Podcast appearances and mentions of Chris Bishop

A fast-track bid for up to a thousand homes at Pegasus Golf Course has been knocked back - but questions remain over why, and what happens next. Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop has declined Wolfbrook Properties' application. The Pegasus Residents' Group is cautiously celebrating the decision. President Matt James says it's unclear why the application was declined, and they're moving with caution. "There is no clarity. I have suspicion, but it's purely a personal opinion - the key thing to fast-track is you need to be able to demonstrate national significance and regional economic benefit, and I don't think a development of this nature would have done that." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister's defending the more than $100 million already spent exploring a second Waitemata Harbour crossing. Cabinet's agreed to a new Crown-led case into the pros and cons of a bridge or tunnel, and will also investigate a Meola Reef crossing option. The Government's not ruling out tolls, or potential co-investment from Auckland Council. Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking the reality is that these things cost money. He says it's a multi-billion dollar project, and the consultancy work already done won't go to waste. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 18th of August, Stats NZ data shows our inflation is continuing to cool, and there's finally some good news for the Port of Tauranga. Transport Minister Chris Bishop has announced yet another report on a second Auckland Harbour crossing. Former Shihad frontman Jon Toogood is back on the show to chat about his new book about his time changing the rock landscape in this country. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Bishop said that the project would likely be the largest and most expensive infrastructure project ever undertaken in New Zealand. 

Chris Luxon insists Chris Bishop and Erica Stanford played no part in the leadership challenge against him. MP Chris Penk was removed from Cabinet and has announced his retirement from politics, after leading an unsuccessful coup against Luxon. Both Bishop and Stanford have denied any involvement in the leadership challenge, or any interest in taking Luxon's job. Luxon says both Bishop and Stanford have given him assurances, both publicly and privately, and he believes them. He's confident Chris Penk was acting on his own. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all. Christopher Luxon: 8/10 Stared them down, again, and they folded like an umbrella. Chris Penk: 1/10 Not only did he get sucked in in the first place, he paid the ultimate price for a flop. Chris Bishop: 2/10 He can say what he likes, but we know. Erica Stanford: 3/10 She can say what she likes, if she was saying anything at all. Let's put it this way; if they ran the country like they ran a coup, we'd really be in trouble. Hipkins in Rotorua: 3/10 "Emergency housing got a bit out of control." Did it Chris? Honestly. And no apology? The guy is a robot. Trump in the food delivery truck: 8/10 And he takes Hegseth but leaves Rubio, Miller, and Bessent on board the old one with the blinds down. Who needs enemies? LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer Liam Hehir and senior New Zealand Herald correspondent Katie Bradford joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! The Opportunity Party has surged well above the 5 percent threshold, potentially giving it a decisive role in forming the next Government. Was Luxon wrong to rule them out? What could the next couple of months look like? Is it wrong to be angry with Erica Stanford and Chris Bishop over the leadership challenge? Did Chris Penk have to go? What will this whole saga mean for National's political future? Do we need more transport funding for the South Island? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon is in a hell of a bind. Because he is dreaming if he thinks sacking Defence Minister Chris Penk is going to be enough to get National back on track. But if he did what I think he should do after that shambles of a leadership challenge yesterday, things would come to a complete standstill. Because he's not just running a party. He's also running the government and there's stuff the government has to keep on doing. And you need ministers, capable ministers, to do that. But if Christopher Luxon wants us to come anywhere close to believing that he has a caucus capable of holding itself together and not falling apart at the next hurdle, then he needs to go further than just sacking the Defence Minister. If he wants us to believe that, after what happened yesterday, he's anything more than a lame duck leader, he has to sack Chris Bishop and Erica Stanford too. Because with those two still lurking around, he's talking out of his backside telling us that they're all happy and united and stable. He's also talking out of his backside saying that Chris Penk has been given the heave-ho because he was the one who wanted to be party leader and prime minister. It's nonsense. Chris Bishop and Erica Stanford were the ones who wanted Luxon gone. But they were so pig-headed about it and were fighting against each other as much as they were fighting against Christopher Luxon. Stanford wanted to be boss. And so did Bishop. The person who has come out of this looking like the good guy is Mark Mitchell. There was talk that he was another one wanting Christopher Luxon gone. But he told Newstalk ZB this morning that that was nonsense. He also said he was 110 percent certain we won't see this happening again and seems very confident that National will recover from this, saying the party isn't “mortally wounded”. Obviously, he isn't going to say anything otherwise. But there's no way we can look at National now and think they're anything close to stable, with Chris Bishop and Erica Stanford still sitting around the Cabinet table. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kieran McAnulty and Chris Bishop on their weekly sit down with breakfast discuss the big news of the week - the attempted coup, putting Luxon's leadership and the party's unity into question.RNZ reveals each party's ad spend on social media going into this election, of note National has targeted 90 of it's ads solely at men, and just 1 solely at women but lasted only 24 hours.How does media and commentary frame what happened in National this week? Are there differences or was this an example of media driving the public response? We'll take a look at what Open Brief shows us in the numbers - numbers which are more public than the vote count in a National Party Leadership challenge.++++++++++++++++++++Like us on Facebook.com/BigHairyNetwork Follow us on Twitter.com/@bighairynetworkFollowing us on TikTok.com/@bighairynetworkSupport us on Patreon www.patreon.com/c/BigHairyNewsCheck out our merch https://bhn.nz/shop/Donate to our work https://bhn.nz/shop/donation/

