.

The government's refusal to properly fund Health, while funnelling millions to private providers, ensures overall wait times will only worsen, no matter how many “ghost appointments” they conjure up.

At the heart of this mess is the coalition’s belief in austerity and deliberate underfunding of public health. Hospitals are stretched to breaking point, with staffing shortages so dire that nurses, driven by desperation, are once again striking. The Nurses Union has been unequivocal: underfunding has created unsafe working conditions, compromising patient care. But instead of addressing this crisis, Brown and Reti prattle on about “steady progress” and “health targets,” as if words alone can bandage a haemorrhaging system.

This isn’t the first time the National-led government has played fast and loose with the truth when it comes to wait times. Historical data, like the 2012 study on elective surgery booking systems, points to “gaming” practices under previous National governments, such as raising clinical thresholds to exclude eligible patients from wait lists. Sound familiar? The coalition’s current tactics are just a rehash of this playbook, dressed up in new jargon but no less dishonest.

Kiwis deserve a health system that prioritises patients, not political point-scoring. The coalition’s reliance on data manipulation and privatisation by stealth is an insult to every New Zealander waiting in pain. Minister Brown, it’s time to stop hiding behind “workarounds” and face the music: your underfunded, mismanaged health system is failing us yet again.

The Moral Abyss of Concentration Camps

The concept of detention centres and concentration camps is a grim spectre in human history, a mechanism of dehumanisation and control that has no place in a civilised world. These camps, defined as large-scale detention sites where civilians are imprisoned without due process based on ethnicity, religion, or political beliefs, are an affront to the principles of justice, dignity, and human rights.

From the Nazi atrocities to contemporary proposals that echo their chilling intent, concentration camps represent a deliberate stripping away of humanity, a policy rooted in fear, supremacy, and exclusion.

On Monday, the Guardian reported:

Israeli plan for forced transfer of Gaza’s population ‘a blueprint for crimes against humanity’

Military ordered to turn ruins of Rafah into ‘humanitarian city’ but experts call the plan an internment camp for all Palestinians in Gaza


Israel’s defence minister has laid out plans to force all Palestinians in Gaza into a camp on the ruins of Rafah, in a scheme that legal experts and academics described as a blueprint for crimes against humanity.

Israel Katz said he has ordered Israel’s military to prepare for establishing a camp, which he called a “humanitarian city”, on the ruins of the city of Rafah, Haaretz newspaper reported.

Palestinians would go through “security screening” before entering, and once inside would not be allowed to leave, Katz said at a briefing for Israeli journalists.

Israeli forces would control the perimeter of the site and initially “move” 600,000 Palestinians into the area – mostly people currently displaced in the al-Mawasi area.

Eventually the entire population of Gaza would be housed there, and Israel aims to implement “the emigration plan, which will happen”, Haaretz quoted him saying.

Since Donald Trump suggested at the start of the year that large numbers of Palestinians should leave Gaza to “clean out” the strip, Israeli politicians including the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, have enthusiastically promoted forced deportation, often presenting it as a US project.

Katz’s scheme breaks international law, said Michael Sfard, one of Israel’s leading human rights lawyers. It also directly contradicted claims made hours earlier by the office of Israel’s military chief, which said in a letter that Palestinians were only displaced inside Gaza for their own protection.

Israel and the United States’ use of detention centres for genocide and mass deportations demand a fierce and unflinching critique. Historically, Nazi Germany’s concentration camps stand as a horrifying benchmark. Between 1933 and 1945, the Nazi regime operated over 44,000 camps and incarceration sites, imprisoning millions, including Jews, Romani people, political dissidents, and others deemed “undesirable.”

Approximately 1.65 million people were registered prisoners, with around one million perishing in camps like Auschwitz, Dachau, and Treblinka through starvation, forced labour, and gas chambers. These camps were not mere prisons but industrial-scale machines of death and oppression, designed to eradicate entire communities. Their legacy is a stark warning: when a state targets a group as “other,” the descent into barbarity is swift and catastrophic.

In 2025, Israel’s proposed “humanitarian city” in Gaza, as outlined by Defence Minister Israel Katz, bears a chilling resemblance to this dark history. The plan, reported by Haaretz and The Guardian, aims to confine 600,000 displaced Palestinians, eventually the entire 2.1 million population of Gaza, into a sealed-off area built on Rafah’s ruins. Palestinians would face “security screenings” and be barred from leaving, with the stated goal of “voluntary emigration” that critics, including former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, label as ethnic cleansing.

Legal scholars like Michael Sfard argue this violates international humanitarian law, specifically the Fourth Geneva Convention’s prohibition on forced transfers. The plan’s language of “humanitarian” aid masks a reality of mass detention and starvation, with 758 Palestinians already murdered and over 5,000 injured at aid distribution centres since May 2025. Such policies echo the Nazi tactic of disguising genocidal intent as “resettlement,” a comparison that, while sensitive, is grounded in the mechanics of control and displacement.

So, anyone who doesn’t go to the concentration camp will be “eliminated.”

Doesn’t sound genocidal at all… pic.twitter.com/mvuLIENeRm

— Assal Rad (@AssalRad) July 10, 2025

However, the scourge of detention centres is not confined to Israel's genocide in Palestine, but festers globally, exposing a troubling trend of state-sanctioned oppression. In China, over one million Uyghur Muslims and other minorities are detained in Xinjiang’s “re-education” camps, where forced labour, cultural erasure, and torture are documented by Human Rights Watch. Australia’s offshore detention centres on Nauru and the now closed Manus Island detention centres held approximately 1,200 refugees in conditions described by the UN as “inhumane,” with 14 deaths reported since 2013.

In Libya, UN reports estimate 20,000 migrants are held in detention centres, often subjected to torture and extortion, with 3,000 deaths recorded in 2024 alone. These global examples mirror the dehumanising logic of historical concentration camps, using euphemisms like “processing” or “re-education” to sanitise systemic cruelty.

Across the Atlantic, the United States under the Trump administration is reviving its own form of detention horror. Reports from Reuters and the New York Times reveal plans to use military bases like Fort Bliss to detain up to 10,000 migrants, with ambitions to scale this to hundreds of thousands as part of the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. Currently, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) holds 41,000 people in for-profit facilities, with Guantánamo Bay recently reactivated for indefinite detention.

These centres, often compared to concentration camps by scholars and activists like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, mirror the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II. The rhetoric of “invasion” and dehumanising terms like “animals” used by Trump is no laughing matter, and recalls Nazi propaganda, fostering indifference to the suffering of detained families, including children who are routinely separated from their parents.

People are comparing Trump's Alligator Alcatraz detention centre to Hitler's concentration camps. But they're wrong! Just look, the roofs are a completely different colour. #uspoli #fascism pic.twitter.com/nBdwFlezf9

— Peter Murphy (@PeterWMurphy1) July 13, 2025

The moral bankruptcy of concentration camps lies in their denial of individual rights and their reliance on collective punishment. Whether it’s the 27 Palestinian detainees tortured at Israel’s Sde Teiman camp, as documented by Amnesty International, or the 2.5 million deportations under U.S. policies since 2020, these systems thrive on dehumanisation. They're not solutions but atrocities, breeding cycles of violence and causing untold damage.

Israel’s occupation, America’s xenophobia, and the global detention regimes around the world must end, not through war but through political pressure,  justice and a recognition of our shared humanity. To ignore this is to court the same indifference that enabled the Holocaust’s horrors. We must resist these atrosities, for history shows what results if nothing is done.