Secret agencies step into the light
The GCSB and NZSIS revealed concerns about the growing threat of foreign interference yesterday as RNZ launches new Chinese language news service and the national security system faces reform
Mōrena and welcome to The Bulletin for Tuesday, March 28, by Anna Rawhiti-Connell. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.
In today’s edition: no fix for main Coromandel highway before Christmas; officials in PM’s office asked Marama Davidson to walk back comments; last stages of RMA reform looking increasingly fraught; but first, previously unrevealed insight into counter terrorism work and the rising threat of foreign interference
GCSB speak for first time about domestic counter-terrorism work
Once a year, the nation's “spooks” as they’re often termed by the media, step out from beneath the cover of secrecy they operate under and present to parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee. The annual review of the country’s intelligence agencies including the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) and Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) was held yesterday. GCSB director-general Andrew Hampton told MPs about three recent domestic counter-terrorism operations the GCSB had been involved in. Two involved what Hampton described as individuals adhering to “white-identity violent extremism”, while the third involved someone making bombs with “an implied ideological motivation”. This kind of work hasn’t been made public before.
RNZ to launch new Asia unit against backdrop of concerns about foreign interference
Acting director-general of the NZSIS Phil McKee also revealed they were worried about the increasing threat of foreign interference and espionage. Incidence of other countries harassing ethnic communities, and influencing academics, government officials and media is increasing. Newsroom’s Sam Sachdeva is out this morning with a story on RNZ’s latest venture, a new Asia unit launching before this year’s general election which will produce original Chinese-language stories and translations. Sachdeva writes that it’s happening against “a backdrop of concerns about alleged censorship and foreign influence efforts affecting Chinese-language news media around the world — including New Zealand.”
Concerns about foreign interference via social media targeting at election
Disinformation Project researcher Sanjana Hattotuwa expressed concerns about foreign interference via social media micro-targeting and its potential to influence election outcomes earlier this month. Micro-targeting is the use of data to tailor advertising messages to individuals. Opinion among experts differs as to how effective it is and what New Zealand should do about it. This RNZ report from Phil Pennington is worth a read. The ABC published an investigation on its use in the Australian election last year. The most well-known example of micro-targeting is Russian-affiliated accounts spending more than $100k with Facebook during the 2016 US election. The European Commission recently agreed to tougher rules on targeted political ads ahead of the 2024 European Union (EU) elections. The draft proposals are part of a wider EU crackdown on privacy with tech giants like Google and Meta squarely in their sights.
National security system set for reform
The briefing for the incoming minister of national security and intelligence (prime minister Chris Hipkins) cites a large amount of legislative reform as one of the factors influencing the changing national security and intelligence environment in New Zealand. As Stuff’s Thomas Manch reported, the government is not ruling out merging the GCSB and the NZSIS as it continues to overhaul the national security system, four years after the Christchurch mosque terror attack. Cabinet has already decided to reduce the focus of the national security system from an "all hazards, all risks" approach and instead concern itself with "malicious threats".
A message from Spinoff editor Madeleine Chapman
You're reading this because you value the work The Spinoff does in telling the stories of our people in our voices. As we head further into an already eventful 2023, we have a big job ahead of us. Covering the stories that matter to you is no small job. We’re a fiercely independent media company in Aotearoa but that also means we’re small and I think sometimes people forget how small our team is. I'm asking you to consider deepening your commitment to The Spinoff and the work we do by becoming a Spinoff Member. If you’re already a member, thank you for your support and advocacy - it's what keeps us going.
No fix for Coromandel highway before Christmas
It will also be a couple of months before a decision is made on what approach will be taken with Coromandel’s SH25A which has been closed since cracks appeared on January 27 in the wake of ex-Cyclone Hale. Any fix will take nine to 12 months to implement. Access in and out of the region has been severely impacted by landslides. Media were given access to the area yesterday and RNZ’S Checkpoint has some pretty extraordinary footage of the area where roading just no longer exists. In Northland, an additional 645 slips have occurred in the region since Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events this year bringing the total number of live slips in the area to 1770, impacting 30% of Northland’s roading network. The current estimate to repair and improve the network is $250m.
