NZ politics in 2021: Rabbles, restrictions and recriminations

Read on to reminisce, and remember just how much chaos we had to deal with this year. In hindsight, 2020 wasn't so bad for New Zealand.

January

As the days ticked over to the new year, prisoners at Waikeria celebrated as only prisoners can, with a destructive riot that became a 'peaceful' rooftop protest. Perhaps they were just giving the government a hint of what was to come: Auckland's Delta lockdown, and protests of government overreach? It ended in surrender after six days, but not before National, who had been refused entry, demanded that the government stop by for a visit. Critics said it should prompt a rethink of the government's justice policy.

In the US, more rioting as pro-Trump protesters stormed the seat of government. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said it was an attack on democracy.

An unconventional start to the year, and there was much more to come. Celebrations at Rātana typically signal the start of the political year, but politicians were also refused entry there - apparently due to internal issues, although the chair urged followers to break away from Labour.

The ruling party had a job to do, however. Freshly re-elected with a stonking Parliamentary majority, Ardern reminded her party that Covid-19 would demand ongoing vigilance. They had already brought in tough new travel rules and the first new community case since November - someone who travelled all over Northland after leaving MIQ. Thankfully, it didn't catch on.

Indeed, the focus - as Ardern highlighted in her first post-Cabinet briefing - would be on vaccination. Approval for Pfizer's jab was expected early February, she said, the first doses likely arriving in March. It all feels so long ago now, but then it was a brave new world. About a quarter of Kiwis said they weren't so keen.

Three themes for the year emerge already: vaccination, access restrictions, and political disruption.

On that note, protesters continued to demand action, as the Climate Change Commission released its first official report.

February

The Covid focus continues. Pfizer's vaccine was approved on 3 February, but concerns were raised over nurse staffing numbers.

Then, on Valentines Day - a day of connection and love - more cases showed up in Papatoetoe, this time the UK variant, prompting questions over saliva testing of border workers. Pucker up, folks. Auckland was locked down with the rest of the country in level 2 and travel to Australia shut down. The infection spread even as the first vaccines were administered.

At the Pullman Hotel MIQ facility, where the Northland case had isolated, investigations continued. The hotel had been evacuated and reviewed, with suspicion falling on the air conditioning and the guests' evacuations. Oh shit.

But terror of a different kind was gripping headlines: A woman (later named as Suhayra Aden) with New Zealand citizenship was arrested in with her children in Turkey as a former ISIS adherent. She had grown up in Australia but for some reason the Aussies refused to welcome her in as they had pavlova or Russell Crowe. It earned them the ire of Ardern.

Meanwhile, the government had been doing its best to take on the big issues - announcing plans to scrap the RMA, and ordering the Reserve Bank to at least consider its influence over housing.

A perfect time, then, for Parliament to get tangled up in some truly knotty controversy. Te Pāti Māori leader Rawiri Waititi clashed with Speaker Trevor Mallard after refusing to wear a tie in the House.

Mallard himself was already looking into changing the rules. He subsequently made the change and that was that - another long-held tradition untangled, a cultural victory to loosen the bonds of colonial Britain, which promptly disseminated the news to its people.

As the month comes to an end, with Auckland's restrictions having slowly lowered, more cases arise, and prompt the return to lockdown. Ardern warns people not to get complacent: 'Covid kills', she says.

March

Time marches onward, and March marks one year since New Zealand's first lockdown. Such innocent days.

With Auckland starting the month at level 3, experts soon grow confident the Valentines cluster is contained and alert levels subside. The government says it is buying enough Pfizer for all New Zealanders as it reveals its vaccine rollout plan.

These moves do not take-away from concerns over the handling of a KFC worker caught up in the outbreak, increasing levels of misinformation, and worries over how equitable the vaccine rollout will be. More on that later.

