The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The Government’s first 100 days is just about up.   Today is the final day of their 100 day action plan, almost all of their 49 tasks having been ticked off the list.   Last on the list is setting major targets for the health system, which is due to be crossed off this afternoon.   Christopher Luxon denied that the plan was simply announcements without actions, telling Mike Hosking that the educat...

The energy sector says the Government fast tracking consent legislation is a welcome breath of fresh air.   The coalition's introduced its replacement for the Resource Management Act, which gives ministers the final say on new infrastructure initiatives.    Energy Resources Aotearoa says this will strike the balance between encouraging investment, while maintaining checks to protect iwi and the en...

The Italian Parliament has approved their involvement in three new international missions.   Italy has received support from across their political spectrum for these missions in the Red Sea, Ukraine, and Gaza.   Italian Correspondent Jo McKenna told Mike Hosking that this involvement includes military presence in the Red Sea, further aid and weapons for Ukraine, and more aid for Gaza.   LISTEN AB...

You can argue a lot about what the Government has announced this week, the school lunches, the military-style boot camps, and yesterday's housing shake up.   But they have one critical advantage. What they are addressing, indisputably, has not worked under the other Government's view of the world.   The school lunch programme is hundreds of millions of dollars of waste.   The crime rate got hopele...

A friend of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny maintains his death was an assassination.   American financier Bill Browder was the biggest foreign investor in Russia, and was deported in 2005 for opposing Kremlin-backed companies   He told Mike Hosking this isn't the first attempt to kill Navalny, and says Putin tried to poison him with a banned Soviet-era chemical in 2020.    Browder says t...

The appetite for interesting and odd food combinations seems to be growing.   A developmental test kitchen in Wellington is playing with ingredients, dishes like offal ice cream and blood-sauced steak on offer.   Chefs Elliot Shepherd and Dale Bowie are pushing boundaries, combining science with cooking and aiming to add to the “lacking” line-up of kiwi cuisine.   Bowie told Mike Hosking that they...

Increasing dementia rates are seeing more advocacy for older people in the health system.   A new Aged Care Commissioner report highlights areas where healthcare falls short for older people, and where action is needed.   It calls for improvements to access and investment, as well as a sustainable workforce that can respond to complex health needs.   Commissioner Carolyn Cooper says a key area for...

Despite a record number of children leaving home schooling, numbers are still higher than pre-pandemic levels.   Education Ministry figures show 2,286 children exited home schooling last year.   More than half of those leaving had been learning from home for less than a year.   Total homeschool numbers remain above 10,000.   Education Hub founder Dr Nina Hood told Mike Hosking there's probably a c...

Act party leader  David Seymour  says there’s “no question” there will be a reduction in the number of public servants under the coalition Government’s watch.   Seymour spoke with Mike Hosking on Newstalk ZB this morning following criticism of the government’s proposed public sector cuts.   Ministries are on a mission to cut spending by 6.5 to 7.5 per cent before the Budget in May.   Finance Minis...

Despite expectations of a rapidly growing sector, it's now a bleak look for goat and sheep dairy farmers.   A 2020 government-backed report indicated there would be increasing demand for non-bovine dairy alternatives.   However, last week sheep milk company Maui Milk told it's Waikato farmers to stop milking due to a lack of demand, and now the goat milk industry is facing similar woes.   Federate...

The Housing Minister's making a stark claim on the state of the country's emergency housing. The Government's announced families with children living in emergency housing for more than 12 weeks, will go to the top of the social housing waitlist.   The verification process, eligibility settings, and obligations will also be strengthened for those entering emergency housing.   Chris Bishop told Mike...

Along with the honesty from Toyota around the value, or lack of it, in the second-hand EV market here, we got February's figures for new car sales.   January was a bust, February was barely any better and the industry is expecting March to be slow as well.   The EV story is revealing its next chapter and its one many purchasers and early adopters will not like.   What drove the fizz was a couple o...

It's Super Tuesday in the United States, as people in 15 states and American Samoa vote for their preferred presidential candidates.   Republican strategist Matt Terrill told Mike Hosking that Donald Trump is expected to pick up most, if not all, of the Republican primaries.   This would all but guarantee him the Republican nomination.   He said that the writing is on the wall that Trump will be h...

