AM Edition: Top 10 Politics Articles on LiveNews.co.nz for April 2, 2026 – Full Text

Source: Radio New Zealand

Chris Penk and Penny Simmonds have been promoted to Cabinet, as the prime minister reshuffles his ministerial lineup.

The reshuffle also sees first-term MPs Cameron Brewer and Mike Butterick made ministers outside Cabinet.

The changes were necessitated by the upcoming retirement of Judith Collins, as well as Dr Shane Reti’s decision to stand down at the election.

Collins’ defence, space, and GCSB and NZSIS portfolios have been given to Penk, Paul Goldsmith takes on responsibility for the public service and digitising government, and Chris Bishop picks up the attorney-general role.

Bishop’s position as Leader of the House has been given to Louise Upston.

Bishop, who was also National’s campaign chair, was widely tipped to lose some ministerial portfolios to ease his workload to free him up for the campaign. Instead, it is the role of campaign chair that he has had to relinquish, to Simeon Brown.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Bishop had a “massive workload” with housing, transport, infrastructure, RMA reform, and his new attorney-general role, and losing the campaign chair was a consequence of that.

Luxon said the two had a “very positive conversation” and he “absolutely” trusted Bishop.

“He’s key to our team, he’s a critical part of our senior leadership group,” he said.

Luxon denied it was anything to do with rumours Bishop was running the numbers against him last year.

“I think you’re really overthinking this,” Luxon said.

He said Brown was equally capable of chairing the campaign, as part of his “brains trust” which included Bishop, Upston, Goldsmith, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis.

Simmonds takes up Reti’s science, innovation, and technology portfolio, and his universities role has been disestablished to make Simmonds the minister for tertiary education.

She had previously been minister for vocational education, as well as environment. The latter has been given to Nicola Grigg, who remains outside Cabinet.

Goldsmith also becomes the new minister for Pacific Peoples, with Luxon admitting National did not have Pacific representation.

“I freely admit we don’t have a Pasifika person in our National Party team and in our Cabinet. That’s something that we’re working very hard on. As I’ve said to you before, we need to make sure we continue to work as we go to 2026 on the campaign on getting great candidates from the Pasifika world.”

Brewer, who has been chairing Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee (a weighty role which often leads to a ministerial promotion) has been made minister of commerce and consumer affairs and minister for small business and manufacturing, while Butterick will become minister for land information.

Luxon said he wanted to make a “super small business minister” role by giving Brewer the two roles, while Butterick was a “natural leader” of National’s rural MPs.

Brewer would also take over supermarket reforms, as the previous Commerce and Consumer Affairs minister Scott Simpson had a conflict which had led to Willis taking responsibility.

Other changes include Brown picking up the energy portfolio from Simon Watts, who in turn takes over Brown’s minister for Auckland role.

Luxon said the past few weeks had underlined how important energy security was, and so was giving the role to a “senior” minister.

He said he had not lost confidence in Watts.

Luxon acknowledged Collins and Reti’s departures.

“New Zealand is better for Judith and Shane deciding to enter public service and I am grateful to count them both as friends. On behalf of the government and the National Party, I wish them all the best for their futures outside Parliament.”

Matt Doocey remains in Cabinet, and has not picked up any portfolios other than his existing mental health role.

He had been the sole South Island representative in Cabinet, but that has now doubled with Simmonds’ addition.

The changes come into effect on Tuesday, 7 April.

Luxon had not reshuffled his lineup since January 2025, other than to promote Scott Simpson to a role outside Cabinet following Andrew Bayly’s resignation.

The reshuffle applies to National Party ministers only, meaning ACT’s Brooke van Velden will continue in her portfolios despite her decision to retire from Parliament at the election.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Chris Penk and Penny Simmonds have been promoted to Cabinet, as the prime minister reshuffles his ministerial lineup.

The reshuffle also sees first-term MPs Cameron Brewer and Mike Butterick made ministers outside Cabinet.

The changes were necessitated by the upcoming retirement of Judith Collins, as well as Dr Shane Reti’s decision to stand down at the election.

Collins’ defence, space, and GCSB and NZSIS portfolios have been given to Penk, Paul Goldsmith takes on responsibility for the public service and digitising government, and Chris Bishop picks up the Attorney-General role.

Bishop’s position as Leader of the House has been given to Louise Upston.

