Category Archives: New Zealand

Mike Bacchus remembers the man only as the Texan. A few years back, the Texan, well into his 70s, was a guest at New Zealands Lakestone Lodge, which Bacchus and his family own. The man had made his way from Texas to the Mackenzie region of New Zealands South Island for the landscapes, to see vivid swathes of violet lupins set against blue glacial lakes, and snowy peaks rising beyond golden tussocked hills. He hadnt realized one of the most glorious sights in Mackenzie is revealed after sunset. In a region with some of the darkest night skies in the world, the vast sweep of the Milky Way dwarfs even the towering summit of nearby Aoraki, or Mount Cook.

One evening, Bacchus invited his guest to step outside. The Texans first instinct was to raise his hand. The stars were so vivid it seemed as if he could reach out and clasp them. Standing beneath the great bowl of the heavens, the man bathed in starlight and emotion. He told Bacchus he was seeing the stars clearly for the first time since he was ten years old.

For Bacchus, the Texans awe was a reminder of how preciousand elusivethe clear night sky can be. It really hit home. He had simply forgotten about the Milky Way, says Bacchus.

Lakestone, an off-the-grid lodge on the edge of brilliantly blue Lake Pukaki, is located within the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve. From the lodge, the nearest traffic light is about a 100-mile drive.

The reserve, designated in 2012 and covering more than 1,600 square miles, protects more than just the night sky. It offers a respite from the impacts of light pollution for every living creature within its boundaries, from endangered insects to humans who have forgotten the Milky Way. More than 80 percent of the worlds population lives under light-polluted skies, according to a study in Science Advances. Even three hours away from the reserve in Dunedin, where Mori astronomer Victoria Campbell grew up, the stars are masked.

It was breathtaking to look up and realize what I wasnt seeing from my home in the city, Campbell says of her first view of the reserves night sky. She was enthralled. Our whnau [family] have decided to move to Mackenzie because of our love for the environment, and the pristine night skies.

Home to just a few thousand people, the Mackenzie Basin has always been a prime spot for stargazing. That is, when its not overcast. As astronomer John Hearnshaw observes wryly, Aoraki Mackenzie is known for its dark skies, not its cloudless skies. Hearnshaw is a former director of the Mount John Observatory in Tekapo, at the reserves center, and played a key role in securing the dark sky designation. He has been advocating for protecting the regions night skies since the late 1970s. And hes not done yet.

At his home in Christchurch, Hearnshaw opens a book he authored, The New Zealand Dark Sky Handbook, and flips to a map of the Mackenzie district. He traces his finger along the ridges of the Southern Alps and the thick blue lines of lakes while describing how he and other advocates hope to expand the reserve to neighboring Fairlie Basin, which would roughly double its size. Thats good news for both stargazers and the regions smallest residents.

The Mackenzie areas dry tussock is home to moths and other insects found nowhere else on Earth. For example, Izatha psychra is a moth found only in one patch of shrub within the reserve, where it teeters on the edge of extinction. This moth has a single reasonable population. Well, I say reasonable population; I havent seen more than three moths in any given year, says Robert Hoare, an entomologist at New Zealands Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research.

I. psychra is one of several moth species in Mackenzie that has had to contend with a changing habitat, including the threat of light pollution. Before the reserves protections were in place, several of the populations crashed. Fifteen years ago, we had conversations about these species and thought, well, theyre probably okay, the habitat doesnt seem to have changed much, theyre still there. Then we went back after ten years and the moths just seem to have disappeared, Hoare says. His concern is palpable. He speaks about certain moth species as if theyre old friends he hasnt heard from in a long time. One species hasnt been seen since 2008, yet he still hasnt stopped searching for it.

Conservation of these delicate creatures is still at an early stage, and focuses on keeping whats left of their habitats intact. And that means preserving the dark. Light pollution interrupts insects natural cycles of feeding, mating, migrating, and navigating. Moths are also attracted to outdoor lighting, which makes them more vulnerable to predation and exhaustion.

Anything that stops their life histories from being interfered with, that stops them being pulled out of their habitat and fluttering around light is beneficial. Its good if they have as little extraneous light as possible, Hoare says.

Now, communities on the reserves periphery are getting increasingly involved, including a new Dark Sky Certification programLakestone Lodge was the first business in the region to be awarded the designation.

A revitalization of mtauranga Mori, or Mori knowledge, is also changing the way New Zealanders see the natural dark. Everything is holistic and connected, says Campbell. From celestial objects to things in our natural world like plants, the wind, the tide. She says dark skies arent singularly about astronomy, environmental protection, or human health, but all of these things at once.