Also testing the limits? Destiny. The church's leaders Hannah and Brian Tamaki assured Aucklanders their late-night exit from the city ahead of the lockdown was within the rules. He never broke any rules at all, Brian said. More on this later.

In non-Covid news, Suhayra Aden and her children seem increasingly likely to be deported to Aotearoa, the government wants Auckland light rail back on track after it was derailed by NZ First, and news of degrading treatment prompts a big review of women's prisons.

In Parliament, brand new National Party guy Chris Luxon makes his first speech, saying his fundamentalist Christian faith just ain't that extreme. The party reviewed itself after its big election loss, but access to the report was limited. More on these later.

The Nats are also on the attack: clashing with Mallard over toxicity at Parliament; they don't like the way things are going with emergency housing ('racism' cries the government)'; they want vaccine targets ('unhelpful', cries the government); and they want trans-Tasman travel right now (soon, cries the government).

You guessed it, more on all this later.

April

Fancy a hop across the ditch? The government's inflating a bubble - no, not a housing bubble, a trans-Tasman travel bubble.

We laughed, we cried, we dressed in drag and we did interpretative bubble dances at the airport.

International politics is taking centre stage this month and Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta is treading a careful line between Australia and China. It's the dragon, the taniwha - and the kangaroo.

What it's certainly not is live cows - not by boat, anyway - says Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor.

In yet more international news, the Queen's husband kicked the bucket at the ripe old age of 99; Samoa tried to hold an election; and travel from India was banned due to Covid cases.

Covid in Aotearoa has largely taken a back seat however, so Health Minister Andrew Little takes the opportunity to announce a huge shake-up of the health system: no more DHB elections, no more DHBs, just one big body. Oh, and another big body, for Māori health specifically, to address massive inequities.

National Party leader Judith Collins used that as a chance to attack the government for what she said was "racist separatism". It harked back to the rhetoric of former National leader Don Brash, and Māori health leaders called it out as hypocritical. Right-wing commentator Ben Thomas warned it was unlikely to boost the party's support.

May

Collins continued her attack on the Māori Health Authority, claiming that under the He Puapua report commissioned by the government, more sectors would soon follow. One of the report's authors explained that rather than being divisive, it was intended to create unity. National seemed divided on the issue.

The next poll saw National's support fall to 27 percent, with Collins herself tumbling 12.8 points to 5.6 percent. Other opposition figures were snapping at her heels - including that Luxon guy, on 2.4 percent. Collins, however, was "enjoying every moment".

Not that Labour got off reputationally scot free this month, with the Serious Fraud Office charging six people (none of them sitting MPs, current or former Labour officials) over donations to the party. It was the third set of charges related to political donations, following NZ First and National. Ardern called for another look at the system, but that smacks of a cop-out. Oh, before I forget, donations to Te Pāti Māori had also been referred to the SFO at the end of April over timeliness.

May is also Budget month, and this year's saw the "biggest increase to benefits in a generation". Meanwhile, the government was busy freezing the wages of public sector workers - a move predictably unpopular with public sector workers, like police, teachers and health staff.

China also loomed large in the consciousness of New Zealand once more, with Ardern warning the differences between the two countries were becoming harder to reconcile. Trade Minister O'Connor warned a declaration over the treatment of Uyghurs would hurt trade, and while Parliament came together to vote unanimously for action to prevent severe human rights abuses against Uyghur, they stopped short of calling it genocide.

Mallard again came under fire for wrongly accusing a man of rape, with debate in the House devolving into an explosive exchange. Collins said he was "temperamentally unfit" for his role, Ardern expressed "serious concerns", and Hipkins as Leader of the House urged everyone to "step back".

On emergency housing: Minister Megan Woods said a trial in Rotorua would put an end to the use of "mixed-use" motels. The news came as police documents pointed to increasing concerns over crime nearby.

Samoa continued to try to put its election to bed.

June

Some big-ticket announcements this month: Hate speech laws; the final Climate Change Commission report; a Dawn Raids apology; the EV feebate debate; the three-waters, four-entities reform model.

