New data reveals a key driver in NZ's booming house prices, experts weigh in on a study looking at loosening border restrictions, and the stars align for a new public holiday.
New data shows a lack of supply has been a key driver in New Zealand’s skyrocketing house prices.
Figures from homes.co.nz and Infometrics reveal the regions with the highest number of houses built have had the slowest growth in prices .
Although the number of consented new homes hit a record high last quarter , developers still say the current planning and consent processes are holding up new projects, particularly in the larger cities.
With the country tens of thousands of houses away from reaching current demand, there are fresh calls for that process to be sped up.
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Stars align for new holiday
Mark your calendars - New Zealand will celebrate its newest public holiday, Matariki, on June 24 next year. That date will change in years to come but will always fall on either a Friday or Monday.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern revealed the Matariki news from Waitangi yesterday, saying the “very special” holiday will be a day “to acknowledge our nation’s unique, shared identity, and the importance of tikanga Māori”.
Ardern and other politicians also took part at the parliamentary pōwhiri at Waitangi yesterday, where Ngāti Hine iwi leader Te Waihoroi Shortland urged the Government to “get on with the business” of settling Treaty claims.
He also said there would be change for next year’s event after National’s Judith Collins wasn’t allowed to speak at the pōwhiri . That promise came after National MP Shane Reti used his whaikōrero to express disappointment his party leader couldn’t have her say.
And as New Zealand prepares to mark another Waitangi Day tomorrow, Re: has taken a look at some of the big issues surrounding Te Tiriti o Waitangi, which you can watch here .
Experts weigh in on border study
Research funded by several airports and Air New Zealand has modelled the effect of loosening border restrictions depending on each country’s Covid-19 risk level.
It suggests New Zealand could offer quarantine-free travel or shorter quarantine stays to some arrivals, but experts say now is not the time to do so .
Professor Shaun Hendy, who leads Te Pūnaha Matatini’s Covid-19 modelling programme, says the framework outlined by the model is “impractical”.
University of Canterbury professor Michael Plank also says the country will eventually need some kind of risk-based border system as the world emerges from the pandemic, but with Covid-19 more prevalent than ever, “we need to do everything we can to reduce the risk of importing Covid-19 into the community, not taking on additional risk ".
Kiwis can't choose vaccine
Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkin says Kiwis won’t get to choose which of the Covid vaccines they’ll end up getting , with health authorities deciding which jabs will go to which groups.
His comments come as a UK trial gets underway to see if giving people different Covid vaccines for their first and second jabs works as well as using the same vaccine twice. If that proves effective, it could alleviate any issues with supply disruptions.
But Pfizer says they’re still on track to deliver New Zealand’s first batch of vaccines this quarter.
The company’s managing director for the region, Anne Harris, says New Zealand wasn’t slow to order its vaccine doses , but vaccine distribution had been based on countries’ fast-changing medical needs.
And New Zealand could be sent nearly 250,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine before July as part of its deal with the Covax international alliance. But delivery will depend on many factors .
Meanwhile, across the Tasman, the Australian Government has announced their Covid vaccines will be offered to all visa holders, including New Zealanders , free of charge.
New Zealand is expected to follow suit and announce it will do the same for anyone living in Aotearoa.
Community case confirmed
The mother of a young child previously reported with Covid-19 has tested positive for the virus . The woman has been recorded as a new community case linked to Auckland’s Pullman Hotel.
She has been isolating at home since her family tested positive for the virus but is now being moved into quarantine.
Authorities say the risk to the public from this new case is low.
Meanwhile, one of the businesses visited by the recent community cases has told Stuff they’re now suffering financially.
Auckland restaurant BBQ King was visited by the cases several times and has since struggled to attract diners .
Concern over lead levels
Dunedin City Council is working to determine what's caused the water contamination issue in two Otago towns after one testing sample showed lead levels were 40 times higher than what’s regarded as safe.
Free blood testing will soon be available to residents in Waikouaiti and Karitāne. The tests will be offered to reassure people, although Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield says lead is a greater health concern for people exposed to it for long periods of time rather than short-term exposure.
However, that’s proving little comfort for affected residents .
Other news of note this morning:
- Myanmar’s new military government has blocked access to Facebook as resistance to this week’s coup surges.
- Customs workers are being told to start watching closely for fake Covid-19 test results at the border, after a spike in fraudulent activity overseas .
- A Wellington lawyer says it's unlikely employees who refuse to take a Covid vaccine can be legally fired, but employers could refuse to hire non-vaccinated candidates in some circumstances .
- A review has found Auckland University of Technology has widespread bullying within its staff, and that the university botched its investigation into complaints of sexual harassment last year.
- Ngāti Kahungunu has announced it will join forces with Ngāi Tahu to take legal action against the Crown over shared control and management of freshwater.
- The owners of North Canterbury land on which a mountain of tyres has been burning are now facing a dire clean-up job .
- More dry spells and above average temperatures can be expected across New Zealand over the next three months, according to NIWA’s latest seasonal climate outlook .
- And dozens of UK artists, including Sir Elton John and Ed Sheeran, say musicians have been “shamefully failed” by post-Brexit restrictions on touring in the European Union.
And finally...
For more than 30 years, designers have sewn, hammered, painted, and whittled wearable, moveable pieces of art for the World of Wearable Arts.
Te Papa has now put some of the best works from past events on display, so Seven Sharp sent their resident fashionista, Laura Daniel, to take a look.
She also got to share some of her own wearable pieces of art, including QR code realness and an ensemble made from tat around the office, which you can check out here .
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