The reserves value will be showcased in June 2022, when Matariki, Mori New Year, will be celebrated as a national holiday for the first time. Matariki is deeply rooted in star lore, signaled by the rising of the Pleiades star cluster. Campbell hopes the event will serve as a potent reminder of the importance of environmental conservation. Particular stars within the cluster are linked to fresh water and our oceans, for example, so there will be some really beautiful opportunities there for us as a nation to think about those things.

A self-described optimist, Campbell believes Matariki may inspire new reverence for how all the parts of the world move in sync, from Earth slowly spinning on its axis to the circadian rituals of moths in tussock grass beneath the dark Mackenzie skies.

Excerpt from:

Under New Zealand's Dark Skies, Insects Recover and Humans Reconnect with a Lost View - Atlas Obscura

Miller told Newshub if the other Five Eyes member, Canada, had been part of the AUKUS, then it may have suggested New Zealand was on the outer. But that's not the case.

"Canada and New Zealand both share similarities and positioning regarding China, which is more balanced than those other three. So it's perhaps not a surprise, and that maybe softens the blow somewhat. The fact that it's both Canada and New Zealand not being included."

He said AUKUS appeared to be three close allies formalising their alliance.

"I think most New Zealanders would probably say good luck to them, but it's not really where we are at these days."

Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, Brent Sadler, a senior fellow for Naval Warfare and Advanced Technology at the Heritage Foundation, said New Zealand has to deal with the consequences of being independent.

"China loves to jump on any sort of split or friction between our allies and drive them apart. New Zealand not being part of that does provide an unnecessary seam."

Miller didn't expect China would be happy with the new pact, something its Washington Embassy made clear on Thursday morning, accusing the nations of a "Cold War mentality".

"They don't like these alliances," Miller said. "They will feel encircled."

With a colossal trading relationship with China, New Zealand has long been careful with its actions, hoping not to provoke the economic heavyweight.

"New Zealand wants to be good friends with everybody," Miller said. "It's very much been the New Zealand foreign policy position for decades now, to have friends everywhere as a small trading nation at the bottom of the world.

"New Zealand's come under a lot of pressure this year to shift its position more to the Western position. But so far, New Zealand's been fairly successful in resisting that,

"I think now New Zealanders are largely quite comfortable with the foreign policy. I think New Zealand has forged a new direction and that's quite different from the likes of Australia and the US from Britain. I think New Zealand is very comfortable in its own skin now. This alliance to me just seems like in another league compared with New Zealand."

Ardern said New Zealand's "lens will always be from that of a Pacific nation" wanting peace, stability and a rules-based order. But she said that didn't "diminish the role we have to play" globally.

Ardern welcomed the UK and US's engagement in the region.

"I am pleased to say that the eye has been tuned to our region from partners that we work closely with, because, of course, this is a contested region, there is a role that others can play in taking an interest in our region, but the lens we'll look at this from will include stability."

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AUKUS's impact on New Zealand: Nuclear policy 'unchanged', Five Eyes 'will endure' in face of new defence pact - Newshub

Cocaine stacked in the Kahu's lounge (NCA)

PublishedSep 16, 2021 12:21 AM by The Maritime Executive

Last week, the UK's National Crime Agency intercepted a converted New Zealand Navy patrol boat and arrested her six-member crew on suspicion of drug trafficking. After an extensive search, officers pulled two tonnes of cocaine from hiding places on board.

The vessel - the yacht-conversion Kahu, formerly a patrol vessel belonging to the Royal New Zealand Navy - was intercepted by NCA agentsThursday evening at a position about 70 nm off the coast of Plymouth. Kahu was under way on a long voyage from the Caribbean, but she did not reach her planned destination; instead, the team escorted her back to shore for a "deep rummage search."

Her six crewmembers -including one UK national and five Nicaraguan nationals - havebeen arrested and are in custody.

"This is a massive haul of cocaine with an estimated street value of around [$220million]," said NCA deputy director Matt Horne. "Theres no doubt these drugs would have been sold on into communities across the UK . . . fueling more crime and misery. Organized crime groups are motivated by money. The deprivation of these drugs will smash a hole in the [groups] plans and ability to operate."

The 1979-built Kahu was converted at New Zealand yard Fitzroy Yachts in 2011, and her former owner - Fitzroy founder Peter White-Robinson - told Canada's National Post that the vessel would be a good candidate for smuggling because of her range. For a trans-Pacific cruise, White-Robinson added enough tank space to take her 8,000 nm between bunkering ports. He sold the vessel in 2013 along with Fitzroy Yachts, and it has changed hands several times since.

