The Mike Hosking Breakfast

National leader Chris Luxon says he's demoted an MP because he didn't adhere to the culture the party expects.   Tim Van de Molen has been stripped of all his portfolios after the Privileges Committee found him in contempt of the House for threatening behaviour against Labour's Shanan Halbert.   Luxon told Mike Hosking Van de Molen could have apologised earlier and that would have de-escalated the...

The Government is standing firm on it's approach to sharing the cost of severe weather events. Auckland Council and the Government will jointly fund a $2 billion recovery and resilience package - with the Crown contributing about half. It includes $774-million to purchase about 700 Category 3 residential properties. Cyclone Recovery and Finance Minister Grant Robertson told Mike Hosking they've tr...

The dream run for Act is over. For a party that has been as clean as a whistle in terms of candidates, it all came unstuck yesterday. This past term saw an increase in numbers and as history shows, in parties like New Zealand First, the United Party, and to some degree the Greens, when you expand you run the risk of having a talent pool issue. The star of that show is New Zealand first and the arr...

Dai Henwood is one of New Zealand's most well-known comedians. He has toured around the world and has been on our screens for more than a decade with 7 Days, Family Feud , Dancing with the Stars and this year's season of Taskmaster NZ . This year he went public with a very personal battle - that he's been fighting bowel cancer. As part of that he is hosting a live-to-air comedy show tonight to rai...

The first Republican debate of the presidential campaign begins in the swing state of Wisconsin. Former President Donald Trump - who is the clear front runner - won't be there. He says he doesn't need to take part, because he's leading the field by so much. Trump will instead release his interview with former Fox host, Tucker Carlson. Former campaign manager for Marco Rubio and now managing partne...

An Auckland secondary principal's coming to the defence of using artificial intelligence in schoolwork. But parents are split almost 50-50 on whether it's a good idea, according to a Norton cybersecurity survey. Albany Senior High School Principal Claire Amos told Mike Hosking instead of restricting it, we should instead educate kids on how AI works. She says AI is already woven into Microsoft and...

Criticism has come of the millions of dollars being spent to educate the children of our diplomats serving overseas. The Taxpayers' Union says the children's premium education costs taxpayers $5 million a year - with $800,000 going to children in the US, and $500,000 to children in China. Union spokesperson Oliver Bryan told Mike Hosking it's a waste given the amount he claims diplomats earn. Brya...

This year's DHL export NZ barometer shows nine out of ten Kiwi exporters report seeing an increase in total costs in the past year . Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O'Connor is hitting back telling Mike Hosking everybody knows prices have gone up as there's international inflation. "Words like staggering and remarkable in DHL's Export New Zealand press release, a bit of an over hype of...

Kiwi exporters say high costs are a major barrier to doing business here. This year's DHL export NZ barometer shows nine out of ten Kiwi exporters report seeing an increase in total costs in the past year. Many are increasing prices to compensate. DHL Operations Vice President Chitra Shinde told Mike Hosking many companies are withholding stock, and pulling back. She says companies are holding ont...

Auckland's port company has come back strongly after navigating some choppy financial waters. It's confirmed this year's net profit after tax increased by more than $50 million, following last years $10 million loss. The dividend to its parent Auckland Council have also increased by $15.8 million, to $30 million. Ports of Auckland CEO Roger Gray told Mike Hosking their continued success is dependa...

Turns out it wasn’t just on the Mike Hosking Breakfast the Prime Minister got caught out saying stuff that you can quite justifiably say wasn’t true. In defence of the poll that shows his party heading for Opposition, Hipkins told the TV that he hadn’t started campaigning - which simply isn’t true. We called him out on that; he danced for a while on the head of a pin. He also suggested on TV yeste...

A Labour Minister is coming to the defence of the Prime Minister, on unemployment stats. Chris Hipkins told the House yesterday the country had record-level unemployment, despite unemployment being higher than the previous quarter. Labour's Megan Woods told Mike Hosking the PM was making a point about how more people have jobs. She says unemployment is low. Woods also suggested National were more...

