Gone By Lunchtime

In the year of growth, Nicola Willis has presented a growth budget. But does the Investment Boost initiative, which speeds up depreciation for businesses, promise the kind of growth that the economy needs? In this special Spinoff pod for budget day, Toby Manhire asks Bernard Hickey for his take on the headline changes, and whether or not David Seymour's earlier commentary that his colleague Brooke van Velden had “saved the budget” through its controversial and hurried changes to the pay equiry scheme, has been proven true. Plus: what are the cumulative impacts of the changes to KiwiSaver and Best Start, as compared to the SuperGold cohort? And how much did the global political and economic volatility influence the documents published today? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Unprecedented punishments imposed on Te Pāti Māori MPs, and the scramble to avoid banning them from the budget debate, is top of the agenda this week. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire assess the fallout, before rewinding to last week's theatrical parliamentary controversy, all of which stemmed from a C-word in a newspaper column, and led Winston Peters, doyen of parliamentary decorum, to deplore a “House of Chaos” (by which he did not mean the popular monthly techno night at Firecrackers nightclub in Ashburton). All of that, plus: we exclusively read the full text of tomorrow's 2025 budget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An overhaul of the pay equity process has been whisked through parliament under urgency. The changes, which tighten the criteria for making a claim for workers in female-dominated sectors and summarily halt 33 existing claims in the pipeline, have prompted a major backlash, in part for their substance and in part for the decision to push the reform through without the usual consultation under a select committee process or regulatory impact statement. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire discuss the unexpected announcement, the rationale for urgency, whether it's plausible to claim it's not primarily motivated by the billions that will be saved ahead of a tight budget, and what impact, if any, it might have on the women's vote. The trio also discuss Christopher Luxon's enthusiastic backing of a bill that would follow Australia in banning social media for under-16s. What is with the surge in member's bill as mechanisms for party campaigning, what is the polling telling politicians about young people and social media, and does Luxon know he's the prime minister? Plus: Australians have returned Labor and Albanese to power in what is being called a “bloodbath”, hot on the heels of Mark Carney's big comeback in Canada. How big is the Trump effect, is it good news for the left or good news for incumbents, and how might New Zealand politicians look to seize upon the Trumpy moment? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Saturday Aussies will (compulsorily) head to the polls. At the start of the year, Labor under Anthony Albanese was staring down the barrel of defeat and the first one-term government for almost 100 years. But with a few days to go, the pollsters are all picking that he'll return to power. What changed? Where did Peter Dutton's makeover go wrong? What happened to the Coalition campaign? Did Donald Trump play a role? To tackle these questions, complete with yarns about salmon and wallabies and paddling pool anomalies, is Ben McKay, Pacific editor for AAP and an illustrious former inhabitant of the New Zealand press gallery. In a special edition of the podcast temporarily renamed Gone By Brunchtime in recognition of the time difference, he talks to Toby Manhire about all that, the New Zealand influence across the Tasman, and what parties here might learn from there. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The PM's speech and free-trade phone tree with like-minded leaders in response to Trump's tarrif binge impressed many commentators, but not all of them: leading pundit and deputy prime minister Winston Peters was indignant and he said so. Christopher Luxon said it was media beatup, but was he right? Should he have consulted more thoroughly with his foreign minister? Should his foreign minister have slapped him down in public? Was Peters right that it was too early to be assembling pro-free-trade coalitions? Was he right that there was too much bellicose language being used? And how much of all this is about domestic, rather than global, politics? Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas assemble to tackle these questions and more such as: is there more than idle speculation and scuttlebutt to snap election chat? And what is up with the indefatigable Mr Peters' (happy 80th birthday, by the way!) latest salvo in the anti-woke culture wars, seeking to “define ‘woman' and ‘man' in law”? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At a sold out Q Theatre on Wednesday night, Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire grapple with the new Trump world order, preview the Peters-Seymour handover and assess the state of play ahead of the term halfway mark. With special guest Rebecca Wright. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a drum beat of conjecture about his job security, the prime minister enjoyed something of an elixir in the investment summit and a trip to India that began with a breakthrough announcement: the launch of talks on a comprehensive free trade agreement. A big moment in itself felt bigger given the emergence of a US-led trade war, but also a confidence boost for Luxon. Ben Thomas, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Toby Manhire discuss the import of those developments, and whether Luxon's good time abroad can travel back to New Zealand with him. Plus: Winston Peters meets Marco Rubio, an extended chew over the latest in the school lunch saga, and David Seymour's suggestion that it highlighted "two New Zealands", and the Act Party announcement it will stand candidates in local elections. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Labour spokesperson for foreign affairs joins Toby Manhire for a special podcast casting a view across a turbulent world. New Zealand, like pretty much every country in the world, is suffering from geopolitical whiplash in processing the torrent of activity emanating from the Trump White House. A postwar order cemented across eight decades is crumbling as a newly expansionist, protectionist United States emerges under Trump's second presidency. In a discussion spanning everything from Ukraine and Gaza to China and the Pacific, security guarantees and defence spending, Aukus, Five Eyes, Trump's tariff bender and the impact of inequality and social media, Parker offers his assessment of where it all leaves New Zealand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ambiguity surrounding the precise nature of the "animated" behaviour by Andrew Bayly towards a staffer, which led to his resignation as commerce minister, seeped into the prime minister's media response. Speaking to Mike Hosking, Christopher Luxon danced around the question of whether he would have sacked Bayly had he not quit, then danced around it again, and again, to the audible displeasure of the ZB superstar. Ben Thomas, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Toby Manhire try to get their heads around this double bill of The Thick of It and Clarke & Dawe. First, however, it's to the Tasman Sea, and the unexpected appearance of a trio of Chinese warships and live-fire exercises that left commercial airlines re-routing. What message was being sent, should it spur New Zealand to boosted defence spending, and how, in the naval wake, would Winston Peters have approached his visit to Beijing? Plus: the proposed reforms to citizen's arrest laws and a step towards a referendum on a four-year term, with one big condition attached. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The leader of the Act Party has been in plenty of headlines in the last two weeks, ranging from a controversial (and historic) letter written on behalf of constituent Philip Polkinghorne to an attempt to drive a Land Rover up the steps of parliament. Remarkably, he had a pop at an "ill-advised" Christopher Luxon. And that's just scraping the surface; there are the questions around the response to Tim Jago, the teacher-only days, the school lunches. Across the board, he is steadfast in insisting he's erred not even a skerrick. Is it an obduracy born of being a one-man band for so long, or is he going through a Prince Hal phase, getting some stuff out of his system before he becomes the king (or deputy prime minister, at least)? Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire thrash all that out. Plus: how much alarm are the latest cluster of opinion polls causing for National and Luxon? Does a cavalcade of health issues represent a serious political headache for the government? What should we make of the findings in the much-delayed Manurewa Marae data inquiry? And a word on the Cook Islands, Mark Brown and China. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Cook Islands prime minister, Mark Brown, has provoked the wrath of NZ's foreign minister with his decision to head to China to sign a new strategic deal. By failing to consult on the pact, says Winston Peters, the Cook Islands was in breach of commitments made as a member of the New Zealand realm. Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas put on their geopolitical goggles to assess the strain in relations, which comes as the tussle between China and the United States for influence in the Pacific enters a new phase, marked by Donald Trump pursuing an isolationist approach. Plus: How did Tama Potaka and co perform at Waitangi last week, and did Christopher Luxon come up with some new material for Ngāi Tahu in Akaroa? Join NZ's favourite political podcast live in Auckland on 9th April at Q Theatre. Host Toby Manhire will be joined by Annabelle Lee-Mather (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Māmoe) (executive producer of The Hui) and Ben Thomas (former press secretary in the Key government) as they boldly step out of the studio and in front of an audience to cast a curious and caustic eye on New Zealand politics. Tickets on sale now at thespinoff.co.nz/events Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A