The bust was facilitated by the Australian Federal Police, who gave the NCA informationobtained through Australia's access to the AnOm encrypted communication platform. The AnOm "secure phone" was conceived and created by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation for distribution to suspected criminals, and the FBI and its international partners used a back door in the app to covertly monitor organized crime syndicates for years. In all, the undercover effort snared 27 million messages from 12,000 devices around the world, leading to stunning drug busts and more than 800 arrests.

Operation Ironside [the AnOm operation] has opened the door to unprecedented collaboration across law enforcement agencies around the globe," said AFP Assistant Commissioner Lesa Gale. "This result highlights the importance of the AFPs partnership with the NCA to combat offshore transnational organised crime that impacts both of our countries."

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Former New Zealand Navy Patrol Vessel Seized in Cocaine Bust - The Maritime Executive

More than 100,000 people have sent in submissions on New Zealands plan to ban LGBTQ conversion practices more than have ever been made on a piece of legislation.

Weve already made history with this movement and were not even done, said Shaneel Lal, an activist and organiser in the movement to ban conversion practices. People really and truly care about this because in 2021 it is not appropriate to erase queer identities.

The government received a total of 106,700 submissions on the bill, which will make it a crime to conduct conversion practices or attempting to change someones sexuality or gender identity.

It is more than double the submissions received on other recent controversial legislation, including the End of Life euthanasia bill, which Stuff reported was the previous record-holder at 40,000 submissions. It was close to five times the number of submissions received on the bill legalising same-sex marriage in 2013.

The submissions have not yet been processed, so it is unknown how many were in favour of a ban but Lal was optimistic that the majority would be, after a large-scale social media campaign asking people to submit their support. About 160,000 people had signed a petition to ban the practice earlier in the year, and polling by TVNZ in September 2020 found 72% of New Zealanders favoured a ban, and just 14% opposed. Lal said the campaigns template for a submission to ban conversion practices had been opened more than 300,000 times.

For New Zealands rainbow community, Lal said the news had been greeted with a mixture of celebration and trepidation pleasure at seeing such a groundswell of engagement was tempered by concerns that it could lead to vitriol as the debate became increasingly prominent in the public eye.

The select committee process is the more loud and traumatic part of the entire process. This is when people start very aggressively advocating for their side, Lal said.

For survivors of conversion practices, its like an emotional tsunami, Lal said. People are feeling very anxious and nervous, and for me it is important to ensure that our community is safe within the process while I was excited to see the number of submissions, I was also nervous and anxious, what this may mean for our community.

Justice select committee chair Ginny Andersen told TVNZ it would take about two weeks for 41 staff to process the submissions. She said the committee would also hear about 3,000 oral submissions.

Simon Bridges, the opposition National partys justice spokesperson, said the likelihood is that a majority of these are critical of the bill, and called for more time for the bill to be considered.

Due to the Covid-19 lockdown and the unprecedented numbers who want to be heard, the submission process should be extended to take until at least the end of the year, Bridges said.

The legislation would make it an offence to perform conversion practices on anyone under 18, or with impaired decision-making capacity, with a sentence of up to three years imprisonment. It also makes it an offence to perform conversion practices that cause serious harm, irrespective of age. That carries a sentence of up to five years imprisonment.

Conversion therapy is still legal is many parts of the world, including the UK and many states in the US.

The United Nations independent expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity found conversion practices caused significant loss of self-esteem, anxiety, depressive syndrome, social isolation, intimacy difficulty, self-hatred, shame and guilt, sexual dysfunction, suicidal ideation and suicide attempts and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The National party voted against the bill at its first reading, and said they would not support the legislation unless it included an exemption to stop parents being prosecuted. With strong support from the Labour and Green parties, a second reading would have the numbers to pass without them.

Read more here:

New Zealand bill to ban LGBTQ conversion practices receives record 100,000 submissions - The Guardian

As Auckland enters its fifth week in level 4 lockdown and the rest of New Zealand stays at level 2, spare a thought for the nations invisible network of essential community support workers.

They are the people caring for those who, through age or disability, cannot work or leave their homes, cannot independently care for themselves, and who in many cases have underlying mental health and cognitive problems.

While other front-line essential workers are rightly recognised for their service, its important we also remember those less obvious workers who put their own health and well-being at risk to care for and support some of our most vulnerable citizens.

Often these community workers receive little support themselves. And while the stress on hospital staff, supermarket workers and even political leaders has been acknowledged, this other essential group has largely gone unnoticed.

As one community worker told us when reflecting on being overlooked as essential workers and the potential impact this could have on their own well-being:

At the start, the government kind of didnt even really consider us as health workers, did they?

