Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

A Wellington councillor says it's going to be a long road ahead for the community after the Newtown hostel blaze. A fire broke out in Loafers Lodge in the early hours of yesterday morning; six bodies have been found while 11 are unaccounted for. Councillor for Newtown Nureddin Abdurahman says residents are banding together and he joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

Mortgaged investors are choosing to buy fewer properties as interest rates soar. CoreLogic's latest monthly housing report shows a record 19.9 percent decline in purchases by multiple property owners. Chief Property Economist Kelvin Davidson joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With all this pre-Budget talk I’m just not sure how invested we are in it - how much attention we’re paying it. I mean we should be. We’ve never been fiscally in such dire straits, we are laden down with debt, inflation is rampant, outlooks and optimism levels do not look flash. So what the Government and the opposition want to do with our money should be something we’re laser focused on. Luxon sa...

Five farm deaths in three months has horrified a Waikato businessman, who is launching a safety campaign in response. Ag Drive Managing Director Andre Syben is calling for a culture change and wants better buy-in from industry corporates. As well as the five deaths, there have been 30 WorkSafe notifiable injuries from January to March this year. Andre Syben joined Kate Hawkesby to discuss. LISTEN...

The Mayor of Ruapehu wants the Commerce Commission to investigate why there are disparities between fuel prices within the region. He's written to the watchdog to help ensure pricing is equitable, and claims it can be almost 50 cents more expensive than Te Awamutu, which an hour and a half away. Mayor Weston Kirton says says Taumarunui locals are  frustrated over paying significantly higher retail...

New Zealand is taking in more international students than before the pandemic, but polytechs and schools are missing out. The number of study visas issued in the past eight months is up 10 percent on 2019 figures. Education New Zealand says visa approvals for universities have increased, but visa approvals for schools and polytechs have halved. Spokesperson Geoff Bilbrough told Kate Hawkesby there...

There are hopes that Gore's council can sort out a rift between councillors and the Mayor. 24-year-old Ben Bell and Chief Executive Stephen Parry have suffered a breakdown in communication. Seven councillors are calling on Bell to resign and he'll face them tomorrow at an emergency meeting. Local Government New Zealand President Stuart Crosby says that there's been trouble since the start of Bell'...

Farmers are dismissing Government funding for mental health support as a drop in the bucket. Part of the billion dollar cyclone relief package announced yesterday includes 35 million for the safety and wellbeing of farmers and growers. Federated Farmers Hawke's Bay President Jim Galloway told Kate Hawkesby that it'll help a little. But he says it won't go anywhere near what's needed to put fences...

So despite more money being announced yesterday for cyclone recovery, there’s still money floating around that hasn’t even been allocated or spent yet. Months on from Cyclone Gabrielle, more than 30 million dollars in donations is still unspent. How’s that possible? What is it they’re waiting for? It was reported that, “So far, only 5 million of the 24 million donated to the Red Cross Disaster Fun...

So I’m not sure the Mother’s Day brunch this weekend will be including avocado on toast given the shortage of them – and therefore the cost of them. Although despite avocado being $9 and $10 each in some parts of the country at the moment, other places tell me they can still get them and get them cheap. So it might be a case of the old postcode lottery at the moment when it comes to fruit and vege...

Concerns demand has outstripped efforts to improve frontline police numbers. Police Minister Ginny Andersen says the Government is closing in on its goal of bolstering staffing by 1800 officers. The Police Association's president says the increase made a real difference initially, but officers are again overwhelmed. Chris Cahill says the work to improve staffing represents a 20 percent increase. B...

A new report from Westpac claims more is needed to create sustainable competition between supermarkets. This comes as the price of fruit and vegetables is up 22.5 per cent from last year. Vegetables NZ chair John Murphy joined Kate Hawkesby to discuss. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A top Auckland private school has so little confidence in the new NCEA Level 1 curriculum it is ditching the qualification in favour of its own Year 11 diploma next year. St Cuthbert’s College informed parents Wednesday next year’s Year 11 students would not take part in NCEA Level 1 but rather work towards the school’s own bespoke Year 11 Diploma. Principal Justine Mahon said several of the schoo...