passive protest at the pōwhiri. A prime minister avoiding the Treaty Grounds. A “very interesting” idea about a possible te Tiriti Commissioner. In case you haven't noticed, it's been a pretty full on Waitangi week, and The Spinoff's unofficial Māori unit has been there to witness it all. Recorded on the sandy shores of the mighty North, guest hosts Liam Ratana and Lyric Waiwiri-Smith (along with regular producer Te Aihe Butler) discuss the problem of David Seymour, Tama Potaka's messy kūpapa-kaupapa wordplay, the (seemingly undercooked) te Tiriti Commission proposal, and what we'd like to see at Waitangi in 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The political year kicked off with a dramatic reshuffle that sees Shane Reti removed from health in favour of Simeon Brown, James Meager made minister for the South Island and Nicola Willis in the renamed role of minister for economic growth. Alongside a caucus retreat and a state of the nation speech from prime minister Christopher Luxon, it's all part of an effort to reset the agenda. Fresh from their own exhausting retreat, Toby Manhire, Ben Thomas and Annabelle Lee-Mather regather to assess that effort, and the background against which it plays: a poll that puts Labour ahead of National and points to pessimism within the electorate, a volatile global context as Trump returns to the White House, a record response to the Treaty Principles Bill as Luxon declines his invitation to Waitangi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gone By Lunchtime is taking a break over summer. We'll be back soon with new episodes but, until then, here's one of our favourites from 2024: In a special crossover edition of Gone By Lunchtime meets Juggernaut, Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas take the stage at a packed Hannah Playhouse in Wellington, joined by NZ broadcasting legend Kim Hill. Exactly 40 years after the 1984 election that saw David Lange and Labour derail the Muldoon train and sweep to power, unleashing a head-spinning period of economic, social and foreign policy reform, we reflect on those giddy times and the ways the Lange-Douglas legacy remains very much alive in 2024. This event sold out in 48 hours; to get advance access to Spinoff events, join our members programme. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this bonus, snackable festive pod, Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire point their goggles at 2025. Which issues will dominate, who will we be keeping an eye on, and just how unhinged are the predictions we're willing to make? Happy new year! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twelve months after the coalition government torpedoed the new ferry plan it had inherited, along with a wild cost blowout, from the previous government, a much heralded announcement finally arrived, and it was not the decision were hoping for. What does the latest instalment in the great ferry saga tell us about the state of the coalition, with David Seymour getting tutted by the new minister for rail Winston Peters? What kind of ferries will we end up with? And will they ro-ro or won't they ro-ro? Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire grab the wheel. Plus: what does a glut of new polls tells us about the state of the government as we approach Christmas, and did Christopher Luxon fail to adhere to his own big rock philosophy in coalition negotiations? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After an acclaimed maiden speech, the new National MP for Rangitata faces his biggest test in politics yet: chairing the committee hearing Act's controversial bill. He sits down with Toby Manhire to discuss the hearings ahead, and his own path to politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Normally on The Fold, we discuss events in the wider media, but today, the subject is us and the future of The Spinoff. Published on site today is an open letter from Duncan, The Spinoff's editor Madeleine Chapman, and its CEO Amber Easby. It toplines where The Spinoff is right now as a platform – this paradoxical place where our audience is the strongest it has ever been, outside of events like Covid or elections – but that the stagnant ad market, and a hard drop in public funding for our work, has left us in a really tricky situation needing to make a very real call for help. First, Duncan speaks to our editor, Madeleine Chapman, and our head of audience, Anna Rawhiti-Connell about what we're asking for and why we're asking for it. Duncan is then joined by Spinoff CEO Amber Easby to dig into some numbers that show just how radically our revenue picture has changed and explain why our audience is now our last, best shot at retaining the ability to carry on doing what we do. Please take the time to read the open letter at https://thespinoff.co.nz/sos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today marks the first anniversary of the National-led coalition's swearing in. Ben Thomas, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Toby Manhire parse the prime minister's sit-down interviews to mark the occasion, from the lessons to the communications to the big rocks and boiling of the ocean. How has he performed, is David Seymour right about the "disproportionate" impact Act has achieved and why is Winston Peter talking about being married to the Act leader? Plus: last week witnessed a huge turnout as the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti arrived at parliament. What did that say about the state of Crown-Māori relations? And how about those haka that reverberated around the world, from Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi Clarke and TJ Perenera? All that, a word on the introduction of the gang patch ban, and we pay tribute to former minister and MP for Auckland Central Nikki Kaye, who has died aged 44. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti streams through Auckland, Annabelle Lee-Mather, Toby Manhire and Ben Thomas assess its impact, and the state of the Treaty Principles Bill. Plus: the day of apology for abuse in state care: what it did and didn't achieve. And at last the GBL decision desk is ready to make a call on who has won the US presidency (and speculate on what it means for New Zealand). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Annabelle Lee-Mather reveals why she doesn't care who wins next week in the US, while she, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire all pick who they think will win. Then it's back to Aotearoa and a whistlestop tour of recent headlines: Darleen Tana is bounced out of parliament by peg-nosed Greens, Richard Prebble is appointed to the Waitangi Tribunal, Andrew Bayly's chilled out entertainer routine backfires dramatically, and Mike King says some puzzling stuff about mental health and booze as a "lifejacket". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The once leader of the National Party these days pays minimum attention to NZ politics and spends as much time as possible watching the American election campaign. Here he talks to Toby Manhire about the state of the race, why Kamala Harris's momentum has ebbed, whether Donald Trump's former chief aide saying he's a fascist will impact things, and what it all means for New Zealand. Oh, and where he'd put his money if forced to bet on a winner. Todd Muller is host of the podcast What's the Story, Old Glory. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twelve months after an election that delivered New Zealand its first three-party coalition, Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire cast their minds and hearts back, recall those heady early days and seek to assess the opening stanza of the Christopher Luxon government. How has he fared with two noisy partners? How are the opposition doing? Which politicians have impressed and surprised? And what are the tripwires and opportunities in the year ahead? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The capital gains tax debate has lurched back on to the agenda thanks to the boss of our biggest bank and the housing issues faced by Christopher Luxon. Is it a good idea, and can Labour ever avoid getting electorally squashed by trying to push the rock up the slope again? Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas chew it over. Plus: did the government underestimate the strength of feeling in Dunedin over its long promised new hospital? Is the swap of a teacher te reo programme for more maths resource a good idea? And a journey through the crust of the Earth in pursuit of the source of Casey Chatbot Costello's "independent advice" on tobacco taxes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The treaty principles bill continues to attract criticisms - from the leaders of churches, from the leaders of political parties including National. In revising it, is David Seymour stumbling, or is it all playing out as he'd wish? Annabelle Lee-Mather, Toby Manhire and Ben Thomas chew it over. Plus: the crime statistic puzzle and the power-blasted mill closures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tens of thousands have gathered at Tūrangawaewae Marae over recent days for the tangi of Kīngi Tuheitia, who died on Friday morning after 18 years on the throne. Fresh from a visit to Ngāruawāhia, Annabelle Lee-Mather joins Toby Manhire and Ben Thomas to describe the mood on the ground, Tuheitia's legacy, and the role of the Kīngitanga in New Zealand politics. Plus: infrastructure, meta-infrastructure and a rethink on the fast-track bill, and Shane Jones' remarks about the judiciary, which have earned him a slapdown from Judith Collins, and from Winston Peters, but why not from the boss, Christopher Luxon? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The prime minister travelled to the Māori King's Koroneihana this week, where he was assailed for government policies that had, according to Tuku Morgan of Tainui, hit tangata whenua with a wrecking ball and thrown them under the bus. Christopher Luxon seized the moment to declare unequivocally that National would not support the Treaty Principles Bill beyond first reading, while Act leader David Seymour was a centre of attention despite being absent. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire chew over events at Tūrangawaewae, and whether Act's controversial bill is a divisive waste of time or a blunt reality of MMP politics. Plus: Luxon leaps in PM polling despite malapropisms, stats about mathematics, and the traffic lights flare up for beneficiary sanctions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A walkout at the Iwi Leaders' Forum, a call from John Key to turn down the temperature, and protests at parliament. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire test the air on the coalition government relationship with iwi Māori as former minister Tracey Martin urges National to back down on its coalition commitment with Act to repeal Section 7aa of the Oranga Tamariki Act. Plus: is Karen Chhour right that the pressure she's facing in parliament crosses the line? Should MPs in the house wear more or less party insignia? And how did Christopher Luxon go at the weekend's party conference? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With few pundits and certainly no podcasts willing to discuss the American presidential race, Toby, Annabelle and Ben come to the rescue, exchanging some long-distance reckons on the Biden-Trump-Harris melodrama, and whether Christopher Luxon and Winston Peters are right to be pivoting towards the US amid the prospect of a fresh Trump administration with so little love for the rules-based order. Back home, after more than six years, the final report of the Royal Commission on abuse in state care has been published. What does it say, why is it this such a big milestone, and what happens next? Plus: a word on the appointment of a commissioner as Health NZ Te Whatu Ora faces a financial crisis, and a troubling trajectory on emissions reduction targets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a special crossover edition of Gone By Lunchtime meets Juggernaut, Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas take the stage at a packed Hannah Playhouse in Wellington, joined by NZ broadcasting legend Kim Hill. Exactly 40 years after the 1984 election that saw David Lange and Labour derail the Muldoon train and sweep to power, unleashing a head-spinning period of economic, social and foreign policy reform, we reflect on those giddy times and the ways the Lange-Douglas legacy remains very much alive in 2024. This event sold out in 48 hours; to get advance access to Spinoff events, join our members programme. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Darleen Tana has quit the Green Party following a long-awaited report into her role in allegations of migrant exploitation at her husband's e-bike business. She disputes the findings and, so far, has ignored pleas by co-leader Chloe Swarbrick to resign from parliament. Which leaves the Greens in a pickle: do they invoke the waka-jumping legislation they so publicly abhor? And what is the broader damage to the Greens? Plus: Chris Bishop's promise to “flood” the housing market with a new density policy, and can Christopher Luxon have an important pull-aside chat with Joe Biden at the Nato gathering in Washington DC? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a special Euro-vote edition of GBL, Henry Cooke joins Toby Manhire to chew over two fascinating results. Exit polls from France suggest the far-right National Rally's ambitions have been repelled at the onzième hour. What happened, and is Emmanuel Macron vindicated? In the UK, Keir Starmer leads the Labour Party to a landslide victory, and yet it's a shallow sweep, and he faces tests from the left. What next for British politics? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this GBL special from Manila, Toby Manhire sits down with John Nery of Rappler at the East-West media conference to discuss heightened disputes in the South China Sea and risks of the Philippines getting caught up in a great powers battle, the dynastic nature of politics in the country, and the state of media freedom. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A ferry grounded, a power pylon upended thanks to missing bolts, the prime minister's plane borked again. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire assess sticky-taped, short-term New Zealand and what to do about it. Plus: a bright solution to a messy situation on cancer drug funding and the first ever scrutiny week at parliament. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We thought you might like a wee taster of our brand new #1 series, Juggernaut: The Story of the Fourth Labour Government, hosted by Toby Manhire. Click here to follow Juggernaut so you get every episode as soon as it's released! 1. I love you, Mr Lange Fuelled by brandy and fury, Sir Rob Muldoon calls a snap election, sparking a 1984 campaign of contrasts – the menacing, protectionist National PM against the fresh, upbeat Labour leader, David Lange. The pretext for the election is the decision by Marilyn Waring, a young, gay MP, to back an anti-nuclear bill and quit the National caucus, prompting an earful from Muldoon. Lange, meanwhile, is joined at the hip by a hungry would-be finance minister, Roger Douglas. They are about to confront a profound crisis, and launch a revolution. Includes previously unheard interviews with David Lange from the 84 campaign trail, and new and exclusive interviews with Marilyn Waring, Roger Douglas, Geoffrey Palmer, Richard Prebble, Peter Harris, Margaret Wilson, Bob Harvey and Gary McCormick. Click here for full details of archive material used in this series Juggernaut was made with the support of NZ On Air. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eleven agencies were summoned for a meeting on Friday to discuss “action” to address a series of allegations involving Manurewa marae and Te Pāti Māori, the most serious of which is misuse of census data ahead of the last election, at which TPM's Takutai Moana Natasha Kemp – then CEO of the marae – defeated Labour's Peeni Henare by just 42 votes. Kemp and John Tamihere, president of TPM, strenuously reject the allegations and “baseless innuendo”. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire convene their own summit in an attempt to get their heads around the claims and counter-claims, and why they're so serious. Plus: The enduring newsline for Nicola Willis's debut budget was meant to be tax cuts and a tightening of belts. Instead it's something else: a failure to deliver promised funding to 13 cancer drugs. We assess the severity of the backlash, the response, and the reception to the 2024 budget more broadly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nicola Willis has delivered tax cuts in her first budget, largely as promised. But has the coalition government managed to square the circle of relieving cost of living pressures while avoiding the quicksand of encouraging inflation? In a special crossover episode of Gone By Lunchtime meets When the Facts Change, Toby Manhire quizzes Bernard Hickey on all that, plus: Is Willis right to say the tax cuts are not paid for by borrowing, and can she reasonably blame Labour for the bleak fiscal outlook? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special episode of GBL, recorded before a sell-out audience at the Auckland Writers Festival on May 18, Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire haul the KPIs out of the cabinet and assess the first six months of the National-led government, the performances of Prime Minister Chris Luxon, Winston Peters and David Seymour, along with the efforts from the parties of opposition. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Spinoff has just launched a brand new series called Behind the Story, where site editor Madeleine Chapman sits down with a staff writer or contributor to gain more insight about a big story on The Spinoff from the week. We thought you might like to check out the first episode, and if you enjoy it please follow it wherever you get your podcasts! On Friday, Bulletin editor Anna Rawhiti-Connell sent her final newsletter, and took the opportunity to share what she's learned about the news over two years of curating it for thousands of New Zealanders. Earlier in the week, she'd seen reports of Auckland dog owners discarding their pets' turds on the ground after Auckland Council removed bins across the city. And so, the column “If you love a dog, you must also love disposing of its shit” was born. Anna joins Madeleine Chapman to talk about the power journalists have when framing a story and how to find the middle ground between boring and sensational. For The Spinoff editor's thoughts on the week that was, as well as a handpicked collection of the week's best reads, subscribe to The Weekend with Madeleine Chapman newsletter at thespinoff.co.nz/newsletters  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Six months in, and it's hardly been a honeymoon. A new poll would put National out of power and sees its leader, Chris Luxon, sliding in popularity. How much is it about policy, how much coalition management, and a how much just the persistent grey economic clouds. Toby Manhire, Annabelle Lee-Mather and Ben Thomas gather to stick their fingers in the wind. Also on the agenda: the two Winstons entwine as the foreign minister takes aim at former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr, who responds with a threat to sue. Did Melissa Lee and Penny Simmonds deserve to be demoted? Plus, what the Waitangi Tribunal said about the decision to scrap Oranga Tamariki's section 7AA, and what the High Court said about children's minister Karen Chhour's refusal to turn up to talk about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Winston Peters and Helen Clark are at loggerheads over New Zealand inching towards "pillar two" status in a pact geared against China. Is cross-party unity on our foreign policy status splintering, and what does "pillar two" really mean? Plus: public sector cuts are suddenly becoming very real. What are the implications for the public services and what is the political risk? How is Melissa Lee navigating the media inferno in a coalition cabinet? And a stirring defence of the history curriculum. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special edition of GBL, the former finance minister and soon-to-be vice-chancellor at the University of Otago chats with Toby Manhire from the nosebleeds at the Basin Reserve. On the agenda: tax reforms lost, the Covid legacy, the lure of Dunedin, and which White Fern Robertson most identifies with. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices