Canterbury Mornings with John MacDonald

Anyone who thinks we can still stick to that pipedream of sport and politics not mixing probably got a hernia or had kittens yesterday morning before and after the All Blacks match against Italy.  The game itself wasn’t too flash. I think the general consensus is that it was lacklustre. Or the All Blacks were, anyway. So people not too excited about the actual game. A different story, though,...

I don’t know if I’m going to make any friends in Governors Bay, especially with the people involved with the Governors Bay Jetty Restoration Trust.   Because I think their call that the city council stop charging them interest on a loan it gave them to get the project across the line is, at best, unrealistic. They are dreaming.    I remember the first time I went to the rebuilt jett...

John MacDonald was joined by National’s Vanessa Weenink and Labour’s Duncan Webb this morning for Politics Friday. They discussed whether the new gang patch law will make a difference to crime numbers, and why the Government is pushing on with the boot camp legislation while the trials are ongoing.  They also discussed behaviour in Parliament, particularly following Erica Stanford’s apology a...

Today’s the day when one of the most ridiculous laws we’ve ever seen in this country starts being enforced by the police.   As of midnight last night, it is illegal for gang members to wear their patches out in public. Not only that - the Government also wants the cops to stop gang members hanging-out together in public.   As far as I’m concerned, this is just another placebo policy. A p...

I can’t accuse NZ First MP Shane Jones of being pale, male, and stale. But he is male, and he is stale with these comments of his about the way some MPs are dressing in Parliament. I do agree with him, though, that some of the rules in Parliament need toughening up.    This has all been stirred-up after the MPs did their haka in Parliament last week.   Shane Jones and ACT leader Dav...

Labour leader Chris Hipkins says he had no problem with Te Pati Māori's haka in the House last week, during the vote on ACT's Treaty Principle Bill. David Seymour, the National Party, and Shane Jones have written to Speaker Gerry Brownlee. They say the Speaker should oversee rule changes at Parliament in light of the disruption.   Hipkins told John MacDonald it's worth instead looking at Wins...

An absolute circus is one way to describe David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill.   Or you could say that the thousands at Parliament today to protest against it is what democracy is all about.   Either way, if you want to point a finger at anyone for creating this shambles, don’t point it at David Seymour. Point it at Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.   Who kept telling us last yea...

When it comes to apologies there are generally two types: a sincere apology and a hollow apology. And survivors of abuse in state or religious care are saying that the Prime Minister’s apology today for that abuse is hollow, because the Government isn’t saying anything today about redress or compensation. The Government’s position is that it needs to take the time to make sure it gets the compensa...

If you’ve got solar panels on the roof, you’ll be loving the blue skies.  And a solar energy advocate is saying today that those of us who don’t should be getting financial support from the Government.  Mike Casey says New Zealand is one of the few western countries that doesn’t provide subsidies for solar energy. He says, in Australia, people can get subsidies to convert to solar and -...

You'll have your own way of describing this crazy situation where we’ve got KiwiRail telling the Christchurch City Council that it has to close a 1.5 kilometre stretch of cycleway for two years, because the cycleway needs some safety improvements. KiwiRail reckons the Heathcote Express cycleway, which is near a railway crossing, is so dangerous that a death or serious injury could happen there onc...

Today on Politics Friday, John MacDonald was joined by National’s Vanessa Weenink and Labour’s Reuben Davidson to dig into some of the biggest political stories of the week.  Christchurch City Council is pushing back against the closure of a cycleway at Heathcote, KiwiRail ordering upgrades due to a one in one-thousand-year risk. Is this really acceptable?   Is New Zealand capable of hav...

I think I’m going to trust my gut instinct more often.   Because yesterday, I didn’t like the idea of it, but my gut was telling me that Donald Trump was going to win the presidential election.   And because I’m going to listen to my gut instinct more often, today I’m going to tell you that —even if we don't like it— we need to calm the farm a bit with all the hyperbole being thrown arou...

