Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

Six people are dead and four injured in a mass shooting at a Walmart in Chesapeake in Virginia. The gunman, who killed himself, making the death toll seven, was the store's overnight shift manager. TVNZ correspondent Anna Burns-Francis told Kate Hawkesby it follows the shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado. She says the two incidents are just two of the 606 US mass shootings this year, and Presi...

The Hawkes Bay could be lining up for an economic boost. Japanese-owned company Tatsumi Limited is constructing a mega glasshouse in the hope of producing millions of strawberries all year round. Japan and China will make up the main export markets. Project director for the build, Mike Harper joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

King Charles has welcomed South Africa's President in his first state visit as monarch. Cyril Ramaphosa will visit Westminster Abbey before going to a banquet hosted by the King and Queen at Buckingham Palace. It's also Britain's first state visit in more than three years, after they were stopped during Covid. UK correspondent Gavin Grey told Kate Hawkesby Charles is expected to layout what he see...

Ice cream company Tip Top has pulled one of its challenges from its new promotional campaign after sparking significant backlash. The company's latest campaign encourages Kiwis to try something new, of the 32 different messages printed on the sticks, one reads to "take a selfie with a stranger". Tip Top is now removing the stick from their Popsicle range, and apologised. AUT marketing expert Bodo...

It may have brought Julie Anne Genter to tears and caused Golriz Gharamann to erupt into celebration, but I’m not in the same camp of jumping for joy over the Supreme Court decision to accept an appeal to the Make it 16 campaigners. Of course, this ruling only means the case has been accepted as valid by the Supreme Court, who agree it’s inconsistent to the Bill of Rights to deny 16 year olds the...

Legal experts say that while lowering the voting age at general elections might be politically challenging, New Zealand could see a differential voting system with 16-year-olds able to vote at local body level as a ”trial” first. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says she personally wants to see the voting age lowered for the first time in nearly 50 years and announced Parliament will debate the issue...

Prison numbers are down, yet questions remain as to why is violent crime is on the rise. The prison population has dropped 24 percent since 2017,  but violent crime has increased by 21 percent and gang membership has risen 51 percent. Much fewer offences are resulting in prison sentences, leaving offenders on the street rather than in prison. National's spokesperson for Corrections, Simon O'Connor...

The classic brown L&P bottle could be on its way out, due to its effect on our recycling system. Coca-Cola is looking to swap out the brown, and go for clear to make the bottles easier to recycle. The green Sprite bottles have already been ditched for the same reason. Hauraki District Mayor Toby Adams told Kate Hawkesby the L&P bottle is a huge tourist attraction in Paeroa. He says people...

The COP 27 climate summit in Egypt has wrapped up, with countries agreeing to establish a fund to help developing nations deal with climate change. But the money isn't expected to go far. The EU is likely to contribute about 120-million New Zealand dollars. By comparison, the floods in Pakistan have already cost 60-billion New Zealand dollars this year alone. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listen...

A new report emphasizes the need for parents to prioritise their children's swimming skills. Water Safety New Zealand figures show just under half of children don't take regular lessons. Last year, 90 people drowned - the highest since 2011. Chief Executive Daniel Gerrard says people must have swimming skills living on an island nation. He says they are hearing parents will only send one child to...

It’s fascinating to watch the gradual implosion of Twitter. There are two camps on this. Those who believe it’s been a toxic hellscape of negativity gradually eating itself anyway and Elon just sped things up, and those who believe it is a dynamic platform for free speech, representing a wide variety of views and providing an outlet for all kinds of diversity. Those who believe the latter, are gri...

One thing I love about the health and wellness industry is that it’s constantly evolving and changing, but that can also make it a challenge to keep up with. Hence, I’m a huge fan of science journalist and author of several health books, Dr Michael Mosley. He’s the guy behind the 5:2 diet and intermittent fasting, he invented them long before they became mainstream and popular. Not that I’ve ever...

