First of all, Labour can frankly shut up accusing the Nats of anti-migrant rhetoric because this is a party that hasn’t got a leg to stand on when it comes to migration. 

This is the party - and some of the very same people are still there - that campaigned on reducing immigration by up to 30,000 people in 2017, produced a list of Chinese-sounding names two years earlier and then shut down immigration completely, only to do the opposite by opening it up too much during and after COVID. So, on immigration - glass houses etc.

But having said that, what National is proposing to do on immigration should worry businesses up and down this country that rely on migrants. And I’m looking at you - the aged-care sector wanting to bring in Filipino workers to look after our elderly; and I’m looking at you, Health New Zealand, needing to employ Indian nurses; and I’m looking at you, the construction sector, needing to bring in general labourers.

Because Chris Luxon has made it clear in his speech he’s shutting his door to businesses wanting to lobby him for migrant workers. He said: “My message to the business community is that when it comes to immigration, when I’m faced with a choice between social stability and your bottom line, I will choose the former every single time.”

Now that begs the question to the Prime Minister: what does “social stability” mean? Is that basically you saying we’ve got too many Indian migrants?

Which then begs the question: is National trying to match New Zealand First’s anti-Indian rhetoric to avoid losing voters to them? Which then logically begs the next question: is Luxon putting his vote share at the election ahead of New Zealand’s need to bring in the workers that we know we need?

Because we’ve been through COVID, and we know that we do not do these low-skilled jobs - you need migrants to do them. So I think we should all be worried about this.

I think businesses in New Zealand, in particular, should be very worried about this. And it begs a final question: if this is the position that National has taken, is there now even a single party in Parliament that is looking after New Zealand businesses?

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B416 co-chair Cecilia Robinson tells us why she's still confident there'll be a social media ban on under-16s before the election. 

We hear from the controversial Dunedin City Councillor who's become known as "tapeface". 

And on the Sports Huddle, Lavina Good and Elliott Smith discuss whether Luke Metcalf's made a good move in going to the Dragons. 

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They've gone from a wooden spoon team to making the grand final tomorrow, making them the first kiwi team to ever make the A League final. 

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Education Minister Erica Stanford says the Government is undertaking a wider programme of work on it.

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The Government has confirmed today that it is planning to remove the Treaty Principles within the Education and Training Act. 

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He has put tape on his face, read aloud from Franz Kafka's The Trial, leaked confidential documents, and he's now facing his second code of conduct complaint. 

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These ladies are going to play in the grand final of their A-League competition, which is remarkable when you consider that, in two of the past five years, they’ve finished as the wooden spoon team.

But why they’ve made the grand final is what makes the story truly incredible.

It’s their coach, Bev Priestman. She seems to be the person who has turned the team around. Two years ago—remember this—she was their evil nemesis. She was the head coach of the Canadian football team during the 2024 Olympics and she was caught spying on our team, the New Zealand women’s side, using a drone. And in that New Zealand team were many players who are in this Phoenix squad.

That drone spying turned into an international scandal and the coach lost her job.

She needed a new one so she moved to New Zealand, where her wife is a football player and she even considered buying a coffee cart and leaving football altogether. But the Phoenix saw an opportunity. They could never normally attract a coach of her calibre, yet she needed a way back.

So they gave her the job—and now the team is in the grand final.

Isn’t that an amazing story?

You can call it karma if you like. The women she once wronged have ended up benefiting from it. She hurt them but now she’s helping them. She’s redeemed herself.

That story is so remarkable it’s only one plot twist away from being worthy of a Netflix series—and that twist would be if the team actually wins the final.

As they say, doesn’t sport give us the best stories about ourselves?

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Eden Park chief executive Nick Sautner says he can't confirm that figure and Wayne Brown's comments are disappointing.

"The mayor - part of his role is to advocate for our city.  Now, I’m not privy to the investment level. What I am privy to is the fact that the Government took a leadership position on getting major events back into the country."

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Health Minister Wes Streeting's allies have claimed he's looking to launch a contest for Starmer's job.

UK correspondent Enda Brady explained further.

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These drugs will also have an impact on other sectors, including healthcare and food, and research is still ongoing. 

Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further.

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The South Island dairy processor's released an NZX market update, saying Leon Fung will be acting CEO, effective immediately. 

Wyeth will remain supporting the transition, until the end of June. 

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.

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Four motel and hotel operators urged elected members at a policy and planning committee meeting to support a mandatory registration system for short term accommodation providers.

Councillor Nathaniel Herz Jardine wants Christchurch to take charge in rallying other councils to demand change. 

"All we ask for is...we need the data. It's not saying we want to ban them, it's not saying anything like that. It's just saying, at the moment, we're in this crazy situation where we're hiring compliance officers - they have to do stake outs and surfing online and fielding complaints about who's renting out what."  

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Air New Zealand's chief executive tells us how it'll cope with a loss of nearly $400 million.

A Christchurch City Councillor on his warning that Airbnb is turning parts of the city into "ghost communities".

And on The Huddle, Oscar Kightley and Tim Wilson tell us if they think Robbie Williams is worth a reported $3 million to bring to New Zealand.

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Labour's Chris Hipkins recently claimed no-one outside of Newstalk ZB is fussed about the Auckland lockdowns from 2021. Does he have a point? Will we find out come November?

Yesterday, Prime Minister Chris Luxon said he'd always choose social cohesion over businesses bottom lines when it comes to immigration. Labour's Chris Hipkins has raised concerns, especially following some other comments from Winston Peters and Shane Jones. Does he have a point? 

How badly did we get ripped off if it’s true we paid $3 million to get Robbie Williams here - especially if Singapore reportedly paid $3 million for six Taylor Swift concerts two years ago? 

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Now, we don’t know for sure that's the amount the Government paid out of the Major Events Fund, but that is what Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown has revealed in a fit of pique at the Government.

And so far, nobody’s publicly denied it - not even Louise Upston, who’s the minister in charge of the money.

Privately, we at the show have had at least one, what I would call, soft confirmation that the amount is correct.

Now, if that’s true, $3 million for - as Wayne Brown calls him - a “tattooed Pom” is too much money. We’re wasting taxpayer money here, for a start.

As excited as I personally am to be going to Robbie’s concert in November, I don’t think a 1990s pop star is what we imagined the Major Events Fund would be used for when it was set up after we missed out on Taylor Swift, Oasis and Lady Gaga.

I mean, two in that list are proper A-list stars and one is a massively overdue reunion - a completely different league to Robbie.

An offshore promoter thought $3 million is way too much to pay for Robbie. Singapore - this will put it in perspective for you - reportedly paid $3 million for six Taylor Swift concerts two years ago.

Now, if $3 million buys you six Tay-Tays, how did we end up blowing $3 million on only one Robbie?

We’ve been ripped off, good and proper. And the proof is in the fact that the tickets are apparently not selling very well.

But then again - and bear this in mind - maybe this is just what we need to get used to and stop fighting.

Robbie and Linkin Park may well be the best New Zealand can do now. Big stars like Lady Gaga, Oasis, Tay-Tay and Harry Styles are going to go to Australia, not here, and they’re going to expect us to come to them - and we will.

I’m flying to Harry Styles. I flew to Oasis. Heaps of people flew to Tay-Tay. That’s how it works now.

And if we want a former boy band member who peaked in the ’90s to come to New Zealand, we are simply going to have to pay a lot of money for him.

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It's blaming the fuel cost hike lifting spending $240 million more than expected. 

The airline told NZX it's already reduced overall capacity three to five percent since the Iran war began.

Nikhil Ravishankar says cuts may continue even after jet fuel prices ease, with cuts for August to October announced soon.

"We either sort of roll over the changes that we've made into July - or we might have to go a bit further, depending on what fuel's doing."

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The Labour leader gave a speech today on the city's future, batting away questions on whether the Party kept the city too long in lockdown in 2021. 

Chris Hipkins clarified that more Aucklanders are focused on the future of the city than what happened years ago.

"Covid-19 was a very difficult time for everybody, and Auckland bore a disproportionate brunt of the effects of the Covid-19 restrictions compared to the rest of the country."

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National's on 29 percent in the Talbot Mills poll, with Labour on 36. Both parties haven't moved since last month's poll. 

NZ First is down one to 14 percent, and ACT down one on seven percent. 

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained what these results mean for the coalition's odds. 

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Taylor is set to deliver his first budget reply speech later this evening, and he's unveiled cuts will be made to the migrant intake in order to reduce housing pressures.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds explained why this turn won't appeal to younger voters. 

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Auckland FC has five representatives in Michael Woud, Callan Elliot, Jesse Randall, Francis de Vries and Nando Pijnaker, while the Wellington Phoenix supply three in Alex Rufer, Tim Payne and Sarpreet Singh.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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Under the proposal, 25,000 more diabetic Kiwis will gain access to the treatments over the next few years.

David Seymour says there's a lot of potential in investing in more GLP-1 medications to prevent other health problems impacting people down the line.

"We've made a lot of progress on this kind of whole of society approach to funding medicines that will save us money in the long term, but that's some of the challenges we've run into so far." 

Pharmac has since confirmed the ethnicity criteria reference refers to the diabetes medicine consultation and they have separate recommendations for semaglutide funding applications.

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Despite four ministerial resignations and 86 MPs calling for him to go, Starmer insists he is staying on as Prime Minister.

UK correspondent Kay Oliver speculates ahead of the meeting.

