The Mike Hosking Breakfast

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. 

The Government: 7/10 

A very solid week with the Prime Minister in Asia selling our image, Todd McClay in China drumming up business, Mark Patterson in Australia spruiking our wool and Shane Jones slashing red tape in mining and sticking it up the Waitangi Tribunal. That's ideas, policies, changes and common sense. It's got a desperately needed feel of momentum about it. 

The CPI number: 3/10 

The real issue is the 5.8% non-tradable figure, the stuff we control, yet aren't controlling. 

Jury selection: 3/10 

Twelve New Yorkers who don’t care either way about Donald Trump? Come on.   

Russia: 4/10 

Because they are growing this year faster than any other major developed nation. Those sanctions work, aye? 

Stuff/Hub: 7/10 

Because we wish them well, but it had a very distinct whiff of rip and read, cheap and hasty, didn’t it? 

The A&P show: 3/10 

It's a travesty, but what about the model! Are you serious? Twelve months work for three days revenue. You don’t think there is a bit of room to wind the old efficiency up? 

Supercars: 8/10 

Sold out in Taupo both days. Cars with big engines are so hot right now. 

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This weekend will see up to 70,000 fans pouring into Taupo to catch the Supercars event. 

Jaxon Evans, a third-generation kiwi racer, won the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Championship in 2018, and is back this weekend to compete for Brad Jones Racing. 

He told Mike Hosking that this is actually his first race at Taupo, having spectated a few races but never running the track himself. 

Evans said that while those who know the track may have a slight advantage, none of them have run the current cars so it’ll be a clean slate for everyone. 

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A study has found that housing has a significant impact on the prospects of homeless people. 

University of Otago research has found that those who live in a housing first programme have better health, income, and justice outcomes. 

The study involved 387 homeless people, and in five years the number of hospitalisations fell by 44%, nights spent in mental health units fell by 63%, and there was a 43% reduction in criminal charges. 

Professor Nevil Pierse told Mike Hosking that the study really shows that permanent housing and support really works, and after five years huge improvements can be seen. 

He said that the key in this study was the people going straight into permanent sustainable housing as opposed to emergency transitional housing, which creates a sense of stability. 

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Liz Truss has a book out. 

It's what you do when you have been Prime Minister, even though she was only Prime Minister for about three and a half minutes. 

Slight digression - I am going to be fascinated to see how they promote Jacinda Ardern's book when it finally arrives. 

My assessment of her legacy is that it is increasingly dark and as the cold, hard economic reality of what she left behind is heaped upon us, more and more New Zealanders have realised how badly she duped us. 

In a Meghan Markle-esque kind of way she is not to be seen anywhere, just heard from occasionally through reports of speeches at conferences as she is adored by the luvvies offshore. 

I find it hard to believe the publicists would place her in Whitcoulls for a signing. 

Anyway, back to Liz. The sad thing for Liz is she makes a very, very good point when she suggests the West has about a decade to reassert itself and grab back everything it has lost of late. 

Whether it’s a decade, who knows. But in a very short space of time China has become something we didn’t really see coming. They are not the world's friend, unless of course you do things their way. 

They need to engage with us, but don’t like or trust us. They spy, they infiltrate, and they exert influence in increasing areas by way of money in pockets. Look at Africa or, increasingly, the Pacific.   

They are helping Russia in the war. 

Speaking of Russia, they're another problem. The International Monetary Fund this week tells us they will grow economically this year more than any other major economy on Earth. Pick any country you like in Europe, the UK, Australia, Canada, Britain, the U.S, they will beat everyone. 

How? Domestic consumption and oil. Who are they selling oil to? The Chinese and the Indians. While the West has talked tough and rolled out sanctions Russia has kept growing and China has kept growing. BRICS is another grouping that’s growing and is one to watch. 

Liz Truss is seen as a failure of a Prime Minister but on this she is worth listening to. She is more productive out of the office than in it and, most importantly, she is right. 

The West are losing. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 19th of April, Social Development Minister Louise Upston talked the Jobseeker number and dug into who would actually be hit by the sanctions.

Grant Dalton was back on the show after revealing the new name of the boat that's going to win us the America's Cup.

Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson wrapped the week, discussing everything from jury duty to whether they could be unbiased in a trial for Trump.

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Team New Zealand has officially launched into their America’s Cup era. 

They rolled their new AC75 out of the shed last week, officially launching it in a ceremony in Auckland yesterday afternoon. 

The boat was named Taihoro, the name gifted by Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, inspired by Taihoro-Nukurangi, the name translates to “to move swiftly as the sea between both sky and earth”. 

Team NZ CEO Grant Dalton told Mike Hosking that there is a quantum step up in pace between Te Rehutai, who they defended the America’s Cup with last time, and Taihoro. 

He said the wizardry of these engineers is that they’re able to make incredibly fast boats go faster and faster. 

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Mike Hosking was once more joined by Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson to wrap the week.

They discussed jury duty, Tim revealing himself to be the only person who'd love to do it one day, and whether they think they could be unbiased in Donald Trump's criminal trial.

They also touched on Mike's appearance on Radio Hauraki's Daily Bespoke Podcast.

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Auckland's Mayor wants the city to serve as an air and freight hub between Asia and South America. 

The idea has drawn new attention with the New Zealand Brazil Business Chamber, pitching a direct flight from Auckland to São Paulo which could bring in millions in trade in its first year. 

The mayor's also keen to see direct flights to India. 

Wayne Brown told Mike Hosking that these routes should've been unlocked years ago. 

He says the shortest route from anything south of Hong Kong and Guangzhou to South America goes right over the top of Auckland, so the city is missing out on a huge amount of trade. 

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Reassurances are being given that those on JobSeekers won't be punished if a tough job market means they can't find work. 

New MSD figures reveal just under 188,000 people are on this benefit, up almost 20,000 people from last year. 

The Government's hoping to get 50,000 off JobSeekers in the next six years. 

Social Development Minister Louise Upston told Mike Hosking that if people are doing everything they can, they won't be sanctioned. 

She says it's about people not taking the steps to get ready for a job and doing their bit. 

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A UK debt industry leader's offering New Zealanders advice following a grim economic forecast. 

Infometrics data finds the economy's being hit harder than expected and it may be another year until it feels like the worst of the downturn is over. 

Steve Coppard told Mike Hosking that he’s urging households with increased debt to use the free mentorship available. 

He says people need to work with professionals to identify the barriers preventing them from escaping debt. 

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The meeting is underway for the G7 Ministers, taking place on the Italian island of Capri. 

Italy Correspondent Jo McKenna said we’re likely to see predictable announcements coming soon regarding Iran, Israel, Palestine, and Gaza. 

She said that they’re likely to reinforce the opposition to what Iran did and reinforce the support for Israel. 

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More from our common sense file. 

Resources Minister Shane Jones has had a good week and I'm increasingly falling in love with him. 

He turned on the country's only electric digger. This is a big mother and may well be the future of heavy industrial work. 

He is also going to make it easier to dig for coal. As he points out coal, in terms of extraction, is not dissimilar to extracting lots of minerals and although there are a small, but loud, group of people that want to extract nothing, what happens when you don’t have energy is you either have to bring it in or you sit in the dark a lot. 

In a week where we learned we will need ten times the power we currently use just to search the net, given AI sucks up a shed load more power than your current Google search, it might be time to get a bit real about what makes the wheels turn. 

While we wait for solar and wind and whatever else to get approved and brought online, the simple truth remains we make most of our energy out of water (which is good), a bit out of hot stuff in the ground (which is pretty good). But we still need coal. 

Because we can't really look for more coal the same way we haven't been able to look for more oil, we got a bit stuck. So, we had the absurdity of importing coal from Indonesia. 

Not only was it coal, but it was coal not nearly as good as ours, thus defeating the entire purpose of saving the planet. 

Speaking of which, surely the numbers also out this week once and for all buried this falsehood that the world is turning on the climate. 

We have never used more coal and demand has gone up again in the past year. But we are planning and opening more mines than ever before, led of course by China. 

China, along with a long list of players from Greece to Vietnam to Pakistan to Korea, Bangladesh and Japan are all opening mines. 

No, that's not ideal. But as Jones points out, utopia in the form of renewables at a level of 100% is years away. 

In the meantime, it's back to the real world. 

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Warriors CEO Cameron George is trying not to get ahead of himself despite the coup of signing Kiwis captain James Fisher-Harris on a four-year deal. 

The three-time Premiership winning prop has been granted a release from the final two years of his deal with Penrith on compassionate grounds. 

He's a like-for-like replacement for Addin Fonua-Blake, who will join Cronulla at the end of this season. 

George told Mike Hosking that it's another positive step for the club post the pandemic era. 

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Fans of the reggae and pop scenes will be very familiar with the works of UB40. 

The English band was formed in the late 1970’s, going through a few iterations as their music finds international success. 

