Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

A change to the Government's flagship budget policy on childcare is raising more questions than answers for the sector. It's backtracking on conditions involving the 20 hours free Early Childhood Education, after providers complained about the pay-by-the hour system. Montessori Aotearoa Chief Executive Cathy Wilson says the sector is pleased they're having their concerns responded to. But she told Kate Hawkesby communication is an issue and they've only met with the associate minister, not Education Minister Jan Tinetti. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The forestry industry is sick of being made into the villain on reducing emissions. The Government is proposing to amend the Emissions Trading Scheme and incentivise innovation over offsetting through planting. One option is taking forestry out of the scheme altogether and creating two separate markets. Forest Owners' Association president Grant Dodson says it's a bad idea and he joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Hipkins is set to discuss some of the world's most contentious topics with one of the world's most powerful men. The Prime Minister has secured a meeting with President Xi Jinping during his week-long trade visit to the country next week. It comes as the US and China restarted high-levels talks overnight with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese President Xi Jinping pledging to stabilise their tense relationship during a meeting in Beijing. Otago University international relations expert Robert Patman says Hipkins and Xi are likely to discuss a range of issues, including China's position on Russia and Ukraine. He says China knows New Zealand wants Russia to return to its borders, but may want to hear from Hipkins first hand. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

UK police are looking at fresh video of a rule-breaking event during lockdown at Tory Party headquarters. Footage shows Conservative staffers drinking and dancing in December 2020 during lockdown. Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson quit Parliament altogether last week. UK correspondent Gavin Grey told Kate Hawkesby that Johnson's still causing current PM Rishi Sunak headaches. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A leading doctor says inequities in the health system need to be addressed. Ethnicity is now a factor in a new medical wait list Te Whatu Ora has rolled out in Auckland, alongside clinical priority, time already waiting, location, and deprivation level. General Practice New Zealand Chair Dr Bryan Betty told Kate Hawkesby that there are dreadful health outcomes for Māori and Pasifika. He says it's an attempt to try to even up the playing field, and something has to be done. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New research is highlighting the resilience of New Zealand's housing market. OneRoof and its data partner Valocity analysed residential home sales between 2018 and the start of this year. They've found sellers in 48 suburbs around the country have never made a loss in the last five years. OneRoof Editor Owen Vaughan says despite a recent slowdown in the market, sellers have been doing well overall. He says retail profits have declined since the market downturn, but the majority of sellers are still making a profit. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So as we look down the barrel of another week of potential strikes, I am heartened by the students calling for it to end, and the prospect that it just might with some independent arbitration. Not before time. As frustrated as we are with the striking teachers, I don’t blame them, it’s the government who’s dragged the chain here in not resolving it and allowing kids to be pawns in all this. So far teachers have rejected the latest pay offer, lump sum, and three payrises, as suggested by the Ministry. Teachers say it’s not good enough. They have more strikes planned right up until the end of term. But over the weekend the PPTA said they’d now look at an Employment Relations Authority proposal that they suspend strike action and start independent arbitration. I can only hope they make a decision on this quickly and that it’s the right decision – to suspend the industrial action. Obviously the Ministry of Education wants it stopped, and parents and many students want it stopped, but it may mean the Ministry has to step up a little bit more to make it happen. Students don’t deserve all this interrupted learning. And they’re saying so. I was encouraged by the group of Waikato students who wrote an open letter to Minister Jan Tinetti saying enough is enough. They said “the greatest detriment to our future as New Zealand students is education disruption. While you battle over pay and conditions, students across the country are being sent home. Yet again our learning - despite all the rhetoric to the opposite - is happily being used as a pawn for political and union conflict”, they wrote. Good on them. Dozens of student leaders from Waikato schools signed it. They also pointed out that ‘as strike action continues, the Education Minister and her staff are contradicting the entire purpose of their jobs - to ensure the education of the country’s children and young people.’ They said, “We, as a student body, are in our fourth year of disruptions. We have not had it easy. However, we have compromised and done our very best, as we knew that the past three years were out of anyone’s control. This time, we do have control. You have control and right now this is a change we can make. Why are you putting us, the students, in the middle of a discussion where we are your focus..” They went on to say that as strike action goes on, ‘the Education Minister and her staff are contradicting the entire purpose of their jobs - to ensure the education of the country’s children and young people.’ So I take my hat off to them for telling it like it is. They have a right to be angry and they have a right to voice it. I only hope the Minister was listening. Because they’re right. They are contradicting the whole purpose of their jobs. The kids are over it. They’re knee deep in internals, they’re stressed, they’re fed up, they want it over. If the government can’t see the damage this is doing, then they’ve got their head in the sand. Let’s hope independent arbitration is agreed on and can work towards a good outcome here, that doesn’t involve more time off school for hard working students who are just trying to get their NCEA credits, and get a bit of learning in.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So as we end the week three things have stood out to me as a bit of a let-down this week. One; the gangs and their cosy relationship with Police. Two; the media. Three; the teachers. I'll start with the Mob and the coppers. 'Working together collaboratively' as one of the Police put it, is not something that endears us to the force. This is not a collab, it's law enforcement and thugs. They're supposed to work at opposing ends - not together. Yes the motivation was clear - keep communities safe - but the execution involved inconveniencing and penalising those communities by allowing the gangs to run riot. And then telling us they did a good job because no one got hurt, and it was 'under control'. A gang intimidating a whole town and closing it down is not under control. It's being under the thumb of the gang. It's sending a message that gangs can close state highways and railroad through towns as they please, and the cops will stand by and wave them through. The odd vehicle will be searched but on the whole, we can do better. We should demand better. Two; the media. In a week where the aforementioned Mongrel Mob shut a town down and the country was plunged into a recession, and teachers stayed on strike and our kids spent two days rostered at home with no learning, some in the media chose to focus on what Luxon said that was stupid this week. Apparently a throwaway line about us having more babies, him calling the country inward looking and negative, and him cancelling a Tesla work car order last year, were the key messages of the week politically. So Luxon's likely to lose the election, according to some media, because he says dumb stuff. That was how we were dished up political news this week. In a week where as I said, teachers continued to strike, we went into recession, and we had gangs close down a whole town. Is it just me or is there not some politics in there that could have been covered? With a rather large spotlight on the government and what it's doing, versus what the leader of the opposition was saying. And that's before we get to the appalling way TV news media covered the gang funeral like they were eulogising some kind of lovely local man, instead of a gang boss. Again, we can do better. And then we get to the teachers. Twice my daughter was home this week, as they continued their strike. She'll be off for some days next week and the week after if they don't call the strikes off or accept a deal. It's a massive inconvenience and backwards step for our kids’ learning and education, at a time when NCEA internals are due, and work is being missed because of reduced classroom time. The non-Unionised teachers themselves are stressed at the backlog of work needing to be cleared here, they're worried about reputational damage what this is doing in terms of losing community support, and they too worry about the impact on these students. It’s not fair on the kids and they're the victims in all this. Their private school contemporaries are all in class getting ahead with the work because they don't have striking teachers. These public school kids will be measured up against them - it's not a level playing field where they're all competing for the same marks, yet some have all their days in school as per, with all their teachers, others don't. It's not fair on them. Again, we can do better here too. Let's hope next week looks a bit better than this one.