The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Concerns from a former Attorney General, over the sentences being handed down in criminal cases. The Crown is now appealing teenage rapist Jayden Meyer's nine month home detention sentence, over the raping of four girls and the sexual violation of a fifth. As well,  a Rotorua woman involved in a drug debt revenge kidnapping plot and brutal beating,  was sentenced to seven months' home detention in...

Time to meet another rising Kiwi music star starting to make waves. Miller Yule started his music journey back in 2016 - and his debut ep S hoot Me in the Heart attracted critical acclaim and chart success. Since then - he's been working on new music, but like many artists the pandemic got in the way. But now he's back with his debut album Let it Burn which is out tomorrow. Miller Yule joined Mike...

Submissions continue today over the Government's plan to merge TVNZ with Radio NZ. The process, like most submission processes is a scam. It’s a nod to some sort of democracy, but in reality, the Government of the day pretend they are listening and carry on anyway. This Government is no better or worse than other governments. They all do it and they would be way better saving the time and money an...

It's back after ten years. Repco Rally New Zealand is officially back today as part of the World Rally Championship after a decade away. Competing of course is Kiwi Hayden Paddon in the new Hyundai i20 N Rally2 car and Hayden joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Act MP has taken offence at comments made in the House by a senior Labour Minister, referring to her race. Minister for Māori Crown Relations Kelvin Davis took a swipe a Karen Chhour, during an exchange about Oranga Tamariki contracts. He accused her of not understanding the Māori world-view, and told her it was no good looking at the world through a vanilla lens. Chhour is Māori, and took exce...

The Chief Ombudsman has found significant gaps in our Official Information Act practices. Peter Boshier's report looks at how well a dozen core government agencies are complying with the Act. Overall, he's found the public service is increasingly transparent and open. But, he says, chief executives and other senior leaders still need to make sure their agencies have the resources and systems in pl...

Health specialists are playing catch up when it comes to waiting lists. More than 200,000 New Zealanders were sitting on a health-related wait list at the end of July; more than the entire population size of Hamilton. They include people waiting for surgery, a first specialist assessment and other treatment. Health Minister Andrew Little told Mike Hosking Health New Zealand is now working through...

Some are suggesting we may be seeing some initial signs of recovery in the small business sector. Xero's Small Business Index for August shows sales were up more than 27 percent year on year, admittedly last year in August was heavily Covid affected. But if you compare it to August 2020 growth is still up 10.4 percent, with a big increase on the July numbers too. Xero New Zealand Country Manager B...

A Pukekohe business has spent thousands on their own crime-prevention measures, after being robbed twice in three weeks. Just five stores have seen the installation of security, like fog cannons and bollards, since the Retail Crime Prevention Scheme launched in May. Another five are waiting to be done, and 40 more have been assessed. Liquor store and dairy owner Ravi Singh told Mike Hosking increa...

MPs Chris Hipkins and Mark Mitchell wrap the week's political news. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I think the biggest loser out of last night's TVNZ poll is TVNZ who spent a decent chunk of money on a poll that essentially told us nothing happened. National and ACT still form a government and the current Government are out of office. It shows, I suspect, a malaise we are currently in. We're a year out from a vote, and not everyone is gripped by the minutiae of politics. They also polled on the...

MPs Chris Hipkins and Mark Mitchell joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast to wrap the week's political news. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hurricane Ian tore into western Cuba as a major hurricane, with nothing to stop it from intensifying into a catastrophic Category 4 storm before it crashes ashore in Florida, where officials ordered 2.5 million people to evacuate. Ian made landfall at 4.30am EDT Tuesday in Cuba's Pinar del Rio province, where officials set up 55 shelters, evacuated 50,000 people, rushed in emergency personnel and...

The Immigration Minister says the Government is responding to horticulture industry needs. The Government's increased the Regional Seasonal Employer scheme cap by 3,000 places. Employers will be able to access 19,000 workers each year from participating Pacific countries. It's also requiring employers to provide the workers with sick leave. Minister Michael Wood told Mike Hosking the figure is bas...

Costco Auckland has just begun its grand opening. Hundreds of bargain-hunters in Westgate, with some flying across the country to be the among first to experience the chain's first NZ store. New Zealand Managing Director, Patrick Noone told Mike Hosking says there's potential for branches in Christchurch and Wellington down the track. “And perhaps another one in Auckland in the future as well. For...

Chris Luxon has more work to do to convince Kiwis he deserves the country's top job. The latest 1News Kantar Poll shows the National Party are in the popularity lead at 37 percent, compared to Labour on 34. But the preferred Prime Minister rankings aren't as positive for the Nats, with Luxon on 21 percent and Jacinda Ardern on 30 percent. The National party leader told Mike Hosking he'll be workin...

There's a feeling of a mood shift in our country's approach to alcohol. A petition is being presented to Parliament this afternoon, backing Chlöe Swarbrick's Alcohol Harm Minimisation Bill looking to ban alcohol advertising and sponsorship in broadcast sport . More than 8,000 people have signed their name in support, from 115 organisations. Hapai Te Hauora Chief Executive Selah Hart told Mike Hosk...

The call is out to bring passenger rail back in the south. Dunedin City Council has approved a submission to central government calling for the return of passenger rail between Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill. The Southerner express service ran between the three cities until 2002. Mayor Aaron Hawkins told Mike Hosking they know there's demand locally for this service. He says people are inc...

A forgotten part of the Rotorua mess are the tourism operators. They have this week, quite rightly, charged the Government with wrecking their town and its reputation. The Government will try and tell you that Rotorua and its mess is really just confined to Fenton Street. But as anyone who knows anything about brand reputation will tell you, a reputation is hard won and easily lost. What's so sad...

Guy Heveldt and Andrew Saville joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast for Commentary Box. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NASA is making sure we don't suffer the same fate as the dinosaurs. The organisation's DART Mission is crashing a probe into an asteroid about 12.14pm this afternoon New Zealand time The goal is to see if the probe can deflect an asteroid 11-million kilometres away to avoid any possible future impact. Canterbury University astronomer Michelle Bannister, who's part of the investigation team, told M...

Air New Zealand’s marathon direct flight to New York is struggling to take off. On Sunday, returning passengers were asked to volunteer to miss their overweight flight. While days earlier travellers narrowly avoided a stop in Fiji to refuel due to weather issues. Air NZ Chief Flight Operations and Safety officer David Morgan joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Commuters may experience disruption on the roads this summer. More than 2,000km of roads will be resealed or rebuilt across the country over the next six months. Waka Kotahi Maintenance and Operations National Manager Neil Walker told Mike Hosking orange cones on the roads can be frustrating. He says they're doing their best to make sure it doesn't disrupt people. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/l...

National says time is running out for the Government to put plans in place to reduce on-farm emissions. A research centre announced in May to help cut emissions has still not be set up, and there’s been no response to the farming sectors submission to the primary sector climate change partnership. National’s Climate Change spokesperson Scott Simpson joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio...

New Zealand won't be completely sheltered from the latest volatility in international markets. World sharemarkets have been taking a tumble over the weekend. The pound has reached its lowest level against the US dollar, the Euro has touched a fresh 20-year low, and Asia-Pacific currencies have also been weakening. Mark Lister from Craigs Investment Partners told Mike Hosking New Zealand won't be c...