Teenage activist Jack Karetai-Barrett completes 900km ride for Māori wards awareness
It was the penultimate moment in the 15-year-old's 900km bike ride to raise awareness for Māori wards.
Jack set off
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The Spinoff
3 hours ago
- The Spinoff
Coalition rift opens over UN letter as Seymour defends rogue response
The Act leader's unilateral reply to the UN has exposed fresh cracks in the coalition – and created a clean-up job for Winston Peters, writes Catherine McGregor in today's extract from The Bulletin. Letter row underscores coalition strain David Seymour's fiery response to a United Nations letter has turned into a full-blown coalition controversy, exposing divisions over both diplomatic conduct and the ideological direction of government. In June, UN special rapporteur Albert K Barume wrote to the government expressing concern that Seymour's Regulatory Standards Bill failed to uphold Treaty principles and risked breaching Māori rights. Without consulting his coalition partners, Seymour fired back, sending his own letter to Barume telling him his remarks were 'presumptive, condescending, and wholly misplaced' and branding the UN intervention 'an affront to New Zealand's sovereignty'. As RNZ's Craig McCulloch reports, prime minister Christopher Luxon yesterday described Barume's letter as 'total bunkum' but agreed Seymour had overstepped and should not have responded directly. What the UN said – and what Seymour wrote back In his letter, Barume said he was concerned about reports of 'a persistent erosion of the rights of the Māori Indigenous Peoples… through regressive legislations' that may breach New Zealand's international obligations. Seymour's response was uncompromising. 'As an Indigenous New Zealander myself,' he wrote, 'I am deeply aggrieved by your audacity in presuming to speak on my behalf and that of my fellow Māori.' He dismissed concerns about Māori exclusion from consultation as 'misleading and offensive', and accused Barume of misunderstanding both the bill and New Zealand's legislative process. While Seymour has since agreed to withdraw the letter to allow foreign minister Winston Peters to respond officially, he has refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing, insisting that 'we all agree the UN's criticisms are crazy' and that the official response would be essentially the same as his own. When asked if that was the case, Peters sounded aghast, reports The Post's Kelly Dennett (paywalled). 'That's not true,' Peters told reporters. 'Why would he say that?' The government's position would be made clear only after consulting all affected ministries, Peters said. 'We don't do megaphone diplomacy in this business,' he added acidly. 'Don't you understand diplomacy? You don't speak to other countries via the media.' Māori opposition to the bill runs deep Behind the diplomatic drama lies the more substantive issue: widespread Māori opposition to the Regulatory Standards Bill itself. Writing in Te Ao Māori News, former MP Louisa Wall says Seymour's claim that the bill doesn't weaken Treaty protections is 'demonstrably false'. In fact, she says, 'the Bill is silent on Te Tiriti. It elevates a monocultural legal standard based on private property and individual liberty while excluding Māori values like tikanga, mana motuhake, and kaitiakitanga. This is not neutral. It is erasure.' Wall also defends Barume's intervention, arguing that he was fulfilling his mandate to monitor Indigenous rights worldwide and that his concerns echoed those already raised by Māori leaders and legal scholars. 'Dr Barume is not imposing an external ideology,' she writes. 'His letter reflects what Māori across the motu already know: our rights are being undermined.' Coalition fault lines widen over Seymour's bill The clash over the UN letter comes at a tense time for Act's relationship with NZ First, which has made no secret of its discomfort with parts of the bill. Seymour has 'made it clear behind the scenes' that the regulatory standards legislation is 'as bottom line as it gets', writes Thomas Coughlan in a fascinating piece for the Herald (paywalled). Translation: '[Seymour] is willing to walk away from the coalition over it, bringing down the Government and triggering an election' if he doesn't get what he wants. While that's an unlikely scenario – especially since the coalition agreement commits the government to passing some version of the legislation – Seymour's passion for the bill speaks volumes about the junior coalition partners' divergent ideologies, writes Coughlan. 'Act is willing to risk short-term unpopularity, even losing an election, for long-term foundational change; NZ First is not.'
