Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

More countries are being pulled into combat since the US and Israel began bombing Iran, trying to topple its regime.  Tehran has sent strikes across the Middle East - in retaliation for the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Hezbollah is siding with Iran and has struck into Israel, which has shot back a wave of attacks on Lebanon. MFAT is aware of 1750 New Zealanders in affecte...

The Minister for RMA Reform says letting councils give companies permissions relating to killing protected animals during work is a matter of reducing red tape.  A law passed last year let DOC extend this permission to companies to reduce development liability.  Under incoming RMA replacement Bills, councils can also give such permissions. Greenpeace has condemned the proposed change, sa...

Regional conflict is erupting in the Middle East - as the US and Israel ramp up aggression against Iran. Tehran has fired across surrounding states in retaliation for the killing of its Supreme Leader, with the US continuing bombardment, as Israel targets Lebanon. The White House says three US soldiers have died and it expects more casualties in coming weeks. MFAT says least 1750 New Zealanders ar...

The Australian Government has ruled out getting the military involved in the conflict unleashed by United States-Israeli strikes on Iran. It's been confirmed Australia has 115,000 nationals in the Middle East who are unable to fly out because of airspace closures as a result of the attacks.  Australian correspondent Sam Emery says Foreign Minister Penny Wong is in discussions with airlines, b...

Golfer Daniel Hillier's saluted partisan support for spurring him to a first New Zealand Open triumph at Millbrook. The 27-year-old's won the tournament by two strokes, finishing at 22-under overall after a final round four-under par 67. Jason Pine recapped all the action. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Foodstuffs is again trying to bring its North and South Island operations under one roof, after failing two years ago.  The company's heading to the High Court to appeal a 2024 Commerce Commission decision blocking its plan.  Grocery Action Group chair, Sue Chetwin, says letting it do so would only strengthen the duopoly.  She says upstream, suppliers would have less choice on whom...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday, 27 February, 2026, we talk to the secondary school teachers' union about teacher shortages. A Wall Street Journal reporter on the significance of Netflix walking away from a deal with Warner Brothers Discovery. Weta maestro Sir Richard Taylor tells us about his new robot project after receiving his latest international award. And...

Tell me if I’m wrong, but it seems to me that every single year the Anglican Church in this country delays repairing the Christchurch Cathedral, the public cares a little less about seeing it restored. And yet again, the Anglicans are asking for money to fix the thing. You might recall that 18 months ago they asked the government for $60 million. They got a no. So this time, they’re targeting Chri...

Premium apple demand is at the core of a strong financial result for T&G Global. Its revenue has increased by 14% to $1.6 billion and its net profit after tax is $16 million, up from a loss of $9.9m. Global Chief Executive Gareth Edgecombe told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the Chinese and US markets in particular have been buying more of the premium Jazz, Jolie and Envy apples. LISTEN ABOVE S...

An economist says benefit sanctions aren't working.  The traffic light system was introduced last year and beneficiaries who failed obligations like taking part in Work and Income assessments.  Infometrics principal consultant Rob Heyes says the number of beneficiaries has continued to rise after they were introduced.  He told Heather du Plessis-Allan that it's goal of getting peopl...

No individual has had more of an impact on modern Hollywood visual effects than Sir Richard Taylor.  The Co-Founder and Chief Creative force behind Weta Workshop has now received well deserved recognition from his peers, as he has won the Visionary award from the Visual Effects Society in LA. Sir Taylor told Heather du Plessis-Allan that he wasn't expecting to win the award. "I was a little o...

Netflix has backed away from its proposal to buy Warner Bros Discovery, clearing the way for Paramount Skydance to win the months-long bidding war. Warner Bros, which put itself up for sale last year, says Paramount's latest bid was superior to Netflix's, which in turn refused to raise its offer. The massive media company owns Harry Potter, DC Comics and CNN. Wall Street Journal's Joe Flint told H...

