Today’s content

2021 reviews, 2022 predictions, Parliament, parties
Spinoff: NZ politics in 2021: We pick the champs and the flops
Chris Trotter (Interest): The longest year
Jo Moir (Newsroom): Christopher Luxon’s desire to work more with the Government
1 News: Christopher Luxon: ‘We’ve let standards slip’ in education
Jamie Mackay (Herald):  2021 in review (and a couple of awards too) (paywalled)
David Farrar: 2021 Kiwiblog Awards winners
Ben Kepes (Stuff): Christopher Luxon could be the Mr Miyagi of politics
1 News: David Seymour: ACT not worried about National’s poll bump
Dave Armstrong (Stuff): The Christmas messages people in high places might have sent 
Jacinda Ardern (Herald):  My story as told to Elisabeth Easther (paywalled)
Kurt Bayer (Herald): Ecstasy pills featuring Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s name for sale

Govt management of Covid-19
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Government to announce possible changes to booster shot rollout, border reopening
1 News: Waitangi Trbunal finds Govt Covid response actively breached Treaty
RNZ: Waitangi Tribunal rules government Covid-19 response put Māori at risk
Maxine Jacobs (Stuff): Government breached treaty principles in Covid-19 response, Waitangi Tribunal finds
Michael Neilson (Herald): Waitangi Tribunal says Crown ‘actively breaching’ Treaty in Covid response for Māori
Amanda Cropp (Stuff): Rāhui on visitor access to Whirinaki Conservation Park to protect locals from Covid-19 was opposed by Conservation Minister Kiri Allan
Whatitiri Te Wake (Māori TV): One-size-fits-all system has failed Māori for 180 years – David Seymour
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Why New Zealand businessman Sir Ian Taylor believes politicians are holidaying at the ‘most dangerous time’ of COVID pandemic
Grant Robertson (Herald): Deputy PM Grant Robertson responds to Sir Ian Taylor (paywalled)

Omicron, NZ border, MIQ
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): How can we fend off an omicron outbreak in New Zealand?
RNZ: Expert urges preparation for vaccine boosters over Omicron concerns
Mitch McCann (Newshub): Omicron outbreak could force New Zealand out of traffic light system and into alert levels again
Herald Editorial: Is history doomed to repeat with the new coronavirus variant? (paywalled)
Herald: 69 community cases – nine new Omicron cases in MIQ
Miriam Burrell (Herald): MIQ cracks revealed as experts urge tighter control with rising numbers of new variant
1 News: MIQ lottery delayed over Omicron uncertainty
Herald: MBIE delays MIQ room release due to Omicron
Tom Hunt (Stuff): Omicron pushes Tuesday’s virtual lobby back 24 hours
Mike Yardley (Stuff): Don’t let Omicron stop us from reopening our borders
AP: WHO chief recommends cancelling Christmas events
Janine Starks (Stuff):  ‘Flyer beware’ Our Government failed the omicron test with two words
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Police working to locate MIQ returnee who left Middlemore ED
RNZ: Traveller taken to hospital from MIQ leaves without discharge

Auckland border checkpoints, summer travel, Delta outbreak
Craig Kapitan (Herald): Northland checkpoint advocate Hone Harawira lashes out at NZ Police
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): Tai Tokerau Border Control denies Northland COVID-19 checkpoints were obstructing travellers
RNZ: Northland police move to mobile patrols, spot checkpoints for visitors
Craig Ashworth (Local Democracy Reporting): Anxious community turns out to test as Taranaki Covid-19 outbreak grows
RNZ: Ngāi Tahu cancels Waitangi Day commemorations over Covid-19 concerns

Vaccine rollout, mandate
Hannah Martin (Stuff): Nine of NZ’s 20 DHBs have fully vaccinated 90% of eligible population
Megan Wilson (Herald): Bay of Plenty DHB Covid pamphlet: DHB staff had ‘significant reservations’ about brochure
Herald: Immunocompromised woman forced to obtain third dose by re-booking second
Herald: Vaccine Board says man’s death ‘probably due to vaccination’
RNZ: Man’s death likely from myocarditis reaction to Covid-19 vaccine – safety board
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Stuff:  Te Wānanga o Aotearoa introduces Covid-19 vaccination requirement
Luisa Girao (ODT): SIT mandating vaccine passes
Cherie Sivignon (Stuff): Covid-19 vaccination required for ‘high-risk’ roles in Tasman libraries
Leanne Warr (Hawkes Bay Today/Herald): ‘We don’t want to be the bad guy’: Vaccine pass system affecting small town business

Health
Michael Neilson (Herald): CEOs of Health NZ and Māori Health Authority announced
Bridie Witton (Stuff): New Health New Zealand and Māori Health Authority chief executives announced 
RNZ: Chief executives of interim Health New Zealand and interim Māori Health Authority named
Ellen O’Dwyer (Stuff): Pharmac spent nearly $300 million on immunosuppressant drugs in past year
Emma Vitz (Spinoff): For many New Zealanders, Covid-19 will be a lifelong disease
Bernadette Basagre (Stuff): Youthline saw one of its busiest weeks in 50 years during lockdown
RNZ: Health Ministry announces $75m to plug cybersecurity gaps
RNZ: Christchurch Hospital to open new birthing unit in 2023
Ben Strang (Stuff): New Zealand donates 1.2m doses of vaccine to Pacific, Asia

