by Penny Marie

Top accolades at the Tauranga Business Awards 2026 went to a company whose success is tied to supplying the Ukraine war. I ask how this sits with New Zealanders, really.

At the 2026 Tauranga Business Awards, Bay of Plenty defence‑tech company SYOS was crowned Business of the Year and hailed as proof our region now plays on the world stage of innovation and export growth.

Look more closely and an uncomfortable reality emerges: the flagship achievement we’re applauding is supplying “mission‑ready, combat proven” drones into the Ukraine conflict and into New Zealand’s own re‑armament program, under a Defence Industry Strategy that explicitly marries war‑fighting capability with economic growth and export ambition.

“Prime Minister Starmer… announce(s) UK contracts worth £30m for drones produced by SYOS Aerospace, a New Zealand uncrewed vehicle manufacturer based in Hampshire to support Ukraine”. UK Gov Press Release, 21 April 2025

Is this really the pinnacle of New Zealand enterprise? Is this the best we can imagine for our brightest engineers, our local economy, and our children’s future?

The awards night that plugged Tauranga into a global conflict

The Tauranga Business Awards are run by the Tauranga Business Chamber with mainstream sponsors and an independent judging panel focused on growth, innovation and community impact.

Nothing on the surface screams geopolitics, yet the choice of winner is inherently geopolitical.

The company taking top honours has become a key supplier of uncrewed systems across air, land and sea to foreign militaries and now to the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). Its drones form part of a UK‑led package of “support” for Ukraine and are explicitly described by both governments as combat‑tested systems that have already seen operational use in that war.

Judith Collins, as Defence Minister, announced that NZDF will buy and trial these “advanced uncrewed systems” from the company as part of a new Defence Industry Strategy, highlighting that the technology is “central to modern military operations” and that the aim is to build a “strong, resilient industry that delivers economic growth and grows our export markets.”

Translated: Wellington wants local firms to scale into the global military‑industrial supply chain, and Tauranga’s Business of the Year is a model student.

I speculated on Collin’s and the NZ Govt’s pro-Ukraine stance here…

Why is Judith Collins and the New Zealand Government so pro-Ukraine? January 26, 2025 Read full story

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“Good jobs” on the back of bad wars

The employees inside these firms are not villains. They are local people, with families, trying to pay a mortgage and give their children a future in a country where one income almost never stretches far enough.

From their vantage point, this industry looks like a rare bright spot:

• Highly skilled engineering work in Mount Maunganui instead of overseas.
• Export contracts tied to the UK Ministry of Defence and allied partners.
• New NZDF orders endorsed from the Beehive, with ministers promising “economic growth” and local resilience.

“These drones will be provided to support Ukraine. This procurement forms part of the UK’s assistance package and reflects an area of bilateral industrial cooperation. Prime Minister Starmer also welcomed New Zealand’s recent increase in defence expenditure, and both leaders discussed the broader connection between defence investment, national economic security, and household-level economic outcomes.” –– Global Defence News, Army Recognition Group. 23 April 2025

These are ordinary New Zealand families, whose financial security now rests on these defence contracts. They did not design the Ukraine war, Project NYX, AUKUS, or the “contested world” narrative that now justifies constant re‑armament. They are simply surviving inside the system presented to them.

And that is where the heartbreak lies.

When a small country like ours allows its economic life to be tethered to distant, unwinnable and corrupt conflicts, we normalise the idea that the safest way to provide for our children is to help other people fight, surveil, and manage theirs.

How the Defence Strategy makes war an economic habit

Defence officials avoid the word “war” and prefer “capability” and “partnership.”

“New Zealand needs to build resilience in its supply chains, including by growing national and regional economies and local suppliers as well as our export markets.” – NZDF Defence Industry Strategy 2025, pg4

In Collins’ own words, this deal is about ensuring NZDF can “protect our people into the future,” reducing supply‑chain risk, and “building the future” with “innovative Kiwi products” developed and supported here. The Defence Industry Strategy she cites is designed to deliver the Defence Capability Plan and “grow our export markets” by bringing together local and international defence primes into a permanent industry ecosystem.

