Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

There's concerns the Government's being too black and white with its decision to pull the plug on open plan classrooms. The idea was introduced by John Key's Government in 2011. The Education Minister Erica Stanford says now all new builds will have more traditional layouts. Auckland's May Road Primary School Principal Lynda Stuart told Andrew Dickens it shouldn't be a binary discussion. She says it works well when you've thought about neurodivergent children, others that need the space to move and you've designed an environment for them. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So the Local Government Conference is underway and the Government took advantage of it to talk down to councils like a stepdad telling off their stepson.  They’ve been told to reign in wasteful spending to keep their rates increase down. It'd be good if the government that is currently spending more than any other ever practiced what they preached.  But anyway, the Government is talking about bringing in rate caps.   Sounds good. A simple idea we can all understand, but will it work?  The fact is the idea is in place in Australia. Melbourne and Sydney have them, but individual councils can apply for exemptions. And in Melbourne it means that some councils have imposed 10% rates.   But they don’t have them in Brisbane, and Brisbane has the lowest rate increases in Australia.   So why is that? Successive councils have kept the debt low. They’ve had smart long term plans with cross-party support.   They have a suburbs first policy so that improvements are made where people actu

Should your job provide health insurance coverage?  There are calls for a fringe benefit tax break as a Council report reveals people are twice as likely to have car insurance than life or health.  It says 78% of Kiwis pay for their own insurance, rather than employers footing the bill.  Enriched Retirement Founder Liz Koh told Andrew Dickens that New Zealanders tend to think they’re bulletproof, and they don’t tend to put health insurance at the top of their priority list.  She says that if you don’t have good health, it impacts your ability to work, and employers have a vested interest in making sure their employees are healthy.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The future of the latest BBC MasterChef UK series is up in the air.   John Torode is leaving after a report upheld allegations he used an "extremely offensive racist term".  It comes after an independent report substantiated 45 of 83 allegations about the behaviour of former co-judge Gregg Wallace.  UK correspondent, Gavin Grey told Andrew Dickens there are calls to scrap the already filmed series.    But he says competitors and the winner have worked hard to get there, and ideas around replacing them with voice overs will be almost impossible.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones is floating the idea of special economic zones as an answer to New Zealand’s energy security.   The Government's asking for feedback on its new long-term fuel strategy.   The special economic zones are areas where businesses can get tailored policies on regulation, financial support, and access to infrastructure.  Major Electricity Users' Group Chair John Harbord told Andrew Dickens it could give independent generators a better chance than they currently have.  He says the only big players that independent generators can sell to are the big four gentailers, and it's just cheaper for the gentailers to make it themselves.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Wednesday 16th of July 2025, The Government’s cracking down on councils -  forcing them stick to their core business, Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell shares her thoughts. There's calls for fringe benefit tax breaks to help kiwis pay for the rising cost of health insurance, Enrich Retirement founder Liz Koh tells Andrew Dickens the difference it would make.  Shane Jones is pushing ahead with his desire to implement special economic zones to boost electricity generation and fuel security. Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on MasterChef TV presenter John Torode sacked by the BBC.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government wants to scrap local councils' four well-being provisions.  A amendment bill has been introduced to remove the social, economic, environmental and cultural wellbeing provisions from the Local Government Act, to refocus councils on their core services.  The Government wants councils to give more value to ratepayers.  Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell told Andrew Dickens she's looking forward to the removal of the four wellbeing clauses. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I’m always amazed at how much credence the United Nations is given in domestic New Zealand politics.  The left loves the UN pronouncements on New Zealand’s stances because if reinforces their view that we’ve got much to feel guilty about.  Meanwhile the right somehow believes that the UN can supersede our sovereignty and is an enemy to be repelled at all costs.  But the UN is actually an ineffectual bureaucracy.  A giant global virtue signaller judging its signatories to an idealistic standard that is often unachievable in the modern world.  There’s nothing wrong with the UN writing these reports because it might be nice to live in a world full of unicorns,  but they’re just words and often have little deep context.  David Seymour obviously took offence at one such report and in a fit of pique late one night, drunk on the power of being Deputy Prime Minister, fired off an angry letter signed Grumpy of Epsom.  That’s obviously not his job, and it’s right that he’s been t

A turning point for Auckland.  The third annual State of the City report has been released, showing how we compare on a global scale.  It highlights strengths in sustainability, resilience, and culture, but says we lag behind in prosperity, skills, and innovation development.  Deloitte’s Future of Auckland Lead Kate Sutton told Andrew Dickens that Auckland’s at 40% of GDP while the productivity per capita is about 20% lower than comparable cities around the world.  She says we’re doing more for less, and a step up needs to be done to deal with the structural reasons behind it.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here we go again.  The polytechs that were centralised by the last government are going to be de-centralised by the current mob.  It's not quite back to the future because it won't be the same as we had before the politicians started tinkering. There will now be ten polytechs run locally, six others will have to prove their financial viability, but it still feels like we're going back to where we started from. And this ideological flip flop isn't free.  The Labour Government allocated hundreds of millions of dollars over several years to support the merger and transformation of the vocational education sector. And now National has budgeted $200 million to fund the reversal. Key Cost Drivers in this change include swapping out the IT and systems integration across multiple institutions from centralised to local.  Obviously, staff restructuring, which includes finding new staff for the polytechs and firing some staff created in the centralisation.  Then there's branding and communicatio

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Tuesday 15th of July 2025, Secondary Principals Council Chair and Aotea College Principal Kate Gainsford joins Andrew Dickens to discuss the number of students passing the NCEA literacy and numeracy co-requisite tests slowly on the rise. Dr Sandra Grey, National Secretary of the Tertiary Education Union, shares her thoughts on the Government’s plan to replace Te Pūkenga and return to a more localised polytech model. Kate Sutton, Future of Auckland Lead at Deloitte, breaks down a new global report comparing Auckland’s strengths and weaknesses on the world stage. Plus, Australia Correspondent Donna Demaio has the incredible story of a German backpacker found alive after surviving 11 days lost in the harsh outback. Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Concerns we're narrowing the focus too much in the push to improve literacy and numeracy rates. Small improvements were seen on last year with 57% of NCEA students achieving the numeracy standard, 61% achieving the reading standard and 55% achieving the writing standard. Secondary Principals Council Chair, Kate Gainsford told Andrew Dickens the focus hasn't been spread across other important subjects like science or languages.  She says we need to ensure we don't neglect other parts of the curriculum while also looking at the basics. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the weekend, a group of well-known organizations published an open letter to the Prime Minister.  Organizations like the EMA, 2degrees and Consumer New Zealand all signed the letter calling for the government to reform the energy sector.  Chief Executive of Consumer New Zealand John Duffy said that the government needs to have a fast, but measured response.  He said, ‘[We don’t] want the minister to rush into a knee-jerk reaction.’   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Monday 14th of July 2025, Act's Tertiary Education Spokesperson Dr Parmjeet Parmar shares her thoughts on a new plan from the government to double the amount international students contribute to our economy to $7.2 billion by 2034.  A group of well-known organisations have written an open letter to the Prime Minister calling for immediate reform to our energy sector, Consumer NZ Chief Executive Jon Duffy, tells Andrew Dickens why.  Andrew Alderson has the latest on the weekend's sport.  Plus Europe/ UK Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on more than 70 people arrested at protests against Palestine Action, being designated a proscribed terrorist group. Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's unveiling new initiatives in hopes of doubling the international education sector.  Education Minister Erica Stanford wants it to contribute 7.2 billion dollars to the economy by 2034.  The Government's plan begins with expanding work rights to all tertiary students in approved exchange programmes.  It's also allowing eligible students to work 25-hours per week - up from the current 20.  It will also investigate a new short-duration work visa and streamlining multi-year visa application.   Act Tertiary Education Spokesperson Dr Parmjeet Parmar told Andrew Dickens she welcomes the news.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I find it ironic that the government and the electorate are once a gain keen on getting rid of some of the layers of our council bureaucracy. First NZ First’s Shane Jones publicly questioned the role of regional councils, pondering whether “there’s going to be a compelling case for regional government to continue to exist”. Then Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Mike Hosking that the Government was looking at local government reform. On Friday Matthew Hooten wrote a piece about Regional Councils reiterating Chris Bishop’s question that he’s been asking many local councillors.  Is there any point in having regional councils.  So it's on the table.  Of course the battle against bureaucracy is alive and well around the world. Duplication of services and excessive layers of governance means that savings could be made easily and safely and it's something we've always discussed. Last term the government reformed District Health Board from 20 boards into a single entity Health New Zealand or just

All Blacks coach Scott Robertson is determined to have more success in the air against France during Saturday's second test in Wellington.  The French aerial assault often caught the ABs on the hop in the narrow first test win, an area Robertson says the All Blacks have been tidying up in practice.  Weekend Sport Host Jason Pine told Andew Dickens that defusing their ariel game is essential, and Caleb Clarke, who is coming on as injury cover, is a big part of that.  “He’s probably the All Blacks’ best winger in terms of diffusing the high bomb.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A belief all sectors will need to step up to deal with online scammers.  The new Anti-Scam Alliance brings together government agencies, banks, telcos, digital platforms, and consumer groups.  The task force will share data about scams to shut them down in real time.  Banking Association chief executive Roger Beaumont says it will make a difference if all participants play their part.  He says particularly social media companies and digital platforms need to do what they can to interrupt scams.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Friday 11th of July 2025, the Government's going to address the country's scamming issues head on with a anti-scam alliance, NZ Banking Association Chief Executive Roger Beaumont, tells Andrew Dickens the difference it will make.  The All Blacks are taking on France this weekend in Wellington, Newstalk ZB's Jason Pine shares his thoughts ahead of the game.  Just under 30 thousand New Zealanders left the country for Australia last year, the highest level of emigration across the ditch since 2012. Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Vincent McAviney has the latest on a new deal between the UK and France which addresses small boat crossings.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New migration numbers may be painting a bleak picture of our economy.  New Zealand saw it's highest net migration loss to Australia in the year to December in more than a decade - with 30 thousand leaving. Overall net migration for the May 2025 year levelled out at a gain of just under 15 thousand.  But ASB Senior Economist Mark Smith told Andrew Dickens net migration is normally about a 30 thousand person inflow.  He says over the past few years, there's been a sharp slowdown in the number of people coming in, and we've also seen record numbers leaving - which reflects the weakness in the economy.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.