Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

England captain Ben Stokes has announced his retirement from international cricket, stepping down after the current test against New Zealand. On the field, England have struggled to 103 for four at stumps on day four, in pursuit of 373 for victory. Sportstalk host Elliott Smith explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Work and Income's former boss says ACT's new welfare policy is 'sensible'. Party leader David Seymour's pledging to restrict what beneficiaries can buy, via work-ready Jobseekers' payment cards after four months.  It'd block spending on alcohol, gambling, tobacco and cash withdrawals - allowing only essentials like groceries and rent.  Christine Rankin says they shouldn't spend taxpayer...

So an email landed in my inbox - Spark Arena named among the world’s top 20 arenas. Now, this is a big deal. This isn’t a list that’s put together by some random Instagram account in Norway with 100 followers. This is a list put together by IQ Magazine. And if you’re into music in a big way - like, really into it, more than a Rolling Stone kind of way - you’ll know IQ Magazine is a big deal. So fo...

Listen to the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday 26 June. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ASB has joined Westpac in predicting the Reserve Bank will keep the Official Cash Rate on hold next month. The outlook has been revised after they previously predicted a hike when it's next reviewed on July 8th. However, ASB Senior Economist Mark Smith told Heather du Plessis-Allan that it'll be another close vote to stay at 2.25%. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right, hands up — who felt sorry for the doctor arrested at the border for not paying back his student loan? So the details are: this chap owes almost $180,000. Yes, he admits he should have responded to IRD on the multiple occasions they tried to contact him — but he didn’t. And he says he didn’t realise how much money he owed until just recently. Now he’s in a terrible situation because he’s stu...

The Police National Integrity Unit and IPCA are investigating historical sexual allegations against Police Commissioner Richard Chambers.  Meanwhile, Police Minister Mark Mitchell says he's aware of two separate complaints against the commissioner. Sexual violence advocate Louise Nicholas told Heather du Plessis-Allan that it doesn't make police look good, but doesn't apply to every cop.&nbsp...

The boss of the India New Zealand Business Council says he doesn't believe claims by Winston Peters that the Government plans to discriminate against Indian migrants.  The New Zealand First Leader claims the free trade deal with India will see the Government imposing stricter tests on Indian migrants that others aren't subject to.  Trade Minister Todd McClay says Peters is wrong - and Ed...

Barry Soper joins Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss today's news in politics.  Allegations have been made against police commissioner Richard Chambers, but police minister Mark Mitchell says Chambers has his support.  Chris Bishop delivered bad news to truck drivers.  And the inequity gap is growing, most noticeable in the classroom.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener...

The latest foundational assessment data shows 95 percent of socio-economically disadvantaged children were below curriculum level for maths in Year three. 70 percent of them were more than a year behind. Hora Hora school principal Pat Newman told Heather du Plessis-Allan that children in lower-income families face more uncertainty and disruption. He says people who don't know whether food's on the...

The UK has broken its all-time temperature record for June and France has recorded its hottest day ever amid the ongoing heatwave impacting the region. The World Health Organization has warned these extreme temperatures are putting lives at risk. UK correspondent Enda Brady explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Micron announced its third quarter earnings earlier, beating out analysts' expectations and surpassing estimates for the company's Q4 revenue outlook. Micron's stock has also gone up as a result, pushing up chip stocks. Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A fresh start for Federated Farmers, which has elected a new president after three years.  Wayne Langford has been replaced by his Waimate vice president - arable and dairy farmer Colin Hurst.  The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills and broadcaster Mark Sainsbury joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Winston Peters has raised some new concerns with the India-NZ FTA and directed some accusations at National - what do we make of this? What's Winston's plan here?  The Government has backed down on their plan to sell conservation...

National probably has the right intention with underused conservation land but they completely botched the communication of the plan and its implications. There’s a little bit of green in every New Zealander - and I could not agree with that more. I reckon this backdown is a slam-dunk case of one person, Tama Potaka, stuffing up the comms. This concern about 60 percent of the conservation estate b...

Solar companies could be in for a boost if National gets re-elected. The party is pledging to have a scheme offering homeowners low-interest loans to let them switch to solar, batteries, insulation - taking away big upfront costs. The money would  be repaid through rates. Rewiring Aotearoa CEO Mike Casey has voiced support for this move. "We've been asking for this for a long time and it's be...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 25 June, 2026, Conservation Minister Tama Potaka explains why he's backed down on selling conservation land. New Zealand First leader Winston Peters claims National has covertly changed course on migration settings for Indians. We talk to Spark Arena general manager Mark Gosling about it being rated one of the top 20 arenas in t...

The Porirua City Council is projecting an average zero percent rates rise, not taking into account water bills. It's down from a previous proposal of four percent.  There may still be small increases, and even decreases for some ratepayers.  Mayor Anita Baker says the recent QV valuations changed the way utility properties were rated, which brought projected rates down. "It means 0 perce...

Auckland's Spark Arena has been placed in the top 20 arenas in the world. It's been named as one of global music news platform IQ Magazine's 'Arena Stars', alongside venues like London's O2 arena and Chicago's United Center. Spark Arena's been recognised for its versatility - allowing attendee numbers from 25-hundred, all the way up to more than 12,000. Spark Arena general manager Mark Gosling say...

New Zealand First's leader's claiming National's been spooked and will tighten immigration rules for Indian citizens as part of the India trade deal. The FTA was before Parliament today and Winston Peters alleged National wants to discriminate against Indian migrants by imposing extra tests and criteria on them.  He says they're not applied to migrants from other countries that have FTAs with...

The Conservation Minister's opting to work with law already formed - on disposal and exchange of conservation land. After pushback from the opposition and environmentalists, Tama Potaka's scrapped a clause in a proposed law change, which would have allowed sale of protected land. He says they will instead use existing, but hopefully strengthened legislation.  "There are arrangements for dispo...

Winston Peters is accusing National of discriminating against Indian citizens in the Indian free trade deal - a shocking about-turn from earlier criticism.  The NZ First leader previously claimed the deal would lead to open-slather immigration.  But he now says National's abruptly changed course by tightening immigration settings against Indian citizens. Newstalk ZB senior political corr...

An Australian woman in Syria with links to ISIS, who had been issued a Temporary Exclusion Order, has now been issued a permit to return to Australia.  The woman was the only one issued a TEO from the cohort of Australian women with links to the group. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the woman will be under 'tight' surveillance and won't be able to access a mobile phone, the interne...

Christchurch City Council is in talks with the NRL over a second New Zealand-based club as part of the competition's planned expansion. Australian rugby league officials want to expand the competition to 20 teams by 2030 and Sport Nation has reported the council wants to front-foot a bid by merging two competing consortiums into one. Sportstalk host Elliott Smith explained what we know so far - an...

Federated Farmers has elected a new national president from South Canterbury. Waimate arable and dairy farmer Colin Hurst has replaced Wayne Langford. He's served as vice president for the last three years - and been spokesperson for freshwater, biodiversity, and fire and emergency issues. Former Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford says he's worked with Colin Hurst for a number of years and...