The Mike Hosking Breakfast

An appointment sure to pique the interest of many New Zealand football followers.   Olympic gold medal-winning coach Bev Priestman's penned a two-year deal to take charge of the Phoenix women's side.  Priestman —who led the Canadian women's team to Olympic glory in 2021— has just finished serving a one-year ban from the game for her role in the Canadian team’s misuse of drones at last ye...

Agriculture is leading the way as the country's top performing industry.   Xero’s latest Insights report shows consistent under-performance in New Zealand’s small business sector in the past year, with sales falling by 0.1% in the June quarter.  Country manager Bridget Snelling told Mike Hosking sectors that are more sensitive to consumer spending and interest rates are being hit hardest...

There's a belief it's going to be a long journey to get Kiwibank into the ring with the big leagues.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis has announced the bank's parent company is being allowed to raise $500 million from investors to help it compete with the four major banks.  Simplicity founder Sam Stubbs says Kiwibank will need more capital over time.  He told Mike Hosking if the coun...

Concern over a never-ending pile of costs for airlines as our air traffic control prices soar.  Provider of the service, Airways, is putting its fees up 17.7% over the next three years.  It says its pricing is based on the number of flights scheduled in and out of each airport.  Airline Representatives Executive Director Cath O'Brien told Mike Hosking some countries' governments inv...

The Resources Minister says New Zealand's missed a trick with geothermal energy.  Shane Jones' draft strategy lays out a goal of doubling its production by 2040.  He says we should have begun investment seven years ago, when we banned oil and gas exploration.  Jones told Mike Hosking we have some great expertise on geothermal energy that we should be harnessing.  He says Indone...

The Minister for Courts says updating procedures for running Judge Alone Trials is a good step in the mammoth task of speeding up the courts.  Newstalk ZB can reveal it'll be implemented countrywide tomorrow.   It introduces registrar-led prosecution and defence teleconferences three weeks before trial and allows courts to start earlier to review and prioritise scheduled cases.  Min...

Contradicting statements out of the US and Israel over the hunger crisis in Gaza.   The region's health authority says 14 people have died in the past 24 hours due to starvation, which Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denies.   He says Israel's enabled humanitarian aid throughout the duration of the war, otherwise there would be no Gazans.   But US President Donald Trump s...

One of the more memorable days of my life was spent at Michael Hill's house at Lake Hayes in Central Otago.  He showed me his art. There was a lot of it and it was eclectic.  He had his own nine-hole golf course, and it was all par 3s. This was in the days before The Hills, which in many respects was what Michael was all about – vision.  He took his par 3s and then turned it into on...

Sir Michael Hill's being remembered for his love of the arts.  He died yesterday aged 86, after a cancer battle.  Hill's chain of self-named jewellery stores began in Whangārei, before becoming a global brand.   Former Queenstown Mayor Jim Boult says he's well-known for his Queenstown golf course 'the Hills', and the international violin competition he founded.  He was also a c...

With a wide range of announcements and figures coming out over the last week, Labour’s Ginny Andersen and National’s Mark Mitchell joined Mike Hosking for Politics Wednesday.  They discussed Brooke van Velden’s consultations on children collecting eggs, clamping the cars of court fine dodgers, and scrapping surcharges.  Plus, they delved into the changes around voting – is axing same-day...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 30th July, nurses are on strike today and gang numbers are up – a double blow for the Government.  Netball NZ has secured its broadcast deal – a one year deal with TVNZ. Is it the solution, or just a band aid?   Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell talk gang numbers, the House performances, and Brooke van Velden and eggs on Politi...

Short term loans, minimal or no break fees, and cash-back incentives are driving a record number of mortgage holders changing lenders in June.  More than 3,500 holders switched nearly two and a half billion dollars of debt between loan providers last month.  It's the highest since records began in 2017.  Squirrel Mortgages CEO David Cunningham told Mike Hosking it’s a bit of a pass...

Netball New Zealand will dip into its own pocket to keep the ANZ Premiership afloat in 2026.  A one-year broadcast deal with TVNZ has been confirmed, with the competition to remain in the current two-round format.  Chief executive Jennie Wyllie has not revealed how much the deal is worth or whether players will take a pay cut.  She told Mike Hosking there is a change in economics, b...

Nurses are fed up over chronic short-staffing, despite graduates seeking jobs.   More than 30 thousand nurses and heath professionals will be off the job from 9am, withdrawing labour from all Health New Zealand services for the next 24 hours.   Strikes are taking place in over 30 locations across the country, with thousands of procedures and appointments postponed.  Nurses Organisat...

The Government has begun looking for possible areas for cutbacks for next year's Budget.  Associate Finance Minister David Seymour said he hopes the Government can equal or exceed the savings achieved in its first two Budgets.  He says the Government's trying to reduce its spending from about 35% of GDP to about 31%.  Seymour told Mike Hosking it's an ongoing process of "looking beh...

As the gang numbers grow police say they're keeping a better check on their behaviour.  Gang numbers have climbed past 10 thousand, up from 9,270 in 2023.   Assistant Police Commissioner Paul Basham says since the Gang Act was passed, they've launched more than nine thousand charges against gang members.   He told Mike Hosking they have a laser focus on gangs.   Basham says par...

If you want to get a bit angsty about the voting changes, the one everyone seems to have missed is the one about how it's being changed because we are so hopeless.  On the “disenfranchised” side of the equation, I have little, if any, time for it.  An election is held every three years. Between the last one and the next one that’s a lot of days to, at some point, stick your name down for...

Looks like the decision to go full steam ahead and focus on music has been the right one for Joel Shadbolt and L.A.B.  In the time since he stepped back from teaching, the band’s won awards, released new albums, and has just released their summer schedule that will see them tour both New Zealand and Australia.  They’ll be performing alongside Stan Walker and Corrella for three shows in A...

The video game sector continues to impress.  One of the biggest players in our sector has recorded another stellar year, reporting $105 million in revenue for the year to September 2024, up from $83.4 million the previous year.   Grinding Gear Games, out of West Auckland, is behind the multiplayer online fantasy game  Path of Exile .  Managing Director Jonathan Rogers told Mike...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 29th of July, the Government is getting rid of surcharges when you pay by card. Consumers love it, businesses aren't a fan.    Board members’ pay is going up by up to 80% in some instances , with ministers justifying it by saying it's about finding the best people.  Joel Shadbolt of L.A.B fame is back on the show to talk th...

Another instance of violence on our sports fields.  A brawl broke out between parents and students during the rugby match between Auckland Grammar and De La Salle College.  The match was called off, with eight police officers needed to break up the chaos.  Former Springbok and Kings College Rugby 7s coach Kevin Putt told Mike Hosking while all-out brawls aren’t common, they see into...

The Commerce Minister says he's disappointed in businesses who say they will pass on the cost of surcharge scrapping.   Most in-store surcharges on card payments will be banned, with the changes set to kick in next May.   Scott Simpson says this is a win for consumers.   He told Mike Hosking they've also taken action on the fees banks charge businesses.   Simpson says those rat...

There are fears that retailers will wear the cost of scrapping payment surcharges.   The Government will ban the added fees for most in-store card payments, including paywave.   Hospitality NZ Head of Advocacy Sam MacKinnon says ultimately customers were always allowed to avoid the surcharges by paying in a less convenient way.   He told Mike Hosking more work needs to be done on th...

More money's discreetly finding its way into the pockets of public sector board members.   A quietly released Cabinet document reveals governance board chairs could now be paid more than $160 thousand.   Annual fees had previously been capped at about $90 thousand.   Public Service Minister Judith Collins told Mike Hosking these people are often responsible for large sums of money a...

Can I suggest Jarrod Kerr for Governor of the Reserve Bank? Jarrod is Kiwibank's Chief Economist. He has been completely consistent in his ongoing commentary around interest rate cuts and the Reserve Bank's need to do more. To be fair, our own Greg Smith at Devon Funds Management has told us, and argued, a similar story. The Kiwibank economic report that got a decent amount of coverage over the we...