Robin Campbell is a founding member of the band, having stuck with it for 45 years, throughout the drama, court cases, and a revolt. 

They’re popping over to New Zealand with the release of their 21stalbum ‘UB45’ stopping by Auckland and Christchurch in October on their ‘Red Red Wine Tour’. 

Campell told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking that they have a few extra members in the band and a couple of new guys. 

“We’re firing on all cylinders, having a ball.” 

45 years is quite a significant amount of time for a band to be running, and Campbell said it’s always kind of a ‘pinch me’ moment. 

“You know, how the, how the heck are we still doing this after 45 years? Why are we so popular? How did we get so lucky?” 

The secret for them is doing what they love and hoping their fans and friends come along with them. 

“It’s just the way it’s always been for us, it’s always worked.” 

“It’s a wonderful position to be in.” 

UB45 releases Friday, 19th of April.

The Red Red Wine Tour will be coming to Christchurch on October 8th and Auckland on October 10th.

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 18th of April, we spoke to former Finance Minister Steven Joyce about the good and bad news from the latest inflation number.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell gave his thoughts on what's next after the Police turned down their third and final pay offer.

There's a lot of angst about the public sector job cuts, particularly from Opposition Leader Chis Hipkins. Does he defend the decisions he made while in Parliament that led up to these cuts?

Robin Campbell of the original UB40 fame joined the show to talk about their new album and upcoming NZ shows.

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Some are saying the Government's updated health guidance for children is bringing back the balance from the pandemic. 

The guidelines say children with a mild cough, headache, or runny nose can go to school given they don't have Covid-19 or other symptoms like fever or diarrhoea. 

Auckland Primary Principals' Association's Kyle Brewerton told Mike Hosking that we've had four years of erring on the side of caution. 

He says it's part of a wider message to get kids back to school. 

Brewerton says we have a big attendance problem and it's a way of saying to get rid of any more issues. 

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Chris Hipkins is defending public servants in the firing line. 

Just yesterday, more than a-thousand job cutting proposals were announced at the Ministry of Education and Oranga Tamariki combined. 

The Government's suggesting some of the cost savings could be re-invested into frontline services. 

Labour leader Chris Hipkins told Mike Hosking that he doesn't agree the public service had been 'bloating' under his leadership. 

He said the people losing their jobs are delivering valuable services like the food in schools programme or curriculum work. 

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Tread carefully over plans to extend earthquake-strengthening work deadlines. 

The Government's announced it's giving people an extra four years to get unsafe buildings up to scratch. 

It's also bringing forward a review into earthquake-prone buildings. 

AUT construction expert John Tookey told Mike Hosking that four years or beyond kicks the issue into a future governmental cycle or two. 

He says this inevitably mixes politics with public safety considerations. 

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A former finance minister says there's nothing to celebrate in the latest inflation figures. 

Inflation has fallen to 4% in the year to March. 

That's well down on the 4.7% recorded in the year to December but above the Reserve Bank's forecast. 

Steven Joyce told Mike Hosking that non-tradable inflation —on things like rents and rates that don't face foreign competition— has only dropped slightly from 5.9% to 5.8%. 

He says that's troubling for the Reserve Bank and the economy, and points to 'stagflation'. 

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The Government says the latest pay offer to Police is the best it can do as the country is basically broke. 

Three quarters of officers have voted ‘NO’ and a decision now sits with an impartial arbitrator. 

The Police Association says it's 4% below what teachers have been offered, which is a slap in the face. 

Police Minister Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking that the package is a quarter-of-a-billion dollars better than the offer that went forward in August. 

He says for the first time they've been offered paid overtime, a lump sum payment of $1,500, and a 4% salary increase for three years. 

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New Zealand’s wool industry is getting a boost in front of an international audience. 

Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting the sector and outlining the Coalition Government’s support for revitalising it. 

Campaign for Wool Trustee Sandra Faulkner told Mike Hosking that it’s fantastic to have a minister who is publicly backing New Zealand farmers and what they produce. 

She said that with the focus on moving away from plastic products, it’s all about going back to the basics, getting out there, and celebrating the industry. 

Faulkner said that at the moment it’s a pretty competitive industry and some structures will need to be changed, and she holds hope that this Government will be able to do so. 

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You can ask a lot of questions about the TV3 deal with Stuff. 

Do Stuff know how to make television? How many people will they actually hire as opposed to re-purposing the staff they already have? Does the programme draw an audience? Will it look anything like what we are used to? 

Most importantly, does it solve a problem for TV, the media, and Warner Bros. Discovery? 

To a degree, none of that matters to us. We are viewers and if what they produce is worth watching, we will. If it isn't, we won't. 

It's important to remember, for all the noise the media has created about itself these past few weeks, TV3 news was never really been that successful, hence it cost more than it was worth. 

Will it now cost less and therefore be worth about what it costs? 

What Warner Bros. Discovery have done is what we do with lawns; we get someone else to do it. 

Small problem is if Jim's aren't up to much, we go get someone else. 

The media market is a bit tapped out in terms of suppliers, so you want to hope Stuff have the wherewithal to deliver. 

It's also worth remembering that what has been announced isn't new, or indeed revolutionary. This company sells news services to other operators and has done for years. Newshub makes the news bulletin for Sky TV each night at 5.30pm. It's simply the buying and selling of content. 

Depending on what you angsted over most depends a bit on whether this is a good deal. If all you wanted was a couple of 6 o'clock news shows on the TV, then that problem seems addressed. 

If you were worried about 300 people losing their job, that news might not be as good. 

What makes a deal like this work is synergies; people already doing related stuff, doing more of the same, except different. You write a story, it might end up online, it might end up on radio, it might end up on TV. This isn't new either. 

So, what we seem to have got is a shuffling of the chairs, except not as many chairs. 

It's better than what might have been but not better than what it was. 

It’s a cheaper version, it's scaled down, its different and it’s the new normal in an ever-changing landscape. As I said weeks ago at the start of all this, media has evolved as long as I have been in it. This is just another day and another iteration.   

But, as always, we wish the players well. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 17th of April, we got an economist's thoughts on what we can expect today from our inflation stats, and the former Newshub Head of News Mark Jennings took a look at the TV3/Stuff deal.

Speaking of money, the Reserve Bank is looking at digital wallets and e-commerce for New Zealand, is this our future?

Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell covered everything from the Waitangi Tribunal to boot camps for kids on Politics Wednesday.

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Labour and National are clashing over a potential mega-tunnel underneath Wellington. 

The government's looking at a tunnel connecting The Terrace and Kilbirnie, a distance of around 4km. 

It has been proposed to bring down travel times and reduce congestion on state highways. 

National's Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking that they're going through a business case and analysis. 

But Labour's Ginny Andersen, based in Lower Hutt, is sceptical about how it'll happen. 

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David Seymour is setting his sights on cutting back safety regulations in early childhood education centres. 

The Associate Education Minister's announced he will scrap requirements for the Education Ministry to sign-off on new centres being established. 

Also binned are changes which had been due to take effect in August, requiring people in supervisory roles to hold a full teaching practice certificate. 

Seymour told Mike Hosking that they’re committed to quality health and safety regulations for kids, but beyond that it’s up to those planning to start ECE centres to take the risk and make their business work. 

He said that it’s up to parents to decide where they want to send their children, and if they don’t send their kids somewhere, maybe they’re trying to tell the owner something. 

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The Reserve Bank's opened consultation on the possibility of a government-backed digital currency. 

The central bank is currently researching such an option. 

It would be used alongside physical cash. 

Director of Money and Cash Ian Woolford told Mike Hosking their view is that there's not enough innovation and efficiency in the financial system. 

He says they hope a central bank digital cash will spur this. 

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Inflation is expected to cool further today, but some predict it falling more than others. 

ANZ's expecting today's figures to show annual inflation dropping to 4%, down from the 4.7% it was in last year's final quarter. 

The forecast is above the Reserve Bank's February expectation of 3.8%. 

ANZ Economist Henry Russell told Mike Hosking that's a little low. 

He says there should be enough data in today's figures to show inflation is continuously coming down, but progress is coming more slowly than the Reserve Bank anticipated. 

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Newshub's former head of news believes it's a waiting game as to whether the salvaged TV bulletin will work. 

Stuff has signed on to produce and provide a daily bulletin on TV3 from July 6, following Newshub's closure. 

Mark Jennings told Mike Hosking it's better than nothing. 

But, he says, it's going to be up to the viewers what they make of this, adding they vote with their remotes, and we will know the verdict from July 6th. 

Jennings says although Stuff journalists are used to collecting video, uploading it to a website is different to packaging it for TV.

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Dozens of prospective jurors in the Donald Trump 'hush money' trial continue to be dismissed as they say they can't be fair. 

It's the second day of the trial, and jury selection continues. 

Trump's charged with falsifying business records over his alleged role in a hush money scheme before the 2016 election. 

He's pleaded not guilty. 

US correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking it's a tough jury selection. 

