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Claims John Beckenridge was in a dire financial straits before vanishing with his stepson, Mike. Their mysterious disappearance in 2015 is subject to a Coroners' hearing to determine whether the pair are dead or alive. A detective believes Beckenridge seemed to be living off his credit card, but the boy's mother, Fiona Lu, thinks her ex-husband was stashing cash. Newstalk ZB journalist Courtney Wi...

A British man died after being reportedly stuck by lightening while paddle-boarding in Greece. The unnamed 26-year old was in the ocean during a thunderstorm in Agia Agathi, Rhodes, according to local media. Investigations into this incident are currently underway. UK correspondent Enda Brady says the paddle-boarder was rescued after being hit, but he died shortly after. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystu...

This evening on The Huddle, journalist Clare de Lore and current affairs commentator Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! Education Minister Jan Tinetti has been referred to Parliament's powerful privileges committee, over failing to correct a statement around attendance stats. The last time a Minister was referred to the group of senior MPs was i...

Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr indicated the 25bps increase to 5.5 percent is as high as the OCR will go for the foreseeable future. Orr explained that the OCR will have to stay at 5.5 percent for much of next year to bring down inflationary pressures. HSBC Chief Economist Paul Bloxham agrees that the OCR has peaked and doesn't think the Reserve Bank will hike rates up. He says the next directio...

Sheep and beef farmers are experiencing record on-farm inflation levels for the second year in a row. Beef + Lamb NZ's report Sheep and Beef On-farm Inflation 2022-23 shows on-farm inflation is at 16.3 percent, a 40-year high. In March, Beef + Lamb NZ forecasted a 30 percent decrease in average farm profit based on estimated on-farm inflation of 12–13 percent. The Country's Jamie Mackay says this...

The big four Australian banks have been given a deadline for establishing open banking standards. Payments NZ’s API Centre has published a “minimum open banking implementation plan”, giving ANZ, ASB, BNZ, and Westpac until 2024 to prepare. Open banking refers to the tech-driven revolution in financial services overseas involving non-bank tech companies improving services for consumers. BusinessDes...

Western Australia premier Mark McGowan abruptly resigned Monday, claiming he was 'exhausted'. McGowan delivered this shock announcement at a snap press conference, midway through his second term in office. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says Mark McGowan remains a 'political juggernaut' for the region and he was 'loved' by his state for his Covid-19 response. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/...

The Miami Heat have rebounded from three straight defeats to beat the Celtics in Boston and wrap up the NBA's eastern conference. The Heat have won game seven 103-84 to take the series 4-3, having led 3-nil before Boston levelled the series. The eighth-seeded Heat now face the Denver Nuggets for the NBA title. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/list...

New Zealand businesses wary of burning out staff are taking steps to reduce employees working when on annual or sick leave. A recent survey revealed nearly half of Kiwi employees are too stressed to do their jobs properly. Employment law advocate Danny Gelb says this uptick in businesses locking staff out of work I.T systems while on leave is out of genuine concern for employee well-being over bur...

Drivers in New Plymouth are lambasting authorities for issuing parking tickets despite the number of broken meters. Of the 96 parking meters in New Plymouth's central business area, just 53 work properly. 8 are dead and the remaining 35 don't accept all forms of payment. New Plymouth councillor Murray Chong says plenty of people attempt to use the meters and face a fine without having any other op...

A faction of six Wellington City councillors have lost confidence in the capital's $7.4 billion transport plan. The councillors have filed a notice of motion stating they're no longer confident in Let's Get Wellington Moving and want the council to withdraw from their 2019 funding agreement. One of the Wellington councillors who signed was Diane Calvert, who says an earlier briefing gave them no m...

Hawke's Bay Regional Council is asking the National Emergency Management to help cover some of the costs from Cyclone Gabrielle. The Council is facing an $885 million repair bill, and wants NEMA to chip in $56 million. Councillor Neil Kirton says the Council could claim back multiple costs - but they're being challenged. "The air travel by helicopter, etc. to service isolated communities, now we'v...