Simmonds takes up Reti’s science, innovation, and technology portfolio, and his universities role has been disestablished to make Simmonds the minister for tertiary education.

She had previously been minister for vocational education, as well as environment. The latter has been given to Nicola Grigg, who remains outside Cabinet.

Brewer, who has been chairing Parliament’s Finance and Expenditure Committee (a weighty role which often leads to a ministerial promotion) has been made minister of commerce and consumer affairs and minister for small business and manufacturing, while Butterick will become minister for Land Information.

Other changes include Simeon Brown picking up the energy portfolio from Simon Watts, who in turn takes over Brown’s minister for Auckland role.

Prime minister Christopher Luxon said the past few weeks had underline how important energy security was, and so was giving the role to a “senior” minister.

Luxon acknowledged Collins and Reti’s departures.

“New Zealand is better for Judith and Shane deciding to enter public service and I am grateful to count them both as friends. On behalf of the government and the National Party, I wish them all the best for their futures outside Parliament.”

The changes come into effect on Tuesday, 7 April.

Luxon had not reshuffled his lineup since January 2025, other than to promote Scott Simpson to a role outside Cabinet following Andrew Bayly’s resignation.

The reshuffle applies to National Party ministers only, meaning ACT’s Brooke van Velden will continue in her portfolios despite her decision to retire from Parliament at the election.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: New Zealand Government

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has announced a refreshed ministerial lineup to continue fixing the basics and protecting New Zealand’s future.

“New Zealanders are facing economic challenges brought on by conflict in the Middle East and its effect on fuel supply across the world,” says Christopher Luxon.

“Having a strong ministerial team with real-world experience to deliver our response is crucial. Today’s reshuffle reflects that and brings in new talent.

“Having successfully delivered significant reforms from outside Cabinet, Chris Penk will now join Cabinet, picking up the Defence, GCSB and NZSIS, and Space portfolios. Chris’ time in the NZDF leaves him well placed to lead the work our Government has done in raising the status and capability of our armed forces.

“Penny Simmonds also joins Cabinet with responsibility for Tertiary Education and Science, Innovation and Technology. Penny has successfully delivered reforms to the vocational education sector, also from outside Cabinet, and will bring her extensive governance experience to her new portfolios.

“The past few weeks have underlined how important energy security is and as such I will be elevating the Energy portfolio to senior minister Simeon Brown.

“Chris Bishop becomes Attorney-General and Paul Goldsmith takes responsibility for the Public Service and Digitising Government, and Pacific Peoples portfolios.

“Louise Upston will become Leader of the House and Simon Watts will be Minister for Auckland.

“Nicola Grigg becomes Minister for the Environment and Scott Simpson becomes Minister of Statistics and Deputy Leader of the House. 

“Joining as a Minister outside Cabinet, Cameron Brewer becomes Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and Small Business and Manufacturing, and Associate Minister of Immigration. Mike Butterick becomes Minister for Land Information and Associate Minister of Agriculture.

“Finally, I acknowledge the public service of Judith Collins and Shane Reti who, between them, have dedicated almost 40 years to representing their communities in Parliament.

“Judith was first elected in 2002 and since then, has held numerous different ministerial portfolios and served as Leader of the Opposition. This term, she has delivered the Defence Capability Plan, advanced New Zealand’s space industry and modernised of our public service.

“In Shane’s 12 years in Parliament, he has served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition and has delivered key reforms as a minister, including improving the commerciality of our science sector to boost incomes and create jobs. He has also played a key role in projects that will benefit New Zealanders for generations, like the third medical school and expanded cancer screening.  

“I would also like to acknowledge the staff who have supported Judith and Shane throughout their time here.

“New Zealand is better for Judith and Shane deciding to enter public service and I am grateful to count them both as friends. On behalf of the Government and the National Party, I wish them all the best for their futures outside Parliament.”

These changes will come into effect on Tuesday 7 April.

MIL OSI

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand has joined Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom in expressing “deep concern” about an Israeli bill expanding the death penalty for Palestinians.

Winston Peters posted on social media on Wednesday night, indicating New Zealand had joined the other nations, and emphasising the country’s opposition “for decades” to the death penalty “in all circumstances”.

It comes as the Green Party tried on Wednesday to move a motion in Parliament on the issue, but failed to get the support of all parties.

The ACT party told RNZ it did not support the motion being put without notice, and noted the Minister of Foreign Affairs was responsible for expressing New Zealand’s position on international issues.