The All Blacks have named their strongest side for the final test of the season against England, signalling Jordie Barrett will have the inside running at No 12 for next year’s World Cup. Looking to end an inconsistent 2022 with an unbeaten northern tour, selectors Ian Foster, Joe Schmidt and Jason Ryan have reverted largely to the team who thumped Wales a fortnight ago. The sees Barrett move back...

A youth development worker is giving a thumbs down to National's new policy to deal with youth crime. The party is promising to set up Young Offender Military Academies for 15 to 17-year-olds, if it's elected next year. It also wants to put electric monitoring devices on children as young as 10-years-old. Aaron Hendry told Kate Hawkesby evidence shows they're ineffective, as they don't address the...

I thought it was ironic this week when Grant Robertson admitted the rollout of the ram raid support for businesses has been too slow. Slow would be an understatement. I just can’t work out what’s going on here. Because every time you ask the Government about it, they say they’re chasing it, they’re telling Police to speed up, they want it sorted. Yet when you speak to Sunny Kaushal from the Dairy...

Ukraine is denying responsibility for the deadly missile explosion in Poland. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says it was not a Ukrainian missile. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltetnberg says the explosion appears to have been caused by a Ukrainian air defence missile, fired at a Russian cruise missile attack. But security analyst Paul Buchanan told Kate Hawkesby ultimately, the evidence...

Belief businesses aren't out of the woods yet, despite economic activity increasing in the September quarter Infometrics data shows a 2.6 percent year-on-year rise, driven by stronger tourism and household spending. Auckland and South Island areas have seen some of the strongest gains. Tourism Export Council Chief Executive Lynda Keene told Kate Hawkesby Australian visitors through the winter mont...

Hopes a major international retailer moving to Lambton Quay will give a post-pandemic boost to Wellington's CBD. Clothing brand Calvin Klein has confirmed it will set up shop in part of the building that once housed Kirkcaldie and Stains, and more recently David Jones. It shut down in June. First Retail Group Managing Director Chris Wilkinson says it's great news for the capital. He says having th...

So I note the Police commissioner was saying the other day re the surge in youth offending, that it’s up to us to do more about it, and look after our communities better. And then hospitality came out and said staffing issues in the sector may be on us as well. What they’re saying is that customers are getting ruder these days, that abuse and poor treatment of hospitality staff is getting more com...

Some are suggesting our great brain drain may slowing down. The net number of Kiwis that left the country for the year to September was more than 8,000. But for the month, people arriving outstripped the number leaving. Kiwibank senior economist Jeremy Couchman joined Kate Hawkesby. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former US President Donald Trump is preparing to launch his third campaign for the White House, this afternoon NZ time, looking to move on from disappointing midterm defeats and defy history amid signs that his grip on the Republican Party is waning. Trump had hoped to use the GOP’s expected gains in last week’s elections as a springboard to vault himself to his party’s nomination by locking in ea...

A general view that the devil will be in the detail around RMA reforms. Three new laws will take its place, with two being announced so far. The Government says the changes aim to lower costs and will speed up the time it takes for new homes and infrastructure projects to be approved. Environmental lawyer Kate Storer told Kate Hawkesby until now, there's been questions as to what should be priorit...

So I had quite the day yesterday. And here's the thing, I wish I was one of those people who knew how to react in the moment.  I always think of stuff I should have said or done, after that fact. Yesterday I had a very stark example of that. I got bitten by a dog. Now I adore dogs, I’ve never been bitten by one, I love them, I grew up with them, I’ve owned them myself, they’re the greatest compani...

Belief dropping our speed will drive down our number of road fatalities. Waka Kotahi's proposed sweeping speed limit decreases on state highways across the country - with focus around schools and marae. AA Road Safety spokesperson Dylan Thompson told Kate Hawkesby it's a key part of the Road to Zero Strategy. He says there's clear evidence from both overseas and within New Zealand, that the change...

The Health Star system is being changed to better reflect added sugar and salt in nutritional ratings. Nutritionists are welcoming changes to the programme, which rates nutritional content of packaged food up to five stars. Today's upgrade gives lower star ratings to foods with high levels of added sugar and salt. Deputy Director-General of New Zealand Food Safety Vincent Arbuckle told Kate Hawkes...