ECONOMY
Gordon Campbell (Scoop): On Why We Can’t Survive Two More Years Of This
Matthew Hooton (Herald): Luxon Government guilty of profligacy not austerity (paywalled)
Brian Easton (Pundit): The Wing Parties’ Economic Policies
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Roger Douglas disappointed with Act, praises NZ First on response to fiscal challenges
Liam Dann (Herald): Don’t panic about worse-than-expected recession (paywalled)
Luke Malpass (Post): Stiff recession winds blow into Christmas (paywalled)
Ganesh R Ahirao: Dancing with the elephant in the room
ODT Editorial: A turning point, but in which direction? (paywalled)
Jenée Tibshraeny (Herald): Government debt’s whopper increase sparks warning from S&P Global Ratings (paywalled)
Russell Palmer (RNZ): National, Labour blame each other - but is the Reserve Bank responsible for GDP fall?
Brent Edwards (NBR): Nicola Willis on why it’s the Government’s job to fix the economy (paywalled)
Rebecca Howard (BusinessDesk): GDP plunge may spur speculation about a 75bps cut (paywalled)
Tony Alexander (One Roof): An abrupt end to falling interest rates in 2025
Liam Dann (Herald): Massive GDP fall: NZ in deep recession – worst since 1991
Dan Brunskill (Interest): Massive revisions to Gross Domestic Product data shows the economy took a sudden dive in March this year
Dan Brunskill (Interest): Revised economic data shows New Zealand only entered recession in March 2024
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): NZ back in recession - but economists expect greater Reserve Bank interest rate cuts
Brianna McIlraith (Stuff): Economy experiences sharpest decline in more than 30 years
Sam Smith (Stuff): Government defends economic record as NZ heads back into recession
Gyles Beckford (RNZ): Economy back in recession as GDP shrinks by 1%
1News: Recession: GDP falls 1% in September quarter
Jonathan Mitchell (NBR): ‘Really ugly’: grim economic data highlights widespread pain (paywalled)
Roeland van den Bergh (Post): New Zealand has fallen into a deep recession (paywalled)
David Hargreaves (Interest): 'Thank goodness' - ANZ survey shows signs of recovering economic demand
RNZ: Businesses remain upbeat despite slight dip in confidence
WAITANGI DAY 2025
Marc Daalder (Newsroom): Luxon’s reason for skipping Waitangi challenges the sniff test
Jo Moir (RNZ): Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will not attend Waitangi at all next year
Jamie Ensor & Adam Pearse (Herald): Prime Minister Christopher Luxon won’t attend Waitangi Treaty Grounds celebrations, will be ‘elsewhere’
1News: Prime Minister confirms he won't be at Treaty Grounds on Waitangi Day
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will not attend national Waitangi Day event in 2025
Anna Whyte (Post): Luxon opts out of Waitangi attendance (paywalled)
RNZ: Chistopher Luxon should have accepted Waitangi challenge - trust chair
Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira (RNZ): PM skipping Waitangi appearance 'a good first step' - hīkoi organiser
Riria Dalton-Reedy (Te Ao Māori News): Waitangi Forum: ‘No desire’ to welcome government onto Treaty Grounds in 2025
Isaac Gunson (Te Ao Māori News): Waitangi Day 2025: Hipkins says Luxon ‘can’t stand on track record'
GOVERNMENT, PARLIAMENT, YEAR IN REVIEW
Richard Harman (Politik): The baby-boomers’ last gasp (paywalled)
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Coalition scraps plan to leave open government pact
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Government’s ‘abject failure’ on secrecy clauses
Greg Dixon (Listener): The annual Drunken Muldoon Awards (paywalled)
Lianne Dalziel (Newsroom): Silly season sitting in last chance hair salon
Lillian Hanly (RNZ): The year in news: Stories that dominated the headlines in 2024
Chelsea Daniels (Heald): Front Page: Policy and priorities, Wellington council in ‘shambles’, and a historic hīkoi: a year in NZ politics
JUDGE’S ALTERCATION WITH WINSTON PETERS
Andrea Vance (Post): Watchdog looking into judge’s party behaviour (paywalled)
Edward Gay (Stuff): Judge accused of ‘verbally attacking’ Winston Peters referred to conduct commission
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): The judge who yelled at Winston should lose her job
David Farrar: Why the Judge must resign
Deborah Coddington: I Refuse To Join Any Club
MEDIA
Myles Thomas (Post): Another round of do-nothing from the media minister (paywalled)
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider - 24 awards for media’s crazy, wild 2024; TV weather presenter and sports radio host resign from roles; TVNZ’s new executive role - who’s in line? (paywalled)
Waikato Herald: NZME community newspapers closure: Loss of papers a risk to democracy, Jeanz says
Danielle Zollickhofer (Waikato Herald): NZME community newspapers: What happens to Taupō & Tūrangi Herald, Te Awamutu Courier, Hauraki-Coromandel Post?
Michael Daly (Stuff): Auckland RNZ staff to move into TVNZ headquarters late 2025
Shayne Currie (Herald): Media Insider: RNZ to move in with TVNZ in Auckland in 2025 (paywalled)
Nicholas Agar (Newsroom): A lesson in playing chicken with Big Tech
EDUCATION
Grant Duncan: Should universities have to adopt free speech statements?
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Government to change free speech rules for universities
Jenni McManus (Law News): Opposition mounts against proposed merger of law and business schools
John Weekes (Herald): Dilworth Trust Board to apologise for decades of horrific child abuse at school
HEALTH
Nikki Macdonald (Post): Experts slam planned palliative care staff cut (paywalled)
Jimmy Ellingham (RNZ): No budget for psychiatric beds despite being over capacity
Ruth Hill (RNZ): Fears for whānau as Whakatāne Hospital obstetric services collapse
Ellen O’Dwyer (RNZ): Patient care across New Zealand may have been impacted in Crowdstrike outage, report shows
RNZ: Health NZ making progress on ED stays and elective treatment
Patrice Dougan (NZ Doctor): Inside Government’s new plan to regulate therapeutic products (paywalled)
HOUSING, PROPERTY INDUSTRY
Clare Aspinall and Philippa Howden-Chapman (Herald): Homelessness in NZ: The Christmas reality is there’s no room at the inn for Kiwis needing help
Susan Edmunds (RNZ): How much do investors drive house prices?
Tom Hunt (Post): ‘Merry Bishmas’: Protest at years waiting for Wellington state homes (paywalled)
Oliver Lewis (BusinessDesk): Wayne Brown proposes new housing plan change for Auckland (paywalled)
Greg Ninness (Interest): Trade Me Property says residential landlords may need to reduce their asking rents due to an oversupply of rental stock
1News: Rental listings up 36% year-on-year - Trade Me
Brent Melville (NBR): ’Tenant led’ market shifts, as rental levels surge 36%
Anne Gibson (Herald): Winton Land delaying $750m Northbrook Wynyard Quarter a year, buyers offered refunds
NBR: Winton postpones Auckland retirement village project (paywalled)
Anne Gibson (Herald): Ngāti Whātua finishes $20m Ōrākei papa kāinga, Hawaiki, for hapū (paywalled)
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Gang members occupied vacant Kāinga Ora land, put up marquee after request declined
SOLAR ZERO
Robert MacCulloch (Post): How the Government’s Green Investment Fund turned us into predatory lenders (paywalled)
Alice Peacock (Newsroom): Hipkins’ letter to BlackRock boss over SolarZero liquidation goes unanswered
FAST TRACK, MINING
Farah Hancock (RNZ): Fast-tracked hotel and hostel in Mount Eden surprise residents
Andrew Dickens (Newstalk ZB): Why we need the fast track bill to get stuff done
Daniel Minhinnick, Sian Kilgour, and Kirsty Dibley (Russell McVeagh): Fast-track Approvals Act 2024
EMPLOYMENT, BUSINESS
Bronwyn Heenan (BusinessDesk): What does 2025 hold – change, change and more change, fiscal restraint and restructures? (paywalled)
Gareth Vaughan (Interest): Commerce Commission eyes probe of Mastercard & Visa scheme fees
Milena Bojovic (The Conversation): NZ’s dairy industry faces an uncertain future – its fate now lies in its ability to adapt
Nona Pelletier (RNZ): Commerce Commission looks to deregulate some fibre services
Delphine Herbert (RNZ): McDonald's proposes new opening hours, smaller signage for Wānaka restaurant
LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WATER
