The Mike Hosking Breakfast

A scathing indictment of the US.  The war on Iran has entered a second month as the US and Israel continue to bomb Iran, and Iran fires back at Gulf states.   US President Donald Trump's claiming Iran's leaders have asked for a ceasefire, which Iran's foreign ministry is calling false and baseless.   Intelligence and foreign policy analyst and former US Navy Senior Chief Malcolm Nan...

A win for striking firefighters, with confirmation of an inquiry into the national fleet.  Parliament’s Governance and Administration Select Committee has launched the probe with hopes of increasing the number of fit-for-purpose fire trucks.  Deputy Chair and National MP Tim Costley told Newstalk ZB he has some serious questions for Fire and Emergency New Zealand.  He told Mike Hosk...

There are hopes a successful launch to the Moon today will lay the groundwork for future Mars missions.  Artemis II's launch window begins at around midday New Zealand time, taking those on board further into space than ever.  The 10-day manned mission around the moon is the first in more than 50 years.  Astronomer Nikku Madhusudhan told Mike Hosking we will learn a lot from it.&nbs...

The Auckland housing number and the Government's housing vision now looks like a school project gone wrong.  Chris Bishop, by anyone's standards, is a competent, if not excellent, political operator but he appears to have come unstuck on Auckland housing.  His two million homes got the sort of reaction anyone with anything to do with Auckland might have expected, so after a lot of gnashi...

Today on Politics Wednesday, Mark Mitchell and Ginny Andersen joined Mike Hosking to delve into some of the biggest stories of the week thus far.   They discussed the Government watering down the Auckland housing intensification plan again, Labour’s concerns with the India Free Trade Agreement, and the bill going before Parliament today that could revamp holiday alcohol trading laws.  LI...

The Trade Minister doesn’t see anything material in Labour’s concerns over the India Free Trade Agreement.   New Zealand First's shunned the deal, leaving its coalition partners reliant on Labour to ratify it.   But Leader Chris Hipkins says his party's support can't be taken for granted, and he's concerned there's a mismatch between descriptions of the deal, and its contents.  Todd...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 1st of April, criminal defence lawyer Nigel Hampton KC discusses the quashing of David Tamihere’s double murder convictions.   Trade Minister Todd McClay has returned from Cameroon to answer Labour's new queries about the India Free Trade Agreement as Mike asks whether it's still on or not.  And on Politics Wednesday, Ginny An...

A new report highlights a need for bipartisan support for New Zealand’s tech sector.  It’s currently our fastest growing sector, outstripping meat, wine, and wood combined, and has the potential to hit $30 billion a year within a decade.   They've sent a manifesto to MPs, warning that a lack of cohesive policies may stifle the sector’s growth.   Tech NZ CEO Graeme Muller told Mike H...

Several Trump aides have reportedly told the Wall Street Journal the US President is privately suggesting he’s willing to end the war in Iran, even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely shut down.  Petrol prices in the USA are at a four-year high with warnings they will go significantly higher, and “people are feeling it”, US correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking.  Trump has t...

An urban planning specialist believes Auckland's density plan is far too important to meddle with.  The Government again revised the super-city's plan yesterday to reduce minimum housing capacity to 1.4 million.  It's the second revision within weeks from the original two million after continued push-back in some suburbs.   Mt Hobson Group's Hamish Firth told Mike Hosking the plan n...

A Pacific security expert says the Foreign Minister's visit to the Cook Islands today follows hard work to repair relations.  Winston Peters is meeting Prime Minister Mark Brown again, the two having met in Auckland last month.  Peters paused almost $30 million in support last year after Brown signed a strategic partnership with China without consulting New Zealand.  Massey Universi...

A criminal defence lawyer believes the quashing of David Tamihere's convictions unveils major errors.  The Supreme Court's scrapped his double murder convictions for killing two Swedish tourists in the 80s.  He served two decades before being released on parole in 2010 and made multiple attempts to clear his name.  The last saw the Court of Appeal confirming a miscarriage of justice...

