Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

Is there a clear winner in the wake of the second major leaders debate?  Christopher Luxon and Chris Hipkins went head-to-head in the NZ Herald's Leaders Debate last night, clashing on education, geopolitics, and wages, amid other things.   Political Commentator Brigitte Morten told Ryan Bridge the real competition wasn't just between the two leaders, but rather whether or not they could...

This year is set to be one of the highest graduating years in the history of the New Zealand Police, despite wings often not being at capacity.  Around 730 recruits are expected to graduate from police college in 2026, almost 50% more than the average over the past two decades.  Police say the incoming pipeline remains healthy with more than a thousand people in different stages of the a...

New Zealand's looking to attract more tourists from Europe and the US, to reduce our reliance on Australians. Stats NZ data shows almost 249-thousand overseas tourists arrived in August - 99 percent of 2019 levels. The figure includes more Australians than in any August on record. But Tourism Holdings Chief Executive Grant Webster told Ryan Bridge Chinese visitors have overtaken Australians as Que...

Story of the week this week goes to a Herald piece about Ngaire Ashmore, the principal of Auckland Girls' Grammar.  Ten years ago, she took over and turned the place upside down.  Where there was failure, there's now a 92% UE entrance mark for Year 13's.  It was less than 50% when she started.  The article gives the impression of a driven, serious and quite determined leader th...

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Thursday 15th of October 2026, political commentator Brigitte Morten shares her thoughts on the New Zealand Herald Leaders debate. New Zealand is a whisker away from pre-covid tourism levels, Grant Webster Tourism Holdings Limited Chief Executive tells Ryan how the industry has bounced back.  Record numbers of new cops are about to hit t...

Employers are being warned cocaine use is surging in workplace drug testing.  Drug Detection Agency data shows the drug made up 3.2% of positive tests in three months to October, up 118% year on year.  Amphetamine-type substances, including meth, accounted for 25.4%, up 9.4% over the past year.  Chief Executive Glenn Dobson says there are similar trends in the US and Australia.&nbsp...

School leaders want more information from Labour on its plan to scrap a mandated hour of reading, writing, and maths in schools, while achievement results are improving.  Leader Chris Hipkins announced last week teachers would be given more choice over how they spend their time.  But a Curia Market Research poll shows 74% of Kiwis support the mandated hour policy.  Secondary Princip...

Our local aluminium sector says it's been left with no protection from a flood of cheaper imports from China.  Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Cameron Brewer has declined a request for safeguard measures to protect them.  Production has slowed down 40 percent in this country, and the sector says thousands of jobs in manufacturing and downstream businesses are at risk.  Etū Na...

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Wednesday the 14th of October 2026, a new poll shows just how popular the hour of reading, writing and maths has become, Secondary Principals Association Chair Steve McCracken tells Andrew if teachers are on board with it too. There's concern for New Zealand's aluminium industry after the Government rejected protection against cheap import...

So, if Qiulae Wong is generally considered to be the best thing in last night's debate how did she do it and how is her fringe party keeping popular enough to perhaps enter parliament? Her greatest strength last night was acting like a normal person. It struck me that she was the only person on our screen that was not a career politician.   That includes the panel who were full of broadcaster...

The Greens want to keep a tight rein on AI.  The Party wants people held accountable for decisions made using Artificial Intelligence, and to have a public register of AI systems used by Government agencies.  It wants people to be able to opt-out of AI-assisted decision making and wants to put a pause on hyperscale data centres.   Green Party MP Lawrence Xu-Nan told Andrew Dickens A...

ASB says elections aren't usually a handbrake for business or household decisions.   Fresh analysis from the bank has found activity doesn't tend to slow down before an election or speed up right after one.   Senior Economist Mark Smith says there were two exceptions around the 2008 and 2020 elections but adds that was probably because of the GFC and the pandemic.  Business Canterbu...

