Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Tonight on The Huddle, former Green Party MP Gareth Hughes and Infrastructure NZ CEO Nick Leggett joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Air New Zealand CEO Nikhil Ravishankar wants airports around the country to stop giving Jetstar an 'advantage' with discounts that allows them to run cheaper flights. What do we make of this? The Northland business chamber has suggested many businesses in the area won't want to join a class action lawsuit against Transpower because they just want to move on from the collapsed pylon saga? Do we think the business owners will get on board?  New research shows millennials are the first generation to drift further left than their older counterparts. Why do we think this is? LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 27 November 2025, Attorney-General Judith Collins tells Heather why she's called a public inquiry on the Tom Phillips case. Air NZ's new boss has asked airports to stop supporting Jetstar's competition edge by giving them discounts. Jetstar CEO Stephanie Tully speaks to Heather - and Heather reveals why she's booked her first flight on the orange bird. Mike Colson KC explains why he's getting involved in a class action lawsuit against Transpower and Omexom over the toppled power pylon saga. Is NZ becoming more litigious?   Aussie researchers reckon millennials are the first generation to not become more conservative with age. Why is that? Plus, the Huddle debates millennials' politics and flying Jetstar. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can I give you a positive spin on the recession that we're just coming out of? I mean, maybe it's not so much a positive spin, but maybe it's an explanation for why this recession was harder than it needed to be - but why it actually did need to be this hard. If you've been following the commentary around the Reserve Bank's last two OCR decisions, you'll know there's been a fair bit of chat about the wealth effect and how that has made the recession worse. Now, the wealth effect is the thing that happens when your house goes up in value. You feel rich - you’re not rich, you just feel rich - so you go out and spend more money. And then, of course, when it does the opposite and goes down in value, you feel poor. You're not poor, you just feel it, so you shut your wallet. And that is part of the reason why this recession has dragged - because our house prices are not going up. They have gone backwards, and so we're not spending, which means that we're not spending our way out of the recession. Now, the thing about this is that the Reserve Bank has actually done things to deliberately keep our house prices suppressed, right? Things like debt-to-income ratios. Some of the stuff is not their fault, like people leaving the country and therefore not wanting to buy a house - supply and demand, blah blah blah - but some of it is the fault of the Reserve Bank, who've done this deliberately. And I warned you about this on the show before. I said this to you in August, I said I was worried that the Reserve Bank was keeping house prices depressed and that it would drag out this recession longer, which it has. And I've been talking privately to Brad Olsen about it as well, who's been keeping an eye on it too, and we've been debating the merits of it. But here's the silver lining - we actually needed to let go of this property obsession. It's been hard, but we needed to do it because we have got to stop putting our money into property and we've got to start putting our money into businesses and other productive assets.  And this is the breakup that we needed to have. No breakup is nice, and this one isn't either. So I text Brad Olsen this morning, yet again. He goes, “Oh, here we go. Here's a text from Heather.” I said, “Brad, are you still sure that it was worth it to break up with our property obsession given how hard it has made this recession?” And he just replied with, “Yes, I do.” So what I would say is, if you're doing the glass-half-full thing, at least we will come out of this recession less in love with houses and more likely to put our dollars into stuff that will actually make New Zealand richer - and that's got to be a good thing. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank has blamed the ongoing recession on an uncertain property market, prompting experts to weigh in. New Zealand has traditionally relied on housing as an engine of growth, but years of flat property prices have reportedly contributed to the ongoing economic downturn. Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Inland Revenue Department has launched some new steps in bringing down tax debt - with one scheme linked to a key credit agency. Following a successful pilot, the IRD will report more recalcitrant tax debtors to credit reporting agency Centrix. Centrix Group Managing Director Keith McLaughlin says this scheme is designed to bring down company debt at this stage, not personal debt. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Strong signals from the Government suggesting the rights and privacy of the children will be paramount in the Tom Phillips inquiry.  Police shot the fugitive dead in September after he was on the run with his kids in the Waikato bush for four years.  NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan explained what this case could uncover. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Business as usual for Jetstar, despite Air New Zealand taking a swipe at its airport discounts.  Air New Zealand head Nikhil Ravishankar claimed airports are unfairly subsidising the Qantas-owned airline - on our most profitable air routes.  BusinessDesk reports Ravishankar says that includes open-ended discounted landing rights and cost cutting deals.  Jetstar CEO Stephanie Tully says they're just focused on running their own race.  "The reality is, we've been trying really hard to make sure that we've got a great value proposition in the New Zealand market - and it's great that more Kiwis are giving us a go." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank is addressing concerns cash is becoming inaccessible by bringing money to rural communities.   It has opened a 12-month trial of a cash depot in Hawke's Bays' Waipukurau - offering a closer site to make withdrawals. Local banks have recently closed, meaning the nearest ATM for locals is 50 kilometres away. Reserve Bank Money and Cash Director, Ian Woolford, says, currently, only businesses can use the depot for cash. "It's quite surprising, about a third of where people get their money from is actually from a retailer...but people might be noticing retailers are increasingly saying - well, we don't really want to accept cash." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Businesses are taking class-action over a power outage to of all Northland last year - although the exact loss is still unknown. In June, an inexperienced worker removed nuts from three legs of a pylon, which toppled, cutting electricity to almost the entire region. An opt-out class action against Transpower and its lines maintenance contractor is progressing through the courts.  Stout Street Chambers partner, Mike Colson, says losses will be calculated in due course.  "It's giving Northland businesses an opportunity to be compensated - and second, an opportunity to incentivise those working on critical infrastructure to do a good job out of it." See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Agency actions regarding the children of fugitive Tom Phillips are going under the microscope, with a report due back mid-next year.  Phillips was on the run nearly four years, ending only when he died in September in a police shootout. Attorney-General Judith Collins says questions will be asked about what Government agencies did to protect the children, what they knew - and did or didn't do. "In this situation, what we can look into is what the Government agencies knew, what they did, and what they didn't do. Should they have done more?" LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Australian state of Victoria will be formally apologising to indigenous people for colonisation next month. The symbolic action will be delivered by State Premier Jacinta Allan - acknowledging ongoing harm and injustices and land being taken without consent. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says this comes after a first-nations Justice Commission report recommended 100 actions - and more changes will be made as a result. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ahmedabad will host the 2030 Commonwealth Games centenary edition. The decision has been ratified by the organisation's general assembly in Glasgow. India sees the event as a launching pad to bid for the 2036 Olympics. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Millennials are the first generation to get more left-wing as they age, according to new reports.  A study by the Australian National University has found the age group's support  for Australia's right-wing coalition fell between 2016 and 2025 -  from 38 percent to 21 percent. Study Author Sarah Cameron says education and gender are playing a role.  "It used to be that women were slightly further right, and then were slightly further left. Over time, that gender gap - it's reversed." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Four more people have been arrested as as result of last month's high-profile robbery at the Louvre Museum. Two men, aged 38 and 39, and two women, aged 31 and 40, all from the Paris region, were recently arrested. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says police now have 96 hours to question these new suspects.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leaky-home experts fear a proposed overhaul of the Building Act could leave unlucky home owners - apartment owners in particular - in financial ruin. Under the new regime, liabilities are only assigned to the party responsible, and for many new buildings, a warranty will be required. NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny unpacks the concerns further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday, 26 November 2025, Reserve Bank Governor Christian Hawkesby tells Heather why the bank decided to cut the OCR again - and whether that's the end of cuts. Ports of Auckland boss Roger Gray has criticised Kiwi's culture of "no", saying people call us "No Zealand" overseas. Does he have a point? Another summer, another festival cancelled. Promoter Brent Eccles on what's going on, and how we can make sure we definitely get our tickets reimbursed in the future. Climate Change Minister Simon Watts calls Heather's bluff and pops into the studio. Plus, the Huddle debates high tech cars - and whether they're actually annoying (despite reducing the number of crashes)! Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank ended the year on a hopeful note and brought down the OCR for the end of 2025. The central bank cut the Official Cash Rate another 25 basis points today - bringing it to 2.25 percent. Milford Asset Management's Sam Trethewey explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So the Ports of Auckland boss Roger Gray is onto something, isn't he? Because we are a country that loves to say no. He said in a speech to a crowd at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron in Auckland that he went to Miami to speak to four major cruise liners to find out why the cruise ships aren't coming here as much as they used to. And he apparently says that they call us 'No Zealand' because we just say no to everything. Is he wrong? I mean, look at the news that's been around just for the last couple of days, right? Santana wants to dig $7 billion worth of gold out of the ground near Cromwell. The locals say no. Eric Stanford wants to change