He says they've got nowhere, and more than half of those called said they couldn't be fair or impartial. 

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Northland businesses are telling Government to commit to a full expressway between Northland and Auckland. 

A NZIER report found a four-lane highway between Auckland and Whangārei would bring millions to the region's economy. 

Northland Corporate Group Co-Chair Andrew McLeod says the evidence for the benefits are clear. 

He told Mike Hosking that the Government just needs to make a decision now, because it's currently hurting Northland business. 

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The UK is walking a tightrope in their response to Iran’s attack on Israel. 

More than 300 projectiles were launched on Israel by Iran in retaliation for a strike on its consulate in Syria two weeks ago. 

UK Correspondent Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking that the attack on Israel has bolstered them amongst their allies, Britain among them. 

However, he said, PM Rishi Sunak is hampered by having David Cameron in the Foreign Office, who's beliefs are antithetical to most of what is wanted by Israel. 

Liddle said that Sunak will continue to say that they support Israel, but will be mediated by his Foreign Secretary who says that Israel should do nothing more to try get rid of Hamas. 

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The plans for the grand opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics could wind up changed. 

France is on high security alert ahead of the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, and instead of the 6km boat parade down the Seine, the opening ceremony could be shifted to the Stade de France. 

Europe Correspondent Catherine Field told Mike Hosking that it seems to have been pushed on by several events, notably the security alert surrounding the Champions League football game and just before that, the attack in Moscow. 

While plenty of people were shocked by this announcement, she said that it came as a real surprise to those running the Stade de France, who said they’d heard nothing about it. 

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Migration in and out of New Zealand is still at record levels. 

Provisional estimates for February show more than 253,000 migrants arrived and about 122,000 left, putting net migration at almost 131,000. 

Arrivals and departures are the highest on record, but net migration was down about 12 thousand from last November. 

Massey University Sociologist Paul Spoonley told Mike Hosking that the large number of Asian immigrants entering New Zealand will have an impact on the cultural make up of the country. 

He said that its primarily younger people coming over, so in 10 or 20 years we could be looking at a very different New Zealand. 

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The Waitangi Tribunal are at it again. 

This time it's with another of their “urgent reviews”. This particular one is into the approach the new Government is taking to Oranga Tamariki. 

Karen Chhour, who is the Minister for Oranga Tamariki, would be as invested and experienced in the matter as any politician before her. 

She is a child of the state who rose to Cabinet level and, as such, is driven by the desire to contribute and give back and is a powerful reminder that the state is not all bad when it comes to dealing with kids and that you can in fact, have a tough start and not have it hold you back. 

In broad terms, Chhour is not as convinced as some others that race should play quite the obsessive role it does. 

In other words, if a child of Māori persuasion is removed from a home and is then placed in another Māori home that is directly connected to the home that caused the trouble in the first place, is that serving the child in the best way possible? 

This is not a new debate of course. The “wider whanau” approach and angst has been raging for years. 

What I think we all agree on is that Oranga Tamariki and its previous iterations have not served many kids all that well. 

I personally hold the view that in many circumstances we expect too much of the agency. After all, they are a Government department, not a miracle worker. 

The people they deal with have as challenging a set of circumstances as you would ever want to see. 

The social worker's caseloads are too high, the dysfunction is too high, and the expectation that these issues get fixed like a magic trick is too high. 

But the Waitangi Tribunal add nothing by yet again launching what appears to be an ever-growing level of activism and producing reports that, to be frank, will most likely, and rightly, be ignored. 

They have no real power. 

The original part of their existence, which was historic claims, is largely over and the stragglers should have been given a deadline decades back and the whole thing should be out of business. 

But bereft of fresh historic grievance to wallow over, they have created a new work programme of interventionism, of which the Oranga Tamariki case is the latest example. 

Taking a child out of a mess of a house and putting them on a path to success is the key goal. 

The moment you overlay that objective with race, race and more race at all costs is partially why so little has been achieved for these kids. 

Karen Chhour wants to get on with it. 

The Tribunal revel in being the handbrake. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 16th of April, a former advisor for George W. Bush joined to dig into the beginning of Trump's 'hush money' trial, which is the first time in history a former president has faced a criminal trial.  

Finance Minister Nicola Willis filled in while the Prime Minister is overseas, and talked the CPI number, the public service sector, and whether Melissa Lee actually has any sort of plan for the media.

UK comedian and former doctor Adam Kay joined the program ahead of bringing his hit West End show to kiwi audiences for the NZ International Comedy Festival.

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Adam Kay has had an interesting career path. 

The UK comedian and bestselling author started off as a doctor, leaving after undiagnosed symptoms led to severe complications and a stillborn during one of his surgeries. 

He went on to writeThis is Going to Hurt,a book based on the diaries he wrote during his time as a doctor, which went on to sell more than five million copies worldwide. 

Kay has since turned the book into a comedy show which sold out on the West End, and was also turned into a miniseries. 

He’s bringing the comedy show to kiwi audiences as part of the NZ International Comedy Festival, taking to the stage on May 1st. 

Coming from a very normal background, fame has been interesting for Kay, telling Mike Hosking that it’s been weird to have people come up and ask for photos. 

“It’s quite weird that more people know me than I know people,” he said. 

“But I’m getting used to it and I’m just, I’m glad all these people have watched my shows, or read my books, or whatever and want to say hi.” 

Performing on stage has a different energy to selling books, the latter being quite abstract according to Kay. 

“You get an email from the publisher saying congratulations on this many copies, or it’s been published in this many languages, but going on stage, and you know, speaking, hopefully amusing people in their, in their thousands, it’s like nothing on earth.” 

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The continuing high migration figures are a surprise. 

February's net migration hit almost 131,000, with more than 253,000 migrants arriving, and about 122,000 heading offshore. 

JMI Wealth Director Andrew Kelleher told Mike Hosking that he's been expecting numbers to cool off, but this hasn't happened. 

He says lots of people are moving around as both sides of the net migration equation run at record levels.

Kelleher adds visitor numbers are positive, with the Chinese market the highest since January 2020. 

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The Finance Minister says there is no plan to "save" major media outlets in their current form. 

Newshub staff have been summoned to a meeting today about an "important business update", after learning last week that the news service will close with the loss of 300 jobs. 

TVNZ has also announced significant cuts including the end of its Fair Go and Sunday programmes. 

Nicola Willis told Mike Hosking that while Media Minister Melissa Lee is looking into the issue, she isn't working on a salvation plan. 

She says the Government isn't going to come in on a white horse and rescue the media industry. 

Willis says the challenges facing the media industry go right to the digitisation of the way people are receiving news. 

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A feeling of justice for many in Australia, following a ruling on ex Australian Liberal Party staffer Bruce Lehrmann. 

A judge has found it's likely Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins at Parliament House in 2019. 

It follows a defamation case against Channel Ten, which he lost. 

Australia Correspondent Lesley Yeomans told Mike Hosking that Lehrmann has claimed he's the victim who's been put through hell. 

But she says it's now clear Higgins is the victim. 

Yeomans says Higgins has been forced to move overseas to try to get away from all this. 

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There are hopes renters with pets will be better supported in the long run. 

The Government's bringing in changes to the Residential Tenancies Act to make it easier for pet-owning tenants to find rental housing. 

It includes paying an extra bond of two weeks rent to cover potential damage.  

Property Investors' Federation president Sue Harrison told Mike Hosking that the changes have to go through a Select Committee and won't be in place until the end of next year. 

She says it's a slow process, and this change alone isn't a game changer but more properties in the marketplace will be. 

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Donald Trump's trial has started in New York. 

It's the first time a US president has faced a criminal trial. 

Trump is charged with falsifying business records over his alleged role in a hush money scheme before the 2016 election. 

He's pleaded not guilty. 

The trial is one of four criminal cases he faces and may be the only one to face a jury before the election. 

Former adviser to George W Bush, Scott Jennings, told Mike Hosking that the chances of him being convicted in New York City are pretty high. 

But, he says, the issue itself is of low concern to Americans, the bigger issue would be if they get to trial for charges he faces about January 6. 

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The rules around opening the week with the Warriors is I do an editorial it’s a Warriors win. 

Did the Warriors win? No they did not. 

But was it as good as a win? Yes it was and that is why we are here. 

Glen Larmer, the commentator, at the end of the game said both sides will feel that they let it slip away. 

I don’t agree. 

I think we were losing for most of it. We weren't losing badly, but Manly, for the better part of the game, looked like the better side. 

We were under pressure and pressure sometimes makes diamonds, but on other days it makes Roger Tuivasa-Sheck drop the ball, which he did twice. 

Overall, and this is the best bit, it was as good as any game we've seen for a while and was played at a very high level by a couple of really high quality sides. 

The fact we were behind for most of it, especially the first part, gave rise to some level of concern given that at the very start we looked like we could get caned. 

