The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Deputy Labour leader Carmel Sepuloni thinks Darleen Tana should resign. The Greens have asked Tana to resign from parliament after receiving the report on alleged migrant exploitation at her husband's business. She was suspended on full pay for the 115 days it took. Tana's now left the party, but not parliament. Sepuloni told Andrew Dickens Tana needs to do the right thing and walk away. She says there's a lot of public pressure, and the public sentiment is that she needs to step away. National's Mark Mitchell says Kiwis inherently have a strong sense of what's wrong and right, and the public are speaking clearly. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are expectations the Reserve Bank will leave the OCR untouched once again. The Official Cash Rate's been held at 5.5% the last six times in a row. Many bank economists believe it'll be held again while the Reserve Bank waits for more evidence inflation's falling back towards its target band of one to three percent. ASB Chief Economist Nick Tuffley told Andrew Dickens they think there are some encouraging signs that inflation will fall and be back within the target band fairly soon. He said that people just need to hang in a little longer. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Auckland Council has confirmed the venue for next year's SailGP. It's hosting the start of the Australasian leg in January after Christchurch proved too problematic and it was moved. Auckland Unlimited Chief Executive Nick Hill says the international event will be based just off Wynyard Point. He told Andrew Dickens it will be under the Harbour Bridge with a grandstand close to the water. Hill says all previous legal and environmental issues in the area have been dealt with, to have the event how SailGP's always wanted it. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Canterbury construction boss says remote building inspections is one of several tools that could speed up the building process. The Government says the current in-person inspections mean long delays as builders stop work while they wait for an available appointment. David Reid Homes Canterbury Director of Construction, Carl Fordyce told Andrew Dickens remote inspections sped things up during Covid-times. But, he says, a look at the consenting and resource management processes is where both time and cost could be saved. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s hopes changes to car import regulation will ease costs. The Government's watering down regulations brought in by the previous government, that encouraged importers to bring in less polluting vehicles by charging an emissions standard. Imported Motor Vehicle Industry Association chief executive Greig Epps told Andrew Dickens while it won't change car prices overnight, it's good news for consumers. He says it will stop vehicles becoming more expensive. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was a punishing election for conservative and national parties across the UK. Overall, Labour gained 211 seats, giving them a firm majority in the House of Commons, leader Keir Starmer becoming the new Prime Minister. UK Correspondent Rod Liddle told Andrew Dickens that although Labour was elected with a massive majority, it’s only just under 2% more than they got when Jeremy Corbyn was the leader of the party. He said that it’s absolutely clear that nobody within the country wants Labour or the Tories to run the country, and he thinks they know that. Liddle said Labour knows they have a lot of winning over to do before they go into the next election, five years from now. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another legendary Kiwi band is making a return. Though we thought they were done in 2020, Th' Dudes are performing a one-off show at Auckland’s Powerstation next month. They’ve got the blessing of Dave Dobbyn, who isn’t involved, picking up renowned guitarist Brett Adams of the Mockers and the Bads fame instead. Founding member Peter Urlich told Andrew Dickens that when they played those last songs at Spark Arena in 2020, he was looking around and thinking ‘is this really gonna be the last time we get up on stage and play these songs?’ “There was just this feeling inside me that I thought, oh well, you know, that’s, that’s hard to swallow.” He said that in the intervening four years they looked at the idea of performing again, and realised the demand was still there. “I just thought the love was still there, so and of course, we wanted to play.” LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s more important – what you own or how hard you work? New research from online investment platform Stake reveals twice as many Kiwis think what you own is more important. It found that fewer Kiwis define financial success as having a business or a good job title, and four in five think we’ll be working past the retirement age. Plus, 60% of respondents believe that the intergenerational wealth gap is holding young Kiwis back. Stake CEO Jon Howie told Andrew Dickens that the survey shows that over the past few years there’s been asset price inflation, both in property and things like listed shares. He said that if you’re lucky to own those coming into a period of growth in asset prices, you’ve done very well. Howie said that the survey shows that young investors in particular are starting to realise that, and they’re starting to take action and look to control the decisions they make about their financial futures. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

