Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and former Labour Minister Stuart Nash joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  The Prime Minister is pushing hard for asset sales - and he aims to seek a mandate for them in the next election. Do we think this is a good idea? New Zealand's diplomatic relations with Kiribati are on the rocks - and...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Tuesday, Labour leader Chris Hipkins fires back at National's plan for asset sales after the next election.   Ryan Bridge grills activist John Minto about his hotline to dob in Israeli soldiers on holiday which has been slammed as antisemitic. Consumer NZ says it's been fielding heaps of complaints from Sky TV customers over its agei...

The Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa's launched what it calls a 'genocide hotline' - asking people to report sightings of Israeli Defence Force soldiers holidaying in New Zealand. It's part of their campaign against the war on Gaza, and it says the focus is not Israeli or Jewish people - but IDF soldiers.  National chair, John Minto, says now is a window of opportunity to pressure Isra...

US stocks took a sharp drop - and experts are feeling wary - after a Chinese artificial intelligence startup posed a threat to America's technology industry. DeepSeek unveiled a new ChatGPT-like AI model called R1 that operated at a fraction of the cost of OpenAI’s, Google’s or Meta’s models, causing the Nasdaq to plunge by 3.1 percent.  US markets analyst Scott Shellady says the $5.6 million...

A National MP wants to raise the age for mandatory jury duty.  Under current legislation, the court registrar must excuse anyone over the age of 65 who's been summoned for jury service if they request it. Whanganui MP Carl Bates has had his Member's Bill drawn today - proposing to raise automatic excusal from jury duty from 65 to 72. He says this would update a very old law.  "There's be...

The Government and Opposition have butted heads on the first day in Parliament. The Prime Minister boasted of the Government plans to boost economic growth - while Labour slammed its achievements and pointed to record departures from the country. Chris Luxon is calling it 'the party of no' - which said no to tax relief, gene technology, and backing farmers. Later, opposition leader Chris Hipkins c...

Labour says it's nonsense to suggest the private sector does things better - after National has said it will campaign on asset sales next election. ACT has proposed health and education as starting points.  But Labour leader Chris Hipkins says we only need to look at electricity companies gouging New Zealand consumers for profit.  He says the companies stopped investing in new generation...

Ahead of the Australian election, opposition leader Peter Dutton has confirmed some political shakeups - and named David Coleman for the key shadow foreign affairs portfolio. The foreign affairs job was previously held by  Simon Birmingham, and a high number of frontbenchers were looking to claim the position for themselves. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says Dutton is looking to make...

It was an emotional scene at Karaka yesterday after the regally-bred full-sister to glamour mare Orchestral was sold for $2.4 million. After Orchestral was sold on Saturday, there was plenty of interest in her Savabeel full-sister (Lot 345), who was being offered through Haunui Farm’s draft at Karaka. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for...

More and more Kiwi households have noticed an increase in broadcasting issues and disruptions - and the provider has offered up an explanation. In a recent update for investors, Sky confirmed it had accelerated plans to move from its current Optus D2 satellite to a new satellite after Optus revealed it would die earlier than previously thought. Consumer NZ CEO Jon Duffy says they've seen a signifi...

As the UK moves to clean up the damage resulting from Storm  Éowyn, a second major storm is set to hit the region. The Met Office is warning Storm Herminia, which first hit parts of Spain and France, is set to bring destruction and the possibility of injuries and 'danger to life'. UK correspondent Gail Downey says there are warnings in place to stay away from the coast. LISTEN ABOVE See omnys...

It's set to be a big week for the US' biggest tech companies. Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Tesla are all expected to report their results in the coming days - and it's likely these businesses will be expecting a boost from the new presidential administration.  Mark Lister from Craigs Investment Partners explains what we can expect. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

Following the closure of the Tangiwai Mill in the Ruapehu District, forestry company Ernslaw One has found a new way to continue production and keep contractors in work. They've struck a deal with KiwiRail and Napier Port where log trains now run five days a week on the Napier-Palmerston North line, dropping off 600 tonnes of logs to Napier Port. It removes 21 logging trucks off the road. Napier P...