Time's ticking for National to rebuild itself as a united front after putting Christopher Luxon's leadership to the test a second time. The Prime Minister survived a confidence vote launched by Chris Penk - at yesterday's three hour caucus meeting in Wellington. He's now dumped Penk from his ministerial portfolios and the former Defence Minister has announced he'll quit politics in November. Political Commentator Peter Dunne told Mike Hosking Luxon should be commended for surviving the challenge, but a third one would be a stretch too far. He says this has to be the end of it through to the election, and all the sentiments about the party being “100% united” have to be demonstrated if National's to come through this unscathed. Dunne was sceptical of the idea that Penk had launched the challenge to put himself forward for the job, saying he felt it was "a bit far-fetched", and that Penk was more likely testing the waters for others, namely Chris Bishop and Erica Stanford. "I don't think he necessarily was actively working with Bishop and Stanford, although he was clearly touting their cases," Dunne told Hosking. "[Luxon] can't really run a credible government without those two, so they have to be there, they have to be [kept] in senior roles, and they have to be seen to be treated as senior ministers." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National MP Chris Penk's been dumped from Cabinet and his ministerial portfolios, after instigating today's failed coup. Prime Minister Chris Luxon managed to fight off the challenge for his leadership - at a three-hour caucus meeting in Wellington today. He says Penk's role is now untenable. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says Penk was likely running the numbers - for Erica Stanford or Chris Bishop to contest the leadership. "I think there was a classic stalking horse or sometimes they're called kamikazes - they launched the attacks and destabilised...so that it triggered the confidence vote." Paul Goldsmith will pick up the Defence, Veterans, Space, GCSB, and NZSIS portfolios. Simon Watts will become Minister for Building and Construction. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Luxon stared them down and survived again. Now, it sounds like both contenders, or at least both people who thought they were contenders, Erica Stanford and Chris Bishop, were reasonably confident they had the numbers to roll Luxon yesterday afternoon. But then things swung Luxon's way early in the evening. About 8pm, I got a text suggesting the coup was falling apart and Luxon was shoring up his numbers. The people who had defected from him were defecting back to him. By this morning, the confidence had shifted back to Luxon's camp. It looks like, if I can put this really simply, the coup fell apart because of egos. Neither Chris Bishop nor Erica Stanford was prepared to go second on the ticket. They needed to work together if they wanted the numbers. They needed to coalesce around one candidate but they couldn't because both wanted to be leader. So, in the end, neither of them became leader. Now, I can't say the caucus has made the wrong call by backing Chris Luxon because, as I said, either choice was risky and difficult. But the situation the National Party finds itself in is the worst of all worlds. For a second time, the party has signalled to the country that it does not fully back its leader, and then left him there to do the job anyway. No one is going to believe the false show of unity that saw them standing behind Chris Luxon for 75 seconds while he told us his caucus was unified. It doesn't take three hours in a caucus room to establish unity. It takes five minutes. Three hours is what it looks like when there isn't enough unity. The people behind this coup, and this time it appears to be Erica Stanford rather than Chris Bishop, should reflect on what they've done. They have effectively blown the arms and legs off their Prime Minister, then pushed him out there to try to win the election for them again because they couldn't get past their own egos long enough to execute a coup properly. There's only one thing worse than a coup against a Prime Minister, and that's a failed coup. You do all the damage and end up with nothing shiny and new to show for it. This is going to hurt National. Mark my words, this is going to hurt National. The party will probably bleed votes to its coalition partners in the next three months. I'm still not convinced it will cost National the election but it certainly makes that outcome more likely. They only have themselves to blame for what comes next. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I feel very sorry for Christopher Luxon. And that was how I felt too watching the coverage last night. Reporters falling over themselves at Wellington Airport asking him questions that he was never going to answer. And watching some of his colleagues who, in the last few days, were saying he was their man and they had no interest in getting rid of him. Last night, they were saying next to nothing. And that's being generous. “I'm on the phone mate,” was Chris Bishop's lame reply. Stoney silence was Erica Stanford's. I feel sorry for Christopher Luxon because, despite his many, many political shortcomings, let's not forget he was the guy who put himself forward to take on a party that was in complete disarray. He didn't have to. But he did. Sure, there was all the usual ego involved. But he did it. He took it over, sorted things out and led it to a significant victory in 2023. And, on the basis of most recent polls, it looked like National was or is on track to be able to form the next government in some way, shape or form come November, as well. Which is why what's happening today is so weird. Just 87 days out from the election. It follows a difficult couple of weeks for Luxon, with him copping flak for using Defence Force aircraft, criticising the business sector and surprising his colleagues with a captain's call on an MMP referendum. Which has had the vultures in his caucus circling all over again. Christopher Luxon doesn't need me to feel sorry for him. He's a grown up. But he doesn't deserve this. And the party needs to ask itself, what does National need right now? My answer, is it needs to stick with Christopher Luxon. If it doesn't, National will be toast. Because who could trust this lot ever again? Because all this talk about doing it for the country and fixing the basics and building the future will mean nothing to voters. The only thing the MPs wanting Luxon to go are worried about is building their future. The other thing the National Party needs, aside from keeping Christopher Luxon as leader, is it needs Luxon himself to run the party the way Helen Clark or John Key would. If he's stays on as leader, he needs to do an immediate cabinet re-shuffle and tell those ministers plotting to get rid of him that their days are numbered. That would mean the likes of Erica Stanford, Chris Bishop and Chris Penk losing their portfolios. Some people think they're great ministers. But there are plenty more fish and no one is indispensable. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Jordan Williams from the Taxpayers' Union and Jack Tame from ZB's Saturday Mornings and Q&A joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Chris Luxon's political future is hanging in the balance ahead of tomorrow's big meeting. Will he survive, or will he be rolled? Will Erica Stanford or Chris Bishop replace him? What do we make of Chris Hipkins' plan to help small businesses join the AI revolution? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well, as I warned you last night, they are coming for him again. The roll is on for Christopher Luxon. I didn't think it was going to happen this fast, but I knew it was going to happen. After I got off the radio last night at 7 o'clock, it ramped up, Thomas Coughlan wrote a piece late in the evening for the Herald confirming that National MPs were again phoning each other about his leadership. That, by the way, for people who've already asked me if I'm happy with the situation is not a media creation, get off that bandwagon. It is not the media creating the situation. The media are not forcing the MPs to try to roll him. This is the MPs trying to roll him in the media. They are telling you what is happening. Thomas Coughlan wasn't creating the situation - he was merely reporting on what was going on. Other media who were behind Thomas on this, then started phoning around, found out that Thomas was right and started reporting on the situation as well. The level of reporting became quite overwhelming today. As a result, the Prime Minister could no longer ignore what was now out in the open, and he called a caucus meeting, which will happen tomorrow at 9:30 in Wellington. MPs have already started landing in Wellington for that meeting. I think you would be a fool right now to say which way it is going to go tomorrow because there are about 17.5 hours between now and 9:30 tomorrow morning. There are multiple MPs who consider themselves to be in the running for leadership and those MPs will be using every one of those hours within reason to try to get the numbers for them. There will be horse trading between now and 9:30 tomorrow. There will be promises of jobs. Loyalties will shift. But what I would say is that it is going to be very hard for Chris Luxon to survive this. Because how do you survive two of these in less than 4 months? If, against all the odds, he manages to survive, does he have any authority left after that? I also think he is very close to losing the numbers if he hasn't already. I have counted by myself 3 loyal Luxon MPs who have left him. Two of them have joined Erica Stanford's camp. One of them has joined Chris Bishop's camp. If you've been following this over the last week, you will know that he only had a margin of 3 MPs in the rumored 27 to 22 vote in April. He has lost by my, my count, those 3 MPs, and those are just the ones I know about. He has possibly lost more than that. As I say, I think you would be a fool to say with certainty one way or the other that Chris Luxon will or will not be rolled tomorrow, but I don't like his chances. I don't think this is looking good for him at all. