The Front Page

The year in politics has been a bumpy road for many. The coalition Government dived in quickly to reverse previous Labour policy, and pushed numerous bills through Parliament to reach quarterly deadlines and targets – with a mixed response from voters around some policies. Labour meanwhile has spent much of the last year recovering from their election wipeout in 2023, leaving Te Pati Maori t...

It’s been a huge year for sport here in New Zealand. In one weekend in October, Team New Zealand took to the water in Barcelona and took home the America’s Cup for the third time in a row, while the White Ferns won the ICC T20 Women’s World Cup final. There were major wins across the board for the Black Caps, the Silver Ferns, and our latest football team, Auckland FC. But in thi...

The economy has been in an uncertain place for quite some time, and 2024 was no different. Over the last year, we’ve seen some improvement. In October, the annual rate for inflation had fallen from 3.3 percent to 2.2 percent. The official cash rate ended the year on 4 point 25 percent. Elsewhere, the news hasn’t been so positive. The country’s gross domestic product contracted 0....

While 2024 has been a big year of news in New Zealand, there’s been plenty happening around the world over the last 12 months. From wars and conflicts to extreme-weather events -- new pandemic threats to cancer coming to Buckingham Palace -- we’ve seen it all over the last 12 months. Today on The Front Page, we’ll be revisiting the many conversations we’ve had about the big...

Law and order is always a hot topic of debate amongst politicians. The coalition government was elected in part on the back of years of ram raids and violent robberies post-Covid. The last 12 months has seen delivery on promises to bring back boot camps for young offenders, a crackdown on gangs, and the return of Three Strikes legislation.  Today on The Front Page, we’ll be revisiting t...

While 2024 may not have brought the shocks of cyclones, Prime Ministerial resignations or election campaigns, there’s a lot to digest from the last year.   The Government delivered tax relief, gang crackdowns and a Fast Track bill, while dealing with controversy over Māori relations, smoking laws and apartment entitlements. Te Pāti Māori led the fight back against the Treaty Princi...

A terrorism charge has been laid against a New Zealander who allegedly travelled overseas to join Islamic State a decade ago.  Mark John Taylor, also known as Mohammed Daniel, was charged under the Terrorism Suppression Act this morning.   Charging documents filed in the Wellington District Court state he’s being accused of participating in a group in Syria, namely the Islamic...

Christopher Luxon believes his so-called ‘coalition of chaos’ has defied the critics. The Prime Minister is spending the remainder of 2024 lauding his government’s achievements – inflation is under 3%, a 30% increase of cops on the beat, 26 new cancer treatments, tax relief just to name a few. But he’s ending the year facing criticism over his handling of the Treaty P...

Communities around the country are waiting with bated breath for news about major infrastructure projects – ones that are set to cost a lot of money. The government’s expected to announce the future of Interislander’s Cook Strait ferries this week – after the $3 billion mega ferry contract was canned last year due to ‘significant cost blowouts’. Meanwhile, a rep...

After decades years of tyrannical rule, and 13 years of civil war, the Assad regime in Syria has fallen. After rebels rapidly closed in on the capital of Damascus, President Bashar al-Assad and his family fled the country and reportedly are now in Moscow. It has cleared the way for rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham to take control of the country. Global powers have welcomed the end of the dictators...

Over the coming weeks, many Kiwis will be heading to our national parks and great walks for their summer holidays. But if you're doing so for a cheap summer break, enjoy the free ride while it lasts. The Department of Conservation is $1.65 billion short every year on what it needs to cover its responsibilities - and the Government is looking at a number of ways to swell DoC’s coffers. Environmenta...

When strippers arrive at work and don’t know how much money they’re taking home at the end of the shift. Their employer might decide to take a higher percentage of their wages that week, or they could’ve been fined for something inconsequential – with no way of rebutting. They can’t unionise, negotiate better contract terms, or complain to the likes of WorkSafe or the Commerce Commission. Fired Up...