Once you join those dots, a pattern appears:

• The same drones now trialled here are literally marketed as combat‑proven in Ukraine.
• The “capability” frame makes it much harder, politically, to challenge either the foreign policy or the economic dependency that flows from it.
• Any future call for de‑escalation or a more independent NZ foreign policy will run up against a new argument: “But what about the jobs? What about our export story?”

That is how war shifts from an exception to a habit: quietly, bureaucratically, with a strategy document and an awards night.

Hungary PM Orbán says his rival received illegal funding from Ukraine

The Ukraine war itself is hardly the tidy morality play our politicians like to invoke. In Europe, Hungary is now declassifying a national‑security report that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán says will show his main political rival Péter Magyar received illegal funding from Ukraine, even as Brussels and Kyiv pressure Budapest to keep money and weapons flowing.

Whatever you think of Orbán, the fact that this war is now entangled with covert political financing, election interference claims and energy blackmail should make us wary of building New Zealand’s economic future on supplying “clean” hardware into such a murky project.

Talent captured – when innovation serves the wrong story

What makes this even sadder is that New Zealand has seen other futures before.

I recently procured American science and innovation magazines from the early 1900s – pages of optimism and innovation about aviation, electricity, civil engineering, agriculture, medicine. The promise was that new technologies would expand human freedom, shorten the work week, and allow families to live well on a single income in thriving communities.

These magazines are a time capsule of a civilisation that still believed its best engineers should be building bridges, power plants, railways, ships, and hospitals – not just perfecting machines for distant battlefields.

The underlying technical imagination in Tauranga today is no less impressive. But the story it has been captured by is different.

The same multi‑domain systems now branded as “mission‑ready” for Ukraine and for NZDF exercises could, with different incentives, enhance the lives of New Zealanders, and be focused on for example:

• Inspecting and maintaining critical infrastructure in remote areas.
• Coastal protection, fishery monitoring, and anti‑poaching operations.
• Rapid disaster‑response logistics in floods, earthquakes and severe storms.
• Precision agriculture, pest control and farm logistics to boost food security.

The difference is not in the engineering. It is in the purpose.

Right now, the clearest and best‑funded narrative on offer is the one that says: there will always be another contested theatre, another allied operation, another integration with foreign fire‑control systems – and we can make good money helping to supply it.

A human economy: One income, one nation, many possibilities

On the other side of the world, the current US administration has chosen a different story to frame its economic policy.

Its stated aim is to rebuild domestic manufacturing, unleash domestic energy – from oil and gas to nuclear – and onshore critical supply chains so the country is less dependent on foreign powers and global technocrats.

Underneath the slogans about sovereignty is a simple human goal: drive down the cost of living and raise real wages so that a family can again choose to live on a single income if it wants to.

Whether you agree with every Executive Order or not, the principle is clear: production for people at home first, alliances and abstractions second.

Imagine if New Zealand adopted that goal and applied it to our own strengths and abundant resources, minerals and energy sources.

Instead of celebrating export wins from drones in a grinding European war, we could deliberately channel our “world‑class” talent into:

• Cheap, abundant domestic energy to lower every household’s bills.
• Advanced construction, transport and communications that cut the cost of housing and commuting.
• Food and health innovations that actually reduce the burden of disease, not manage it indefinitely.
• Civilian applications of robotics and autonomy that protect our land and seas and free up people’s time.

That is how you create a country where one parent can work and a family can still thrive: you build an economy that serves human flourishing here, not war‑fighting there.

Would more New Zealanders stay if they believed that’s where we were heading – towards a peaceful, sovereign, family‑first economy – instead of clinging to the idea that our best shot at a decent wage is plugging into Britain’s and NATO’s forever wars?

Rethinking what “Business of the Year” should mean

A local awards night may seem small compared with defence strategies and global conflicts, but it tells us what we are teaching the next generation to admire.

Right now, the message from Tauranga is: if you want to be celebrated, build things that fit neatly into the security architecture of an “increasingly contested world.”

I’m suggesting a different standard.

What if “Business of the Year” in New Zealand meant:

• You lowered the cost of a decent life for ordinary families.
• You reduced our dependence on hostile or unstable foreign powers.
• You built tools for peace, resilience and prosperity, not for the next theatre of war.