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is South Africa going to react to no change confirmed to the Rugby Championship Schedule? Sanzaar had to awkwardly clear up claims from its Rugby Australia chair Hamish McLennan on a potential change. Moving the schedule would give South African players a break from a gruelling calendar year. The chair's comments were made on Newstalk ZB's Rugby Direct podcast, hosted by ZB rugby commentator Elliott Smith. Elliott joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It looks like Boris Johnson's political career may finally be over. A new privileges committee report has found the former Prime Minister misled parliament when questioned about Downing Street lockdown parties. It found he sewed distrust in parliament and undermined democracy - some of the highest offences for an elected politician. UK correspondent Vincent McAviney told Kate Hawkesby Johnson could have faced a 90 day suspension if he hadn't stood down. He says Johnson has gone from being the PM to an ex-MP in less than a year. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Organised crime groups keep finding ways to smuggle meth into the country. Police and customs officials intercepted a shipment of maple syrup from Canada at the New Zealand border in January. It was concealing 713 kilograms of methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of $250 million dollars. Drug Detection Agency Chief Executive Glenn Dobson told Kate Hawkesby hiding meth in liquids is nothing new. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'm not sure when the 6pm news decided to be a promo channel for gangs, or why they wanted to spend so much time eulogising a gang leader, but I thought the way that Mongrel Mob tangi was covered last night was disgraceful. We've lost the plot in this country - and we wonder why we have gang problems. The coverage looked like a recruitment drive or a PR video for the gangs. We got so ill served as viewers, the real news was not what a great man other gang members or whānau thought he was, it was not to display endlessly all their patches and motorbikes and burnouts like they're some kind of heroes, it was not to run glowing commentary on how they saw off their leader. The news angle was that a town got shut down yesterday, and a main road closed for two hours - by gang members who decided to block it - while Police do nothing. They allegedly said they'd try to clear it but the queue of traffic that couldn't get down the road in Ōhope for two hours may feel they didn't quite work hard enough on that. Gang members were sitting on roofs of houses yelling out, sitting on top of cars, hanging out windows, doing donuts, some locals said the state of lawlessness was unbelievable. There were shots fired at a vehicle near the convoy, no one injured thank god, but clearly weapons were present in cars. Why wasn't every car stopped and searched? Why were they allowed to block roads and close a main road? Why were they allowed to sit on top of their cars while travelling down the road? Can you imagine any of us doing that and not being immediately stopped? Why were they allowed to drive recklessly with no consequences? The Prime Minister when asked about all this, said, "gangs suck." No kidding. But we need a bit more than stating the obvious from our PM. His words have to match some actions. They suck… but we won't do anything about them, is what it looks like. He said it was up to Police, and that it wasn't appropriate for him to comment. Well sorry but this country's going to hell in a handcart on the crime and gang front, and actually as the leader of it, it is not only appropriate for you to comment, but crucial that you do. People are being intimidated and inconvenienced and shut out of their own abilities to use their own roads, parks, schools, and businesses, because of a gang tangi. Because no one says no to the gangs. Not only that, news crews turn up to pop a microphone under their chins to hear about what a great guy the slain gang leader was. They allowed precious minutes of primetime news to eulogise a Mob president. I mean, how did we get here? How did we get the bar so low, that that now masquerades as news? Did the news forget that these guys thrive on notoriety, that all that footage and all those kind words about their leader, is just fuelling exactly what the gangs want. I mean they just played right into their hands. There should've been no footage of gang patches and motorbikes burning rubber, no interviews on how much their leader will be missed and how they replace him, no acknowledgement of the gang other than it being a nuisance to society, behaving illegally, stopping hard working taxpayers from getting about their own business. The story was the state of this country and how we've fallen victim to gangs ruling the roost. That was the story. Not a promo video for the actual gang.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

All eyes are on the latest GDP number expected this morning. Economists are split on whether it will be another quarter of negative growth- after Q1 slipped back 0.6 percent. Another negative would technically put New Zealand into a recession. ASB Chief Economist Nick Tuffley joined Early Edition. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is increasing med school intakes by 50 students next year the first increase in almost a decade. It'll be split across Auckland and Otago universities, with the total first year intake increasing to 589 places. But Resident Doctors' Association National Secretary, Deborah Powell told Kate Hawkesby it's not enough. She says there's need for at least another 200, but another 50 is better than nothing. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The seafood sector has net some gains. The value of Primary Sector exports have hit a record high, now worth 14 percent of New Zealand's total GDP. Seafood is forecast to grow by eight percent to $2.1 billion Seafood New Zealand Chief Executive Jeremy Helson told Kate Hawkesby it's being driven by good price increases in a few key stocks. He says rock lobsters, hoki and mussels are all doing well which is encouraging and foreign exchange is also helping. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well we learned yesterday that state housing tenants call the shots at Kāinga Ora, in that they know they won’t be evicted so they do whatever they want. Figures showed despite 10,000 complaints, only three had been evicted in 18 months. So, bad behaviour rules the roost there. Then we learn also this week that gangs clearly run Ōpōtiki. Again, they know they can do whatever they want, and an entire community will just shut down around them. The fact this is happening in our country, in 2023, beggars belief. And yet still the PM tells us NZ is safe. Tell that to the Filipino family with the 12-year-old daughter who got viciously beaten outside an Auckland North Shore McDonalds at 1.30pm on a Saturday afternoon. She’s been left traumatized, can’t go outside, doesn’t want to return to school, required hospital treatment and is suffering distress form the impact of her assault. The family ‘moved to New Zealand in August last year, and had “never” experienced incidents like this in the Philippines,’ they said. Try telling them New Zealand is a safe country. And for all those families told to keep their kids at home from school for a whole week this week because of gang tensions in Ōpōtiki, are you telling me that feels safe? This comes after an increase of gang members in the town following the death of a Mongrel Mob president and two suspicious house fires. Police said they’d be maintaining an increased presence in the area. So if you’re wondering where the Police are and why they’re not at other crimes, they’re busy babysitting gang members all over Ōpōtiki. An entire week that town is shutting down for. Let that sink in. A gang can close a town up in this country, for a whole week, just by being intimidating. Schools shut, parks shut, businesses shut because working parents have to stay home to look after their – most likely scared - kids, how’s that a country you want to live in? This is not the NZ we know and love. It’s the same problem we talked about yesterday with Kāinga Ora housing. The way unruly Kāinga Ora tenants can dominate a whole neighbourhood and traumatise their neighbours, without eviction. The balance here has tipped so far to the lowest common denominator now, that we have lost all rational ability or foresight to run our society properly. How do we get that back? When Luxon told farmers the other day that this country’s lost its mojo, he’s not wrong. We’ve lost our way, and I don’t know what’s wrong with admitting that. As individuals we can lose our mojo and lose our way at times, admitting it helps us get back on track to fixing it. So why the government refuses to accept it's true is beyond me. You can’t bluff your way out of this and keep telling us we feel safe. We don’t. Systemic gang crime and activity is a major problem in many regions in this country. It’s unsettling and it doesn’t make us feel safe. Children getting viciously attacked while eating McDonalds doesn’t make us feel safe. Tenants who disrupt other people’s lives don’t make us feel safe. We need to restore some law and order to our communities, and stop just pretending that everything’s fine.