The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19

Costello quietly halves tax on heated tobacco and then Police stop journalists asking her questions; Landlords have made $500 billion in tax-free capital gains; Infrastructure & health funding crises

TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:

1. Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has cut the excise rate effective from 1 July - a move silently dropped on the Customs website. RNZ’s Guyon Espiner.

2. News: Property investors' $500 billion payday RNZ’s Susan Edmunds

3. News: 'He hasn't been talking to the industry' - Builders slam insulation rollback RNZ’s Samantha Gee

4. Scoop: Corroding sewerage pipe could collapse part of SH2 RNZ’s Nick James

5. News: Ageing bridges cause ‘huge challenge’ as funding falls short. Ageing bridges across North Canterbury will cost millions to replace, but councils can't afford to do the work alone. Stuff LDR’s David Hill

6. News: Underfunding, staff shortages, burnout: Why many GPs are turning away new patients. A new study shows four out of 5 GP practices closed their books to new patients at least once over a recent three-year period due to staff shortages. The Post-$$$’s Mariné Lourens

(Full paying subscribers can see a lot more juicy links and detail below the paywall fold.)

Photo by Sooz . on Unsplash

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The Best of the Rest

News, Scoops, Investigations, Analyses & Deep Dives

Housing

News: Property investors' $500 billion payday RNZ’s Susan Edmunds