News Briefing: 24 December 2025

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News Briefing: 24 December 2025

TRADE, FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Russell Palmer (RNZ): Labour, Greens in the hot seat over India free trade agreement
Russell Palmer (RNZ): India Free Trade Agreement ‘for political purposes’, Winston Peters says
Adam Hollingworth (Stuff): Coalition splinters as PM and Peters clash over India trade deal
Dita De Boni (Post): A cautionary tale: The Australia-India free trade agreement (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): India free-trade agreement a win-win for New Zealand, economist says
Rob Stock (Post): NZ-India FTA a disappointment for Kiwi dairy exporters still facing tariffs of 30% to 60% (paywalled)
Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): India-NZ trade deal disappoints dairy exporters (paywalled)
NBR: Labour disappointed by lack of dairy gains in India FTA (paywalled)
Dileepa Fonseka ( BusinessDesk): India’s NZ FTA ‘clawback’ and why apples are a win (paywalled)
Whatitiri Te Wake (Te Ao Māori News): ‘A lost opportunity for Māori’ in India‑NZ Free Trade Agreement
Mountain Tui: Luxon promises India $34 billion investment & 20% of all Indian skilled visas
Ani O’Brien: Will NZ-India trade deal survive NZ Parliament?
—————
Anneke Smith (RNZ): Winston Peters on a mission to restore NZ’s diplomatic ‘mojo’
Claudia O’Neill (Newstalk ZB): UN looking down the barrel of bankruptcy - with the US still yet to pay its dues
Teuila Fuatai (RNZ): NZ’s been a ‘good neighbour’: Former Samoa government minister backs compensation amount for Manawanui disaster

PARLIAMENT, PUBLIC SERVICE, YEAR IN REVIEW
Henry Cooke (Post): Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer opens up ahead of tough election year (paywalled)
Pattrick Smellie (BusinessDesk): Nicola Willis on the election: ‘the jury’s out’ (paywalled)
Māni Dunlop (Te Ao Māori News): ‘We’re going to work like hell to keep the government and make it better’ Seymour wraps up 2025
Anna Whyte (Post): Sir Brian Roche’s case for reshaping the public service (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Collaborative committee culture working for infrastructure (paywalled)
Gaurav Sharma (RNZ): 2025 in review: A year when New Zealand-India relations took off
David Farrar: 2025 Kiwiblog Award winners
Toby Manhire (Spinoff): Juggernaut 2: The story of the fourth National government – all episodes out now
Paul Little (Listener): New Zealand’s honours system: does it need a polish up? (paywalled)
Bevan Rapson (Listener): 2025’s Dubious Achievement Awards (paywalled)

ECONOMY, SOCIETY, COST OF LIVING, INEQUALITY
Peter Griffin (BusinessDesk): Our productivity complacency is killing our future (paywalled)
Gordon Campbell: On GDP Growth, And Other Holiday Diversions
Sue Chetwin (Herald): Christmas food costs lay bare the true price of supermarket power (paywalled)
Carly Gooch (Press)): Family-owned supermarket ready to take on the duopoly (paywalled)
Aziz Al Sa. afin (1News): ‘$30 left for the week’: The families relying on charity for Xmas cheer
Rachel Graham (RNZ): Christchurch Methodist Mission provides more than 160 Christmas hampers to families in need
Tracey Martin (Newsroom): A country is not its GDP, a country is its people
Scottie Reeve (Post): How our ordinary lives can be the continuation of the miracle in a manger (paywalled)