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A law change will make it harder for overseas buyers to plant pine on good farm land. The Government is giving local councils the authority to determine where, and how much, carbon forestry can occur. The move limits trees used for carbon farming being planted on productive land, shifting the incentives to make planting on hillsides more attractive. Federated Farmers Meat and Wool Industry Chair Toby Williams told Kate Hawkesby this rights some of the wrongs from the past. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Concern the public has been led up the garden path over a long-held promise to boost the country's police force. New police data shows of the Government's 1,800 new police officers, 270 are "authorised officers" and don't have arrest powers. Act Party Leader David Seymour told Kate Hawkesby if 1,800 police are promised, people expect to see officers who can assist and arrest if there's a crime. He says it doesn't mean they're not useful but they're not quite what the average person would think is a police officer. Police Minister Ginny Andersen has told our newsroom Government’s commitment has always included these authorised officers. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former US President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. “We most certainly enter a plea of not guilty,” Todd Blanche, Trump’s lawyer, told US Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman. CNN reported Trump had his arms folded and periodically spoke to Blanche while in the courtroom Trump’s motorcade arrived on Tuesday afternoon (EDT) at the federal courthouse shortly before he was scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge, a stunning moment in American history days after he became the first former president charged with federal crimes. Members of law enforcement stand guard as supporters of former President Donald Trump rally outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse in Miami. Photo / Alex Brandon, AP Trump, as well as an aide charged as a co-conspirator, have been booked in the Miami federal court. The pair were digitally fingerprinted and had their birthdates and Social Security numbers taken as part of the booking process at the federal courthouse in Miami. The US Marshals Service said Trump and Walt Nauta were booked shortly after they arrived Tuesday afternoon. It’s the second criminal case Trump is facing as he seeks to reclaim the White House next year. He’s also accused in New York state court of falsifying business records related to hush-money payments made during the 2016 campaign. Trump has denied any wrongdoing, saying he’s being unfairly targeted by political opponents who want to hurt his campaign. After his court appearance. Trump will return to New Jersey, where he’s expected to hold a press event to publicly respond to the charges. The motorcade carrying former US President Donald Trump arrives near the courthouse in Miami. Photo / AP Nauta, a Navy veteran who fetched Trump’s Diet Cokes as his valet at the White House before joining him as a personal aide at Mar-a-Lago, is accused of moving boxes from the White House at Trump’s direction and then lying about it to investigators. Trump rode to court with his son Eric, who accompanied the motorcade from the former president’s Doral resort to the federal courthouse in Miami. CNN aired footage of Trump walking to a line of SUVs with his son by his side while someone yelled, “Let’s go Trump!” The former president stopped and waved at supporters, as well as chatted with staff members. Eric Trump appeared to clap his father on the back just before he climbed in a vehicle. As he rode to court, Trump posted on his social media site that the case against him was a “witch hunt”. Via his Truth Social network, he posted: “ON MY WAY TO COURTHOUSE. WITCH HUNT!!! MAGA.” Later, outside the courthouse, Trump’s lawyer Alina Habba said, “Today is not about President Donald J. Trump, who is defiant. “It is not about the Republican Party, it is not about the 2024 election,” Habba added. “It is about the destruction of longstanding principles that have set this country apart.” Alina Habba, lawyer for former President Donald Trump, gives a thumbs up to supporters after speaking outside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthous in Miami. Photo / Alex Brandon, AP Trump is the first former president to face a judge on federal charges as the city of Miami prepared for possible protests by crowds that officials said could number in the thousands. Security was tight outside the federal courthouse ahead of Trump’s history-making court appearance but there were no major disruptions as the morning unfolded. Trump approached his arraignment with characteristic bravado, insisting as he has through years of legal woes that he has done nothing wrong and was being persecuted for political purposes. But the gravity of the moment was unmistakable as he answers to 37 felony counts that accuse him of willfully retaining classified records that prosecutors say could have jeopardised national security if exposed, then trying to hide them from investigators who demanded them back. The case is laden with political implications for Trump, who holds the dominant spot in the early days of the 2024 Republican presidential primary. But it also poses profound legal consequences given the prospect of a years-long prison sentence. Even for a defendant whose post-presidential life has been dominated by investigations, the documents probe has stood out for the apparent volume of evidence amassed by prosecutors and the severity of the allegations. It’s also a watershed moment for a Justice Department that until last week had never before brought charges against a former president. Attorney General Merrick Garland, an appointee of President Joe Biden, sought to insulate the department from political attacks by handing ownership of the case last year to a special counsel, Jack Smith, who on Friday declared, “We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone”. The arraignment, though largely procedural in nature, is the latest in an unprecedented public reckoning this year for Trump, who faces charg

A knife-wielding assailant stabbed two university students to death in the streets of the English city of Nottingham and then fatally stabbed a middle-aged man, stole his van and ran down three pedestrians in a shocking rampage early on Tuesday morning (GMT), police said. Police arrested a 31-year-old man on suspicion of murder. The Nottinghamshire Police force said investigators believe the perpetrator acted alone and detectives were working with counter-terrorism officers to try to establish a motive. “This is a horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people,” Chief Constable Kate Meynell said. A man who was among the people struck in the hit-and-run was hospitalised in critical condition. The dead included two 19-year-old students from the University of Nottingham. “We are shocked and devastated by the news,” the school said in an announcement. A graduation ball scheduled for Tuesday evening was cancelled. One of the victims has been identified as Barnaby Webber, 19, with his grandparents saying that his parents ‘are in bits’ about the news. Phil and Jenny Robson, the victim’s grandparents, said: “We are still unsure what has gone on at the moment. “Barnaby’s parents are in bits as you can imagine, but they are with officers from Nottinghamshire Police as we speak. The knife attack on the students occurred around dawn in an area near student housing a short walk from the university’s Jubilee Campus. A caller reported that two stabbing victims were lying in the street. Police think the attacker then killed a man in his 50s and took his van, Meynell said. His body was found on a different street more than a kilometre from the first crime scene. About 90 minutes after the initial attack, witnesses were horrified as they watched the van plough into pedestrians and flee. Police officers block a road in Nottingham where police say three people have been found dead, and three others were hit by a van in linked incidents. Photo / AP Lynn Haggitt was on her way to work when a white van pulled up beside her at 5.30am. She saw the driver look in his mirror and spot a police car approaching slowly from behind without its emergency lights on. The driver then accelerated and struck a man and woman at a street corner, she said. “He went straight into them. He didn’t even bother to turn,” Haggitt told reporters. “The woman went on the curb, the man went up in the air, there was such a bang, I wish I never saw it. It’s really shaken me up.” The driver then sped through the city center with police on his tail, she added. Haggitt said the wounded man appeared to have a head injury but was helped to his feet. The woman was sitting on the curb and appeared to be OK. A third pedestrian was struck on the same street, police said. Two of the hit-and-run victims had minor injuries, Meynell said. Police officers block off a road in Nottingham where three people have died in a van attack in the city centre. Photo / AP “We believe these three incidents are all linked, and we have a man in custody,” the police chief said. “We are keeping an open mind as we investigate the circumstances surrounding these incidents and are working alongside Counter Terrorism Policing to establish the facts, as we would normally do in these types of circumstances.” After stopping the van, officers subdued the suspect with a Taser before detaining him. University of Nottingham student Kane Brady said he awoke to loud shouts of “armed police” and heard what sounded like a gunshot outside. He said he saw officers holding stun guns and a man being dragged out of the van and pinned on the ground. “I saw him getting arrested, him trying to resist,” Brady told British broadcaster GB News. “When they opened the van, I saw a large knife being pulled out and then straight away, that’s when police closed off both roads.” Photos showed the hood of the van dented and cracks in the windshield. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called it a shocking incident and asked that police be given time to investigate the crime. “My thoughts are with those injured, and the family and loved ones of those who have lost their lives,” Sunak said. Nottingham is a city of about 350,000 people some 175 kilometres north of London. Images on social media showed police, some with rifles, standing near cordons at several locations in the city centre. The city’s tram network said it suspended all services. - Jill Lawless, Brian Melley, AP with Telegraph UKSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I was inundated with feedback yesterday from both parents and teachers regarding the teachers’ strikes this term. So many teachers got in touch. They're embarrassed, many of them, and annoyed, that the strikes are going on so long. There are on average five days that high schoolers will be told to stay home while teachers strike for the remainder of this term. So of the three weeks left of school, many students will only do two weeks, one will be swallowed up with strike days. As I said yesterday, this is super stressful for them, because there are all-important internals on and huge chunks of work is getting missed by not being in the classroom. It’s not like lockdowns where they could do online learning either, there is no teaching at all, which has now gotten to the point of ridiculous and even the teachers are fed up. One wrote to me saying she’s so sick of the Union and the zealots who are dragging this out. Another said she’s embarrassed at the reputation this is giving teachers. Another said it’s eroding goodwill with students and parents, and she worries they'll struggle to get that back. One said she can’t believe they still haven’t accepted any offers; they wanted it to be over by now. Another said it is the children who’re suffering – which was my concern too – that it’s the students missing out on critical learning who are the real victims here. It’s a weird thing isn’t it that in this day and age of anxious children and woeful mental health stats, that diehard Unionised teachers are happy to keep stoking that fire with their actions. They’re making these kids stressed and anxious and worried. They’re also setting a really bad example around the importance of education and attendance, which is as we know a huge problem right now in this country. In fact, some schools have opted to have children come into school even if they're not being taught, just to study at school and be there, to maintain the importance of the routine of coming to school each day. Many parents are angry that teachers are playing with their kids futures here, and it’s a legitimate concern. The teachers who’re aware of the support they’re losing from parents and students say they too would like it be over now. But this is the problem with ardent Unionists; they’re zealots for principle, irrespective of the collateral damage. These kids are collateral damage. The Unionised teachers who’re digging in have maybe lost sight of what’s happening here. They’re making a rod for their own backs with the amount of time and teaching they’re going to have to make up for, for these kids who have NCEA grades and internals due. The curriculum keeps going; it doesn’t just stop because teachers walk out. So these kids are in catch up mode and it’s these teachers who have to get these kids through, and get them achieving their credits. How will they feel when they finish all their strike action and return to a classroom where their students are all stressed and falling behind? I’m at a loss to understand how this has gone on this long, at this level of our children’s education. How is it we are at a point where they’re sacrificing our children and their learning, just to make a point?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is being accused of slacking off with disruptive Kāinga Ora tenants. Newstalk ZB can reveal three people have been evicted for bad behaviour in the past 18 months - another 200 have been relocated. This is despite 10,000 complaints since the housing agency rolled out tougher termination measures. Solomon Group Housing manager Bernie Smith told Kate Hawkesby it's totally unacceptable. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Beef and Lamb is pleased with National's election emissions policy. National would start measuring farm emissions by 2025, and make farmers pay for them by 2030, five years later than the current plan to have them paying by 2025. National hasn't revealed how it will decide pricing, but says it will decide in the first year if elected. Beef and Lamb Chair Kate Acland says the delay is positive because time is needed to make the pricing fair. She says it can't be rushed into. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kiwi chef Josh Emett is cooking up a storm for none other than goop - Gwyneth Paltrow's powerhouse brand. The goop team reached out after Paltrow reposted Josh's hasselback potatoes on social media in March. He's now whipped up three recipes for their massive online audience. Josh Emmet joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Questions are being raised over whether the Green Party's proposed tax overhaul is needed. It's pledging to lift the top tax rate to 45%, corporate taxes to 33%, and slash taxes for earners below $120,000. Assets worth two-million-dollars will be hit with a 2.5% wealth tax — or four-million-dollars for couples. Trusts will also be taxed at 1.5%. But, New Zealand Initiative Chief Economist, Eric Crampton says that a new tax system isn't the way unless you want the Government to raise substantially more money. He says if you want something like an Income Guarantee programme, far more tax will need to be raised. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So today my daughter is off school again with another teachers strike. One of two this week alone, she will also be off Thursday. She is Year 12 doing internals and headed towards important exams, and it is stressful for her and her friends to again be told to stay home. Many of her teachers are over it too, they’re aware students are falling behind or having to rejig too much work and scheduling, many of them are getting as stressed as the students are. Some have expressed disappointment that the Unionised teachers are still rejecting the offers made. They want it settled, the school wants it settled, the students want it settled. It also comes at a time when we have record absenteeism and we are begging kids to attend school. We’re trying to reiterate the importance of school and a good education, and there is messaging coming from all quarters on how to keep kids in school and focused on achievement. So the timing could not be worse to have teachers stopping work endlessly; and I say endlessly because it sure feels like it. And that’s before we get to all the days off currently by kids and teachers coming down with winter bugs. There’s a lot of sickness around in Term 2, always, but particularly this winter off the back of lockdowns and Covid. And given we are in June, we are running out of days left before school holidays start in just 3 weeks. It’s been a very disruptive term already. For parents this is a quandary. On the one hand, we want our kids in school, we want them learning, we want them going where we’ve paid for them to be and actually getting to know some stuff, and working towards grades that will impact their futures. We also want routine for our families, structure, consistency and kids not thinking that only going to school for 3 days a week is normal or acceptable. But we support teachers; who doesn’t? Anyone whose put their kids through school knows how hard many of them (not all) work, and how much of an impact they can have on your child’s life. It's a critical role and I feel badly for how much extra teachers have to take on these days in the form of bureaucracy and admin and social work, and dealing with a whole bunch of stuff they shouldn’t have to deal with. It sucks. But it’s also part of what you must know you’re signing up for. We’ve got a young doctor in training in our family, and we’ve talked to her endlessly about the 80-90 hour weeks and the burnout and the stress and all the headaches that being a young doctor in this country entails, and she says she knows all that going in. Do the striking teachers go into teaching expecting it will be something different to what it is? That’s not to say they shouldn’t advocate for change and look to evolve it, god only knows the whole school system needs evolving and upgrading, but at what point do you exhaust community support and erode the respect of your students by just permanently striking? The Primary teachers just accepted their fourth offer from the Ministry of Education after “a long negotiation campaign which included the largest education strike in this country's history”, it was reported. The teachers in that dispute pointed out how much work demands have skyrocketed for them, and I don’t doubt it. But the line that they’re striking ‘for the children’ is starting to wear a bit thin when it’s the children who are suffering now with so many days off.