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you know what? While those self-serving destructive quislings in Wellington are doing their very best to lose the election at the caucus meeting this morning, specially called, do you know who's not meeting? 40 mayors and councillors who were supposed to be attending a signing ceremony of a regional deal between the government, the Queenstown Lakes District Council, the Otago Regional Council and the Central Otago District Council. This is good work. This is perhaps not sexy work, but it's sound, sensible work that's going on, that's going to make life better for the ratepayers of these regions. It was all set to be signed at 10:30am, but now it won't because senior ministers can't attend. And why can't they attend? Because a group of traitorous idiots are attempting to roll the Prime Minister again. That just underlines how arrogant and ignorant these small minded, perfidious group of Nats are. Because they are terrified of losing their accommodation allowances, their travel allowances, their home security allowance, their jacked up Super, terrified of having to find a real job 90 days before an election. They're trying to roll a Prime Minister who at the latest poll was leading a party that was ahead and a party that had every chance of winning an election with a group of centre-right other parties. If there was any last one of us who thought that politicians were there to serve the people, surely this self-serving, self-seeking, self-aggrandising group of Nats has put that idea to the sword. If National had no chance of getting back in, if the leader of the Nats had committed an egregious crime à la McSkimming, if he'd been accused of something truly vile, then sure, get rid of him, utterly grounds for getting rid of him. But to get rid of him because he's not snazzy enough? Not glib enough? Not vibey enough, hasn't got the feels? Knows too much and wants to share it? They think Chris Bishop is snazzy? What a pack of fools. I do not know where my vote will go if the cohort of Nats within the party are stupid enough to roll their boss. If they prevail, they're people who simply cannot be trusted, their word is not good. I know men and women who can do million-dollar deals on the shake of a hand and a word. They are good people, they are sound people and they're the ones getting dicked around by these traitorous, duplicitous liars. “We back our leader," said Chris Bishop yesterday while testing the sharpness of his blade. Erica Stanford four days ago told journalists that they were interviewing their typewriters and that she's behind Luxon while the bagman Penk is alleged to have done the numbers. Ugly, ugly, ugly stuff. If Luxon prevails today, and I really hope he does, Chris Bishop should be relegated straight to the bottom of the list and consigned to history. Christopher Luxon came in and did a jolly good job of uniting a party that was a shambles. It was in absolute disarray. Simon Bridges was dumped, replaced by Todd Muller who retired hurt and then Judith Collins got the hospital pass and then into the 2020 election in which National were decimated. They had to rebuild from the ashes, and Christopher Luxon helped them do that. He might not have the jazz hands, but he had faith in good ministers, let them get on with their work, held them to account. What do they do with their renewed strength, the Nats? They disembowel themselves and eat their own entrails, which makes for really unpleasant viewing. For the lefty voters, oh, you must be thinking this is better than any Netflix drama right now. Grab the popcorn and watch it all unfold and who can blame you? This is an own goal of seismic proportions. If a small group of destructive Nats are responsible for the collapse of the centre right vote and Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and the Opportunity party gets in, we should make a new crime and charge those snivelling quislings with economic treason. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brigitte Morten is the Managing Director of public and commercial law firm Franks Ogilvie and a former senior ministerial advisor for the previous National-led government, a National Party member and currently volunteering for the Hutt South MP, Chris Bishop. Tracey Martin was a New Zealand First MP. From 2017 to 2020 she held the roles of Minister for Children, Seniors, Internal Affairs and Associate Education. She is currently the chief executive of the Aged Care Association. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Here we go again. For the second time this year, there's a story in the media about National MPs doing the numbers on Luxon. At least one of them is talking to Thomas Coughlan at the Herald. Now, one or two chatting to the media doesn't equal a coup. But the political calculation is that Luxon is a drag on the party's polling. Changing horses midstream would not hurt their chances of forming a government, and might provide momentum and a boost to their share of the right voting bloc, and perhaps even some soft centre. They'll be tempted by the Jacinda transition which saw a poll bump. A circuit-breaker. They'll be wary of the Judith transition, and many Labour ones before that, which proved fatal. But this is a completely unique situation as this is a party in government. Whoever leads it, leads New Zealand. Luxon's plea for more party votes is falling on deaf ears and despite expensive advertising campaigns and glossy videos of the PM explaining their fiscal strategy, his comments on the campaign, which is underway in earnest, are drowning out the pre-recorded material. The last week they've been in clean-up mode. They can't afford to spend another three months traipsing round the country with a dustpan and broom. That would require either better discipline from the current leader or change to a new one. Which has always been the fly in the ointment for National. There is no Jacinda waiting in the wings. Bishop and Willis are well-versed debaters who'd perform well on the campaign. However, Kiwis like reluctant heroes and Bishop looks, rightly or wrongly, anything but. Willis' near perfect performance handling the initial fuel shock proves her worth but she may be too tied to the cost-of-living woes that have hurt Luxon. Erica Stanford is the candidate you'd pick if you really wanted to play ball. She's denied wanting it enough, which is key, and is a star performer able to connect with people in a way others have proven incapable. At this point, this is all just talk. But timing is everything in politics and the fact MPs are briefing journalists twelve weeks out from early voting is destabilising in itself. Are you better to nip it in the bud or stay the course and hope for brighter days?