Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Donald Trump has floated the idea of the US guiding neutral ships out through the Strait of Hormuz, and it's made an impact on the oil markets. The Brent oil price was little changed above $108 a barrel, after falling as much as 2.4 percent at the open - below last week's $118 high. Harbour Asset Management expert Shane Solly explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Critics of the Government's new draft curriculum have raised concerns that it's skipped over some key areas, and the Education Minister is looking to clear things up. Earlier, Auckland University's Darren Powell earlier claimed knowledge vital for students' understanding of mental heath, food and nutrition and sexual education is absent from the draft. Erica Stanford says the curriculum covers hea...

Tonight on The Huddle, Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani and Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  Educators have raised concerns with the Government's planned changes to school curriculums - what do we make of the backlash? Did we need these changes to fix declining achievement rates? Do the teachers have a point? Judith...

A health education expert says draft new curriculums don't address mental health - we get a response from Erica Stanford. You'll find out what TVNZ will charge you - for all the matches at football's World Cup. And on The Huddle, J osie Pagani and Maurice Williamson debate whether people like strong women. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadi...

Judith Collins has two weeks left as an MP and she’s given an exit interview to Audrey Young at the New Zealand Herald in which she says people don’t like strong women - obviously referring to herself. Now, I don’t disagree with Judith that she is a strong woman. She’s formidable. But I do disagree with her that people don’t like strong women, because what is Helen Clark if not a strong woman? So...

There's some concerns about cost blowouts on the new Cook Strait ferries, but Minister Chris Bishop isn't too worried. A Treasury briefing from September warned of risks costs could overtake the budgeted $1.8 billion dollars. Associate Finance Minister Chris Bishop says the Government's working at pace on this project and the new ferries are on their way. "It's going to be tight, there's no doubt...

There's claims the Ministry of Education hasn't delivered on key promises.  Specialist teachers are slamming the draft curriculums for music, PE, science, technology and history.  Auckland University Associate Health Education Professor, Darren Powell, says there are positive elements. But he says he's concerned there's too long between introducing students to concepts, and expanding the...

TVNZ has recently announced how much it'll cost Kiwis to watch all 104 matches in the upcoming FIFA World Cup on TVNZ+. Ahead of the tournament starting next month, TVNZ has unveiled their new $44.95 all-tournament pass for app users. TVNZ Head of Sports and Events Melodie Robinson says the broadcaster did plenty of research on what Kiwi sports fans would be willing to pay.  "We're really ple...

Ferry Holdings' chair insists buying two new Interislander ferries and improving docks to accommodate them won't blow out costs.  In a Treasury briefing last September, officials raised concerns building portside infrastructure could exceed the budget. But chair Chris Mackenzie says that briefing was premature.  "You've got to remember that this report that was done last September was do...

A warning US ships could encounter mines, missiles and small boat attacks if they try to shepherd commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. Donald Trump has announced 'Project Freedom' - a plan that will involve 15,000 service members and 100 military aircraft.  Massey University Centre for Defence and Security Studies' John Battersby says there are many unknowns.   "We can't guar...

A first of its kind agreement to secure New Zealand fuel. Prime Minister Chris Luxon and other ministers are in Singapore, for the signing of a fuel and food security Memorandum of Understanding. Singapore will supply us fuel in times of crisis - and New Zealand's will supply food - in a mutually beneficial deal. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained the significance of...

The upcoming by-election for Sussan Ley's former regional seat in Farrer is set to take place this weekend, and there's speculation about what it could mean for One Nation's future. One Nation is seeing more support, with a new poll showing 11.7 percent of respondents assigned a the party a rating of 10. Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says this will come as a huge boost for the party's c...

Auckland FC boss Nick Becker hopes the crowd for their semi-final first leg against Adelaide United next Saturday is better than last night's elimination final. 11,351 went through the Mt Smart gates and saw Auckland FC keep their season alive on penalties over Melbourne City. Sportstalk host Jason Pine explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Walk Without Fear Charitable Trust is running a two-day anti-violence programme tomorrow, for up to 120 South Auckland secondary students. The Trust plans to roll out national school programmes, which will include lessons to avoid coward punches. Chair Eugene Bareman says kids are taught self-control, de-escalation and how to protect themselves.  "Just how to approach a situation calmly when...

So I was in Christchurch giving a speech to part of Local Government New Zealand - the South Island arm - so the room was full of mayors and councillors from across the South Island. One of the topics up for discussion was what councils around the country need to do, or could do, to win back public approval. I have to be honest: I left that room - and you know my views on councils - feeling just a...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday, 1 May, 2026, former Defence Minister Ron Mark explains why he wouldn't  be rushing to help the US open the Strait of Hormuz. An Australian reading expert tells us why New Zealand can be world leading in literacy. One New Zealand chief executive Jason Paris outlines what went wrong with an internet outage. And on the Sports Hu...

One billion dollars in cash has appeared in Kiwi wallets since last year.  The Reserve Bank said that in March of 2025, there was $8.59 billion worth of physical cash in circulation. Now, that number has risen to $9.57billion.  Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the cause of this is likely due to global instability.  "I wouldn't be surprise...

I’m inclined to think that at some stage and in some way we will be helping the US to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. It’s been revealed by American media that Trump has told US embassies around the world to pressure governments to help. Australia is considering assistance and so are we. It’s early days at the moment. It appears both we and Australia are simply asking for more information at this poi...

NRL teams, including the Warriors, have voiced their concerns on the fine print of Papua New Guinea's first team joining the league.  The Papua New Guinea Chiefs’ are set to join the league in 2028, but they have a significant leg-up over the competition when it comes to recruitment.  An agreement between the Australian and PNG governments over the Chiefs’ admission into the NRL allows t...

One New Zealand says a widespread internet outage this morning was caused by one of its technology partners.  Ninety cell towers were taken down by technical problems - leaving some customers in the South Island and lower North without service or internet. The company says the outage began about 1:30 this morning and it took hours to be fully resolved.  One NZ Chief Executive Jason Paris...

ANZ is bracing itself for more variability - on the back of a lift in economic activity.  The bank's posted a $1.2billion half year net profit - a 2% increase on the 6 months prior.  It also saw a 2% rise in loans, and a 4% rise in deposits.  But Chief Executive Antonia Watson says there's a lot of uncertainty ahead, with conflict in the Middle East tanking business and consumer con...

Former Defence Minister Ron Mark says its not clear how New Zealand could meaningfully support reopening the Strait of Hormuz.  The US has formally provided an initial plan to New Zealand for the Government to consider - but Foreign Minister Winston Peters says more detail's needed.  Mark told Heather du Plessis Allan that our defence forces have reduced capability - and he could only se...

An Australian Language expert is praising New Zealand's new approach to teaching literacy.  The Government mandated state schools to teach a specific structured literacy curriculum to new entrants from the beginning of last year.  Education data showed increasing improvement in learning outcomes across the four school terms in 2025.   Professor Pamela Snow told Heather du Plessis-Al...

British police are treating the stabbing of two men on Wednesday in north London as a 'terrorist incident', following arson attacks targeting Jewish sites. Police have arrested a 45-year-old man - the 76 and 34-year-old victims are in a stable condition. UK correspondent Enda Brady says Israel has condemned the attack, and says the UK Government needs to start cracking down on anti-Semitism. LISTE...

The world's leading tech giants - Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet and Meta - all recently reported their latest earnings. All of these companies surpassed investor expectations, but one clearly came out on top. Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.