The Manly tries were quality tries. They carved us up, they played at pace and they may well have been playing above themselves, given their place on the table. 

But the comeback eventually arrived, although it was too late. A try, which we got, would leave us two points short. 

The drop goal missed by a mile, so we lose. Except Shaun Johnson got his leg whacked and we got a life 

Penalty. Two points. A draw. Extra time. 

Could we have won? Yes. 

Could they have won? Yes. 

But in an odd way, the way it ended seemed fair. 

Manly should be gutted. For too much of the 80 minutes they were better than us and that is a lesson for the rest of the season. 

The competition is tight and if a side fires up we need to respond and if we don’t it will be Saturday night all over again. 

So, we got lucky. But sometimes when you are a pretty consistent, quality side you earn your luck. 

Which is why a draw is essentially a win. We more than likely could have got nothing, but we got a point and it's one of the best points we will get all year. 

Speaking of years, I'm still feeling good and still feeling confident. 

This is our year. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Monday the 15th of April, we talk to a retired U.S Army Lieutenant Colonel about Iran attacking Israel, the U.S being involved and how far this escalates.

We go to Sydney to get the latest on the Bondi Junction stabbing.

Mike reckons he's found some public service savings for the Government and it has to do with his breakfast radio competition.

On the Commentary Box, Guy Heveldt and Andrew Saville cover Ryan Fox at the Masters and all the great weekend of Super Rugby - plus that Warriors draw, that's as good as a win!

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Six people have been killed during a stabbing attack at a Sydney mall. Five of the victims were women, raising questions about the attacker’s motives. 

40-year old Queensland man Joel Cauchi has been identified as the attacker. He was shot dead by a police officer. 

9News Australia correspondent Charles Croucher tells Mike Hosking the killer was known to police but had no history of charges or intent towards an attack like this. 

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The cruise ship season is drawing to a close. It has been estimated to have brought in around $600 million to local economies. 

Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young tells Mike Hosking that with issues in the Red Sea, fewer ships are expected next season. 

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Trade Minister Todd McClay is in China this week to meet with the Minister of Commerce and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in hopes of strengthening relationships and promoting New Zealand businesses on the world stage. 

Former NZ trade negotiator and trade consultant partner at Saunders Unsworth Charles Finny tells Mike Hosking NZ’s relationship with China is good from a trade perspective, but more complex politically. 

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The war in the Middle East escalated over the weekend, with Iran launching an attack on Israel. 

US, UK and Jordanian forces helped Israel to take down incoming drones and missiles. 

Retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel and Foreign Affairs analyst with Think Tank Defence Priorities Daniel L Davis tells Mike Hosking that “everything depends on what Israel does next”. 

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In another New Zealand business success story, OI Organic Initiative has made it big selling period products in the US. In just five months, the company has made it to number two out of more than 10 companies in that specific market. 

OI CEO Clare Morgan tells Mike Hosking the company has been in the US market since 2018 but refocused in 2022 by launching into the natural channel. 

The natural aspect has given the brand an advantage with product certified to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). 

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The Government has had a pretty good week.

The nine public service targets make sense. They give us a purpose and an idea of direction and, importantly, they come with markers and reports that tell us where we are.

The truancy plan is more common sense. I'm not convinced it's quite the answer, all the lights and fines. But an increased focus on what is a shameful embarrassment and crisis needs all the help it can get.

Winston Peters has had a good week. Say whatever you want about Nazi Germany or the Ku Klux Klan clan, when Peters is on the world stage he is a solid, if not a class ac. He represents us well, is connected, serious and reminds us what a monumental load of nonsense Nanaia Mahuta and her appointment was.

Probably most importantly in the big picture is the advisory group for fast tracking infrastructure.

These are not household names but names from business who will help the Government potentially pull off one of the most critical jobs they have - getting this country moving through actually getting major stuff done.

Fast tracking is the only answer, in terms of infrastructure, to a process that virtually everyone agrees has become captured, and by being captured, has failed us all.

The usual hand wringers worried about the power of ministers to make too bold a decision. There's not enough consultation and democracy, they said. These are the very people who should look at themselves long and hard in the mirror and realise it is their obsession with stalling everything through courts and lawyers and tribunals and protests that has led to so little actually getting done and us being, as a country, in the precarious state we are.

Also this week was the Prime Minister's unrelenting message around getting this place off its knees.

The greatest lesson of all over the past six years is just how easy it has been to lose momentum and to watch laziness and procrastination and excuse fill the void. Once true leadership got replaced with vacuous thought bubbles and nonsensical virtue signalling.

Trust, success, dedication and runs on the board are hard to get and easy to lose.

So the battle is on. We need more weeks like this, more decisions like this and more attitude like this.

This week gives me real hope.

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Forget switching on the TV, this weekend TikTok will have your rugby fix. 

The Women’s Super Rugby Aupiki Final is kicking off this Saturday and due to a partnership between 2Degrees, Sky, and Tiktok, the social media app will be broadcasting it live. 

The game between the Blues and Chiefs Manawa will be shot vertically by Sky and have its own presenters and commentary team. 

Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, one of the commentators for the game, told Mike Hosking that it’s set up an amazing opportunity for rugby and women’s rugby to be accessible across not only New Zealand, but the entire world. 

She said that if they can get the big dogs doing this sort of stuff, it will be an amazing development for the sport. 

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With all the issues stemming from online learning, research has found a benefit. 

Charles Darwin University has found that online learning can increase a student’s short and long-term memory by improving their cognitive capability. 

They surveyed 482 students studying an accountancy degree between 2020 and 2021, and found students faced difficulties learning, overwhelming students and increasing their cognitive load. 

Dr Nina Hood, founder of the Education Hub, told Mike Hosking that the situation isn’t cut and dry, and there are a few reasons to be sceptical about this study. 

She said that while there definitely are benefits to online learning, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll be the same quality as in person learning, and it also depends on the subject being taught. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 12th of April we looked at Winston Peter's bi-lateral meeting with the U.S' Anthony Blinken and got a university professor’s opinion on what we should do with puberty blockers following the UK’s report. 

How well have the Government performed this week? What about the media? Mike marked the week. 

Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson wrapped the week and tried to stop Mike from telling stories he shouldn't. 

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Tim Wilson and Kate Hawkesby are back to help Mike Hosking wrap the week that was and stop him from telling stories he shouldn’t. 

They cover Tim’s holiday in Nelson, The Country’s 30thanniversary, Scrabble going ‘woke’ and the popularity of Vampire Weekend. 

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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. 

The eclipse: 8/10 

For no other reason than it seems to get people fizzing …despite the fact i cant for the life of me work out why you would travel miles and spend thousands to do it 

The Climate Commission: 4/10 

Worthy but wacky, we will not be banning petrol cars by 2040. Saying weird stuff doesn’t help, but watch them as 2050 gets closer. 

The media: 2/10 

Tough week. 

Job losses: 4/10 

No fun for anyone but it's what you get when a previous Government spends what they don’t have and creates jobs that don’t really exist. 

Winston Peters: 6/10 

Looks good on the international stage. He looks experienced and serious, which is a different league to our last representative. 

Immigration: 7/10 

Not a moment too soon. No one loves more people than me, but they've got to be the right people who can do more than just cook stir fry or make flat whites. 

Britain's transgender report: 8/10 

Hopefully the turning of a dangerously progressive tide where madness and vibes trump common sense and facts and, ultimately, cause untold damage. 

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The Housing Minister says new tenancy changes will ensure there's a better balance between landlords and tenants. 

A bill that’s being introduced to Parliament next month will make it easier for landlords to evict tenants. 

Changes include re-instating 90-day no-cause terminations —removed by Labour last term— and requiring just 42 days notice when a landlord wants to move into their property. 

Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking that Labour's 'war on landlords' has ended. 

He says landlords aren't the enemy, and sensible laws are needed to balance the rights of landlords and tenants. 

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The Ministry of Health is expected to release an evidence brief on the use of puberty blockers in treating gender dysphoria. 

The UK has banned the prescription of the hormone medication, which delays the onset of puberty, to children. 

Weak evidence has yet been found for their use, with uncertainty about the potential psychological effects. 

UOA Professor Dr Paul Hofman told Mike Hosking that the blockers reduce self-harm and suicidal ideation in some patients. 

But he says there's hasn't been any strong follow up studies looking at quality of life and the impacts, nor any issues around safety. 

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New Zealand's decision to strengthen its ties with the United States won't be without risk. 

Foreign Minister Winston Peters and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken have recommitted to our bilateral relationship, during a meeting in Washington DC. 

They've issued a joint statement saying New Zealand and the US will work more closely with each other and key allies like Australia, including around defence and intelligence. 

Otago University international relations expert Robert Patman told Mike Hosking that could affect our relationship with both China, and our Pacific neighbours. 

He says China will be looking at the joint statement with concern, and Pacific countries don't see themselves as pawns in a strategic game. 

