The Mike Hosking Breakfast

If you want to do one of the top ten bucket list activities in the world then look no further than your backdoor. Rotorua's Canopy Tours ziplining tour has been ranked sixth in TripAdvisor’s bucket list category as part of their "Best of the Best Things to do" awards. It was also named the second best experience overall in the South Pacific region. Rotorua Canopy Tours general manager Paul Button...

Have some of our gangs come to their senses and agreed to stop shooting each other. Police and gang sources say there is an agreed upon ceasefire between the Tribesmen and Killer Beez, the two groups who have been terrorising the public with shootings over the last three weeks. Questions have been asked whether this truce is this legitimate and if so, how long it lasts. Sociologist and gang expert...

Pressure on non-profit organisations is a mixture of being exposed over a lack of funding, and legislation making it too hard for the sector. It comes as a new report from Grant Thornton shows there are major gaps that would prevent NPOs meeting their purposes. The report also shows concerns over attaining and maintaining staff. Grant Thornton partner Barry Baker told Mike Hosking there's a lot mo...

I miss the occasion of the national disgrace. The time when, normally, a report or a revelation exposed some hopelessly inept behaviour or some governmental dishonesty. It was a day that focused almost solely on the singular story and it was concluded at the end of the day that whoever the recipient was, government, council, MP, the Prime Minister, or public figure, they had had a hell of a day th...

Nanaia Mahuta will meet with Australian counterpart Penny Wong for the first time today. The meeting will be the latest for Wong, as she shores up Australia's relationships with Pacific under growing pressure from China. It comes after Jacinda Ardern met with new Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Sydney last week. Otago University international relations expert Robert Patman told Mike...

As of next Tuesday, people travelling to New Zealand will no longer need a negative pre-departure test. A Government source has confirmed the requirement will be dropped as of 11.59pm on Monday. An announcement by new Covid-19 Response Minister Ayesha Verrall is scheduled for later today. The current rule means people coming to New Zealand by air must get a negative PCR, RAT or Lamp test 72 hours...

US President Joe Biden confirmed Tuesday that he will visit Saudi Arabia next month for talks with its leaders, a dramatic change in his stance on the kingdom that he pledged to make a "pariah" as a Democratic candidate for the White House. With the visit at the tail end of a July 13-16 Middle East trip that includes stops in Israel and the West Bank, Biden is edging off his adversarial stance on...

There is the ideological debate around cycleways. Whether or not they actually achieve anything. Whether they cut traffic. Whether it's real to expect large numbers of people in large cities to cycle everywhere. Whether the damage you do to the roading network and the resulting congestion is worth it all. Whether all the court cases that are fought over planning and execution make the battle worth...

Chris Hipkins wants to take a "big picture" approach to reducing gang activity. The new Police Minister has gone head-to-head with National's Police spokesman Mark Mitchell for the first time this morning, with an appearance on the Mike Hosking Breakfast. It's come just before his first meeting with Police Commissioner Andrew Coster this morning. Hipkins told Mike Hosking he wants to work as both...

If the food prices are any indicator, inflation hasn't hit its peak yet. Yesterday, we got the news that food prices were up almost 7 percent on last year, including a 10 percent increase in fruit and vegetables. It puts into doubt the idea that inflation will peak this quarter at 7 percent. ASB senior economist Mark Smith joined Mike Hosking. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

One of the most successful female motorsport drivers is in the country. Michele Mouton chairs the delegation responsible for safety in WRC rallies, so she is here to check our rally route, safety, planning and special stages ahead of the WRC return to Auckland at the end of September. Mouton was the first woman to win the German Rally Championship in 1986 with Peugeot, the first female to win a ma...

Concern children will be impacted the most by a new bill that would get rid of the Children's Commissioner's role. Government is pushing ahead despite overwhelming majority against the Bill. It aims to strengthen oversight of Oranga Tamariki and create a Young People's Commission. Children's Commissioner Frances Eivers told Mike Hosking it won't be as effective, as it means decisions will need to...