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The US president will arrive with tech leaders, including Elon Musk and Tim Cook, in order to discuss trade, technology, and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Milford Asset Management expert Jeremy Hutton explains what this could mean for the market.

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Phillip Mills, the founder of gym franchise Les Mills International, has always supported Labour and the Greens, but he's topped up donations to TOP.

Political commentator Bryce Edwards says this upcoming election is TOP's best chance, as Labour, National and NZ First continue to lose favour. 

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Chris Luxon made a speech to a Business NZ audience in Auckland ahead of the 2026 Budget. He's indicated that this year's Budget won't splash the cash despite the ongoing global conflicts impacting New Zealand. Are we surprised by this? 

The idea of the All Blacks being downgraded to premium economy has been floated in order to help bring down NZ Rugby's costs. What do we make of this idea? Do they need to stay in business class?

How can Waitaki District Council justify a 45 percent rates increase?

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Sociologist Paul Spoonley on why there's not really a brain drain.

We talk to Retail New Zealand chief executive Carolyn Young on why Kiwi shoppers are loyal to local when they could get cheaper foreign goods.

And on The Huddle, Jack Tame and Phil O'Reilly on whether the All Blacks should travel business class - but premium economy if they lose.

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Back in March, Fitch Ratings placed New Zealand’s AA+ long-term credit rating on a 'negative outlook', downgraded from 'stable'. 

Moody's later followed suit, claiming the global economic and political uncertainty presented downside risks to growth.

Fitch's Head of Asia-Pacific Sovereigns, Thomas Rookmaaker, says this was driven by a number of factors, including the Middle East conflict and Government debt. 

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The reasoning is the cost of international travel has become so expensive that moving our teams in black around the planet is now costing nearly $87 million a year.

Dropping them back a class on the plane would bring that cost down to $80 million a year and nearly wipe out the $7 million loss that New Zealand Rugby just reported for the financial year, which is great maths.

But the idea is ridiculous, isn’t it?

I mean, you can’t ask a two-metre-tall man like Fabian Holland to move down from business class.

But even the shorter guys - you can’t ask them to travel to South Africa in a few weeks, which is literally on the other side of the world.

It’s close to a full day’s travel, even on the most direct route through Perth, and then expect them to get over their jet lag and start playing top-level rugby against the best team in the world. You’re asking them to do all of that after they’ve been sitting upright on a plane for the entire flight.

That’s impossible.

We sometimes disparage rugby as not being a “real job” when we say things like, “Oh, it’s not that hard to throw a ball around a paddock,” which may be true - but it’s still a job, isn’t it?

And when you’re asking someone to fly that distance for work - not just once but multiple times in a season - it should be in business class.

Now, there is an argument about how many people go on these trips and I’m happy to have that conversation.

There are apparently more than 40 players and nearly 30 staff heading to South Africa in a few weeks’ time, which seems excessive for a game that only requires 15 men on the field at any one time.

And by the way, it’s not just the All Blacks who do this - who take these enormous squads around the world and put them in business class. It’s also the Black Ferns and the Sevens teams.

But as for the idea of dropping these players down a class on the plane to bring them down a peg and save some money - I suspect there are people who will look at this and think it’s a great idea.

And that’s the part that fascinates me.

How many people out there like the idea that our best rugby players should be forced to sit further down the plane, just like the rest of us?

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Data from retail management platform Lightspeed shows about 77 percent of Kiwis surveyed prefer shopping in store above online. 

40 percent shop at local businesses, and 34 percent buy online from New Zealand retailers.

Retail NZ CEO Carolyn Young says they want more of this, and for people to be proud of local stores.

She says people should think about stores in their neighbourhoods that they really love.

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Dropping all of New Zealand's premium rugby teams down a flight class would reportedly save $6 million per year - as NZ Rugby looks to cut down losses.

NZ Rugby CEO Steve Lancaster says the All Blacks need to travel multiple times a year, and this downgrade would be a stretch. 

"The All Blacks carry a huge load for us...so we're not just sending them halfway across the world and putting them there, we're flying them multiple times over long distances. So this is not a consideration."

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Luxon told the audience at the pre-Budget BusinessNZ event that it's important for the Government to stay on track with their fiscal strategy as the election looms.

NZ Herald senior correspondent Katie Bradford says Luxon's speech is meant to signal to voters that his Government values stability and social cohesion.

"This is a very clear message he's trying to get out there - about how National is the party of sensible, stable planned approach going in here." 

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It's raising taxes on investment properties and some trust funds - to give working Australians a $250 tax break.

35,000 fewer homes are expected to be built, despite net migration of 300,000 people a year.

New South Wales University Emeritus Professor, Peter Swan, says they're destroying the rental industry.

"All citizens are going to have to put up with much higher inflation - not due to the war, but due to excessive Government expenditure."  

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The Prime Minister told business leaders today that the Government's cutting another $300 million dollars from the Budget operating allowance - to $2.1 billion dollars.

Chris Luxon says responsible economic management and fiscal discipline are more important than ever.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says this development was largely expected. 

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Donald Trump's en route to China for the first visit by a US President in almost a decade.

US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says the ongoing Middle East conflict is likely to be top of the agenda, but Trump has confirmed he won't need help in Iran.

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Penrith coach Ivan Cleary has confirmed he is calling it quits.

Cleary led his side to four straight premierships between 2021 and 2024 and they are top of the table this season.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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Prime Minister Chris Luxon's pointed the finger at immigration - for driving lower social cohesion and trust in institutions worldwide.

He's indicated National will say more on the topic ahead of the election.

But Massey University's Paul Spoonley says it's worth having a debate about our settings - but we need skilled migrants.

"We should not compare our immigration system to what's happening in Europe, it's completely different. They have a large number of refugees and asylum seekers, we do not."

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Four Labour MPs have quit as ministerial aides and more than 70 MPs, including Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, have publicly urged the Prime Minister to resign or set out a timetable for leaving. 

UK correspondent Enda Brady says it's unknown who could take over Starmer's role, but the pressure is mounting.

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It's likely new property tax reforms will be unveiled, with an expected crackdown on capital gains tax discounts and negative gearing.

HSBC Chief Economist Paul Bloxham explained further.

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The report has positive prospects for beef and dairy, thanks to ongoing international demand.

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.

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Can Auckland afford a second Harbour crossing? Chris Bishop has said we'll hear more about it in the coming months, but is this just an election promise? 

Can Keir Starmer bounce back from the local election drubbing? Should he resign?

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Average profit margins have plunged to 31.53 percent, the lowest since records began in 2018.

This has resulted in more manufacturers clearing out their warehouses, with stock on hand dropping to historically low levels. 

Unleashed Head of Product Jarrod Adam says the challenges to the supply chain are being worsened by the Middle East conflict, and experts are unclear on what will happen next.

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The Police Association president tells us how angry officers are about a pay offer.

We hear from Sir Graham Henry on how happy he is to come out of retirement to be an All Blacks selector.

And on The Huddle, Maurice Williamson and Phil Goff discuss what's wrong with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

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The development today is that Chris Bishop has revealed the Government will announce its preferred option for a second crossing by mid-year - so I suppose you could say June-ish or July-ish - and they will decide between a tunnel or a bridge.

And while I really want to get excited about it, because Auckland needs this crossing and has been waiting decades for it, I cannot get excited.

That’s because I can see what’s going on here. It’s an election year and National is in danger of losing Auckland, which means potentially coming quite close in the election - as in, potentially losing it. Unlikely, but possible.

So the easiest way to win favour in Auckland is to promise something big and shiny, like a bridge.

Have we been here before? Yes, we have.

Do you remember Michael Wood’s boomer bike bridge to Birkenhead? Where are we with that? We spent $51 million-plus on consultants, and in the end it got ditched.

Now, I have a strong suspicion that whatever Chris Bishop announces mid-year will go exactly the same way because we cannot afford it. I want us to be able to afford it, because we need it, but Chris Bishop is already scaling back on the Roads of National Significance that he announced before the last election.

That’s because we don’t have the funding for those roads - because we haven’t increased the fuel excise tax in what will shortly be seven years.

So if we don’t have the funding for those roads, why would we have the funding for this bridge?

Now, unless there is committed funding and an absolutely rock-solid commitment from Labour to continue with the project if they were to win the election - or subsequent elections - I think we can see this for what it is: the cheapest and easiest pre-election trick to play on Aucklanders.

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Researchers asked Kiwis if they believed the Canadian Government was secretly training genetically enhanced raccoons for warfare, with 7.2 percent of respondents - or 300,000 people - saying they believed it.

University of Otago psychology expert on Dr John Kerr says it's extremely unlikely all these respondents believed this, and the question was designed to be outlandish to weed out the trolls.

"It helped us to get an idea of the extent of what we'd call 'insincere responders' - or trolls, who are skewing the results on this kind of research." 

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The 2011 World Cup-winning coach will join the panel as an independent selector, alongside head coach Dave Rennie and assistant Neil Barnes.

Sir Graham says everyone has an opinion on what's right and wrong in rugby.

"I think that sure, when people are watching my team win when I was a coach, they felt probably the same way. So I guess it's part of the deal."

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A club statement says they will allow last year's first choice halfback to look for a new home, after falling down the pecking order following injuries over the last 12 months.

It comes with Tanah Boyd poised to re-sign until 2029.

Former Kiwis player Richie Barnett says it's a stunning turn of events.

"Obviously, we've seen through the year that he doesn't like playing six and Tanah Boyd's playing so well, Chanel's playing so well at six - Tanah Boyd's just amazing at seven, so it's incredible how the tide has turned."

