Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Aotearoa Ten Seven, formerly Police Ten 7, ended last week. The show introduced a format refresh after racism claims of unfair portrayal led to an independent review. However, former narrator Graham Bell disagrees that the show misrepresented the Polynesian population. Bell believes the series was killed by the "politically correct" and "wokester brigade". He told Heather du-Plessis Allan that the...

Transport Minister Michael Wood isn’t ruling out the delay of some major roading projects. Waka Kotahi is currently working on 19 projects, and are trying to see how to continue with them with only the money they currently have. Amongst these projects are the Otaki to Levin expressway, Wellington’s Melling Interchange, and Auckland’s Penlink. AA’s Chief Policy and Advocacy Officer Simon Douglas sa...

Federated Farmers says the slash inquiry report is brilliant. The report recommends an immediate halt on large-scale clear-felling of plantation forests. It also calls for a Woody Debris Taskforce to lead clean-ups, transitioning extreme erosion zones out of pasture, and turning production forestry into permanent forest. Federated Farmers Gisborne President Toby Williams told Heather du Plessis Al...

A British tabloid newspaper has apologised to Prince Harry at the start of legal proceedings against the company. Publisher Mirror Group Newspapers are being sued by several celebrities, including the royal, over alleged phone hacking, deception and other illicit means. UK correspondent Enda Brady says Prince Harry's lawyers argued in court that the publisher's unlawful information gathering led t...

Tonight on The Huddle, Chief Executive of Infrastructure NZ Nick Leggett and ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! A group of 97 wealthy New Zealanders have written an open letter calling on the Government to tax them more. Ecostore Founder Malcolm Rands says he doesn’t mind if it’s done through increased income tax, a wea...

Homebuilder stock prices in the US have risen to an all-time high. Limited resale inventory has inspired homebuilder sentiment to surge, and permits for future construction projects are increasing. Sam Dickie from Fisher Funds says the Global Financial Crisis generated a shortage of houses in the US, leading to US homebuyers needing to build from scratch. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener f...

The new President of Federated Farmers, Wayne Langford, has released the organisation’s 'wish list' ahead of Budget 2023. Wayne Langford says farmers aren't asking for handouts from the Government, claiming all they really want is a stop to impractical, unpragmatic and unfair regulations. Langford also explained New Zealand needed farmers to be firing on all cylinders ahead of rising interest rate...

The Retirement Village Association has expressed puzzlement at the complaints that inspired the Commerce Commission probe into retirement villages. Both Consumer NZ and the Retirement Village Residents Association have voiced concerns about potential breaches of the Fair Trading Act. Retirement Village Association President Graham Wilkinson says the Commerce Commission's investigation into complai...

Finance Minister Grant Robertson has revealed the Government will reprioritise $4 billion worth of savings ahead of this year's budget. The Government has “re-doubled” efforts to trim excess spending as the economy cools, but will focus on meeting needs in health, education and housing. NZ Herald business editor Liam Dann says $4 billion worth of savings tells the right story, but the overall figu...

A messy week in Parliament has turned fiery, with Māori Party co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer launching an impassioned tirade. After Labour refused to back a bill banning all seabed mining, sponsor Ngarewa-Packer concluded her speech angrily, accusing MPs opposing it as amateurs and out of their depth. ZB's senior political correspondent Barry Soper says this is the latest in a messy week in Parli...

Some legal gun owners are concerned over the new online registry. Gun owners will have five years to register their firearms, and thirty days to record a new purchase in a new online system. The Council of Licensed Firearms Owners says it only gives a picture of legal gun ownership. Spokesperson Hugh Deveraux-Mack says there's concern criminals could get their hands on the data. "It's not only goi...

Not everyone who signed a letter asking for the rich to be taxed more heavily is mega wealthy. The signatories described themselves as wealthy New Zealanders. Tax Justice Spokesperson Glenn Barclay is one of them. He says he's not extremely wealthy, but is still probably in the top 10 percent of income earners. "If the tax system was a bit more fair, I might find myself paying more tax. And I'd be...

