Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

If you live long enough, I guess you’ll get to see everything either change or completely die out. On Friday the news that Wellington’s grand old lady of the fourth estate is to have a makeover was a bit confronting and sad for me and those who’ve grown old with the name of The Dominion Post.   The Dominion Post is dropping the word ‘dominion’ from its name - and its parent company is signalling further change is yet to come.   Sounding dangerously like something from Italian mafia, ‘The Dom, started 21 years ago as a merger of The Dominion and The Evening Post.   In an act reflective of a complete lack of any creativity, the new name will be… are you ready? The Post.   I wonder how many creative types with cool cardigans, fridges filled with tofu, eclectic Spotify playlists and electric scooters at reception in some Willis Street creative agency got together to come up with that catchy name?   The editor of The Post is Caitlin Cherry and she says that New Zealand's status as a dominion ended in 1945 when it

I measure the quality of the summer season by how many swims I have, this summer I managed just one swim. Not my proudest tally, I can assure you.  But that sad tally was only diminished by my inability to make time. Being able to find clean water to swim in will increasingly prove to be the main barrier. The environment, Minister David Parker says, some of the statistics I’m about to mention are an indictment on the country and an intergenerational challenge to turn around.   45 percent of lake monitoring sites worsened between 2011 and 2020 with just 36 percent improving. 45 of New Zealand’s total river length is non swimmable due to risk of bacterial infection.  48 percent of our river network is at least partially inaccessible to migratory fish.  About two thirds of freshwater native bird species were either threatened with extinction or at risk of becoming threatened in 2021.  Minister David Parker is entirely correct. It’s an intergenerational problem that we have largely turned our back to, and yet we

Victoria University of Wellington has announced their nominations to be considered for Earthshot prizes. Earthshot is offering five prizes of £1,000,000 each for projects that drive change and inspire collective action. Andrew Wilks, Director of Sustainability at Victoria University, joined Roman Travers. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A children's charity is pleading for sponsors to more than 1,600 Kiwi kids facing poverty. Variety says the kids don't have enough bedding, warm clothes, food and school supplies. CEO Susan Glasgow says it costs the same as eight lattes over a month to make a huge difference and Susan Glasgow joined Roman Travers. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Water New Zealand is breathing a sigh of relief and says it now has certainty because of the Three Waters shake up. Instead of four mega-entities for water, the Government has opted for 10 regional groups. It's set to be in place by 2026. Water NZ Chief Executive Gillian Blythe says while the plan's not perfect, it means staff will be able to plan implementation better. She told Roman Travers it's important working with iwi wasn't eliminated. Blythe says it's about finding solutions that work for the whole community. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It can be incredibly difficult not to fall in line with the narrative of doom and gloom, instead of celebrating the good things that come and go so quickly in life for those who work so hard to get there.  New Zealand’s very own Finn Fisher-Black scored his first professional win yesterday after the UAE Team Emirates rider triumphed in the opening stage of cycling’s Tour of Sicily.   If you haven’t managed to see the footage of just how remarkable the final minutes of this Nelson cyclist’s stage win was, it’s well worth the watch.   Finn Fisher-Black rode away from the field on the final climb of the 159km stage to take the win, with teammate and fellow Nelsonian George Bennett coming in ninth.  The 21-year-old has had a tough climb to the top having come back to elite level after breaking his leg last year.   At my age, I’m freewheeling down the far side of being a middle-aged man in lycra, who still loves to think he can keep up with the peloton on a decent road bike; but Finn is in the upper echelon of cyc

The country's councils are standing by to hear the Government's latest plan for Three Waters reforms. Newstalk ZB understands the plan will be revealed later this morning. Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan told Roman Travers councils are divided on the way forward. He says some councils want to keep control of the infrastructure, but other councils are very worried about rising costs. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week's OCR hike is starting to have some impact with ANZ, the country's largest bank, raising fixed and floating interest rates across the board. Chief Executive Antonia Watson told Roman Travers the one-year lending rate is going up by 20-basis-points. She says the bank is still passing on only a small amount of the OCR increases. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A councillor is looking to reassure those who suffered during Auckland's January flooding. A report into the flood response has made 17 recommendations including developing an IT system for better communication and creating stronger community relationships. Manukau Ward Councillor Alf Filipaina says those who lost their homes or loved ones will still be devastated. He told Roman Travers the council needs to discuss these recommendations so failure doesn't happen again. LISTEN ABOVE    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the ongoing cost of living crisis confronting us all, there’s greater pressure than ever on parents to help their children get to where they need to be. Confronted by rising mortgage and rent prices, along with those grocery items being pushed onto the luxury side of the shopping list; it’s no wonder that we’re now seeing more tertiary students feeling the financial pinch. Universities and students' associations warn rising living costs are whacking our students especially hard this year. Staff that are left dealing with student welfare say that university financial pressure is causing serious mental health problems. Many students are struggling to afford food, rent and other bills and studying has become harder than ever.   At an age where the future should be anything but frightening, it’s so sad to see that financial problems are now the main cause of mental health difficulties for our university students. The last thing we need more of is growing rates of depression, anxiety, despair, low mood and lo