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Two Transport Agency reports have detailed defects in the 67 year-old bridge, and warn it's at risk of failure.

It says without long-term strengthening work, month-long lane closures, truck limits, and more wind-related restrictions are on the cards.

Chris Bishop says he won't be the Transport Minister who produces a pie-in-the sky idea that turns to custard.

He says they're taking an evidence led approach, engaging with the market, doing geotechnical assessments and extensive studies.

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The latest Taxpayers' Union Curia poll has National up slightly to 30 percent and Labour down to 31.9 percent.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says the minor parties have taken a hit, with ACT and NZ First looking less solid than they did in earlier polls. 

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Treasurer Jim Chalmers says the budget will feature 'more than the usual amount of savings and more than the usual amount of reform'.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds says this will appeal to younger voters, as concerns have been raised about intergenerational inequality and the housing market. 

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The NRL club have confirmed they have agreed to a request from Metcalf's management to talk with other clubs.

It's unclear whether they would allow an immediate release for the halfback, who only re-signed until 2028 late last year.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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The union says they'd effectively get a 0.6 percent bump, with nothing for managers.

Police Association President Steve Watt says the impacted officers have found this offer 'tough' to accept, given the demands of the job. 

"We've asked for five percent, we understand that CPI is still to come out, but we understand that the CPI figure is going to be around that four to five percent. And the reality is, for our members, anything under CPI is essentially a pay cut." 

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Labour had a disastrous showing in local elections at the end of last week - a reflection of the Prime Minister's growing unpopularity.

The party lost a total 1500 councillors across England, with Nigel Farage's Reform UK party picking up steam.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says Starmer is set to give a speech addressing the situation, but there's growing calls to replace him as party leader. 

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Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick says shareholding ministers, Simeon Brown and Nicola Willis, can write to the gentailers and require them to do more on energy hardship programmes. 

She suggests they could also call for retail prices not to surpass inflation.

Energy economist Geoff Bertram says it's time action was taken to bring down the impact of the major gentailers.

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Donald Trump has taken to social media to call Iran's response to a US 14-point memorandum 'totally unacceptable'. 

Brent crude is now trading at more than 104 US dollars a barrel. 

Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explained further.

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Mariameno Kapa-Kingi has left Te Pāti Māori to start a new party. Is this the beginning of the end for them? What do we think? 

Does New Zealand have to worry about far-right populism sweeping through the nation? Between Reform and One Nation, do we see New Zealand getting its own counterpart?

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We have harped on about the need to get rid of that policy for so long that it actually started to get boring, even for me.

But as with everything: persevere and you will succeed. And finally, the policy is gone. We had it confirmed by Winston Peters on Friday.

Now, I’ve already had emails from people who are upset about this. I’ve heard students complaining and I’ve heard some parents complaining as well. And I understand - it is never fun to have free Government money taken away from you. It is because of this kind of angst that free Government money is so rarely clawed back once it’s started being handed out.

But this policy was a dog from the start. It cost perhaps $350 million a year - and $350 million a year is a lot of money. For that money, it didn’t do what it was supposed to do, which was to lift enrolments among poorer kids.

If it didn’t achieve that - if those kids were going to uni anyway and are still going - then all we were doing was wasting $350 million.

And to those worrying about students living in poverty or being unable to afford study, please remember: we taxpayers already subsidise about 70 percent of what it costs Kiwi kids to go to university. We already provide interest-free student loans.

It is already relatively cheap, by global standards, to go to university here.

You could argue that our system is already so generous that even making it more generous didn’t lift enrolments. It’s already generous enough.

Now, I am going to withhold judgment on Nicola and Winston and what the plan is from here because this Government does tend to save money only to spend it again.

They’re going to take some of that money and spend it on trades training. That might be a good idea - but then again, it might just be the same kind of slop as fees-free, only in a more worthy place. We’ll see.

But as for the cutting of Jacinda’s wasteful and pointless free year of study - RIP. And may we'll be more careful with our spending in the future.

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A school principal tells us why he'll defy an order to not let children take home leftover lunches.

Don Mackinnon on how much of a blow it is in delaying NZ20 for a year.

And on The Huddle, Josie Pagani and Trish Sherson discuss whether it's the beginning of the end for Te Pati Maori. One of them says we wouldn't have Te Pati Pakeha.

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Last week, Winston Peters revealed to Newstalk ZB on Friday the Government's doing away with the free final year of tertiary education.

Nicola Willis says it's important for the Government to invest in things that Kiwis really need and want - not a failed policy that didn't achieve any of the goals it aimed to accomplish.

"New Zealand has been in deficit since 2019, we're carrying a heck of a lot of debt, we've got some real priorities for our budget in terms of the health system, the education we want to give our young kids, the defence system we want to build up, the infrastructure we want to build - all of those things have a better call on money." 

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New Public Service Commission data finds a quarter are considering quitting the country for better pay overseas. 

Health and public service department workers are most likely to pack their bags.

PSA National Secretary, Fleur Fitzsimons, says workers want to build a future here, but they're seeing an 'onslaught' of measures that negatively impact them.

"We saw it in the cuts to public services, we've seen it in the cancelling of pay equity claims, now they're coming after holidays and leave in their changes with the Employment Leave Bill. It's not surprising that people are looking to go overseas." 

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Organisers have pushed back the launch by a full year, abandoning plans to mark out their run-up in January 2027.

NZ20 establishment committee chair Don Mackinnon says it's a shared decision between the organisation and NZ Cricket - and it's important to get things right.

"Unfortunately, the window that we've got for January '27 is just too tight, particularly with the other commitments that we've locked in for test cricket. So it makes good sense."

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Passengers are being evacuated and returning to home countries, including one New Zealander.

Authorities say one of five French passengers developed symptoms flying to Paris, and will isolate until further notice. 

Otago University epidemiologist, Michael Baker, says person to person transmission is very unusual for this virus.

"And when they're investigated, these are often people who are living in the same house or the same bedroom or are spending a lot of time together - it's not from casual contact." 

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She's cut ties with Te Pati Māori to create the Te Tai Tokerau Party and run in the seat of the same name.

Te Pati Māori's wished her well - but is promising to put up another candidate to take her on. 

Victoria University's Lara Greaves says it's an open race for all seven seats. 

"They're hyper-local, so local issues are really important - but also, sometimes, strategy is important. Again, really hard to tell." 

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The NZ Herald - Motu Research Poll of Polls suggests there is an 88.3 percent probability the coalition will win a second term. 

The model shows it's extended its lead over the opposition by two points in the last 12 months.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained how this data is calculated - and whether voters can take it seriously.

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Candidate David Farley won more than 57 percent of the vote in the regional Farrer by-election, triggered by former Liberals leader Sussan Ley's ousting. 

Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says One Nation is eyeing off seats in other areas, and it's unclear what this could mean for Labor ahead of the next election. 

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Don Mackinnon says they reached the point that it couldn't be done properly this summer with the Black Caps touring Australia and then welcoming Sri Lanka soon after.

Sportstalk host Jason Pine explained further.

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The Ministry has cited food safety concerns - and says uneaten meals should be returned to the supplier to avoid extra risks. 

Hora Hora school principal Pat Newman says his school's seen no incidents of any students getting ill from leftover food. 

"There's no proof - the only lunches that anyone's gotten ill from is the ones that were supplied from the Ministry in the first place. We actually take better care." 

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We talk to one of the women who's accused Sir Rod Drury of inappropriate conduct about him handing back his New Zealander of the Year award.  

The New Zealand Herald's media insider Shayne Currie on who should succeed Maiki Sherman as TVNZ's political editor.

And on the Sports Huddle, Adam Cooper and Paul Allison discuss Luke Metcalf's future with the Warriors.

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Bipartisan support will most likely be needed to make this happen as parties, like NZ First, are staunchly against the reform.

"Please do not attack grandmother and grandmother's savings to try and disguise for a brief time your economic incompetence," Winston Peters said to Heather du Plessis-Allan

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Just look at what’s happened this week alone. And this is only a sample—this has been building for some time.
In one week, TVNZ political editor Maiki Sherman has lost her job over poor behaviour in a minister’s office. David Seymour, the ACT Party leader, has taken a significant swipe at RNZ for hiring John Campbell, who is well known for voting left—something he’s said himself. Seymour has even gone so far as to suggest the head of RNZ should lose his job over it.

Then there’s the BSA, effectively the head girl telling everyone off for bad jokes at the party, being abolished.

The politicians are coming for the media and Sherman’s case is an example of that. The National Party lined her up. They complained about her allegedly door-knocking Stuart Smith for 10 minutes at night. They confirmed that she had sworn at Nicola Willis’ event in the office—which was unusual, given that Nicola effectively broke Chatham House rules that MPs normally guard jealously.

Now, look—I feel sorry for Maiki losing her job. That’s a very high price to pay. But I don’t feel sorry for the media in general for what’s coming. We’ve had this coming.

For years, we’ve collectively pushed a certain world view through the framing of our stories. We decide who the victim is, who the bad guy is and what language we use—labelling things as “controversial” to signal to the audience that something is bad, like the “controversial Treaty Principles Bill”.

We flip angles too—turning a positive government crime stats story into a negative gang-focused story for the same government.

And when Radio New Zealand, which is supposed to be more impartial and balanced than any other outlet in this country, chooses someone to front its flagship programme who has explicitly said he votes for left-wing parties—well, that matters.