It seemed the machinery of the majority government was really spinning up at last for the transformation promised. Some complained the same government, which also promised to be "the most transparent" was indeed spinning things, and growing increasingly secretive.

Big-ticket personalities were on show too: Winston Peters came back from the politically dead (or at least dormant) to demand the woke go back to sleep; and National's previous leader Todd Muller announced he would retire at the next election. Muller said it was about health and family - believable after his leadership ended due to mental health concerns - but it turned out Collins had given him an ultimatum after he badmouthed returning MP Harete Hipango to the media. More on Collins, ultimatums, Muller's retirement, and the National Party leadership later.

Mental health was a hot topic however, with concerns raised over spending.

Another concern was cycling in Auckland. Transport Minister Michael Wood's answer was pedestrian: Build a bridge and get over it. Less on this later.

Concerns were also raised by nurses, who were striking over pay and conditions. During a pandemic. Speaking of, an Australian health centre worker with Covid-19 visited Wellington over the weekend before returning home and testing positive, plunging the capital into alert level 2. Had the new Delta variant been spread to 2500 people at Te Papa? Luckily, it seemed not.

Meanwhile the opposition loved talking about hate speech. It was getting confusing, they said. Did the proposals go too far? Was Judith Collins a Karen? Mallard asked everyone to stop with the name-calling and keep the hate speech debate civil.

Oh, and don't forget about China.

July

MP Louisa Wall certainly hadn't forgot about China. She took a running jump past the Labour party line, calling out China's human rights record on Uyghurs, Falun Gong and slavery. After some big cyber attacks, Spy Agencies Minister Andrew Little also criticised China, saying there was evidence of culpability.

It seemed the taniwha was poking the dragon, and the dragon was not happy - Little's claims were "groundless and irresponsible" and part of a "Cold War mentality", the Chinese embassy said, as it summoned NZ's foreign officials to a meeting.

Also wanting to talk things out, Collins launched a new campaign to "demand the debate" complete with billboards that harked back to those of Don Brash. Collins' demand extended to various things she said Labour never campaigned on, like three waters reforms on which the government was splashing cash to keep councils afloat. But her catch-cry was unpopular with pundits - it seemed to have a catch: "The issues Collins has identified ... all of them are being furiously debated, in Parliament and all over the country," wrote Simon Wilson.

National's police spokesperson Simeon Brown was doing his best to demand debate when it appeared Labour had agreed to pay $2.75m to the Mongrel Mob. Ardern explained it was a bit more complicated: the funding was for a rehab programme with a proven track record, and was based on a model initially funded by National. Libertarian party ACT wanted gang members' freedoms curtailed, something critics said was just a dog-whistle.

Justice Minister Kris Faafoi was coming under serious pressure, but for a different reason - his absence over hate speech was silencing the voices of those it was meant to protect and his conversion therapy ban announcement was unclear about some stuff. He was probably happy, then, not to be dealing with the decision to repatriate Suhayra Aden.

Meanwhile, it was somehow still the year of the vaccine. Some feared that the rollout and the way it was targeted was still too slow and inequitable. The government had brought in tougher mask and contact tracing rules in the interim, but as eligibility opened to the wider population and supply became less of a concern, a mass vaccination event was planned for the end of the month - the first of many. With cases in Australia on the rise however, the trans-Tasman bubble had to be popped.

August

Afghanistan is falling apart, again, with Kiwis trapped there. They, and some others, would eventually be airlifted out in sometimes heroic circumstances but many more would be left behind, a true human tragedy.

Turning now to political tragedy - or comedy, depending on your attitude - Collins' ratings as preferred PM had dipped below that of ACT's David Seymour in a poll. Just a couple of days later she was championing a referendum on whether to call New Zealand Aotearoa, something critics derided as racist dog-whistling which would do long-term harm.

