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Today on The Huddle, New Zealand Herald Senior writer Simon Wilson and Ben Thomas, self-employed PR expert joined us to talk about the following:  Winston Peters is feeling validated! He's handily released this court verdict on the day of Mallard's valedictory. How effective are these Groundswell protests? How reflective is Groundswell of the community? Police have proactively put out their own da...

Jacinda Ardern met with her old Parliamentary sparring partner in Auckland this morning. The Prime Minister sat down with Auckland Chamber of Commerce CEO, and former National Leader, Simon Bridges to discuss issues facing Auckland. Bridges says on the whole, Ardern does have a good handle on many issues - but says there are a number of pressures on businesses that the Government needs to address....

A petition to Parliament today asking the Government to address ethnic and gender pay gaps. MindtheGap says the first step needs to be mandatory paygap reporting for businesses with more than 50 workers. Co-Founder Jo Cribb says the gender pay gap is at 9.2 percent, and is even higher for Pacific women. She says there are measures we could take, to fill these gaps. Cribb says we should get rid of...

Auckland Zoo's Indonesian swamp forest will open on Saturday. It is the last piece of the puzzle in the South East Asia Jungle track - and provides a tropical experience with a climate-controlled dome. Auckland Zoo's Don McFarlane says the climate-controlled environments were a necessity to make sure all the animals with different needs were taken care of. "It covers that huge diversity of animals...

As Trevor Mallard says goodbye to the Beehive, Winston Peters is buzzing about a court ruling. A high court's ruled his order to trespass the former Deputy Prime Minister from Parliament in May, for speaking to anti-mandate protesters was unjustified. Winston Peters says it was extraordinary. "If you were able to defend yourself, you'd have to say that you acted in a reasonable way given the circu...

The turn-out may not have been as big, but the organisers are still deeming today's protests a success. Thousands of farmers have revved their tractors, trucks and utes in protest to the Government's proposed livestock emissions plan. Groundswell New Zealand co-founder Bryce McKenzie says they're pleased, considering they had eight days to prepare. He says it's the busiest time of the year, with l...

The date for the Hamilton West by-election is officially confirmed to be December 10th, according to a statement from Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. The by-election was triggered by Gaurav Sharma's abrupt resignation earlier in the week, and deputy political editor Jason Walls has observed that Labour isn't loving their chances.  Jason Walls also explained why Labour might have felt the need to so...

Over in Australia, the deputy leader of the Greens, Lidia Thorpe, resigned from her position following her failing to disclose a relationship with a former biker gang leader.  Lidia admitted to briefly dating the former head of the Rebels biker gang and remaining on friendly terms with him after the fact. She viewed not disclosing the relationship as a lapse in judgement. This was viewed as contro...

The Women's Rugby World Cup carries on, with the Black Ferns set to play against Scotland this Saturday. The match is happening at Northland Events Centre, Whangarei, and the team is speculated to do well, even with unexpected changes impacting their rhythm.  D'Arcy Waldegrave, host of Sportstalk, explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nearly 350 people are facing more than two-thousand charges in relation to youth offending across Waikato and Auckland. Police are cracking down on recidivist offenders by opposing bail for some. Assistant Police Commissioner Richard Chambers says the average age of those involved, is 15. Chambers says their motivation continues to be money, peer pressure and social media notoriety. LISTEN ABOVE  ...

After two years of COVID-19 restrictions and people readjusting to working from home, there is now a surge in people returning to office environments.  The number of vacant office buildings in New Zealand's three biggest cities is going down, highlighting that offices still hold an important role in workplace culture, despite concerns that the pandemic would eliminate them. JLL's Head of Research,...

Over in the UK, all eyes are on the inflation announcement, which has confirmed the inflation numbers will hit double digits.  Previously, the inflation numbers were at 9.9 percent, which makes a jump to 10.1 percent predictable, but alarming. Rising inflation rates will have a negative effect on the region, as the UK is already having to deal with a severe cost of living crisis. UK correspondent...

