PARLIAMENT, PUBLIC SERVICE, YEAR IN REVIEW
Alexander Gillespie (The Conversation): NZ report card 2025: how the country fared in 28 key global and domestic rankings
Post: The Opposition’s performance in 2025, ranked (paywalled)
Marc Daalder, Sam Sachdeva and Fox Meyer (Newsroom): Political rankings: Who’s up, who’s down and who’s set to surprise in 2026
Brent Edwards (NBR): Winners and losers of the 2025 political year (paywalled)
Stuff: Christmas break fails to stop Luxon and Hipkins posting politics
Joseph Los’e (Herald): Simon Bridges’ wife, Natalie, and lawyer Philip Crump among new community trusts appointees
Ethan Manera (Herald): Public servants more left-leaning than private sector workers, new polling shows (paywalled)
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Maintaining identity among govt friction
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Act minister remains hands-on out on the farm
David Farrar: Kiwiblog’s 2026 predictions
Anneke Smith (RNZ): Where do MPs go, when they go bush?
Anna Whyte (Post): Summer off politics: Spectacular pavs and Electric Avenue with Laura McClure (paywalled)
Helmut Modlik (Newsroom): Why we should walk backwards into our vexed future
Katie Todd (RNZ): Emails reveal Marlon Williams, Paul Goldsmith Treaty principles exchange
ECONOMY, SOCIETY, COST OF LIVING, INEQUALITY
Richard Prebble (Herald): Is the economic recovery enough to save the coalition? (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): ‘Easier to get growth out of an economic hole’ - Did we survive 2025?
Andrew Rudolph (Newsroom): An ‘unmeritocracy’ – a modest proposal
Amy Williams (RNZ): Charities turning away high numbers of volunteer applications
Fergus McDonald (Post): Political uncertainty may spoil growth party as election nears (paywalled)
PRIMARY INDUSTRIES, ENVIRONMENT
Anna Sargent (RNZ): Sheep shearing industry, government announce $75,000 animal welfare programme
Keiller MacDuff (RNZ): Nitrates in water: ECan’s rule-making fell short of law over allowing discharges, High Court rules
Maxine Jacobs (Press): What are nitrates, where do they come from, and why are we all so worried about them?
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): ‘Significant’ amount of forestry debris sitting in wait on Gisborne’s hillsides
Elisabeth Easther (Herald): New marine protection for Hauraki Gulf long overdue (paywalled)
Samantha Gee (RNZ): Tasman floods recovery expected to cost $50m, take two years
HEALTH
ODT Editorial: Health targets miss bullseye (paywalled)
Mariné Lourens (Post): More Kiwis turning to private surgery as public waitlists balloon (paywalled)
John Lewis (ODT): Life on hold waiting for surgery
John Kleinsman (Stuff): Why we should be wary of organ donation after assisted dying
Megan Wilson (Rotorua Daily Post/Herald): Rotorua’s QE Health: Commerce Commission declines to investigate complaint about Health NZ (paywalled)
Ani O’Brien: Marc Daalder writes opinion, not journalism
Ruth Hill (RNZ): ‘Celia’ the optometry bus hits the road to check Kiwi kids
Nicholas Jones (Stuff): ‘Extremely disheartening’: The surprise reason this Southern Cross member was declined surgery
Mike Houlahan (ODT): You need to help the aged, ’cause one day you’ll be older too (paywalled)
RNZ: Recreational drug users urged to get their stuff checked before this New Year’s
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WATER
Tina Law (Press): $277,000 a day: Christchurch City Council’s $72m consultant spend revealed
Will Harvie (Press): Environment Canterbury’s staff numbers soared 56% over 10 years (paywalled)
Tom Hunt (Post): Wellington mayor Andrew Little looks into the crystal ball of 2026 (paywalled)
Tom Hunt (Post): Wellington council removes fences, pays for security guards for same job days later (paywalled)
Susan Botting (Local Democracy Reporting): Northland rates freeze: Regional council proposes 0% increase for 2026/27
TRADE, FOREIGN AFFAIRS, DEFENCE
RNZ: India free trade agreement excludes dairy, but that could change - minister
Susana Lei’ataua (RNZ): Calls for the UK’s role to be considered in the sinking of Manawanui
Susana Lei’ataua (RNZ): Expert questions whether New Zealand was only country involved in survey before Manawanui sank
TRANSPORT, INFRASTRUCTURE
Luke Pierson (Post): Wellington needs real solutions, not selective outrage over tunnels (paywalled)
RNZ: Gull, NPD merger should bring fuel prices down - AA
Kate Green (RNZ): Gull, NPD merger will drive down petrol prices, companies say
Herald Editorial: Christmas-New Year holiday period: Everyone needs to play their part to keep our roads safe (paywalled)
MEDIA
David Harvey (Herald): Law Commission media regulation blueprint ignored in digital age debate (paywalled)
ODT: ‘Unafraid’ cartoonist dies aged 84
Shayne Currie (Herald): Six media chief executives, six questions for 2026 - hear from the bosses of TVNZ, NZME, RNZ, Stuff, Sky TV, and MediaWorks (paywalled)
1News: NZME apologises for Christmas list featuring made-up book titles
EDUCATION
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Science, English slide, as secondary school students seek life skills
Matt Nippert (Herald): The cost of keeping principals: Pay packets at top private schools (paywalled)
HOUSING, PROPERTY MARKET
RNZ: Housing First Ōtautahi launches rapid response to homelessness, finding an increase in elderly with no home
David Farrar: Observations from the Kāinga Ora Chair
Miriam Bell (Post): ‘No more crazy shocks please’: the business of property in 2026 (paywalled)
Anne Gibson (Herald): Biggest commercial property deals of 2025: $1.8b of sales from data centres to malls (paywalled)
BUSINESS, CONSUMER AFFAIRS
Gyles Beckford (RNZ): Commerce Commission concerned about Bremworth takeover
Rob Stock (Post): Just how long should your household appliance last? (paywalled)
Katie Hunter (Waikato Times/Post): Surcharge ban a blow for struggling small businesses, says bookshop owner (paywalled)