Tonight on The Huddle, Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani and Kiwiblog writer and Curia pollster David Farrar joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! President Donald Trump is floating the idea of 'cleaning out' Gaza as the ongoing conflict continues. What's going on here? The Treaty Principles Bill submissions started today - how do we think it went? Was it a construc...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 27 January 2025, there were plenty of arguments for and against the Treaty Principles Bill at today's first oral submissions hearing. The Government's flinging the border open to digital nomads - but Finance Minister Nicola Willis can't say just how many might actually come here. Plus, the Huddle debates Donald Trump's call to 'cl...

The Finance Minister is determined to get tourism figures back up to their pre-pandemic levels - and she hopes the newest batch of visa changes will speed that along. From today, visitors can work remotely for overseas companies while holidaying in New Zealand for up to nine months, but they may need to declare themselves New Zealand tax residents if they stay for over 90 days. Nicola Willis says...

A war of words has erupted over the logistics of speaking slots during submission on the Treaty Principles Bill. The pro-bill lobby group Hobson's Pledge claimed they were left off the list of those allowed to front up to the committee of MPs considering the bill in person. Hobson's Pledge spokesman Elliot Iklei was quick to explain the group did request a speaking slot. "So whatever you've been h...

US President Donald Trump's push for Arab nations to take in Palestinians to 'clean out' Gaza could be a genuine suggestion. He's said Egypt and Jordan should take in Gazans - with the Strip extensively damaged and people dying. Greg Barton, a noted professor of global Islamic politics, says Trump is 'flying a kite' to see the response, and what he can away with. "Donald Trump will typically say t...

The Mangawhai community is banding together to pick up the pieces from yesterday morning's tornado. Two people were seriously injured and nine buildings are yellow stickered - with another 26 white stickered as possibly damaged, but safe.  Restoring power is taking longer than first expected, with worse damage than first thought. All but 30 customers should have electricity by midnight. Kaipa...

Overseas visitors may need an extra nudge to come here, even with relaxed visa requirements aiming to attract digital nomads to spend more. From today, people on visitor visas can work remotely here for overseas companies. Accommodation provider LyLo director Tim Alpe says it'll suit foreign tourists - but the challenge is telling them about it.  "We've got to get out internationally, we've g...

The architect of the Treaty Principles Bill claims the legislation would improve outcomes for Māori.  Oral submissions were delivered in Parliament, including from ACT's David Seymour himself, experts from the New Zealand Māori Association and Hobson's Pledge members.  Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls said the bill was subject to plenty of backlash - with Te Runanga o Toa Rangati...

Two historic Melbourne monuments were vandalised as tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest the controversial Australia Day holiday. A statue of John Batman, a founder of Australia's second largest city who was also involved in the deaths of indigenous people, was sawn in half and a monument commemorating Australian soldiers in World War One was covered in red paint. Australian...

There's belief within Auckland FC that they can win the A-League title in their maiden season. The inaugural side sits two points clear at the top of the table halfway through the campaign - they've conceded 11 goals in 14 games and only lost twice. Sportstalk host Jason Pine says the team's well on their way to making history - but they've got some fatal flaws holding them back. LISTEN ABOVE&nbsp...

Some of the nation's new charter schools claim they are being 'swamped' with applications before they have even opened. Seven of the publicly funded, privately owned schools are scheduled to open their doors over the next two weeks - and they're seeing plenty of demand. Mastery School principal Rose McInerney says her school has 60 primary-aged children enrolled, with a further 40 wait-listed. "Wh...

Wētā VFX has received three Academy Award nominations for their work on Alien: Romulus, Better Man, and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.  2000 people work within Wētā FX, many in Wellington, and head of VFX Matt Aitken said the nominations will make a 'great contribution' to the capital's economy.  The Oscars are set to take place in Hollywood on March 3rd.  LISTEN ABOVE. See omny...