Earlier this week, the Israeli parliament finalised a controversial bill that would effectively expand the death penalty for Palestinians convicted of terrorism and nationalistic murders.

The bill stipulated that residents in the West Bank who killed an Israeli “with the intent to negate the existence of the State of Israel” would be sentenced to death.

The Foreign Ministers of Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom released a joint statementexpressing their “deep concern” about the bill, saying it would “significantly expand the possibilities to impose the death penalty in Israel”.

“We are particularly worried about the de facto discriminatory character of the bill. The adoption of this bill would risk undermining Israel’s commitments with regards to democratic principles.

“The death penalty is an inhumane and degrading form of punishment without any deterring effect. This is why we oppose the death penalty, whatever the circumstances around the world. The rejection of the death penalty is a fundamental value that unites us.”

The statement also urged the Israeli decision makers to “abandon these plans”.

The Green party wanted to highlight the issue in parliament, and sought support from across the House to move a motion without notice.

Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick told reporters on Wednesday afternoon convention stipulated motions without notice needed prior agreement from all parties.

“This stops spurious motions going up and clogging the time of our parliament.”

The motion read that the “New Zealand House of Representatives expresses deep concern about Israel’s new legislation which extends the use of the death penalty against Palestinians living under unlawful occupation; shares the concerns of Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy about the “de facto discriminatory character’ of the legislation; and calls on the Israeli Government to reverse this legislation”.

Labour and Te Pāti Māori both told RNZ they supported the motion.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins said his party would firmly support a motion in the House to condemn Israel’s use of the death penalty against Palestianians.

“It clearly discriminates against Palestinians – a point underscored by the fact that the law does not apply to Israeli extremists who commit similar crimes. There are major issues with the process including that it removes the right to an appeal. By condemning Israel, we would stand alongside the United Nations, EU and the UK.”

Te Pāti Māori told RNZ it supported the motion, and queried why other parties had not.

“This law further embeds discrimination into Israel’s justice system by allowing Palestinians to be sentenced to death while others are not subject to the same punishment for similar acts,” a spokesperson for the party said.

“It sits within the context of the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people, and the backdrop of Israel and the United States’ illegal invasion of Iran and Lebanon.”

National and New Zealand First did not respond to queries but the ACT party told RNZ it did not support the motion being put without notice.

A spokesperson for the party said it noted the Minister of Foreign Affairs was responsible for expressing New Zealand’s position on international issues, and “ACT supports that approach over symbolic motions in the House”.

“If the House passed a motion every time a country passed a law of concern, we would spend more time talking about other countries’ legislation than our own.

“All MPs have the right to put a motion on notice under Standing Orders.”

In response, Swarbrick said it was “deeply disappointing” and acknowledged the point was “symbolism”.

“I can point to many different examples when the ACT Party, for example, has put forward very similar motions, evidently for the very purpose of that same symbolism, which in turn means something on the international stage.

“It felt particularly pertinent for our country to take a stand against the perpetuation of abuse of human rights with the Israeli parliament passing the ability to effectively murder, to slaughter Palestinian hostages and prisoners.”

She said a motion on notice did not have the status of being read out in Parliament and having the backing of every single parliamentary party.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: New Zealand Government

Rule changes freeing up high country farmers to make the most of their land will unlock economic opportunities, support job creation and strengthen regional economies, Land Information Minister Chris Penk and South Island Minister James Meager say.  

“Farmers in the high country make a significant contribution to New Zealand’s primary industries, but they’re telling us they want to do more and regulatory barriers are holding them back,” Land Information Minister Chris Penk says. 

“That’s why the Government will introduce a Bill to Parliament that will give Crown pastoral land leaseholders more flexibility to expand their businesses and diversify their income. 

“Changes to the Crown Pastoral Land Act and Land Act will allow a wider range of complementary activities on Crown pastoral land alongside pastoral farming, including growing crops and horticulture, running small farm shops, hospitality ventures, and renewable energy projects. 

“Modelling suggests these changes could significantly lift the value of Crown pastoral land, with returns per hectare rising from around $80 for pastoral farming to about $2,000 for horticulture such as cherries, and up to $18,500 for solar projects in some cases. 

“As the economic productivity of this Crown-owned land increases, so too does the return for Kiwi taxpayers over time, through higher-value lease arrangements that bring in revenue for the Government, supporting investment in public services and infrastructure.” 