the curriculum so our kids can actually get a decent international education and have a future ahead of them. The unions say no. Chris Bishop wants to scrap regional councils because they just waste everyone's time and money and say no to things, and the perpetually concerned looked at that and said no. We say no so much that the Government has created the fast-track approvals process to basically bulldoze through all the 'no's' they know are gonna come. Some of it is the rules that we've created for ourselves, right? Because the RMA is just one giant no factory. But some of it, I think, is actually cultural. We have a great life here in New Zealand, even if you're rich or poor, whatever your circumstances, you can enjoy your life in New Zealand. Temperatures aren't too extreme, there aren't creatures trying to kill you all the time like in Australia, foreign enemies aren't trying to kill us all the time like places in Europe, and we don't actually really have to struggle too much to get by. So we can cruise, and so we do cruise. So we just don't try. We just say no, we just don't want to change that much. On the bright side, I think this attitude is changing at the minute.  I mean, I hate to make things about politics all the time and look to politicians for help, but I think it is because we have some brave political leaders at the moment who are prepared to ruffle some feathers. The mayor of Auckland who was just getting on with changing the port and making money for the city, and the RMA minister Chris Bishop who's scrapping the regional councils, which is a massive thing to do. And everyone's crush, Erica Stanford, who's completely overhauling education despite the educators saying no to her. So when we have to say yes, when the going gets tough like it is right now, I think that we can say yes. My hope is, though, that we get stuck in the yes setting and we stay here and break the habit of the constant no setting. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Q&A and ZB Saturday Mornings host Jack Tame and Kiwiblog writer and Curia pollster David Farrar joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  Port of Auckland CEO Roger Gray has slammed new Zealand's culture of saying no - and that it's off-putting to prospective investors. Does he have a point here? Mayors and regional councillors have had mixed reactions to the Government's decision to reform local Government. What do we think of all this?  New reports show car crashes have come down thanks to new technological developments. How much do we rely on this tech while driving? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government says offshore carbon credits could be bought in the future - but not yet. Climate Minister Simon Watts says all options are being considered, but they've ruled out shopping overseas this term. But for New Zealand to meet Paris Agreement targets signed up to in 2016, it may be necessary - and work is under way so it's an option down the line. Watts says he is focusing on domestic actions. "The reality is, I actually think - and I'm pretty optimistic - we're looking pretty good in terms of our emissions reduction." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Port of Auckland's CEO says a 'no' culture has permeated New Zealand.  Roger Gray says a cruise ship representative he spoke to in the US labelled our country 'No Zealand'. Gray says they claimed excessive regulation made things too difficult for them. He says he doesn't think it's the case in Australia. "I think Australians are a bit more optimistic and go - yeah, let's have a crack. We're a bit more sit back and a bit more conservative."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New advancements in technology are reportedly behind a significant decrease in car crashes. Collisions have dropped 7 percent each year over the last two years, according to the latest AMI motor report. AA Principal Policy Advisor Terry Collins says adaptive cruise control and autonomous emergency braking are among the recent developments that have made all the difference. "We know that accidents occur when people try to do their best and some things happen through inattention. What they do is they give you that physical warning - or they apply the breaks when something happens unexpectedly." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least one Wellington mayor says it's time district councils combined into one. The Government's proposing replacing regional councillors with boards of district mayors.  They'll have two years from establishment, to put up a regional plan for future local Governments. Porirua mayor Anita Baker says the Wellington region should grab this opportunity.  She explained Hutt City and Porirua residents have already said yes to amalgamation, and Wellington city mayor Andrew Little doesn't seem opposed either.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank's outgoing Governor says New Zealand's economy may be doing better than we realise. The central bank has cut the OCR 25 basis points today - to 2.25 percent. Christian Hawkesby says the economy already appears to be recovering from this year's downturn. He says what's unclear - is its pace. "The recovery could be faster and stronger than we expect, because we have cut interest rates a long way and it could really start coming through quite quickly." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government recently unveiled their plans to make changes to local Government, and it's prompted additional speculation. It's proposing replacing the country's 11 regional councils with boards made up of local mayors. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan speculated about some further changes. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ukraine officials say they've agreed to the 'essence' of a peace deal with Russia, but some sensitive issues are still to resolve. US President Donald Trump says a deal is close and US and Russian officials have been meeting separately in Abu Dhabi on discussions. Reports indicate it's now expected Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy will meet within the next week. US correspondent Jonathan Kearsley says the final deal will come down to whether or not Russia accepts the proposed changes. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Black Caps cricketers have been grouped with Afghanistan, South Africa, Canada and the UAE for the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8. The marquee pool fixture will see India and Pakistan meet on February 15 in neutral Colombo.  Sri Lanka will also host any play-off matches involving Pakistan, due to the latter's ongoing political tension with India. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A promoter says concerts in New Zealand have a bright future, despite some high-profile cancellations.  Tauranga reggae festival One Love and Taranaki's WOMAD have called off their 2026 showings. Promoter Brent Eccles says other festivals like Electric Avenue are doing very well.  He says there are plenty of future opportunities.  "And I think you'll find that next year, with this new Government scheme that's going on, a lot will be announced." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Tuesday, 25 November 2025, regional councils are about to get the axe. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop explains what will replace them, and why it's hopefully going to lower your rates. Massively promising results from the new maths curriculum, as kids are finally seeing a turnaround in their dropping results. GPs are welcoming plans to digitise the health system - to allow hospitals and doctors to all have access to a patient's health history. Plus, on the Huddle, freshly minted Labour candidate Craig Renney and Tim Wilson debate the changes for regional councils and Black Friday deals. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over in the UK, concerns have been raised over a new kind of brain drain as migration remains a consistent issue. A total of 257,000 British nationals are now thought to have left the country last year, 180,000 more than the initial estimate of 77,000. UK correspondent Enda Brady says rich-listers are among the high-profile Britons leaving, including steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal - who voiced displeasure with proposed tax changes. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Tim Wilson from the Maxim Institute and Labour candidate for Wellington Bays Craig Renney joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  The Government has confirmed it plans to make major changes to regional councils, including axing regional councillors and replacing regional councils with groups of local mayors. Do we think this is a good idea?  New reports show more universities are giving out more 'A' grades and it's prompted concern from some. Are we diluting excellence?  Black Friday's coming up this week, but the deals are already in full swing. Are we getting into it? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government has announced this afternoon that it is scrapping regional councils - and I reckon you need to put this on your list of some of the best news that you have heard in a long time for turning this country around. Regional councils have got to go. It's not so much the elected councillors, right? I mean, obviously they have to go as well.  But we simply don't need that layer of bureaucracy with regional councils, when we already have city and district councils and we already have central Government. It's just far too much. But scrapping the elected guys, that's only gonna save us a little bit of money. We're talking peanuts here. The real money is going to be saved in the stuff that happens in the back office at the regional councils, the stuff that's done by the unelected officials and the consultants that they bring in. And when I'm what I'm talking about here is the plans. Now let me tell you about the plans - you probably don't realize it because this stuff is so boring it will put you to sleep - but regional councils around this country are blowing tens of millions of dollars and wasting years upon years on planning new rules. The Waikato Regional Council's Healthy Rivers Plan Change 1, let's just call it PC1 for short - PC1 at last count has cost $23 million. That was about 3 years ago. The plan is not even fully implemented yet, so you can add to that $23 million. Now, that is just the plan for the rivers in the Waikato. It's not the plan for rivers anywhere else in the country, it's for nothing else in the Waikato, just the rivers in Waikato - and it's already cost $23 million. Bear in mind every single region, and there are 11 of them, makes its own plans. So you could take that $23 million and just add to it. Around this country, we're just racking up the millions. This stuff, as I said, takes years. The Waikato river plan, PC1, that was notified in 2016. A decade on, it's still not in full operation because of appeals and all kinds of wrangles around it. And this is where huge amounts of the rates that you pay are wasted, right? So scrapping the regional councils is potentially a massive, massive saving for us. The question is  - what do the Nats replace it with? If they then replace the regional councils with a system where maybe we have just one set of rules or four sets of rules or ten sets of rules that regions can choose from, pre-written rules that they can roll out that they don't have to plan themselves rather than designing their own, that may in fact be a better system. Now the devil is in the details, but so far this has the potential to be some of the best news for this country. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank is set to deliver their final Monetary Policy Statement for 2025 tomorrow, and reports indicate the OCR will be cut further. Economists are widely expecting the OCR to drop 25 basis points to 2.25  percent - with room for further cuts down the line.  