Stories by Craig McCulloch
Audio and features
Labour prepares to be prepared for power
Humiliated and humbled in last year's election, Labour has spent its first months back in opposition licking its wounds.
At the party's caucus retreat this week - a gathering of its MPs at a remote… Audio
Fa'anānā Efeso Collins' death brings unity in grief
Parliament was brought to a standstill on Wednesday, with politics set aside after the sudden and shocking death of first-term Green MP Fa'anānā Efeso Collins.
A champion for his people, a tireless… Audio
Councils get their Three Waters wish - but will they regret it?
The coalition has ticked off another objective - repealing the troubled Three Waters programme - but in doing so may have just delayed the bigger problem for another day.
In this week's Focus on… Audio
Luxon fronts fierce criticism from Māori ahead of Waitangi
Coming hot on the heels of last weekend's Hui-aa-Motu and the Rātana celebrations, Waitangi Day this year promises to be highly emotive and political.
The government's policies have prompted calls… Audio
Māori dissent sets the scene as Parliament returns
The resumption of Parliament this week has been underlined by outcry from Māori, soon matched by fury within the debating chamber.
With just two weeks before the Christmas break and Waitangi Day fast… Audio
Coalition deals signed and sealed, now it's time to deliver
It took 40 days and 40 nights - but at long last, the country knows what its new government will look like.
New Zealand's first-ever three-way coalition: National, ACT and New Zealand First finally… Audio
Peters' stock rises on final vote count, how much will Luxon pay?
The final act of the 2023 election has reset the calculus, blowing apart National's dream scenario and driving up the price for forming government.
With NZ First's support now a requirement, Winston… Audio
On the campaign trail, week four: The week of Winston Peters
Call this the week of Winston Peters - with the New Zealand First leader, riding a wave of renewed relevancy.
In not one, but two TV polls, New Zealand First featured above that critical 5 percent… Audio
Labour's GST-free fruit and vege strategy falls foul of the experts
Set the table for bread and butter - or in this case, fruit and veg: Labour fired its opening election campaign salvo on Sunday with a starkly populist pitch for tax-free produce.
The party is… Audio
Budget 2023: bare bones, blowout, or both?
The 2023 Budget has proven difficult to define: neither the belt-tightening exercise that was promised, nor the blatant bribery sometimes seen in election years.
Certainly, it is no election… Audio
Making a Nash of it: The self-destruct sequence of a police minister
Stuart Nash's rapid resignation from his treasured police portfolio - just two months after getting it back - is one of the clearest examples of a political own-goal.
It's highlighted poor… Audio
Do public service consultancy criticisms stack up?
Consultants and contractors are a favourite punching bag for opposition parties - of all colours - and National is just the latest to land a solid blow, leaving Labour off-balance.
The numbers show… Audio
National's three waters plan leaves councils to carry the can
While National's solution to the Three Waters problem may please the councils steadfastly opposed to the government's plan, it remains plagued by a financial fishhook.
But, as journalist Bernard… Audio
United States trip proves Jacinda Ardern's pulling power
In today's Focus on Politics podcast Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch assesses the Prime Minister's American odyssey. Audio
A Budget searching for balance
In today's Focus on Politics podcast Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch runs the numbers on the Budget and its political implications. Audio
Border breakthrough: Ending the siege of Fortress New Zealand
In today's Focus on Politics podcast, Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch recounts the siege of Fortress New Zealand and reckons with its reconnection to the world. Audio
Sepuloni pleads ignorance over MSD spending on private rentals
It's a multimillion-dollar ministerial blind spot that is being called into question. Opposition parties are demanding accountability after revelations millions of dollars was shelled out by the… Audio
A sit-down with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
In today's Focus on Politics podcast, Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch talks with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern about the year that's been. Video, Audio
Collins, National's nuclear option, self destructs
In today's Focus on Politics podcast, Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch delineates the nuclear destruction of Judith Collins' leadership and assesses the fallout. Audio
Lockdown: Delta outbreak raises the stakes
In today's Focus on Politics podcast, Deputy Political Editor Craig McCulloch details the latest Covid-19 outbreak, the government's response, and how that's been received by the public and… Audio
Insight: The Dawn of a New Commonwealth?
Craig McCulloch returns from London and a Commonwealth heads of government meeting to explore whether a trade agreement across all 53 countries could really fly? Video, Audio
Is Winston Peters a Very Hungry Caterpillar?
New Zealand First MP Shane Jones said today that the "monarch butterfly" will soon emerge. Does that make Winston Peters a very hungry caterpillar? And just how much does he want? Video, Audio
Te Ururoa Flavell - Māori Party
Te Ururoa Flavell was elected on a wave of support for the fledgling Māori Party in 2005, following widespread Māori opposition to the Foreshore and Seabed Act.
Brighter Future? One house, two generations
As the election draws near, generational resentment over housing and superannuation is being stoked by politicians. But as Craig McCulloch reports, one Lower Hutt family has found a novel antidote. Video