In our ongoing research, we have so far heard from over 75 community support workers nationwide about their well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic.

They are employed mostly by private companies (some not-for-profit) contracted to a variety of government agencies, including the Ministry of Health, ACC and district health boards.

Read more: Languishing, burnout and stigma are all among the possible psychological impacts as Delta lingers in the community

Our preliminary findings show these workers struggled to gain recognition throughout the first national lockdown in 2020. Furthermore, they struggled to be paid and to receive even the most basic personal protective equipment (PPE) provided by their employers:

Our employers were so slack, not recognising that we needed [PPE]. But they were following Ministry of Health guidelines and so it was government [] it was the World Health Organization it was everybody.

What was wrong with people to think that we could go out there and do our jobs without PPE? And then why do we have to have such a battle for it? Because it was actually hard enough doing the job without having all of that as well.

This very real struggle underscored a wider battle by community care workers to be appreciated for their work or even to be seen. As one support worker noted:

In comparison with nurses, who are angels, caregivers are just ignored [] its like a little underworld where, all over your city, women, mostly in uniforms in little cars, are getting in and out of the cars and going into houses and doing things that nobody has any idea about.

Despite working with people in the most vulnerable situations, support workers spoke of being turned away or facing public backlash when trying to use essential worker queues at supermarkets.

And yet these support workers are undeniably essential. In many ways they are the glue in the health system, as another told us:

One thing I want to make sure that you understand is that we look after [everyone from] medically fragile children to palliative [cases]. We look after all of them anybody that wants to remain in the community, then has a health issue, we look after them.

Read more: Low-wage essential workers get less protection against coronavirus and less information about how it spreads

Even during the best of (non-pandemic) times, these workers operate in isolation. The majority hardly ever see a co-worker, and almost never see a manager in person. Communication is via impersonal emails, phone apps or call centres.

But during lockdowns, support workers are the only people isolated clients see they step in as communicators and carers. In effect they become like family. They have to deal alone with the confusion and anxiety of their clients. Their own well-being and mental health often come second:

I felt unsupported in regards to dealing with these [client] behaviours at the time, because there were no people on the ground. They were all working from home, so they were all on a phone. So, in some cases, my biggest PPE would have been having someone there, and it wasnt there. I had someone on a phone.

Read more: Historic pay equity settlement for NZ care workers delivers mixed results

As with other healthcare workers, coping is a strategy built up over time by community support workers:

Its like, right, suck it up and just, you know, dry those tears and put on that smile and be your bouncy self again [] Ive had to learn.

But unlike other healthcare workers, such as those at COVID testing and vaccination stations and hospitals, community support workers dont have a team around them for support:

We just had days and days where we didnt hear anything from our employer and we felt really alone and vulnerable. And, of course, when we went into lockdown and everything, we didnt feel supported at all.

It was very frightening. We had to go out there as essential workers and, oh God, it was stressful.

Asked what might improve their well-being, a common refrain has been that employers and society in general pay attention and care more:

Somehow showing how youre valued [] It would be nice just to have a youre doing well or something.

I would have just loved a phone call, just to check if Im coping or not.

See the original post here:

Overlooked and undervalued, New Zealands community caregivers have become the invisible essential workers - The Conversation AU

In the segment, Bolt introduces Dr Muriel Newman, who he describes as a former business representative, a former politician and now head of the think tank the New Zealand Centre for Political Research.

She was an ACT MP from 1996 until 2005.

"The Mori population of New Zealand is about 16 percent and that includes people who also have European ancestry," said Bolt.

"But Ardern's Cabinet commissioned a report which sets out a 20-year plan to have New Zealand essentially ruled 50-50, on race grounds, Mori and non-Mori," Bolt adds.

"Ardern has already created a new Mori Health Authority, the first step to a divided health system - divided by race," says Bolt.

"Can you tell us about this plan? Because the amazing thing to me is there's been so little debate in New Zealand about what seems to me a very clear plan for apartheid in your country," Bolt asks.

"Well, you're right Andrew It was introduced under the United Nations Declaration of Indigenous Peoples, so it was a plan to implement that into the national agenda, if you like," Newman replies.

"What came out of it was in fact He Puapua, which is a plan for tribal control by 2040, which is the 200-year anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.

"That report was produced in 2019. But the Government kept it secret, even from their coalition partner New Zealand First, for the whole of 2020," Newman says.

"Then the election came along and they kept it secret, and now that they have total power, total control, they are implementing it at speed, and it is extremely frightening because most Kiwis have no idea what's going on."