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The 1995 murder trial of OJ Simpson was so gripping, it divided a nation. 

Simpson has died from prostate cancer surrounded by family aged 76. 

The former NFL star and actor was cleared by a Los Angeles jury in what the media called the trial of the century. 

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that he was represented by a group called the “dream team”. 

He says it was made up of DNA experts and Robert Kardashian, who became famous for his Simpson connection, and later his children for their reality TV show. 

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Has it been, and its only Thursday, a bit of a come to Jesus week for this country? 

Ola are leaving, they’ve been here five years, and they clearly can’t make it work, gone. 

Kate Sylvester, a doyenne of her industry, announced she is done. Done in an industry not so many years ago we sort of got fizzy about each year at fashion week, as no shortage or names like Trelise, and Karen, and Adrian, and Kate lined up their wares to the queue of overseas buyers who flocked to the country to wax lyrical about our creativity. 

Newshub finally confirmed they are closing, so we are down to one television version of a news bulletin. 

We could of course talk about all the downsizing, but at least with downsizing there is room to grow another day, as opposed to the lights getting turned out as the last one leaves. 

Which brings us to the question: is this the new us? 

We have had the debate in airlines. Essentially, we aren't big enough for two of them, so we have about one and a half, and moan a lot about them. 

We are clearly not big enough for two television news channels and is it important to have a local fashion industry, it is? Or does any old tat in from Vietnam suffice? Do we care? 

Spada, the people who make television shows, called yesterday after the Newshub news for the Government to save local production. 

Is a local tv show any more important than a local frock? 

How much of this is a nice to have versus something of cultural or patriotic significance? 

And how much of what we are seeing is economic? In other words, if we weren't in the mess we are, these places would be fine. 

The television side is simple: not enough people watched. So that’s on them and us, and Meta came along and nicked the money because we like short videos. 

We clearly like H&M more than Kate’s stuff, so that’s life, isn't it? Or is it? 

The French are very good at the patriotic equation, they protect a lot of their local production. But do we want to be like the French? 

Does every job have to be taxpayer supported? Is that what we are down to? 

How much weight do we place on the simple economic truth that if you make or produce something of value you will be fine. If you don’t? Well, that’s life. 

And for all those closing, what about those who aren't? How come they make it work while others don’t? 

Is there not a lesson in that for us all? 

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How good are you at dealing with your anger? 

Japanese scientists have proven that writing angry notes and shredding them up can make you feel better. 

Nagoya University found that out of two groups of students, those who binned or shredded their paper were in a calmer state than those who didn’t. 

Psychologist Gary Hermansson told Mike Hosking that the findings are in line with the standard beliefs about moving on and the rituals used to do so. 

He said that it fits with the idea that if we hold on to emotions, they can become a reminder or a trigger for that emotional reaction. 

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The Reserve Bank has left the Official Cash Rate where it was as inflation remains higher than target levels. 

The OCR remains on hold at 5.5%. 

Michael Reddell, a former Reserve Bank economist, told Mike Hosking that there’s pretty good reason to think inflation will be coming down pretty sharply this year. 

He said that the Reserve Bank itself said they expect to be within the 1-3% range this year, they just want to be certain before making any cuts. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 11th of April, Paddy Gower joined us to talk the closure of Newshub, and Broadcasting Minister Melissa Lee dug into the the future of the media industry.

"Get stuffed" got a number of people riled up.

David Dastmalchian of Dune, Oppenheimer, and superhero flicks fame popped in to talk his new film Late Night with the Devil.

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Well known for his roles in some of the biggest films of the last decade, David Dastmalchian is a familiar face on the screen. 

Dune Part One, Oppenheimer, The Dark Knight, and Bird Box are just some of the films on his filmography, not to mention his involvement in superhero films The Suicide Squad and Ant-Man. 

His latest work isLate Night with the Devil,a film he’s not only starring in but produced as well, with a rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Growing up in Kansas, Dastmalchian was quite the talented American football player, and whilst he loved theatre he was expecting his university experience to start feature college football, until a teacher convinced him otherwise. 

“She said, 'David, you have something special,'” he recounted to Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking. 

She told him to at least try auditioning for a training program at an acting conservatory, to which he was not only accepted, but was granted a full scholarship. 

“It completely changed my life.” 

Dastmalchian is used to playing the antagonist; bad guys, villains, henchmen, and psychopaths, and was initially unsure that he could pull off the leading role inLate Night with the Devil. 

He fell in love with the story in the initial reading of the script, but the first thing he said to directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes was that they had the wrong guy. 

“There’s no way that me, David Dastmalchian, could be compelling, or, or captivating, or even convincing as a late-night talk show. That’s just not wheelhouse.” 

The Cairnes convinced him to give it a shot, so despite his fears he packed up and shot the film. 

“I’m so proud of myself,” he told Hosking. 

“That might sound like a dumb thing to say, but I’m proud I overcame my fear to go do this film because I’m really proud of this movie and I’m really happy that I made it.” 

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Mounting pressure on the Broadcasting Minister to act as turmoil wages on the media industry.

Newshub has confirmed that it’s closing on July 5th, while TVNZ is cutting four of its major programmes. 

Melissa Lee says yesterday was a shocking day for media, and she feels for the people who are losing their jobs. 

She told Mike Hosking that the Broadcasting Act was designed well before the internet and doesn't account for how news consumption has changed. 

Lee says news is 24/7 but regulations haven't kept up with modern technology, so they need to be brought up to speed. 

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Ikea is promising a beautiful vision as it enters the New Zealand market. 

The Swedish furniture giant is looking for a "people and culture manager" who will oversee the hiring of 400 staff for its store at Auckland's Sylvia Park. 

Construction is underway at the megastore, which will be opened at the end of next year. 

Ikea New Zealand market manager Johanna Cederlöf told Mike Hosking they want to create better everyday lives, and not just through their products. 

She says this also extends to their partners, the wider community, and all store workers. 

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Paddy Gower has slammed “keyboard warriors” claiming the media is getting what it deserves for going “woke” amid mass job losses.  

TV3 journalist and TV host Patrick Gower spoke to Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking this morning following yesterday’s Newshub meeting where the closure of Newshub was confirmed. 

Hosking asked Gower what he would say to those who say “you go woke, you go broke” and claim the media was bribed by the former Labour government. 

“Get stuffed, and actually go away and, to use the term they use, do your own research,” Gower fired back. 

Gower agreed the Public Interest Journalism fund had “branding issues” for media organisations because the public didn’t understand where the money was going. 

“But at the end of the day, I’m not going to sit here and listen to sort of people like that say that kind of thing after I’ve slaved away my bloody life alongside my colleagues, 25 years in my case, putting damn good news out there. 

“While we’ve got a trust problem, we need to address it and explain things that we’re doing properly. 

“When it comes to the sort of Facebook keyboard warriors, I ain’t got no time for that, Mike. 

“I’m about the 250 people who lost a job yesterday and actually the millions of other Kiwis that I know that trust me and trust my colleagues.” 

Patrick Gower and colleagues on their way to learn Newshub's fate. Photo / Alex Burton 

Gower told Hosking he didn’t know how many of the up to 300 people losing their jobs would remain in media. 

“Who knows? 

“I mean, even for myself, I’ve got no bloody idea what I’ll do next.” 

Gower said he hoped a lot of his colleagues would remain in the field, but recognised it was a difficult time for the industry in New Zealand. 

“It’s that simple, mate, not everybody can survive. 

“But we’ve got to be optimistic, we can’t kind of give in. 

“I can say for myself, I’m determined to get back out there.” 

Hosking asked Gower how many of the employees likely saw the closure coming. 

“It was always a possibility when we came in under the big company, particularly Warner Brothers Discovery when they’d merged ... some sort of shutdown was always possible. 

“I’ve survived a couple myself in the last 14 years or we’ve been very, very close. 

“So it was always on the cards.” 

The state of the economy and the recession have had a huge impact on the media industry, Gower admitted. 

“We often talk about the big structural problems that are behind all of this, but, hey, let’s face it, the economy has absolutely tanked, every single dollar virtually has dropped out of the advertising market. 

“People are really struggling, [advertising] is the first thing that goes when a business is struggling, everybody knows that. 

“That has just put insane pressure on all media companies.” 

Gower said he hadn’t seen “anything” broadcasting minister Melissa Lee had done so far for the industry. 

“I haven’t seen anything they’ve done, but at the same time, the media doesn’t need a bailout. 

“So if anyone’s talking about some sort of cash bailout, we don’t need that. 

“The media does need to be able to survive commercially. There are ways that we can do that.” 

Gower said there are issues that both Governments, current and former, have not addressed that could have helped the media. 

“There are massive structural problems out there that I just don’t think the Government’s got their head around. 

“Paying these Kordia fees, television companies, paying fees to another government organisation for something that we don’t really need anymore is just plain nuts. 

“It is crazy, that is literally jobs going out the door every time they pay those fees.” 

