Labour, National and ACT all made similar announcements that they would overhaul the current visa system, while Labour also opened up the door for a one-off regularisation for Pacific and other migrants who have been in the country for more than a decade.

During the 2017 election, Labour promised to axe the number of migrants by 20,000 or 30,000 a year, and not long after the Parent Visa category was closed. Read more

On October 19, Housing Minister Megan Woods and National leader Judith Collins jointly declared their support for the Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Bill.

This bill, they said, would allow "at least 48,200 and as many as 105,500 new homes" to be built in the next five to eight years. It was so important, they'd get it passed by Christmas.

A breakthrough housing accord: It was a rare example of bipartisan support, and for such a good cause, too.

An approving John Tookey, professor of construction management at AUT, marked the occasion by quoting Shakespeare: "Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows."

There was a man - Environment Minister David Parker, a principal architect of the bill - but it was mainly women at the podium that day.

Woods, Collins and National's Nicola Willis all looked very pleased with themselves.

The new law will eliminate the single housing zone in our larger cities and allow three homes of up to three storeys on almost any site, without the need for a resource consent. There will be no large-scale "character overlay" to limit development in older suburbs.

The bill will also cut other "red tape", making property development easier.

The New Zealand Initiative (NZI), a centre-right think tank, called it "a superb first step" while noting the need for better infrastructure financing "to truly unlock the potential" of the bill.

The Coalition for More Homes (CMH) said the bill was "a major step forward in allowing more housing to be built, in existing urban areas close to public transport, services and amenities".

CMH is a fairly broad church: NZI is a member, along with Generation Zero, Greater Auckland and social housing providers like Habitat for Humanity.

Te Waihanga, the Infrastructure Commission, called the news a "win-win".

"When we allow for greater density around existing infrastructure, we reduce the need for the extra roads that would be necessary if we were to continue regulating for low-density in our major cities."

The bill is touted as giving speedy effect to the 2020 National Policy Statement on Urban Development (NPS-UD), which puts a clear focus on density and integrated development, where housing, transport and other services are planned together.

The NPS-UD, in my view, for its capacity to make Aotearoa New Zealand a better country to live in, is quite possibly the most important policy to have come out of this government.

But by my reckoning, this new bill subverts the NPS-UD in at least nine ways.

Julie Stout, a leading architect, spokesperson for Urban Auckland and member of the Urban Design Forum (UDF), a coalition of design professionals, calls it "a slum enabling act". Continue reading

It also removes the legal test for the procedure up until 20 weeks.

The New Zealand Catholic Bishops are deeply disappointed with the abortion law changes.

"This Bill totally ignores the fact that there are always at least two human lives involved in every pregnancy," said a spokesperson for the NZ Catholic Bishops Conference, Ms Cynthia Piper.

Click here to read the full statement.

The abortion law change cut across some of the lines that usually divide the Labour Party and the National Party.

Justice Minister Andrew Little said the issue was "tempered with very deeply held views with great passions" and that the public and members on all sides of the House, some he considered friends, had very entrenched views.

Retiring National MP, Amy Adams said of those who were voting against the Bill: "their views are their own."

Adams noted that throughout the debate on the abortion law change some people in the House, particularly those supporting the Bill, said they respected "the rights, and the views of everyone in this house and their views in the debate are all valid."

"Interestingly enough, I haven't heard that much of those views expressed by the voice of those opposing this legislation," she said.

"And I find it somewhat staggering that those who preach freedom of expression and religious tolerance the most are the least tolerant of those who are supporting this legislation."

"And yet we run the risk of allowing a very vocal minority, largely, in my view, directed by the religious leaders across New Zealand, although I accept that may not be true for all, to derail important legislative reform," she said.