HSBC chief economist Paul Bloxham speculated further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fonterra's forewarning farmers falling global dairy prices could hit their bottom lines. The dairy co-op recently cut its seasonal farmgate milk payout midpoint forecast - from $10 to $9.50. It paid out $10.16 last season. The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Newly elected regional councillors are in for a big change, with sweeping Government reforms. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop recently unveiled plans to replace the country's 11 regional councils with boards consisting of local mayors.  He suggests this will streamline decision-making, planning and infrastructure across regions. LGNZ Regional Sector Chair Deon Swiggs says the mandate for mayors is different, so they wouldn't have expected to be on a regional board.  "There might be some mayors that go - great, yep, we want to get our hands on that regional council. There will be others who go - this is not my jam, I don't want to do that, what are you thinking?" LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's revelations a rise in top grades at universities may not be down to New Zealanders getting smarter. Analysis by the New Zealand Initiative reveals 'A ' grades have increased from 22 percent to 36 percent of all grades since 2006. B grades have fallen from 47 percent to 38, while C grades have dropped from 20 percent to 17. NZ Initiative research fellow Dr James Kierstead says 'A' grades are becoming the most common grade for university assignments and that shouldn't be the case. "It's not really something we want to follow the US in, because grade inflation's been a big deal in the states and it's helped undermine half a dozen universities there." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's belief from experts that efforts to launch a single electronic medical record are 'well overdue'. The Government is embarking on a 10-year Health Digital Investment Plan to improve Health New Zealand's digital infrastructure.  The single record would replace 6,000 different systems currently in use. College of GPs Medical Director Luke Bradford says it's needed.  "We've been doing fragmented, piecemeal, bespoke solutions that don't get delivered for years, so this is something that we can at least build towards." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is proposing one of the biggest reform packages around local Government in decades. Ministers are launching consultation on major proposals - including replacing regional councils with boards made up of mayors from the region's city and district councils.  It would aim to streamline decision-making, planning and infrastructure across regions - and boards would prepare a regional reorganisation plan within two years of being set up. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop says it's time to re-examine local Government and make changes. "It would be the biggest shake-up since 1989, but we think, given we're going to make these changes to the way in which we do things locally anyway, now's the time to basically do it all." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's proposing to abolish regional councils, and replace them with boards made up of mayors from the region's city and district councils. The proposals would deliver the most significant reforms to local Government since 1989. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says more details will be revealed later down the line.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australian politician Pauline Hanson has been suspended from Parliament for seven days after refusing to apologise for wearing a burqa in the Senate. The One Nation leader caused outrage yesterday when she walked in wearing the religious garment. Just five senators voted against the motion to censure her.  Australian correspondent Murray Olds unpacked the reactions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Not much changes between formats for Blair Tickner, who's included in the 14-strong Black Caps squad for next week's opening cricket test against the West Indies in Christchurch. The 32-year-old, who performed well when called on across the white ball fixtures against the Windies, has spent the past two English County seasons playing for Derbyshire. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A-pluses all round for a nationwide maths trial. The $40 million Government programme targeted 1500 Year 7 and 8 students needing extra support, through small-group tutoring up to four times a week.  Education Minister Erica Stanford says early indicators show students averaged one to two years progress.  "It tells me that there's no substitute for excellent, explicit teaching in a structured way. And what that shows is that when we have a curriculum that supports that and professional learning and development that supports that, then you get these results."  All schools who requested to be part of the programme have been accepted.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ukrainian officials are expressing their thanks to the US, following disgruntled comments from the US President. Officials from both sides are negotiating details of the proposed 28-point peace plan in Switzerland,  which includes Ukraine ceding territory and reducing its military. Earlier this morning, Donald Trump accused Ukrainian leaders of showing zero gratitude over US peace efforts. UK correspondent Gavin Grey unpacked the ongoing discussions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank is set to make an announcement this week, and experts are expecting at least one more cut to the OCR. Markets are projecting the OCR will be cut down to 2.25, and they've priced it in accordingly. Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer and political commentator Liam Hehir and Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  New reports claim New Zealand's wasting 1.2 million tonnes of food every year - but most of it is thrown away during production before it makes its way to the supermarket. What do we make of this? Ahead of the election, National is promising to increase KiwiSaver contributions by 2032 as part of their election campaign. Will this get votes? Speaking of the election, new polls show prospective voters are in favour of adjusting any capital gains tax for inflation. Labour has no plans to take this on board - should they consider this? Plenty of media commentators have outlined their concerns with Air New Zealand this week. Do we agree Air New Zealand needs to improve themselves? Will more Kiwis jump to Jetstar?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 24 November 2025, if you're building a new home or doing a biggish renovation you'll soon be forced to buy a building warranty in case of building faults. Building Minister Chris Penk talks to Heather about the details. Koura's Rupert Carlyon says employers should be stopped from decreasing salaries to accommodate higher Kiwisaver contribution rates. The eye-watering amount of food that gets thrown away every year - and the surprising worst offender. Finance Minister Nicola Willis hits back at suggestions that Prime Minister Chris Luxon might get rolled by one of his MPs. Plus, the Huddle debates why we're so fed up with Air New Zealand, its service and especially its prices! Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New surveys show Auckland business confidence is on the up, with reports indicating businesses are feeling less pessimistic ahead of the new year. Auckland Business Chamber CEO Simon Bridges says the latest November survey shows the city isn't 'out of the woods' but it's no longer 'stuck in the darkest part of the forest'. Bridges says there's room for the economy to improve, but the OCR's coming down and farmers are making more money - and things are feeling more hopeful. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's growing speculation that National is looking to oust Chris Luxon as leader ahead of the election, but Finance Minister Nicola Willis is disputing these rumours. Reports have claimed National is looking to replace Luxon with Chris Bishop, but this is mostly speculation. Nicola Willis says the party has a Prime Minister who's delivering significant reforms - and making good on the promises National campaigned on. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's talk about Air New Zealand. Look, if I was Air New Zealand, I would feel pretty beaten up after the weekend's opinion pieces. Bruce Cotterill  wrote a piece in one newspaper complaining that if Air New Zealand want to charge as much as they do, then they have to do the job better and be on time more often. And then, Sam Stubbs wrote a piece in another newspaper telling them to stop overcharging domestic travellers. Now, I cannot explain the timing. I can't explain why both those guys wrote harsh pieces about the same airline on the same weekend. But what's weirder about it is that I almost did exactly the same thing.  I almost had a bit of a rant about Air New Zealand myself this weekend, because I had to pull out of an event on account of their ticket prices. What it was is the husband and I were planning to go to a thing in Wellington. We started doing all the organizing, had the babysitter covered, organized to work out of Wellington for the day - and we went to book the flights and saw the flight prices. It was pretty close to $1000 return per person, and I could not justify that. That is ridiculous. Now, I don't have a problem, as I've said 1000 times to you, with Air New Zealand making as much money as it wants to. I wanted to make money, I'm a shareholder - and we all are shareholders through the Government. It does have to balance that with customer loyalty though, because Air New Zealand is now so overpriced that I cannot justify using it. For the first time in my working life, I don't have Koru anymore, I cannot justify the expense. And while I have the same problem as Bruce Cotterill, I don't want to fly Jetstar out of loyalty to Air New Zealand. But I reckon, give it a year. Because I reckon this time next year, I'm going to be flying Jetstar. The flight from Auckland to Wellington on Air New Zealand for the event was $500 per person, just one way, right? Auckland to Wellington, $500. The same flight on Jetstar at a better time was about $150. That's Air New Zealand's problem right there, they're chasing their customers away. One day, they're gonna wake up - and they don't realize it now - but they're gonna be surprised at how popular Jetstar is and they're gonna regret the fact that heaps of us tried out the orange bird and found it's not that bad. And Air New Zealand will want us back and struggle to get us back. And maybe the reason that Bruce and Sam - and maybe even me - criticized Air New Zealand on the same weekend is that we're only saying what everybody's already thinking. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand farms and food producers appear to be outpacing other countries when it comes to reducing food waste. A report commissioned by the Ministry of Environment reveals more than 1.2 million tonnes of food is wasted or thrown away here every year. The total proportion of food wasted is between 5 and 10 percent - considerably lower than the global estimate of 30 to 40 percent. University of Otago nutrition professor and report author Sheila Skeaff says household food waste is still as high as most other countries, but producers are ahead. "We produce a lot of food and we're pretty good at making sure that we make the best use of that, particularly on farms and in processing." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.