South Island Minister James Meager says with 1.2 million hectares of Crown pastoral land in the South Island, stretching from Marlborough to Southland, most of it currently used for pastoral farming, the scale of the opportunity is significant.

“Adding activities like horticulture and beekeeping alongside traditional farming, along with selling fresh produce on site, gives farmers more ways to earn from their land and grow their operations. 

“Encouraging hospitality ventures, tourism and hunting also attracts visitors to the region, benefiting the wider local business community as people spend in shops, eat at restaurants, and stay in nearby accommodation. 

“We know this land and its environment are deeply valued in the South Island, and these changes make the rules clearer, simpler, and more workable for farmers, while maintaining strong protections for the high country’s environment and ensuring pastoral farming remains the primary land use.” 

Mr Penk says the Bill will also reduce unnecessary administrative burden and give farmers greater certainty by clearly setting out which day-to-day activities, such as fertilising land or repairing farm buildings, can be carried out without approval and which require formal consent.  

“The Bill also establishes a pathway for removing land from the Crown pastoral estate in exceptional cases where using it for a different purpose would deliver significant benefits for New Zealand. 

“These changes will make it easier for leaseholders to run modern, productive businesses while protecting the unique South Island high country for future generations,” Mr Penk says. 

Note to editors: 

• The public can provide feedback on the Crown Land Legislation Amendment Bill through the Select Committee process. 

MIL OSI

Source: Radio New Zealand

Pharmac needs more staff and a bigger operational budget to speed-up decisions on drug funding, say patient advocates.

In a report released today, the agency has been criticised for a focus on cost efficiency over health outcomes, and for slow decision-making and backlogs.

The report – written by Patient Voice Aotearoa and Medicines New Zealand and titled “Valuing Life – Medicines Access Summit 2025 Report” – is based off the findings of a two-day hui at Parliament in October last year.

Hosted by Deputy Prime Minister and Associate Minister of Health responsible for Pharmac David Seymour, the event brought together 180 people, including patient groups, clinicians, government officials, academics, and pharmaceutical industry representatives for a series of panels and workshops.

The report highlighted progress and persistent gaps in the country’s medicines system, noting “while some progress has been made, delivery remains uneven” and several foundational reforms “have not been started or addressed fully”.

Key findings highlighted in the report include:

• Progress is fragile without political leadership and accountability
• New Zealand continues to lag behind OECD peers
• Pharmac continues to be greatly underfunded
• Patients’ groups and clinicians are calling for a system that values timeliness, transparency, and lived experience
• Global pressures are reshaping medicines access
• A call for partnership and long‑term reform

Patient Voice Aotearoa chair Dr Malcolm Mulholland said two thirds of those recommendations had seen progress made since the summit, but a third were yet to see action.

Mulholland is also the chair of the consumer and patient working group, which was set up last year to work alongside Pharmac’s board overseeing a 12-month reset programme currently underway, which is aimed at making Pharmac more open and responsive.

“[Pharmac] are going to need a bigger a bigger operations budget to do a lot of the work around the health technology assessment,” he said.

“If we’re looking to speed it up, ultimately they are going to need more staff in those positions, so that’s why the operations budget is so important.”

Finance Minister Nicola Willis referred questions to Seymour’s office.

Seymour said while it was still a work in progress, for the first time in years Pharmac was “genuinely moving in the right direction”.

“We’ve given patients a stronger voice, appointed a consumer working group, and made Pharmac more transparent. We will continue to push Pharmac in the direction the patient community wants.

“Five years ago many of the Medicines Summit attendees would have been picketing outside Pharmac. This year, they were having genuine conversations with each other and Pharmac’s leadership about how to deliver the best service for Kiwis.”

This government had allocated a budget of $6.294 billion over four years, and a $604 million uplift.

“With that money, Pharmac has made 133 decisions to fund or widen access to medicines. This includes decisions on 46 cancer medicines. Over 200,000 patients have benefited.”

Pharmac chief executive Natalie McMurtry said Pharmac had appreciated the opportunity to attend the summit for the past two years, and it had provided an invaluable opportunity to hear first-hand from patients, advocates, suppliers and clinicians.

Since then, they had recruited more health economists to increase Pharmac’s capacity to assess funding applications, she said, and were trailing faster, more efficient assessment pathways which were showing early signs of success.

“We are also exploring how adopting a societal perspective can help us better demonstrate the value of new treatments, particularly when considering significant investments.

