Maori monarch flexes muscle to make waterways off-limits but we may muse on the matter of legality

The Waikato and Waipa Rivers have been declared off limits during Level 3 of the Covid-19 emergency, prohibiting food gathering and all recreational activities on the waterways..

Elsewhere around the country people have been barred from going to some beaches by vigilante groups who set up checkpoints to impede the public.

In the case of the two rivers, the prohibition has been imposed by a former truck driver who now rejoices in the title of Māori King Tuheitia.

He has declared the rivers are subject to a rahui, a cultural and spiritual prohibition.  It came into effect on Monday.

The king’s authority to make a rahui binding on anyone who feels they should not be constrained by it is dubious.

Point of Order hoped Local Government New Zealand would guide us on King Tuheitia’s entitlement to bar people from swimming or fishing in the rivers or boating on them. 

Italy’s woes are another blow to the European project (as currently constituted)

Italy has been particularly badly hit by Covid.  And recent reports suggest that there is a great deal of anger at the failure of the EU to provide more aid.

Nor is Italy well placed to deal with the economic fallout.  As Financial Times commentator Wolfgang Munchau points out, its high levels of public debt could well be headed to Greek-style levels.

“As of the end of last year, Italy’s public sector debt was 136 per cent of gross domestic product. Over the previous decade, it had increased by 30 percentage points. If you assume that what the IMF calls the Great Lockdown leaves Italian GDP 10 per cent lower than in 2019, and if outstanding debt increases by 20 per cent, then its debt-to-GDP ratio balloons to 180 per cent.”

PGF projects – and $439.8 million worth of investment – are up and going again under Alert Level Three

Provincial Growth Fund troughers will be delighted to learn they are back in business (or some of them are).

They may not be so chuffed to learn that troughing has become commonplace and many more Kiwis are dipping into public funds through an array of  programmes set up to revive an economy ravaged by Covid-19 and the government’s response to it.

The bigger the number of troughers, the smaller the serving for each of them, although this consideration perhaps is overcome by the printing of money, quantitative easing, and what-have-you.

Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones brought news of the resumption this  week of Provincial Growth Fund projects around the country that were halted during Alert Level 4.

At Alert Level 3, more than 60 projects representing $439.8 million worth of investment are expected to get going again.

While we were digesting this news, Jones – in tandem with Kris Faafoi, Minister of Communications and Digital Media – threw out another announcement.

Covid: still plenty of known unknowns

As folk step out to enjoy their new-found freedom (and not just in NZ), it’s worth bearing in mind that we are still mired in uncertainty.  Indeed, the sense that the data is not good enough and governments are feeling their way as they go along, is perhaps even stronger now than it was a few weeks ago.

So a few high-level principles might help in thinking about the future.

The D-G should be chuffed after being praised by Ardern – now let’s see how hard the Minister is cuffed …

Prime  Minister  Jacinda  Ardern made a  point of  thanking  the Director-general of  Health, Dr  Ashley  Bloomfield, for his service over the Covid-19 lockdown.  She described  working with the health official “as a real honour”.

“I consider NZ to be very lucky to have a public servant of Dr Bloomfield’s calibre leading the health response. His background in public health has meant I consider NZ to be among those countries who are a lucky to have the expertise in leading the response: one that considers the health and wellbeing of NZers in every respect.“

It’s a tribute most folk  think  well deserved,  coming  as  it  did   on  the   last  day  of  level four  of the  lockdown.   And  Bloomfield has  earned  international  acclaim.

Well I’ll be burgered – queues for just one brand of fast foods (would you believe?) show that Level Four is over

Trustworthy, accurate and reliable news stories are more important now than ever.

That’s what Stuff tells us on its website before inviting readers to …

Support our newsrooms by making a contribution.

We trust a handsome contribution has been made by the fast-food franchise featuring on Stuff’s menu of news reports today – and, remarkably, on the websites of many other news services including Radio New Zealand.

The PR department at the company in question will be thrilled to see the franchise’s name pop up in association with the breaking of the Covid-19 fast whereas rival companies – including an American chain best known for its fried chicken – don’t get much of a look-in.

It would be great if we could post this report without naming the company which has been given this inglorious glut of headlines around the country.

Just refer to them as a burger joint, perhaps.

But we gave up on the attempt.

Brexit: The Empire strikes back

Barely a week ago, we reported on suggestions in a minor UK periodical that the British government was not planning to extend the year-end deadline in the current EU trade talks.

It looks like they might have a subscription to The Spectator in Brussels, judging by statements from Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator (reported here in the Financial Times).

An open aviation market is worth revisiting while we consider the merits of an Anzac bubble

There’s mounting enthusiasm in both Anzac countries to create a Trans-Tasman bubble linking both for air travel and tourism.

Why not?

Those  familiar  with history  say  the two countries should go a step further and re-invent the famous open market which was killed by the then Australian Transport Minister, Laurie Brereton, back  on October  23, 1994?

Reincarnated, this might serve both countries well  at this critical  point  for their economies.

In the early 1990s, both Canberra and Wellington envisaged a single market where the airlines of each country could fly freely to and within the other.  The idea had its genesis with the late Sir Peter Abeles when he chaired TNT, the former Australian multi-model transport giant.

Sir Peter was joint chairman, with Rupert Murdoch, owner of the vast News media empire, of Ansett Australia. He took advantage of NZ deregulation to launch Ansett NZ in 1987 but soon realised the only way it would ever become commercially viable would be to link Ansett operations in both countries.

This ran foul of the current air services agreements between each country.

Now let’s see how Robertson harnesses the powers of the state to revive the economy

Finance Minister  Grant  Robertson,  who only four  months ago  would have  been quietly rejoicing at the prospect of presenting an election-winning  budget,  now has the challenge of framing a  programme to  salvage  the  economy.  It will be a  formidable  task,  even  if at the time of presentation the country is  in sight of  freeing itself  from  the  blight of  Covid-19.

He says  he  has  a strong personal  belief  in  the  power of  the state  to  do  good.   And   certainly  the  Ardern   coalition   has  deployed  the   power of  the state  effectively  in the campaign  against the  Covid-19  pandemic.

If  Robertson  can  do the  same  with the  economy,  he  will win a  place   in  history.  But   with  economists  predicting  unemployment will soar  above 10% of the workforce,  and consequently  inequality  set to deepen,  many New Zealanders could be  disadvantaged for  life.

Already Robertson is getting  plenty of advice   on what   his priorities  should be.  Labour’s  coalition supporter, the Green Party, is calling is calling for an “ economic stimulus package fit for the 21st century that puts people, climate, and nature first with significant investment in nature based jobs”.  

A checkpoint charlie would be someone who doesn’t question the legality – but the PM seems comfortable they pass muster

We wonder if Stuart Nash is too busy trying to catch up with his small business duties to find time to reply to Point of Order’s questions about highly contentious goings-on in his police portfolio.

Nash was criticised earlier this week for providing the Epidemic Response Committee with scant information about the effect on businesses of an additional week of lockdown and another two weeks at alert level 3.

In his Police patch, meanwhile, the legality of checkpoints set up by Maori communities  has become a matter of confusion.

Point of Order has tried to establish if there is any statutory authority to legitimise these checkpoints.

Our questions to the PM and to the Police were not directly answered while our questions to Nash received only an automated response.