Author: Press Room

Opinion: The Government’s first year in power has been marked with speed wobbles, an ‘executive paradise’ and a Treaty principles pantomime, writes Richard Shaw for The Conversation. Nearly a year on from its formation, it’s clear a three-party coalition is not quite the same as the two-party versions New Zealand is accustomed to.Normally, the primary dynamic has been clear: the major party sets the pace while the smaller governing partner receives a bauble or two for supporting the lead act. There may be occasional concerns about tails wagging dogs, but the dog is clearly in charge.With the present National-ACT-NZ First…

By Susan Edmunds of RNZ  More “realistic” house sellers are finding buyers – and there is a warning that anyone expecting lower interest rates to mean higher prices right away could be disappointed. CoreLogic data shows the gap between asking prices and selling prices has tightened a bit. In the middle of last year sales prices were typically 5% below asking, but that had reduced to 4% in the latest data. The gap never got as wide this cycle as post-Global Financial Crisis (GFC), when sales prices were more than 10% below the asking price. CoreLogic chief property economist Kelvin…

It’s been a year since National, ACT and NZ First realised they would likely be negotiating a coalition government together. 1News looks back at a process that was marked by “looney tune texts”, supposed meeting “snubs”, and a lack of clean shirts.A year ago today, New Zealand woke up to the knowledge that Christopher Luxon would be the Prime Minister of a National-led government. What nobody knew then was which parties would be a part of that government.The former Air New Zealand CEO promised to take a different approach to negotiating a coalition.”I’ve watched New Zealand elections play out over…

By Gyles Beckford of RNZ Inflation has slowed to a three-year low, with the consumer price index falling back into the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s target band. Stats NZ said the CPI rose 0.6% in the three months ended September, taking the annual rate to 2.2% from 3.3% – the lowest since March 2021. The biggest contributors to the quarterly result were higher rates, food and medical costs, which offset cheaper fuel and early childhood costs. “Prices are still rising, but not as previously recorded,” Stats NZ senior manager of prices Nicola Growden said today.  Government policy changes affected several price…

Anthony Albanese wants to scrap all those annoying fees that you can’t escape. (Source: Getty)Labor has announced it plans to wipe out all those annoying fees that you seemingly can’t escape. If you’ve ever found it difficult to cancel a subscription or couldn’t contact a business to complain about a product, the government hopes its new legislation will make that a thing of the past.Treasury has been tasked with consulting on the draft laws, which are set to be finalised in the first half of 2025 following consultation with states and territories. Legislation is unlikely to be introduced before the…

Waikato public hospital has told nurses not to speak to patients in any language other than English.A memo sent to all nursing staff last Friday, obtained by RNZ, said concerns had been raised about other languages being used, and that exclusive use of English in all clinical settings was safer for treating people.A doctor who saw the memo said it was clearly aimed at Indian, Filipino and Pasifika nurses, who were healthcare “heroes” but were now being victimised.The memo, which appears to be confined to Waikato district, comes after Te Whatu Ora employed thousands of extra nurses from Asia to…

Westpac customers said they have been unable to access online banking for days. (Source: AAP)Thousands of Westpac customers are still unable to access their internet banking after the major bank was hit by a mass outage on Monday and Tuesday. Fed-up customers have said they have been unable to access their money for days, leaving them unable pay for essentials like groceries and fuel.Westpac, along with its subsidiary banks St George, Bank of Melbourne and BankSA, confirmed customers were still facing “further issues” today and apologised for the “inconvenience”. It comes after the four Aussie banks told customers that services…

A pride advocate is calling a petition to stop a rainbow pedestrian crossing from being installed in Tauranga “nothing short of disgusting”.Gordy Lockhart campaigned for six years to get a rainbow crossing in Tauranga and presented a petition to Tauranga City Council in April.The crossing was approved by the council’s Community, Transparency and Engagement Committee last month.Shortly after, an online petition was started calling for the crossing to be halted because of the $10,000 cost.The black and white crossing, flanked with progress pride flags will be installed in the city centre on Devonport Rd outside the library, He Puna Manawa.The…

By Jo Moir of RNZ  The country’s mega-ministry has been incorrectly calculating its cost benefit analysis for taxpayer-funded events for more than two years. The error came to the attention of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) during the process of responding to an RNZ Official Information Act request on the economic benefits of the 2025 World Street Dance Championships. The event – joint-funded by the government and Auckland Council – was announced by Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee on August 22, just a day after Prime Minister Christopher Luxon had blasted mayors for wasting money on “nice-to-haves”. MBIE…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says the Government “won’t be popular with everybody” as it works to overturn the “mess” he says it inherited.Yesterday’s 1News Verian Poll showed the coalition is holding a steady grip on public support, but the result showed seats would be lost for National and gained for Labour if an election was to be held.The poll also found 40% of voters think New Zealand was in “worse shape” and 30% “better shape” than before the election.In the preferred prime minister stakes, National’s Luxon remained on top with 25%, but his support was down 3% on the last…