Kerre Woodham Mornings Podcast

As has been much discussed lately, doctors and nurses have raised concerns about the winter ahead given some Emergency Departments are already over capacity. There are concerns that many hospitals around the country are understaffed and the staff employed are overworked. However, in a good news story, Waikato University's nursing student intake has more than doubled. The school has a record 210 ne...

Everyone staying in New Zealand tonight, aside from those impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle.are legally required to complete their Census forms today.  As of this morning, more than 1.4 million people have returned an Individual Form. The Census collection period for the affected areas has been extended until June first. Stats NZ Deputy Chief Executive Simon Mason joined Kerre Woodham to discuss the p...

Christopher Luxon finally got to make his State of the Nation speech yesterday, in which he berated Labour for its many, many sins. Highest inflation in 32 years, only 46 per cent of kids attending school, regularly falling standards of education, the increase in violent crime.    Christopher Luxon then made promises that a National Government would turn things around with youth military academies...

It's been three weeks since Cyclone Gabrielle hit, and there are still some cut-off and without power in Hawke's Bay. Across the Hastings District, 10 communities are still are isolated and more than 13-hundred homes don't have power. Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst told Kerre Woodham that people and volunteers around the region are working to clear silt and clean up the damage. LISTEN ABOVE See...

The process of rebuilding communities that have taken a hit during the weather events of this summer is going to be a long and arduous process. Tough decisions will have to be made. Personal decisions will have to be made. Do you want to go back and live in the place where your worst nightmare occurred? I’m thinking of the families whose homes came down in landslides, whose homes were flooded and...

Wellbeing support is available for cyclone-stricken Napier residents. Mental health advocate Mike King and winery owner Greg Miller are opening the "I Am Hope Wellness Centre" there today. It's situated on the flood-ravaged Valley d'Vine restaurant premises on Linden Estate. A team of four counsellors and one doctor are taking annual leave for a fortnight to offer health services at no cost. King...

Rob Campbell is a very big cheese. He was named Deloitte chairman of the Year in 2017 and awarded a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to business in 2019. Not bad for a poacher turned gamekeeper, a former Unionist turned businessman,  appointed as Chancellor of Auckland, University of Technology, and more recently charged with the onerous burden of transforming New Zealand's...

I was listening to Justine Wilson this morning, the woman Mike interviewed who runs the  KiwiEsk Luxury Lodge in Esk Valley . Mike was asking for her reaction to the announcement yesterday that businesses hit by cyclone damage can get grants of up to $40,000 to help with the immediate costs of the damage. Cyclone Recovery Minister Grant Robertson said more announcements on funding support will be...

The clean-up post Cyclone Gabrielle is uncharted territory for many kiwis. If you have a house at the bottom of your driveway, as Justine Wilson does, a house that wasn't there yesterday, doesn't belong to you and doesn't belong there, how do you get rid of it? How do you prioritise earthmoving equipment, house moving trucks, tow trucks, volunteers with shovels when there are limited resources and...

I thought I'd start with the fact that Consumer NZ has come out and said that stranded Cook Strait ferry passengers have a strong case for payout. And the thing that astonished me when I heard that story, that passengers may have a case for claiming reimbursement after having their ferry trips cancelled, is that there's any question at all of there being compensation.   Interislander and Blubridge...

Listening to Adrian Orr, the Reserve Bank Governor this morning, you realise New Zealand is between a rock and a hard place. As a country, we need to rebuild and rebuild a more resistant, resilient infrastructure in the wake of Cyclone Gabriel, and indeed all the other cyclones that have hit this summer. And we're going to need to be looking at reinforcing existing infrastructure around the countr...

Over the past week, there has been much discussion around how the Government should fund our Cyclone Gabrielle recovery, and whether we should be shoring up existing infrastructure in anticipation of more weather events occurring. Do we borrow? Do we tax? Do we reprioritise spending? In light of the Cyclone disaster, Finance Minister Grant Robertson yesterday left the door open to a review of the...

Yesterday, in light of the many phone calls, texts and emails I had, we put in a call with Police Comms asking whether they had someone willing to address the concerns that many people in Hawkes Bay have, regarding looting and general lawlessness. They're trying to get someone, obviously they're very, very busy, and at least emailed back to say they would do their best to get someone on this morni...

Somebody who is on the ground in Hawke's Bay is Superintendent Jeanette Park, the Eastern District commander. Superintendent Park joined Kerre Woodham Mornings and was asked whether she could understand the disconnect between what people are hearing from the Police Commissioner and and what they're experiencing. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Zealand Red Cross fundraiser for Cyclone Gabrielle relief, backed by NZ Herald and NZME, has reached $5 million thanks to the donations of generous Kiwis. As there have been enquires as to how to donate and what the money goes to, Kerre decided to get the details straight from the horse’s mouth. Secretary General of the New Zealand Red Cross Sarah Stuart-Black, also known as Norm, joined K...

Focus is shifting on to how to rebuild infrastructure after the cyclone. The Government announced yesterday an initial 300 million dollar emergency package, 250 million for roads and 50 for businesses. Rebuilding costs have been estimated to reach as high as eight billion dollars. Infrastructure Commission Chief Executive, Ross Copeland, told Kerre Woodham this first package is pragmatic. LISTEN A...

There are so many stories of courage and community spirit in the wake of crises here and around the world, unfortunately, chaos brings out the worst in people too. Various chapters of the Mongrel Mob have made much over recent years of the fact that they are community leaders. That they have formed brotherhoods because there is nothing for them in normal society. They say they aren't necessarily c...

Parts of Auckland remain without power, despite Vector's website and app showing there was no fault. Newstalk ZB Mornings host Kerre Woodham found this out when investigating for caller John yesterday. He has been without phone or power for days in Kaukapakapa and was struggling for information.   To update the situation, Vector Chief Executive Simon Mackenzie  "We'd just like to reiterate, the cr...

With floods, a cyclone and earthquakes, people are naturally more distressed than usual. So how do we cope with extra anxiety? Dr Kirsty Ross, a senior Clinical Psychologist at Massey University, joined Kerre Woodham. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gisborne may soon get a lifeline, as it continues to navigate patchy internet and phone connections and flooded out highways. The region hasn't had local Wi-Fi for three days and is prioritising connecting people within the community and to the outside world. The Defence Force has come in to assist, and the Prime Minister will visit Tairawhiti today to assess the damage. Local Civil Defence contro...

Parts of the Hawke’s Bay region remain cut off today without water, power, or cell coverage, with officials scrambling to find out more about the devastation in the cold light of day. Two people are confirmed dead, others are still trapped or awaiting supplies, and officials have “big gaps of knowledge” as to the state of isolated areas. One woman died after a landslip on her property in northern...

The sun might be out but the job isn’t done in the Coromandel, according to Coromandel-Thames Civil Defence controller Gary Towler. The region has experienced massive slips and land instability, compromising its entire roading network. ”Every time our land guys clear a slip, another one comes down right behind them,” Towler told  Kerre Woodham Mornings  on Newstalk ZB today. A number of houses in...

Submissions on the Arms Regulations Review of Fees discussion document are currently being taken. Essentially, the submissions are based around the administering of gun licenses and other regulations surrounding the ownership of use and firearms. In many cases, police are proposing to raise fees from a few $100 to over $1000, and also apply fees to activities that have required no charges previous...

Head analyst at WeatherWatch, Phillip Duncan, told Kerre Woodham it is remarkable how accurate computer modelling of Cyclone Gabrielle was, even as far as eight or nine days ago. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

No wonder parents have trouble getting their kids to school. I've had parents who have phoned me, particularly in the last few months, saying they have real trouble getting their teenagers to school when the teenagers simply don't feel like going. And you can understand why. Schooling has been so disrupted over the years. The parents try to tell their kids that school's important, and the kids poi...