We deserve what’s coming to us in this election. We can’t shove the scrum for years and not expect to become part of the on-field play.

And I, for one, am not unhappy about what’s about to happen. I think it’s time for this to be sorted out. If this election brings media bias into sharper focus and forces all of us in the media to stop, reflect and think hard about what we’ve been doing, I don’t think that’s a bad thing.

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Wong joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss the party's campaign policies including universal basic income.

She says the Opportunity Party is appealing to dissatisfied Green, National, and Labour voters. 

"We are certainly seeing people from across the political spectrum coming to Opportunity."

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Reports claim a poor showing in these elections could bring about the end of Keir Starmer’s prime ministership, and significant losses are projected. 

UK correspondent Enda Brady says there's growing calls for Starmer's resignation already - and people are losing confidence as Reform gets more attention. 

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The shortage of memory chips has prompted tech investors to worry about what this could mean for the market.

Sam Dickie from Fisher Funds explained further.

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Reports claim a boom industry has developed around supplying high protein calories for those who are losing muscle mass from taking weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. 

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.

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The Government has confirmed it plans to investigate the City Rail Link project, after reports revealed it could have cost $2 billion less. Do we think this review is needed?

Is it time to lift the Super age from 65? Another economist has warned we can't keep kicking the can down the road. What do we think? 

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Conservation Minister Tama Potaka on changes that could see reserve land put up for sale.

Youthline chief executive Shae Ronald tells us about the biggest issues confronting those aged 12 to 24.

And on The Huddle, Mark Sainsbury and Thomas Scrimgeour are aghast at Wellington City Council's highest earners still potentially getting "golden handshakes" if they're fired.

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And yet, here we are. They’ve been caught doing it again.

The latest revelation is that they have decided to exempt themselves from a Government law brought in about three months ago.

The law prevents employees who earn more than $200,000 from taking personal grievance cases against their bosses if they are fired. In other words, there will be no golden handshake if you’ve been sacked while earning that kind of money.

But guess what? Wellington City Council bosses decided they weren’t going to follow that law and exempted 42 of their staff from it. That’s quite unbelievable, because the law is intended to make it easier for employers to remove incompetent managers who have been doing very little for years on end.

And Wellington City Council knows it has a problem. A recent report suggests they may have a couple of hundred staff they need to get rid of. They have one of the highest staffing levels in the country when compared with other councils.

As I say, they didn’t tell elected councillors they made this decision. However, a councillor found out, started asking questions and it turns out it was true. Technically, the council can argue it didn’t have to inform elected councillors -this is an employment decision they can make themselves.

But even the mayor, Andrew Little, has said this should have gone to the council for signoff. It’s not a good look.

And it’s becoming a bit of a running theme, hasn’t it? Not just in Wellington but around the country: unelected staff making decisions in secret that ratepayers probably wouldn’t be happy about if they knew.

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It lays the groundwork for reinvesting revenue from charging international tourists - estimated at about $60 million a year - back into conservation land.

It also speeds up the Department of Conservation signing off leases and permits.

Minister Tama Potaka says this will modernise legislation that was in need of an update.

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Experts say while AI can be useful to screen hundreds of applicants faster, it's created a transparency gap between employers and jobseekers.

CVs by Sarah director Sarah Wrightson says the screening software rules out applicants before a human gets a chance to look at their CVs, and it results in qualified applicants getting filtered out.

"I've had clients come to me saying that they've applied for 80 jobs and heard nothing back - and often, they've actually got really solid experience. The software's looking for alignment and clarity, humans read context, the software doesn't." 

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Chris Bishop's announced the build will be reviewed - after the project's former boss claimed it could have been completed for half the $5.5 billion spent. 

Bishop says the architecture is amazing, and some might describe the stations as palaces. 

"They're going to be incredible, but they come at a price. And you've just got to weigh up whether or not it's worth the price, and like every other project, we should do a review once it's open." 

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In a statement, NZR chairman David Kirk congratulated Lancaster on the appointment - and said he brings 'strong experience at all levels of the game'.

Lancaster says he's intent on turning up and doing the best job he can and he's focused on making the business sustainable. 

"I guess the board decided they're happy with the job I'm doing - so here I am." 

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The latest OECD snapshot of our economy suggests unless we adjust systems, including the costs of health, long-term care and pension will increase by about five percent of GDP by 2060.

It says it could be countered by changes including upping Superannuation contributions. 

Economist Cameron Bagrie says we can't keep kicking the can down the road - and that we need to address entitlements, through lifting the retirement age or means testing. 

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A Government bill's been lodged, to allow reinvestment of international visitor fees into conservation, with estimates it'll raise $60 million a year.

The reform will also speed up DOC decision making, with claims it will add consistency to processes for applying Treaty obligations.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says tourism on conservation land brings in billions every year, and it helps create jobs for Kiwis. 

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The plan, to be included in the upcoming federal budget, will fund the creation of a Government-owned fuel reserve and expand onshore storage to boost fuel supply.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the opposition has raised concerns about this - and said it's not enough for the country.

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Community rugby boss and interim chief executive Steve Lancaster is the new boss, ending a months-long search for a replacement for Mark Robinson.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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The latest Youthline ASB State of the Generation report finds mental health is the largest issue, followed by lack of job opportunities and bullying. 

The survey of 12-24-year-olds also suggests 41 percent don't know they can get help from support organisations. 

Youthline chief executive Shae Ronald says there's an uptick in recent university grads that can't find any work, and it's concerning. 

"I think we've got to support young people, to understand managing their mental health through applying for jobs is as important as polishing your CV... that we make sure there's opportunities." 

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Three people have died, with other cases confirmed and suspected.

The 150 passengers are isolating in cabins, including one New Zealander. 

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says investigations are taking place into the outbreak, as it's unknown where it came from.

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Craig Stobo has resigned as chair of the Financial Markets Authority, after an investigation found he'd voiced too many political views for someone in an apolitical public sector role.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explained further.

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The 30-year contract is with an as-yet-unidentified United States high-end investment-grade customer and is inclusive of renewal options of up to 20 years.

Milford Asset Management's Jeremy Hutton explained further.

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The Minister for Internal Affairs has unveiled a new multi-choice test for migrants looking to get New Zealand citizenship. Applicants would have to answer 20 questions and get 15 correct to pass. Do we think this is fair? 

The BSA is on its way out, with Minister Paul Goldsmith saying it's no longer fit for purpose. Do we agree that this change is long overdue? Do we think the media can regulate itself? 

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Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden explains the citizenship tests for would-be migrants.

A parent coach tells us about an online guide to help parents navigate social media with their children.

And on The Huddle, Jack Tame and Phil O'Reilly discuss whether the BSA was past its use-by date.

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I thought it was all talk when he kept dropping it as a possibility but it turns out I was wrong. He’s announced the BSA is gone; the laws will be drawn up in the next few months and they’ll be passed before the next election.

Why this surprises me is because this is culture war-adjacent stuff. This is exactly the kind of thing the Nats have tried to avoid of late - anything that makes you feel just a bit icky.

People aren’t going to like it. They’ve tried to get away from it because there is quite a high risk of blowback. If the Nats are accused of trying to protect their mates in the more fringe parts of the media, like Platform for example, that’s not necessarily a good look.

And on the other hand, there’s little upside - other than making a few broadcasters like me, irritated by the BSA, happy. The BSA is funded by the media so there aren’t even taxpayer savings they can crow about.

But it still is the right thing to do, because the BSA imposes quite significant costs on broadcasters.

Sky, for example, is rumoured to have paid half a million dollars to the BSA last year. That’s money the media simply can’t afford to fork out at the moment when they’re doing it as tough as they are.

And for little good because the BSA doesn’t actually police what we say - you do. We’re more worried about you than we are about the BSA if I’m being completely honest. We know that if we use expletives - say, if I were to use them on air while kids are in the car - you’re going to turn off the radio. You don’t want to hear that.

If we are untrustworthy - if you find out that what we’re telling you is wrong - you’re going to stop listening. And that, frankly, is more of a deterrent than a bunch of people in Wellington getting worked up about something and then slapping a $5000 fine on us.

The BSA has no one to blame but itself and its overreach in trying to police the internet for what has happened to it today. Had it stayed in its lane, it might have survived simply by not drawing attention to itself.

But it went for a power grab with The Platform and it has ended up sealing its own fate.

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ASB Share Central will include a mobile app and desktop platform, and it will allow Kiwis to make their own investments into shares. 

CMC Markets managing director Chris Smith says it's 'exciting' ASB wants to take this step, and they're looking forward to working with the bank on this project.

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The test will be imposed for people seeking citizenship from late next year. 

Applicants would have to answer 20 questions and get 15 correct to pass. 

Minister Brooke van Velden says says examples could be - what are our laws around domestic violence, or whether women and men have equal rights. 

She says it's about understanding shared responsibility. 

"If you're getting them wrong - really? We have to question citizenship there."

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It's good for pet cats to roam, but growing awareness of the devastating impact they can have on our wildlife means owners need to take more responsibility, according to experts.

Veterinarians for Animal Welfare Aotearoa managing director Dr Helen Beattie says it's difficult to keep a pet cat confined to the home and it's important to keep them safe.

She explained it's worth looking into a cat-proof fence to ensure they can't get too far.

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Stats NZ data shows the rate reached 5.3 percent in the March quarter, down from 5.4 percent in the three months to December.

Infometrics expect it'll rise again throughout 2026.

Principal Economist, Brad Olsen, says they're not expecting any mass firings.