A tax expert suggests National's trademark tax relief seems a fair way off - with little wiggle room in its fiscal plan. The Party says it can't offer tax cuts - until it gets on top of debt.  It says all its commitments are costed - matching Labour's 2.4 billion dollar Budget operating allowance.  Tax expert Geof Nightingale told Andrew Dickens the 7.5 billion dollars left over arrives...

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Tuesday the 13th of October 2026, National’s dangled the carrot of tax cuts, but not until the books are back in surplus tax expert Geof Nightingale shares his thoughts. The Greens' newest policy takes on their biggest rival yet -- AI, Green Party MP Lawerance Xu Nan explains how they plan to regulate it. ASB are challenging the old idea t...

With National finally releasing its fiscal policy it’s easy to generalise the plan as more of the same. We’ve already seen and the only difference with Labour is that they are in love with pay equity which comes at a huge cost and leaves the whole balancing act with very little wriggle room. But the enormous ogre under the bridge is the rapidly expanding cost of superannuation.  How long are...

The election season is well underway, and employment is a key issue for many voters. National has pledged more drug testing for beneficiaries, to ensure more Kiwis are ready to get into work, and Labour has voiced opposition to this idea. National Social Development Minister Louise Upston says she's confident the Government's measures to reduce unemployment are working - but there's more to be don...

Trump has made a new diesel deal with Russia, and it's sparked concerns in Europe. Under the agreement, 300,000 tonnes of Russian diesel will be released to the US immediately, followed by a further 500,000 next month. Business correspondent Vicky Pryce says some people are worried about the optics of this arrangement - especially in terms of what it could mean for Ukraine. LISTEN ABOVE See omnyst...

Listen to the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast for Monday 12 October. Get the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A view it's clearly time our political parties come together to tackle the issue of superannuation. National and Labour have agreed they'll support a cross-party political accord on the retirement system. Act and National are both campaigning on gradually raising the super age to 67. Labour and New Zealand First are both campaigning to keep it at 65. Superannuation expert Jonathan Eriksen told And...

There’s been a concerted campaign by Don Brash and Nick Mowbray to get National voters to split their vote and engineer an overhang. A move John Key has said would be the opposite of clever. Over the weekend, Don Brash went to print again to explain why it’s a good idea. The upshot is that National’s strength in the electorates could mean a loss of list seats, which would affect several senior min...

The Greens are condemning National's plans to drug-test people on welfare and reduce payments.  National's promising to randomly drug test ten thousand beneficiaries next year.  From April 2028, it would also cut Jobseeker payments for people on the scheme for two of the previous three years, claiming it'll push people into work.  Greens' Social Development Spokesperson Ricardo Mené...

Eden Park's CEO is looking forward to welcoming the All Blacks back to the Fortress.  The stadium is hosting the first Bledisloe Cup clash this weekend, the All Blacks taking on the Wallabies for the first time since they returned from South Africa.  Nick Sautner told Andrew Dickens the All Blacks have a phenomenal record at the stadium, as they haven't lost to Australia there since 1986...

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast 2026, the Green Party is not happy with National's benefit policy, Green Party Social Development Spokesperson Ricardo Menedez March explains why.  The trans-tasman rivalry’s back at Eden Park, CEO Nick Sautner tells Andrew what to look out for.  Labour say they have a plan to tackle unfair plane ticket costs, NZ Herald Aviation...

Labour's making big promises in aviation if re-elected.  The Party would require airlines to publish airfares including every fee upfront - making the full cost clear. It would mandate automatic refunds when big airlines like Air New Zealand and Jetstar cancel or significantly change flights - and for them to publish data on cancellations and delays. New Zealand Herald Aviation Journalist Joh...

I had to chuckle after yesterday's interview with Mr Abercrombie from the PPTA who grudgingly accepted that improvements to the education sector by the government is a factor in teacher registrations being up 40 per cent this year  Mr Abercrombie, other industry advocates and the Labour led opposition have been dead set against the changes but now they’re slowly admitting that things are bett...