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A scientist is pleased to see the issue of genetic editing taken up ahead of the election. National's promising to end the effective ban on editing and modification if elected for the benefit of climate change, agriculture, and health science. Genomics Aotearoa Director Peter Dearden told Kate Hawkesby that there isn't currently a ban, but regulations are too restrictive and out of date. He says it's hopeful to see a political party see the opportunities and decide it's something worth addressing. Dearden says genetic modification isn't the problem, it's what it aims to achieve that needs to be regulated. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I was reading about ‘sharenting’ the other day and how in France it’s now a crime. The Government there have introduced laws that ban parents from over sharing their children online. The idea is to protect children and their image and their rights to their own images, which in principal is not a bad idea, especially when you consider stats that show there are “on average 1300 photos of a child online before the age of 13.” Alarmingly, sharing your images of your kids can be a risk to their security. It’s been reported that, “Half of the pictures shared by child sexual abusers were initially posted by parents on social media, according to reports by the US National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children.” Sobering stuff. It got me thinking about how much we share here – or over share – of our kids, and how much thought we actually give it. Because when they’re all cute, fluffy little babies and then cute and crazy toddlers doing hilarious things, it’s amusing to post that stuff. It’s part of what you’re doing if you’re a young Mum or a fulltime parent, or really anyone who just revels in their kids. And there’s been commentary around the fact that this becomes in many cases an extension of the parent’s identity online – they are a Mum – therefore they want to share that aspect of their life online too. Some even monetise it as we know. As they get older though, children often become uncomfortable with how much exposure they’re getting online via their parents. They may get embarrassed, or teased about it, they may as they get older want to curate their online life via their own page without Mum or Dad’s input on what they think is cute. I did a parenting column in a women’s magazine for many years, and when the kids were little it was easy to tell stories about them or talk about things that happened to us, but as they got older, not so much. So increasingly, I tried to write generically about kids and not specifically about my own. But eventually it all became too hard. Because they have lives of their own, and they don’t need Mum’s hot take on it published for all to see thanks very much. I follow lots of Mums online, some who never post their kids, some who post them all the time, some who post them anonymously with their faces blocked out or their identity obscured. It’s up to the individual of course – but I often look at heavily exposed kids on social media and wonder how long the parents will get away with it for. Because as the child gets older, they usually want less and less of themselves exposed online via Mum or Dad. And they let you know, either by refusing photos to be taken at all, or making you take them down, or the demands kick in – like ‘you’re not allowed to post anything of me without my permission first’. So it's good to take stock of just how much we’re sharing of our children, whether they’re comfortable with it, or whether they would be as they get older. And with the advancement of AI, we need to remember that privacy risks may only increase with the more we put out there. Which is all food for thought next time we think about posting our kids doing something random which we think is hilarious, but in a few years’ time, they may not.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Changes are on the cards for some breast cancer patients. Pharmac is consulting on a drug switch proposal to replace the current expired one. Herzuma is said to be more safe and cost effective, but at what there are concerns about whether all patients will be suited to it. Breast Cancer Foundation's Research and Strategics Manager, Adele Gautier, joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As bystanders screamed for help, a man with a knife stabbed four young children at a lakeside park in the French Alps on Thursday, assaulting at least one in a stroller repeatedly. The children between 22 months and 3 years old suffered life-threatening injuries, and two adults also were wounded, authorities said. The helplessness of the young victims and the savagery of the attack sickened France. A suspect, identified by police as a 31-year-old Syrian, was detained in connection with the morning attack in the Alpine and lakeside town of Annecy. French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said he had refugee status in Sweden. Witnesses reported scenes of terror as the man roamed the park, ambushing victims with his blade. “I said to the police, ‘Shoot him, kill him! He’s stabbing everyone,’” Anthony Le Tallec, a former professional soccer player who was jogging when he came across the attacker, said. Lead prosecutor Line Bonnet-Mathis said the man’s motives were unknown but did not appear to be terrorism-related. He was armed with a folding knife, she said. The 31yo man who is alleged to have stabbed four children during a knife attack at a children's playground in Annecy, France. Photo / Twitter She said all four children suffered life-threatening knife wounds. The youngest is 22 months old, two are age 2 and the oldest is 3, she said. Two of them are French, the other two were tourists — one British, the other Dutch, she said. Two adults also suffered knife wounds — life-threatening for one them, the prosecutor said. One of the adults was hurt both with the attacker’s knife and later by a shot fired by police as they were making the arrest, Bonnet-Mathis said. Video appearing to show the attack in and around a children’s play park was posted on social media. The footage showed a man in dark glasses and with a blue scarf covering his head brandishing a knife, as people screamed for help. Police in a playground at the scene of knife attack in Annecy, where four young children were left with life-threatening injuries. Photo / AP The man appeared to shout “on name of Jesus Christ” as he waved his knife in the air, while people nearby could be heard screaming: “Police! Police!” He slashed at a man carrying rucksacks who tried to approach him. Inside the enclosed play park, a panicked woman frantically pushed a stroller as the attacker approached, yelling “Help! Help!” and ramming the stroller into the barriers around the site in her terror. She tried to fend off the attacker but couldn’t keep him from leaning over the stroller and stabbing downward repeatedly. Afterwards, the man strolled almost casually out of the park, letting himself out through a gate, with the man carrying two rucksacks still chasing after him. French President Emmanuel Macron described the assault as an “attack of absolute cowardice”. Of the victims, he said “children and an adult are between life and death.” “The nation is in shock,” Macron tweeted. French PM Elisabeth Borne (second left), addresses the media in Annecy following a knife attack which has left four children severely injured. Photo / AP Le Tallec, the ex-soccer player who witnessed the attack while on a lakeside jog, said in an Instagram video that he first came across “a mother who said to me, ‘Run! Run! There’s someone stabbing everyone.” “I saw him sprinting straight for some grandpas and grandmas. And there, he attacked, he attacked the grandpa, he stabbed him once. The police behind couldn’t catch him.” The police then opened fire and the attacker fell to the ground, having stabbed the older man a second time, Le Tallec said. The prosecutor said the suspect had been living in the Annecy area since last fall and had no fixed address. An ice cream seller who works in the waterside park said he’d seen the attacker there several days earlier, looking out at the lake ringed by mountains. Police officers stand on a bridge near the scene after a knife attack in Annecy. Photo / AP The suspect was a political refugee in Sweden, the prosecutor said. The Swedish Migration Agency said he was granted permanent residency in 2013. The agency did not identify the suspect but said he subsequently sought Swedish citizenship in 2017 and 2018, both denied, and applied again in August 2022. Eleanor Vincent, an American author vacationing in Annecy, told the Associated Press of her shock at seeing an emergency helicopter descending to the picturesque park. “As soon as I heard the sirens and saw police running, I knew something horrible was happening. I am in shock. It’s a park where they take children out to walk,” Vincent said. Crowds stood in “absolute silence,” dumbfounded as the tragedy unfolded, she said. “As a parent who has lost a child, I know what these parents are experiencing. It’s a horror beyond belief,” Vincent added. In Paris, politicians interrupted a debate to hold a moment of silence for the victims. The assembly president, Yaël Braun-Pivet, said: “There are some very young ch

