Stories by Phil Pennington
News
Ministry of Justice's growing reliance on property contractors revealed
The Ministry of Justice has been hiring more and more contractors, some costing thousands of dollars a day.
Transmission Gully's impacts on streams and fish investigated
A landmark Wellington motorway once lauded for its green credentials is being investigated for its impact on streams, native fish and one of the country's most sensitive inlets.
Racial bias expected in government's new Identity Check
A Māori oversight group expects instances of racial bias to come through in a new government-run identification platform - but says improvements will be made.
Name suppression leaves dead toddler 'faceless and nameless' - whānau
Whānau of a toddler killed in Southland say heavy court suppressions have left the boy "invisible".
US contractor late on $475m NZ transport project
A US contractor has signalled it is running behind time on its half-billion-dollar New Zealand transport project.
State must work with primary caregivers on safety plan for at-risk children - coroner
A coroner's report into the death of a toddler shows government agencies were explicitly warned the boy's killer was violent and a risk to children.
New facial recognition tech rolled out despite racial bias concerns
A recent MSD report calls the level of racial bias in the technology "unknown", "unconfirmed" and "untested".
New health system struggled with 'confusion and delays' - report
The nationwide public health system set up last year to address weaknesses exposed by Covid-19 is struggling, according to a review, with such confusion that in one case 10 different groups were doing…
Unclear aims, 'resource constraints' impeding health reforms - progress report
An official gauge of how the country's health reforms are going has found huge gaps of people, planning and resources. Audio
Immigration NZ's paid for but unused spyware for targeting asylum-seekers
An Immigration NZ team targeting mass arrivals by asylum-seekers paid for spyware for two years without using it.
Threat reporting system to counter terrorism, extremist violence in limbo
Four years on from the terrorist attacks that sparked the work, the country still lacks a system the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the attacks urged be set up.
Waka Kotahi: E-scooters up to four times as risky as cycling
Speed and alcohol use were major factors in accidents involving e-scooters, the report found.
Investment in CARD 'under active consideration' - police
Police have dropped the replacement of a communications system vital to deploying patrol cars and fire trucks. Audio
Govt facial recognition system fails to work half the time in tests
The Identity Check system is aimed at becoming the primary way New Zealanders verify who they are online for access to public and private services.
Facial recognition: Officials yet to meet obligation to seek views of Māori - documents
Officials admit they have been using facial recognition to identify people for years without knowing if it distorts results for Māori.
Spending still rising on contractors and consultants by public agencies
Many public sector agencies have lifted their spending on contractors and consultants by about 60 percent in real terms, on average, since pre-Covid-19 times.
EPA shelves further tests for harmful 'forever chemical' contamination
The Environmental Protection Authority has no plans to do more tests, despite recommendations more be done.
'Unsustainable demand' - Police look to take fewer people into remand custody
Police are moving to cut the number of people remanded in custody, while acknowledging this will mean more offenders in the community.
Police aim to beef up court prosecution resources with $26m plan
Police officers have been diverted away from the frontline, trying to deal with an ever-growing logjam in the courts.
Health system reforms 'taking far too long', say cancer patient advocates
Cancer patients are struggling with uneven medical care as Te Whatu Ora edges towards setting up national clinical networks to tackle the public health postcode lottery.
警方使用监控手段与车牌自动识别系统引发法律争议
新西兰警方与两家私营监控公司合作,通过访问其监控数据来进行情报搜集、跟踪等调查行为。此举引发法律界人士担忧,对警方行为是否合规提出了质疑。
Legal challenges to police use of automated number plate recognition cameras
Police use of footage from high-tech automated number plate recognition cameras is being contested in court.
Water use of NZ data centers still unclear
Government officials have yet to look at how much water the dozen or so huge data centres being built might use.
What Erin Brockovich has to say to NZ about water
The American activist - immortalised by Hollywood - has addressed the Water NZ conference.