"It's more that those hiring intentions are likely to be more subdued - i.e., businesses probably won't be as keen to hire into the future just because of how uncertain things are." 

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He says the body to monitor TV and radio is past its use-by date - and media can self-regulate using the Media Council. 

No time-frame's set, but legislation will be drafted in coming months.

Goldsmith says times have changed. 

"The world's moved on and it's obvious to everybody how we get our information has changed dramatically, and it was sort of looking after a thin slice of broadcasting, so it no longer made sense." 

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The Authority was established in 1989 - but the Government says the media landscape's changed beyond its control.

Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith says print media already regulates itself through the Media Council, which broadcasters can join. 

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says this move reflects the changing media market, and it'll save the taxpayers' money in the long run too. 

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The US President said he's making 'tremendous' deals on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says two US commercial ships, along with military destroyers, have already safely moved through.

US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says the US is looking to bide some more time as the conflict continues.

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However, chief executive Tracy Atiga says their bid to put up $15 million dollars - including debt settlements - is being ignored by the current owners.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave unpacked what we know so far.

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New research has revealed over one third parents feel out of their depth, and nearly one in five have to navigate meltdowns or arguments in order to manage devices.

Parenting Place coach Sheridan Eketone says many parents have claimed they're feeling 'overwhelmed' with the new developments in social media and this course will help them manage the risks.

"It gives all the perspectives, so we're gonna unpack with a parent - what are the risks? How do we keep them safe? What do we need to think about on screentime? How much is too much?"

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Labour faces losing more than 1,800 council seats across England, including in key areas that have supported the party for decades.

UK correspondent Enda Brady says it's unknown who could replace Starmer, but there's some choices being floated. 

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The move was expected by economists and financial markets, fearing the Middle East oil crisis could worsen inflation before it gets better.

HSBC Chief Economist Paul Bloxham explained the move further.

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ACT leader David Seymour explains why he wants pharmacists to treat more illnesses and prescribe antibiotics.

We hear why services to treat kidney disease are stretched throughout the country.

And on The Huddle, Carmen Parahi and Jordan Williams debate whether it's good for schools to let children do a "fun run" instead of cross-country.

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Reports reveal farm worker pay growth has levelled off after a post-Covid period of rapid growth.

The Country's Hamish McKay explained further.

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I said to him that I feel community pharmacies need a real unique selling point. You can get almost everything you want from anywhere now, right?

I think they need permission to do more prescribing themselves - that’s what will make them relevant again. Most of us would choose to go to our local pharmacy for a prescription if we could, rather than trying to get in to see our GPs, who are chocka and often unavailable, or standing in a queue with 25 other people at Chemist Warehouse.

Instead, you’d walk into your local pharmacy and be one of two people in line.

And just as I picked up my phone to leave this tea date, an alert came through: Seymour says pharmacists should treat more so you don’t need to see a GP. How’s that for serendipity?

ACT’s proposal would allow pharmacists to prescribe antibiotics for chest or ear infections, more pain relief or ointments for skin infections. It would also let them provide skin lesion triage and monitoring, manage long-term medications for appropriate patients and order blood tests.

We’re talking about people on things like statins or diabetes medications - drugs they’ll be on for the rest of their lives.

This is basically about stopping people from having to see a doctor every 12 months just to get the same prescription renewed - something that’s inevitably going to happen anyway.

ACT is bang on with this idea. This isn’t radical at all. Pharmacists in other countries are already trusted to prescribe things like antibiotics for strep. I mean, most of us - you and I - can look at a chest infection and say, “You know what? That looks like a chest infection.” If we can do that, I suspect pharmacists, with all of their medical training, can do it pretty accurately too, don’t you?

My only question is: why do we have to wait until November for something that is just common sense? If ACT can do this, surely they can do it now - especially heading into winter.

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Schools across Canterbury are splitting the athletic pupils from the rest of the pack by having the faster children run the cross country - and the others doing the fun-run. Do we think this is the right move, or are we encouraging kids to lose? 

ACT wants pharmacists to take on more medical services in order to alleviate the pressure on the health system. Do we think this is the right move? 

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The bank's half-year profit is up four percent, with its net profit rising to $545 million dollars.

It's down 19 percent on the previous six months.

CEO Catherine McGrath says businesses are getting good at controlling what they can.

"There's a little bit less money being spent on things like hospitality and retail spend - with businesses, some of them are pausing a bit on whether they want to do their expansion plans."

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Footage circulating online shows a motorist being cut off and swarmed at the intersection of Pakuranga and Fortunes Roads - and getting attacked as he tried to get away.

Howick Local Board Chair Bruce Kendall says this is a symptom of an international phenomenon of people being reckless.

"They end up in a bit of a mob mentality and they end up doing some pretty bad things. And I don't know how this situation got to this particular point - I've only seen the video from the point that the car is stopped...and it looks pretty dangerous to me." 

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They're splitting the race in two, where the athletic kids will run the standard cross-country race and the ones who aren't as excited about running will take part in the 'fun-run'.

Primary Sports Canterbury sports director Michael Wilson says meaningful participation is important for education and development. 

"Just like in the classroom, you don't give the same book to every child - so we think having multiple opportunities for kids to participate is a good thing." 

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David Seymour recently announced ACT would expand pharmacists' powers, including letting them treat more minor ailments, manage long-term medications and monitor some conditions.

Seymour says most of the world is looking to better utilise their health professionals to take the load off GPs and Emergency Departments. 

"What's happened around the world is that pharmacists have got much greater use of robotic prescribing, so there's a lot less - as one pharmacist said to me - counting and pouring. And as a result, all of these countries are starting to make greater use of having a pretty well-trained health professional, usually in your community." 

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The Government's announced councils have three months to submit rough merger plans, for becoming unitary authorities. 

In November it said it would abolish regional councillors, and reform local Government over a number of years, while encouraging district councils to merge.  

Simon Watts says councils have been so receptive, they've invited them to fast track it. 

"I don't want to set the pace of this reform by the slowest council - actually, the opposite, we want the ones that are ready to go to have a pathway to do that."

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The Government's today announced a fast-track amalgamation process - asking councils to submit proposals for merging with neighbours to form unitary authorities. 

They have three months to submit a rough plan.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained what this could mean going forward.

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Jefferson Lewis was due to appear by video link but was excused, and the case adjourned until July 30. 

Australian correspondent Murray Olds explained why this was put on hold. 

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He'll start in November, once he's finished commitments with the San Diego Padres in Major League Baseball.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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According to the Australian and New Zealand Dialysis and Transplant Registry survey for 2025, there's a shortage of units, meaning more people are missing out on essential care.

Kidney Health NZ general manager Madi Keay says hospitals are turning to 'band-aid' solutions, including offering shifts at off-peak time slots.

"We're seeing a range of other solutions being proposed, but really, we want to be providing better resourcing so people can dialyse within the adequate service times." 

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The outbreak was reported aboard the MV Hondius cruise ship, and there's five more suspected cases under investigation.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says the World Health Organisation is working to co-ordinate matters on board the ship. 

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The Brent oil price was little changed above $108 a barrel, after falling as much as 2.4 percent at the open - below last week's $118 high.

Harbour Asset Management expert Shane Solly explained further.

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Earlier, Auckland University's Darren Powell earlier claimed knowledge vital for students' understanding of mental heath, food and nutrition and sexual education is absent from the draft.

Erica Stanford says the curriculum covers health, wellness, tolerance and consent, and the Government was very careful in planning this out.

"Everything in the curriculum, all the way up, is about mental health and building resilient kids and doing it in a wonderfully positive way. It is a wonderful curriculum and it just indicates to me, frankly, that a lot of these people who are speaking out have not actually read the curriculum." 

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Educators have raised concerns with the Government's planned changes to school curriculums - what do we make of the backlash? Did we need these changes to fix declining achievement rates? Do the teachers have a point?

Judith Collins has claimed people don't like strong women in a recent interview with Audrey Young. Do we think this is really an issue?  

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You'll find out what TVNZ will charge you - for all the matches at football's World Cup.

And on The Huddle, Josie Pagani and Maurice Williamson debate whether people like strong women.

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Now, I don’t disagree with Judith that she is a strong woman. She’s formidable.

But I do disagree with her that people don’t like strong women, because what is Helen Clark if not a strong woman? So strong, they used to say that the softest part of her was her teeth - and yet she was elected and re-elected by the New Zealand public three times.

That’s more than Jacinda Ardern achieved and Jacinda Ardern is not what I would call a strong woman.

Now, look, I realise there are too many variables to ever make a truly fair comparison across elections like that. But if you did strip everything else out, you’d look at it like this: Helen, the strong woman, won three elections, compared with Jacinda - the milder personality - who won two and only really won the second because of COVID.

Judith Collins doesn’t explicitly blame the fact that she’s a strong woman for her poor showing at the polls when she led the National Party - what did she come in at, 24 percent or something like that?

She’s really referring to the fact that she copped more outrage for rolling a sitting MP for a seat in 2002 than John Key did for doing the same thing in the same year.

But just for the avoidance of doubt: Judith’s problem as leader of the National Party was not that she was a strong woman. In fact, that was part of her attraction at the time.

The problem was that she was up against Jacinda in the COVID election, which was really a hiding to nothing - and she was doing weird things like praying in church for the cameras and making comments about fat people during the campaign. Much as I might have agreed with her, that was not a smart move.