Auckland councillors will be back around the table at 10am this morning after being unable to agree on the council's budget. Mayor Wayne Brown proposed a compromise mid-way through yesterday's meeting, suggesting selling about half the council's holding in Auckland Airport, higher rates rises and more cuts to Council Controlled Organisations and local boards. Heart of the City chief executive Viv Beck told Kate Hawkesby businesses want a cost-effective, efficient council that's easier to work with, has less red tape and gives better value for money. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So the final march for the man known around Parliament as the Little General, Michael Wood, surely he’s gone by lunchtime. I mean being told to do something six times was already a lot, but to then find out it was in fact 12 times; come on. As the Nat’s Nicola Willis said yesterday, she sometimes has to ask her 13 year old son to do things 5 or 6 times; but 12 times? That’s next level. This is a cluster that Chris Hipkins can no longer ignore. Shifting $13,000 worth of shares is not that hard, let’s be honest. And you can’t argue you forgot when you got reminded about it 12 times. The PM must be so fed up with this Cabinet. I mean the state of it. Michael Wood, Stuart Nash, Meka Whaitiri, the Jan Tinetti saga, the Kiri Allan saga. Too many sagas, too many shambles and all too close to the election. Luxon said the wheels are coming off this Government, I’d argue they’re already off. It’s a clown car with wheels rolling around in all directions and the wheels are just hitting them all in the face now. Hipkins needs to salvage this somehow, he needs to look strong and decisive and managerial, he already let this whole thing loll around far too long - all weekend not dealing with it, he was too slow to even ask questions. And by the time he started asking questions, more was coming out and it was getting worse and worse, the hole was getting bigger and bigger. Here's the thing. We deserve better. Voters gave these guys the biggest majority ever to run this country, and look what they’ve done with that. Run it into the ground. Made a mockery of their time in office, bumbled, fumbled, lied, obfuscated, and in Michael Wood’s case, arrogantly assumed they’d get away with it all. The ultimate notice will be served to this government on October 14th, but in the interim, they just have to do better, they just have to stop this shambolic rule breaking misleading circus act they’re currently putting on. It’s funny isn’t it how people and polls and pundits are so focused on the Chris v Chris show. You know, Chippy from the Hutt with the sausage rolls versus flat old Luxon who looks a bit corporate and a bit boring. Well, the reality is, look at their teams. Look at who’s around them, look at what sort of government you’re having run the place. Look at whose handling the baubles of office, holding the purse strings and managing the country efficiently and honestly. Are you telling me it’s these guys? It’s Michael Wood and it’s Willie Jackson and it’s Jan Tinetti and it’s Ginny - ‘what Police operation?’ - Andersen? I mean come on. We deserve better. I don’t care how many sausage rolls Chris Hipkins eats, that’s not how we should be voting. Act’s David Seymour says in the interests of fairness and trust in public officials, it’s untenable Wood can stay on. Concealing a public interest, as Seymour pointed out, is banana republic behaviour and something we can’t accept. I mean I know the bar’s already too low in this country with this Government, but we can’t possibly lower it even further. The only honourable and appropriate thing to happen now, is for Michael to be sent into the Woods.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An animal welfare group wants more done to stop animals being used for science in New Zealand. The Ministry for Primary Industries' most recent report shows more than 308,000 animals were used for testing, teaching and research in 2021. Nearly half were then killed. Tara Jackson is the Executive Director of the NZ Anti-Vivisection Society and she joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the first time in 25 years, Arnott's will again manufacture products in New Zealand. The company is opening its new facility in Avondale, West Auckland today. It comes after it acquired the 180 Degrees cracker brand two years ago. Arnott's New Zealand Country Director Mike Cullerne told Kate Hawkesby it'll allow them to make more locally made products. He says they've partnered with Barkers of Geraldine to make a new shortbread range coming next month. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The actions of Michael Wood and Jan Tinetti probably won't be bad enough to end their political careers. Tinetti goes before the Privileges Committee today, accused of misleading the House about school attendance figures. And the Opposition is calling for Wood to resign or be fired, after revelations he was told to sell his Auckland Airport shares no fewer than 12 separate times. Massey University political commentator Grant Duncan told Kate Hawkesby Tinetti will probably be asked to apologise, while he doubts Wood's actions are a sackable offence. He says the rules aren't set in stone, as the Cabinet Manual is fairly open about what is a conflict of interest and what isn't. Wood says he's remorseful but has no plans to resign. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I see Consumer NZ is making a last ditch attempt to ping the supermarkets on dodgy pricing or so called specials that are not specials. They’re relying on us, the customers, to give them examples to strengthen their case, they say they’re “calling on New Zealanders to be the eyes and ears at the supermarket one last time to help gather as much evidence for the Commerce Commission as possible.” They’ve even designed a new form to make it easier to share examples of dodgy pricing. But the problem is, this falls again on us. Why should we have to be the eyes and ears of calling them out, why are the supermarkets not fixing this themselves and being a bit more proactive about not ripping us off. Especially now, in a cost of living crisis for goodness sake. Apparently, back in March, Consumer brought more than 300 examples of dodgy so called 'specials' to supermarket bosses attention. And while supermarkets apparently acknowledged these examples, they’ve done nothing about it. In fact, in the last two months Consumer says they’ve had more than 160 complaints highlighting pricing issues at supermarkets. So what’s changed? Absolutely nothing. Either the supermarkets are too big to be bothered, don’t care, know that Consumer NZ is toothless therefore are not worried, or arrogantly assume we just won’t notice. I think consumers are noticing though and I think they’re fed up with it – the numbers of complaints would indicate that’s the case. Putting the supermarkets ‘on notice’ as Consumer says it did back in March, has changed nothing. They’ve shown no interest in correcting their dodgy practices. So the things they’re worried about us the consumer paying attention to, in order to hold supermarkets to account, is stuff like misleading multi-buys. That’s when products are advertised as cheaper or a better deal if you buy them in bulk, as opposed to individually. So one real life example was four packets of rice crackers advertised as ‘4 packs for $5’ when in fact the crackers were a dollar and nine cents a packet individually to begin with, so you were actually paying more, to buy 4 packets of them. Now when I hear that, it really annoys me, but it’s the sort of thing I’d personally never stop to check, so is that on me? Like whose fault is that? The supermarkets’ for being unscrupulous and trying to rip me off? Or mine for not checking? But how much time do we have to check every little thing when we’re at the supermarket? I mean we’re busy, we may have kids with us, we may be in a hurry or we may be checking other stuff like ingredients lists or nutrition info. I mean how much time and attention do we have to give supermarket shopping? See I reckon we should be able to rely on supermarkets to not be ripping us off, we should be able to relax and know that they’re doing the right thing and making sure a deal is a deal, not making us second guess everything. But does that make me naïve? Or does it make them reprobates? So although Consumer NZ wants us to do the hard yards here and bust supermarkets on their dodgy pricing, I actually think it’s worth doing if it’ll make supermarkets finally sit up and take notice. My concern though is that they still won’t, because they’re too big to care.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Working habits are largely starting to return to pre-pandemic norms. A survey from media company JCDecaux New Zealand has found 89 percent of workers are working from the office for three or more days a week. Employment relations expert Max Whitehead says employment contracts need to make clear where people should work from. He told Kate Hawkesby employers will be welcoming it. He says bosses find there's better engagement, better productivity and better services for clients when people work in the office. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Claims the new vaping regulations don't go far enough to prevent young people's access to products. From August, disposable vapes will be banned and all devices will need to have removable or replaceable batteries. New vape retailers will no longer be able to operate within 300 metres of schools and marae. Paediatric Society of New Zealand spokesperson, Doctor Colette Muir told Kate Hawkesby the Government could have gone further. She says black and white packaging would lessen the appeal to young people. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Red meat exports are exceeding expectations despite the current financial market. The Meat Industry Association is reporting a two-percent increase in exports in April, worth almost $1 billion, compared to the previous year. The association's CEO Sirma Karapeeva told Kate Hawkesby things are improving after a slow start to the year. She says any increase is a sign of recovery, but she doubts they're out of the woods just yet. Karapeeva says economic conditions are still affecting the industry and need to be taken as it comes. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prince Harry has launched a fierce attack on what he calls the "vile" press. The Duke of Sussex and 100 others is accusing Mirror Group Newspapers of widespread unlawful information-gathering between 1991 and 2011. He's told the High Court in London he blames the tabloids for destroying his adolescence and later relationships. Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey told Kate Hawkesby they looked at 140 stories over a 14-year-period since 1996, which made for interesting evidence. He says the defence keeps pointing out Prince Harry has no direct evidence that hacking took place, it's just his suspicion. He adds the defence also stressed every story he referred to had also appeared in other newspapers as well. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I think what that new NZ Herald poll at the weekend on crime tells us is what we already knew, the Government's completely out of touch. It will be this, among other things, that will see them lose the election come October. Despite telling us over and over again that crime is down and that we all feel safer, you can only lie and feed us so much BS before your cover gets blown. And as it turns out, that turned up in the form of actual data over the weekend where a new survey polling New Zealanders showed in fact we feel less safe today than we did five years ago. This is not news to us, we know it, we’ve been telling the Government that for months, dairy owners, liquor store owners and retailers across the country have been telling them for months, we’ve all seen it, because it’s real. The survey showed that ‘two-thirds of Kiwis are more concerned about being a victim of crime today than they were five years ago, and harsher prison sentences and more police would make them feel safer.’ 1,000 respondents were asked ‘if they were more or less concerned about being the victim of a crime today than five years ago.’ ‘Sixty-seven per cent were more concerned, 28 per cent felt about the same and 5 per cent were less concerned. Concern in Auckland was higher than the national average. Why am I not surprised? As an Aucklander I know it’s the number one topic of conversation wherever you go. It’s forefront every time you walk or drive by shops and see all the boarded up glass, or the empty vacated shops. We don’t feel safe, because we know we are not safe. And despite government and the judiciary’s best attempts to keep everyone out of jails, Kiwis actually want the opposite. We don’t want crime and criminals emptied out onto our streets and into our communities, we want harsher penalties, we want more police. The survey asked what was important to improving their safety, ‘the most common answers were harsher prison sentences (34 per cent) and more police (27 per cent).’ The numbers when you look at them are stark, and depressing. From 2017 until 2022, reported victims of crime went up 11.9 percent. Offenders arrested went down 25.4 percent, convictions down 26.2 percent, prison sentences down 44.8 percent. That is a shocking example of statistics going the wrong way for a decent and thriving society. That’s unquestionably a government and judiciary soft on crime. How they can argue the opposite is beyond me. People imprisoned down 44.8 percent tells you everything you need to know about the ideology driven bollocks that has seen us end up here. There will always be those philosophical about crime and arguing we need to be more restorative, rehabilitative and holistic in our approach. Sure, let’s incorporate all of that, but let’s also not downplay crime while we’re at it. Because that’s dangerous and disrespectful to the victims and only sends a message to the perpetrators that committing a crime in this country is no big deal and you won’t be punished for it. Until we turn that around, we will continue to have the stats going the wrong way. And that's doing all of us, a disservice.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Red meat consumption is on the decline in New Zealand, as shoppers fill trolleys with chicken instead. A study out of Lincoln University shows that while nine in ten of us still eat meat, over all intake is lowering due to cost and health concerns. But it also found that chicken now makes up about a third of meals a week. Poultry Industry Association Executive Director Michael Brooks says people are more likely to continue buying chicken to save money. He says its versatility, being able to be dressed up or dressed down, will also be adding to the appeal. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An electoral law expert is supportive of some proposed changes to how we vote. The Independent Electoral Review Panel has suggested changes designed to make our electoral system fairer, clearer and more accessible. It includes changes to donations and lowering the party threshold from 5 percent to 3.5 percent. Graeme Edgeler says that change would allow greater diversity of thought. He told Kate Hawkesby it could prevent big parties going back on their promises. Edgeler says it would mean splinter groups could be more likely to get in and make a difference. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I think what we’ve seen this week is indicative of what we’re going to see for the rest of the election campaign from now until October. And that is – sideshows. And that’s the real let down for us the voters. We are being done a disservice not only by the politicians themselves but also the media covering them. What this country urgently needs is the basics. Roads fixed, hospitals functioning again, schools with students attending and passing, and crime sorted out. What we don’t need is the sideshow on bilingual road signs, who gets a free prescription and who doesn’t, who’s dog whistling and who isn’t. We deserve better. We have also got to stop this collective attack on anyone who dare question anything to do with Maori culture or Te Reo, it is not racist to say you don’t think bilingual road signs are a priority right now. To question the Government’s desire for this and then be deemed racist and a dog whistler when you do, is pathetic. This government has developed a modus operandi of lecturing us on how we should behave, how long we should spend in the shower, how we should read our road signs. They’re good at telling us what we should do, because they know best and us mere mortals are just not as enlightened as them. These are fringe issues at a time where we as a country are facing far more serious ones. Crime, for a start, looks like it’ll be kicked to touch until after the election. There are very few sitting days left for the Government to actually enact much - and that should worry all of us because what it means is that what we currently have is it. If you were hoping for more or better or different between now and October, you’re probably going to be disappointed. They’ll announce stuff, they just won’t be able to do much about it. But the pettiness of politics in election year is such a turn off. Doesn’t the name calling and the descending into side shows just put voters off? Politicians looking to bait opponents, media looking for ‘gotcha’ moments - a lot of it is beltway and a lot of it is BS. It doesn’t serve us, and it certainly doesn’t move this country forward. National would do themselves a favour by not allowing themselves to get dragged into the sideshows; my advice to them would be take a stance and stick to it - believe in your policies your pledges and your platitudes, and stick to them. People don’t like uncertainty and they don’t like wishy washy. But I think we deserve better from the political media too. Gotcha moments like turning up with Te Reo signs at Parliament and asking MP’s what they mean - really? Is that your best coverage? Newshub’s Jenna Lynch, who I think is their senior political reporter, wandered round with Te Reo signs asking MP’s what they meant and when she asked Chris Hipkins what Waka Kotahi meant, he knew it was NZ Transport but he couldn’t translate exactly what Waka Kotahi means. But when he served it right back at her and said, ‘well what does Te Papa mean?’ She of course couldn’t answer because she didn’t know either. Is this the best political news coverage we can get? Or is this school playground rubbish? My husband described the country this week as weary, angry and punch drunk. I think it’s true. But we need to sober up between now and October or we’re in real trouble.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Questions are being raised around the finer details of a plan to buy out cyclone affected properties. The Government will help fund council buyouts of about 700 category three properties where future severe weather event risks can't be sufficiently mitigated. Napier Mayor Kirsten Wise told Kate Hawkesby the plan is a significant milestone, but there are still some unanswered questions. Wise says they will be working closely with the Crown to sort these parts of the process. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A group of students is demanding the Government put the brakes on Victoria University's planned job cuts. The Wellington university is facing a $33 million deficit; so to combat this they're proposing to scrap up to 260 jobs and have put 59 courses under review. Due to the planned changes the group Victoria University Students Against Cuts is holding an emergency meeting at the uni today. Group member, Marcail Parkinson told Kate Hawkesby the Government has played a role in creating the issues. She says over the past decade, per student funding has fallen by 20 percent compared to inflation. Several hundred jobs are also set to go at Otago University, where applications for voluntary redundancy close today. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A detailed bit of work in the Herald today about a critical election issue, that being crime, law and order if you prefer, or the lack of it right now. Among other things, the work has found the number of people charged and convicted actually fell faster under the last National Government, than the current Labour Government. I think the idea there is to put a question mark into the air over which party, if it's either of them, is soft on crime. Apparently, when you allow for population growth, police are laying charges now at just over a third of the rate they did in 2009. Charges and convictions have dropped about a quarter in the past five years. But under the last National government, the number of people charged fell by 40 per cent, and convictions by 36 per cent. What this doesn't take into account is whether there was less crime in those years or what other factors were at play. And there's not a lot of point going back over those figures anyway, the reporting process has changed, what gets counted has changed so we wouldn't be comparing apples with apples. And I think sometimes there's a danger of relying solely on just one set of stats or another to prove or disprove one point of view or another. The fact is, if you've been affected by crime, it's not trivial and it's not about name-calling. It's an intrusion on your life, into your property, on your family and on your liberty. If it's happened to you personally, or someone around you even if you've witnessed something in the street it's real, it's destructive, it's frightening. When we see our society crumbling around us the way it is we're going to turn to what we understand. And what we understand, even when we want to be charitable to people committing crime, is that crime has to be punished. Whatever way you try to slice the numbers, we're living in a time of lawlessness. And until we see a response, some real action, this Government will be seen as soft on crime.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The tide may be turning on tumbling property values after three analysts all judged fresh real estate data shows a “possible floor in [house] prices is approaching”. New reports from OneRoof, CoreLogic and ANZ Bank point to potentially better times ahead for homeowners, despite interest rates likely staying higher for longer. Today’s latest OneRoof-Valocity House Index showed New Zealand’s average property value fell 2.3 per cent ($22,000) to $950,000 in the three months to the end of May, as successive interest rate rises put downward pressure on prices. Auckland’s average value fell a further 3.2 per cent ($43,000) over the quarter to $1.29 million, but there were some bright spots with Northland, Otago and West Coast enjoying lifts in their average property value, while the rate of decline slowed in Canterbury, Taranaki and Wellington. CoreLogic, in its own data released this morning, said property values fell nationwide in May but the rate of change had eased. The 0.7 per cent fall in May was “tentative evidence” the downturn was winding up, CoreLogic said. Average values were 10.2 per cent down on a year earlier, but still well above pre-lockdown levels in March 2020. CoreLogic NZ head of research Nick Goodall said indicators such as moderating house price declines and the latest Reserve Bank Official Cash Rate (OCR) forecasts were positive signs for homeowners. “While the OCR is at a relatively high level of 5.5 per cent following a total increase of 525 basis points over the last 20 months, this expected ceiling for interest rates reinforces our view that a possible floor in prices is approaching,” Goodall said. Earlier this week ANZ Bank New Zealand dialled back its expectations for house prices to keep heading south, predicting a relatively sharp turn in the near term. The country’s biggest lender is now forecasting a 1.6 per cent quarterly increase in each of the September and December quarters, having previously predicted a 0.4 per cent decline in the September period followed by a 0.4 per cent increase in December. That means ANZ’s economists forecast annual house prices to increase 0.1 per cent in the December quarter, an earlier turnaround than June 2024 quarter increase predicted just last month. ANZ said the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s muted response to the fiscal impulse in the Budget surprised its economics team, who had expected looser monetary policy than they’d previously predicted. “In short, housing tailwinds now appear to be blowing a little stronger than the headwinds. But we’re not convinced the RBNZ will be able to let that run,” the ANZ economists said in their property focus report. “We expect the RBNZ will need to tighten monetary conditions later in the year once all has been revealed in the data.” CoreLogic's head of research Nick Goodall. Photo / Supplied NZ Mortgages managing director Nathan Miglani said if the interest rate peak had not already been reached, the country was getting very close to it. “We anticipate rates beginning a gradual descent from late 2023, so our general advice is to fix for a short term where possible, say one year or 18 months,” Miglani added. “With interest rates likely to fall, fixing for a long term could mean a hefty breakage cost if circumstances change and you need to restructure early.” Some buyers believed rates had already peaked, and were now making decisions based on the idea rates will go down, Miglani said. “Despite the doomsday property market stories many Kiwis are hearing, average asking prices are still above what they were before Covid-19, and this should be viewed as good news for property owners concerned about shrinking equity,” he added. There are still forces pulling against property values, however. New listings coming onto the market were at a 16-year low this autumn, plunging to almost the same levels as seen during the 2020 lockdown. New property listings are at a low. Photo / 123RF OneRoof’s report highlighted continued uncertainty in the country’s biggest housing market with a 3.2 per cent decline in Auckland over the last quarter - a signal that house prices in that region have still a way to go before they hit the bottom. Nationwide sales volumes in the three months to the end of May were down nearly 38 per cent year-on-year. OneRoof editor Owen Vaughan said the drop in new listings volumes was having a draining effect on the market, with only two regions, Taranaki and Southland, recording an annual increase in May. “Nationwide new listings in May were down 12 per cent on the month before and down 21 per cent year-on-year. The drop-off in new stock coming to market was steepest in Wellington, with new listings in the region down 41 per cent year-on-year. In Auckland, the reluctance to list is hitting overall stock numbers. Total listings for the region are down nearly 4 per cent year-on-year,” Vaughan said. “Falling house prices and falling sales have kept vendors on the sidelines throughout autumn and will need a

The Police Association says a fall in prosecutions doesn't mean a fall in crime. The number of people charged with non-traffic offences has halved since 2009. Herald analysis has found between 2017 and 2022, the total number of people charged and convicted for all offences dropped by a quarter. That number fell at an even faster rate under the National governments of Sir John Key - and rose the most under Helen Clark's Labour administrations. Association President Chris Cahill told Tim Dower people don't feel as safe as they did 10 years ago. He says frontline cops say there's certainly more visible crime than 10 years ago. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Battle is brewing over those Auckland Airport shares currently owned by Auckland Council. The Council actually inherited 22 percent of the airport when it was formed and since then there's been a capital raising by the airport which has diluted that holding down to 18 percent. But it's worth well over $2 billion; enough to plug that Budget gap six or seven times over. So, the Council's in a bit of a spot. Their choices are either a great big rates increase, or some pretty serious cuts or sell part or all of the family silver. Mayor Wayne Brown wants to flick the shares - and you can see the logic of that. Part of the argument for keeping the shares has been the dividend, but there hasn't been one of those in more than three years, there may be later this year, we'll see. And until recently those shares brought with them seats on the airport's board, which something the Super City chose not to take up, but not an irreversible move if you hold the shares. Now, should local bodies be involved in business activities? By and large, the answer to that is definitely not. They should stick to core public service activities like cleaning the streets, taking away the rubbish, keeping the reserves and parks tidy or fix the stormwater and so on. But I'd argue the airport is core to the functioning of the region. Apart from being a huge employer it's a vital piece of infrastructure and that remaining shareholding, even without seats on the board, could prove crucial one day. Once you sell it, that's it, gone for good - and given the way the Council runs its affairs, that big nest egg will be gone in a couple of years. Selling the shares is a quick but only temporary solution to a long-standing and deep-rooted problem. Auckland Council is that problem. It's over-reaching, hopelessly inefficient, out of control and wasteful. Flicking off its best asset won't fix any of that.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.