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's a critical juncture in the run up to November's election. National will set its party list, meaning those MPs who either aren't standing in an electorate or are unlikely to win an electorate seat will be keenly waiting to see the numbers next to their names. If the current polling trends don't improve, National's in line to lose something in the vicinity of ten or eleven MPs from its caucus. Perhaps even more concerning to the party than the total number of MPs who'd be lost, is the experience under threat. MMP maths always makes this a bit of a tricky equation, but even if the party loses several of the electorate seats it currently holds, very few MPs are likely to get in on the list. Perversely, the party might find itself quietly hoping to lose more electorates in order to protect some of its most senior ministers. In an absolute worst-case scenario, any or even all of Nicola Willis, Chris Bishop, Gerry Brownlee, and Paul Goldsmith could be gone. A result like this would be devastating for National, even if the party is returned to government. Just consider for a moment the influence ACT and NZ First have been able to exert in the coalition this term, and now imagine a significantly smaller National caucus without some of its most senior and experienced Cabinet ministers. The list rankings are surely a bit of a penny-drop moment for members of the caucus. Unlike many of my media colleagues, I haven't thrown myself into frenzied speculation over Christopher Luxon's future at every opportunity, but as many have already noted, this was among his worst weeks as Prime Minister. Some will say his patronising comments to the Rotorua business audience and his off-the-cuff musings in this studio over the future of MMP were simply communication gaffs from a Prime Minister who by his own admissions, isn't always as strong a communicator as some of his predecessors. The problem with that of course, is that communication is such a big part of the job. Not just speaking to media, but speaking to voters, and being aware of how your communication is received. The thing I found most interesting about the Rotorua comments was that the PM apparently lacked the EQ to see that his bland, empty corporatese-riddled answer wasn't landing. Not only that, but his office doubled down. They released the transcript. And only when that garnered even more of a backlash did they pull back and apologise. The same thing could be said of his MMP referendum. It's hard not to be left with the impression that at times he lacks an instinct for understanding how his comments will land. And in an election campaign where those skills are going to be continuously tested, it constitutes a not insignificant liability. As National confirms its list rankings, the question isn't simply if Christopher Luxon can lead the party to an election result that allows them to form a government, it's what that government looks like. And whether the party risks being so diminished in coalition that it's a win in name only. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yeah, well, if Chris Luxon's week wasn't already bad, it's not much better. Not after he apparently announced off the cuff on ZB Mornings with Kerre that he's going to hold an MMP referendum if he wins the election. Now, where do I start with the problems with him doing this? The first is that it looks incredibly desperate. No one was asking for a referendum. It's not a topic of discussion. I mean, sure, we can all see that MMP is giving Chris Luxon heaps of trouble because he can't fire his Foreign Minister for being racist without ending the coalition and forcing a snap election. But that has not led to a clamour for a return to FPP. In that context, him suddenly announcing that he wants to get rid of MMP, which is basically what he said by calling for a referendum on the thing, looks like he just wants to get rid of the system that's to blame for his party polling around 30 percent and sometimes below 30 percent. That just looks incredibly desperate. Now, I'm not saying that he is desperate because I actually think what happened here is that Chris Luxon fell into the trap of doing what Chris Luxon often does: agreeing with the person he's talking to. And because Kerre really liked the idea, all of a sudden he liked the idea and off he went on a tangent. But for people who didn't hear the whole exchange and just see the headlines, this looks desperate. The second problem is that this is now dominating what should really be a very good news day for the National Party. Their star minister, Erica Stanford, has just released the new subjects for students in Years 12 and 13. Chris Bishop has finally revealed the date for Auckland's new train system. We should be talking about that but instead we're talking about the Prime Minister saying the second weird thing in a week. For the record, if there were a referendum, and there will not be a referendum, which is why this idea is cooked, it would fail. Look at how many people vote for parties that are only there because of MMP: the Greens, ACT, New Zealand First and The Opportunity Party, if you believe the polls. Meanwhile, the two old FPP parties, National and Labour, can't get themselves out of the low 30s. So it's going to fail and that is the third problem. A Prime Minister should never, if they can avoid it, back an idea that is destined to fail. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon says he supports having another referendum on the MMP voting system if he's re-elected as he encourages greater support for National so the party can avoid working with “some yahoo and numpty” in Cabinet. Act leader David Seymour says he's not opposed to another referendum but suggests Luxon “may not have thought through what he's saying” regarding ministers from other parties, noting the number of National ministers who had been dismissed this term. Speaking on Newstalk ZB this morning, Luxon made the statement in response to a listener who had texted in asking whether the PM would address the power held by minor parties in governing arrangements. Luxon initially pointed to the Government working towards a referendum on whether to extend government terms from three years to four, before saying he was “open” to asking voters whether they were “still supportive of MMP”. Asked if he would do so if he were Prime Minister next year, Luxon replied: “Yeah, I think I would.” He added: “I think I would because I actually think, you know, that it is quite right to check in constitutionally and say, is this the system, New Zealand, you still want? “You know, you voted for this in the 90s, we've had a check-in in the [20]10s, 20 years down the road or whatever it has been, is it still where you want to be?” Luxon went on to talk about his 20-person Cabinet, currently made up of ministers from National, Act and New Zealand First. He argued the best way to provide a “strong and stable government” was to have as many National ministers in Cabinet as possible. “When you have to form coalition governments, you don't have the same values, you don't have the same policies, you're not talking to the same people. “You try and find the common ground and I feel like I have done the best I can in two and a half years to find common ground on the economy, law and order, education and health. “I think you've got to ask the question, I feel like I've got responsible, sensible ministers delivering: Mark Mitchell, Todd McCay, Erica Stanford Nicola Willis, Simeon Brown, Chris Bishop, you know, I've got amazing people doing incredible work who take it very seriously. “The question is, I keep saying, I don't need some yahoo or numpty from some other party around that table, I can do a lot more to get the centre-right agenda, centre being the operative word, done and out the door so think about your vote, November 7, it's important.” Asked if his current coalition partners were yahoos and numpties, Luxon replied: “No, I'm just saying I can do better with National Party ministers, I think New Zealand's better served by that.” Asked by ZB host Kerre Woodham if he'd prefer Mitchell around the Cabinet table over former National MP and current NZ First