Students may be short changed by a lack of secondary school teachers. The latest Ministry of Education figures show a predicted shortfall of just over seven hundred high school teachers this year.  Post Primary Teachers Association President Chris Abercrombie says the Ministry of Education's prediction that the gap will be filled by 2028 is overly optimistic.  He says we need to take the...

There is disagreement between the ACT and NZ First leader over the Government's stake in Air New Zealand.  ACT Leader David Seymour proposed selling the Government's stake, which Winston Peters called 'economic lunacy'. Senior Political Correspondent Barry Soper told Heather du Plessis-Allan that, 'David Seymour and Winston Peters have never seen eye to eye at all and it's remarkable really t...

The Government wants to see regional routes kept, despite Air New Zealand's poor financial showing. Some regional flights could be axed or scaled back in response to the company's $40million half-year loss. Act leader David Seymour has called for the Government to sell its majority shareholding in the airline, which New Zealand  First's Winston Peters calls economic lunacy. Associate Transpor...

One key member of the UK's Labour party is warning that the nation only has three years to prepare for war. Al Carns gave an interview to the Times today and said that a major conflict was coming, and indicated Russia would be a likely source. UK correspondent Enda Brady explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 26 February, 2026, we talk to Air New Zealand's boss about its net loss of $40 million and ask if David Seymour's right when he says: "Go woke, go broke." How much the Government's making from clamping cars when people fail to pay fines. We look at why men are far more likely to own the home they live in than women. And on The H...

Labour politicians dusted off their gumboots and went down to the farm for their  annual meeting with Federated Farmers today. Federated Farmers started the get-together three years ago to better the relationship with the party. President Wayne Langford said some 'solid' discussions took place earlier, but no new policies were unveiled. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy inf...

It's looking to be a rough season for our meat processing sector, with companies struggling to compete with abundant grass and a turbo-charged store stock market. Some companies have dropped published lamb and beef schedules by 10c/kg, and the decline has prompted concerns.  The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So David Seymour’s right about Air New Zealand - but he’s also wrong about Air New Zealand. Before we get to why, let me bring you up to speed on what’s happened with the airline today, because the news is not good. Air New Zealand has posted a half-year result showing a $59 million pre-tax loss, which is slightly worse than expected. And to be fair to Air New Zealand, a lot of this really isn’t t...

Tonight on The Huddle, journalist Clare de Lore and Ali Jones from Red PR joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  Air New Zealand recently posted a multi-million net loss, and it's prompted David Seymour to urge the Government to sell down shares in the airline. Do we think this is the right move? What's gone wrong here?  New data from Cotality shows...

Sky TV says even though it's had a strong first-half financial year result - the television market remains challenging. It's reported a $52 million net profit, turning around a $1.7 million loss last period. Its revenue rose eight percent, to about $414 million. Sky TV chief executive Sophie Moloney says revenue for traditional TV was softer than expected. "The TV side does seem to be suffering a...

Should first responding volunteers be covered for post-traumatic stress caused by the job? ACC currently covers the responders for broad physical injury cover - but not for mental health harm. A petition to change the legislation with more than 36,000 signatures was unsuccessful last year. Land Search & Rescue chief executive Wendy Wright says most of their workforce are actually volunteers. "...

Women are continuing to lag significantly behind men when it comes to home ownership. Data from Cotality shows more than half of Gen Z men surveyed own their own home, while just a third of women do.  The disparity also exists amongst the millennial and Gen X age groups. Cotality Chief Property Economist Kelvin Davidson says it's not an attitude issue.   "Females actually rate property o...

Air New Zealand's assuring it's on track for economic stability. The national airline's announced a first-half before-tax loss of $59 million. CEO Nikhil Ravishankar says the result's driven by challenges from aircraft being grounded, a softer recovery than expected - and rising costs.  But he says they'll be well on the road to recovery over the next two to three years.  "One of the key...