"They see changes every day and wonder what on earth is driving it and unfortunately we're in a situation where the Government has spent $55 million on a public interest broadcasting fund which is something that the media can apply for to get grants and one of the conditions of doing that is they have to, if you like, speak out in favour of this Treaty partnership agenda," Newman says.

"You've raised so many things here that really disturb me," Bolt says.

"You say this is to mark the anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi. As I understand it, the Treaty of Waitangi was Mori tribes who had been decimating each other in war, coming together to say to the British, 'we accept British sovereignty. And now, to mark the anniversary, you're going to undo all that by having 50-50 after all. It just doesn't make sense."

"It doesn't make sense to Kiwis either," says Newman. "The reality is that the Treaty brought equality - equal rights for all New Zealanders and that is the way this country has developed."

"There's been a strong movement, I guess, from sovereignty activists that sort of arose in the 80s, but somehow over recent years they've managed to march into many institutions in New Zealand and take over some positions of power," says Newman.

"They've marched now into Government, and as I said, because the Labour Party doesn't need a coalition partner anymore under our MMP electoral system, it means that the Mori caucus actually has a lot of control over Cabinet."

"You mentioned the Mori health system or the Mori Health Authority, which will end up with the right of veto over the whole health system," says Newman.

"We're fighting a battle against Three Waters, where the Government's got this plan to centralise control of water services - that's wastewater, stormwater and freshwater - take it away from councils, and centralise it in four authorities and they'll be half controlled by local iwi," says Newman.

"That'll give them essentially the right of veto over water in New Zealand."

"All this is going on without an open debate," says Newman.

"It's going on secretly. I mean, we're sort of picking up on it but we're small voices trying to warn the country that this is underway and they should be aware of it and if they don't like it they should damn well speak out about it."

"I simply don't understand why there's not a debate," says Bolt. "Even if you were a journalist who loved all this, 50-50 go out there and talk about how good it is, you look up stories about this, I find almost nothing."

Read the original here:

Fact-check of Sky News Australia segment warning of 'apartheid' in New Zealand - Newshub

The Bangladesh cricket team will have been able to visit New Zealand twice this year, before many New Zealanders abroad have been able to return at all.

The Bangladesh cricket team has been to New Zealand twice this year. Photo: PHOTOSPORT

Also coming through the hotly contested MIQ system is the Netherlands cricket team, who are ranked lower than Afghanistan in the International Cricket Council (ICC) One Day International (ODI) rankings.

Other special group MIQ allocations have been made public, including over 1300 rooms set aside from now until February for staff from international Antarctic programmes, and 400 rooms for businesspeople and entertainers going to Expo 2020 Dubai from October.

This is while many New Zealanders cannot return home due to the scarcity of MIQ rooms.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) said one week in mid-August there was an average of 19,781 unique users on the site each day. There are only 4000 total rooms available each fortnight, or less than 300 a day on average, so at that point there were 65 times the number of people looking for rooms as there were rooms available.

The group allocations are decided by government ministers led by Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi. To be eligible, groups need to be sponsored by a government agency, and must be determined by the ministers to be in the national interest or have a "significant" economic impact. National security or international obligations are also a permitted reason.

Following Bangaldesh's arrival - the third time New Zealand will have played them in a series within 12 months - the South Africa and Netherlands cricket teams will arrive for a late summer tour. All three teams are granted 35 rooms each, sponsored by Sport NZ.

The Black Caps also have three ODIs and a T20 scheduled in Australia in February 2022. If those are played and should the quarantine-free travel bubble not be reimposed, the team will need MIQ rooms on their return.

Since the start of 2021, the Black Caps and the teams they have played or are scheduled to (Australia, Bangladesh twice, South Africa and the Netherlands) domestically have required or been granted 272 MIQ rooms.

When all MIQ facilities are available, there are 4900 rooms available per fortnight, but around half are not used by Managed Isolation Allocation System bookings. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi

More Antarctic scientists and staff have been granted MIQ rooms, on top of ones announced earlier this year.

From this month until February next year, 1312 MIQ rooms have been set aside for the US, Korean and European Antarctic programmes. This is on top of 820 granted between August 2020 and February this year, and another 204 in July 2021. These are sponsored by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT).

Christchurch is deemed a gateway city and logistics hub for people and goods movement to the continent.

Four hundred rooms have been set aside for Dubai Expo attendees, between October 2021 and March 2022, also sponsored by MFAT. The event is a large global expo advertising New Zealand's trade, tourism and business interests. It will be attended by New Zealand entertainers.

Rooms have also been given to 450 foreign fishermen arriving over the next three months, sponsored by the Ministry for Primary Industries.

The New Zealand Defence Force has 298 rooms available for them between October and February for its staff. It also had another 89 return in June and July this year.