candidate Michael Laws, Luxon replied: “You said it.” Act leader David Seymour defended the work of his ministers. Photo / Mark Mitchell Speaking to the Herald, Seymour said he wasn't certain whether Luxon was calling his ministers yahoos and numpties. “Who knows, I suspect that he's being a bit free-wheeling and may not have thought through what he's saying there.” Seymour noted how several National ministers had been dismissed during this term before pointing to work achieved by Act ministers, including on school attendance and reforms concerning the Holidays Act, Arms Act and the Resource Management Act. “I'm not here to start bagging other parties' ministers but I think anyone who's an objective observer would say that Act ministers have been pretty effective.” On a referendum, Seymour said he wasn't opposed but said any change would be unlikely to be implemented until the 2032 or 2035 elections and there were “more urgent problems” to address. In a statement on social media, Peters commended MMP for having “broke the stranglehold” of Labour and National on “running roughshod over our economy without social licence”. “Now that the two old parties are losing their grip on power, they want to change the electoral system to favour their falling fortunes.” Referencing the previous referendums in 1993 and 2011, Peters said people wanted different representation in Parliament than what Labour and National could provide. “The old parties' weak and inept attitude to economic sovereignty, immigration, and woke nonsense has seen people move to a party that is offering common sense, patriotism, and old-fashioned Kiwi values. “Shutting down and taking away true democratic representation from the people of New Zealand should be seen for what it is – a power grab and an ignorance for what it means to be a democracy.” Adam Pearse is the deputy political editor and part of the NZ Herald's press gallery team based at Parliament in Wellington. He has worked for NZME since 2018, reporting for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei and the Herald in Auckland. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Weekly interview with Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon; Silver Fern, Kimiora Poi speaks following Commonwealth Gold win; Chris Bishop discusses Fast-Track Approvals Act; Julie White discusses continued growth in travel sector; Hawke's Bay grower discusses food cost transparency

The Government says its Fast-Track Approvals Act is about cutting through red tape to get more projects built sooner. But councils and community groups are increasingly arguing the legislation is allowing large housing developments to leapfrog years of planning work, leaving local governments to figure out how to fund the roads, water and other infrastructure afterwards. Infrastructure and RMA Reform Minister, Chris Bishop spoke to John Campbell.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 30th of July, Mike couldn't be more excited for the signing of our biggest-ever PPP deal for the new Northland Expressway. Has Winston Peters crossed the line with his latest comments? Or is this just Winston in election year? Former Speaker Sir Lockwood Smith shares his thoughts on the situation. And Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson joined Mike to Wrap the Week – just wait until you hear about the latest with Mike and Kate's new fountain. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister wants to get Northland booming as the Government moves ahead with the first stage of the Northland Expressway. It's signed a $3.6 billion deal with the Northway consortium to design, build, and operate the road, stretching from Warkworth to Te Hana. The 26-kilometre, four-lane highway will include 15 bridges and twin tunnels a kilometre long. Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking it'll be an expensive road, but this is the sort of game-changing infrastructure we need. He's also offering assurances that it won't end in a cost blowout – saying there's extensive conditions in the contract around delivery. Bishop says the consortium will also maintain the road for 25 years, once it opens in 2033/34. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're a fan, like I am, of scrapping as many councils as possible because of how poorly the numpties on those councils are running the place, you're about to learn, as I am, that just because you and I like an idea doesn't mean everyone else does. We are two weeks away from Chris Bishop's deadline for councils to submit their amalgamation plans so that we end up with a few large councils instead of dozens of small ones. And, two weeks out, the wheels are starting to come off. Upper Hutt City Council has changed its mind. It doesn't want to amalgamate with Wellington anymore. By the looks of things, it made that decision this week. That's a little worrying because the Wellington amalgamation felt like the slam-dunk, easy one. It's been talked about for such a long time, the boundaries are obvious, there should just be one council and the carve-up of a small region into so many councils is unbelievably stupid. But despite all that, there's a problem. It doesn't look like it's going to happen easily. Wairoa is flat-out refusing to amalgamate with anyone and it makes a good case for why. As the ever-sensible Mayor of Wairoa, Craig Little, says, the efficiencies would flow to the centres, not the edges. Wairoa is on the edge and, to be honest, he's right, isn't he? Nelson wants to go with Tasman. Tasman doesn't want to go with Nelson. Canterbury has five different options for how it could do this but it doesn't know which one to choose. Hamilton also doesn't know how to do it. "Megatron" is apparently one option. Kaipara doesn't want to join up with the other Northland councils, although they're happy to join up with each other. Of course, this was always going to go this way when you think about it. Of course it was always going to descend into a fight. Auckland descended into a fight. It still is a fight for some people. There are still people who moan about the Super City in Auckland and it's been nearly 20 years. Spare a thought for Chris Bishop on this one because he's the minister responsible for all of this. His life already sucks. He's already breaking promises about Roads of National Significance. Auckland has already given him a good spanking over the density rules. Christopher Luxon has already taken away some of his favourite jobs. He's got the RMA reforms coming at him fast and those are going to be contentious as well. And now he's got this drama, which, in the next two weeks, is likely to blow up in his face.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leighton 'Uncle Tics' Clarke and Josh 'the Tourette's Barber' Hughes join us tonight LIVE at 9pm to talk about life with Tourette's and Felix Shaw's petition to "Recognize Tourette Syndrome as a government-funded disability in Aotearoa" as it's currently not seen in law as a disability in Aotearoa NZThe ACT Party is accusing Labour of "manufactured outrage" after it complained about new candidate Paul Henry's participation in a risqué radio game. "People want politicians who are real," ACT leader David Seymour said. "Not ones that pretend to be outraged." In the past, David Seymour was very keen to be offended when TVNZ Breakfast shot salt at a Trump doll. Hypocrisy?Kieran McAnulty and Chris Bishop were on TVNZ's Breakfast show this morning talking about Stuart Nash's history of awful behaviour. They also then covered off how with that history, NZ First still saw fit to have him as one of their candidates and took a moment to mention the other NZ First MPs who have also said some shocking things but seem to be safe in Luxon's cabinet++++++++++++++++++++Like us on Facebook.com/BigHairyNetwork Follow us on Twitter.com/@bighairynetworkFollowing us on TikTok.com/@bighairynetworkSupport us on Patreon www.patreon.com/c/BigHairyNewsCheck out our merch https://bhn.nz/shop/Donate to our work https://bhn.nz/shop/donation/

