Today’s content

Omicron – community case, MIQ
Bernadette Basagre (Stuff): Timing of the Omicron case in the community ‘difficult’
RNZ: Omicron case: Variant’s incubation period could be longer – Siouxsie Wiles
David Farrier (Webworm): Are DJs worse than Covid?
Blair Ensor and Bernadette Basagre (Stuff): DJ Dimension ‘devastated’ after testing positive for Omicron in NZ
Mark Quinlivan (Newshub): UK DJ Dimension confirms he has Omicron, says he thought he’d completed self-isolation
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Omicron case accused of breaching self-isolation reportedly UK DJ Dimension
1 News: ‘Extremely sorry’ – Dimension confirms he is Omicron case
Craig Kapitan (Herald): Community case spurs call to bar entertainers from NZ
Herald: Omicron case visited Auckland nightclub Impala
Jonathan Guildford and Amber Allott (Stuff): Auckland nightclub added as locations of interest of Omicron border case
Herald: First community exposure of Omicron in NZ confirmed, reportedly DJ Dimension
1 News: Kiwi DJs Lee Mvtthews close contacts of Omicron case
Guardian: New Zealand reports first community exposure to Omicron
Miriam Burrell (Herald): Spike in Omicron cases overnight as genome sequencing results emerge

Delta outbreak
Nathan Morton and Sapeer Mayron (Stuff): Auckland prepares to move to Orange light at 11:59pm
Georgia Forrester (Stuff): Auckland, Taupō, Gisborne, Whakatāne among regions moving to ‘orange’ traffic light
1 News: All of NZ excluding Northland to move to Orange from 11.59pm
RNZ: Traffic light setting changes for some North Island regions from tonight
Kelly Makiha (Herald): Holiday closure of Rotorua vaccination and Māori response centres criticised (paywalled)
Neil Reid (Herald): Fears unvaxxed party hosts could spark New Year’s Eve spread
John Weekes (Herald): The next pandemic: Nature under threat, rogue scientist risk make more outbreaks near-certain
Conrad Johnston (Stuff): Don’t like wearing a mask? Try this for inconvenience
Bernadette Basagre (Stuff): The heroes behind Auckland’s pandemic response
Mina Kerr-Lazenby (Stuff): 46 new community cases, 48 in hospital 
Stuff:  Two new Covid-19 cases in Gisborne, including primary-school-aged child
Michelle Duff (Stuff): How to spot misinformation

Vaccine mandate, pass, rules
RNZ: Christchurch restaurant The Lotus-Heart fined $20,000 for breaching Covid-19 rules
Kurt Bayer (Herald): Christchurch restaurant The Lotus-Heart penalised for multiple Covid-19 rule breaches
1 News: Christchurch restaurant fined $20,000 over Covid-19 breaches
Rob Stock and Amber Allott (Stuff): Christchurch restaurant Lotus-Heart handed $20,000 fine for traffic light system infringements
RNZ: Rhythm and Alps vaccine passes: ‘It’d be pretty hard to be fraudulent’- director
Daniel Smith (Stuff): Silver Fern Farms proposes Covid-19 vaccine mandate for staff

Economy, business, govt subsidies
Paul Conway (Stuff): Buckle up for the interesting economic times ahead
Susan Edmunds (Stuff): How high will interest rates go in 2022?
Guy Williams (ODT): Resort firms expect more struggles
Neil Reid (Herald): Auckland goes orange, while hospo venues’ credit remains in the red
Andrew Owen (Stuff): Pessimism rife among Taranaki business survey respondents
Toni McDonald (ODT): Events a lifeline for desperate township
Tim Hunter (NBR): Email reveals SkyCity’s high roller compliance failure (paywalled)

Parliament, 2021 in review
Luke Malpass (Stuff): What Simon Bridges is doing, reading, and watching for his break
Stuff:  What Gerry Brownlee is doing, reading, and watching for his break
Henry Cooke (Stuff): What Todd Muller is doing, reading, and watching for his break
Luke Malpass (Stuff): What Marama Davidson is doing, reading, and watching for her break
Lillie Rohan (Herald): Green Party Co-Leader Marama Davidson pens a letter to her 25-year-old self (paywalled)
Stuff: What Kelvin Davis is doing, reading, and watching for the break
Stuff: What Kiri Allan is doing, reading, and watching for the break
NBR: Out of Office Reply: Duncan Webb (paywalled)
Stuff:  What Brooke van Velden is doing, reading, and watching for her break
Chris Keall (Herald): Summer questions: Kimbal Riley rates the Govt’s Covid response 2020 vs 2021 (paywalled)

Environment, conservation, climate change
Laura Walters (Stuff): Young Kiwis are experiencing climate anxiety – are we listening?
Jake McKee (RNZ): Boat crash report highlights DoC ‘organisational deficiencies’
Scott Palmer (Newshub): Disturbing video shows fish gasping for oxygen in Lake Ngaroto amid mass die-off
Lucas Kengmana (Stuff): ‘Net zero’ investing: Having your climate cake and eating it too
John Innes (Stuff): Why New Zealand needs more big pest-fenced ecosanctuaries 

Health
David Williams (Newsroom): The tragedy and triumph of charity hospitals
Robert Beaglehole (Stuff):  Just how hard will it be to get to 95 per cent smokefree?
Joel Lexchin: Ban drug ads to promote health
Stuff:  ‘You’re Awesome’: Auckland pharmacist’s love of data helps improve patient care

Transport
Emma Hatton (RNZ): Can the transport sector keep up with NZ’s space race plans?
RNZ: Police warn drink drivers as Christmas-New Year road toll rises to eight

Foreign affairs and trade
ODT Editorial: Unforgettable: Desmond Tutu
Herald Editorial: New Zealand still walks a tightrope as US, China rivalry heats up (paywalled)
Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): Australia pulls ahead in pursuit of Indian trade deal (paywalled)

Three Waters, water quality
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): QLDC voices disappointment about water reform mandate
Bill Foster (Kiwiblog): Guest Post: 3 Waters – 3 Lies!

Other
David Farrar (Kiwiblog): How long until we have 80,000 public servants?
Steve Stannard (Stuff): How herd mentality can stifle the contest of ideas
Karl du Fresne: Some notable gains and a disappointing own-goal for the Free Speech Union
Michael Daly (Stuff): Auckland is too big, needs to stop growing, and preferably shrink a bit
Sinead Gill (Stuff): Councils’ interest in social housing grows as demand increases
Kim Baker Wilson (1 News): Charities hope to be back collecting on streets after Covid hit
Tom Peters (World Socialists): Migrant workers face discriminatory policies in New Zealand
Sharnae Hope (Stuff): $100m solar farm pitch for north Waikato