Crankworx, a mountain bike festival, has 70 rooms next month.

Exporters sponsored by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise have secured 50 rooms across November and December.

And from November through to March, a host of sports teams arrive into the country:

Only around half of the available rooms in the MIQ system are actually used by regular New Zealanders booking through the Managed Isolation Allocation System (MIAS).

When all MIQ facilities are available, there are 4900 rooms available per fortnight, but a total of 2400-2550 are not used by MIAS bookings:

Occasionally hotels are unavailable due to maintenance or ventilation issues.

Read more:

Sports teams, business people and entertainers using MIQ spots - RNZ

Indias tour of New Zealand has been postponed for next year as Kiwi cricket board struggles to host multiple teams for their home summer. Thanks to covid-19, NZC(New Zealand Cricket Board) is suddenly staring at a number of high profile teams who wants to complete their earlier scheduled stops in Kiwiland. Meanwhile Indias tour will not take place as Virat Kohli and his men will now visit the country next year. They were scheduled to play three ODIs under the new 2023 ODI super league.

Hanuma Viharai Parts Ways With Andhra, to Play for Hyderabad Next Season

An NZC spokesman confirmed India would not be touring this season as per the FTP, and would fulfil those obligations later in 2022, after the next scheduled mens Twenty20 World Cup in Australia in November.

Meanwhile the Kiwi players themselves wont be returning home well before late November and will have to undergo quarantine which might not end before Christmas Day; there would be no Boxing Day Test this year in New Zealand as a result. New Zealand are currently in Pakistan where they will play a white ball series. Following which they would fly to UAE and land in India just after T20 World Cup.

The Black Caps then face a busy home summer with fixtures against South Africa, Bangladesh and Netherlands. Weve got to be mindful of players coming back from a long winter and weve got to give them time at home as well, NZC chief executive David White previously told Stuff.co.nz.

ICC T20I Rankings: Virat Kohli Static at 4th, no India Bowler in Top-10

India captain Virat Kohli and star batsman KL Rahul maintained their fourth and sixth place respectively among the batsmen while no Indian bowler featured in the top-10 in the ICC T20 rankings.

The top seven batsmen led by Englands Dawid Malan maintained their rankings while South African keeper-batter Quinton de Kock is now ranked eighth while West Indies Evin Lewis has dropped a place to be ninth in the list.

Among bowlers, Tabraiz Shamsi still holds the pole position followed by Wanindu Hasaranga and Rashid Khan.

Indias top ranked bowler in the list is veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar at 12th while injured offspinner Washington Sundar is the other in the top-20 at 18th place.

Get all the IPL news and Cricket Score here

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India's New Zealand Tour Postponed Till Next Year as NZC Struggles with Covid-Crammed Schedule - News18

New Zealands vaccine rollout is well past halfway complete, with supply issues firmly in the rear-view mirror. But big disparities between regions and ethnicities remain and we seem to be taking our foot off the gas. Henry Cooke and Kate Newton dig into the rollout.

Were halfway there, but were slowing down.

New Zealand has doled out over 50 per cent of the jabs it needs to double dose everyone aged 12 or over. Supply issues that have hindered the rollout for months are gone, with plenty of jabs in the country and millions more on the way.

But huge disparities remain in the rollout between regions and between ethnicities. The vaccination rate is nowhere near the level it would need to be to make lockdowns history. And while were climbing the international rankings, we still have far fewer people fully protected than most other rich nations.

READ MORE:* Covid-19: New Zealand's vaccine roll-out explained in 10 charts, and compared with the rest of the world* Covid-19 NZ: New Zealand's vaccine rollout explained in 11 charts* Covid-19 NZ: The vaccine roll-out explained in 9 graphs, as New Zealand hits daily record of 80,000 doses * Covid-19 NZ: New Zealand hits record-high vaccine day, but many in vulnerable group 3 still unprotected

Before we do a deep dive, lets get the overall figures out the way.

Braden Fastier/Stuff

A mass vaccination event in Nelson, who are leading the country for vaccines.

As of midnight on Tuesday, 2.9 million New Zealanders have had at least one dose of the vaccine.

Thats well over two thirds (68 per cent) of the 12+ population who are actually eligible for the vaccine. Its 58 per cent of the population as a whole.

Far fewer have had both doses: Just 1.5m people. That comes out to 35 per cent of the 12+ population or 30 per cent of the entire country.

Overall we are past halfway: Just under 8.7m doses will be needed to double dose all 4.3m Kiwis aged 12 or up and 4.4m doses have been doled out, or 51 per cent of the total.

As with much of healthcare in New Zealand, where you live plays a large role in whether you are vaccinated or not.