“Recently, we launched a review of our Exceptional Circumstances Framework, which allows Pharmac to consider funding medicines for certain individuals in special or exceptional clinical situations.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: New Zealand Government

New Zealand and the Cook Islands have signed a Defence & Security Declaration in Rarotonga today, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced.

“New Zealand and the Cook Islands have a special constitutional relationship which has endured for six decades,” Mr Peters says. 

“Today’s Declaration is about setting a course together for the future.

“The strategic environment we face is more complex and contested today than at any other point since New Zealand and the Cook Islands formed our free association relationship in 1965. 

“In that context, it’s vital that New Zealand and the Cook Islands are clear, with one another and third parties, about the nature of our special relationship and our responsibilities to one another in the defence and security domains. 

“This Declaration outlines a set of important political commitments that the Cook Islands and New Zealand have made to one another which provide clarity on key aspects of our special constitutional relationship.

“It’s no secret that our two governments have had a series of serious disagreements since late 2024,” Mr Peters says. 

“As we debated how to get past these disagreements, it became clear that one of their root causes was the lack of a shared understanding about the requirements of our special constitutional relationship – especially as it pertained to defence and security matters and the extent of the consultation required between us.

“This Declaration resolves this former ambiguity and provides clarity to both Governments so that we can move forward focused on the future, not the past.”

The Declaration adds to the other important expressions of the New Zealand-Cook Islands relationship: the Cook Islands Constitution, the exchange of letters between Prime Ministers Norman Kirk and Albert Henry in 1973, the Letters Patent of 1983 and the Joint Centenary Declaration of 2001.

New Zealand’s paused financial support to the Cook Islands will be restored following today’s Declaration signing, Mr Peters says. 

“We earlier took a difficult decision to pause parts of New Zealand’s funding to the Cook Islands Government because there was no shared understanding of the nature of our special constitutional relationship. Now that we have come to a mutually satisfactory understanding of the underpinnings of our partnership, we are pleased to normalise all aspects of our relationship – including New Zealand’s financial support. 

“Throughout the past two years, New Zealand has never wavered from our steadfast commitment to the Cook Islands people and their strong attachment to the free association relationship between our two countries. 

“We are pleased to now have a shared certainty about the contours of that relationship, and we are grateful to Prime Minister Brown and his government for the constructive way they approached the negotiation of this Declaration.

“New Zealand and the Cook Islands people benefit from our special constitutional relationship. We look forward now to further enhancing the broad range of cooperation between New Zealand and the Cook Islands, as well as navigating together the complex strategic environment and the many shared challenges we face,” Mr Peters says.

The political commitments made in the Declaration are summarised below. The Declaration’s full text can be found here.

Declaration summary

The Cook Islands-New Zealand Defence and Security Declaration contains a series of commitments. 

The political commitments made by the Cook Islands to New Zealand in the Declaration are as follows: 

• To uphold the fundamental values upon which New Zealand citizenship is based (clause 2).
• To discharge its foreign policy and diplomatic relationships subject to the constitutional limits of free association (clause 5).
• To uphold the defence and security interests of New Zealand, the Cook Islands and the Realm as a whole (clause 6).
• To continue to permit the New Zealand Defence Force access to the Cook Islands’ territory (including EEZ) to fulfil its mandate and uphold shared security commitments (clause 9).
• To consult with New Zealand in good faith on matters of defence and security that may affect New Zealand’s interests and constitutional responsibilities (clause 10), including maintaining regular structured dialogue and providing information to New Zealand on defence or security matters upon its request and to the fullest extent possible (clause 13).
• To engage with New Zealand on any requests for defence and security before engagement with other partners (clause 14).

In return, New Zealand has committed to the Cook Islands that it will: 

• Remain the primary defence and security partner for the Cook Islands and provide defence and security capacity and capability building (clause 7).
• Uplift Defence engagement and uphold the responsibility of the New Zealand Defence Force for the Cook Islands (clause 8).
• Consult with the Cook Islands in good faith on matters of defence and security that may affect the Cook Islands’ interests (clause 10), including maintaining regular structured dialogue and providing information to the Cook Islands on defence or security matters upon its request and to the fullest extent possible. (clause 13).

Both New Zealand and the Cook Islands have committed not to enter into activities, agreements or arrangements with other partners that would undermine the commitments set out in the Declaration

MIL OSI

Source: New Zealand Government

Reporting released today shows the Government’s efforts to reduce youth offending and improve school attendance are making a positive difference in the lives of young Kiwis.