House prices are beginning to drop. The QV House Price index showed a decrease of 0.9% nationally in the three months to the end of June, which remains 2.6% higher than last year’s figure. Auckland prices saw a 2.6% decrease, but South Island prices are remaining strong overall. QV Operations Manager James Wilson told Andrew Dickens that it's a case of the main urban areas pulling the nationwide overall value down. He said that it represents the mindset that they’ve seen for a while now of caution. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 9th of July, Green Party co-leader Chloe Swarbrick talks about the Darleen Tana report and tries to bat away questions about transparency and cost. Acting Prime Minister Winston Peters responds to the Tana scandal and tells us what we'll get out of the PM's U.S trip. 'Th Dudes' are returning for a one-off show after telling us they were done in 2020. So Peter Urlich and friends tells us why they're coming back and where you'll next hear 'Bliss'. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After spending 114 days, more than half her Parliamentary career, suspended, Darleen Tana was defiant after she left the Green Party over the weekend, jumping before she was pushed. She remains as an MP for now, unless she heeds the plea of Green co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick to “please resign” from Parliament altogether, or the Greens decide to invoke the waka-jumping bill, controversial among party members – and which the Greens had tried to repeal as recently as three years ago. After going to ground, Tana released a statement on Monday evening, saying she did “not accept” the findings of an independent report into allegations involving her connections to alleged migrant exploitation at her husband’s bike company. Tana said she was “deeply concerned” by the way the Greens had summarised its findings. “The report does not say that migrant exploitation has occurred, let alone that I am responsible for it in any capacity,” Tana said. Tana said she did not have “natural justice” and the party had a “pre-determined view” of what it wanted to do with her. Tana quit the party after a long caucus meeting on Sunday at which she was given the chance to respond to the conclusions of the report. Swarbrick said the report showed Tana’s conduct fell “far short of the expectations” set for Green MPs. Tana then left the meeting to allow the caucus to debate and decide on her fate. Before the caucus could decide, Tana quit. Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told Newstalk ZB’s Andrew Dickens that the scandal was a “disgrace”. He said he thought she “probably won’t” leave parliament, and would instead join the Te Pāti Māori. “She’s still there, and she should not be there, in the sense that everybody should be accountable and she’s not.” Peters claimed the Greens were “not doing everything they can” to ensure she leaves Parliament. ”They could expel her… they could make it very clear that she is no longer a member of their party.” Christopher Luxon is making a crucial visit to the United States, during a crucial time for the world. The Prime Minister is due to touch down in Washington DC this afternoon. On his agenda are meetings with Nato leaders and influential Republican law maker Ted Cruz. Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters told Dickens the visit comes during a time of huge uncertainty for the western world. He says the escalating war in Ukraine will be of huge concern for Nato countries, and the US, French and UK elections have all been going through pivotal elections. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gun control advocates want more regulation on a firearm popular among gangs. The 782 Alfa carbines and Alfa hunters look indistinguishable from a handgun once its barrel and stock are cut off. One hundred and 63 of them were imported and passed on to criminals from 2019-2021. Gun Control NZ Co-Founder Nick Green told Andrew Dickens there is no reason they should be legal. He says semi-automatic guns have been regulated, and the Alfa carbines should be no different. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chloe Swarbrick says they'll continue asking Darlene Tana to resign from Parliament. The request was made yesterday after the party received the investigation into alleged migrant exploitation at her husband's business. Tana's been suspended on full pay for 115-days. She doesn't accept the findings, claiming it substantially misrepresents her level of involvement in her husband's business. Tana's resigned from the party but not yet parliament. Swarbrick told Andrew Dickens that if Tana believes in the principles the party was elected on, she needs to recognise the bigger picture. She says New Zealand voters expect the Green Party to be entitled to the 15 seats it won at the election. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s scepticism over how well the surprise winners of France's parliamentary election will work together. The left wing New Popular Front coalition beat out the centrist Ensemble party and far-right National Rally, who had been hopefuls after a successful first round of voting just over a week ago. French Correspondent Catherine Field told Andrew Dickens the NPF has been together all day just trying to decide who will lead their negotiations. She says she'd have very little confidence in them, adding they're made up of such a wide range of left-wing opinions. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast for Monday the 8th of July, how many of our new roads of national significance will be tolled? All of them says the Government, as long as the NZTA signs it off. An absolutely huge win for Lulu Sun in Wimbledon to continue her record breaking run for a Kiwi female tennis player as she advances into the quarterfinals. Speaking of sport, Andrew Saville and Guy Heveldt cover Razor's first All Blacks test in charge and the heartbreaking loss for the Warriors in the Commentary Box. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Blockbuster film-maker James Cameron is bringing the bulk of his visual effect work from Hollywood to Wellington. Active recruitment is underway for visual effects crew for Avatar sequels. Mark Westerby is the Head of Attraction at Screen Wellington and he speaks with Andrew Dickens this morning. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heart services are being described as "in crisis" as much-needed drugs lack funding. The Cardiac Society is calling on Pharmac to cover chronic heart failure medicines with their funding boost. The drugs have been standard in cardiac care in the UK, Australia, and Canada; but here in New Zealand they are only funded for type 2 diabetics who meet certain criteria. Martin Stiles is the Chair of the NZ Cardiac Society, and he joins Andrew Dickens to discuss further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The left have tactically held out the National Rally and they are projected to finish a distant third to new popular front and Macron's centrist coalition. The first exit polls are out, and the second round of voting has begun. France Correspondent Catherine Field joins Andrew Dickens for more. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is preparing to meet with international leaders at the NATO Summit. Auckland University international relations expert Stephen Hoadley says it's significant for New Zealand to be included in the NATO Summit as the Government moves closer to an alliance. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New roads of national significance will be paid for by tolls. Seven roads are being fast-tracked and construction is set to begin within the next three years. The projects are Belfast to Pegasus, the Hawke's Bay Expressway, State Highway 1 Cambridge to Piarere, State Highway 29 Tauriko, Takitimu North Link Stage 2, Mill Road, and Warkworth to Wellsford. Transport Minister Simeon Brown joins Mike Hosking to discuss. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grocery prices are continuing to rise - but not as quickly as they have been. The latest data shows a 2.7% increase compared to June last year, down from 2.9% in May and 3% in April. Cost increases for fresh produce are less intense than a year ago but have increased 1.2%. Chair for Vegetables NZ, John Murphy, joins Andrew Dickens to discuss the rising rates. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all. The school holidays: 7/10 760,000 will fly these next two weeks, which doesn’t include the thousands who have already flown from private school, which doesn’t include the thousands who drive. We love travel, even in a cost-of-living crisis. Joe Biden: 1/10 Debates rarely turn out much but this time last week the world changed. Deciding to stay is a massive mistake his party will pay a price for. Rishi Sunak: 4/10 Worked hard to limit the damage, but is the classic victim of the bloke who came along at the end of the chain and is there when the hammer goes down. Emmanuel Macron: 2/10 Idiotic move of the year. The Tories were always going to get smashed but the Europe vote didn’t need to lead to what he then did. And this Sunday he will see how bad that mistake was. Newshub: 4/10 It's been dragged out too long with far too much gnashing and wailing from people who still think they are a mile more important than they are. The fact is they couldn’t get an audience to attract the ads to pay the bills. You monetise or die. But less media is not good so ultimately we are all losers. The All Blacks: 7/10 The first test is always full of anticipation and England are a good way to start as we welcome in the Razor years. LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson joined Mike Hosking once more to Wrap the Week that was. They discussed salads, Mike and Kate’s dog, and would Tim give up his car for five weeks for $1000? Plus, Mike may have gone overboard with his sweater purchases. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first All Blacks game of the season is upon us. It’s the first game with Scott Robertson at the helm, as his team faces England on Saturday. New Zealand has won 33 of the last 43 matches against the Brits, and the All Blacks currently sit 3rd in the global rankings, two steps above England in 5th. Former All Black Ian Jones told Mike Hosking that the energy level is high and we don’t know who’s going to win. He said that the way Scott Robertson and his team has brought fans of the game on board and along for the ride, really selling the game, makes it really, really intriguing. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It feels like it's been coming forever, and in an odd way, it just might have been. When the news division of Warner Bros. turns out the lights tonight, it’s the end of an era. Or, an era. The simple truth is TV3 news never quite cut it and the history of fiscal dysfunction is the major reason why. Some of it was their own doing. Some of it was the unluckiness of who owns you, why they own you and whether they are as invested as they might have been in different circumstances. TV3 never really got off the ground properly. They did a lot of good things. They brought genuine competition to the market, shook up the presentation and reportage of news a bit and discovered some very good personality-based talent. But at no time did they do what really needed to be done. Rate. They never toppled the main player in TV1. They made a dent or two. When they focused on specific demographics they made some big dents. But it never quite crossed the line in terms of the zeitgeist. They never changed the landscape to the point where they were the champions or the kings of the hill. They always remained the plucky little competitor, even years after that moniker became absurd, given they’ve been around the place for decades. You can only run the "new kid in town" line for so long. Of course it’s a credit to TVNZ who held them off. Not that they will be celebrating. The same way Newstalk ZB didn’t celebrate when we saw off a series of radio stations set up and designed to take us down or out. Competition is a good thing and as of tonight, although Stuff will to a degree be taking over, it won't be the same. It doesn’t have the resource or the level of televisual expertise. We wish them well of course. The landscape, in terms of terrestrial television, is shocking so all are more than welcome to keep the dream alive. But media is a brutal business that became even more brutal with the internet and streaming and the world shrinking. You either get an audience and monetise it, or you don't. It's sad, but emotion never paid the bills. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pressure is increasing on Joe Biden to consider dropping his bid for a second Presidential term. The sitting President and presumptive Democratic candidate remains committed to the race. It follows a poor debate performance last week, in which Biden lost his way on several occasions. US correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that Biden apparently annoyed some Governors when he met with them yesterday. He says one asked Joe Biden about his health, to which he replied, 'I'm fine, it's just my brain.' LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Whangarei's Mayor says the city will fare well from the government's new housing policy. Housing Minister Chris Bishop's plans to "flood" the country with new homes have raised plenty of questions. Local Government New Zealand says the lack of financial support for subsequent council roading and footpaths is a major concern. Vince Cocurullo told Mike Hosking it won't have that problem. He says Whangarei's council uses some money from developers to upgrade the area's infrastructure. But, he says, not every council works the same way. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 5th of July, extensive coverage of voting day in the UK election and Mike is joined by LBC Breakfast host Nick Ferrari. Is fennel a noxious weed or not? Does Air NZ fly to Whanganui? Answers to all the pressing issues. Ian Jones will be live in Dunedin for the first All Blacks test of the year and gives his thoughts on our chances against England. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s speculation it's a low voter turnout in the UK, despite projections of a historic and dramatic election result. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party is expected to take up opposition for the first time in 14 years. In the meantime, Keir Starmer's Labour could win the biggest majority since 1832. Times Chief Political Correspondent Aubrey Allegretti told Mike Hosking they're wondering if voter turnout could be very low. He says the opinion polls show record lows for the main two parties, so turnout could dip below 70%. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A leading obesity doctor is throwing his full support behind a New Zealand grown alternative to weight loss drug Ozempic. As doctors grapple with a global shortage of the injectable, interest in the natural product Calocurb is climbing. Its active ingredient Amarasate is extracted from hops grown at the top of the South Island. Obesity doctor Ben Gonzalez told Mike Hosking those in the industry have seen success from it over the past seven to ten years. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK election is set to confirm a landslide Labour victory after 14 years of Tory rule. LBC Breakfast Host Nick Ferrari told Mike Hosking Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer could have his work cut out for him, wrangling what might be the largest majority since the mid-1800s. He says this is the job Sir Keir has dreamt of since he was a boy. Ferrari says in many ways, the real challenge begins once he crosses the threshold of Number 10 Downing St. The final results are expected after 4 this afternoon. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fat's been trimmed from Antarctica New Zealand's plans for Scott Base The crown entity abandoned its previous large module three-building design after five years of development. An independent review highlighted multiple concerns with the previous proposal - relating to high costs and contracting difficulties. Board Chair Leon Grice told Mike Hosking the new plan will fit within the almost half a billion dollar budget. He says a mixture of building new and refurbishing existing buildings is a cost-effective and low-risk way forward. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A punishing result looks likely for Rishi Sunak's Tory party with all signs pointing to Labour having the UK election in the bag. Labour leader Keir Starmer is expected to take a sweeping victory with a campaign for change propelling his popularity. The Conservative Party has held power for 14 years, but it's steadily losing its grip on the back of numerous broken promises. UK Correspondent Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking that there’s no enthusiasm out there. He said the general consensus from voters is that Labour can't do any worse than the Tories. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Future generations are sure to understand the quality of one of the country’s most important export sectors. The Wool in Schools programme is expanding across primary schools this month, highlighting the insulating, thermo-regulating, and moisture wicking properties of natural, locally gown wool. Plus, a tertiary pilot programme called Wool Dynamics is encouraging students to bring their own innovative ideas for the industry to the table. GM for Campaign for Wool NZ Kara Biggs told Mike Hosking that while wool is in a bit of a tough position at the moment, there is a whole lot of optimism and positivity as well. She said that they’re pretty excited about their new education programme, but they’re really putting pressure on themselves to increase the size of it, bringing wool to more schools. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The countdown to the UK election is being dominated by predictions of a historic Labour victory. Parties have been making their last pitches to voters, with reports Keir Starmer is projected to head the largest majority since 1832. But University of Exeter Modern History Professor Richard Toye told Mike Hosking that Starmer isn't being complacent when it comes to pushing people to the polls. He said there’s a slightly odd situation in which other parties have been saying that Labour is bound to get an enormous majority, so people should vote Conservative in order to keep that majority down, while Labour is sort of saying it’s not in the bag yet. Voting opens at 6pm today our time. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The uplifting story of the week for me is the 30% drop in parents taking kids out of school for holidays. It's a single metric and it's one travel agency, albeit a big one, so it's hardly scientific and about to be published in the Lancet. But it's an insight into what might be happening and, even if it is remotely accurate, it’s a sign of several things. Firstly, the power and necessity of Government. Think about it - all David Seymour said was get your kids to school, harden up, we will start keeping data and we will hold schools and you to account. Like magic, a problem, if not solved, was starting to get addressed. A Government is leadership and leadership in many, many areas is clearly needed. Which is a depressing thought for a person like me. I like to believe in self-determination and self-starting. More 'you' and less Government. But in a collective sense, we are only as strong as the weakest link and in social experiment terms what we have seen in recent years in all sorts of areas is if you let the discipline and the leadership slip, all social hell breaks loose. The presence of police works, as we heard the cop say this week. It's based on the British system, which is over 100 years old. Presence and visibility works and that's not hard to figure out. The testing in schools they announced yesterday will have the same effect. If you offer excuses, if you can't be bothered, if you let the guidelines slip there are those who revel in being ordinary, if not hopeless. You could, and I do, argue that schools should have driven the absenteeism solution themselves. But they didn’t. But when they were told to, it works. What a surprise. What about cellphones in schools. Was it the calamitous mess they predicted? No. Why haven't you heard even a peep? Because it works and all it needed was a bit of discipline and a bit of leadership. These are the small battles where the tangible outworkings provide hope. A lot of people wondered, and wondered very loudly, whether the state of the country was so bad it might take years to fix, if it was even possible to fix it at all. Well these examples this week I think are a good guide that we might actually be seeing some fruits of some labour. Keep it simple, work hard and expect more. You'll be amazed. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 4th of July, Chris Bishop digs into the new moves for the apartment and housing market and Richard Toye gives an insight into just how historic this UK election will turn out to be. Mike has had enough of KiwiRail and their claim they will get to be financially sustainable without Government help. Kiwi rally star Hayden Paddon joins from Estonia as he prepares for the next leg of the European Rally Championship while sitting atop the leaderboard. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With a 16 point lead, Kiwi rally driver Hayden Paddon is entering the Estonia leg of the FIA European Rally Championship tied for first. He took the crown in the Southland rally in the NZ Rally Championship a couple of weeks back, as well as finding the time to sign up as the new TrailLite Ambassador. He told Mike Hosking that rally is to Estonia as rugby is to New Zealand, and everywhere they’ve been this week everyone knows who they are. While Paddon has had a bit of a busy month, he’s been doing this for so long that the gap in driving is no issue, telling Hosking that you just trust your instincts. “Once you get in that zone and get back into your, your happy place so to speak, you just, you know, you do what comes naturally.” LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Housing Minister Chris Bishop will today unveil the Government’s plan to “flood the market’ with land for development in a bid to end New Zealand’s housing crisis. Bishop will use a speech to the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand today to announce a slew of changes to New Zealand’s planning laws recently agreed by Cabinet. He will argue the changes will flood the market with affordable land to develop and make it easier and cheaper to develop that land into housing. Some of the changes are bound to be controversial; the Government will abolish councils’ ability to set fixed urban-rural boundaries and will abolish powers that let councils mandate balconies or minimum floor area sizes for developments. This means the market, and not councils, will set the minimum size of new apartments. This could be controversial, but Bishop will defend his changes in his speech, noting the rules “can significantly increase the cost of new apartments, and limit the supply of lower cost apartments”. Bishop told Mike Hosking most councils will go along, but he expects a few to disagree. Councils will be required to plan for 30 years of housing growth. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vehicle sales are continuing to plummet. Data from the Motor Industry Association shows June sales are the lowest they've been in more than a decade. New registrations have dropped for the fourth consecutive month. Association Chief Executive Aimee Wiley told Mike Hosking there's a bit of a promising uplift in June for EV sales. She says with the clean car discount EVs were making around 15% of the share, dropping to two percent in January but growing back to 5%. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A school principal says schools need more resources to support students, not mandatory tests. The Government's introducing phonics checks for primary pupils after 20 weeks of schooling and repeated at 40 weeks. Twice yearly progression monitoring on reading, writing, and maths will also be introduced for children in Years 3 through 8. Auckland's May Road School principal Lynda Stuart told Mike Hosking there are some children that those tests don't work for. She says some have English as a second language and need more support in that area, and some have high anxiety with assessments. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New MBIE data reveals New Zealanders will be using 80% more power than we do now by 2050. It shows demand is expected to grow as fossil fuel use switches to electricity, electric vehicles increase, and new demand, such as data centres, come online. MBIE market manager Mike Hayward told Mike Hosking he's confident we can rely more on electricity from renewable sources. He says the last quarter showed a 51% increase in generation from solar. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fact the Government is going ahead with Labour's Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, albeit with amendments, is not the story. The fact ACT has played the “Agree to Disagree" card is not really the story. The real story is the question of, does it solve the problem? What exactly is the problem? The problem is the media, or at least parts of it, are in a financial hole and have decided that if only we get Facebook and Instagram to the table and get them to give us some money, we can bring back Fair Go or hire back a journalist or two. If only it were that easy. There is universal agreement in media that the social media giants are taking money out of the market and there is general agreement that that is pretty much unfair, given they monetise someone else's work. The fact the media outlets use Facebook etc to pump their service and outlets and digital views doesn’t get quite as widely covered. But let's not interrupt the David and Goliath narrative flow and kill the buzz. Should Facebook cut a deal? Probably. Have they elsewhere? Sort of, but not really. In Canada it hasn’t worked well. The Government has ended up handing out money to news organisations after services got turned off. Australia is in the middle of striking another deal which may or may not work. The Government are under pressure from places like Channel 9 and 7, who are laying off people by the hundred. It all boils down to the idea of whether a social media giant needs New Zealand. Do they care enough to pay? This Government can pass a