We have not always lived in a world where militarised innovation was taken for granted. Our grandparents could still imagine a civilisation where new machines meant less fear, less scarcity, and more time with the people we love.

We can choose to imagine that again.

The question is whether we have the courage to say, out loud, that building our economic future on war and surveillance is not “world‑class” at all – and that New Zealand can do better, for our families and for the generations yet to come.

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FOOTNOTE: I hope this article gets into the hands of investors and visionaries who are in the market to approach SYOS and similar NZ-owned companies, to enhance humanity via innovation and excitement for the future…

more to come

The Covid Inquiry’s Phase 2 report is now public. We have been reviewing it and will share detailed analysis in the days and weeks ahead. We have also called for the Medical Council of New Zealand to be replaced. The reasons are set out in our open letter to the Prime Minister and relevant ministers, published this week on our website.

This issue covers the financial architecture behind the pandemic and New Zealand’s place in it, an AI summary of NZDSOS worth preserving before the narrative changes, and a formal open letter to the Prime Minister on the evidence behind Pfizer vaccine safety.

Issues we’re tracking and want you to know about

1. The Financial Blueprint Behind the Pandemic

Buried in the Epstein files is a financial framework designed to profit from pandemic declarations, built years before covid arrived. The documents show Gates, JPMorgan executives, and Epstein himself designing the structure in their own words, including instruments that pay out when a pandemic is declared, not when it causes harm, but when it is declared.New Zealand is not a bystander. NZ$25 million of public money went to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, which was foundationally funded by the Gates Foundation. The NZ Government spent roughly NZ$1.7 billion on covid vaccines purchased primarily from BioNTech, the same company Gates invested in in 2019.

Epstein, Gates and the Pandemic Business Plan →

2. What AI Says About NZDSOS (Before the Propaganda Kicks In)

An AI-generated summary of NZDSOS has been circulating, accurately setting out the group’s scientific and ethical position on mRNA vaccines, mandates, and informed consent. Given the documented plans to use AI as a tool of narrative control, we have preserved it now, before those systems are adjusted.Read what AI currently says we stand for. We have no argument with it.

Artificial Intelligence Endorses NZDSOS →

3. An Open Letter the Prime Minister Cannot Ignore

Justice Watch New Zealand has issued a formal open letter to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, asking what evidence the Royal Commission relied on to conclude that Pfizer’s Comirnaty vaccine is safe. The full letter is on our website and available as a downloadable PDF.This is the kind of documented, on-the-record challenge that is difficult to dismiss and harder still to set aside.

Read the open letter →

What Happens Now

The inquiry has spoken, and in doing so has told us something important: not about the covid response, but about the institutions charged with reviewing it. Those who said it would be a whitewash were right. That is not a counsel of despair. It is confirmation, now in full public view, of exactly what NZDSOS has been documenting for years.The personal testimonies of thousands of New Zealanders, the most significant body of evidence before the Commission, appear to have been set aside. The Evidence Hub contains the full body of submissions NZDSOS presented. Share it widely. The comparison between what was submitted and what was concluded speaks for itself.

Explore the Evidence Hub →

Warm regards,

Anna McLoughlin On behalf of  New Zealand Doctors Speaking Out With Science (NZDSOS)

80% of Americans played the deadly game of mRNA roulette.

Some batches cause mass injury and death. Others are harmless duds.

🔥 Hot lots: DNA plasmids, mRNA overload, heavy metals

🧊 Dud lots: Degraded. Inactive.

Multiple peer-reviewed papers confirm: batch determines fate. https://t.co/c3r86Md53t pic.twitter.com/SgHlTHhiAm

— Nicolas Hulscher, MPH (@NicHulscher) March 14, 2026

Ukraines demonic Azov Nazis indoctrinating the next generation of hate fueled Ultra Nationalists.

Look at the imagery, the symbols, the idols. All paid for by the EU and london

Once Globally recognised as terrorists, now "rehabilitated and idolised across the West. pic.twitter.com/ZHoYQD1Lxh

— Chay Bowes (@BowesChay) March 13, 2026

But the Leftist Legacy Media keep idolising them.

