BUDGET 2026 – OVERVIEW ANALYSIS
Bryce Edwards (Democracy Project): Long-term pain or long-term wait?
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): The most uninspiring election-year Budget in at least a decade (paywalled)
Gordon Campbell: On Budget 2026
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Nicola Willis gives herself some breathing space and puts the squeeze on Labour (paywalled)
Brian Easton: Is the New Zealand’s economy in dire straits?
Dan Brunskill (Spinoff): Christopher Luxon sees himself as CEO of NZ and it shows in the budget
Jenna Lynch (Stuff): Pass the Budget, it’s time to start the election clock
Duncan Garner (Listener): Nicola Willis’s Budget is wishful thinking - but for all our sakes, let’s hope she’s right (paywalled)\
Ben Thomas (Post): Willis bets on restraint over election-year largesse (paywalled)
Cameron Bagrie (BusinessDesk): Budget 2026’s verdict? Zero progress (paywalled)
Dileepa Fonseka (BusinessDesk): Business leaders see ‘hold the line and hope for the best’ as theme (paywalled)
Kerre Woodham (Newstalk ZB): As far as Budgets in tough times go, this was a pretty good one
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): My thoughts on the Budget
Jamie Ensor (Herald): How savings helped pave the way for new spending (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Now the Budget is out, its critics must put up their numbers (paywalled)
Hayden Wilson (BusinessDesk): Budget 2026’s thorny political issues (paywalled)
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Scrappy election campaign looms over short-lived Budget unity
Jo Moir (RNZ): Budget 2026 could be a tough pill for those feeling the pinch
Russell Palmer, Lillian Hanly and Lauren Crimp (RNZ): ‘Just need to vote for it’: Nicola Willis ends Budget speech with call to arms for supporters
Stewart Sowman-Lund (Post): PM backs Willis as superannuation debate dominates post-Budget mop-up (paywalled)
Chelsea Daniels (Herald): What Nicola Willis is banking on in Budget 2026
Chelsea Daniels (Herald): Union warns of lasting damage
BUDGET 2026 – ECONOMY, TAX AND BANKS
Anna Whyte (Interest): ‘I am still actively considering the taxation of banks,’ Nicola Willis says
Mandy Te (Interest): Finance Minister says banks shouldn’t pass on new prudential levy costs to customers
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): National expects to campaign on new bank tax if coalition can’t agree to one - Nicola Willis (paywalled)
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): S&P Global Ratings underwhelmed by Govt’s efforts to return the books to surplus; economists wary of Treasury’s rosy forecasts (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Two key tax changes in the Budget, and what they mean for you
RNZ: Business confidence lifts but firms remain under pressure
BUDGET 2026 – SUPERANNUATION
Ella Somers (Interest): PM wants to find more political common ground before tweaking NZ Super
Luke Malpass (Post): The political fight over NZ Super starts now (paywalled)
Harriet Laughton (Post): Nicola Willis reignites superannuation debate in post-Budget speech (paywalled)
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): Government will have to front up to super cost, KiwiSaver providers say
Amelia Wade (Post): $42m SuperGold card upgrade based on rough estimate of need (paywalled)
Post: Editorial: Finally having the Super debate (paywalled)
BUDGET 2026 – HEALTH
Robin Gauld (The Conversation): Budget investment in health signals continued austerity without long-term vision
Kate Green (RNZ): Hospital spend-up welcomed, but lack of staff funding puzzles
Kate Green (RNZ): Health experts hopeful money for digital upgrades will improve patient data safety
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): Dismay at new age for screening (paywalled)
Matthew Littlewood (ODT): Hospital build kitty boosted to $2.1b (paywalled)
Megan Wilson (Herald): Tauranga Hospital redevelopment: Funding confirmed for design, enabling works in Budget 2026
Stephen Forbes (NZ Doctor): Budget disappointment revives call for sugar tax (paywalled)
Fiona Cassie (NZ Doctor): Another $1 billion for holiday pay remedy raises questions over health boost (paywalled)
Amanda Cameron (NZ Doctor): Not all mothers can benefit from three-day postnatal stays, say midwives (paywalled)
Barbara Fountain (NZ Doctor): Take two media releases; Budget 2026 in eye of the beholder (paywalled)
Carly Gooch (Post): Months of codeine, prescription cannabis and dead ends: The toll of NZ’s healthcare backlog (paywalled)
BUDGET 2026 – MĀORI
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Iwi leaders furious about Budget 2026, call it ‘economic apartheid’
Liam Rātana (Spinoff): Budget 2026 boosts Māori media – but leaves many whānau to struggle
Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira and Pokere Paewai (RNZ): Critics ask where targeted Māori funding is in Budget 2026
Pokere Paewai (RNZ): Māori unions and iwi leaders say the budget will not alleviate Māori unemployment
BUDGET 2026 – HOUSING, WELFARE AND CHARITIES
Layla Bailey-McDowell (RNZ): Rangatahi abandoned as homelessness hits record levels - youth advocates
Maria Slade (BusinessDesk): Housing sector pleased with Budget initiatives to encourage growth (paywalled)
Ben Leahy (Herald): House price growth forecast down, is era of 6% annual house price growth over?
Herald: Fears 100k donation tax deduction limit could hurt charities (paywalled)
Josie Pagani (Post): Budget makes it harder for charities to raise funds (paywalled)
Emma Ricketts (Stuff): Government uses Budget urgency to pass bill allowing the automation of welfare decisions
Lauren Crimp (RNZ): Proposed law could see government use automation to make decisions about people’s benefits
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): $55m less in benefit payments as Govt automates welfare decisions under urgency
Harriet Laughton (Post): Funding of $30.7 million for social media ban (paywalled)
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