The big changes coming on April 1
A pinch and a punch for the first of the month – and for higher minimum wages, increased benefits, new Covid boosters and more
Mōrena and welcome to The Bulletin for Friday, March 31, by Catherine McGregor. Presented in partnership with Z Energy.
In today’s edition: Sudden Today FM axing leaves staff in shock; allegations of a “cover up” over Stuart Nash email; how home owners can protect their housing insurance in a warming climate. But first, a big day for benefits and boosters.
Minimum wage earners and beneficiaries will see a bump in income from April 1. (Image: Getty Images)
All change for autumn
It’s not news to those of us in the South Island who shivered through bitterly cold temperatures this week, nor to the long-suffering Cook Strait ferry passengers whose crossings were cancelled due to high winds and swells: like it or not, autumn is well and truly here. The leaves are changing, and so too are a raft of welfare, health, employment and electoral rules affecting nearly all of us. As the start of a new tax year, April 1 is the standard date for the government to introduce changes that will affect New Zealanders’ back pockets. This year, the minimum wage is one of them, rising by $1.50 to $22.70 an hour. It’s a 7% increase, broadly in line with average wage growth – which appears to now be stalling – meaning its impact on both unemployment and inflation itself will be limited, economists believe. Employers’ group Business NZ says despite assurances, it’s concerned about a wage-price spiral in which businesses raise their prices to cover their increased wage bills. “I know they say it doesn’t have an impact on inflation but it’s gone up year-on-year. Small to medium businesses are the ones that struggle,” spokesperson Catherine Beard told Stuff.
Hikes to super, childcare subsidies and other benefits
Benefits and payments are also going up this weekend. Main benefits such as the jobseeker allowance will rise this year by the rate of inflation, rather than being pegged to the increase in net average wage – an extra 0.98% in the hand. Superannuitants will get this larger increase, with couples receiving around $100 more a fortnight after tax, and individuals about $70 more. Income thresholds for childcare assistance are increasing too. The government says 10,000 more children will be covered, and more than 50% of all New Zealand families with children will now be eligible for subsidised childcare.
Bivalent boosters open to (almost) all
A month after they were first introduced to New Zealand, bivalent boosters will be available to more people, with the expansion of eligibility for the second booster. From April 1, anyone aged 30 or over will be able to get the shot, as long as it’s been at least six months since their first booster. The bivalent booster is designed to target both the original and omicron strains, but the so-called “Kraken” subvariant is now dominant in New Zealand. Covid expert Michael Plank says bivalents will still be more effective than previous boosters. “It’s like a photo of the virus’s twin brother or sister rather than a distant cousin,” he said. Charlotte Muru-Lanning has an extremely useful explainer covering the bivalent boosters and expanded eligibility on The Spinoff this morning.
Making it easier for Māori to switch electoral rolls
Finally, and a day earlier than the rest, is a change to the Māori electoral option. From today, Māori who are enrolled to vote can change their electoral roll from general to Māori (or vice versa) any time except in the three months before an election. Back in November this law change passed with 75% support from parliament – a high threshold that was required because it applied to legislation within the Electoral Act. The Electoral Commission is today launching a public information programme to let Māori know about the change.
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.
Today FM axing leaves staff in shock
Talk radio station Today FM is no more, Mediaworks confirmed late yesterday afternoon. After a turbulent day at the station, interim CEO Wendy Palmer said the company had made the “difficult decision to close Today FM from tomorrow”. Calling it “an emotional day for the talented team who put everything into building a new talk platform in Aotearoa,” she said that “unfortunately… the funding is not there to support this level of investment”. In response to the news, a staff member posted a candid statement to the station’s Facebook and Twitter pages. “We were robbed. You were robbed,” Oscar Jackson wrote. The statement was quickly deleted and the Facebook page taken down. As Stewart Sowman-Lund reports on The Spinoff, a leaked Mediaworks document names 30 Today FM hosts, production staff and contractors it planned to fire, with 20 more positions under review.
Questions raised over Nash’s ‘out of scope’ email
The 2020 email to donors that prompted Nash’s firing had not been turned over following an OIA request for correspondence between Nash and his donors, Newsroom reports. The email had been deemed “out of scope” by the prime minister’s office (PMO) because it was not written in Nash’s ministerial responsibility. Writes Toby Manhire for The Spinoff, that explanation is “mysterious – or, to put it another way, outrageous – given that the email in question directly, expressly, explicitly, definitively was written by the minister based on his dealings as a minister.” The PMO has apologised for its “error of judgment” but National is accusing the government of a cover-up. “Not only did they know about Stuart Nash’s letter,” said deputy leader Nicola Willis, “they broke the law to keep that letter from the New Zealand public.”
Emergency monopod: Today FM gets taken off air
Tova O’Brien and Duncan Garner took over the airwaves yesterday morning to dramatically declare that Mediaworks was axing the year-old radio brand. In an emergency episode of his media podcast The Fold, Duncan Greive discusses what the closure means for radio in NZ, and what’s next for Today FM’s staff.
Will climate change wipe out your insurance?
Since the devastation of Cyclone Gabrielle, insurers have begun rapidly repricing the land beneath homes for flood risk, creating a Wild West for home owners impatient to find out if their land is going to continue to be insurable. In the new episode of When the Facts Change, Bernard Hickey talks to insurance and banking academic Dr. Michael Naylor from Massey University about what home owners can do to protect their housing insurance in a warming climate.
Click and collect
An overseas traveller to New Zealand died from rabies last week – this country’s first case. The public is being told there’s no risk of further spread.
Professor Rangiānehu Matamua, the driving force behind the Matariki holiday, has been named 2023 New Zealander of the Year.
Billy Te Kahika and Vinny Eastwood have received jail sentences for organising and attending a protest on the first day of the August 2021 lockdown
Nearly a quarter of young women in the NZ Defence Force faced “unwanted sexual activity” in the past year, an auditor-general report has found.
The relationship between Gore mayor Ben Bell and chief executive Stephen Parry has broken down so much that another councillor will now act as an intermediary.
An independent evaluation says it’s likely the design of new NCEA maths and writing tests is unfair on Māori and Pacific students.
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.
Charlotte Muru-Lanning explains what you need to know about the new second booster shots. Hera Lindsay Bird advises a reader who doesn’t know how to have fun. Experts tell Chris Schulz what they’d like to see happen to Auckland’s Skyworld once it’s in new hands. Duncan Greive argues that the shutdown of Today FM is tantamount to Mediaworks admitting its best days are behind it.
Sporting snippets
Indonesia has been stripped of its hosting duties for the under-20 football World Cup after the governor of the largely Hindu island of Bali refused to host Israel's team.
Super Rugby says stoppage time has been dramatically reduced following the introduction of a raft of law variations in this year's competition.
Football Ferns have spoken out in support of ‘One Love’ rainbow armbands following reports Fifa will again ban them for the 2023 World Cup.
It’s Friday, so…
Feast your eyes on the Pope rocking an amazing white puffy jacket, in a picture that had the internet fooled for at least a couple of days this week. In truth, it’s the creation of the buzzy AI image generator Midjourney. The tell-tale sign, apart from the fact that the Pope isn’t generally known for his dope coats? That weird looking right hand.