Marlborough are trying to do their best to hopefully train the next generation of construction workers and engineers to fill our labour shortages. The Marlborough Chamber of Commerce has pitched a construction and engineering academy for two high schools in the area to help students train and get jobs directly out of high school in high need areas. It's similar to an academy in Hastings for Hastin...

ACC will make changes, hoping to win back the trust of New Zealanders. A review has found the agency's privacy policies are outdated, lacking and not well understood by staff. It was revealed last October that staff had shared and laughed at private client information, on social media app Snapchat. ACC chief executive Megan Main told Mike Hosking she's disappointed and particularly sorry about the...

The bear comes before the storm. Bear markets, where stocks fall by at least 20 percent are rare, but often precede a recession. The NZX has gone down by 20 percent over the last 100 days. Stockfox founder David McEwen told Mike Hosking US inflation is going to remain high, that means the markets are going to remain low. He says the rest of the year is going to be choppy. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystud...

In a way, the big story and the big surprise out of the Cabinet reshuffle is what didn’t happen, even though it’s been screaming out for change. Nanaia Mahuta somehow holds on to Foreign Affairs, despite being out of her depth, asleep at the wheel and outwardly not all that interested, given what we’ve seen in the Pacific lately. Not only that, but she keeps Local Government too, where you might a...

One of this country's most successful bands is back. The Black Seeds formed way back in 1998 - and their albums have topped the kiwi charts over the years. That includes On the Sun and Into the Dojo which went double platinum in this country. Now the band is back with their first album in five years - Love and Fire is coming out this Friday. Frontman Barnaby Weir joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See...

The All Blacks' first squad for 2022 and the Ireland series has been announced. There are six new potential caps, headlined by Blues Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Stephen Perofeta and standout Crusaders winger Leicester Fainga'anuku. Captain Sam Cane joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Shareholders Association, and Fletcher Building investors with a $35 million stake, plan to meet the chief executive and chairman to discuss the Gib supply crisis on Friday. Sam Stubbs of Simplicity Living said he plans a "frank, positive discussion" about how the company is looking after shareholders in the midst of the shortage. A meeting with Fletcher chief executive Ross Taylor and chairma...

Travellers planning to take to the skies may have to brace for a hit in the wallet. Air New Zealand is warning they're going to have to hike flight prices due to rising fuel costs and demand. Chief Executive Greg Foran told Tim Dower about 15 per cent of the price of an airfare goes into fuel costs for a domestic flight and up to 35 per cent for an international flight. He says especially on long...

Scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated, and Kiwibank customers are currently being targeted. The scammers have created a phony caller ID, so you could easily think it is Kiwibank. Then come the plausible questions, but the bank has confirmed it's definitely not them. Cert NZ's Incident Response Team acting manager Jordan Heerspring joined Tim Dower. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener...

MPs have their work cut out for them in new portfolios. Kris Faafoi and Trevor Mallard are stepping away from politics,  with other politicians stepping into their roles. Michael Wood replaces Faafoi as Immigration Minister. Immigration lawyer Aaron Martin told Tim Dower immigration will be an uphill battle for the new minister, Wood. “Minister Faafoi was disinterested and seemed hands off.” LISTE...

MPs have their work cut out for them in new portfolios. Kris Faafoi and Trevor Mallard are stepping away from politics, with other politicians stepping into their roles. Chris Hipkins replaces Poto Williams as Police Minister. Former detective and National MP Chester Borrows says told Tim Dower Hipkins is more experienced. “As the Police Association have pointed out, having him also as Minister of...

It was a no-brainer really this weekend for National. And let’s be honest about it, there’s nothing especially radical, clever or even that new about this four-point plan to tackle the gangs. Probably the biggest single step is the idea of outlawing of patch wearing in public. The patch is a status symbol within the gang, but not only that it’s an overt display of your lifestyle to the rest of the...

Sharks 38Warriors 16 The Warriors continue to go through the motions of a forgettable year. Like reruns of Friends, their season has gotten to a point where you know what's coming when you tune in. They're going to have moments where you think they could compete with the top six, but they're going to make unnecessary and, at times, inexcusable errors to invite pressure and concede cheap points. Th...