Deputy Mayor endorses Wayne Brown for re-election
After toying with the idea of challenging him for the top job, Auckland's deputy mayor has instead endorsed Wayne Brown in his bid for re-election. In a joint press conference Desley Simpson said she was supporting the mayor's campaign for a second term, despite disagreeing with him on certain issues. If Mr Brown wins the mayoralty and Ms Simpson is re-elected as a councillor, he has agreed to make her his deputy again. Jessica Hopkins reports.
Tags:
To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following:
See terms of use.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer on the longest suspension in Parliament
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii This week, Parliament took the unprecedented step of suspending both Te Pāti Māori leaders - Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi - for 21 days. Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke was suspended for seven days - but had also been punished with a 24-hour suspension on the day over a haka all three had performed in Parliament, against the Treaty Principles Bill, in November. It is against the rules of the House for members to leave their seats during a debate - which all three did. Ngarewa-Packer told Saturday Morning that the 21-day suspension, which was seven times harsher than any previous sanction an MP has faced, was not proportionate. "I think the backlash from the public, nationally and internationally, validates that," she said. Previously, the longest suspension for an MP had been three days, given to the former prime minister Robert Muldoon for criticising the speaker in the 1980s. While New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the duration of the suspension would have been lessened if the Te Pāti Māori MPs had apologised, Ngarewa-Packer said that was never requested by the Privileges Committee. "What we have here is a situation where, and some are calling it Trumpism, we've been a lot more specific - we have an Atlas agenda that has not only crept in, it's stormed in on the shores of Aotearoa and some may not understand what that means, but this is just the extension of the attack on the treaty, on the attack on Indigenous voices. "We made the point the whole way through when we started to see that they weren't going to be able to meet us halfway on anything, even a quarter of the way, on any of the requests for tikanga experts, for legal experts when we knew the bias of the committee." Ngarewa-Packer added that the Privileges Committee process was not equipped to deal with the issue. "We hit a nerve and we can call it a colonial nerve, we can call it institutional nerve... "I think that this will be looked back on at some stage and say how ridiculous we looked back in 2025." Ngarewa-Packer also added that the language from Peters during the debate on Thursday was "all very deliberate" - "and that's what we're contending with in Aotearoa". "Everyone should have a view but don't use the might of legislation and the power to be able to assert your racism and assert your anti-Māori, anti-Treaty agenda." Peters had taken aim at Waititi on Thursday as "the one in the cowboy hat" and "scribbles on his face" in reference to his mataora moko. Rawiri Waititi. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii He said countless haka have taken place in Parliament but only after first consulting the Speaker. "They told the media they were going to do it, but they didn't tell the Speaker did they?" Peters added that Te Pāti Māori were "a bunch of extremists" and that "New Zealand has had enough of them". "They don't want democracy, they want anarchy," he said. "They don't want one country, they don't want one law, they don't want one people." Winston Peters. Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

RNZ News
8 hours ago
- RNZ News
Samoa's early election date confirmed
RNZ Pacific's Samoa correspondent Galumalemana Tipi Autagavaia says the Electoral Commissioner told local media on Thursday that the country's election will be held on the 29th of August. To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.

RNZ News
9 hours ago
- RNZ News
Te Tai Tokerau takes both top beef farming prizes at Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 awards
Hūhana Lyndon, Tama Potaka and Pita Morrison on stage at the Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 award ceremony. Photo: Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira Māori from Te Tai Tokerau were the big winners at the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 awards with both top prizes going to Northland farmers. The Northland-based Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust was awarded the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy for excellence in Māori sheep and beef farming, while Te Tai Tokerau farm manager Coby Warmington took out the 2025 Young Māori Farmer Award at a packed ceremony in Palmerston North on Friday. The Ahuwhenua Trophy dates back to 1933 and was established by Sir Āpirana Ngata and the Governor General at the time, Lord Charles Bledisloe. It remains one of the most prestigious and contested awards for Māori farming. At least 800 people gather for the Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 award ceremony. Photo: Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira At least 800 people were at the event, including Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono I te po, the Māori Queen, Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka and other Māori farmers and their whānau. The Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust's whenua is located near the east coast settlement of Whangaruru, north of Whangārei. Its cattle farm takes up about a third of the 1100 hectares of land owned by the trust. In 1952, the Department of Māori Affairs held a hui for the then-484 registered owners of the whenua. Despite only 70 being present and only 24 signing a resolution in support, the department went ahead with the consolidation of the whenua into a 'Land Development Scheme' disconnecting the people from the whenua for decades. The trust took back control of the whenua in 2020 with little-to-no farming know-how and no stock. Since then, it has transformed the whenua into a thriving bull-beef operation with around 1200 bulls. In her acceptance speech, Green MP and Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust co-chair Hūhana Lyndon said thanked her wider Ngāti Wai whānau and elders for their support. "Our tūpuna fought so hard to have the land returned and when you are unable to walk your whenua, when you have a tenant that would not let you on without supervision, our ability to take our land back was transformational." Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 Award winner Pita Morrison accepting the supreme award. Photo: Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira Co-chair Pita Morrison thanked the whānau who travelled south to support the trust, and those who had passed on. "From the time of our founding tipuna, Manaia, who came to our whenua, our people have been here … if it was not for the strength that our tūpuna have given to us and our people we would not be here. "To our people that are here today, as the descendants of our old people, I thank you, mihi to you, on behalf of our trust and we are so proud to be here with you today," Morrison said. Ahuwhenua Trophy 2025 Young Māori Farmer Award winner Coby Warmington Photo: Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira It was a similar sentiment from Young Māori Famer Award winner Coby Warmington, 28, who thanked his wife Holly and his fellow finalists who he described as "obviously great farmers" but "even better people". Warmington (Te Mahurehure, Ngāpuhi) started working at Waima Topu Beef in January 2021 as a shepherd and general hand while the farm was starting a re-building phase and was promoted to farm manager only two years later, in March 2023. Each finalist received a $5000 scholarship, courtesy of Te Tumu Paeroa, The Office of the Māori Trustee, with the overall winner getting a total of $10,000. Warmington said he wanted to start implementing some of things he learned on his own farm in Waima. "I was supported by my employers to apply for the award and I just wanted to test my limits, socially. "It's been amazing, meeting all these great people and spending time with all these young Māori leaders. I'll never forget the experience." Te Tumu Paeroa lead Dr Charlotte Severne said the scholarship would likely be used to get more skills overseas. "It's for them to study and study further, that opportunity to put something into themselves. Studying is not cheap. "These ones have more qualifications than some who have entered the awards so they'll look at training offshore, maybe do a tour offshore. That's as good as any tohū, I think." Severne said. Māori development Minister Tama Potaka said whenua was an integral part of Māori identity. "For us its something that is enduring and perpetual, we won't let go of our whakapapa because it defines who we are. As a result, we do have to figure out how we use that as a foundation for our livelihoods, for jobs, for enterprise and for opportunities for our young people. "I had the great opportunity to grow up on a sheep and beef farm only 45 minutes away in a place called Rata, up Rangitīkei. We had amongst our families 150,000 to 160,000 sheep there in the 1900s. "Certainly for me it's, again, linking back to identity and whakapapa but also providing a platform for economic growth." Potaka said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.