Gower confirmed his show Paddy Gower Has Issues was not funded by NZ on Air, so wouldn’t be funded by TV3′s new model. 

“There’s got to be other ways to do television programmes ... we’ve got to find commercially successful ways of doing this stuff. Stuff where things get paid for by viewers again. We’ve got to find a way back to that.” 

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Big changes could be in store for the way we do the Census. 

Stats NZ says the Census is becoming more expensive and difficult to conduct. 

It's signalling a new direction for 2028. 

Statistics Minister Andrew Bayley told Mike Hosking that the agency could move away from boots on the ground data collection, instead doing smaller surveys and using pre-existing data. 

He says the Census is essential, but changes are needed. 

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In a first case of its kind, the parents of a US school shooter have been sentenced over their child's attack. 

Ethan Crumbley killed four students when he opened fire at a Michigan high school in 2021 and was sentenced to life without parole. 

His parents James and Jennifer Crumbley were found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for their failure to secure the gun used in the shooting and have been sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison respectively. 

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that the case was intensely emotional. 

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Productivity is dipping, remaining below pre-pandemic levels. 

Data from Xero shows that in the three years prior to the pandemic productivity sat at around the $100-$110/hour mark, but it fell again in December of last year to $99.30/hour. 

The figure is based on data from 240,000 small businesses and is calculated by comparing a business’ sales with the total hours worked. 

Xero Country Manager Bridget Snelling told Mike Hosking that New Zealand currently sits in 30thout of the 38 countries in the OECD’s most recent productivity rankings. 

She said that while we want New Zealand to be competing on the world stage in terms of being an advanced digital economy, we’re just not there. 

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Food companies may be misleading consumers into believing products are vegetarian. 

The Vegetarian Society's urging consumers to look for vegetarian approved and vegan certified trademarks. 

Marketing manager Ina Babic told Mike Hosking that this could be a case of greenwashing. 

She says they've been seeing a lot of products on the market claiming to be plant-based, but there's no law at the moment ensuring those claims are actually true. 

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I listened to Rod Carr yesterday, post the release of his Climate Commission's advice to the Government 2036-2040. 

He is unfailingly polite. When it was put to him that the Government, who have launched their own inquiry into methane might be cutting across his work, he was having none of it, despite the fact that is exactly what the Government are doing. 

Every time I have asked him whether he gets sick of Governments ignoring or amending what he advises, his answer is always the same. He says they are set up to give the best knowledge currently available and it's up to the Government of the day to do what they will with it. 

It’s a weird old business, mainly because I couldn’t do a job where I knew what I was saying was going to get messed about with for political reasons or ignored. 

Anyway, he made two critical points. The first is that if we miss our target, which we may well do, we can get there by buying our way out of it. Like the carbon credit market for business, we will simply purchase credits from someone else who has done better than us. 

That's a big unknown as we speak because we don’t know if we won't make it. We most likely won't, but how far short will we be and what it will cost to buy credits to solve the problem, and from who? But it will be billions. 

The second and bigger point is there is no one to pay the penalty to. In other words, we signed an agreement but there is no head office and no one to write the cheque to. 

All that happens is we are in breach of an international agreement. If a lot of other people are in breach, and my bet is they will be, then no one will care. 

If we stand alone globally as the only country that didn’t make it, then we are a pariah of sorts. 

Rod made the point that we like international agreements because they are what makes the world go round, we sign a lot of them, and it allows us to do things like trade. 

But it brings us back to a cold, hard reality. We can almost certainly state many countries won't make it; therefore, we won't save the world. 

Should that be a reason for us not to try. I'd say no. I'd say let's do what we can. 

But that’s your next reality. The Commission advice is bordering now on nutty. No petrol cars to be imported is now a real policy. 

A renewable energy base that we don’t stand a hope in hell of achieving, given we can't build a thing in this country to budget or time and no one wants a wind farm in their backyard? That's not a real policy. 

The advantage of this is as we draw closer to 2050 the advice will get weirder, and the outcomes will become clearer. In other words, they will be increasingly obvious as to how undoable they all are. 

Then what? That’s your next big question 

And how alarmist do the ideologues become before their heads explode. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 10th of April, we previewed the RBNZ cash rate announcement coming later today, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis joined to discuss the public sector job cuts.

The morning was filled with the guests, and Mike, coming up with wacky similes for the issues facing the country.

Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell called in for Politics Wednesday for a chat about MP's pay and whether they think the Government's plan for truancy will work.

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Politicians could be seeing a pay rise. 

The Remuneration Authority is considering whether it’s time to bump their salaries, for the first time in six and a half years. 

National’s Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking that for most, money isn’t the driving factor in choosing to enter politics. 

He said that when he took a pay cut when he entered politics but did so because he wanted to be back in the service of his country. 

Labour’s Ginny Andersen agreed. 

She said that while not everybody would've taken a pay cut, as some got an increase when they became an MP, if you’re wanting a financially successful job, politics isn’t that. 

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Economists don't expect the Official Cash Rate to be cut today, but they do expect it to be cut this year. 

The Reserve Bank is reviewing the cash rate at 2pm today.

It's remained unchanged at 5.5% since May last year, up from a record low 0.25% in August 2021.

ASB’s Chief Economist Nick Tuffley told Mike Hosking that they see a cut coming in November. 

He said that by that point, there’s been three quarters worth of data surrounding inflation, wages, and unemployment, so a cut is more likely. 

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Associate Minister David Seymour's perspective on dealing with school attendance has found some support from a leader in secondary education. 

The Government's announced a list of initiatives to address what it's calling a truancy crisis, including illness guidelines and attendance data monitoring and publishing. 

Secondary Principals' Association President Vaughan Couillault told Mike Hosking that the issue isn't due to school being boring, but is more systemic, and it's good to see this recognised by the Minister and Prime Minister. 

He says they acknowledge attendance is complicated and there are social and economic issues that contribute. 

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Nicola Willis says job losses in the public sector aren't the end of the world. 

Her comments come as agencies and departments announce cost savings measures, including slashing jobs. 

The Finance Minister told Mike Hosking that there's too much focus on job cuts in the public service. 

She claims journalists in Wellington who flat with public servants are partly to blame for a high level of coverage. 

She also concedes that some public sector agencies may not reach their cost cutting targets. 

But, Willis told Hosking, she's confident that overall the Government will still receive the full savings. 

She says it's because in some cases agencies have been able to exceed expectations. 

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Both money and staffing issues appear to be behind a new surgical centre sitting empty at Auckland's North Shore Hospital. 

It was originally set to open this month but is now slated to begin a phased opening from mid-year. 

Health NZ says when it took over it was unclear if it'd be ready, so they opted to continuing delivering planned care elsewhere to ensure they meet targets. 

Nurses' Society National Director David Wills told Mike Hosking that the change in government hasn't helped in securing funding. 

He says you obviously have to have the money finalised in order to be able to then commission and recruit. 

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One of the key questions out of the annual Trust in News survey is, did Covid kill trust in New Zealand's media? 

There are several notable numbers and trends and also a couple of problems. 

What is trust, is another question. Your trust is not my trust and what you use to form trust is not covered in this. 

For example, Newstalk ZB is a mix of news and commentary. Do you trust the news and not the commentary? Or both? Or the opposite? Does the fact Radio New Zealand fell mean you listened to Jim Mora once too often, or they don’t provide a straight bat in their bulletins anymore? 

Does the fact Simon Dallow opens the 6pm news with what seems like an increasingly long Māori version of "good evening" affect your outlook on the bulletin that follows? 

The upshot is that in the last handful of years our trust in news in this country has plummeted, and badly. 

In 2020 it was 53%, now it is 33%. 

Where did the trust go? And does the collapse in trust get sheeted back to Covid, the one o'clock lectures from the pulpit of truth and the Government's millions to newsrooms to help them through the period? 

The biggest individual falls year on year are with TVNZ and Newshub? 

Not far behind was Radio New Zealand. For what it's worth, as a punter, this feels like my story because my trust is way down. I can also argue, to a degree given I work in the trade, that I have a bit of insight and there is not a shadow of a doubt in my mind that the media and wider New Zealand do not, and have not, connected particularly well for a number of years. 

In my professional opinion gleaned over four decades and counting, it's largely because social media has given a smallish group licence to go nuts with conspiracies, it's because a lot of journalists are very young and very inexperienced with next to no institutional knowledge and as a result they parrot press releases as opposed to asking questions, and it's because they also tend to be left-leaners who were more than open to the Ardern leadership of the day, which they fell for hook, line and sinker. 

And so, the rot began. 

In other words, they have dug their own grave. 

Here's the sad bit - these stats come at a time when bits of the media are on their knees. That, in part, explains why the TVNZ open letter petition at last glance got 12,100 signatures, which hardly a cavalcade of support for what those trying to save their jobs would argue is vital work that we will sorely miss when it's gone. 

My question - will we? 

