Peters' Nazi comparison pushes Greens' bad week from the headlines

New Zealand deserves better than a deputy PM who behaves 'like a drunk uncle at a wedding', says Chris Hipkins.

Mōrena, and welcome to The Bulletin for Monday, March 18, written by Catherine McGregor.

In today’s edition: Christchurch experts call for tougher rules on pine planting near residential areas; Per-capita economic growth a disaster, say experts; Government walks back Significant Natural Areas suspension after legal warnings. But first, when the controversy over Winston Peters’ Nazi comment dies down, questions over the Greens’ handling of the Darleen Tana case will remain.

NZ First leader Winston Peters photographed in 2017. (Photo: Phil Walter/Getty Images)

Co-governance and Nazism share a similar impulse, says Peters

On Saturday, New Zealand’s most mercurial politician returned from a short trip to Asia, where he held a series of serious, high-level meetings in his role as foreign minister. On Sunday, he was back in rabble-rouser mode, delivering his state of the nation speech to a packed audience of NZ First faithful. According to a report by Stuff’s Glenn McConnell, the deputy PM spent the first part of his speech attacking the previous Labour government before pivoting to culture war issues including te Tiriti and co-governance. He said the latter was pushed by people who thought “their DNA made them somehow better than others” and compared it to the ideology of Nazi Germany. Asked about it later, Peters defended the comparison, saying New Zealand’s Jewish community would “understand” what he meant. Labour’s Chris Hipkins said it was a reprehensible comment. “Kiwis deserve better than a deputy prime minister who behaves like a drunk uncle at a wedding,” he said.

Another week of bad headlines for the Greens

Before Peters’s speech, the biggest politics story of the weekend was the fallout from the Greens’ suspension of MP Darleen Tana over migrant exploitation allegations levelled at her husband. Commentators observed that the Tana news could hardly have been more badly timed for the party, coming just a day after former MP Golriz Ghahraman appeared in court on shoplifting charges. Writing in the Sunday Star-Times, Andrea Vance notes one striking similarity between the two cases: having learned of the allegations, each time the Greens waited multiple weeks before informing the public. It’s a pattern of behaviour that “signals the Greens are no longer as wedded to openness as they once were,” writes Vance. “And frankly, a disdain for the role of the media.”

MP and her bosses both have questions to answer

For Vance’s colleague Luke Malpass (paywalled), the Greens’ silence on the Tana matter is understandable given that the MP said the official complaint against her husband came out of the blue. “What is a leadership supposed to do with that – put out a press release saying someone’s spouse has an employment law hearing, which the MP says she knows nothing about and there was no suggestion that she did? No.” Tana’s failure to disclose a second Employment Relations Authority complaint is the more serious problem, Malpass says. “Sins of omission are still sins. And in politics neglecting to tell your party leader important information is most commonly viewed as lying.” The string of recent scandals raises questions about the quality of the Greens’ vetting of potential candidates, writes the Herald’s Thomas Coughlan. “There are also questions around whether the caucus needs to be read the riot act over the importance of fronting up to the party hierarchy as soon as an MP becomes aware of a potential problem.” 

Labour keeps its powder dry

Meanwhile in Wairarapa, the Labour Party was wrapping up its caucus retreat. With controversy growing over the apparent $5.6 billion fiscal hole in the government’s books, it’s likely there were conversations in Masterton about whether Labour should go on the attack. So far Chris Hipkins has been content to stand back and let National dig its own hole. That’s a mistake, suggests the Sunday Star-Times’ Vernon Small (paywalled). “With this government making a wasteland of its predecessor’s reforms, Labour’s low-key approach and its reticence to defend its record is letting National off the hook”.

We are asking for your help to continue our coverage of Wellington

The War for Wellington has been a six-week editorial project for The Spinoff focused on the city’s District Plan and the chance to rewrite the rulebook on housing. Every single one of the 34 stories from myself and our contributors has been free for all to read. Many have involved hours pouring over hundreds of pages of dense documentation. We are incredibly grateful to Spinoff Members for enabling this work; thank you. Last week we ended this project but remain dedicated to continuing our coverage of Wellington. To do so, we are asking for reader help. Please, if you are able to support The Spinoff, donate or become a member today.

Joel MacManus
Wellington editor

Per-capita economic growth a disaster, say experts

Wednesday sees the release of the latest GDP figures. After recording a 0.3% fall in the September quarter, a further drop will mean New Zealand is officially in a recession. Bank economists are picking that we’ll escape that fate, reports the Herald’s Liam Dann (paywalled) – but only just. With predictions ranging from 0% (ie flat) to a contraction of 0.2%, none of the banks are expecting the Reserve Bank to report any growth in the economy. Things are looking even worse when the country’s explosive population growth is factored in, with BNZ’s Stephen Toplis opining that, on a per capita basis, economic growth “is going backwards at a rapid rate of knots”. ASB economist Nathan Keall says overall per-capita growth has effectively stagnated. “[T]he slice of the economic pie available for each Kiwi is only about 0.6% bigger than it was in late 2019,” he said. “By the time per-capita GDP begins growing again, it could be nearly 1.5% smaller by our reckoning.”

Christchurch experts call for tougher rules on pine planting near residential areas

It’s been a month since a fire tore through much of Christchurch’s Port Hills and this morning’s Press has an interesting story on the future of the area. Following the last big fire in 2017, the land was replanted in fast-growing, highly flammable pine. Last month the pine plantations burned again, prompting experts to call for more thought to be put into replanting this time. “For the good of Christchurch, what do the pine trees do there?” asks one. “Sure, they provide a mountain biking environment, but you could do that with native forest as well. Maybe the city council needs to say, ‘that's inappropriate - full stop’.” Another expert, a firefighter and senior lecturer at Lincoln University, says local homeowners also need to take responsibility. “We talk about a thing called reverse sensitivity ... don't complain if you want to move into a lifestyle block in a rural area and you get cow shit on your Land Rover,” Rob Montgomery tells reporter Keiller MacDuff. He warns that insurers are likely to stop insuring some fire-prone areas soon.

As a capstone to his heroic six weeks at the helm of our War for Wellington campaign, Joel MacManus writes this weekend in praise of cities – yes, even New Zealand ones. “Compared to the century- and millennia-old cities which dominate the world’s economy and culture today like London, Beijing and New York, Wellington (like all New Zealand cities) is a mere toddler, taking its first shaky steps towards urbanisation,” he writes.

“The evolution from large provincial towns to truly urban, high-functioning cities is New Zealand’s greatest economic challenge of the 21st century. It’s the step that will take us from an economy based on agriculture and natural resources to one based on productive high tech and creative industries.”

Click and Collect

• The government has walked back a suspension of local government requirements on Significant Natural Areas after legal experts warned such a move would be unlawful .

• With the left in disarray, Christopher Luxon can expect to be prime minister beyond 2026, and plausibly into a third term, argues Interest’s Dan Brunskill.

• Piped-gas households could save thousands a year by switching to electric appliances, a new report claims.

• Voting in the Russian elections is about to close, with Vladimir Putin poised to return to power after running essentially unopposed.

Feeling clever? Click here to play 1Q, Aotearoa’s newest, shortest daily quiz.

Right now on The Spinoff

Inspired by this month’s broadcast media apocalypse, Madeleine Holden sets out to discover exactly how many journalism jobs are left in New Zealand. Tommy de Silva lays out what every Aucklander needs to know about the council’s new long-term plan. Anna Rawhiti-Connell explains how to make the most of a bumper tomato crop. Loveni S Enari goes inside Dunedin’s only Pasifika goods store. As the sun sets on TVNZ’s Sunday, journalist Jehan Casinader explains why it’s such a special place to work. Alice Neville shares the secrets from the judges’ table at the national beer awards.

Sporting snippets

• An in-depth investigation by RNZ’s Dana Johannsen reveals how a win-at-all-costs mentality has infected high school rowing, with ethically dubious behaviours such as encouraging star student rowers to repeat Year 13 now relatively commonplace.

• How long Covid almost derailed the Olympic dreams of canoe slalom trailblazer Luuka Jones.

• Which A-League kit is better, the one worn by the Wellington Phoenix or the new Auckland FC? The Herald compares and contrasts.

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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