Australian ACT Director of Public Prosecutions, Shane Drumgold has walked back his accusations of political conspiracy in the Lehrmann/Higgins trial. After reading more submissions that had been made as part of the official inquiry into the trial, Drumgold admitted he was mistaken. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says Drumgold had alleged that political interference had played a role in the s...

The Blues are out for retribution after going down 34-28  in round four at Eden Park. Roger Tuivasa-Sheck has been left out of the Blues' 23 entirely for Saturday's Super Rugby match against the Crusaders in Christchurch. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our oldest New Zealander turns 107 today. Jack Coe was born in 1916 in a tent in Bulls, and lived almost a century in Marton, in the Whangārei region. His 77-year-old son, Peter Coe, says Jack stayed quite independent until going into a retirement home four months ago. He says the secret to his longevity, could be his love of popcorn, beer and home-grown veggies. "He did have a large veggie garden...

The Government faces a tough balancing act for this year's Budget. Finance Minister Grant Robertson says he's reprioritised $4 billion to spend in the four year forecast period. It includes money saved by the Government's policy bonfire, and cash left over from the Covid response. Independent economist Cameron Bagrie says inflation is ruthless, and a lot of money will be needed to continue Governm...

An experienced cave guide cancelled a school tour at Waipū Caves Farm Park because of the weather, hours before helping rescuers search Abbey Caves. Whangārei Boys' High School student Karnin Ahorangi Petera died in the caves on a school trip on Tuesday. Guide Ian Fox says they constantly monitor the weather, particularly if storms are predicted. "On the morning, the teacher and I discussed it, an...

In the past 12 months, food prices have risen the most in 36 years - but one vegetable grower says they're heading back down. Food went up 12.5 percent in the year to April, including a 22.5 percent increase in prices for fruit and veg. But in just the month of April, fruit and veg actually also slid 2.9 percent. Leaderbrands CEO Richard Burke says Cyclone Gabrielle caused some delays. "We've been...

Let me give you a bunch of reasons why you can- and should- ignore this letter from 97 ‘wealthy’ Kiwis asking the Government to tax them more. This is the letter that starts: “We write as people who are frustrated with how much tax we pay. We want to pay more”. They do not want to pay more themselves. What they actually want is other rich people to pay more tax. And you don’t have to take my word...

A UK citizen extradited to the US has plead guilty to cyberstalking and hacking schemes, notably the 2020 Twitter hack. 23-year-old Joseph James O'Connor was charged both North Dakota and New York and will forfeit over $794,000. He also faces up to 77 years in prison. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says O'Connor's 2020 Twitter hack affected several high-profile accounts including former president Bar...

Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and Sam Johnson, Projects Director at Still joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more! National's Chris Luxon has ruled out any governing deal with Te Pāti Māori after the election, and won't enter an arrangement with the party, even if it was National’s sole route into Government. Why has it taken National...

1500 travel delegates from around the world are in Christchurch for the county's biggest tourism business event. Tourism Industry Aotearoa says the TRENZ conference will help to shape New Zealand's tourism economy for years to come. TRENZ was last held in person in 2019, and this is the first time Ōtautahi has hosted the event since 2006. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says TRENZ has g...

The pressure is on for the US Government to potentially raise the debt ceiling. Because recent tax receipts have been lower than expected, the US Government runs the risk of being unable to meet their financial obligations and defaulting. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that without more borrowing, the US will not have enough money to meet these obligations by June 1. Milford Asset Mana...

The Government has put more money down to stop housing developments from failing. They've made $159 million available to get affordable housing projects which would otherwise stall, off the ground.  NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explains that the Government will either buy “build-ready” land or pre-purchase or underwrite homes. "This $159 million it's putting on the table-...

National's Chris Luxon has today ruled out working with Te Pāti Māori in any post-election deal. Luxon says it's clear that National and Te Pāti Māori have fundamentally different views on too many issues. ZB's senior political correspondent Barry Soper says National should have been more assertive early on when it came to Te Pāti Māori. "I don't know why they waited until now, but nevertheless Ch...