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The French GDP has taken a bit of a hit. 

The country’s annualised debt for the year is sitting at 5.5%, higher than the 4.9% they were aiming for. 

France Correspondent Catherine Field told Mike Hosking that the French Finance Minister has started to tell the country that they have to save around €10 billion, approximately $18 billion NZD. 

GDP growth is now predicted to only be around 1%, she said, and people are not feeling very confident about the economy. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 9th of April, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined to dig into the Government's new targets for health, crime, education, and the Jobseeker benefit.

Mike took a look at the latest trust in media survey, and it doesn't paint a pretty picture.

Kiwi singer Greg Johnson popped into the studio to talk about the success of his New Zealand tour and give a special live performance.

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Growth rates for the country's construction costs are the lowest in almost eight years. 

The quarterly Cordell Construction Cost Index is a division of CoreLogic. 

The latest results report an annual growth of 2.3%, down from the 10.4% peak recorded in Q4 2022. 

Chief property economist Kelvin Davidson says although there's still pressure on the sector, the normalised supply chains make pricing easier. 

He told Mike Hosking that it’s not necessarily getting cheaper, the rate of growth is just slowing so those hoping new builds will get cheaper might be slightly disappointed. 

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Winston Peters' has been praised for starting his speech at the UN by condemning Hamas. 

The Foreign Affairs Minister used his speech at the General Assembly to reiterate New Zealand's call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as well as a two-state solution. 

He expressed grave concerns for any Israeli military offensive but also called for Hamas to release the remaining hostages. 

Geopolitical analyst Geoffrey Miller told Mike Hosking that around 134 hostages are still unaccounted for in Gaza. 

He says Israel estimates around 100 are probably alive and it's important to remember this is how this crisis all started. 

However, Peters may have lost an opportunity. 

He also called out the UN Security Council for failing to act decisively due to some members' repeated use of the veto. 

But Miller said that he wasn't willing to talk firmly about the US repeated vetoes. 

He says we're trying to align our foreign policy with the US in other ways, but the US has huge leverage over Israel through its weapon supplies. 

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Kiwi singer-songwriter Greg Johnson's been back in New Zealand with his 1000 Miles Tour, bringing his latest album to kiwi audiences.

Johnson is based out in LA for the most part, and joined Mike Hosking for a chat about what it's like to be back in New Zealand, the influences living in America has had on his music, and even gave a special performance.

"It's sort of a cliché, I guess, but it's, it is my heart, I guess, you know, and, and soul to a large degree."

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A push for clarity around the effects of New Zealand's soon to be updated climate goals. 

The Climate Commission has released a draft emissions budget, which recommends limiting greenhouse gas by 134-million tonnes between 2036 and 2040. 

Federated Farmers President Wayne Langford told Mike Hosking that at the moment they're just numbers, without much economic modelling around them. 

He says it's needed so people know that if we get rid of petrol cars what this is going to look like and how the economy is shaped up to handle this. 

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Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says the public service has responded “fairly well” to the new government. 

Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking asked him this morning whether officials were giving the Government some “pushback” - pointing to changes to disability support funding and a proposal to shutter the Suicide Prevention Office, both of which appeared to blindside government ministers. 

Luxon said ministers had been inadequately briefed but it had been cleared up. 

He said to be fair to the public service, they had been “very poorly led” for the past six years. 

”Then they go off and do stuff, and often they do the wrong things because they get busy and they do lots of things but the things don’t add up. 

”That was the reason for bringing in the nine public service targets - because they were things that mattered to him, and to Kiwis - such as healthcare and education. 

”The bit that I can control is I’ve got to make sure that my ministers are being crystal clear about their priorities with those agencies.” 

Luxon said job layoffs, where many people would be getting voluntary redundancy, were a “perfectly reasonable approach” for CEOs to find the savings the Government is asking for. 

Luxon yesterday announced nine new public service targets that the Coalition Government has set. 

Surgery wait times, student achievement, less crime and big reductions in welfare and emergency housing numbers are all part of Luxon’s new public service targets to be delivered by 2030. 

The Prime Minister released them yesterday during his post-Cabinet press conference, saying they will require the public sector to think differently and do deep dives into the root causes of key issues. 

“These targets are not going to be easy to achieve,” Luxon said yesterday. 

“But we’re not here to do what is easy - we’re here to do what is needed to reduce crime, shorten healthcare wait times and improve educational achievement, no matter how difficult.” 

The nine targets are: 

-Shorter stays in emergency departments: 95 per cent of patients to be admitted, discharged, or transferred from an emergency department within six hours. This was almost at target level in early 2015, when 93 per cent patients were seen within six hours. 

-Shorter wait times for (elective) treatment: 95 per cent of people wait less than four months for elective treatment. This was at target target level in 2015 and 2016. 

-Reduced child and youth offending: 15 per cent reduction in the total number of children and young people with serious and persistent offending behaviour. This would see the number fall from its current level of about 1100 to about 900 children and young people. 

-Reduced violent crime: 20,000 fewer people who are victims of an assault, robbery, or sexual assault. This will be measured in the New Zealand Crime and Victims’ Survey, and would be an 11 per cent drop from 2023 levels. 

-Fewer people on the Jobseeker Support Benefit: 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support Benefit. This would see the number fall by more than a quarter, from about 190,000 in December last year. 

-Increased student attendance: 80 per cent of students are present for more than 90 per cent of the term. This coincides with the Government releasing its plan to reduce truancy, expected later this week. 

-More students at expected curriculum levels: 80 per cent of Year 8 students at or above the expected curriculum level for their age in reading, writing and maths by December 2030. Only one cohort is at the target levels, which currently are: maths (82 per cent in Year 4 and 42 per cent in Year 8), writing (63 per cent and 35 per cent) and reading (63 per cent and 56 per cent). 

-Fewer people in emergency housing: 75 per cent reduction of households in emergency housing. This would reduce the number of households using emergency housing to early 2018 levels. The number had ballooned in December 2023 to 3100 households and 3186 children in emergency housing; 60 per cent had been there for over 12 weeks. 

-Reduced net greenhouse gas emissions: On track to meet New Zealand’s 2050 net zero climate change targets, with total net emissions of no more than 290 megatonnes from 2022 to 2025 and 305 megatonnes from 2026 to 2030. 

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon speaks to media at the weekly post-Cabinet press conference at Parliament in Wellington. April 8, 2024. Photo / Mark Mitchell 

Luxon said he had scrapped former PM Jacinda Ardern’s Implementation Unit in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, and would instead set up a delivery unit, which would keep a tight eye on the nine goals. That would include assessing whether various programmes were actually working, and pulling the pin on them if they were not. 

He referenced comments about his CEO approach to the Prime Minister’s job: “I make no apologies for that, because it hasn’t worked for us having the career politicians for the last six years.” 

Asked where those who would no longer be in emergency housing would go, Luxon said yesterday there would be an increase in state and social housing, while increasing the supply of housing in general. 

The targets come as the Government looks to find 6.5 to 7.5 per cent savings across government agencies and departments, a move that critics say will have downstream impacts on frontline services despite what Luxon has said about those being protected. 

PM’s Asia visit and public sector job cuts 

Luxon also announced yesterday that he will travel to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines next week, along with a senior business delegation, Minister of Climate Change and Revenue Simon Watts, and Paulo Garcia, New Zealand’s first Filipino Member of Parliament. 

This trip was undoubtedly in mind when Luxon released his quarterly action plan last week, which included an item to “raise the energy” with respect to international engagements including in South East Asia. 

His visit to Thailand will be the first dedicated visit by a New Zealand Prime Minister since 2013, while the visit to the Philippines will be the first in 14 years. 

“South East Asia is a region that is more crucial than ever to our prosperity and our security. I look forward to meeting my counterparts and seeing firsthand what more we can do to deepen our relationships,” Luxon said. 

Luxon said 10 per cent of New Zealand exports went to SE Asia, valued at $9.1b, and the region’s economy was increasing faster than just about anywhere in the world. 

This week MPs return to Parliament after a one week recess to begin an unusual one week sitting block. It is the first sitting block since the Government announced its first quarterly plan last week, meaning we should see some legislation introduced to deliver on those plans. 

Cabinet meetings are expected to be contentious this month, as ministers finalise the Budget due for delivery in May. Luxon is meant is likely to face questions on what is in the Budget and the extent to which public sector cuts are needed to pay for his tax plan. 

Yeterday, the Ministry for the Environment became the latest department to announce cost-saving measures. 

Staff were told redundancies are “likely” as agencies rush to fund savings, which the Government hopes to turn into a saving of $1.5 billion a year.  

Agencies are tasked with finding savings between 6.5 and 7.5 per cent to trim off their budgets, which, at numerous ministries, is resulting in proposals putting jobs on the line. The Environment Ministry needs to slash 7.5 per cent from certain lines of funding, with final sign-off to be made by the Government in relation to the upcoming Budget next month. 