She reassured followers at her party's annual conference speech she would shift away from race towards seven "big issues". At the same conference, National Party president Peter Goodfellow was re-elected - something that incensed former Cabinet minister David Carter so much he explosively resigned from the board. Collins remained confident she would win the next election and would not be rolled (more on that later). What was her renewed focus turned to just days later? Interior decorating at Parliament.

What Collins needed was a distraction. How about catastrophic power cuts or the Lord of the Rings TV series being cast into the political fire?

We could instead go back to Covid, only the vaccination event had been a "huge success", and the government was talking about plans to spread international borders wide.

Then Delta made landfall and changed the equation. Vaccine rates were still kiiiind of low. Ardern went with the tried and true response: go hard, go early; a short, sharp level 4 lockdown. Hipkins went with a slightly different response: remember to get outside and spread your legs, he said. Brows were quirked, not least the unflappable Dr Bloomfield's.

The 1pm pressers geared back up, and Parliament was shut down - but scrutiny would rely on Select Committees, not the Covid-19 Response Committee of the previous lockdown. ACT and National weren't happy about that and Collins wanted an explanation.

Then it was revealed some people may have received saline instead of a vaccine. Oh, and this other saline error. The opposition wanted an explanation on that too.

September

At this point a terrorist stabbing attack at an Auckland supermarket felt like just another layer in the cake of chaos. A review was launched as it became clear the attacker was only too well known to authorities and government attempts to strip him of his refugee status had been frustrated. Thankfully, no one else had died.

Auckland was still locked down, the virus still spreading in south Auckland. There were still concerns about equity in the vaccine rollout, and people were beginning to question whether elimination was still possible with Delta. The government said it stood by its efforts to protect Māori. The New Zealand Prime Minister said 'shot bro', and took the vax show on the road.

Former PM Sir John Key offered this advice: "You have to move to a series of carrots and sticks. I don't think fear is going to work." New Zealand could not remain a smug hermit kingdom. Better to hold a big national day of vaccination and take away the rights of the unvaccinated. Ardern said fear had never been a "strategy" but signalled a vaccine pass system, which could theoretically do that other thing Sir John said.

Mallard wanted to ban the unvaccinated from Parliament, which was returning under strict conditions including gathering limits. Ardern blamed Collins and said it was irresponsible, Collins blamed Ardern. The Green and Māori parties bowed out.

Collins was looking increasingly in danger of saying something unforgivable as she sank deeper in the polls. It was posited the only reason she still had the job was no one else wanted it.

Australia, the UK and the US announced their new club, AUKUS: Nuclear submarines and artificial intelligence, oh my. Some asked why New Zealand was awkwardly left out, but others said yeah, nah, bro, we're good.

Climate change was still a problem. Minister James Shaw was criticised of hypocrisy for his plans to attend the climate conference in Glasgow, saying it was the most important one since Paris.

October

Accelerated vaccination was key to putting the brakes on Delta, which was still spreading in Auckland and further afield as even the unflappable Dr Ashley Bloomfield feared eliminating Delta may be just a dream, and experts warned of no second chances.

The Tamakis lived up to their destiny, thinking they would get a second chance after protesting the rules with a rule-breaking protest. Ardern said it was illegal and morally wrong. The police would later agree.

The government gave the green light to the whole vaxathon idea. Great success: Some 130,000 people vaccinated including a big boost for Māori vaccination rates. But would it be enough?

Auckland was getting more frustrated and exasperated, and alert levels were becoming more unruly (or too rule-y?). National said every region with 70 percent vaccination should move to level 1, but some feared that would risk vulnerable communities. Labour instead proposed a traffic lights system with a Key component: less freedoms for the unvaccinated. The other parties all disagreed, including with each other. Collins accepted the vaccine pass idea, but said it would mean a two-class system. New Zealand's prime minister said yup, shot bro. She either didn't want - or didn't have time - to visit lockdown city, however.