Labour's police spokesperson says wider issues with youth offenders' families need to be addressed.   The Government's announced military academies for youth offenders.   Oranga Tamariki's been put in charge of leading a pilot programme from the middle of this year.   Labour's Ginny Andersen told Mike Hosking that if the young person goes back to a dysfunctional home, the same issues happen over a...

Tipping culture could be becoming more popular here.   Numbers from the financial information site, Banked , suggest 60% of Kiwis sometimes or often leave a tip.   Almost 47% of New Zealanders think tipping is a good thing, while 34% say the opposite.   Banked Head of Publishing Kevin McHugh told Mike Hosking that tipping culture here has primarily been affected by the United States and as a resul...

The Hurricanes boss has expressed disappointment with the rugby team's HQ over the women's side's controversial anti-government haka.   The team amended the words to use the phrase “karetao o te Kā-wana kaki-whero” or “puppets of this redneck Government”.   The Hurricanes plan to apologise.   Hurricanes Chief Executive Avan Lee told Mike Hosking that he's disappointed with the process and the word...

The removal of 30% of public bins across Auckland has locals fuming.   As part of the Auckland Council's budget plan last year, the ' bin optimisation' project is expected to save ratepayers at least $9 million.   But many are taking to social media to complain about the litter, dumped bait bags and dog poo left behind in local neighbourhoods.   Auckland Councillor Shane Henderson told Mike Hoskin...

The Defence Minister's facing a balancing act with the country's Defence Force planes.   Christopher Luxon's Boeing 757 never left the ground yesterday due to a technical fault, meaning the Prime Minister had to fly commercially to Melbourne for ASEAN talks.   It's the latest instance of old Defence Force planes disrupting diplomatic travel plans.   Judith Collins told Mike Hosking that we need be...

A youth charity leader says there needs to be wrap-around support for young offenders after they attend military academies.   The Government's announced Oranga Tamariki will lead the programme, with a pilot starting mid this year.   The academies will have a military-style component, as well as rehabilitative and trauma-informed care.   Blue Light Chief Operating Officer Brendon Crompton told Mike...

A new health fad has come onto the scene.   Endorsed by the likes of Kourtney Kardashian, Beyonce, and Gwyneth Paltrow, a new TikTok trend has people drinking olive oil.   While olive oil does have health benefits, Nutritionist Nikki Hart isn’t sure about doing it as a shot.   She told Mike Hosking that medically, there isn’t a difference between consuming 30mils over the course of a day or in a s...

Screen time could be getting in the way of toddlers' language development.   New research supports the concept of "technoference", where screens limit talking and interacting of young children in their homes.   Toddlers hear fewer words, make fewer vocalisations, and have fewer conversations for every minute of screen time.   Crimson Global Academy’s Pene Barton told Mike Hosking that the study lo...

Twenty years after disbanding, Zed is back for good.   Hailing from Christchurch, the kiwi band was created in 1996, their 2000 album ‘Silencer’ going triple platinum.   They released another album after that before disbanding in 2004, lead vocalist Nathan King going solo while Ben Campbell and Andrew Lynch formed Atlas, which would then disband in late 2008.   The group reunited for a few live gi...

The Government's aiming to start work on fast-tracking consenting.   A bill's expected to be introduced this week to speed up resource approvals for major infrastructure projects.   Government representatives believe the process, through the RMA, costs too much and takes too long.   Finance Minister Nicola Willis told Mike Hosking that they're worried growth's being constrained.    She says the co...

Increasing concerns around an excess of electric vehicles supply.   EVs have fallen from one in four new vehicles bought in 2023, to one in 26 in January this year after the Government scrapped the clean car rebate.   Brands are now having to rethink —and discount— EV stock they ordered when demand was at an all-time high.   Toyota NZ chief executive Neeraj Lala told Mike Hosking that they order t...

The Transport Minister's backing his future fuel tax increase.   The Government's $21 billion draft transport plan features 15 Roads of National Significance and a half billion-dollar pothole prevention fund.   A $50 increase in vehicle registration fees over the next two years will help pay for it.   Fuel taxes will increase by 22 cents a litre over the next term of Parliament.   Simeon Brown tol...