The Children's Commissioner believes more needs to be done to stop offending than simply increasing police pursuits. Police have revised its fleeing drivers policy, giving more scope to pursue offenders when there's a serious offence and risk of ongoing offending. The policy was restricted in 2020, with a subsequent rise in fleeing drivers - and fewer being identified. Judge Frances Eivers says wo...

Education Minister Jan Tinetti may face serious consequences after allegedly breaking House rules. Tinetti's been referred to the Privileges Committeeby the Speaker, accused of misleading the House by failing to correct a misleading statement around attendance stats. ZB's senior political correspondent Barry Soper says Jan Tinetti pleading ignorance reveals more about the quality of Cabinet minist...

Third year Canterbury University engineering students complaining about a must-pass exam have been proved right. The University has apologised after a new report found taking a competency test in the middle of exam season violated policy. Its timing meant more than half the students failed. Student Association President Pierce Crowley says it's not about how tough the exam was, but its timing. "Th...

I am risk of repeating myself two days in a row , but that’s only because National appears determined to keep making the same mistake . So here we go . National should not have walked back Simeon Brown’s comments on bilingual road signs . When National sent Nicola Willis and Chris Bishop onto morning radio shows today , it should’ve been to back up Simeon Brown . Not to back-pedal from what he sai...

Turkey’s incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has won a fifth term, extending his run in office into a third decade. 99 percent of the ballot boxes have been opened, and Erdogan won 52 per cent of the vote over the 48 per cent for his opponent, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says Erdogan is a divisive leader, having taken aim at a Kurdish prisoner and the entire LGBTQ communit...

This evening, Trish Sherson from Sherson-Willis PR and former Labour Chief of Staff and current director at Mike Munroe Communications, Mike Munroe, joined The Huddle to discuss the following topics- Waka Kotahi are opening consultation on whether road signs should include Te Reo Maori. National's Transport spokesperson Simeon Brown has claimed these changes will be 'confusing'. Do we approve of t...

National have backtracked from a bipartisan agreement with Labour to address the housing shortage on their own terms. Under a National-led government, councils will be able to opt out of the Medium Density Residential Standards and have the option to either increase density or develop farmland. NZME business commentator Fran O'Sullivan says National have used this backtrack to 'sandbag' Labour at...

The Finance Minister won't divulge any potential changes to Labour's tax policy. The latest 1News Kantar Public poll revealed more than half of voters think the time is right to introduce tax cuts, and National promised to implement them if elected. Finance Minister Grant Robertson says it's not the right time to introduce tax cuts and add to inflationary pressures. "We just don't think that's the...

There's growing calls for fines and increased consequences after a dozen pitch invaders disrupted Saturday's Warriors' match. Police decided to trespass and release the 12 offenders who dashed out onto Napier's McLean Park during the final quarter of the Warriors- Broncos match. Sportstalk host Jason Pine says there's a simple answer to this- throw the book at rule-breakers. LISTEN ABOVE   See omn...

Auckland Council and the Government are working on a plan designed to lessen the impact of extreme weather events on roads. They're working on a plan which would see roads that are commonly hit moved to safer ground. Auckland Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson says there aren't a list of roads yet. She explained that the $6 billion pledged to the idea isn't a waste. "Because it sounds a lot of money, but...

Melbourne residents felt the impact of a 3.8 magnitude earthquake last night. The tremor hit the region's north-west at 11:41pm, and over 22,750 people reported they felt shaking. Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says reports and photos have since surfaced of light damage, but no injuries. "It's just something that Melbournians don't experience very often, if at all." LISTEN ABOVE See omny...

If the cost-of-living crisis has you wanting a stiff drink, think again. The alcohol excise tax will increase 6.65 percent in July- the second largest increase in 30 years. Brewers Association Executive Director, Dylan Firth says  the Government can opt to not raise the excise by CPI, but never has. "They've said no in the past, and we've tried different angles in how we could potentially introduc...

Waka Kotahi is asking people to have their say on bilingual road signs. It's opening consultation on whether signs should include Te Reo Maori. National Party Transport spokesperson Simeon Brown has made his thoughts clear, claiming it'll be confusing. Waka Kotahi Land Transport Director Kane Patena says they wouldn't pop up all at once. "The approach that we're taking within Waka Kotahi is that a...