National MPs who voted against the Bill
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, Maggie Barry, Andrew Bayly, Simon Bridges, Simeon Brown, Gerry Brownlee, Jacqui Dean, Sarah Dowie, Paulo Garcia, Paul Goldsmith, Nathan Guy, Joanne Hayes, Harete Hipango, Matt King, Denise Lee, Melissa Lee, Agnes Loheni, Tim Macindoe, Todd McClay, Ian McKelvie, Todd Muller, Alfred Ngaro, Simon O'Connor, Parmjeet Parmar, Christopher Penk, Maureen Pugh, Shane Reti, Alastair Scott, Nick Smith, Louise Upston, Tim van den Molen, Hamish Walker, Michael Woodhouse, Jonathan Young, Lawrence Yule (35)

Labour MPs who voted against the Bill.
Damien O'Connor, Greg O'Connor, Anahila Kanongata'a-Suisuiki, Nanaia Mahuta, Adrian Rurawhe, Jenny Salesa, Jamie Strange, Rino Tirikatene, Meka Whaitiri (9)

NZ First MPs who voted against the Bill
Darroch Ball, Shane Jones, Ron Mark, Clayton Mitchell, Mark Patterson, Winston Peters, Fletcher Tabuteau (7 MPs)

• nzherald.co.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• nytimes.com
• politik.co.nz
• familyfirst.org.nz
• Image: politik.co.nz

Education Minister Chris Hipkins says state-integrated schools funding will go up as a result of an investment and he isn't worried about potential court action.

Association of Proprietors of Integrated Schools (APIS) chief executive Paul Ferris said there is no obvious explanation as to the Government's actions and that at times their actions are very confusing.

He at first assumed the Government had made a mistake when there was no mention of integrated schools in the weekend announcement.

"I was hoping to go to the detail and find that was an oversight in the announcement, because in every way in our legal agreements, we would expect to be treated the same way".

"That's the partnership arrangement we believe we have with the Government".

Speaking to Mike Hosking on NewTalkZB, Ferris said he believes the Minister has been very poorly advised.

Under the legal agreements covering integrated schools, the Government is required to pay for their maintenance on the same basis as state schools, once a school's proprietor has completed upgrading it to the same standard as state schools.

Ferris told Hosking that integrated schools put over $4 billion of property into the hands of the Government at no charge.

Most of the state-integrated schools, which have over 90,000 pupils, have completed the upgrades, many of them years ago.

Hipkins said that the state-integrated schools would see a funding boost indirectly as a result of his policy.

"State integrated schools are funded differently to state schools. We don't fund their capital in the same way.

They own their own buildings and maintain their own buildings.

But we do provide them with maintenance funding - and their maintenance funding is based on the overall value of the state school portfolio.

So as they spend more money on their maintenance the value will go up based on that."

"They are going to benefit. They just aren't going to benefit in the same way."

"The reality is they are funded based on a formula they signed up to that they negotiated with the last Government. We are not changing that."

Ferris however, said state-integrated schools participate as state schools do in the same system.

Ferris said that at one point the Minister told the integrated schools to use attendance dues for maintenance, but the law specifically forbids this.

He said there is one network, not two and that the announced funding was handed out on a per-pupil basis not a needs basis.

They expected to get exactly the same as every other state-integrated school.

Source

• Supplied: David McLoughlin
  Communications Adviser, NZ Catholic Bishops
  Te Huinga o nga Pihopa Katorika o Aotearoa
• NewsTalkZB
• stuff.co.nz
• Image: rnz.co.nz

In letter to the secretary of Right to Life written in December last year Little said, "Labour's position is to support the cross-party select committee inquiry".

"Euthanasia is a conscience issue, not a party political issue, and it is not one of Labour's priorities.

"This is why no Labour MP is introducing a bill on euthanasia to Parliament".

In his letter Little went on to say "The select committee process allows members of the public to submit ideas for what any change in the law could look like."

"Louisa Wall was making use of this process as an individual, as is her democratic right."

"It does not reflect Labour's view and Labour will not be introducing a private member's bill on euthanasia."

Orr said the Labour Party has a long and illustrious history of defending life.

"Andrew Little's stand is in the tradition of its great leaders who defended life; Michael Savage, Peter Frazer, Walter Nash, Arnold Nordmeyer, Bill Rowling, David Lange and Mike Moore."

"This is a welcome assurance, that should Labour be elected to govern at the general election on Saturday 23rd September 2017, a Labour government would not present a bill promoting Euthanasia," said Orr

" It is also reassuring that should a private members bill on Euthanasia be drawn from the ballot, Labour members would have a conscience vote, " he said.

Source

• Supplied

Labour leader Andrew Little said other issues such as homelessness, employment and healthcare that would be put before a euthanasia campaign.

"It would be nice to be able to do everything from Opposition but we can't, we have to focus on those things that are about building a better nation," he said.

"That's gonna be our priority, I make no apology for that." Read more

Mr Lees-Galloway had been canvassing support for his End of Life Choice Bill before deciding whether to return it to the private members' bill ballot.

But Mr Little confirmed yesterday that he had told Mr Lees-Galloway not to put it in the ballot because it was not an issue Labour should be focused on when it was rebuilding. Continue reading

The proposed bill provided for both physician-assisted euthanasia (PAE) and physician-assisted suicide (PAS).

The Bill was introduced in 2012 but was withdrawn in September 2013.

The reason given for this action was to avoid the bill becoming a distraction, should it have been drawn before the 2014 election.

The Labour Leadership did not want it debated during an election year.

Street had pledged to return the bill to the ballot immediately after the election.

She said "this will be one of my first actions".

At the time it was introduced the New Zealand Catholic Bishops issued a statement in which they said, "There are many reasons why people object to legalising euthanasia and/or assisted-suicide."

"While these can include religious and moral ones, our concern is to point out the social dangers of such a law change."

Right to Life has written to David Cunliffe and to each of the members of the Labour caucus requesting that they recognise that this dangerous bill is a poison chalice that is likely to be detrimental to the party's future chances of election.

Right to life has asked them to take immediate action to ensure that in the interest of the vulnerable in society and indeed the Labour Party itself, that the End of Life Choices be finally and permanently rejected.

GayNZ.com has reported that Street, a three-term MP and past president of the Labour Party, is "devastated" at Labour's collapse in the polls.

Source

• Right to life Press release
• GayNZ.com
• Image: TV3 News

He spoke at the Auckland Catholic Samoan Centre, at the Malaeola Community Centre in Mangere.

Mr Cunliffe was accompanied by other south Auckland Labour MPs, including Louisa Wall who sponsored the same-sex marriage bill that became law last year.

Auckland diocese said Mr Cunliffe spoke after the monthly Mass, at the usual time for notices and announcements.

"David Cunliffe didn't in any way abuse the occasion, he did speak very respectfully indeed," diocese spokesperson Lyndsay Freer said.

Prime Minister John Key is scheduled to speak at the Malaeola Centre next month, she added, so there is no question of partisanship.

MPs from various parties are often given the chance to greet the community when attending Mass at Malaeola.

Samoan chaplain Fr Michael Endemann and Catholic Samoan community leaders are keen to give people a chance to listen to what the political parties have to say.

"They have told people there that the Church doesn't tell people how to vote, and that is why they are asking leaders from various parties to come and talk so people can make up their own mind," Mrs Freer said.

After the Mass, Mr Cunliffe told 3 News that he disagreed with National Party claims they are making inroads into the traditional Labour heartland in south Auckland.

"There's no evidence of that at all," Mr Cunliffe said.

"As you can tell from today, the Pacific vote is firmly with the Labour Party because we are firmly for the Pacific community."

Mr Cunliffe played down any Pacific Islands backlash against Ms Wall.

3 News showed comments from churchgoers saying they will vote for Labour, as they always have.

Earlier this year, National MP Judith Collins also spoke at the Malaeola Centre.

Ms Collins told reporters after her visit: "South Auckland can always make or break elections."

Sources

• 3 News
• Stuff.co.nz
• Auckland diocese
• Image: 3 News