NZ Herald
5 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Letters: A new model for our power market is needed
Bryan Leyland, Pt Chevalier. The nuclear option As always during the winter months, our energy shortage issues are again brought up. But surely we have our head in the sand to some degree, by which I mean why can't New Zealand bury the past and re-evaluate the potential of nuclear energy. The technology has come a long way and is very efficient, so why not? It would be a game-changer but would call for some very definitive and brave decision-making from our politicians, which, unfortunately, is a rare event. Paul Beck, West Harbour. Indigenous people's rights Guy Body's cartoon (July 14) depicting our Deputy Prime Minister defending New Zealand's sovereignty with a toy sword and a trash-can lid while trampling on a Māori sovereignty flag against the United Nations headquarters adds a little humour to this important issue. Twice recently a UN Special Rapporteur has expressed their concern to our Government about the erosion of indigenous people's rights. The Government has responded with indignation, so this raises the issue of the role of the UN and what powers it should have to influence decisions of all nations. We live in global society, so if we wish to carry forward an ever-advancing civilisation, then we must solve the problem of just global governance. Consultation on this issue is the need of the age we live in as the problems of anthropogenic climate change and justice for indigenous peoples must be solved at a global level. The UN Security Council has the responsibility to ensure peace with justice and, as most people agree, needs the power of veto to be removed to function effectively. So why couldn't we, through our Government, lead efforts to ensure this happens? Consultation on UN reform is not as simple or sexy as ending bottom trawling but one can suggest it is far more important! Dennis Worley, Birkenhead. Anger at actions Antisemitism is not an appropriate term to describe many of today's protests. People are furious with Israel for what it is doing in Gaza. Israel is killing mothers and children. Protests, legal or not, are against what is being done to Gaza and its people. It has nothing to do with antisemitism. Christine Henare, Miranda. All we are saying is ... President Trump has warned nations that the United States will withhold miltary aid in future conflicts unless nations ramp up their defence spending. Nations across the globe have rushed to order weapons. Including Denmark, a peace-loving nation that will increase spending by about US$7 billion ($11.7b) over the next two years. The main beneficiary will be the US arms industry. Business has never been so good. The massive increase in defence spending is a colossal waste. Nations will have no money left to spend on infrastructure or hospitals or schools. When will this madness stop? Now is the time for people to insist that their leaders give peace a chance. Now is the time to negotiate. If peace is not given a chance, it will only take one person to press the button which will light a massive bonfire that could wipe out billions of lives. Johann Nordberg, Paeroa. Health system concerns Having listened to two highly respected doctors on the TV programme Q&A, it is very concerning to see the direction in which our health minister is driving. Basically, the doctors are saying that health will become Americanised with the private system taking control. It was obvious from the interview that both doctors were strongly in favour of a tax system that directly supported health and quoted several European countries that did exactly this. Conservative governments support a vision of less public service and more private enterprise but health is, or should be, one of their core responsibilities. Reg Dempster, Albany.
