Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast with Andrew Dickens for Wednesday, 3 June, 2026, Wellington mayor Andrew Little says he agrees with amalgamation but thinks the government's set an unfair timeframe. We talk to the Hospitality NZ chief executive about a dramatic rise in closures in the industry. Football commentator Jason Pine now fears for what England will do to the All Whi...

Tonight on The Huddle, Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson and Jack Tame from ZB's Saturday Mornings and Q&A joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Does Andrew Little have a point about the deadline for council amalgamation being unrealistic? Could the Government have given councils more time? Is increased fares the last thing Te Huia needs as it goes in...

Right now, Australia is agog that One Nation is the highest-polling party and talk has turned to Pauline Hanson as Prime Minister. Former Queensland Premier Peter Beattie, who beat One Nation back in the 1990s, has issued a warning: confusing One Nation with the people who vote for it is a serious mistake. He argues many One Nation supporters are decent, hard-working Australians who feel ignored b...

The Education Minister wants higher pay rates for tradies who work as unqualified teachers - but she has to persuade the unions first. The PPTA says schools are in need of more people to teach the trades, and outside educators should be fully qualified if they're to be paid the same as registered teachers. Te Pūkenga CEO Gus Gilmore says it's important to attract the best people to educate young K...

The All Whites' Football World Cup journey is off to a rough start - with less than two weeks left to go until their opening match. New Zealand have leaked defensively and misfired in attack on route to a dismal 4-nil loss to Haiti in Florida. It's the team's worst result in nine years - going back to a defeat by the same scoreline to Portugal at the 2017 Confederations Cup. Weekend Sport host Jas...

HBO Max is due to launch in New Zealand later this month, with the streamer revealing what Kiwis can expect to pay for the service. The service will have a launch price of $10.99 per month for the first six months of its standard plan, and $15.99 per month after that. Entertainment journalist and film reviewer Dominic Corry says Neon's HBO content was a big draw for subscribers, so it's unclear wh...

The hospitality squeeze continues, with a flurry of closures. Credit reporting agency Centrix says liquidations are up 49 percent year-on-year. Cafes, restaurants and takeaways made up the most of the 414 liquidations recorded in the past 12 months. Hospitality NZ CEO Kristy Phillips says the latest impacts are the cost of living and the fuel crisis. But she says businesses have taken many hits in...

Wellington's mayor has voiced concerns with the Government cracking down on local councils. The mayor's outlined his response to the Government debate on council amalgamation - saying he'd vote yes on merging if a vote were held today. Councils have an August deadline to plan potential groupings, and are hold regular discussions. Andrew Little says the three-month deadline isn't enough, citing iss...

Roy Morgan’s newest poll shows the National-led Government is still leading among prospective voters. Support for National increased 5 percent to 30.5 percent, support for NZ First dropped 0.5 percent to 11 percent and support for ACT dropped 0.5 percent to 10 percent. Meanwhile, support for Labour dropped to 26.5 percent, and support for the Greens increased 1.5 percent to 12.5 percent.  New...

Over in the US, oil reserves fell by 9.1 million barrels last week as the conflict in the Middle East continues. As of May 22, the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve held 365 million barrels, down from 413 million at the beginning of 2026. US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says experts have warned the reserves are days away from dropping further - and emergency supplies are getting lower.  LISTEN A...

A wake-up call for the All Whites just 13 days out from their Football World Cup opener against Iran in Los Angeles. New Zealand have suffered a thumping 4-nil defeat to Haiti in the first of their two warm-up matches in Florida. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Previous bidders could help save Pegasus Golf Course. Hundreds packed a community meeting last night to discuss Wolfbrook Properties' plans to convert the 80-hectare site into housing.  Waimakariri District Council's agreed to investigate whether purchasing the land is an option. Residents' Group President, Matt James, says golf course operators were keen before, and could be approached again...

Over 1500 pages of files related to the appointment of Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to the United States were released today. Starmer fired Mandelson after nine months when new details emerged about his friendship with Epstein, and fallout from the appointment has raised questions about the Prime Minister's political future.  UK correspondent Enda Brady says Mandelson has denied wrongdoin...

Anthropic confirmed it filed confidential plans for an initial public offering, setting it up for what's expected to be one of the most anticipated market debuts in years. Anthropic is one of three highly anticipated AI initial public offerings expected for this year, along with OpenAI and SpaceX - giving early investors a chance for huge paydays. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says An...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast with Andrew Dickens for Tuesday, 2 June, 2026, we talk to Local Government Minister Simon Watts about a ban on unelected people having voting rights on council committees. We look at who'll benefit from a merger between TSB and Heartland Bank. Greenpeace executive director Russel Norman on if it's worth having a discussion on our no-nukes sta...

The New Zealand racing industry has plenty of reasons to celebrate the recent King’s Birthday Honours, with three of its own recognised. David Ellis, Doug Alderslade and Dr Luk Chin were among the experts who received honours yesterday. The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

TSB and Heartland Bank are looking to join forces by the end of the year. TSB owner Toi Foundation's seeking feedback on the plan to join with Heartland Bank, to the tune of $620 million. Finance Minister Nicola Willis welcomes this decision to team up and take on the big Australian banks. "That's positive, and good for the state of banking competition." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer and political commentator Liam Hehir and Tō Waha Media's Carmen Parahi joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  The Government is moving to ban unelected members from voting on council committees. Do we think this is a good idea?  Is it time for New Zealand to review its nuclear stance and consider nuclear power? What shou...

Secretly, I think Nicola Willis and Winston Peters are enjoying their performative scrap against each other. Their war of words highlights the differences between each party and their philosophies and that's handy in an election year. Nicola’s warnings over superannuation reinforce her credentials as the representative of fiscal prudence - the guardian of our economy. Winston’s refusal to change s...

Greenpeace's executive director says it's more important than ever for New Zealand to have independent foreign policy.  Defence Minister Chris Penk has said a conversation about our nuclear-free policy could be helpful - after the US Secretary of War agreed New Zealand could be 'freeloading' on the US military.  The Prime Minister's assured New Zealand's not about to change our nuclear-f...

Moana Pasifika wrapped up their last Super Rugby match with an upset win over the Brumbies. The franchise has been placed into liquidation and there's no solid rescue deal for the team in sight, despite a rumoured bid from an American multi-millionaire.  Former NZ Rugby chief executive David Moffett says this prospective buyer needs to do their due diligence when it comes to the team. "There'...

There's a view a merger by Heartland and TSB won't hand the big four banks a massive blow.  Heartland Bank has struck a deal to buy TSB for $620 million, pending consultation and regulator approval.  Massey University banking professor Claire Matthews says the combined bank will still be smaller than the big four, and Kiwibank.  She says a lot of work's still needed to increase comp...

The Local Government Minister says they're restoring democratic accountability to councils.  The Government's amending a bill currently before Parliament to bar non-elected council members from voting on committees.  It follows councillors in the Far North voting to expand a Māori liaison committee.  Simon Watts explained such examples give voting rights to people not elected by the...

The Prime Minister is standing by New Zealand's planned defence spending, after Pete Hegseth's accused New Zealand of freeloading off the American military. The US Secretary of War has used a global security summit in Singapore, to call on US allies to lift defence spending to 3.5 percent of GDP. He says New Zealand's goal to bring defence spending to 2 percent of GDP within the next eight years d...

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson says she believes she has the ability to take on the role of Prime Minister. Last week, polling by Redbridge Group and Accent Research found One Nation could clinch up to 59 seats if an election were held in May. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says Hanson could likely unseat the Coalition in key states - except NSW, Victoria and the NT. LISTEN ABOVE See omnys...