Semi-automatics and slushies: A look back at the year in New Zealand politics

December 27, 2019

Benedict Collins takes a look back at the year in politics. (Source: Other)

It has been another big year in politics, with elected officials having to grapple with some of the biggest disasters to befall the country.

Here are some of the stories that dominated headlines. 

The aftermath of March 15

The horrific tragedy of the March 15 terrorist attack saw Parliament quickly unite in the aftermath, swiftly pledging to change New Zealand's gun laws, banning  military-style semi-automatics  in less than a month. 

They showed the Select Committee the way firearms are able to be given high-fire rate capability. (Source: Other)

After the attack, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern promised to  never say  the alleged gunman's name, asked  US President Donald Trump  for "sympathy and love for all Muslim communities" and told the country  "we are one"  before the Call to Prayer that rung out around the country.

Ardern's actions after the attack also drew the attention of  international media , with her image  projected onto the the tallest building in the world  - the Burj Khalifa in Dubai - along with the words 'peace سلام' (salam) above. 

Oranga Tamariki uplifts

Footage of an attempted uplift in Hastings upset many who watched it, with the subsequent outrage leading to five inquiries being launched.

Minister of Children, Tracey Martin, made the announcement today after the incident last month. (Source: Other)

Oranga Tamariki social workers repeatedly tried to take a baby from the hospital to the objection of the mother, her family and the midwife involved.

Numerous MPs met the protestors, who held signs saying, ‘Leave our tamariki alone’. (Source: Other)

Protestors made their way to Parliament over uplifts of Māori babies. Oranga Tamariki released its report in November, detailing a  litany of mistakes  made in how social workers dealt with the family and found that systems simply did not work.

Slushies

It was one word, yelled at the Government, that defined the story about prison officers cooling down. Asking Parliament, "So what has the Government delivered?", National Party leader Simon Bridges gave himself the answer - "Slushies!"

The memorable exchange in May saw the National leader show his true feelings for the 193 machines. (Source: Other)

In April, Mr Bridges slammed the Government for "wasteful spending" after revealing $1 million was spent by Corrections on 193 frozen slushy machines.

Minister Kelvin Davis defended the decision , saying Corrections officers work in "some really difficult conditions, upwards of 30 degrees".

The Corrections Minister is defending the move but National says it's wasteful. (Source: Other)

"They've got something like six kilograms of equipment they have to carry around." 

Climate strikers 

It was one of the biggest protests seen at Parliament , with people lining footpaths as the lawn was packed to capacity with protestors calling for urgent action to tackle climate change. 

It was one of the biggest protests Parliament has seen in recent years. (Source: Other)

The September protest saw signs saying, "how dare you", "I want a hot date not a hot planet", "denial is not a policy" and "make the Earth great again".

Protestors of all ages turned up en masse, with organisers estimating about 15,000 would attend the protest.

KiwiBuild disaster 

A raft of changes to KiwiBuild were announced as an attempt to keep the flailing scheme above water .

1 News looks at the figures. (Source: Other)

The highly anticipated reset was marred by months of delays after a series of issues that led to questions around KiwiBuild's long-term feasibility.

Labour's key election promise to build 100,000 homes was scrapped, with Phil Twyford losing the portfolio to Megan Woods, calling the promise "overly ambitious" and that it saw contracts signed in places with little demand from first home buyers. 

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