Economy, business, govt subsidies
Kelly Makiha (Herald): Public backlash: Farmers comes under fire for Facebook post on ‘racial profiling’ incident (paywalled)
1 News: Davidson wants Farmers store to take ‘stronger’ stand on profiling
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Pessimism reigns as NZ ponders 2022 economy without elimination strategy
RNZ: Small business confidence shattered despite Covid-19 restrictions easing
RNZ: Consumer confidence declining due to low domestic tourism, Covid-19 variants – Westpac survey
Brianna Mcilraith (Stuff): New Zealanders on track for record Christmas spend
RNZ: Malls, NZ Post keeping up with busy Christmas period in Covid-19 restrictions
Esther Taunton (Stuff): NZ Post delivering nine parcels every second in final push before Christmas
Greg Smith (Stuff): Will the Covid-19 Grinch cancel a Santa rally on the stock markets?
Ethan Griffiths (Herald): Whanganui’s retail spending jumps while hospitality businesses struggle, new figures show (paywalled)
Miriam Bell (Stuff): NZ does not build infrastructure as efficiently as it could
Dileepa Fonseka (Stuff): Allegations of price fixing and cartel behaviour against major freight forwarders Mondiale and Oceanbridge
RNZ: Commerce Commission files court proceedings against freight companies accused of acting as a cartel
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Short-term lender Moola pinged over ‘cartel conduct’ with online ads
RNZ: Commerce Commission seeks more than $1m in refunds for Orcon and Slingshot customers
Troels Sommerville (Stuff): Peanut farming could bring jobs and money to Northland as trial gets under way
André Chumko (Stuff): Arts sector grows in 2020, despite Covid-19 restrictions
Brianna Mcilraith (Stuff): Shop nice: Retail workers bear the brunt of end of year stress

Police, Justice, corrections
James Halpin (Stuff): Inspector-General makes recommendations for SIS around serious crime information collected
RNZ: Review into SIS finds information sharing with police not a clear-cut issue
Phil Pennington (RNZ): How two families battled with police over crash that killed loved ones
Janet Wilson (Listener/Herald): Armed police: Is it time to get tough? (paywalled)
Mike Mather (Stuff): Bribery charges for Corrections staffer accused of smuggling drugs into Spring Hill Prison
Belinda Feek (Herald): Corrections officer facing three further corruption charges over alleged bribes

Environment, conservation, climate change
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Climate Commission investigating subsidies for farmers
RNZ: Waikato farmers told to check effluent management systems or face prosecution
Amber Allott (Stuff): Native bird numbers soaring but climate change a looming threat
RNZ: Demand for organic fertilisers rising
Maddy Lloyd (1 News): Trapping work in Fiordland National Park begins to pay off
Hamish MacLean (ODT): Catchment restoration work to receive $4m
Sinead Gill (Stuff): Manawatū residents want company to front science behind pyrolysis plant

Local government
ODT Editorial: Troubled Three Waters
Chris Tobin (Stuff): Yellow water prompts council to bring in water tankers for residents
RNZ: Boil drinking water notice in place until early 2022 for some Canterbury households
ODT: Gore District Council’s CEO rejects criticism of new subdivision
Andrew Marshall (ODT): Crying foul over stink coming from landfill
Imran Ali (Herald): Parents of Best Start pre-schoolers in Whangārei angry at proposed Super Liquor shop next door (paywalled)

Housing
Logan Church (1 News): ‘Racist’ real estate ad pulled following 1News investigation
Herald: Property developer apologises for ‘racist’ brochure about Takapuna build 
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Warning for renters: Prices likely to set new records in 2022
Sneha Gray (Herald):  A place to call my own – creating spaces and places with dignity (paywalled)
Avneesh Vincent (Gisborne Herald): ‘We were terrified’: Homeless family of seven ‘squat’ in empty Gisborne house
Ethan Te Ora (Stuff): Rainbow communities at ‘higher risk of homelessness’, says new research 
Samatha Gee (RNZ): Nelson homeless shelter to close after 35 years
Sharnae Hope (Stuff): Woman in emergency housing kicked out of motel just before Christmas

Transport
Matthew Littlewood (Stuff): MyWay trial’s 13 per cent farebox recovery rate needs to improve
Simon Wilson (Herald): All I want for Christmas is … the Swiss solution (paywalled)
Adam Burns (Local Democracy Reporting): Ashburton deputy mayor appeals for Ōpuke speed reduction
Todd Niall (Stuff): Aucklanders had a ‘can do’ attitude in 2021, why didn’t their leaders?
John Anthony (Stuff): Air NZ could take delivery of its first zero emissions aircraft as early as 2023
Grant Bradley (Herald): Air New Zealand challenges plane makers to come up with alternative fuel planes (paywalled)
Imran Ali (Herald): Reserve fuel stock at Marsden Pt could cost up to $13m a year (paywalled)

Education
Graham Adams (Point of Order): Dawn Freshwater kicks for touch on mātauranga Māori
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Fears many tertiary institutions face third year without new international students
Stuff Editorial: Teachers need more than our recognition; they need support
Jerry Coyne (Why evolution is true): What are Maori “ways of knowing”, and should they be taught in science class as coequal to modern science?

Other
Stuff Editorial: What would it take to make food banks redundant?
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): How the public sector has changed since 2017
1 News: Lawyers call for more transparency on overstayers’ visas
1 News: NZ, Five Eyes have ‘grave concern’ over Hong Kong elections
John Braddock (WSWS): New Zealand Defence Assessment calls for more aggressive anti-China stance
Sahiban Hyde (Hawkes Bay Today/Herald): Hawke’s Bay Lake Alice survivor says ‘lock up, throw away key’ for Selwyn Leeks (paywalled)
RNZ: Gold kiwifruit account for nearly half the country’s fruit export dollars this year
Herald: NZME gets green light to buy specialist business website BusinessDesk