The legendary Miriam Margolyes is back in Christchurch, joining John MacDonald in studio for a chat.  She’s one of a few famous names taking part in the Isaac Theatre Royal Variety Gala show next week, popping into the city early to don a habit and play a nun in ‘Holy Days’.  Margolyes discussed all that was on her mind, her career, the importance of reading books, and how much it means...

Historic. Knife edge. Too close to call. That’s what they’re all saying about today’s presidential election in the States. What you never see though, splashed across the screens on CNN and Sky News and BBC, is “gut instinct”. My gut tells me that it’s going to be Donald Trump. And, this is the great thing about gut instinct, it doesn't really matter whether you’re wrong or right - it’s just how yo...

Labour is lamenting the Treaty Principles Bill even seeing the light of day.   David Seymour's controversial bill will be introduced in Parliament tomorrow.   Labour Leader Chris Hipkins says if implemented it would throw away years of legal precedent.   He told John MacDonald that National allowing the bill to get this far is irresponsible.   Hipkins says Labour wouldn't intro...

The plan to give “use of force” powers to the people running the Government’s new boot camps for young criminals is getting a bit of attention today. Or military academies as the Prime Minister was calling them this morning. The Children’s Minister has got this idea that, if you’re involved in running a boot camp, you should have the same powers as the police and you should be allowed to use force...

From today, the police don’t intend to respond to every mental health callout. But I don’t think we’re going to see any major difference. I’ll tell you why shortly,. And it’s based on an experience I had on Friday night. So if you’re worried about the police saying “not our department” if you call up, as of today, about someone having a mental health issue - don’t panic. But you know the backgroun...

I didn’t go to university and there’s a bit of a dad joke that I trot out about that now and again. I say that I’m a student of life, in no rush to graduate.   So maybe I’m coming at this with a biased view of the world, but I agree with this academic at the University of Canterbury who is saying today that universities have just become factories that pump out people with degrees. And he want...

A beloved Kiwi writer and actor will be featuring in the upcoming Theatre Royal Variety Gala.  Richard O’Brien, the mind behind The Rocky Horror Picture Show, will be taking the stage as they celebrate a decade since the theatre reopening after the Christchurch quakes.   Richard joined John MacDonald for a chat about the Gala, his new production, and his journey since the creation of his...

Today on Politics Friday, John MacDonald was joined by National’s Vanessa Weenink and Labour’s Tracey McLellan for a chat about the latest political happenings.  The agenda today had a bit of a health skew, as they discussed whether it might be time for a user-pays approach to health and if single-patient hospital rooms are the way of the future.  And, who do they think will be the Presi...

It’s Gumboot Friday tomorrow and the guy behind it, Mike King, seems to have put his foot in it. Although, I’m a little bit torn on this one.    So what’s happened is we’ve got this charity fashion show being held in Dunedin to raise money for suicide prevention and mental health awareness. And, like most events, the organisers wanted to serve alcohol as part of the hospitality offering...

If I say to you “30 kph speed limit area”, chances are you can think of one. I can think of one straight away - on the southern end of Colombo Street in Christchurch. You’re cruising along at 50 kph and then —bang— it drops down to 30. No schools on that stretch of Colombo. There’s a school on one of the side streets, but it goes down to 30 —and it’s permanent— and then it’s back up to 50 by the t...

When I heard that a campervan park is going to be up and running in central Christchurch, near Latimer Square —possibly in time for this summer— my first thought was that I’m glad I haven’t spent more than $500,000 buying an apartment around there. Not even the developer’s reassurances that campervan people aren’t “yahoo types” made me feel any more excited about it. In fact, I think it’s the last...

“There for the grace of God goes I.”  We generally say it when something bad and we know that it could just as easily happen to us, and anyone who is a parent should say that whenever they hear nightmare stories about kids being abused by their parents or caregivers.   I say that not just as a by-stander looking on. I say that as someone with three kids —all grown up now— but someone who...

John MacDonald was joined by National’s Hamish Campbell and Labour’s Reuben Davidson for Politics Friday.   On the agenda today was yet another case of Oranga Tamariki failing to act on information pertaining to child welfare – is it time to start parenting courses to help with the stress of raising children?   A petition has launched, looking at banning the private sale and use of firew...