law and introduce arbitration until they are blue in the face. We are trying to make them pay the same way social media giants aren't supposed to allow extremists and dangerous material online, or lure impressionable teenagers to spend their life scrolling. Have those laws worked? How many American and European investigations and committee question and answer sessions do you want to see where politicians act tough for the camera? Mark Zuckerberg might stand up and apologise to grieving families, but has it worked? Yes, we have a problem. But do we have a solution? It's probably worth the exercise, but don’t be remotely surprised if in the real world it achieves next to nothing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hurricane Beryl is making its presence known in the Caribbean. CNN reports at least three people were killed when it tipped through the Windward Islands earlier this week, and it’s currently hurtling across open waters nearing Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. Newstalk ZB US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that it's the earliest category five hurricane to rise up in the Caribbean. He says it has top wind speeds of 265 kilometres an hour and could threaten Texas in the coming days. A hurricane warning is in effect for Jamaica and a hurricane watch for the Cayman Islands. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government crackdown on truancy could be causing a drop in families taking holidays during term time. Flight Centre data shows a 30% reduction in bookings during the school term compared to last year. At the same time, bookings during July's school holidays are up 10%. General Manager Heidi Walker told Mike Hosking that the old excuse of it being more expensive to travel in the holidays is unfortunately true. She said that prices rise due to supply and demand, as more people are wanting to travel to those family destinations during the school holidays. However, Walker said, booking as far in advance as you can is your best bet to get a good deal. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

International student numbers are rising but are still lower than before borders were closed due to the Covid outbreak. More than 69 thousand students enrolled with education providers in 2023. That's a 67% increase compared to 2022, but only 60% of 2019 enrolments. International enrolments grew in all subsectors except wānanga. Education NZ's Geoff Bilbrough told Mike Hosking that he doubts New Zealand's reputation for international students has been damaged. He says our borders were closed for a while and competitors were open earlier, but we're bouncing back and he's optimistic about the future. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Department of Conservation has confirmed tourism numbers are returning to pre-covid levels. New data shows visitors are back at 80% of what was seen before the pandemic, with arrivals increasing from 1.52 million in 2022 to 2.29 million in 2023. Totally Tourism CEO Mark Quickfall told Mike Hosking that despite places like Europe seeing much higher figures, it has to be looked at in perspective. He says for companies like his —which lost 90% of businesses overnight due to Covid— it's a positive. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 3rd of July, ACT Party leader David Seymour explains why he is agreeing to disagree on the Government's media bill. Two unbelievable and hilarious bits of research that Mike loses it over: what we are searching for when on holiday, and Auckland being named the 9th most liveable city in the world. Mark Mitchell and Carmel Sepuloni cover all the hard-hitting political topics on Politics Wednesday. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Politicians on both sides of the divide agree that the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill is worth a crack. The Government's progressing an amended version of the Bill, which will make digital platforms like Facebook pay for news content. It is set to progress through Parliament with the support of National, NZ First, and most likely Labour, but ACT's invoked its right to 'agree to disagree' and will oppose the Bill. National Minister Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking he thinks everyone agrees that they have to be doing something. He said that bringing companies like Google and Facebook to the table is a big mountain to climb, but they should still continue to look for options and ways of trying to create a level playing field. Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni agreed, saying it's probably the one thing the two will agree on in this interview. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Seymour doesn't think the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill will solve underlying issues with media. The Government's progressing an amended version of the Bill which will make digital platforms like Facebook pay for news content. ACT's invoked its right to 'agree to disagree' and will oppose the Bill. Party leader David Seymour told Mike Hosking that it will probably make issues with media worse. He says that's because the one attractive thing about the original Labour policy was that it deals with private companies with no politicians involved, but now they're proposing a politician be involved. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.