Child Poverty Reduction Minister Louise Upston says the Annual Report on the Child and Youth Strategy and the Child Poverty Related Indicators presented in Parliament this morning provides important insights, including:

offending rates for all children and young people have improved from 2023/24 and are significantly improved from 2019/20
substantiated findings of child abuse and neglect have reduced between 2023/24 and 2024/2025
regular school attendance is improving for all learners aged 6 to 16 years old
most parents had access to maternity care and have been coping well with parenting
the number of children living in food insecure households decreased between 2023/24 and 2024/2025.

It’s the second Annual Report on the Child and Youth Strategy and the Child Poverty Related Indicators set by the Government in 2024. Findings show many children and young people are continuing to thrive across a range of outcomes. 

However challenges also remain, with 14.3 per cent of children experiencing material hardship in 2024/25, and an increase in the number of children in households receiving a main benefit over the last year. 

“These figures reflect the challenges of continuing tough economic circumstances, which we are tackling head-on,” Minister Upston says. 

“We’re focused on practical solutions, including breaking cycles of welfare dependency, creating more jobs, and improving outcomes in areas such as education, health, housing and law and order to help keep children out of material hardship in the long term.

“Through the Child and Youth Strategy we’re delivering a coordinated cross-government approach to improve outcomes for children and young people. Our work continues to be informed by our social investment approach to ensure we base investment decisions on research, data, and evidence of impact.

This year’s report also includes updates on key actions to make further progress, including to:

reduce child material hardship through programmes such as the Healthy School Lunches, Early Childhood Education Food, Food Secure Communities and Building Financial Capability
improve school attendance and educational achievement through the Attendance Action Plan and the Lifting Achievement work programme, and
contribute to reducing potentially avoidable hospitalisations through programmes such as Kahu Taurima, the Healthy Homes initiative and the immunisation work programme.

“We’re also continuing to work with and support those outside of government who work directly with children, young people and their families, whānau and communities to give young Kiwis a good start in life,” Louise Upston says. 

The Strategy and 2024/25 Annual Report documents are available on the Ministry of Social Development website.

MIL OSI

Source: Radio New Zealand

An armed man sent a manifesto to schools, the police and the government promising to “kill everyone” and become the country’s “most deadly mass shooter”, police allege.

The man – who has never had a firearms licence – is accused of possessing a pump action shotgun with more than 350 shotgun cartridges, “suspected components of an improvised explosive device” and Nazi literature, it can now be revealed.

The 20-year-old faces an array of charges including two representative charges of threatening to kill, three charges of threatening to destroy property and four representative charges of unlawful possession of firearm/explosive.

He had also been charged with three representative charges of possessing an objectionable publication – including the Christchurch terrorist’s manifesto and video – and two charges of failing to carry out obligations to computer search.

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

The man, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has name suppression, is set to go on trial in July. RNZ has been granted access to a court document that details the police allegations against him.

The document accused him of sending a manifesto to various addresses at 1.40am on 12 March last year.

The recipients included Waiuku College, Rutherford College, Pukekohe Police Station, Te Atatu Police Station and Parliament.

Police said the email was titled “This is my manifesto” and stated that another person was the author. It made several claims, including that the author had been “subject to constant bullying and harassment”.

“I have finished making weapons, body armour and suicide vest that will be needed for what I will do to get revenge on bullies.”

He said he had finished 3D printing and assembling a Rogue 9 submachine gun and had about 200-300 armour piercing bullets, some 3D printed Glock magazines, a pistol and about 100 bullets.

Police alleged the email said the submachine gun and pistol had been tested and the author knew “they will work for ‘what I am going to do tomorrow morning’”.

“I have body armour so that I will not die in a shootout with police,” the manifesto was alleged to say.

According to the police the email author claimed to also be in possession of Molotov cocktails and ingredients for explosives. The manifesto also said explosives had been sent in various packages to Waiuku College, Rutherford College, Pukekohe Police Station, Te Atatu Police Station and the Beehive.

“The rest of the … explosive was in the suicide vest that I will detonate even if defeated in a gun fight and kill everyone around me.

“I will go to Rutherford College or Waiuku College early and … become New Zealand’s most deadly mass shooter.”

It also promised “a big tragedy” if there were not enough police at the school, and threatened to set schools on fire and take hostages.

