Larry Williams Drive

Two Britons captured by Russian forces in Ukraine have appeared in court in territory held by pro-Russian rebels.  A British court has heard how white supremacists called for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's son Archie to be targeted "for being mixed race".   There are rumours that Pope Francis might retire. UK correspondent Gavin Grey joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A vegan diet may be the only thing that saves us all from climate change.  The Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change says a mass move to veganism is now a survival imperative.  Claire Insley from the Vegan Society Aotearoa joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just how much trouble is the construction sector in at the moment? Residential house building prices are up 18 per cent on average over the last year. Plus, new data from Stats NZ shows it's taking longer to build than it used to, adding to the pressure.  Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ports of Auckland have written off $65 million after dumping its container automation project. The owner of a Huntly Four Square says we're becoming more and more like a third world country after he was ramraided three times in three months – and police have been slow off the mark. Farmers have made their suggestions on their own emissions payment model – but environmentalists and the Green Party, in particular, say it stops well short of what's needed. A One News Kantar Poll last night revealed very few people believe Trevor Mallard is doing a good job as Speaker...He lost the trust of the opposition a long time ago, but if the public thinks so too... Is it time for him to go? KFC in Australia is replacing lettuce with cabbage because of a lettuce shortage. Jack Tame, host of Saturday Mornings and Q&A, and Cas Carter, director of Cas Carter Communications, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan on the Huddle. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A quiet day in the markets today but some interesting news out on Fonterra. First, it has announced a $50m buyback scheme, why? And is spending $50m on buying shares in the best interests of farmers? The other news was the climate proposal from He Waka Eke Noa, the agricultural industry partnership with the Government. What is in the proposal? Is this helpful for farmers and ultimately Fonterra? Frances Sweetman, Milford Asset Management, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson says the Government's committed to meeting its target of a budget surplus in 2025.  Speaking before this morning's Finance and Expenditure Committee, Robertson's now also warning supply chain issues could carry over into next year.  NZ Herald Wellington business editor, Jenée Tibshraeny joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A vocal opponent of the Government's Three Waters changes has renewed his attack on the reforms calling it a "load of sewage". The Three Waters Bill will have its first reading in parliament tomorrow... But Wairoa Mayor Craig Little says minor tweaks to the proposals have done nothing to address the real concerns and the Government needs to start to listen.  Craig Little joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ports of Auckland want to move on ... after today announcing its abandoned plans for a new automation system.  It means writing off a $65 million dollars' investment, after years of delays and confidence concerns from the port itself.  Port CEO, Roger Grey has only been on the job 10 weeks but says it was obvious it wasn't working from the moment he arrived.  He told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the automation ... wasn't looking very autonomous. “Up to a thousand manual interventions in a single exchange of a ship so that just wasn’t a situation that we could tolerate and it wasn’t something that we could let run live.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is New Zealand a third world country? A dairy owner in Huntly reckons we are. Jas Sandhu’s Four Square shop has been burgled three times in the last 90 days, he says. The last time was Saturday morning. He’s watched the CCTV footage and he reckons it’s the same people who burgled him once before. He says he’s living in constant fear and he’s about ready to give up the shop he’s run since 2004. He remembers when all you needed for security was glass doors. Now, he says, “it’s heavy metal, roller doors everywhere.” He says New Zealand is a “third world country”. He doesn’t say why he thinks that but perhaps it’s because of the police response. Even though police were called around 6am, they didn’t turn up until 9:30. He says he asked for one police officer to check out the shop with them in case someone was still inside but he says “The person on the phone said if I wait for the cop, I will be there all day”. Obviously, New Zealand isn’t third world – we’re a developed country – but I get what he means. This is