From our "don’t waste a crisis" file, is it possible this Government's handling thus far of oil events might well see them rewarded with an increased level of support as the election draws closer?  The initial reaction when the war broke out and oil went up was twofold.  1) Around the economy, the rebound, the resurgence we had seen may well be, yet again, off.  2) That the poor Gov...

Auspicious timing with one of New Zealand’s best chefs returning to our shores as excitement around Michelin Stars continues to build.   One of only two Kiwi chefs whose restaurant earned a star, Matt Lambert held one between 2013 and 2020 with his New York restaurant ‘The Musket Room’.   He’s now decided to return to New Zealand with a new culinary venture, ‘Return’, a restaurant descri...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 31st of March, new economic forecasts have been released amid the uncertainty of the war.  Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour responds to Labour’s hesitance towards the India Free Trade Agreement and Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones offers reassurances around the country’s fuel and diesel supply.   Michelin Star winning Ki...

With so much uncertainty in the Middle East, people should focus on preparing for different scenarios that could affect their businesses, ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley says.  ASB’s revised outlook forecasts inflation to climb further this year and GDP growth contracting for the second quarter thanks to higher fuel prices hitting consumers.  Tuffley told Mike Hosking that Q2 was when t...

French intelligence services believe an attempt to plant a bomb outside the Bank of America in Paris is linked to a pro-Iran group, Europe correspondent Catherine Field says.  Police in Paris foiled the bombing and arrested the suspect – a 17-year-old immigrant who said he had been recruited via Snapchat for €600 (NZ$1202).  Field told Mike Hosking the attempt bore the hallmarks of previ...

There are concerns poor planning has contributed to the tsunami of demand on kidney disease treatment.  Hospitals across New Zealand are struggling to keep up with life-saving dialysis treatment.  Health New Zealand told 1News there's been a lack of funding in some parts of the country.  General Practice NZ Chair Bryan Betty told Mike Hosking this problem was predicted 15 years ago,...

New Zealand’s fuel suppliers will be “substantially punished” legally and financially if they don’t live up to their word in supplying fuel, Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones says.  Those international companies had asked for the current just-in-time supply model, and “rightly or wrongly I took them at their word”, Jones told Mike Hosking.  “I said, okay, you guys know how to keep Ne...

Economic headwinds coming out of the Middle East could set back the labour market. The number of filled jobs across the country lifted 0.3% from January to February. But where public safety, healthcare, and education hiring improved in the past year, construction and manufacturing jobs slumped. Employers and Manufacturers Association's Alan McDonald told Mike Hosking we're yet to see the impacts o...

Labour's support for an India Free Trade Agreement remains tentative as it digs through the details.   Leader Chris Hipkins has written to Trade Minister Todd McClay concerned the deal's contents don't line up with the version he's presented.   Hipkins is warning it would be recklessly irresponsible for McClay to sign onto it without majority backing across Parliament.   But Deputy...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Monday the 30th of March, apparently red tape could be getting in the way of solving our fuel issues so Simon Parham from Waitomo magic wand's it for us. The Prime Minister is in to talk our fuel situation, help for those who need it and opening the Christchurch stadium. Andrew Saville and Jason Pine talk Tiger Woods' arrest, the F1 and the Warri...

Christchurch is so awesome. I told the room that on Friday. It was a fun hour with a bunch of Christchurch businesses and a panel of local experts and, basically, we just chatted about what an amazing story Christchurch is. It's not perfect and a few issues remain. I note on the same day I was there Winston Peters was there promising money for the cathedral, which as I drove through the square is...

Chris Luxon says the Government's proposed LNG important terminal in Taranaki will only proceed if it makes commercial sense. A procurement process was announced last month, with the Government due to make a decision on whether to proceed around the middle of the year. Newstalk ZB understands multiple ministers privately admit high gas prices might lead Cabinet to walk away from the project. The P...

The Education Review Office has said schools need to get tougher on enforcing phone bans.  Research found that only 50% of students are following the rules, a number it says is not good enough.  Mount Albert Grammar Headmaster Patrick Drumm told Mike Hosking that the study needs to be unpacked further, as it's likely that students are using their phones outside of lessons instead of in a...