They are at present about 8% of the population but Starmer wants to massively increase that.

In today’s episode, I had the honor of interviewing some very courageous freedom fighters and truth seekers — Dr. Sam & Dr. Mark Bailey. During Covid, Dr. Sam and Dr. Mark questioned the mainstream narrative and helped bring awareness of the scamdemic to countless people. But beyond that, they have side-stepped the entire modern healthcare cult in order to provide people with the real help that they need.

I was very impressed by both of them; they are stand-up people who put their careers on the line in order to protect and educate normal people, and they faced serious penalties for this as well.

I think this is a great episode about modern healthcare, speaking dangerous truths, and living honestly in a world that is facing a lot of corruption.

I hope you enjoy it!

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Kia ora e te whānau,

We were thrilled to launch an immersive contemporary installation Fluid Bodies on February 14. Created by artist Charlotte Crichton the work explores the interconnectivity between the ocean and atmosphere. The exhibition features in the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts alongside a great programme of Kāpiti events. Visiting school groups are loving the show alongside travellers from across the motu. 

Daily Kāpiti which showcases the work of Joanna Margaret Paul finishes on 22 March. This exhibition has been popular with Paekākāriki residents for whom the scenes in Joanna’s drawings will resonate in particular, as well as for fans of her work from across Aotearoa and overseas. 

Further revelation has received excellent feedback from admirers of Frances Hodgkins and other leading artists in British modernism. Floor talks by curator Vicki Robson have been so well attended, we’ve had to schedule in extra events! We are very pleased to have academic Dr Pamela Gerrish-Nunn return to speak about the French and other European influences on Frances Hodgkins’ work during this era. This event will take place in Toi MAHARA itself, not the Waikanae Community Centre as previously advertised. Please confirm your attendance through rsvp. 

Our Waipuna Toi | Community Space is busy with our regular Saturday and Sunday art-making drop-in, dementia-friendly art classes and a well-stocked gallery shop. We have a wide range of jewellery, ceramics, art objects, tea towels, art-making kits and more. Free art-making sessions will be on throughout the school holidays. 

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the hugely successful Live Art Market on 31 January. Over 60 artists, musicians and dancers shared their creative energy, work and ideas with around 2,500 visitors on a gorgeous summer day in Mahara Place.  We hope to see you at the gallery soon!

Ngā mihi mahana
The team at Toi MAHARA

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Current exhibitions

Further revelation: Frances Hodgkins and British modernism 1920–1935
18 October 2025–26 April 2026

Daily Kāpiti, Joanna Margaret Paul
22 November 2025–22 March 2026

Fluid Bodies, Charlotte Crichton
14 February–14 June 2026

Lotus Rising
27 February–24 May 2026Upcoming exhibitions

Beyond the sky and at hand, Shigemitsu Ohashi
2 April–26 July 2026

Brent Wong:Paintings from the artist’s collection
2 May–30 August

art and poetry: Tim Roberts
30 May–16 August

Rangatiratanga land and women
4 July–25 October

Ngai-kore-tua-mao, she ditches, she floods, Louie Zalk-Neale
1 August–29 November

Ngā hononga — the interconnectedness of all things, Our Lady of Kāpiti, Te Kura o te Whaea Tapu o Kāpiti children’s creations
21 August–13 November

The Expatriates: Frances Hodgkins, Peter Campbell and Graham Percy
5 September–10 January

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EventsTalk: Echoes in the Room – A Lecture with Dr Pamela Gerrish Nunn
22 March 2026, 3pm–4pm
This talk by Dr Pamela Gerrish Nunn introduces some of the lesser known artists Frances Hodgkins drew on for the art she forged in the 1920s and ’30s. Limited places, book nowA

Art-making drop-in on Saturdays and Sundays at the gallery
Make art at the gallery 10:30am–2pm every Saturday and Sunday. Free, all ages. 

Floor Talk: Frances Hodgkins and British modernism
15 April, 2pm–3pm
Curator Vicki Robson will talk about Frances Hodgkins and fellow artists in the early days of British modernism. Book now, very limited places