“The only way out of this is for a plane to be provided to me and safe passage out of New Zealand.”

Later that morning, police said they received an online form submission to a Police Service Improvement webform link, detailing the manifesto that had been sent.

When the schools became aware of the threat students and staff had already started to arrive for school.

As a result, Waiuku College put the school into lockdown for several hours, before staff and students were sent home.

Rutherford College restricted access to the property and had armed police posted at the school for the duration of the day.

Police said they spoke with a person who had been named as the author of the manifesto. They denied being the author and instead identified the defendant as a possible suspect.

On 13 March, police raided two properties associated with the defendant.

At one of the properties, police said they found a 12-gauge pump action shotgun under his bed, as well as 359 shotgun cartridges.

They said they also found a 3D printer, a machete in sheath, blueprints showing the assembly components of an AR15 rifle and Nazi literature.

The court document said “suspected components of an improvised explosive device” were also seized from the property. This included electrical chipboards, timers and household chemicals.

While searching the other property, police said they seized a phone, an iPad, two laptops, a USB drive, a desktop computer, 134 spent shotgun shells and a large knife.

When asked for the passcodes for the iPad and one of the phones, the defendant allegedly provided incorrect passcodes.

“When suggested that he was providing the wrong passcodes, the defendant claimed not to remember the passcodes,” the court document said.

Police analysed the defendant’s devices and said they found several objectionable materials, including a copy of Brenton Tarrant’s manifesto, a video of the Christchurch mosque attacks and a copy of a manifesto written by Ryan Palmeter, who killed three people in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2023.

There were also two copies of “an instructional book on how to make explosives, weapons, drugs and other dangerous or illegal activity” and videos of the Russian Moscow ISIS concert hall terror attack and the Buffalo, New York, mass shooting.

When spoken to by police, the defendant denied being involved in any of the alleged offending.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealand has not joined in the latest international call for responsible use of AI by the military, but has been taking part in the UN talks about autonomous weapons.

AI has been used in unprecedented ways in the war in Iran, for instance in drawing up hit lists and targeting missiles, according to overseas media reports.

Forbes has called it “the first AI war”.

Australia, Canada and the UK were among this country’s Five Eyes group partners that endorsed the non-binding call issued by the third summit on “responsible artificial intelligence in the military domain”.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said no one was sent to the summit in Spain in February, unlike the second summit in 2024 when the NZDF had someone there.

“Although we observe when resourcing allows, New Zealand is a not a member of REAIM,” MFAT said.

The US endorsed an earlier call from the 2024 summit of REAIM, a European government initiative.

The summits have been trying to nut out a blueprint for armies using AI but there remains no international law or legally-binding treaty that bans the use of lethal autonomous weapons.

Their calls to action have been described as “modest”.

The latest call said military AI “can and should” contribute to peace and security, for instance, by reducing exposure of military personnel and civilians to danger, and helping decisions to be faster and better.

But its risks had to be corralled within frameworks of international humanitarian and human rights law, it said.

In March, NZ permanent mission staff in Geneva took part in the UN talks on lethal autonomous weapons, MFAT said.

These revolved around work by a group of government experts on the conditions where autonomous weapons could be developed and used legally.

The March talks referred to a new report by a leading Swedish thinktank that said militaries must change their AI weapons buying practices to build into them political commitments to responsible use.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said in the US the Pentagon had previously stressed that its flagship Replicator initiative – to build fleets of thousands of drones focused in the Indo-Pacific – was based on policies for ethical use of AI.

But it added, “the tension between acquisition speed and thorough legal, safety and ethical review remains unresolved in public documentation.”

More recently, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has hit the accelerator on emerging tech development, while at the same time deriding “stupid rules of engagement” aimed at reducing mistakes and civilian casualties.

The Stockholm study said militaries seeking speed were turning to commercial AI solutions rather than the traditional approach of ordering what they need, custom-made. This was leading to the fielding of “minimum viable capabilities” often without a whole lot of pre-testing.

“States may even knowingly accept governance trade-offs under acute security or operational pressures,” it said.

The commercial, minimum viable approach has been gathering pace at the New Zealand Defence Force in the last year.

The study said governments should invest in evaluation mechanisms for military AI, and strengthen that by clear thinking in the military about what they want the AI they buy to do, backed up with solid ways to assure commercial suppliers’ tech was set to meet political obligations.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand