Politics Central

The future king, Prince Charles, and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, have arrived in New Zealand for their third official visit - the first in four years. The royal couple's whirlwind tour will include visits to both the North and South Island before the prince is spirited away to Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands on his way home. The six-day jaunt of Aotearoa starts today in the City of Sails after th...

Landlords will no longer be able to get rid of tenants without reason, under law changes due to be announced today. At present, landlords can give a tenant 90 days' notice without having to provide a reason and 42 days' notice in some circumstances, such as landlords or their family wanting to move in, or if the property has been sold. Tenants have to give only 21 days' notice. The Government plan...

New Zealand's newest political party, Sustainable NZ, has launched today with a promise of increasing Conservation funding by $1 billion over four years in a bid to halt the extinction of native species. Leader Vernon Tava said the funding could come from New Zealand First's $3 billion provincial growth fund. And he has endorsed the use of gene technology to help reduce predators. He described the...

Jami-Lee Ross is not ready to give up his electorate just yet. The Independent MP will next year face off against his former party, National, in the general elections.  Ross quit National last year after a public falling out with leader Simon Bridges and a battle with mental health.  He told The Weekend Collective that he admits the end of last year was "a bit rough", but he is still confident of...

As the country prepares for two potential referendums next year, there are concerns about misinformation clouding the debates. The Minister of Justice has plans in place to combat misinformation and manipulation in any campaigns leading up to, potentially, two divisive referendums at next year's election. That includes a special team within the Ministry of Justice to direct people to information a...

Black and white, they sat together on the edge of the dusty township street where Nelson Mandela once lived and watched their Springboks win the Rugby World Cup again. The late Mandela would surely have liked what he saw — both the picture of unity among the South Africans watching the game on TV near his old house on Vilakazi Street in Soweto, and the Springboks' victory in the World Cup final ha...

There are set to be fireworks this week, not just in the night sky, but the court room. More than two years after it was revealed he'd been overpaid superannuation, lawyers for Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters say they're set to explain how the error happened. Peters will tomorrow take the stand to give evidence in a privacy lawsuit he's bringing against former National Government ministers An...

Former Labour Party president Mike Williams disputes suggestions the party is in trouble. The Coalition Government has celebrated two years in power this week, but growing concerns over the deliverability of certain proposals, and dropping poll numbers, has raised doubts about their re-election hopes.  However, Williams told The Weekend Collective that they have every reason to feel positive.  "I...

National's spokesperson for economic development says the Government should be pleased to still be in power - and that's it.  The Labour-NZ First-Greens coalition celebrated two years in power this week.  However, National's Todd McClay says that the coalition has failed to deliver on many of their promises, and that New Zealanders are starting to notice. He told the Weekend Collective that the nu...

Former Prime Minister John Key met with China's President Xi Jinping this week, where the Chinese leader reportedly spoke highly of Key's contribution to the New Zealand/China relationship. The pair met in the Chinese capital of Beijing on Wednesday where, according to media site Xinhuanet, Xi noted the situation in the world had undergone profound and complicated changes. Xi said China had become...

A former Mediaworks news anchor says you should never rule out the underdog. About 520 current staff are facing an uncertain future, with Mediaworks putting its TV arm and Auckland headquarters up for sale. There are no obvious buyers, nor Government intervention, in sight. Former newsreader for 3 News Neil Waka told the Weekend Collective the network was always close to folding, right from the st...

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has lashed out at the National Party in a speech signalling his party's direction for the election. But he's stopped short of saying he wouldn't do a deal with the current Opposition. In a lengthy closing his party's annual conference on Sunday, Peters mentioned National about 15 times, roughly the same number he mentioned his own party. He came into the roo...

US correspondent Charles Croucher joins the Weekend Collective to discuss the latest in the Trump impeachment proceedings and the withdrawal of US troops from Syria. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Wellington mayor Andy Foster joins the Weekend Collective to discuss his victory over rival Justin Lester. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dave Cull, former Dunedin mayor and president of Local Body Government NZ, talks to the Weekend Collective about the election results. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Isabelle Steger, Deputy Asia Bureau Chief at Quartz Global News, joins the Weekend Collective to discuss the ongoing protests in Hong Kong. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Bryce Edwards joins the Weekend Collective to give his take on an interesting week for New Zealand First. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chloe Swarbrick, Green Party spokesperson for drug law reform, joins the Weekend Collective to discuss drug safety checking at music festivals. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Christchurch mayor Sir Bob Parker joins the Weekend Collective to share his thoughts on whether voting in local body elections should be mandatory. LISTEN TO THE AUDIO ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As President Donald Trump’s whistleblower scandal continues, the impeachment probe has him pitted against the Democrats. The President is accused of asking his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden and the Democratic candidate's son during a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. US correspondent Charles Croucher joins The Weekend Collective to make...

A caregiver allegedly put her hands around the throat of a frail patient, a woman was left on the floor overnight after a fall and other rest home residents were left soaked in urine. Those claims are part of a raft of complaints made this year about a number of aged care facilities, details of which have been obtained by the Herald on Sunday. Grey Power president Mac Welch has heard dozens of sto...

Critics of US President Donald Trump say there’s never been a stronger case for impeachment than right now. There are allegations that Trump pressured Ukraine to reopen a closed investigation into Democrat Joe Biden’s son’s dealings in the country around the time of the annexation of Crimea in 2015 and 2016. US correspondent Charles Croucher joins The Weekend Collective to discuss the allegations...

The “Make it 16” campaign has launched and been brought to parliament. Supporters of the campaign want to lower the voting age in New Zealand from 18 to 16. To explain more, political scientist Sandra Gray talks to the Weekend Collective. LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Winston Peters has described Spark Sport’s Rugby World Cup service as a “disaster”, following widespread issues with last night’s coverage of the All Black’s victory over the Springboks. The acting Prime Minister watched the game on his phone and said he could “understand what the people are talking about”. He talks to the Weekend Collective about Spark Sport and whether the Rugby World Cup should...

Medical centres nationwide have been given $6 million to provide mental health services. The Government's allocating the hundreds of millions of dollars it set aside in the Budget for mental health initiatives. About $30 million has been set aside for the first round of pitches from providers who want to offer free mental health services from 2020. Jacinda Ardern says the services are for the numb...