But I really wish that women like Judith would stop blaming their gender for how people react to them because more often than not it is not their gender that’s the problem - it’s something else. And by blaming their gender, they’re avoiding being honest with themselves and honest with others about what that other thing is.

More importantly - much, much more importantly - this reinforces to younger women that they’re up against it simply because they’re women, that being a woman, and especially being a strong woman, is somehow a problem.

 It is not a problem. People like strong women. Most of us have strong women for mothers.

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A Treasury briefing from September warned of risks costs could overtake the budgeted $1.8 billion dollars.

Associate Finance Minister Chris Bishop says the Government's working at pace on this project and the new ferries are on their way.

"It's going to be tight, there's no doubt about that. But things are going pretty well." 

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Specialist teachers are slamming the draft curriculums for music, PE, science, technology and history. 

Auckland University Associate Health Education Professor, Darren Powell, says there are positive elements.

But he says he's concerned there's too long between introducing students to concepts, and expanding them further.

"When they've talked about carefully sequencing content across those 10 years, there's large gaps. It hasn't really been sequenced very well at all." 

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Ahead of the tournament starting next month, TVNZ has unveiled their new $44.95 all-tournament pass for app users.

TVNZ Head of Sports and Events Melodie Robinson says the broadcaster did plenty of research on what Kiwi sports fans would be willing to pay. 

"We're really pleased with reactions so far, but actually, we did a whole lot of work with Kiwis, testing them on what they would pay in the environment that we're in." 

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In a Treasury briefing last September, officials raised concerns building portside infrastructure could exceed the budget.

But chair Chris Mackenzie says that briefing was premature. 

"You've got to remember that this report that was done last September was done before we'd even started detailed negotiations with the ports." 

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Donald Trump has announced 'Project Freedom' - a plan that will involve 15,000 service members and 100 military aircraft. 

Massey University Centre for Defence and Security Studies' John Battersby says there are many unknowns.  

"We can't guarantee that they can protect from that kind of attack, and that's going to weigh on commercial operators. Do we run this risk? Have we got enough confidence in the Americans that we're safe?" 

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Prime Minister Chris Luxon and other ministers are in Singapore, for the signing of a fuel and food security Memorandum of Understanding.

Singapore will supply us fuel in times of crisis - and New Zealand's will supply food - in a mutually beneficial deal.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained the significance of this deal. 

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One Nation is seeing more support, with a new poll showing 11.7 percent of respondents assigned a the party a rating of 10.

Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says this will come as a huge boost for the party's controversial leader, Pauline Hanson. 

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11,351 went through the Mt Smart gates and saw Auckland FC keep their season alive on penalties over Melbourne City.

Sportstalk host Jason Pine explained further.

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The Trust plans to roll out national school programmes, which will include lessons to avoid coward punches.

Chair Eugene Bareman says kids are taught self-control, de-escalation and how to protect themselves. 

"Just how to approach a situation calmly when they're under pressure, just responding rather than reacting."

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One of the topics up for discussion was what councils around the country need to do, or could do, to win back public approval. I have to be honest: I left that room - and you know my views on councils - feeling just a little bit sorry for the councillors and mayors I met.

The ones I spoke to seemed to be honestly trying. They admitted they’ve got more to do and that there are stupid costs they need to cut as well. But what they told me is that they’re up against it.

They’re dealing with things they can’t change: national laws like the RMA that tie their hands, and unelected staff who just go ahead and do their own thing. And sure enough, there’s a story that illustrates at least some of that perfectly.

Wellington City Council staff have spent $130,000 on new art for their flash new building - a building where they’ve hogged the top floors and shoved the mayor downstairs, where he’s staring at a wall.

Now, the thing is, they don’t need art. They have no money and they’re going hard on Wellington ratepayers. They do not need to be spending on art. They’ve already got an extensive collection they could draw from, which includes Colin McCahon, Toss Woollaston, Ralph Hotere, Dick Frizzell - Pablo Picasso, for goodness’ sake.
Judging by the criticism from elected councillors, it seems those councillors didn’t even know the unelected staff were splashing out on fancy art.

That’s what these people are up against: bureaucrats who treat ratepayers like a bottomless ATM. That is a major problem.

Now, I’m not making excuses for elected councillors or mayors - they have their own part to play in big spending.

But some of them are genuinely trying. They’re just up against decades of ingrained largesse like this.

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An Australian reading expert tells us why New Zealand can be world leading in literacy.

One New Zealand chief executive Jason Paris outlines what went wrong with an internet outage.

And on the Sports Huddle, Nathan Limm and Clay Wilson debate whether Papua New Guinea's got an unfair advantage in recruiting NRL players.

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The Reserve Bank said that in March of 2025, there was $8.59 billion worth of physical cash in circulation. Now, that number has risen to $9.57billion. 

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the cause of this is likely due to global instability. 

"I wouldn't be surprised if the Iran war through the month of March, cause some people to think that, you know, there was some pretty big issues out there and maybe they wanted to have a little bit more physical cash with them."

He likened the jump in the amount of cash to a similar increase that happened at the start of the COVID pandemic. 

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It’s early days at the moment. It appears both we and Australia are simply asking for more information at this point, probably along the lines of what help is actually required and under what circumstances. Those circumstances are important because I would imagine New Zealand would not want to agree to help if there were a hot war underway — meaning shots being fired. I’d expect we would only be willing to help if there were an active and sustained ceasefire in place.

That said, I think that in the end we will still say yes because we’ve already indicated this is what we plan to do. We’ve already signed a joint statement with countries including the UK, France, Germany and Japan, saying we are ready to provide appropriate help to reopen the strait.

Now, I don’t think this is going to be popular when the time comes. I don’t think it will be popular in this country. There are now multiple polls and surveys showing consistently that Kiwis want nothing to do with a war started by the US. However, I think we can — and should — separate the war from the oil. Helping in the war is one thing but helping to reopen and keep the strait open is also helping ourselves because we need that oil to flow. We need diesel to keep food on our supermarket shelves.

Of course, we do have another option: we could simply leave it to other countries to do the hard work for us. But that would be a bad call because if there’s one thing we know about Donald Trump, it’s that he is transactional — and if we don’t help, he will remember.

So I would say that now the request has come in, it’s only a matter of time. And if the strait stays closed, I’d almost guarantee  New Zealand will be heading there.

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The Papua New Guinea Chiefs’ are set to join the league in 2028, but they have a significant leg-up over the competition when it comes to recruitment. 

An agreement between the Australian and PNG governments over the Chiefs’ admission into the NRL allows the club to offer tax-free contracts to players willing to relocate for 10 years. 

Former Warriors Coach Tony Kemp told Heather du Plessis-Allan that this was a 'politically-based' decision between Governments, not clubs.

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Ninety cell towers were taken down by technical problems - leaving some customers in the South Island and lower North without service or internet.

The company says the outage began about 1:30 this morning and it took hours to be fully resolved. 

One NZ Chief Executive Jason Paris told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the issue was caused by a bug in one of their vendor's software.  

He says it tried to roll back the update it had made, but the bug didn't go away. 

The outage also affected 2 Degrees customers.

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The bank's posted a $1.2billion half year net profit - a 2% increase on the 6 months prior. 

It also saw a 2% rise in loans, and a 4% rise in deposits. 

But Chief Executive Antonia Watson says there's a lot of uncertainty ahead, with conflict in the Middle East tanking business and consumer confidence. 

She says some customers will be impacted more than others depending on fuel usage. 

Watson says we're already seeing some customers cutting back on discretionary spending due to prices at the pump, which isn't good for businesses like retail. 

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The US has formally provided an initial plan to New Zealand for the Government to consider - but Foreign Minister Winston Peters says more detail's needed. 

Mark told Heather du Plessis Allan that our defence forces have reduced capability - and he could only see us helping with aerial surveying. 

He says we are strategically irrelevant right now - and there's no way he could see us deploying a frigate. 

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The Government mandated state schools to teach a specific structured literacy curriculum to new entrants from the beginning of last year. 

Education data showed increasing improvement in learning outcomes across the four school terms in 2025.  

Professor Pamela Snow told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the new approach used the best possible techniques -- and calls the direction 'world leading'. 

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Police have arrested a 45-year-old man - the 76 and 34-year-old victims are in a stable condition.

UK correspondent Enda Brady says Israel has condemned the attack, and says the UK Government needs to start cracking down on anti-Semitism.

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All of these companies surpassed investor expectations, but one clearly came out on top.

Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further.

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The new technology will provide the tech to beef farms that were previously out of reach due to connectivity limitations, particularly for regions like central Otago, Gisborne and Southland’s high country.

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.

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There's been some infighting between National and NZ First over the last few days - what do we think of this? Is this a sign the coalition will fall apart, or is this just Winston being Winston? 

More people are turning to AI to help with their relationship problems - what do we think of this? Do we think this is the way to go?

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AA has called on the Government to lower the proposed toll price for the first stage of the Northland Expressway.

NorthChamber chair Tim Robinson says this is going to bring a significant benefit to the region economically, and the toll is fair.

"Those of us here in Northland, we've been crying out for the opportunity to grow our economy and create the right environment for our kids and our grandkids - to be able to choose to live and work and play here." 

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We hear from activist Samuel Leason after Israeli forces intercept a flotilla on its way to Gaza.

A therapist tells us if using AI for advice on relationships is a good thing.

And on The Huddle, we ask Tim Wilson and Oscar Kightley if the coalition government is in crisis.

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About 19 ships were reportedly intercepted near Greece.

MFAT says up to six New Zealanders were onboard - and Consular officials are trying to find out if any have been detained.