Meanwhile the three waters were growing turgid. Mayors had called it an asset grab but Local Government Minister Mahuta was steaming ahead. She grudgingly announced councils could not opt out], a move predictably unpopular with councils.

In other news, there will be a Ministry for Disabled People and Auckland light rail was put back on the agenda, again, with a bunch of new ideas.

November

Ardern finally bowed to pressure to visit Auckland, with Mallard loosening the rules for MPs' isolation.

The day before her trip there was a colourful protest at the seat of government, which seemed largely opposed to government, vaccine mandates, and all sorts of things really. Politicians were predictably unsympathetic, and noted the number of vaccines given out that day alone - more than 22,000 - was considerably more than the roughly 4000 who showed up to protest.

There was another, more widespread, protest from the rural-focused Groundswell group which tried to cut down on 'idiots, racists, anti-vaxxers', after a disparate 'howl' in July but it was unclear how successful they were. Climate change was still a problem, but farmers would have been somewhat relieved by the government's pledge to halve New Zealand's net greenhouse gas emissions by the end of the decade, as it has no plans to match the global 30 percent methane reduction target.

Small impromptu protests were growing more common and more violent, with antivaxxers forcing Ardern to relocate a media briefing or two. So MPs boosted their security arrangements.

Judith Collins' job was not so secure, however. She put a decisive end to the speculation about her leadership by putting an end to her leadership, having tried to demolish Simon Bridges.

He quickly got over it and went for her job, before instead handing it to that new Luxon guy, who seemed more popular anyway. If names mean anything Luxon's either a massless particle or travelling at the speed of light, so that from that what you will. The former Air NZ CEO did hire a luxury car to transport him across the road to accept the role, so take from that what you will. His deputy is Nicola Willis.

The government was still focused on Covid-19, and urgently preparing the upcoming new traffic light system. There are fears it could mean viral spread and overwhelmed health systems. A new potentially vaccine-resistant variant called Omicron was also rearing its spiky head in southern Africa. No need to panic, says the government, we're well protected.

December

The traffic lights are a go! Not a green light in sight though, the government aiming to play it safe. Auckland's still in isolation for a couple weeks despite officials saying there's little extra risk. When at last the city is released, everything seems to go smoothly. Time will tell if it means more spread, but the government is warning Omicron may affect plans for international travel next year, plans that some say should come much sooner. But for now, the end of the year brings the end of what felt like an era.

Luxon is also making a fresh start with a refreshed lineup. Bridges gets Finance, definitely not for having done the numbers on the leadership. He reflects that yesterday was yesterday, and today is, erm, tomorrow. The new leadership was also just what Muller needed to put down his backpack of grievance and unretire. The party's former Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson advises Luxon to also not burn his bridges with Māori. The Māori Party say they might possibly consider working with Luxon. He wasn't making much of a splash but neither was he crashing and burning.

Three waters legislation was making a splash - being delayed for more consultation, and it's revealed the government had a mandatory approach in mind since June. Mayors form their own protest group as one says the process has been farcical.

Crashing but not burning is the cigarette industry, with the government planning to outlaw sales to future generations - probably anyone born after 2009. It's a world-first move that sparks interest across the planet.

Certainly not crashing is the housing market, which has only got hotter. Ardern hints she might want to see prices fall a bit but definitely not collapse. Meantime, emergency housing is under serious strain, though the police won't admit they're collecting data on that and the government won't do anything about it anyway until next year.

The Defence Force's review of itself and its strategy highlighted China as a growing concern and a "significant risk".

Lastly, a shrinking concern: another protest about vaccine mandates, this time smaller and less effective. You see, it had been planned for the final day of sitting, listed on the Parliament website as Thursday, 16 December, but as per tradition the House adjourned on the Wednesday until 2022.

So now we deflate into the ostensibly unstoppable summer holiday, carrying vaccine passes, weary feet and wary minds into the new year.