Whoever wins New Zealand’s election on Saturday is going to have to make some difficult decisions on investment and staffing for a defence force struggling with aging equipment and personnel shortages. Three of New Zealand’s nine navy ships are idle because of staff shortages and any military response to a humanitarian emergency in the region over the coming cyclone season would be curtailed because of constraints, a spokesman for New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) said in an email. “The NZDF is able to provide a range of responses, but at reduced capacity,” the spokesman said.
In the last week of politicking the Post newspaper brought to light the fact that while most Kiwis are struggling with a cost of living and housing crisis a significant ‘minority’ of MPs are investing in Wellington real estate on the taxpayer. According .