Home buyers could be paying $500 dollars per week more than they were in 2020 towards their mortgage. Two years ago, you could grab a two year interest rate for 2.49 per cent. They're now around 6 per cent. Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen explained further. LISTEN  ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Following Gaurav Sharma's abrupt resignation from Parliament, discussion surrounding a by-election has entered the public eye. Gaurav Sharma's resignation triggered a by-election, one in which he plans on running in as an independent candidate separate from Labour. The question of everyone's minds is- when is this by-election happening? Jacinda Ardern has declined to offer a real statement, but it...

Over in America, famed Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward is set to release a new audio book. The Trump Tapes is comprised of eight hours of interviews set to expose more information about the former president. Highlights include his relationship with Kim Jong-Un and North Korean strategy, and his working relationship with Vladimir Putin.  US correspondent explains what the audiobook has to off...

The Constellation Cup season is still ongoing, with the next match in the season set to happen tonight. The Silver Ferns have being doing well at the home matches, but need to secure a win against Australia to clinch the cup. Ahead of tonight's upcoming match at the John Cain Arena, D'Arcy Waldegrave explained it all here tonight. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Auckland GP accused of incorrectly prescribing ADHD drugs will be sanctioned. Ritalin and Concerta can only be prescribed with a recommendation from a psychiatrist or paediatrician. GP Tony Hanne has been found guilty of professional misconduct after prescribing without one, 5662 times. ADHD New Zealand Chair, Darrin Bull, says he hopes it'll lead to a better understanding of ADHD. Bull says th...

2022 has been an interesting, or rocky, year for our current share-markets, which contributes to a drop in investment prices. Central Banks all over the world are trying to combat inflation by raising interest rates, but this is more likely to create material recession risks and impact current share-markets.  Milford Asset Management equities analyst Jeremy Hutton is here to explain the concept of...

New data from yesterday has confirmed that the CPI rose by 7.2 percent, which has unfortunate implications for the economy and job market. Despite this, Finance Minister Grant Robertson has ruled out additional support or inflation relief.  The Government is more committed to reaching their spending targets, according to Grant Robertson, and there are no plans in place to relieve fuel taxes, intro...

National's unveiled a new plan for social investment, dusting off an idea from Bill English, re-imagined by current leaders. This is designed to combat crime and inequality.  Deputy Nicola Willis announced the initiative to replace what she terms Labour's "disempowered" social wellbeing agency with a more focused model. She says the new agency will give more resources to the front lines and be mor...

Today on The Huddle, Tim Wilson from the Maxim Institute and David Cormack, former Greens Communication and Policy Director joined us to talk about the following: Sunny Kaushal from the Dairy Owners Association has finally had his sit down meeting with Chris Hipkins. Sounds like the result was to agree to disagree, according to Sunny. Has Labour done enough here? Kiri Allan has stopped the extra p...

A Tikanga Maori expert says some work by Pakeha artist Lester Hall  inappropriately uses Maori symbolism. Hall's calling it quits and closing his Kerikeri art studio and removing Maori influences from his work, saying there have been sustained and nasty attacks on him and an Auckland gallery that's now stopped featuring his work. Karaitiana Taiuru  says of forty-four prints Hall has listed on his...

According to new data, the best place in the country for the tastiest sausages is the upper North Island region. The 2022 Great New Zealand Sausage Competition has just wrapped up, with New World Te Rapa in Hamilton and Zaroa Meats in Auckland being declared joint winners. The judges couldn't decide between New World's pork sausage or Zaroa's Aoraki salami sausage, but were adamant that these two...

A Crown appeal of teen rapist Jayden Meyer's nine-month home detention sentence has been dismissed. The now 18-year-old was convicted of raping four 15-year-old girls and sexually violating a fifth. But although the appeal's been denied -- High Court Justice Sally Fitzgerald says the sentencing process lacked transparency. But, criminal lawyer Steve Cullen says the appeal against the sentence came...

The Government and small retailers have agreed on a couple of measures to combat youth offending, as ramraids and retail crime continue. Police Minister Chris Hipkins met the Dairy Owners and Business Group in Auckland this morning. Group Chair Sunny Kaushal says on top of a tough approach to crime - they want better cameras and a boost to funding. "Businesses across the country have been facing t...