The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Labour's latest election promise is being labelled as an example of politics winning out over policy. The party's promising to axe GST from fresh and frozen fruit and veggies from April, saving the average household roughly $20 a month. Dentons Kensington Swan tax expert, Bruce Bernacchi, told Mike Hosking that it will be of marginal benefit. He says most of the benefit will go towards higher inco...

Frustration is building in Canterbury over election policies that "fail" to address regional issues. Environment Canterbury's chair Peter Scott has sent an open letter urging election candidates to think beyond Auckland and Wellington. The letter outlines four areas his council wants prioritised; including flood resilience and adaptation to climate change. Scott told Mike Hosking that he's becomin...

I've been thinking about the human condition and the way we prioritise things. Or don't. The Hawkes Bay buyout deal is sorted, sort of. It's August of course, and the others like Auckland, allegedly, are almost done. I assume the others will match the Hawkes Bay one, which has the Government paying half and the council paying the other half. In Napier they are not happy, but I can't work out why....

With Alberta gone on the back of Victoria pulling out, why is it we are still committed to looking at hosting the Commonwealth Games? It strikes me that there are two arguments around events. One is whether you as a country benefit, as in you get to promote a sport, get the nation exercised and maybe do well in the contest, i.e the women's rugby. Or do you gain merely by being host, i.e the FIFA W...

Tim Wilson and Kate Hawkesby joined Mike Hosking to wrap the week that was. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's talk country music. With country artists Luke Combs and Morgan Wallen both bringing a bit of country to New Zealand, Kiwis are going crazy for it - with both of their Auckland shows selling out. Someone whose mission it is to bring country music worldwide, the Country Music Association's International Chief Milly Olykan joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE     See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.   The Warriors: 8/10 It was yet another win but too many whingers complained about the quality of the win. Mind you, when all you have to moan about is how you are winning, it's not a bad problem to have.   Guns: 1/10 Too many guns, too many shootings, too many bail breaches, too...

Farmers are concerned about their land, as the Sites and Areas of Significance to Māori regulation is bought in. Timaru District Council has identified the first 4,000 property owners whose land fits into the five categories of the SASM regulations - including cultural landscapes, land-based places, sacred land, waterways, and sacred areas. Farmers are worried about the impact the regulations will...

Our banks are making some big profits - and they are the next organization in the Commerce Commission's headlights. With a new preliminary report from the Commerce Commission highlighting the high profit of New Zealand banks compared to those overseas, the watchdog is launching an investigation. Along with the high profit, it will look at how easy it is for people to change banks and how easy it i...

General Practice owners say they are being priced out of hiring doctors and nurses as they cannot compete with salaries within hospitals. General Practice are unable to increase revenue to match hospital nurse pay rates with their fees being capped by the Government - and any funding increases are being absorbed by rising costs and rising demands. GenPro chair Angus Chambers joined the Mike Hoskin...

Winston Peters isn't giving up hope of being part of the next government. The latest Taxpayers' Union Curia poll has New Zealand First up a whopping 2.5 points to 5.8 percent, giving it the numbers to return to Parliament. But the poll also has National and Act on 61 seats, giving it the numbers to form a government without the party. Peters told Mike Hosking he believes New Zealand First actually...

The future of insurance seems to be a bit murky, with insurance costs only heading up, meaning more and more people are just not able to afford it. Australian insurer Suncorp's New Zealand full-year profit fell 30 percent as claims from the floods and cyclone added to rising reinsurance costs and inflation. Large reinsurance companies have changed their view of how risky New Zealand is, which inev...

Am I changing my mind on banks? I have defended banks. I have defended them when Adrian Orr was wandering around talking about stress tests and making them put aside more money to cover a rainy day and catastrophe. This, you might remember, against a track record of plenty of profit and success. We have not seen the issues some have seen offshore. Banks in this part of the world have been wonderfu...

One of Donald Trump's most high-profile critics says the developments in his latest indictment are hard to believe. A US court filing has revealed a search warrant into Trump's Twitter was launched in January, after it found probable cause for criminal offences in 2020. Twitter has since been fined $350,000 US-dollars for delays in complying with the warrant. CNN host Jake Tapper told Mike Hosking...

If you are looking for a reason to get up and get yourself to the gym today, here is one. Bernard Collins is set to be Australasia and Oceania's first 90-year-old participant in the World Powerlifting Championship. At the age of 90, Bernard is lifting a whopping 85kg and he puts it down to his no excuses attitude. Bernard Collins joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE   See omnystudio.com/listener for...

A suggestion has come of increased resources for watching people on electronic bail as more breaches keep happening. In the last financial year, there have been more than 2,000 breaches of home detention orders. Criminal lawyer Steve Cullen told Mike Hosking more money needs to be put into monitoring. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A new report into the rental market has found while people usually think interest rate changes, tax changes, and inflation get passed through into rents, there is very little evidence that shows this to be true. The findings show rental inflations is driven by wage inflation and supply and demand of houses. New Zealand Property Investors' Federation president Sue Harrison joined the Mike Hosking B...

China's economy has fallen into deflation as the nation continues to struggle post-Covid. Their consumer price index fell 0.3 percent year on year in July. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen joined Roman Travers to discuss what the trickle down effect on New Zealand as a large trading partner may be. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The conversion of sheep and beef farms into carbon farms is still on the rise up. In 2011, 63,000ha  of sheep and beef land was purchased for forestry, 11,000ha higher than first thought. In 2022, uncertainty over policy changes led to a decrease, but Beef and Lamb believe this figure is likely to increase this year due to the backlog of applications sitting with the overseas investment office. Be...

McDonald's dynamic pricing on its app seems to show signs of a digital vs analogue conflict. Users have taken to social networking site Reddit, complaining regular users are being charged more than casual users. McDonald's says these price differences will encourage people to use the app more, bringing more long-term benefits. This combo differed in price by $3 on the same day in the same location...

The secondary teachers union hopes students haven't paid the price for their industrial action. PPTA members have accepted the most recent collective agreement, meaning around 30,000 teachers will receive a 14.5-percent pay bump. PPTA Acting President Chris Abercrombie told Mike Hosking he hopes disruption hasn't been too much for students. He says they want to make sure they have teachers in fron...

I will tell you what I like about today's phone ban deal in schools from National.   It represents a return to discipline that has been so sadly lacking these past few years. New Zealand is too loose around the edges these days, we have a touch of the feral about us, and it is tragically exemplified daily in our schools. Our performance has plummeted in documented testing in areas like maths, read...

The Energy Minister is defending the Government's climate deal with a major global fund manager. It's partnered with BlackRock Capital on a fund for solar, wind and green hydrogen infrastructure, to fast-track New Zealand's transition to renewable energy. Megan Woods says the fund will facilitate up to $2 billion dollars in investment from around the world. But she's confirmed to the Mike Hosking...

To help achieve New Zealand's goal of 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030 - US investment company BlackRock and our Governemnt are launching a $2 billion support fund. The fund is to give businesses access to greater pools of capital to invest in green tech and energy options. Contact Energy CEO Mike Fuge joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast to discuss. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener...

The Māori Health Authority report was released last Thursday. On the Mike Hosking Breakfast on Tuesday, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins couldn't answer if people in the Māori Health Authority were employed based on skills needed or race. Health Minister Ayesha Verrall and her team are reportedly not happy with what is being said about the report, but has declined to discuss the issue on the Mike Hosk...