Politicians across the spectrum are expressing disgust at NZ First candidate Stuart Nash as he attacks his National Party opponent in the Napier electorate for taking maternity leave - naming her as the “laziest MP I have ever come across”. Christopher Luxon called it "sexist" and Chris Bishop said the comments from Nash were “disgusting”Finance Minister Nicola Willis says while inflation has been largely driven by fuel prices, rates are also an issue that needs attention and she, and National, are trying to sell the idea that it wasn't for the external pressures like the closure of the Strait of Hormuz then inflation would only be at 2.9%...funny I can't remember National giving Labour a pass on external pressures and allow them to celebrate what inflation WOULD BE if it wasn't for COVID.The Climate Change Commission has found New Zealand is not on track to meet domestic climate change targets, but the Prime Minister says he disagrees. Mr. Luxon said that his Government would respond to the Commission's latest emissions monitoring report, but “our position is really clear ... we're on track to deliver EB budget 1, EB budget 2. There'll be more work for EB budget 3, but we're on track to deliver net zero and we might even deliver it a little earlier”++++++++++++++++++++Like us on Facebook.com/BigHairyNetwork Follow us on Twitter.com/@bighairynetworkFollowing us on TikTok.com/@bighairynetworkSupport us on Patreon www.patreon.com/c/BigHairyNewsCheck out our merch https://bhn.nz/shop/Donate to our work https://bhn.nz/shop/donation/

EDITORIAL: When I first heard this story, I thought this is not right, this is not fair, and I didn't think it fitted with what the coalition government stood for. What am I talking about? Of course, I'm talking about the $60 million hand out. I have to say, if you'd asked me whether I'd ever see a centre-right government stepping in to financially support a publicly listed company, I would have said with a smile, "No chance." Not because governments shouldn't support business, but because I always believed governments like this preferred to let the market decide who succeeds and who fails. Yet here we go. The Government is preparing to provide financial support to Fletcher Building, one of New Zealand's biggest companies, through a deal designed to keep local cement production alive at Golden Bay Cement in Whangārei. Fletcher Building isn't some small family-owned business that's fallen on hard times. It's one of New Zealand's biggest publicly listed companies, listed on both the New Zealand and Australian stock exchanges, with thousands of shareholders and operations across the country and Australia. Now, before anyone says this is about jobs, I completely understand that argument. Hundreds of people work there directly and indirectly, and New Zealand does need a reliable supply of cement. It's a critical product. I get all that. We need it to build houses, schools, hospitals, roads and major infrastructure. You don't want to wake up one day and realise we're completely dependent on imported cement if global supply chains are disrupted. Chris Bishop said Golden Bay is an exceptional case and of national interest. But here's the question I can't get past. When did governments start picking winners? Because that's exactly what this feels like to me. This coalition government talks constantly about reducing government intervention, letting markets work, encouraging competition and creating a level playing field. Those are all principles I generally support. If you're prepared to step in and financially back one of the country's biggest listed companies, where does it stop? What about every other manufacturer battling high energy prices? What about forestry? Steel? Food processing? Hospitality? Retail? Plenty of businesses have faced enormous cost pressures over the past few years without anyone offering them a government lifeline. Why is this one different? If this is genuinely about New Zealand's strategic resilience and making sure we continue producing cement here, then tell us that. Be upfront about it. Make the case that this is about national infrastructure and supply security. But don't pretend this isn't government intervention. Because it damn well is. 60 million, cash hand out. It's not having to be paid pack. Governments have every right to protect strategically important industries if they believe it's in the national interest. But once taxpayers' money starts flowing towards large, publicly listed companies, the public deserves a very clear explanation of why this company qualifies, what safeguards are in place, what taxpayers get in return, and where the line is drawn. This isn't just about cement. It's about the role of government in the economy. More importantly to me it's about fairness. And it's about whether this Government is practising the free-market philosophy it campaigned on, it sung from the rafters—or whether, when push comes to shove, it's prepared to back the biggest players while everyone else is left to fend for themselves. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The RMA Reform Minister says there's been a "mad rush" for councils and iwi to secure deals before the concept is scrapped. The Government had initially planned for the Mana Whakahono ā Rohe to be transferred to the new Resource Management Act system. But that will no longer be the case, the Government arguing these agreements have become out-of-scope and unfit for purpose. Minister Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking the focus will instead be on identifying sites of cultural significance. He says most New Zealanders would agree pā sites and burial sites should be exempt from development. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 21st of July, we hear from the political commentator Adam Boulton as Andy Burnham becomes the UK's new Prime Minister – the seventh in a decade. RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop speaks on the scrapping of iwi-council deals in the new system, and the Government's bailout for Golden Bay Cement. And Open champion Ryan Fox joins us after a night of no sleep and some red wine as the history he made continues to sink in. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister Responsible for RMA Reform Chris Bishop spoke to the public today with more details about the RMA reform. Bishop confirmed all existing agreements, called Mana Whakahono ā Rohe, between councils and local iwi will be scrapped, replacing them with 'iwi participation agreements'. He told Heather du Plessis-Allan the one main goal is protecting Māori land, "and so the question is how you go about doing that in a streamlined way in the system where you don't have co-governance and you don't have broad cultural rights that are asserted". LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I've heard tracks from Love? said the Commander consistently on Dan Drago's 25 O'Clock Pod pretty regularly over the years.  And every time it always caught my ear, and tug at my emotions.  I suppose that's where the genre label "emo" truly comes from.At some point, when I heard another one of their brilliant songs, I just said "alright, that's it.  I've gotta have them on the show".  And reached out to Kate Hall and Chris Bishop and we started to plan for it.Then they pitched me this great idea - they do this thing called Secret Songs where you can engage with them to use their talents to write a song for something or someone special.  You just provide them with the prompts and some key details to include lyrically.  So they offered to do that for the show and, if I was down, to have me hear it for the first time live during the broadcast.Naturally I asked them to write about the show's love and connection to ... Musikfest!  Especially with that right around the corner.  And so I gave them all the details around the Exordium, the Picks of the Platz, the Aw Shucks corn, the mugs, and so on.  Can't wait to take a listen with all of you!Don't miss this one - you'll love Love? said the Commander!Text us your thoughts on this episode, and who should be OUR #NextFavBand...As always, our hope is to bring you "your next favorite band".  If you tuned in today because you already knew this musician - thank you very much!  We hope that you enjoyed it and would consider following us and subscribing so we can bring you your #nextfavband in the future.  And check out nextfavband.com for our entire catalog of interviews!If you have a recommendation on who you think OUR next favorite band should be, hit us up on social media (@nextfavband everywhere) or send us an email at nextfavband@stereophiliastudio.com.Thank you to Carver Commodore, argonaut&wasp, and Blair Crimmins for allowing us to use their music in the show open and close.  It makes everything sound so much better!Let's catch a live show together soon!#nextfavband #livemusic #music #musicinterview #musician  #singer  #guitar  #song  #newmusic  #explorepage  #instamusic #bestmusic #musicismylife #musicindustry #musiclife #songwriter #musiclover #musicfestival 