Activist Samuel Leason, who remains with the flotilla, says there are still dozens of boats loaded with aid, so the mission will continue.

He explained they want to break the illegal siege on Gaza and create a humanitarian corridor so aid can be taken in. 

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New reports show a significant chunk of Gen Z are turning to AI to fix their interpersonal conflicts, and experts are concerned it could be stunting their emotional growth.

Therapist Jo Robertson says this technology could be useful - but it's important to also discuss these issues with an actual human being too.

"There's a touch of me that's a bit impressed, because I like that they're thinking about it, they're not just going willy-nilly, what should I say to this person? They're getting advice, they're getting input." 

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It's been agreed by the Minister of Finance and the Monetary Policy Committee that vote details will be released publicly if committee members are unable to come to consensus on the OCR.

The charter comes into effect today. 

Michael Reddell says it's fairly rare for the committee not to come to a consensus, but it's a good step. 

"So I'm not criticising it, it's just that it's not a particularly bold move."

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Winston Peters' office released emails showing Prime Minister Chris Luxon was advised against supporting the US and Israel's strikes on Iran.

National's Nicola Willis believes Peters is playing politics - and should have informed them before releasing the emails.

Willis separately accused NZ First of race-baiting in their opposition to the India free trade deal.

Clark says Willis is not holding back.

"New Zealand First is eating fairly deeply into National's support, and that is starting, I think, to become somewhat more corrosive in the coalition." 

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The decision comes after National complained to TVNZ, alleging Sherman aggressively banged on party whip Stuart Smith's office door for several minutes. 

TVNZ says it has a different view of events. 

Newstalk ZB's senior political correspondent Barry Soper the issue could lead to tighter rules for all reporters. 

"I think what you'll find as a result of all this is that Speaker Gerry Brownlee, he'll be tightening the rules yet again and just explaining to the journalists that you don't chase MPs around Parliament." 

The suspension's unrelated to claims Sherman lobbed a homophobic slur at another journalist at drinks in Nicola Willis' office last year. 

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The commission is examining the circumstances surrounding the December 14 attack in which 15 people were killed during a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds says some of the recommendations haven't been made public, but there's calls for a gun buyback in response to the attack. 

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The Wall Street Journal report that LIV will tell players in the coming hours that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund will stop backing the circuit after this season.

Reports first emerged a fortnight ago, but LIV pushed back on those claims at the time.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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Mauao has been closed to the public ever since a landslide killed six holiday-makers almost 100 days ago.

The Mt Maunganui Ratepayers, Residents and Retailers Association expects discussions tonight about allowing one route to the top of the mount.

President Michael O'Neill says businesses rely on the patronage of people using the mount.

He explained the same goes for people using the campground, hot pools, and boat ramp - all of which are closed. 

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Charles’s appearance before the joint session of Congress was the first royal address of this type in over 30 years -and the royals are set to spend the next couple of days in the US to mark the 250th anniversary of independence. 

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says Trump claimed King Charles 'agreed' that Iran must not have a nuclear weapon, and Buckingham Palace has since cleared up the misunderstanding. 

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Insurance premiums have dropped back down and more buffers have been built since Cyclone Gabrielle, but concerns have been raised.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explained further.

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The ceasefire caused a significant market rally and the S&P 500 saw a boost as a result.

Milford Asset Management's Jeremy Hutton explained further.

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Should the woman who almost lost her house in a liquidator mix-up be compensated, after she had to pay nearly $1800 in legal fees? What do we make of this?

King Charles delivered his speech to the the US Congress as part of his state visit to America. What can we take away from this? Is Charles trying to send a message to Trump?

Should TVNZ have sent a legal letter to NZME on the Maiki Sherman story? And should Newstalk ZB have reported it anyway?

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I can tell you that perception is true. It’s not imagined - it is true.

It is not true for Newstalk ZB. And I’m not saying that because I’m employed by Newstalk ZB; I’m saying it because I was involved in some of the phone calls around this particular - shall we loosely call it - investigation. I know we tried to publish this but we ran into a couple of obstacles, which, frankly, happens with investigations. There’s no need to get too dramatic about it.

I can’t tell you the number of things I’ve wanted to report on, or tried to report on, that I’ve never been able to. There’s a long list.

I also don’t think the press gallery members who were at the party in Nicola Willis’ office last May can necessarily be judged for not reporting on what happened.

As I said yesterday on the show, I worked in the press gallery too. I know there’s a lot of boozing in the press gallery - I did it myself - and sometimes there’s bad behaviour because that’s what happens with booze.

It doesn’t always get reported. Do you narc on all your mates every time you’re out drinking and they do something stupid? No, you don’t.

What was not okay, however, was that when it became known in Wellington that Newstalk ZB was trying to run a story, members of the press gallery got in touch to raise concerns.

My recollection is that they were worried that if we went public with what Maiki Sherman said to Lloyd Burr, we would be breaking a long-held convention of not reporting on what happens during “drinky poos” in Parliament.

They feared ministers would then panic about breaches of Chatham House rules and stop inviting the press gallery into their offices for drinks.

That crossed the line, in my opinion. That was actively trying to stop media outside Wellington from reporting on what happened in Wellington, involving one of their own.

In the end, it didn’t influence us at all. And I’m not telling you this because it does me any favours - it doesn’t. I expect I’ll be ostracised the next time I see some of my friends in the press gallery for saying this.

But I think it’s worth saying because it’s a reminder to all of us in the media that our job is to report the facts, not to suppress them - even when it involves our mates.

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ACT accuses Ngai Tahu of demanding millions of dollars before refusing to support a gold mine project in Central Otago.

Why a homeowner's changing her name after almost losing her house.

And on The Huddle, Jordan Williams and Mike Munro discuss whether TVNZ should have threatened legal action in the Maiki Sherman saga.

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At a hearing of the Fast-track expert panel in Dunedin on Tuesday, Kā Rūnaka, made up of four rūnaka representing southern Ngāi Tahu hapū, said they opposed the project. 

ACT's Simon Court says Ngāi Tahu reportedly asked for shares in the gold mine - or for an alternative deal to be established. 

"From the outside looking in, some people are calling this the 'great Santana shakedown'. But that's not how New Zealand should be, because all of these costs end up flowing either into household bills - or it means fewer jobs." 

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The woman, 29-year-old army medic Kim Dwyer, was mixed-up with an Auckland company director with the same name.

Dwyer says the liquidator has refused to compensate her for the $1735 she paid in legal fees.

"He says that I should have contacted him, which, obviously, I don't know how I would have done that - because they didn't know I existed." 

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Reports have emerged that TVNZ threatened to sue Newstalk ZB after a producer raised questions with the state broadcaster about Sherman's alleged use of a homophobic slur.

Massey University Journalism Programme Leader James Hollings says TVNZ has handled this situation poorly.

"It's not a good look, really, when you're a public broadcaster, to be telling another news outlet not to run a story about something." 

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The gas is increasingly becoming a health risk - particularly when it is inhaled in high quantities. 

Imports of the gas will soon need approval from the Director-General of Health, while large canisters, also known as nangs, will automatically be classified as psychoactive substances.

The Drug Foundation's Hayden Eastmond-Mein says these canisters are the biggest issue. 

"Historically, nitrous oxide has been relatively low-harm in terms of drugs, but that was based on the kind of classic, smaller canisters that people might have seen." 

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The Gulf State is walking away from the group after nearly six decades - following longstanding tensions with Saudi Arabia.

The UAE suggests this will help it meet growing global energy demand in the long term, and give it more flexibility.

Middle East Analyst Gordon Robison says OPEC is already a shadow of its former self.

"I think a number of the smaller countries in OPEC are beginning to be uncomfortable with the degree to which Saudi Arabia treats them as essentially subordinates."

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NZ First has criticised the free trade agreement, with Winston Peters claiming both National and Labour have signed the country's future away.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says the gloves were off in Parliament today, as we get closer to the election. 

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He also addressed Congress this morning, marking only the second time a British monarch has spoken on Capitol Hill.

US-UK relations have been strained since the US launched its war on Iran.

US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says the speech was well-received, and King Charles delivered the speech with humor.

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Penney says christening the new One NZ Stadium at Te Kaha has been great for the team's spirit.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further.

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A New Zealand Initiative report argues replacing the main secondary school qualification could be a chance to help ease skills shortages in construction and healthcare.

Its calling for subjects to be designed with industry boards and students in mind.

NZI Senior Research Fellow Dr Michael Johnston says there's hundreds of apprenticeships available, and more students should be given 'industry training' for the trades.

"It could be electrical engineering, it could be mechanical engineering, it could be construction, animal husbandry, these kinds of things." 

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The royal visit follows the weekend shooting outside the White House Correspondents' Dinner - with a gunman charging a security checkpoint outside the Washington Hilton.

UK correspondent Enda Brady says the royals will be walking a 'diplomatic tightrope', given the tensions between the US and UK amid the ongoing Middle East conflict.

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Both nations are looking to bring down inflation, and the ongoing fuel crisis is set to pose additional economic risks. 

HSBC Chief Economist Paul Bloxham explained why this is the case.

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The agreement will now be examined by Parliament’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee before legislation is introduced to bring it into force. 

The Country's Jamie Mackay explains how Kiwi farmers will benefit from this arrangement.

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There are a remarkable number of people who believe the incident was staged and who are openly discussing that belief, including claims that Trump was not actually shot through the ear a couple of months ago.