So a new poll shows the Nats nudging past Labour to form a government with Act. No Māori   Party needed as Kingmaker, which has been the current narrative of course.. how close the race is, how powerful Te Pāti Māori could end up. If this poll becomes a trend, not powerful at all. But I still think Luxon did the right thing ruling them out and not a moment too soon. He's dead right when he says th...

Early childhood teachers have painted a grim picture of the state of their sector. An Office of Early Childhood Education survey has found more than 70 percent of teachers believe the industry will get worse in the future. Early Childhood New Zealand Chief Executive Kathy Wolfe told Kate Hawkesby the survey results aren't surprising. She says there is chronic under-funding, teacher shortages and t...

Avocados are due to return to supermarket shelves shortly as prices soar to more than five dollars each. A Rabobank report shows this year's production will be lower than last due to wet weather events. Foodstuffs' Brigit Corson told Kate Hawkesby they haven't been able to bridge the gap while avocados are out of season, hence the higher price. She says it hasn't been a good growing year and combi...

100 wealthy New Zealanders who believe our public services are underfunded think they should be the ones to pay up. The group has signed a pledge calling on the Government to increase their taxes. Inspired by the initiative Millionaires for Humanity, it believes the current tax system contributes towards the gap between poor and the wealthy. Ex-Retirement Commissioner, Dame Diana Crossan told Kate...

It’s a funny thing being away and suddenly seeing stuff without the blinkers on - and we are blinkered here. We’ve been cloistered in a sheltered environment with shut borders for so long that we’ve maybe lost sight of how much the rest of the world has moved on. And they have moved on. But I tell you what struck me the most, how safe I felt in cities like London and New York, compared to New Zeal...

An Auckland business leader believes Auckland Council made the right call, when responding to yesterday's flood events. Heart of the City Chief Executive, Viv Beck told Kate Hawkesby while shutting down the city can't be done willy-nilly, it was appropriate in this case due to the widespread impacts. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A body has been found in the search for a missing student in Abbey Caves in Whangarei. Specialist equipment brought up from Auckland allowed the search to continue last night. A formal identification process will be carried out, with cordons in place for a routine scene examination. Whangārei Mayor Vince Cocurullo told Kate Hawkesby they expect a review of the doomed school trip to be carried out....

An anti-smoking advocacy group is calling for a 21-year-old age limit for buying vapes. Action for Smokefree 2025 has outlined new proposals that aim to help tackle youth vaping in New Zealand. According to the group, in 2020, daily vaping in Year 10 students increased from one percent to almost 10 percent, and from one percent to 18.6 percent for under 25s. ASH Director Ben Youdan told Kate Hawke...

A pay rise for the Defence Force, which has lost about about 10 percent of its personnel over the past year. That works out to around 800 people leaving. What would be really interesting to know and hopefully the Defence Force does know this - is where they're going and why they're going. Is it only because there's more money to be had in civvy street or are there other issues? There was a time wh...

A 10,000 strong petition is calling for more facilities to fix freedom camping issues. The Responsible Campers Association says the Government is claiming there's a nationwide problem, but its incoming legislation won't fix it. Association secretary Bob Osborne joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE     See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A big pay increase is on the way for our Defence Force in the hope of stemming staff turnover. The Government is bringing 90 percent of pay in line with market rates, by putting aside nearly $420 million in the Budget. Another $328 million will also be spent upgrading assets and infrastructure, including Defence Force housing. Former Defence Minister, Ron Mark told Tim Dower he takes his hat off t...

The Coromandel Peninsula community is eagerly awaiting an announcement on the fate of State Highway 25A due later this morning. The Kopu to Hikuai route has been closed for three months after significant damage from Cyclone Gabrielle. Waka Kotahi has three options on the table; a potential bypass, bridge, or retaining wall. Coromandel MP Scott Simpson told Tim Dower his concern isn't which one it...