There are continued calls to tighten alcohol laws in New Zealand. The growing trend of online deliveries has made advocates worried, with a study finding a large portion of alcohol deliveries bypassed ID checks. Meanwhile, Auckland's new alcohol policy, starting December 9, will reduce sales hours and tighten regulations on new liquor licenses. Across the ditch, New South Wales is looking to intro...

New Zealand’s summer is shaping up to be hotter and drier than average. The country’s forecast has shrugged off the rainy start to summer with temperatures soaring into the 30s in some parts in the coming week. But, moving through January and February, the weather patterns are predicted to become more La Nina-like, which would bring increased chances of more rain events. So as the country gears up...

Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins has told the party it must change if it wants to re-gain the trust it's lost. The party held its annual conference in Christchurch at the weekend, the first time its members have met since the 2023 election defeat. The party has inched closer to campaigning on a wealth tax or a capital gains tax, at the next election - after members passed a proposal to move the i...

Pharmac is now funding a new medicine and has removed renewal criteria for ADHD treatments.  Advocates are welcoming the move – saying it’s a game-changer that will save the health system tens of millions of dollars. But, there are warnings it could lead to over-diagnosing and over-prescribing. Today on The Front Page, co-founder of DivergenThinking and registered psychologist, Anton Ashcroft join...

It’s Black Friday and many Kiwi shoppers have already begun the hunt for some great deals. While some retailers promise big discounts – sometimes, all is not what it seems. Claims of retailers hiking prices before discounting them to make them look like a better deal are becoming more common – making us wonder, are the specials really that special? So, during a time when Kiwis are counting their p...

The official cash rate has been cut by 50 basis points, bringing it down to 4.25 percent. This marks the third consecutive cut to the OCR since August and brings it to the lowest level since November 2022. With inflation also dropping last month to 2.2 percent, stats show an improving economy – but low spending is sparking concerns that we aren’t out of the woods yet. Today on The Front Page, we’r...

Today marks a year since the coalition government of National, Act and New Zealand First took office. The coalition hit the ground running, by reversing the previous Labour Government’s agenda in a ‘policy bonfire’, slimming down the public service, and reverting many Crown organisations to their English names. This, and the scrapping of the Māori Health Authority, kickstarted tensions between thi...

Climate change conference COP29 has wrapped up with a significant but controversial final agreement. Negotiations came down to the wire over a US$1.3 trillion to help finance poorer countries to deal with the impacts of climate change and cut emissions. But, only about $300 billion of that target will come from direct payments or loans from richer countries – which has sparked backlash from nation...

New research shows a third of New Zealand adults are obese – and policies focused on individual responsibility are failing. A Helen Clark Foundation report suggests tackling obesity will require cracking down on junk food advertising, the proliferation of takeaways, and bringing in new levies on unhealthy products. So, is the era of placing the blame on the individual going to be a thing of the pa...

Regional development has been a major focus of the coalition government. The Fast Track Bill, the return of oil and gas exploration and the Regional Infrastructure Fund is all promised to get work back to the regions and help them thrive.  And the man running the show is the so-called Matua of Mining and Prince of the Provinces, Shane Jones. He’s the Minister for oceans and fisheries, regional dev...

The Government’s promised the “free ride” for gangs, is officially over. From today, gang patches will no longer be allowed to be worn in public, courts will be able to issue non-consorting orders, and Police will be able to stop members from communicating with each other. Greater weight will also be given to gang membership at sentencing – and repeat offenders continually convicted of displaying...

The war in Ukraine has hit the one-thousand-day mark. On February 24, 2022 – Russia invaded Ukraine – since then, hundreds of thousands of people have died, many more have been injured, and millions are displaced. It's been called the largest and deadliest in Europe since World War II. This week, US President Joe Biden gave the green light for Ukraine to strike Russia with US-made, long-range miss...

The hikoi that started in Cape Reinga and has made its way down the country arrives in Wellington today. While many have taken part in various stages of the hikoi, tens of thousands of people are expected outside the Beehive today, as a protest against the Government’s policies impacting Maori, including the Treaty Principles Bill. Te Pati Maori have been leading the push back against the Governme...