Tonight on The Huddle, Jordan Williams from the Taxpayers' Union and former Labour Minister Phil Goff joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Councils have been signing iwi partnership agreements before the RMA is replaced - are we worried about this? What is Chris Bishop trying to do? ACT leader David Seymour is looking into banning smartphones for under-16s. Do we think this is the way to go? Should we wait and figure things out? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If anyone on a council at the moment can't understand why so many of us ratepayers are so hostile towards them, sometimes bordering on hatred, can I just suggest they take a look at what's going on with these agreements with iwi? That might actually give them a bit of an idea. If you haven't followed this, Chris Bishop is planning to replace the Resource Management Act shortly and his replacement law will not allow councils to sign any more of these agreements. These agreements are called Mana Whakahono a Rohe agreements. In some cases, and certainly in the more extreme examples, they effectively cede significant decision-making power to iwi. The new law will not allow any further agreements to be signed but it will allow existing agreements to continue. So, of course, what's happening is that councils are rushing to sign as many of these things as they can before the law changes. The Far North District Council is trying to sign five of them, apparently without involving elected councillors in the process. They're reportedly not even allowed to see the detail. I've had a letter today from the Mayor of Carterton drawing my attention to the fact that Greater Wellington Regional Council, which covers Carterton, is doing exactly the same thing, despite objections from two of its constituent councils: Carterton and Kāpiti. Environment Canterbury tried to rush one through this week, then got busted and pulled it from the agenda. The fact that councils are being cynical like this will come as no surprise to anyone because they did exactly the same thing with Māori wards when they knew that, in many cases, their own ratepayers did not support them. But this gets much more difficult for the Government because it, particularly the National Party and ACT, said this co-governance stuff would end. Yet they are allowing it to continue under their new RMA laws by permitting these agreements to carry over. They need to change that law. They need to change it before it becomes law if they really meant what they said. Importantly, if they want to retain the faith of the voters who backed them to end this stuff, then they need to act when they have the chance next week, when the select committee report on the RMA reforms comes back. They need to say that these agreements will be rendered void under the new law and that whatever has been signed in a last-minute rush will count for nothing. This is the Government's big test. It's the chance to prove that what it said about co-governance wasn't just hot air. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What's working for the Government at the moment is the economy. The economy looks like it's coming right, in time to milk it all the way to the election. So the Roads of National Significance reset is what you would loosely call a setback, if not a dead rat. This country has become famous for talking big and doing little, for promising things that never happen. As that reputation built up over many years and many Governments, you hoped we were slowly realising the futility of such behaviour and looking to bring it to an end. Yet, no. It's worse for National because they are the party of the economy. They are the party that gets elected historically after Labour cock it up. They are the adults in the room. So for Chris Bishop to tell us what they promised isn't happening the way they thought is a blow to the credibility. Further, the admission that the promises were ambitious is not as big a problem as admitting the promises were driven largely by the construction industry wanting a pipeline of work. That smacks of politics of convenience. It smacks of a party telling you what you want to hear. For all the criticism of Labour and Let's Get Wellington Moving, or the light rail in Auckland debacle, National admitting they over promised is not a good look. If you want the glass half-full, stuff is happening and things are being built. But lets be honest; when they say five projects are in the "slow lane", the slow lane in this country is the "no lane" - they won't happen ever. That's before you get to the prospect of a Labour election win, which will lead to the old obsession with cycleways and bus lanes and so none of it will ever come to pass. Government is about delivery. Elections are about choosing your path of choice and after that it's delivery. Labour are famous for lack of it. With National on roads it turns out they're not as bad, but they're not what they said they were on the tin. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister says it's hard to know what a road will cost until construction begins. Chris Bishop has released a new phased timeline for the 17 transport projects on the Government's to do list - putting five on the back burner. The whole 17 roads are expected to come in at roughly $56 billion. Bishop says these projects will be completed in phases, and there's no market capacity to get all of these built at the same time. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's not pretend that this roading announcement is not a massive letdown for anyone who voted for the National Party believing it would deliver the roads it promised. It is a huge letdown. Of the 15 Roads of National Significance promised following the last election, only six have construction dates: Takitimu North Link Stage 1 in Tauranga, Ōtaki to north of Levin, the Hawke's Bay Expressway, Warkworth to Te Hana, Cambridge to Piarere and the Ōmanawa Bridge. I don't even know where that is. The rest of them? Well, good luck to you. The second Mount Victoria Tunnel, which is one of my personal obsessions because of how badly Wellington needs it, has no construction date. In fact, the pre-construction work could take us all the way through to 2037. That is incredibly disappointing. I've heard rumours for months that this was the case. I've kept asking Chris Bishop about it on this show and he has assured me the project was all go. But it's not really, is it? And remember what National said at the last election: spades in the ground in the first term. That is now a broken promise. Now, I have to give credit where credit is due and that is to Chris Bishop because he fronted up and got honest with the public about this. That can't have been easy for him to do - for his own reputation and for the political fallout facing the National Party ahead of the next election. I know he's been anxious about this day coming and it has come. I think he's handled it as well as he could.But this is a mistake that Chris Bishop and the Nats cannot blame on anyone but themselves. They cannot blame Trump. They cannot blame tariffs. They cannot blame the conflict with Iran. They cannot blame inflation. They cannot blame the Labour Party. It was obvious in 2023 that they were being too ambitious in promising all these roads. They were warned they were being too ambitious and the warnings were correct. Now there will be significant numbers of disappointed voters who will have to wait so long for the roads they were promised that - given how changes of Government work - they may never actually get them. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter sits down with Chris Bishop, VP of Sales & Marketing at Yo-Zuri, during his annual June swing through New England. A 15-year company veteran and obsessive angler (snook and tarpon at home in Sebastian, FL; stripers at the Cape Cod Canal on the road), Chris explains the technology platforms behind Yo-Zuri's most trusted lures and how he actually fishes them.   Covered in this episode: how the patented magnetic weight transfer system delivers distance and accuracy in wind; the difference between the Mag and Hydro platforms; why the Mag Darter's swim-plus-dart action excels around bridges, inlets, and shadow lines; fishing the swing in moving water; the Mag Pencil and the durable pearl-in-the-plastic finishes; the shallow-running Hydro Minnow LC and a quick lesson in lip design; the Hydro Monster Shot's dying-baitfish fall (an albie killer); the 3D Inshore series; and Chris's top Northeast colors — and the logic for when to match the hatch versus stand out.   Every lure discussed is available at saltwateredge.com. Show Notes / Timestamps 0:00 — Intro: learning the "why" behind 20 years of products 0:48 — Chris's background; 15 years at Yo-Zuri; medical device sales roots 1:53 — His territory: national chains, product development, and keeping the Northeast 4:00 — Developing colors and baits specifically for New England, the Vineyard, and Jersey 5:59 — Mag vs. Hydro platforms explained 6:37 — The magnetic weight transfer "snap" and how it works 7:34 — Distance and accuracy in 20-mph wind 9:36 — Florida life: snook, tarpon, topwater jacks on the Surface Cruiser 11:23 — Hydro weight transfer vs. Mag: how to cast each 13:00 — Sled weight transfer in big pencils; why most big topwaters "cast like a potato chip" 14:12 — Mag Darter deep dive: swimming action + dart, four sizes 16:19 — Bridges, shadow lines, breachways: where the darter earns its keep 17:53 — Technique: the slow swing, the eddy edge, ricocheting off structure 19:38 — Floating it out to unreachable fish; tarpon technique 21:13 — Mag Pencil: 98% Northeast; pearl powder-in-plastic finishes 23:25 — 3D prism finishes and matching water clarity 26:34 — Hydro Minnow LC: runs in a foot of water; boulder fields and flats 28:40 — The Mag Speed for staying deep 29:37 — Lip design 101 30:36 — Fishing the LC as a wake bait at the Canal 31:23 — The Canal love-hate: "hustle and effort" 32:56 — Hydro Monster Shot: 10 years proven in Japan 35:10 — The shimmy on the fall; why it out-fishes a tin 36:33 — Sizes: albies to tuna; sand beach distance technique 39:35 — 3D Inshore series: shallow water, durable internal finishes, under $15 42:26 — Top Northeast colors: yellow, bone, bronze/bunker (ayu), green mackerel 45:47 — Flash, gradients, and when to stand out vs. match the hatch 48:06 — Under $30, ready out of the box — closing thoughts  

From today Council's are required to take a common sense, risk based approach to temporary traffic management. That should mean less rows of bright orange safety cones. Tranport minister Chris Bishop spoke with Lisa Owen.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 30th of June, just how fast has the fast-track system been? Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop discusses. Tonight is the night when we find out if/how many New Zealand restaurants have been awarded a Michelin star. Kiwi singer Zac Griffith has released his debut EP so is back on the show - just wait until you hear his performance! Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Infrastructure Minister says the 'one-stop shop' nature of the fast-track process is appealing to developers. Since the new law came into force in 2024, 24 projects have been approved with another 82 in the pipeline. The Government says the projects take 117 days on average to get approval, when it could've taken several years before. Minister Chris Bishop told Mike Hosking people are able to get all their consents in one go through the new process. He says archaeology, heritage, wildlife, and conservation consents can be done together – saving time. Bishop says the approved projects aren't just 'low-hanging fruit' – some, like a Hawke's Bay housing development, are quite simple but others are more complex. He says the Waihi North Mine and two quarries are examples of complicated projects which have been approved. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barry Soper joins Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss today's news in politics. Allegations have been made against police commissioner Richard Chambers, but police minister Mark Mitchell says Chambers has his support. Chris Bishop delivered bad news to truck drivers. And the inequity gap is growing, most noticeable in the classroom. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tunnel or bridge? Chris Bishop discusses harbour crossing; Racing industry faces uncertain future, report warns; Foundation urges caution over prostate home testing; Programme encourages girls into infrastructure careers; Cricketer Bob Blair's extraordinary legacy remembered

Transport Minister Chris Bishop is expected to announce the Government's preferred option for a second Auckland harbour crossing, either a tunnel or a bridge at some stage before the election. Transport Minister Chris Bishop spoke to John Campbell.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 24th of June, Five Eyes is warning that the threat AI poses to security could arrive in a matter of months. Just wait until you hear the latest stats around ACC and whether we are actually being rehabbed or not. Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell talk the Greens' tax plans, the truth around the alleged conservation land sell-off, and Chris Bishop's yoga classes on Politics Wednesday. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on Politics Wednesday, Mark Mitchell and Ginny Andersen joined Mike Hosking to delve into some of the biggest stories of the week thus far. They discussed the Greens' tax plan, the truth around the alleged selling off of conservation land, and Chris Bishop's yoga classes. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Transport Minister Chris Bishop previously cast doubt on fuel taxes going up next year - but what could the peace deal do for that? The Iran war's effect on oil prices prompted the Government to say taxes weren't going up, but they've since indicated the increase isn't off the table. Chris Bishop says things are moving around, and if this deal holds, changes could be in order. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister is denying weighing up using an emergency fund on public transport. Chris Bishop says a contingency fund in this Budget - is for targeted, timely fuel-crisis support - if needed. Bishop says if the Government wants to do something around public transport, it would look to infrastructure. "I'm not proposing, in fact, I never said we were proposing, it's been wildly misreported that we'd use the emergency fund for that." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Minimum income related rent contributions for social housing will rise from 25 to 30 percent. That means 84,000 households will be paying an average of $31 more a week in rent. The flip side; more than 100,000 other families will get higher accommodation supplement rates; an average of $15 a week. The assessment for social housing is being redesigned - so its " more tightly prioritised" for those who need it. Housing Minister Chris Bishop spoke to Lisa Owen.