Three-quarters (75 per cent) of those aged 12 or over living in the top and bottom of the South Island have had a first dose, as they live in the countrys two best-performing District Health Boards (DHBs) Nelson Marlborough and Southern.

Meanwhile, just over half of those in Taranaki (55 per cent) have had a first dose the worst-performing DHB.

These disparities between the best and worst-performing DHBs are roughly the same when it comes to full vaccinations: 44 per cent of the 12+ population in Nelson Marlborough have had both doses, compared to just 26 per cent in Taranaki.

For the major centres there has been some real movement in recent weeks, however.

Auckland and Wellingtons DHBs have been on a bit of a tear for first doses. Wellington's two DHBs have got 73 per cent of their 12+ population jabbed with at least one dose, while Aucklands three DHBs have jabbed 70 per cent.

This is quite a big gain for Wellington, which had been lagging Auckland something you can still see when it comes to the number of people fully vaccinated, with Wellington at 30 per cent compared to Aucklands 36 per cent.

Christchurch lags both other major centres on first doses and full vaccinations. Just 29 per cent of its 12+ population is fully protected and 61 per cent has had a single jab.

New Zealands vaccine rollout sped up massively after the outbreak in Auckland.

On August 27, an unprecedented 93,000 Kiwis got a jab, over 1.8 per cent of the entire country. Our average rate of doses per day was higher than almost every other western country had reached.

Looking back though, this was probably New Zealands peak. Our rate has dropped down to jabbing around 1.1 per cent of the population a day still a decent rate, but not as high as it was. After two weeks where the country was administering around 540,000 doses a week, the week to Sunday saw just 428,000.

This slows down projections for when the rollout might finish.

Obviously, not every New Zealander aged 12+ will get the vaccine. Some will choose not to and some just wont be reached by the healthcare system.

But for the purpose of illustration, if Kiwis continued to get the jab at the same rate they have for the last week, the whole rollout would finish on November 26 with everyone aged 12 or over having had both vaccines.

If we look at just first doses, which provide some protection, and again project out from the current rate, then 80 per cent of those aged 12 or over would have had a first dose by September 28, 90 per cent by October 9, and 100 per cent by October 21. Again it is clear that not everyone will get a jab, and the rate may drop further.

Its also worth keeping in mind that the vaccine takes two weeks for full effectiveness. So if youre looking for a magic date when enough people are protected that life can really go back to normal? It will be a few more months.

New Zealands international vaccine performance can be seen through two distinct lenses.

If you look at first doses, we are steadily moving up the charts, beating out Australia and a handful of European and Latin American countries in the OECD grouping of rich nations.

Indeed, we are likely to pass the USA in the next week on this metric, unless the vaccine rollout slows more.

But if you look at second doses, which offer full protection, we are second from the bottom just marginally ahead of Costa Rica. This is because the vaccine rollout is very firmly focused on first doses right now.

You can blend these figures to get a more holistic picture, by looking at vaccine doses per 100 people. On this metric we are again not quite at the bottom but not far from it and remain behind the countries we traditionally compare ourselves to.

New Zealands vaccine rollout was intentionally staggered, with the most needy getting the jab first.

These priority groups covered border workers in group 1, healthcare workers and rest home residents in group 2, the older and more vulnerable in group 3, and the general population in group 4.

But these priority groups have overlapped massively, and many in group 3 remain unprotected even while group 4 races ahead.

Part of the issue here is simply counting: The Government has no real idea how many people fit into group 3, which includes everyone aged 65+, the disabled, pregnant people, and those who have a disease like asthma that might make a Covid-19 infection particularly dangerous.

It knows there are around 750,000 people aged 65+, but can only hazard a guess at the rest of the people in the group: It estimates there are somewhere between 700,000 and 1.2 million of these people. That means group 3 could be anywhere between 1.45m and 1.95m people.

Even without an exact figure, its clear that many in this group are not yet vaccinated. Just 741,000 people in group 3 have had a single dose, and only 574,000 have had both. Given we know there are at least 750,000 people aged 65+ as well as all those other vulnerable groups many are not yet protected.

Meanwhile, group 4 has raced ahead with 1.6m people having had a first jab.

Stuff has asked the Ministry of Health about this discrepancy and received a written statement suggesting DHBs have ongoing plans to make sure those in group 3 are getting access to vaccines. Covid-19 Minister Chris Hipkins has noted in earlier weeks that many people technically eligible for group 3 may just be saying they are in group 4 when turning up for a jab.

Another way we can look at vulnerable populations is ethnicity, given research shows Mori are far more likely to be hospitalised and die if they are infected with Covid-19.