Well, it was more than a couple of months ago - but you get the idea.

Within hours of the attempt on his life, the term “staged” appeared in more than 300,000 posts on X. A former CIA agent has gone public saying he thinks it was staged because security moved JD Vance before they moved Donald Trump, which he says is against protocol.

Trump, of course, hasn’t helped matters. In his first news conference afterwards, he argued the assassination attempt proves he needs to build a new ballroom because it would be much safer.

That is obviously not the logic of a normal person who has just been in the same building as someone with a gun who wants to kill them.

And if we’re being honest, it probably doesn’t help that Trump has now had so many assassination attempts on his life that it’s starting to feel like each time it happens, you care a little less. It also doesn’t help - frankly - that it’s Trump. He is so unconventional that it is more believable he would stage a false-flag event like this than, say, Barack Obama, who is far more conventional.

I’m resisting the temptation to take the mickey out of people who don’t believe the assassination attempts were real.

As silly as it seems to me - and I do think it stretches credibility to believe Trump would stage not one but at least two attempts on his own life, given how much could go wrong when weapons are involved - part of me actually takes comfort in the number of people thinking this way.

I might not agree with where they’ve landed, but I like the fact that they are assessing the facts for themselves and reaching conclusions different from mine, different from the majority view, different from the consensus.

It’s strange that this is where some people’s minds go. Clearly, someone tried to kill Trump at the weekend and thinking otherwise is a conspiracy theory.

But maybe conspiracy theories aren’t all bad if they at least show that people are exercising their brains independently.

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There was another assassination attempt on Donald Trump over the weekend, but some have written this off as a 'false flag'. What do we make of this? Do we believe the conspiracies? 

The Maiki Sherman saga - what do we make of this? Should TVNZ sack her? 

The New Zealand-India FTA has been sorted out - what do we think of this? 

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We talk to the National Road Carriers about whether loosening restrictions on trucks will cause more potholes on our roads.

New Zealand Cricket's new chief executive Geoff Allott tells us how excited he is about NZ20.

And on The Huddle, Maurice Williamson and Josie Pagani discuss whether there really has been an assassination attempt against Donald Trump.

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Trucking lobby group Transporting New Zealand is calling for weight restrictions to loosen immediately, not just in Phase Two of the fuel response.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis says the Government's looking into options they can implement quickly - and they're weighing up the benefits and drawbacks.

"I wouldn't rule out progressing them in Phase One, because actually, what they'll do is reduce the cost of fuel for major diesel users."  

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The Devonport-Takapuna Board has voted 4 to 2 to deny the Korean Garden Trust the permission to build it at Barry's Point Reserve in Takapuna. 

More than 600 people had given feedback on the statue, including the Japanese Embassy - who opposed it. 

Devonport-Takapuna Board Chair Trish Deans says the statue was a 'political statement' - and it didn't have a place in this context. 

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The agreement was signed in New Delhi overnight, and will reduce or eliminate tariffs on 95 percent of exports to the world's largest country.

BusinessDesk senior journalist Dileepa Fonseka says there's no numerical limits on the international student numbers, but we can make tweaks if needed. 

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Disney Plus is pushing its ESPN sports offering across Australasia with a new lower-cost subscription plan.

Media commentator Duncan Greive says younger audiences are increasingly turning to American sports on global platforms over watching traditional sports like rugby and cricket.

"The had a moat as wide as the Tasman around them in terms of TV and radio - now with YouTube and TikTok, rugby doesn't have the kind of hold over them." 

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The Government's planning to increase truck load limits and allow freight to move during off-peak times, if we go to Phase Two of the fuel plan. 

Multiple sector organisations and companies say the changes should just be implemented now. 

National Road Carriers Spokesperson James Smith says it won't cause any more potholes. 

"If you're operating within the existing axel mass limit and all you're doing is increasing the total at the end, the actual pavements aren't going to notice a difference." 

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31-year-old California teacher Cole Allen was allegedly armed with multiple guns and knives, and written documents suggested he'd planned to target Trump officials.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper addressed the fallout from this incident - and the conspiracies. 

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This plan would increase Australia's fuel stocks to a 60-day supply, with at least 1 billion litres of additional storage capacity.

Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the Government has raised concerns over the costs of this plan. 

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The former striker for the Wellington club - and four-time interim manager - has taken the fulltime role on a one-year deal, with an option for the following season.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further.

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The ex-fast bowler-turned-administrator served as NZC's general manager of cricket from 2008 to 2010, and board director between 2013 and 2021.

Allott says the role is 'a huge honour' and he's looking forward to getting stuck in.

"I know it's a big challenge, but to be given the reins of New Zealand Cricket - the sport that I love - is a huge honour. I'm really looking forward to the opportunity." 

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I cannot understand what has gone on here because, as I understand it, this has come down to a few hundred thousand dollars.

Let me run you through the timeline.

We’ve been fighting for SailGP to stay in New Zealand - particularly in Auckland - for the past few years. In October last year, the Government and Auckland Council agreed to pay a combined $5 million for SailGP to be held in Auckland. That agreement was made in October.

Then, in February, SailGP requested additional funding, which would have come out of the Major Events Fund. That request appears to be what prompted Louise Upston to say no.

Finding out how much that request was for was incredibly difficult. No one wanted to give me a number. Eventually, I was told it was less than a million dollars and may have been closer to $500,000.

If that’s true, then turning down SailGP over $500,000 is frankly nutty. That is peanuts for a Government - and money that would almost certainly have paid for itself. I would argue it was a wise investment.

SailGP is not just about what people spend in Auckland when they come here. Just like the America’s Cup, it’s about what people around the world see when they’re watching. They see Auckland’s beautiful harbour on a stunning day. They see crowds having fun. They see beautiful buildings and incredible maunga.

You cannot buy that kind of international exposure.

We have blown tens of millions of dollars on the America’s Cup over the years. We paid for Linkin Park, for God’s sake, to come to Auckland. We set aside $70 million for major events just like this - and yet we turned down one of the hottest sailing events in the world over $500,000.

Even on a purely political level, this makes no sense to me.

Auckland has been desperate - begging the Government - for help with events like this to revive the city. We’ve only just got that momentum underway and then this happens. It’s an election year, in a city you must win to win the election, and it’s a city already showing signs of leaning left.

I am open to arguments to the contrary - but to me, this just looks like a really bad decision.

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Sail GP NZ co-chief executive Blair Tuke is gutted the event won't be coming to Auckland but hopes it'll make a comeback.

ChristchurchNZ on why the Garden City is the place to be right now, with more people moving there.

And on the Sports Huddle, Matt Brown and Jeff McTainsh on a huge weekend of Super Rugby to christen Christchurch's new stadium.

Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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I disagree with Tina. I don’t think Chris Luxon should have given up on Breakfast the way he has, pulling out of his weekly slot. I mean, obviously it’s his prerogative to do it.

And the truth is, in New Zealand—and in our media—we actually have more access to our Prime Ministers than in many other countries. Loads of other Prime Ministers—think Australia—do not take the number of questions after news conferences that Chris Luxon does. They don’t turn up to news conferences as often as he does, or as Jacinda did, or Helen did, or John Key did.

In some countries, like Canada, you can go a very long time between drinks when it comes to hearing from the Prime Minister.

The truth is, Chris Luxon isn’t good at media interviews. A lot of the trouble he’s faced has come from stuffing them up.

You had Tova with the “how many Māori ministers do you have?” stuff-up recently. You had Mike Hosking last year with the “will you or will you not have fired Andrew Bayly?” stuff-up. And then there was the “I don’t know how to be any clearer with you guys” bollocks from earlier this year.

There’s just a long list of mistakes he’s made in media interviews. So if he’s not good in media interviews, on balance, he’s probably better off not doing them—especially in an election year.

The trouble is, people will see this for what it is: that he’s running scared. Or, as Mike Hosking once said of Jacinda when she didn’t want to appear on his show, running for the hills.

He’s trying to get away from situations he can’t handle very well and those situations are media interviews. And by the way, it’s not just Tova O’Brien on Breakfast—it’s Jack Tame on Q+A as well, both on TVNZ.

Now, I don’t think he can credibly blame the Maiki Sherman door-knocking situation or the Benedict Collins perceived bias for this. These are different programmes. That’s the press gallery reporting to One News; this is TVNZ Breakfast. They’re different.

But I don’t think people are going to care. And I say this having analysed the situation: most people out there just don’t care. They hate the media, so they’re going to say, “Fair enough.”

But this is what Jacinda started. When she did it, I said, watch this, this will start a thing and it will happen all over the place afterwards.

And if you didn’t like Jacinda doing it, then you have to hold the same standard. You can’t hate what Jacinda did and then love what Chris Luxon has done.

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They also discussed the rise of going 'no-contact' as 60% of Gen Z say they will cut contact with friends or family if they face disrespect or negative effects to their mental health. 

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Simeon Brown told Heather du Plessis-Allan, "ultimately what we're seeing here is behaviour which I think most New Zealanders would say is unacceptable."

This evening Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has pulled out of his weekly TVNZ interview slot, but it isn't clear if these events are connected. 

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ChristchurchNZ Chief Executive Ali Adams told Heather du Plessis-Allan, "things like this don't happen by accident. This is a curated and deliberate team effort ... across the city to really turn things around and to build a city that is really made for economic growth."

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No further talks have taken place to settle the dispute and drivers in the RMT union are set to continue industrial action.

UK correspondent Enda Brady says this is likely to frustrate commuters. 

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