The Interislander's Kaitaki ferry is back in business today. It lost power and declared mayday in January while sailing across the Cook Strait, then a problem with its gearbox kept it off the water for longer. However, questions remain as to how reassured will passengers be. Todd Valster, acting General Secretary for the Rail and Maritime Transport Union, joined Roman Travers. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There has been disappointment New Zealand isn't looking to move away from mandated Covid-19 isolation. The Government is not changing the seven-day isolation requirement for cases for at least two months. It's also asked for more work on whether testing to return to work for mild or asymptomatic cases,  would be safe. First Retail Group Managing Director Chris Wilkinson told Roman Travers this will have an impact on retailers. He believes the decision around whether to isolate or not, should be with employers. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I hope you had a fabulous long Easter weekend and that you got to enjoy some of the many aspects that make New Zealand a world class tourist attraction. But is New Zealand really ready to open up to the world post all of the pandemic palaver and are our facilities as good as we think they are? There’s one particular camping ground that you would never put on your bucket list of places to visit, and that’s the Gore Motor Camp. Police have visited this motor camp 16 times in the last 14 months and they’ve made two arrests. They’ve recorded six family harm investigations, three breach of bail follow-ups, two assault incidents, one each for fighting and drug offending, two vehicle-related visits and one mental health incident. Anyone who does their research before making travel plans would have that at the top of the list of places not to visit, which is a really sad thing for the country music capital of New Zealand. I wonder if some of our tour operators have given up investing in their operations and keeping t

Helius Therapeutics is now certified to dry and finish medicinal cannabis flowers. Now the only fully certified company in the country, patients can rely on locally sourced dried flower products. Helius chief executive, Carmen Doran joined Roman Travers. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The AA says more investment in our roads is essential. Newstalk ZB can reveal Waka Kotahi fixed 54,000 potholes on the state highway network during 2022.  AA Road Safety Spokesperson Dylan Thompson says potholes are the number one issue raised in surveys of drivers. He told Roman Travers simply filling them in,  is not enough. Thompson says we need preventative maintenance to stop potholes getting so severe and widespread. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another half-percent on the OCR, which was harsher than most pundits had predicted and takes the cash rate to 5.25 percent. 11 hikes in a row now, yet inflation is still painfully high. The RBNZ says employment is also still beyond what's sustainable and it says recent weather events have pushed some prices even higher. The fact the economic pundits were caught off guard is more than a bit of a worry. ”No one saw this coming”...that's Imre Speizer at Westpac. Capital Economics is now picking a protracted recession, saying it'll be so sharp that rates will have to be cut again by the end of the year. The NZIER says capacity constraints are easing and now is not the time to be adding further interest rates increases it says. And on it goes. Point is; these guys do tend to be ahead of the curve with what they project. In the main, they're pretty good at weighing up exactly where we are now, rather than looking at where we were two or three months back and getting out the smoke and mirrors. And where we are now i

A claim has come that the Official Cash Rate increase will continue to hit pockets and stretch incomes The Reserve Bank has shocked many by hiking the OCR 50 basis points to 5.25 percent. Council of Trade Unions economist Craig Renney would like to see increases paused, so people can get used to it. He told Tim Dower lots of people are facing multiple economic strains at once. Renney says many are facing increasing mortgages on top of existing cost of living concerns. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand Rugby is pumping $21 million into a 10-year strategy to promote the women's game. It wants to get rid of old school attitudes, and rugby just being seen as a men's sport. Former Black Ferns captain and New Zealand Rugby board member Dr Farah Palmer joined Early Edition. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dairy NZ says targeted payments are the best solution to help farmers affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. The Government has approved an additional $23 million to help those affected, raising the total to $78 million. More than half of the applicants have already been approved, with $37 million paid out already. Farmer-elected director Jacqueline Rowarth told Tim Dower throwing money at the problem isn't always the best option. She says we should bring in experts to point out where the money can be used best. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So Trump is in New York being arraigned today, it’s history in the making. What's funny about this is we're actually heading to New York for the school holidays, this is the last day I'll be on air for a couple of weeks, so we're heading back at a time of Trump dramas. This is ironic because the last time we were in New York was a long time ago, 2016, and we were there for work covering the Presidential election. At that stage, back in the pre-Trump era, everybody thought Hilary Clinton would win. Nobody believed Trump could be President, bar Trump himself of course, so we did a dangerous thing people do, which is write him off. Everybody it seemed had written him off, not just us, and all media were at the same place election night – Clinton HQ. We were stationed at her campaign headquarters and I was busy having photos taken at the lectern with the flag saying, Mrs President dangling from it. There was celebrities everywhere – the whole shebang had shut down 11th Avenue, there were outdoor stages, Katy Perr