Mary Afemata (RNZ): Councillors condemn removal of 'wellbeing' in local decisions
Stephen Ward (Waikato Times): Seven smaller councils push ahead with Waikato waters plan (paywalled)
Tina Law (Press): Council’s electricity costs jump 53% with further rises expected (paywalled)
Post: Proof Prendergast parked in no parking area, Wellington council says (paywalled)
Emily Ireland (Local Democracy Reporting): Masterton votes to ease into water charges
RNZ: Waikato Regional Council invests $414k to fight invasive gold clam
Matthew Martin (Waikato Times): Regional council gears up to tackle clams (paywalled)
Sarah Morcom (Waikato Times): Craig Hobbs named as new Waikato District Council chief executive (paywalled)
Ashleigh McCaull (RNZ): Hutt Valley residents notice huge improvement in stench with wastewater plant deodoriser turned off
Brooke Black (Timaru Herald/Press): TDHL puts Timaru CBD properties on market (paywalled)
Alan Granville (Stuff): Hamilton Gardens rakes in close to $700,000 since entry fee introduced, but visitor numbers have dropped
CRIME
1News: TwoEight Brotherhood, Bloods added to Gangs Act list
George Block (Herald): Gang patch ban: Bloods added to list after missing out when law first introduced
Nona Pelletier (RNZ): Not a single prosecution despite SFO's commitment to tackling foreign bribery
Troy Pilkington, Bradley Aburn, Petra Carey , Lydia Christensen, Sophie Marris (Russell McVeagh): First conviction for criminal cartel conduct in New Zealand
TRANSPORT
Angela Curl, Simon Kingham, Helen Fitt, Rebecca McLean (Newsroom): Wheels off the bus: bikes on buses do us good
Emma Stanford (Stuff): 'Witch's brew': Air NZ boss Greg Foran signals more turbulent times ahead in 2025
VANUATU QUAKE
1News: Kiwis evacuated from Vanuatu after devastating earthquake
Herald: Vanuatu earthquake: NZ Defence Force evacuates 93 people; death toll still unclear
Felix Walton (RNZ): Former Defence Minister Peeni Henare calls Vanuatu flight woes 'embarrassing
Thomas. Manch (Post): Defence Force sends second Air Force Hercules to Vanuatu (paywalled)
OTHER
RNZ: Fifth of beneficiaries paid too little, MSD survey shows
John MacDonald (Newstalk ZB): Timing of Lake Alice compo offer is wrong
Dan O’Brien (Diplosphere): The Pacific: Site of a New "Great Game" or a Nuclear Free, Independent Region?
Thomas Coughlan (Herald): Government settles on two options for 757, fast-tracks replacement for 2027 (paywalled)
Ian Llewellyn (BusinessDesk): Electricity Authority asks for information on potential consumer price shock (paywalled)
Anna Whyte (Post): Where graduate roles have increased, and decreased, in the public service (paywalled)
Liam Hehir (The Blue Review): Did the Ministry for Culture & Heritage close its Twitter account to protest Elon Musk?
Natasha Hamilton-Hart (Open Inquiry): Design principles for constitutional hijack – or how we got those Treaty principles in the first place
Shanti Mathias (Spinoff): How the gambling industry is using influencers to appeal to a new generation
Anna Whyte (Post): New cell tech rolled out to prioritise first responders in congested networks (paywalled)
Robert MacCulloch: Government to Ask Big Bank ANZ, Westpac & ASB Kiwi Saver Funds to better "capitalize" Kiwibank
Greg Hurrell (BusinessDesk): How can NZ close the Paris Agreement 'emissions gap’? (paywalled)
Cartoons
As usual, cartoonists get the "vibes" just perfectly!
Nice wrap-up of the end of what has been a not-ideal year.