Dawn chorus:3 Waters in trouble

TLDR & TLDL: Whangarei Council looks set to formally reject being involved in the Government’s Three Waters amalgamation reforms, joining Auckland and Christchurch as sceptics on the sidelines. (Newsroom) The backlash is partly due to the Government’s decision not to go ahead with a big highway from Whangarei to Marsden Point.

The debate is coming to a head as details about where the boundaries are drawn and who gets what assets are due out this Thursday, potentially unleashing council revolts with just over a year before local elections and forcing the Government to bludgeon its way through with legislation.

Photo: The Kaka

Overseas, Barnaby Joyce was re-elected to the leadership of the junior National Party in Australia’s governing Federal Coalition Government after party members liked his plans to block Scott Morrison’s hopes of declaring Australia would target zero emissions by 2050. (The Guardian) The move came as Australia blocked plans for a $53b renewable energy hub in the Pilbara, which would have built solar and wind generation to create hydrogen for export to Asia. It was blocked because of fears of damaging the local environment. (PV Tech) There was more difficult news for Australia’s economy over the weekend with China dumping iron ore supplies into the market to try to drive down the price, citing ‘malicious speculation’. (FT)

Meanwhile, China has widened its crackdown on bitcoin, telling state banks to root out traders and accounts. It has already banned mining in many provinces, including those using hydro-electric power. Bitcoin fell another 10% in overnight trade. (Reuters)

Also, in a sign that climate change and housing affordability are the big issues everywhere, Sweden’s centre-left Government fell overnight after a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Stefan Lofven because he tried to remove rent controls on new homes. (Reuters)

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Signs o’ the times news

Morning Report @NZMorningReport

"I don't feel like New Zealand cares about me very much at the moment and my family." #LISTEN A British doctor says she feels let down by a government which pleaded for healthcare workers but has now gone silent on how they can become residents.

rnz.co.nzGP feels let down by silence on residency<p>A British doctor says she feels let down by a government which pleaded for healthcare workers but has now gone silent on how they can become residents.</p> <p>She is one of 235 doctors and 900 nurses waiting to join a queue for residence, which has been closed since April last year.</p> <p>Gill…

Indira Stewart @Indiratweets

Great work by @AnushaBradley. "Research has found that women, indigenous people, and people of colour are all more likely to be seen as exaggerating, malingering or drug-seeking when accessing healthcare," the briefing said.

Wallace / Walesi Chapman @wallacelchapman

Get cover for a sprain playing sport, but not a birth injury -top piece by Anusha Bradley : ACC biased against women, Māori and Pasifika - agency's own analysis shows https://t.co/Qu6l6SUKi1

Democracy Project @Dem_Project

"Despite its worst electoral result in history, the party reported the highest number of members since 2017. Even old members who once fell out have returned." - @JoshVanVeen's report on @nzfirst's conference

democracyproject.nzJosh Van Veen: NZ First UnbowedHere’s what New Zealand First needs to do to return to power in 2023 – according to Josh Van Veen, who was at the party’s conference in the weekend. The improbability of NZ First returning to power cannot be overstated. Between 2017 and 2020, support for the party collapsed from 7.2% to 2.6%. Wit

RNZ Pacific @RNZPacific

Fiji has recorded a record-breaking 166 new Covid-19 cases and one more death from the coronavirus.

rnz.co.nz166 more, Fiji Covid-19 cases continue to escalateFiji’s Covid-19 cases continue to escalate as medical authorities confirm another record-breaking 166 new infections.

Alice Su @aliceysu

"Ten years ago, perhaps every weekend in every corner there would be a large number of salons and meetings (in Beijing)..But now, everyone always talks about one issue when we meet: who's disappeared or been detained recently."

france24.comThe scholar speaking out on China’s crackdown on intellectuals - France 24The scholar speaking out on China’s crackdown on intellectuals

Bernard Keane @BernardKeane

How come the NSW Coalition government can pursue more ambitious climate targets and invest in renewables and electric vehicles with the support of the NSW National Party? Because it's the Qld LNP who are the truly toxic reactionaries of Australian politics

crikey.com.auWhile NSW shows the way forward on climate, Queensland’s toxic right-wingers hold back actionIt’s less important who leads the Nationals than how they thwart climate action. But as NSW shows, it doesn’t have to be this way.

Quentin Dempster @QuentinDempster

Confirmed. Barnaby Joyce elected by parliamentary National Party as leader. He will replace Michael McCormack and push NO net0 by 2050, tying ⁦@ScottMorrisonMP⁩ ‘s hands before Glasgow world summit and next national election. Australia is now an international pariah.

Charts of the day

Alison Pennington @ak_pennington

Adjusting for GDP, Australia has one of the worst #COVID19 vaccination rates in the world.

Longer reads worth your time

Eloise Gibson @eloise_gibson

This from @OliviaWannan feat @otago researchers is interesting - not only on what's missing from the Climate Change Commission's cost estimates, but what's missing from GDP in general.

stuff.co.nzEconomy could rev up as we cut carbon, researchers sayNew research from the University of Otago says financial gains of net zero emissions outweigh the costs.

Kirsty Johnston @kirsty_johnston

Anyway I was on leave when the whole #utegate scenario went down but just wanted to draw attention to this research that found men buy utes cos they're sold to them as "manly"

nzherald.co.nzClimate change: Masculine marketing of utility vehicles linked to rising emissions - NZ HeraldCould the obsession with big, manly cars stop us meeting our climate change commitments?

Bernard Hickey @bernardchickey

Here's why: “The benefit of property is that it is leveraged. You can put in a 20 per cent deposit for a new build and get a mortgage for the rest. But when the house goes up in value, all the capital gain is yours.”

stuff.co.nzProperty crowdfunding: Why isn’t it working?They were meant to help people into the property market when they couldn’t do it alone, but the platforms are struggling.

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Some fun things

Illingworth St Mary’s CC @IllingworthCC

That moment when you hit a massive six only for it crash through your own car windscreen 🤣🤣 🔊 Sound on to hear the smash 💥

Aidan Smith @aidan_smx

Urbanists failed to consider

AQA @aqaworldwide

I spent two weeks looking for my iPad 😭😭