A voluntary redundancy scheme has opened at the Ministry, with no set target for uptake. 

Luxon is also likely to give his view on immigration changes announced over the weekend. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford made immediate changes to the Accredited Employer Worker Visa, to respond to what the Government called unsustainable levels of inward migration.  

In 2023, a near-record 173,000 non-New Zealand citizens migrated to the country. 

The changes to the work visa scheme include introducing an English-language requirement for migrants applying for low-skilled jobs. 

Stanford said the changes focus on using the local labour market first, while still attracting high-skilled migrants where there are skill shortages. 

“Getting our immigration settings right is critical to this Government’s plan to rebuild the economy,” she said on Sunday in a statement. 

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The Government's goal to reduce the almost 190,000 Kiwis on the jobseeker benefit is finding support. 

Christopher Luxon's unveiled nine Government targets for delivery by 2030. 

One is having 50,000 fewer people on the Jobseeker Support Benefit. 

Former WINZ boss Christine Rankin told Mike Hosking that it can be done way under that timeframe. 

She says the Government understands leadership and that you have to tell people what you want them to do, and that's what they're doing. 

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The cathedral in Christchurch is what happens when you get bogged down in procrastination. 

Of all the good Christchurch has done, and there is so much to be proud of, there remains well over a dozen years later some glaring holes, probably the biggest of which is smack in the middle of town. 

A simple question to start - if we hadn't waited 12-plus years to not make a decision, would the bill be what it is today? 

No. 

Another question - is all the angst and upset and fighting and bitching worth the end result, which so far is nothing? 

No. 

So, what have we achieved? We have worn ourselves out with arguing and lawyers and protest and back and forward, and how much further on are we here in 2024? Not much. 

So, what has been the point? My sense of it was it was always going to be a slightly contentious sort of debate. Religion, money and a city all mangled up in an argument was fraught. 

But I never in my wildest dreams thought we would take so long to do so little. 

There is no excuse. It's everything that happens when you get a committee involved. You become paralysed. 

Three options always gave you the predictable road to nowhere; rebuild it new and different, build something a bit new and a bit like the old one, or do it right and build what got damaged. 

That, of course, was the correct thing to do. But in this day and age, with associated lack of labour and skills and money, going to get done. 

As we sit here now with the story of a mothballing I think most of us would accept anything is better than a 12-year scrap that led no place. 

One argument, and I am increasingly heading towards it, is flag it. 

Christchurch is big enough, new enough, bold enough and vibrant enough not to need a cathedral in the centre of it. 

It’s a nice nod to history and its origins, but if the guardians can't get out of their own way then flag it and move on. 

And in 100 years no one will know the difference, nor will they care. 

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In 2023, almost 60 percent of cases reported to police were abandoned. 

In total, police received 962,521 emergency calls and reports – 572,037 were abandoned and nearly 180,000 were closed without any investigation at all. 

Police Minister Mark Mitchell tells Mike Hosking the numbers reflect the growing demand for police support and services but that a lot of what is reported is not actually deemed as police work. 

Mitchell says police should be focused on their core role. 

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Costs from grocery suppliers to supermarkets slowed again in March, increasing 3.2 percent since last year. 

The pace has been slowing for 13 months after it peaked at 10.6 percent in December 2022. 

Infometrics Chief Executive and Principal Economist Brad Olsen tells Mike Hosking the increase is a persistent trend and can’t be pinpointed to just one grocery category. 

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Social Development Minister Louise Upston is questioning the fairness and sustainability of the state helping 364,000 tenants and mortgage-holders at a cost of $2.34 billion in accommodation supplements. 

Otago University Professor and co-leader of the Kāinga Oranga Housing and Health Research Programme Nevil Pearse tells Mike Hosking rising housing costs encourage a need for the supplements. However, the supplement could not be defended in 100 percent of cases. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Monday 8th April 2024, Mike discusses to the changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa rules with Immigration Minister, Erica Stanford.

He also delves into the numbers showing police abandoned 60 percent of cases reported to them last last year.

We've got a dishwasher story to end all dishwater stories for you! 

Andrew Saville and Guy Heveldt are on the commentary box to cover the Warriors, Sam Whitelock, Noeline Taurua and the future of rugby in this country.

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Immediate changes to Accredited Employer Work Visa come into effect today to address migrant exploitation and unsustainable net migration. 

Changes include an English language requirement for low skilled jobs and a minimum skills threshold. 

An extra 20,000 people went on the job seeker benefit in 2023, while 52,000 very low skilled workers were brought into the country. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford tells Mike Hosking the numbers don’t add up. 

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The Mayor of Auckland, Wayne Brown has injected $570,000 into improving safety in the city. 

The money will go towards additional CCTV operators, a safety coordinator for the CBD and investment in outreach to help people secure housing. 

Heart of the City CEO Viv Beck tells Mike Hosking the boost will complement strong local efforts across a number of initiatives. 

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The first call between Israel’s Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden since the Israeli air strike was tense. 

President Biden is friends with chef José Andrés who runs the food aid effort that has provided more than 43 million meals to people in Gaza, and is said to be outraged and heartbroken. 

Just hours before the air strike the sale of 2000 bombs for Israel was authorized by the US, and Senator Elizabeth Warren is calling for a suspension of arms sales to the country. 

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that a weapons suspension is unlikely, especially in the throes of the election campaign. 

He said that there are also calls for Biden to surge medical supplies to Gaza. 

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In a week in which the Government launched another action plan, the action that counts most for many is the announcement the Prime Minister told us was coming this week and arrived yesterday. 

Local councils and Māori seats. 

A lot of the overlay around this Government, involving all three parties, is about the Māorification of this country. 

It has been shockingly destructive, and councils have led, and been allowed to lead the way when it comes to simple racism. 

Policies based on race are racist. 

Polices that advance one race over another are racist. 

Despite that, they have not only gone ahead, but been encouraged to go ahead. 

The law that let the community hold a vote on Māori seats was disbanded. That alone was undemocratic, but it was disbanded because the results were always the same. 

When a vote was held no one wanted race-based seats. Why? Because New Zealanders are inherently fair. 

This was all predicated on the idea that in a democracy somehow Māori were denied the right to stand, when in fact no such restriction was ever in place. 

Like everyone else, Māori can stand for boards and councils and committees and Parliament. Top to bottom, democracy is an open field in this country and that is what needs to be treasured, nurtured, encouraged and preserved. 

What made yesterday's announcement even more effective is councils will be made to hold votes on recent seats that they didn’t hold votes on, and if they don’t want to hold a vote the seat gets scrapped. 

Brilliant. That was a step I suspect many didn’t think would be coming. 

Some councils will gnash their teeth but what councils forget is they represent their community, and, on this issue, they have been wildly out of step. 

To get where we have got to democracy has been gerrymandered, the way it is gerrymandered in countries we hold great suspicions about. 

We are better than that. And yet the previous Government, in cahoots with ideologues on councils with more important things to deal with, held us to ransom and shoved it down your throats. 

When a Government restores democracy, driven by common sense, that’s a Government on the right track. 

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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. 

Action plans: 7/10 

You can't say the Government isn't announcing and doing. 

EV's: 3/10

As they say in the markets, this is a bubble. Stuff is worth what it is worth. Mess with that simple concept at your peril. 

Rich folks: 6/10 

The world grew more billionaires and millionaires and as fashionable as it is to bag them and poo poo them, rich people make stuff, sell stuff, change lives and improve places, which is kind of what we are keen on. 

Easter trading: 2/10 

Yet another year of dumb rules, dumb fines and no sign of legislative modernity. 

Easter Tuesday: 4/10 

When education is in the state it is, you do wonder whether invented holidays help the cause. 

The Warriors: 7/10 

Two on the trot. A broken leg for Luke Metcalf, which isn't brilliant, but this week is the Rabbitohs and they're not up to much. So yes, this is our year. 

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 5th of April, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown joined to discuss the u-turn the Government is making around Māori wards. 

There’s some good news for Air NZ and some bad news when it comes to Koru Club. 

Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson joined to wrap everything from the week, including ACC, sleep methods, and what business Mike and Glenn are looking to buy into. 

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Former Silver Fern Margaret Foster's hopeful Dame Noeline Taurua can rediscover her mojo in a new chapter for the national side. 

Newstalk ZB understands Taurua will be re-appointed as coach this afternoon after Netball New Zealand opened up the position for applications. 

The Silver Ferns won the 2019 World Cup under Taurua but failed to make the podium during last year's defence. 

Foster told Mike Hosking that Taurua is probably heads and shoulders above everyone else who applied, as long as she comes back with a new idea of what she wants to achieve. 

She doesn’t think Taurua would’ve returned if she knew she didn’t have the energy or passion to be able to make a real difference. 

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Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson have once again joined Mike Hosking to wrap the week. On this docket today is ACC, sleep methods, and the new business venture Glenn and Mike are thinking of buying into.

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