Gaurav Sharma accuses prime minister of lying
Following an interview last night where Sharma accused the prime minister of being complicit in a cover up, Sharma has doubled down and accused the prime minister of lying this morning
Mōrena and welcome to The Bulletin for Friday, August 19, by Anna Rawhiti-Connell. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.
In today’s edition: Health NZ chair says sector more dysfunctional than we thought; state of emergency remains in place in Tasman and West Coast; how an obscure law change might unleash competition in the electricity market; but first, Labour to vote on expulsion of Sharma on Tuesday.
The Labour caucus will meet on Tuesday to vote on whether to expel Gaurav Sharma (Photos: RNZ/Angus Dreaver, Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)
Sharma breaks silence
“A week is a long time in politics” is attributed to British prime minister Harold Wilson. Wilson is said to have made that quip in the mid 60s, when the world wide web was a mere twinkle in Tim Berners-Lee’s eye. A week and two hours after Gaurav Sharma’s online op-ed in the NZ Herald alleging bullying in parliament, he sat down with Newshub’s Jenna Lynch for 36-minte long conversation last night. Following the caucus meeting on Tuesday where he was suspended from caucus, he broke his silence and unloaded several more rounds of ammunition aimed at the Labour party.
Sharma accuses prime minister of lying this morning
Last night Sharma told Newshub that the decision to suspend him from caucus had been made at the meeting on Monday night, the night before the scheduled caucus meeting on Tuesday. “It's a kangaroo court, it's a banana republic," he said. Speaking to RNZ’s Morning Report this morning Sharma said “This is about the credibility of a nation's prime minister, who every step of the way has been lying.” Ardern has stressed the decision to suspend Sharma from the Labour caucus was not predetermined. The caucus will vote next Tuesday on a motion to expel Sharma. Politik’s Richard Harman writes (paywalled) the result of next Tuesday’s meeting is a forgone conclusion given the unanimous vote to suspend Sharma on Wednesday.
McAnulty rejects any allegations of bullying
Kieran McAnulty also spoke to Morning Report this morning and rejected any allegations that he was a bully towards anyone. He said the Whips’ office kept meticulous records and the question of whether there should be an inquiry into the matters raised by Sharma is a call for the prime minister to make. McAnulty also refuted Sharma’s allegation that the decision around his future was predetermined at the meeting on Monday night, ahead of the caucus meeting on Tuesday, although he did say the mood of the room was clear.
Four days is a long time in politics
As Toby Manhire writes on The Spinoff this morning, it’s inconceivable that the caucus or the leadership will do or say nothing between now and Tuesday. Four days is a long time in politics, especially after someone has accused the prime minister of lying and made defamatory claims about a minister and others. That just can’t hang in the air. Sharma is speaking to Tova O’Brien’s on Today FM as I’m hitting send this morning. By the time many of you open this, it will have aired. I am also on Today FM later this morning and am listening to the interview in case the measure of what a “long time in politics” is, contracts to mere minutes.
For every dollar a Pākehā man earns, Māori and Pasifika women earn $0.81 and $0.75 respectively. So where does the answer to closing this significant deficit lie? MindTheGap, a public pay gap registry, wants government-mandated pay gap reporting, but it also thinks businesses can be doing far more in terms of transparency. Read more about how the pay gap is stopping Māori and Pacific communities from thriving, on The Spinoff now (sponsored).
Nelson will take years to recover from damage caused by heavy rain, Far North cut off
Nelson mayor Rachel Reese said the significance of the heavy rain that’s caused evacuations, road closures and property damage on the city "couldn't be overstated" and that it will take years to recover. More rain is predicted to fall over the weekend which may lead to more surface flooding and slips due to the ground already being saturated. The Far North is cut off with State Highway 1 closed at Rangiahua Bridge and State Highway 10 closed at Kāeo. Speaking to RNZ’s morning report this morning, Far North deputy mayor Anne Court said 1100 people in the area were without power overnight.
Health NZ chair says sector is more dysfunctional than we thought
Health NZ chair Rob Campbell is known for speaking his mind. I find it refreshing, especially when it comes to the matter of health bureaucracy and, rather than being alarmed by the headline, it’s good to see someone level with us and usefully manage our expectation about the speed of reform we can expect in our health system. He’s spoken to Stuff’s Bridie Witton and as he often is, has been very candid about the state he finds the health system in and the need for change. Campbell said the reforms were going well but it was slow work to change entrenched attitudes. He said abolishing district health boards is a bigger job than anyone anticipated and getting “basic information” from the health system was also a challenge.
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Aotearoa's future of low battery anxiety
Electricity - something we arguably can't live without at this stage in global growth. However, with expensive renewable supply, how do users and the industry match the demand? In this week's episode of When the Facts Change, Bernard Hickey speaks with Octopus Energy's Margaret Cooney about possible solutions to tweak and shift away from expensive peaks, and how an obscure law change might unleash a surge of retailing competition; all in the hopes of calming our collective low battery anxiety.
Click and collect
Charity Services opens inquiry into Arise Church.
One block of butter, three lids - on Fonterra’s butter packaging.
Electricity Authority puts temporary block on big low-price power deals.
Artists will now receive a royalty payment when their work is onsold.
Got some feedback about The Bulletin, or anything in the news? Get in touch with me at thebulletin@thespinoff.co.nz.
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Oscar Kightley's play Dawn Raids returns to the stage in Tāmaki Makaurau this week. Toby Manhire sat down with him to reflect on the injustices it tackles, on a dazzling body of work, on family, on community, and on the places he calls home. Ben McKay presents the drongo's guide to Scott Morrison's latest scandal. Sela Jane Hopgood meets four AUT design student exploring what it means to be 'plastic'. A bunch of people make a shocking disovery about the number of foods in our supermarkets with non-English names.
On the phone call that put Kennedy Simon in the captain’s seat
“I asked her ‘Why me?’” 25-year-old Simon says. “And Ruahei said ‘Why not?’”
Suzanne McFadden has an interview with Black Fern’s co-captain Kennedy Simon. Simon was just back from rehab after a knee injury when she got the call asking if she wanted to co-captain the side. Simon was still stunned that she'd even made the Black Ferns squad to play Australia in the Laurie O’Reilly Cup series. The series starts tomorrow in Christchurch. Coverage kicks off at 6.30pm on Sky Sport.
It’s Friday so…
Enjoy this stellar column from the Guardian’s Marina Hyde. As always Hyde is hilariously dry and has turned her attention to the many careers of Brooklyn Beckham, son of Victoria and David Beckham. He is 23. A good laugh but also something of not-so-thinly-veiled critique of the ridiculous celebrity culture that whips up around the children of famous people, propelled ever further into the sublime by social media and hyperbolic media headlines.