Forget Paris, Tokyo and Rome. The South Island is where Americans want to be apparently...  This is according to a 'ranking list' by Washington based publisher U.S News and World report. Which analysed over 1000 locations... With the South Island coming out on top. The description read: “New Zealand's South Island brims with majestic landscapes at every turn, from dramatic mountains to spectacular fiords,”. Lynda Keene, Tourism Export Council CEO, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alan Hall's murder conviction has been quashed by the Supreme Court after 36 years.  Hall spent 19 years in prison for the 1985 murder of Arthur Easton, but the Crown has since admitted that it was a substantial miscarriage of justice.  Today, the Supreme Court Chief Justice said it was clear that justice had seriously miscarried – either from extreme incompetence or a deliberate strategy to achieve a conviction. Alan's brother, Geoff Hall, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Farming leaders have today proposed a way to price greenhouse gas emissions created on farms.  Under the model, individual farmers would be responsible for calculating their own emissions and paying a levy on those emissions. The levy would increase progressively over the years but it can be reduced by planting native trees for example.  It's now up to the Government to decide whether it's on board with the idea. Jim van der Poel, the chair at Dairy NZ, joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Actor Matthew McConaughey gave a passionate speech about gun control at The White House today. The hearings into the Insurrection of the Capitol begins at prime time later this week – sending cable TV producers scrambling. Johnny Depp has thanked fans on Instagram. US correspondent Dan Mitchinson joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government may have just made your GP visits even most costly.  Northland GPs in particular say they will be struggling to provide services at the current cost, with the primary healthcare funding increase falling well short of the inflation rate.  Whangarei GP Dr Geoff Cunningham joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Zealand Nurses’ Organisation is calling on Wellington Hospital to postpone elective surgeries because of staff shortages.The Union has today issued a provisional improvement notice to Wellington Hospital management, forcing the hospital to address the problems as a health and safety issue within just eight days.NZNO delegate Sarah Ward works on the cardiology ward there and joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A headline this weekend caught my eye: “The office monsters are trying to claw their way back to 2019”.The office monsters are apparently the corporate leaders trying to force people back into the office, back from working from home, like we used to do in 2019 before Covid.What’s brought this on is the email from Elon Musk to his staff last week, telling them to get back into the office for at least 40 hours a week or lose their jobs, and also the comment from the JPMorgan CEO last month that working from home is not for people who want “to hustle”.But the article argues that actually many people can be productive outside the office and quite a few are happier doing soI’m with Elon and the JPMorgan CEO on this, I reckon widespread working from home is a fad that will pass.I reckon we will just end up back in the office, because most workers need to be supervised and to be supervised you need to be in the office.And I reckon whether you work from home or not will become a test of your ambition.If you want to w

Sky TV has confirmed it is in talks to buy mediaworks.Due diligence is still underway, and a deal is not certain, the company says.If a deal does go ahead, it would not require Sky to raise new equity, but it would require shareholder and regulatory approval.Sky investors haven't reacted with excitement about the news, with the share price down almost 7% since the news broke.BusinessDesk managing editor Pattrick Smellie joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has defended her Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta - saying there was no need for her to rush into the Pacific after China turned up in a big way recently.Some people thought Prince Louis' antics were adorable - others were outraged at the parenting and at the fact the kids got dragged to all the jubilee events. Do you see a problem here? Was Louis just being an average 4 year old?Would you buy a $100 watermelon?LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Concerns for cyber-bullying, after Apple shares plans to offer a new delete and edit feature in iMessage.It's part of its upcoming software upgrades, and will give users 15 minutes to make changes after sending a message.Former NetSafe Chair Rick Shera told Heather du Plessis-Allan the easiest way to ensure users retain proof of messages they've received is to screenshot them.He says it's the best move for anyone suffering from upsetting or worrying activities via iMessage.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The misfiring Warriors have suffered a significant blow with coach Nathan Brown quitting the club with 18 months left on his contract.The club confirmed his departure this morning leaving club great and current assistant coach Stacey Jones in charge. Jones becomes the fourth coach in the last three years.Brown lives in Australia, where the Warriors have been based for the past two seasons due to earlier Covid-enforced travel restrictions between the two countries.The Warriors are expected to return to New Zealand in two weeks for their first home game since August 2019. Brown's current deal expires at the end of 2023.The Daily Telegraph reports Brown called an emergency meeting with Warriors owner Mark Robinson and CEO Cameron George at 11am.The Warriors' statement came out shortly after.Warriors CEO Cameron George told Heather du Plessis-Allan Brown wasn't sacked, rather the club and coach agreed the best course was to part ways."We worked out that the best option was to separate now and allow us some time t