Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

Another surprise public appearance by the Queen - this time at Paddington Station.She's attended the opening of the Elizabeth Line, a new train line on the London Underground that opens to the public next week.UK correspondent Gavin Grey told Kate Hawkesby the project is well over budget and well behind schedule.He says it was due to open in 2010 with a budget of NZD$30 billion, which has now risen to NZD$40 billion.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some alarming figures out around flu jabs.Running the numbers, only around one in five people are eligible for a free one, despite the Government saying they are prepared.Official numbers out from the Ministry of Heath also show a low uptake in vaccines with only 736,000 jabs being administered. That's again not even a fifth of the population.Questions are being raised as to why it isn't free for everyone and do we have an issue waiting to happen.Royal NZ College of GP's Medical Director Dr. Bryan Betty joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So it seems the internet is killing the television star.New research out from Canstar shows more than a third of Kiwis no longer watch traditional television - up 20 percent over the past year.Along with that, nearly 80 percent of people get their entertainment mainly through the internet.Tech commentator Jordan Tini joined Kate Hawkesby to discuss how television remains hanging in there.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elon Musk may be getting cold feet about buying Twitter.The Tesla CEO says the deal can't move forward unless Twitter shows public proof that fewer than 5 per cent of its accounts are fake or spam.Wedbush Security managing director Dan Ives says these accounts are undoubtedly an issue.He told Kate Hawkesby the issue could be more of an escape clause for Musk, if he's looking for a way out of the deal.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This time yesterday I was talking about divorce – not mine, but whether or not we were collectively as a voting public slowly divorcing ourselves from this government or not. Well today I’m talking marriage. Again, not mine, but why science says that according to data, we are not dating properly.. or dating to marry. I only know this because Glenn shoved this piece of research in my face yesterday and so I thought I’d share it with you. It’s the kind of research dating websites live for. Everyone wants to know the key to a happy relationship or the key to finding the perfect mate – but turns out we do a lot of it wrong. It’s not as simplistic as we think it should be.For example, you’d think having similar values, preferences and being of similar demographics like age, stage, education or status, might be an obvious road to happy co-existence.. but that’s not true. Data surprisingly showed that happy relationships are unpredictable – they have very little to do with any of that stuff. In fact the variables th

New findings show autistic children are three times more likely to be stood down or suspended from school, than other students.These levels reverted back to the general population average, when autistic students received high-needs funding.Principals' Federation President Cherie Taylor-Patel told Kate Hawkesby suspension can be a strategy for schools to push the Ministry of Education  to support students in need.She says it's clear that when autistic children have the right levels of funding and support, they're more likely to experience success.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are predictions of a few hiccups in getting more electric vehicles on our roads.The Government wants total driving cut by a fifth, and 30 percent of people driving zero emission cars by 2035.Manufacturer Singer Electrical says home charging units haven't been subsidised, and can cost up to $5,000.Marketing Manager Finn McLaren told Kate Hawkesby that's not the only issue.He says supply issues mean people could be in for a six month wait for a unit.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand On Air has been slammed, over the awarding of 200-thousand dollars for  a documentary about Green MP Chlöe Swarbrick.The project, Being Chlöe, looks to explore the political and personal life of New Zealand's youngest MP.Swarbrick wasn't involved in pitching the project.Former Arts Minister Chris Finlayson told Kate Hawkesby it's a misuse of taxpayers' money.He says New Zealand On Air shouldn't show political favouritism and that's exactly what they're doing.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I’m enjoying the politicians who’ve stepped away from politics long enough to be able to look back in on it with fresh eyes and with wisdom, and then write about it. Paula Bennett has a column in the Herald on Sunday which is always a good read, Steven Joyce writes for the Herald and his pieces always make sense too. Part of it may be that it reminds me of what it was like when grown-ups were in charge. But Joyce’s piece this weekend if you didn’t read it, look it up, is good because he talked about the Government not listening to the public, and it struck a nerve because – he’s right. Time and time again we have people on this show from various industries and sectors in strife, who’re pleading with the Government over something, and time and time again when you ask them what the response has been from government, the answer is invariably – ‘we haven’t heard’, or ‘they’re not listening’, or ‘they never got back to us.’Yesterday we had Peter Dunne on the show talking about the latest poll putting the Nats and

Better investment in public transport is being seen as the key to making a congestion charge work.Plans for a charging regime are expected as part of the Government's Emissions Reduction Plan, which comes out at midday.Mevo CEO Erik Zydervelt says in the past in cities like Auckland there was a feeling you needed a car to get around.He told Kate Hawkesby that's changing.“We’re right at the stage where we’re really starting to wake up as a country and go: public transport is actually, if you invest in it, really good.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A wayward final stretch has cost Kiwi golfer Ryan Fox a second win on the DP Tour this year, finishing in a share of second at the Soudal Open in Belgium.Fox blew a three-shot lead with 11 holes to play, losing a head-to-head battle with England's Sam Horsfield who captured his third DP World Tour title.Horsfield shot a final round 68 to finish at 13-under, two shots clear of Fox and German Yannick Paul who both took home €166,385 ($NZ277,043) for second.It was there for the taking for Fox who went into the final round with a one-shot lead, and stretched it to three after bouncing back from a second hole bogey with three straight birdies.With Fox and Horsfield tied at the 16th tee, the Kiwi went bogey-birdie-bogey to card an even par 71 and finish two shots behind the Englishman.Fox will now head jets to the US PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Oklahoma for his 12th major appearance. A consolation from today's result is that the second placing secures him a spot in next month's US Open at The Country Club

Having lived in London I feel like something of an expert on public transport because in London it’s the only way you travel.Unless you have millions of dollars to burn up, in which case you might take a black cab, but for most of us, the Tube and the train and the bus, is it. And it works. It’s efficient, it’s modern, it’s pleasant, it can be convivial, it carries every cross-section of society imaginable, it’s cool. You can hop on the Tube with business people, dog walkers, students, tourists, elderly, the edgy fashionistas, families, the works. I mean there were times when trains didn’t go due to weather preventing the tracks being used, or the Tube station you wanted to stop at had an issue so you just went to the next one, but by and large it runs smoothly so everybody uses it. They also have the population to use it, the networks to make it viable, and the infrastructure to make it sing.Which leads me to New Zealand. We don’t have the same experience here because we don’t have the infrastructure, we don

Finland's government declared a “new era” is underway as it inches closer to seeking NATO membership, hours before Sweden's governing party on Sunday backed a plan to join the trans-Atlantic alliance amid Russia's war in Ukraine.Russia has long bristled about NATO moving closer to its borders, so the developments will be sure to further anger Moscow. President Vladimir Putin has already warned his Finnish counterpart on Saturday that relations would be “negatively affected.”NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Sunday the process for Finland and Sweden to join could be very quick. He also didn't expect Turkey to hold up the process.Speaking after top diplomats from the alliance’s 30 member states met in Berlin, Stoltenberg also expressed his hope that Ukraine could win the war as Russian military advances appear to be faltering.In Finland, President Sauli Niinisto and Prime Minister Sanna Marin confirmed earlier statements that their country would seek membership in NATO during a joint news conference

A bad start to a crucial week for the Government.Jacinda Ardern is too sick with Covid to speak at today's Emissions Reduction Plan announcement and will be in isolation for the release of the Budget on Thursday.Cabinet Minister Phil Twyford has had to cancel a planned trip to Timor-Leste, also due to Covid.Political commentator Peter Dunne told Kate Hawkesby the Government is also grappling with a new poll, suggesting National and Act have the numbers to form a government.“I don’t think we’re jumping the gun in terms of reshuffling the Cabinet, I mean, I think that’s been signalled already as being a likely possibility. I suspect there will be some retirements announced over the next few months.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our lab workers have had to go to Parliament for the first time in 75 years to have their voices heard, saying the industry is in crisis.The NZ Institute of Medical Laboratory Sciences delivered a petition to Health Minister Andrew Little, wanting a full and comprehensive review of their profession.President Terry Taylor joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So some schools are getting fed up with the lack of progress in replacing the decile system.For years, schools have been told the decile system would be replaced with an equity index, but progress seems to be slow.Now it's hoped government will finally introduce the index at next week's Budget.Oropi School Principal Andrew King joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wairoa hasn't had an adult dental service for two years, when the one private provider in the town closed.But a temporary solution has finally been worked out, with the Hawkes Bay DHB funding a dental service that will operate once a week, for a year until a new permanent solution is found.Wairoa Mayor, Craig Little joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I see another wave of Covid going though Auckland – which is ironic because I said to my husband the other day – it feels like there’s more Covid around us at the moment. And he poo pooed it as grandmother research and me being paranoid.But I was watching colleagues, our boss, a couple of our kids, all drop like flies with Covid, slowly our newsroom started emptying out, it felt like there was a spate of Covid cases lurching back into action. And then I see the stats and sure enough, cases in Auckland are up 50 percent. And this week we learn one Auckland High School has even had to go back to online learning given 200 students have been affected by it. So not grandmother research as it turn out after all – but actual facts.The schools are definitely seeing it, despite their continued mask use – my daughter’s winter sports team couldn’t get their first game away because they had to default due to numbers of kids sick with Covid and the teacher herself having Covid.Local cafes have signs going back up saying l

The Government has laid out a raft of new changes to our immigration and border rules.Urgently needed workers will now be allowed to come through a green list system, designed to fast track residency, for hard to fill jobs.While other industries not on the list can apply for residency after two years.Phil O'Reilly is the former Business New Zealand boss and he joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is currently reviewing our pig farming practices and wants to tighten the welfare requirements for our local pork.NZ Pork has made it clear they are not happy about this.But they have also just presented a petition asking for imported pork to be required to meet the same welfare standards as local pork.Chief executive of NZ Pork Brent Kleiss joined Kate Hawkesby.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.