Officials in prime minister's office asked Marama Davidson to walk back comments
Green party co-leader and minister Marama Davidson was captured on video ahead of a rally against anti-trans speaker Posie Parker on Saturday saying “white cis men” were responsible for “violence in the world”. As first reported by The Spinoff over the weekend, Davidson was struck by a motorcycle at the rally and says the comment was made just after the incident and she was still in shock. The Act party and NZ First have called for her to resign as minister for the prevention of family and sexual violence over the comments. Prime minister Chris Hipkins labelled the comments made by Davidson as inappropriate and revealed his office asked her to walk them back. He also acknowledged she had “just been hit by a motorcycle [and] was being harassed by a right wing conspiracy group.”
Guyon Espiner on NZ's troublesome lobbying laws
He's got one of the most prestigious journalism careers in the country, but RNZ’s Guyon Espiner is not slowing down anytime soon. His new series "Mate, Comrade, Brother" on political lobbying in New Zealand has already exposed a number of troubling incidents. He sits down with Duncan Greive on the latest episode of The Fold to discuss why he supports lobbying regulation, along with a look back over a rich career in forward-thinking journalism.
Last stages of RMA reform looking increasingly fraught
Green MP Eugenie Sage is chair of the Environment Select Committee that is overseeing the government’s Resource Management Act (RMA) reforms. As reported by Politik’s Richard Harman, Sage wants the related bills sent back for more public consultation. Sage is concerned about the pace at which things are proceeding. As Harman writes, if that were to happen, it would essentially kill any chance of the legislation required to implement one of the government’s biggest reform programmes being passed before the election. National and Act would likely support more consultation so getting it through would rely on Labour's majority. The NZ Herald’s Thomas Coughlan had an excellent read (paywalled) on the politically fraught journey ahead for the reform, writing that “fixing the RMA is so utterly complicated it could easily fall to Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ reprioritisation axe if it is seen to occupy excessive political bandwidth. It’s unwieldy, fiendishly difficult, and the only visible payoff will be years in the future.”
Click and collect
All five North Island universities have started the year with fewer full-time-equivalent domestic students than the same time last year
7.9m Australian and New Zealand driver’s licence numbers and 53,000 passport numbers stolen in cyber-attack
Dunedin City Council told planned cuts to the city's new hospital are "stupid"
Good news for environment as predicted global “population bomb” may never go off
From the “Good Lord” files - principal in US forced to resign after showing students images of Michelangelo’s David - director of the Galleria dell’Accademia invites school to actually go and see it. I endorse making the trip.
Got some feedback about The Bulletin, or anything in the news? Get in touch with me at thebulletin@thespinoff.co.nz.
If you liked what you read today, share The Bulletin with friends, family and colleagues.
Toby Manhire investigates how fringe, conspiracy-aligned New Zealand groups have latched on to the Posie Parker controversy. Duncan Greive examines an obscure but high stakes battle between TVNZ and Sky. A children's lawyer outlines what she does and why it matters. Sela Jane Hopgood explains how to prepare a Sāmoan umu. Alex Casey looks into the rise of ‘Do We Have the Same Boyfriend’ Facebook groups.
Sporting snippets
Alice Soper recaps the Super Rugby Aupiki finals
How Auckland Council's proposed budget cuts could set New Zealand back on the global sporting stage
A United Nations expert advising the International Olympic Committee says Russian soldiers who have fought in Ukraine should be allowed to compete at the Paris 2024 Games
What killed penmanship?
My handwriting is an affront to one particular teacher who spent hours trying to get me to write a cursive “Z”. According to this New York Times feature on the death of handwriting, entire Reddit communities exist for users “to post their indecipherable scrawls to be decoded by thousands of strangers.” If you’re worried about what is being lost as we handwrite less and less, fear not. Experts believe technology has simply made the ability to write and to communicate through writing more efficient and stronger, and any “lingering reverence for neat penmanship, especially cursive, may have more to do with nostalgia than practicality.”