HEALTH
Mary Argue (RNZ): Health NZ green lights General Practice Owners Association breakaway PHO
Joanne Naish and Mariné Lourens (Press/Post): New doctor-run organisation wins Health NZ backing, with more than 100 general practices keen to switch (paywalled)
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): ‘Forever lost in a broken system’ (paywalled)
Rob Campbell (Newsroom): The rise of black market cigarettes should surprise no one
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Nurses’ union boss on the ‘shadow land’ of Te Whatu Ora
Geof Mortlock (Herald): New Zealand needs to do more to promote early prostate cancer detection (paywalled)
Herald Editorial: New Zealand’s attitudes to alcohol are changing, and that’s a good thing (paywalled)
RNZ: Human rights lawyer lodges Ombudsman complaint over asbestos sand
ODT Editorial: Finally, some progress to report (paywalled)

FAST-TRACK, RMA, ENVIRONMENT
Ben Tomsett (Herald): Queenstown Homestead Bay housing development fast-tracked despite backlash (paywalled)
Miles Anderson (ODT): Mines an economic boost if done well
Mary Williams (ODT): River ‘E. coli’ spike ‘an infrastructure failure’ (paywalled)

CORRECTIONS, JUSTICE
ODT Editorial: Court correcting Corrections (paywalled)
Katherine Doolin (Newsroom): Drug treatment courts can jam addiction’s ‘revolving door’
Kevin Phillips (ODT): Getting shirty about a protest shirt

ENERGY
RNZ: Electricity Authority lodges formal complaint against Genesis
Jamie Gray (Herald): Genesis Energy faces complaint over alleged Huntly power plant code breach
Mark Callander (Post): The Energy Monopoly: We need another round of market reforms (paywalled)

PROTEST, DESTINY CHURCH
Herald: National MP, Free Speech Union criticise Brian Tamaki-linked protest at Sikh parade
Whatitiri Te Wake (Te Ao Māori News): Tāmaki Makaurau MP calls out use of haka in Sikh standoff
Ani O’Brien: Brian Tamaki and the Sikh parade confrontation
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Charitable trust linked to Destiny Church owes $2.4m – liquidator’s report
1News: John Campbell on Destiny Church: ‘I’ve never encountered so much fear’

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WATER
Tom Hunt (Post): Empty desks counted in Wellington City Council over-staffing report (paywalled)
Sue Teodoro (Local Democracy Reporting): Too early to tell if proposals mean job losses: PSA

TRANSPORT, INFRASTRUCTURE
Sam Sherwood (RNZ): NZTA orders data analysis to identify full scale of falsely recorded breath tests
Nicholas Jones (Stuff): Luxury car owners told vehicles should have been de-registered - hit with 3 month deadline
Roeland van den Bergh (Post): Vehicle registration costs rise on Jan 1 (paywalled)

IMMIGRATION
Katie Todd (RNZ): Nurse’s autistic son could face deportation after Immigration NZ rejects visa
Harriet Laughton (Post): Immigration Minister refuses to lower English standards for migrant bus drivers (paywalled)

MEDIA
Karl du Fresne: RNZ’s boss gives New Zealand the fingers
Karl du Fresne: Death wish 2025

SPORT
Dana Johannsen (RNZ): Landmark integrity probe into Yachting NZ drags into second year
Nathan Limm (Herald): Labour MP Willie Jackson labels ex-CEO Jennie Wyllie ‘sacrificial lamb’, slams Netball NZ board (paywalled)
Nathan Limm (Herald): Dame Noeline Taurua: Politician joins push for Netball New Zealand board overhaul (paywalled)

OTHER
Mirjam Guesgen (Listener): Racing a deadline: Fears are emerging for the future of greyhounds (paywalled)
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Zespri pinged for offloading carbon guilt to its consumers using outdated data
Herald: FMA board shake-up as Steven Bardy named deputy chair from 2026
Te Ao Māori News: Tribunal: Crown governance denied Te Raki Māori authority guaranteed by Te Tiriti
Felix Walton (RNZ): Sexual abuse support services facing cuts have contracts extended
Dane Giraud (Post): I’m Jewish but I don’t support more curbs on hate speech and protest (paywalled)
Roeland van den Bergh (Post): US philanthropists move their gifting to New Zealand in the Trump era (paywalled)