🏳 TO — Investment Hypothesis

While some investments were targeted at Māori, critics say the government has its priorities wrong and the budget will leave Māori communities continuing to struggle. For all the political theatre around Budget 2026, the Māori story is relatively simple: targeted cultural and settlement investments on one hand, and growing accusations of economic neglect on the other. The government has poured tens of millions into Māori media, aquaculture settlements, court infrastructure and cultural promotion, while simultaneously extracting major savings from Te Puni Kōkiri.

Clinicians around the country are observing a concerning rise in young people being strangled during sexual assault, reports Alex Casey. Since 2018, strangulation and suffocation has been a criminal offence punishable by up to seven years in prison. Defined as “intentionally or recklessly impeding another person’s normal breathing, blood circulation, or both” through applying pressure to the throat, neck or blocking the nose or mouth, the crime was introduced along with other legislative changes to combat family violence rates .