Mori are still behind the rest of the population, with just 23 per cent of the population protected, compared to 38 per cent of Pkeh.

Some of this can be explained by age structure: Older people are more likely to have had a vaccine, and the Mori population is younger than the general population.

But not all of it even within age bands Mori are well-behind the general population.

A Mori person aged 20-34 is about half as likely to have had either one or two jabs as someone in the general population.

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Covid-19: New Zealand's vaccine rollout explained in 10 charts, as it hits halfway mark - Stuff.co.nz

EN-W vs NZ-W Dream11 Prediction England Women vs New Zealand Women 1st ODI

England Women vs New Zealand Women Dream11 Team Prediction England Women vs New Zealand Women ODI Fantasy Playing Tips, Probable XIs, Dream11 Guru Tips, Probable XIs For Todays EN-W vs NZ-W at County Ground, Bristol: After losing both the T20I series, New Zealand Women will take on England Women in the 5-match ODI series, starting September 16 on Thursday. The EN-W vs NZ-W 1st ODI will begin at 5:30 PM IST. The White Ferns will look to turn the tables in the 50-over format after suffering a 1-2 defeat in T20Is. Meanwhile, England Women will look to continue their winning momentum in the ODIs. Captain Heather Knights form will be crucial for the hosts as she bagged the Player of the match in the 3rd T20I after playing a brisk knock of 42 runs. Here is the England Women vs New Zealand Women ODI Dream11 Team Prediction Dream11 Guru Tips Prediction and EN-W vs NZ-W Dream11 Team Prediction, EN-W vs NZ-W Fantasy Cricket Prediction 1st ODI, Probable Playing 11s England Women vs New Zealand Women ODI, Fantasy Cricket Prediction England Women vs New Zealand Women, Fantasy Playing Tips England Women vs New Zealand Women ODI.Also Read - DD vs KH Dream11 Team Prediction, Fantasy Tips Bengal T20 Challenge Match 19: Captain, Vice-Captain- Durgapur Dazzlers vs Kolkata Heroes, Playing 11s, Team News For Today's T20 Match at Eden Gardens at 3 PM IST September 16 Thursday

TOSS: The 1st ODI match toss between England Women vs New Zealand Women will take place at 5 PM (IST) September 16, Thursday. Also Read - SWE vs LUX Dream11 Team Prediction, Fantasy Playing Tips Dream11 ECC T10 Match 16: Captain, Vice-Captain- Sweden vs Luxembourg, Playing XIs, Team News For Today's T10 Match at Cartama Oval at 12:30 PM IST September 16 Thursday

Time: 5:30 PM IST Also Read - PRC vs MTC Dream11 Team Prediction, Fantasy Tips KCA Club Championship Qualifier 2: Captain, Playing 11s- Prathibha Cricket Club vs Masters Cricket Club, Team News For Today's Match at SD College Ground at 9:30 AM IST September 16 Thursday

Venue: County Ground, Bristol.

Wicketkeeper Amy Jones

Batters Heather Knight, Tammy Beaumont, Danielle Wyatt, Amy Satterthwaite

All-rounders Natalie Sciver (VC), Sophie Devine (C), Hayley Jensen

Bowlers Sophie Ecclestone, Leigh Kasperek, Claudia Green

England Women: Lauren Winfield, Tammy Beaumont, Heather Knight (C), Natalie Sciver, Amy Jones (WK), Sophia Dunkley, Katherine Brunt, Anya Shrubsole, Sophie Ecclestone, Sarah Glenn, Kate Cross.

New Zealand Women: Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine (C), Amy Satterthwaite, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Katey Martin (WK), Hayley Jensen, Leigh Kasperek, Jess Kerr, Hannah Rowe, Thamsyn Newton.

England Women: Heather Knight (Captain), Tammy Beaumont, Katherine Brunt, Kate Cross, Freya Davies, Charlie Dean, Sophia Dunkley, Sophie Ecclestone, Tash Farrant, Sarah Glenn, Amy Jones (wk), Nat Sciver, Anya Shrubsole. Lauren Winfield-Hill, Danni Wyatt.

New Zealand Women: Sophie Devine (Captain), Amy Satterthwaite (VC), Suzie Bates, Lauren Down, Claudia Green, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Hayley Jensen, Jess Kerr, Katey Martin (wk), Leigh Kasperek, Rosemary Mair, Jess McFadyen* (wk), Thamsyn Newton, Hannah Rowe, Lea Tahuhu.

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EN-W vs NZ-W Dream11 Team Prediction, Fantasy Playing Tips England Women vs New Zealand Women 1st ODI: Captai - India.com