If you've ever wanted to know if a car you're about to buy is stolen, you've probably run the plates through the website CARJAM. It uses NZTA data to access records of stolen vehicles, but is independent. Now NZTA wants to charge car jam 19 cents per search - and the company is not happy. Paul Osborne, CARJAM CEO joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for pri...

Cancelled ferry sailings are causing a headache for freight. Interislander's Kaitaki sailings were cancelled Wednesday through to this Thursday afternoon as a safety precaution after weather-related damage. A door on the ship was hit by a large wave and needed to be looked at and repaired. Its Aratere ferry put on extra freight sailings to compensate. Canterbury Bulk Freight Managing Director, Ale...

There are hopes a pause in the use of surgical mesh for a common childbirth injury will give clarity on how many need it. The Health Ministry has recommended the pause for urinary incontinence surgery after a recent report, affecting around 100 operations. Alternatives including non-surgical interventions and surgery without using mesh will be available. Chief Medical Officer Dr Joe Bourne told Mi...

Michael Woodhouse isn't angry, he's disappointed. He told the ODT he would have had a 45 percent chance of getting back in to Parliament, and says the National party gave precedence to diversity, rather than experience. But, he told Mike Hosking that he denies he ever said being male cost him a better spot. On Breakfast, National leader Chris Luxon dismissed allegations MPs were missing out on top...

One of the largest business delegations  from this country to India could strengthen economic ties. The 50 business people will travel to the nation this week. India's economy is expected to be the world's third largest economy by 2030. New Zealand International Business Forum Executive Director Stephen Jacobi told Mike Hosking it could be beneficial for both nations. He says our trade doesn't ref...

The number of  gang -affiliated offenders sentenced to home detention has increased by nearly 60 per cent in six years, according to Department of Corrections data. The  National Party  says the rise is concerning from a “public safety” perspective and believes its policy of  making gang membership an aggravating factor at sentencing  will make it more likely they will spend time in prison, rather...

Cooper Alan moved to Nashville, Tennessee for music in 2018 but it was 2020 during the pandemic when his career really took off. More than ten million followers and 200 million music streams later his career is going from strength to strength. He's currently on tour in the US but took some time out to have a chat - Cooper Alan joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/li...

I cannot for the life of me work out why the Government is deciding to legislate to make all schools teach reading, writing and maths the same way. We have the best education system in the world turning out kids fully equipped to deal with...oh wait, no we don’t. That’s right; our standards in the aforementioned areas are slipping and have been slipping badly for years. Attendance in the first pla...

An interesting headline emerged that that former All Blacks coach Sir Steve Hansen has joined the Wallabies in a short term advisory role. So how concerned do we need to be about our All Blacks' trade secrets getting told to the Aussies? Sir Steve Hansen is the best man to answer that and he joined Mike Hosking to clear the are around what his role will be in the Wallabies' camp. LISTEN ABOVE See...

Numbers have been released around how expensive sick days are for businesses. On average, each worker is taking five and a half sick days a year, which all up is costing $2.86 billion per year for the total economy. This could increase in the coming years, considering the legislation change that all businesses need to offer a minimum of 10 days. And quiet quitting is real - 22 percent of surveyed...

Unanswered questions on the reconstruction of Notre Dame cathedral in Paris. The architect in charge, General Jean-Louis Georgelin, has died at 74. He was overseeing repairs from the fire of 2019. Paris Correspondent Catherine Field told Mike Hosking it might not be ready by next year's Paris Olympics. She says the General was the man who knew how to get people working. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio...

Labour is confident it can turn around low poll results once it gets into full campaign-mode. The latest 1 News Verian poll has seen the Hipkins-led Labour Party plummet to 29 percent support - far below National's 37. The left-bloc would be unable to govern, even with support from the Greens and Te Pati Māori. Chris Hipkins told Mike Hosking they'll be full time campaigning in a matter of weeks....

More frustration has come from Auckland businesses affected by construction of City Rail Link. It comes after the organisation admitted the disruption to businesses had been underestimated. City Rail Link Limited CEO Sean Sweeney says comparisons were made with road projects in the country side or through suburbs, not in the middle of a major city. Heart of the City chief executive Viv Beck told M...