Otago Daily Times
6 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Letters to the Editor: voting, pubs and mining
Today's Letters to the Editor from readers cover topics including non-resident ratepayer voting, backing the local pub, and trashing our heritage for overseas mining interests. Candidate claim runs counter to principle Green Party mayoral candidate Mickey Treadwell is mistaken in his opinion that non-resident ratepayer voting violates New Zealand's democratic principles ( ODT 11.7.25). "No taxation without representation" is a fundamental principle of democracy. This principle has been established as far back as the Boston Tea Party of 1773, which triggered the American Revolution and the establishment of the first truly democratic modern state. For Mr Treadwell to claim that long-term holiday home owners and non-resident owners of say, commercial property in Dunedin city, have less of an interest in the future of the city and "less investment in public good" is just plainly untrue. Compared to a bunch of students living in a rented flat for a couple of years, each of whom has a residential vote and who will all likely depart the city forever on graduation, who does Mr Treadwell think has a greater stake in the city? I suspect the real reason for Mr Treadwell's concern is that he (rightly) believes that non-resident ratepayer electors are less likely to vote for a Green Party candidate. And just for the record, it doesn't matter how many properties a non-resident ratepayer elector owns within a local body territory: they only get one vote in that territory, even if the property or properties within that territory are jointly owned. Power and votes Green Party mayoral candidate Mickey Treadwell complained that non-resident ratepayers had disproportionate power because they can vote in the council elections. He is quoted as saying: "it's a pretty direct violation of our one-person, one vote democratic principle". I am sure that Mr Treadwell, as a Green Party member, is a supporter of unelected Māori having voting rights on council committees. How he and many liberal lefties reconcile this with his above quote I don't know. I am afraid that we have far too many ideologues as councillors and would-be councillors, who as the above quote reveals are quite happy to foster democracy, but are quite prepared to ignore their principles, when their ideology demands it. We did great There has been a surfeit of grizzling and faux outrage from the right wing and the ignorant regarding Jacinda Ardern, Ashley Bloomfield, and the excellent public health team who led our Covid response. Aotearoa saved 20,000 lives due to the border closure, mask mandates and our vaccination programme, according to statistician Michael Planck and epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker. Official statistical sites reveal that the US suffered 3493 deaths per million people (as at July 2025), the UK 3404, France 2613, Canada 1424 and New Zealand 834. Our economy came out of Covid strongly with low unemployment and with Triple A or Double A plus ratings from Moody's and Standard and Poor's. Yet there is a barrage of often hysterical criticism of the Ardern government's brilliant response to a major pandemic. Perhaps next time a pandemic arrives, the coalition apologists and the egotistical show ponies should go and live in the US and watch as hospitals split at the seams and morgues overflow into the streets while mass graves are dug, as in 2020. Local customer backs his local establishment In the ODT (8.7.25) article regarding the on-licence and off-licence renewal application for Mackies Hotel, Port Chalmers, the Dunedin City Council licensing staff were insinuating Mackies was poorly run and opposed the renewal of the liquor licence. On the contrary, this hotel is a well-run and well-maintained spotless pub. I question the decision made by DCC licensing inspector Tanya Morrison and medical officer Aaron Whipp suggesting Mr Sefton was not a suitable applicant to hold a licence. He admits he got slack with ever-changing compliance, but no need to make a mountain out of mole hill. A word in his ear would have sufficed. Publican Wayne Sefton and his family have been a big support to the Port Chalmers community and sports clubs over the last 40 years. Mr Sefton, like most community publicans, also takes an interest in the wellbeing of his patrons. DCC licensing staff should be supporting and help promote our community pubs: most of them are managed well with no trouble. I would love to see more young people use these establishments. Whilst having a beer or two they would meet a lot of interesting people of all ages and demographics and walks of life. Mining and its legacy I was shocked to hear about the proposed Santana mine at Tarras. Do we really want a Central Otago where the noise of explosions, trucks and stamping machines echoes across the quiet Lake Dunstan, where 24/7 flood-lighting blots out the stars, where carcinogenic arsenic is released from the smashed schist and hangs around in the air and coats the soil, where toxins from a massive tailings dam leaches into the Clutha, where three huge open-cast mines are highly visible? Eventually the Santana mine will expand through the Dunstan mountains and the Maniototo. Everyone who lives, works and plays in Otago and will feel the irreversible effects of the Santana mine. The proposal is being fast-tracked, with diminished local or environmental input. We don't have much time. Parliamentarian Shane Jones has ranted in respect of digging up our landscape and trashing our cultural heritage in favour of carte blanche access for Australian mining interests. In Chillagoe, a one-time mining centre in far north Queensland, there is an abandoned smelter. This small centre is the acknowledged "start-of-the-outback", with something of a character of its own. The place has been suspended in time, in the condition which probably existed on the day the last worker quit the site, no doubt to seek alternative employment at another mine. My argument is: if that is the condition in which Australian mining conglomerates leave their own landscape, what assurances of remediation of our own landscape in the wake of gold, or whatever, finally giving out in New Zealand may be relied upon? We as a country with much less territorial area able to be trashed than Australia, exist in their eyes with only one justification for our existence: our potential to be exploited, for their rapacious gain. [Abridged — length. Editor.] Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@
