The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Calls to tighten the security at sporting events. There have been recent pitch invasions at Super Rugby games, every All Blacks vs Ireland test and at the Warriors' homecoming. In Australia, there's a mandatory fine of $5,000 for unruly behaviour. Security Association CEO Gary Morrison told Tim Dower something like that needs to be imposed here. He'd like to see penalties and long-term stadium ban...

A new study has found Wellingtonians really lean into their baby voice when talking to kids.  Research into 21 cultures around the world has examined the way different people speak to infants. Auckland University psychology professor Quentin Atkinson joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Even at the end of our lives, the cost of living hits us one last time. Funeral directors have surveyed councils and in some places the cost of a burial plot has gone up by nearly half in the past two years. Gillian Boyes is CEO of the Funeral Directors Association and joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inflationary pressures are likely to keep compounding for some time to come. The inflation rate has hit 7.3 percent, its highest point in a generation. Terry Collins, fuel spokesperson for AA, told Tim Dower petrol prices have risen 32 percent, pushing up the price of everything else. Vegetables New Zealand Chairman John Murphy says the rising cost of fuel and labour is pushing up the price of foo...

It wasn't a great week for New Zealand sport, with the All Blacks suffering a 2-1 series defeat to Ireland and the Warriors going down 28-18 to the Eels. Andrew Saville and Guy Heveldt joined Tim Dower to discuss. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the kid who was always picked last for everything, especially rough games like rugby, I've developed a healthy respect for sports people over the years. And a passing interest in their achievements. I'm not going to pretend I made any special effort to see the game on Saturday night, but I do feel good when the All Blacks win, especially when they win well. And I share in that pall of national...

The All Blacks are under scrutiny following the 2-1 series loss to Ireland.                           New Zealand rugby boss Mark Robinson says the team's performance was not acceptable, and there's a huge amount of work to do. Former All Black great Sir John Kirwan joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A team at Otago University are working on a New Zealand wellbeing diet. A year-long study will hopefully help address diabetes and other metabolic diseases with New Zealand specific food choices. Otago University's Professor of Medicine Jeremy Krebs is one of the leads of the study and he joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ongoing action to cool prices at the pump may be a bid to get in front of new inflation figures. The Government has revealed it will retain cuts to fuel excise tax, road user charges and half-price public transport until the end of January. Stats NZ is set to announce the Consumer Price Index for the June 2022 quarter this morning. Infometrics principal economist Brad Olsen says the move appears t...

There are new findings around the link between antibiotics during pregnancy and children developing asthma.  A review from Wellington’s Malaghan Institute of Medical Research has analysed 27 studies and found a significant correlation.  The risk was consistent for antibiotic use in any trimester.  Lead researcher Dr Alissa Cait says it’s another thing to consider when using or prescribing the drug...

An Auckland restaurant owner says crime in the inner city could dash any hope of his business recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic. Besos Latinos Restaurante's Luis Cabrera says one of his wait staff was mugged on her way home on Friday. He's already facing staff shortages and other challenges due to Covid, and couldn't open yesterday after she became too scared to come to work. Cabrera says his...

Prepare for prices to keep rising, but perhaps at a slightly slower pace. CPI data out this morning is expected to show the inflation rate has hit about 7.1 percent in the year to June, a three-decade high. While that's likely to be the peak of the current inflationary period, it won't be the end of it. Finance Minister Grant Robertson told Tim Dower there isn't any way to "magic away" the global...

We have a couple of things that have played out this week that we saw coming and so many others didn’t, despite the fact they were in plain sight. Actually, it's three things. I wasn’t going to mention inflation. But you have to ask whether many of the central bank heads are up to much given how badly they have interpreted inflation. The American number yesterday is leading many now to suggest a f...

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.   Planes and Chaos at Airports: 4/10 "Because although not everything is in your control, a lot is. And enough, I suspect, to overall do better than they have. Heathrow asked airlines to stop over-selling flights. That's called greed."   Covid Red Light: 6/10 "Because we aren't g...

Anthony Albanese has bowed to pressure to hold an emergency national cabinet meeting on Monday as Covid cases spike over winter. News.com.au has confirmed that the Prime Minister has told state premiers he will reconvene the meeting on Monday morning. It comes amid a furore over the government’s decision to axe pandemic payments and free RAT tests for concessions card holders. Queensland Premier A...

Huge weekend for the All Blacks. It's the series-deciding test against Ireland tomorrow night in Wellington. It’s on the back of a week where there has been a lot of criticism levelled at the coaching staff - but they've responded by making four changes to the team as well as a number of positional changes. All Blacks coach Ian Foster joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener f...

President Joe Biden on Thursday said the US will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon and that he believed diplomacy remained the best avenue to keep the nation from obtaining one, despite Israeli objections over a deal with the Islamic Republic. "This is a vital security interest to both Israel and the United States, and I would add for the rest of the world as well," Biden said at a news c...

Andrew Little has once again gotten offside with the health sector. This time, the Health Minister accused nurses of speaking in forked tongues over blocking a pay equity deal and "sitting in Wellington pining about what may or may not be the case". Nurses have not taken that well - especially as Covid cases increase and nurses are having to deal with that in hospitals around the country. Nurses O...

Belief a new study naming New Zealand as the second-worst country for living and working is a 'moment-in-time' survey. An InterNations study of expats has ranked it 51 out of 52 destinations - with only Kuwait coming in behind. Respondents describe New Zealand as too expensive and too difficult to find a job on arrival. Inside Recruitment co-founder Dale Gray told Mike Hosking there are some curre...

The lead contractor behind the Christchurch Stadium is positive they've done the work to minimise the pricing risk. Christchurch councillors yesterday voted to go ahead with the stadium - agreeing to sign a fixed price contract of $683 million with BESIX Watpac. Three councillors were opposed, but the other 14 were in support. BESIX Watpac Chief Executive Mark Baker told Mike Hosking they're confi...

Here come the banks on the back of the OCR hike. Both ASB and Kiwibank have raised their variable home lending rate - 5.85% to 6.35% for ASB and 5.5 to 6% for KiwiBank. But the good news for customers is that it has meant an increase in saving deposit rates. Kiwibank CEO Steve Jurkovich joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I get the impression that the part that Megan Woods doesn’t get about the monstrous debt Kainga Ora is taking on to build their social housing dream is several fold. One, they will never meet demand. The queue is 27,000 long and growing. They will never build at the rate they need to. They don’t have the manpower. They don’t have the money. The point she made on the programme yesterday that was fa...

It's anticipated the sign-off of Christchurch's multi-million dollar stadium will regenerate the city. Christchurch City Councillors will this morning decide whether to build Te Kaha - despite an extra $150 million being needed. The lead contractor has agreed to a fixed price of $683 million meaning the average ratepayer will initially pay $144 a year for the stadium. Wellington's Sky Stadium boss...

There are few many bigger names in music than Billy Joel. Since the 1970s - the Piano Man, We Didn't Start the Fire and Movin' Out singer has sold more than 160 million records worldwide. He's officially listed as the 6th best-selling artist of all time. Adding to that history, he's held a residency at Madison Square Garden since 2014 - playing nearly 130 concerts at the iconic venue. Now - he's b...

Virtual reality is being used to treat your common phobias. A University of Otago, Christchurch trial looked at patients who had a phobia of either flying, needles, heights, spiders or dogs and set them up with a virtual reality headset and a smartphone app called oVRcome. And after just six weeks of the treatment programme participants showed a 75 percent reduction in phobia symptoms. Associate p...