Podcast appearances and mentions of David Seymour

ACT has announced a new policy to tackle rural crime by introducing a Police text service, delivering harsher punishments, and creating a specified rural police force. ACT leader David Seymour told Matt and Tyler that rural crime needs to be understood as a form of organised crime. "A lot of urban people probably think it's a bit of a joke that your cows could get stolen, but if your cows are your livelihood and cattle rustling does happen, it's not the wild west but it does happen, then that's a real problem," Seymour said. "And we're saying that there should be a specialised police unit." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Act Party leader and Deputy PM talks about Fieldays and why he’s leaving a lot of the heavy lifting there to his Ag Spokesperson, Andrew Hoggard. We also pay tribute to the departing Mark Cameron and cast a critical eye over the Labour Party list rankings.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamie Mackay talks to Wayne Langford, David Seymour, Farmer Tom Martin, Blair McLean, and Phil Duncan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government will stop unelected individuals from voting on council committees, a move an Act MP has described as closing an anti-democratic loophole. It seems like a no brainer. Why should unelected individuals have the right to vote on council committees? Of course people who have never been elected to a council or a government shouldn't be given voting rights. You can certainly ask people for their opinion, their informed comment, but voting rights? The issue of unelected New Zealanders being appointed to council committees and then having voting rights has been in the news recently, predominantly around the Far North where hapū representatives were confirmed to be put on a committee tasked with shaping Māori strategic relationships and embedding Te Tiriti based partnership in council decision making. Fair enough, getting their opinions. Absolutely. You would imagine that hapū representatives are the best people to talk about how to shape Māori strategic relationships and how they see Te Tiriti being enacted through council decision making. Totally fair enough. Where it gets a bit murky is that they have full speaking and voting rights alongside elected representatives. They're also paid the daily rate. They don't have to accept it, but they are paid a daily rate of around about 250 bucks plus travel costs plus any childcare, just as elected representatives can ask for. They can volunteer their time and their knowledge, but if they want to be paid, they will be. They wouldn't make final decisions, but they would vote on the issues that would be heard at full council. ACT leader David Seymour said anyone voting on council decisions should be accountable, including facing elections, and the party lodged a member's bill to prohibit voting rights for unelected appointees. But Simon Watts, Local Government Minister, has basically cut their lunch and announced that non-elected individuals can be appointed to offer their professional advice, they can represent communities, but they will not be able to vote or count towards a quorum. The statutory committees and appointments, including those agreed as part of a treaty settlement though, will be excluded. WATTS: This is a specific board set up for Auckland Council. Short answer is, is that for the Independent Māori Statutory Board, those members will only be able to vote on council committees where the law specifically enables it, and what that means is, is that that committee's set up under a different act. HDPA: So they retain their voting rights? WATTS: If it's related to the specific act. So it relates to where they're doing the management of natural and physical resources. If they're on a subcommittee doing that, then they're able to vote. Anything else, they're not able to. So, does that clear it up? I would be really interested to hear from a range of interests as to how council decisions will impact, and some will vary more than others. If you're in Wellington right now, for example, and you're in council, you would want to hear from businesses as to how decisions made by the council have impacted upon them. The cycle lanes, the development of, or the neglect really, the lack of development around the bridge, the Paremata Bridge and the library, the reopening of the library, the cost of that, the redevelopment of the Michael Fowler Centre. You would want representatives from business to say, look, this is our experience, this is what's happening, make your decisions perhaps based on that. If you're Māori in the Far North and you're dealing with issues around Māori land or the rating of Māori land, the re-rating of Māori land, or water, tourism perhaps, you would definitely want a Māori lens, a Māori perspective. But if you're going to be making decisions so that some issues don't make it to full council, elected members might not even know that there was an issue because it's been dealt with by these unelected representatives and they have voted on what the elected members of the council will actually see, I think it's a different story. Imagine if the Government asked a panel of Newstalk ZB hosts for their reckons to shape policy and then vote on it as to what would get to Parliament. You know, basically act as a select committee. I don't think so. You wouldn't stand for that. And if we want to have our reckons represented at a council level or government level, then we stand. We stand as councillors, mayors, we stand as MPs. There are 33 Māori across all parties in Parliament, representing a huge range of views and lived experiences, which is fantastic. We have councillors, chief executives, highly regarded mayors, all Māori. And I'd be really interested to hear the views of Māori, particularly in how it relates to land and water management. But if you're not elected, I don't think you should have a vote. Have a reckon by all means, but not a vote. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deputy Prime Minister and ACT Party leader David Seymour is welcoming the reduction of New Zealand's public service by 8700 staff over the next three years. He joins Jack Tame to discuss a new map of New Zealand's 267 different regulators from the Ministry for Regulation. With less than six months to the general election, and the party polling slightly lower than its 2023 performance, David Seymour speaks to his new policy of tougher English language requirements for visa-holders and introducing an overstayer enforcement unit within Immigration New Zealand. Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.

RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson will resign after 13 years in the job, board chair Jim Mather announced this morning. Mather says while the decision for Thompson to resign at the end of 2026 was made in December of last year, the announcement has been pulled forward by "recent unhelpful external commentary about his future". Deputy prime minister and ACT Party leader David Seymour, who is also a shareholding minister in RNZ, has criticised the public broadcaster's board and chief executive in recent months, and speculated earlier in the month that Thompson "won't be answering the call at RNZ for much longer." David Seymour joins Jack Tame. Watch more of Q+A's interview with David Seymour on Sunday.

The Associate Health Minister's praising a proposal to offer free flu jabs to more people. Pharmac's looking at providing the jabs to an extra 260 thousand children between six months and five-years-old from next year. It's also proposing introducing two new brands for over 65s. David Seymour told Mike Hosking some young people still die every year from influenza, and as every parent knows, they also spread it around the household. He says the cost-benefit of this stacks up, and it's a great thing for Pharmac to be looking into. Consultation opens mid-June. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Seymour has unveiled a report that's made extensive use of AI to reveal a messy maze of regulations that suck up people's time. The regulations minister's report into regulatory duplication and inefficiency comes just a day after the bombshell announcement of deep cuts to the public service. It was followed up with confirmation the New Zealand government logo would feature English first, ahead of Te Reo Maori. Political reporter Russell Palmer has the story.

Join Wallace for New Zealand's most explosive 30 minutes of politics. He is joined by panellists Andrea Vance, Phil Goff and Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira. On the slab for discussion today: the government's public service cuts; Winston Peters and the resurrection of the BNZ, the NCEA replacement and the return of grades; regulations minister David Seymour says the country's regulators is a "twisted spaghetti" and is the government walking a tightrope between Crown and Maori relations?

The sky is not falling in, but the public service is finally getting a much-needed reset with eight thousand workers set to go. Duncan breaks down why this is a serious correction to a problem that exploded under the previous government. Plus, Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour joins the show to explain why these budget savings are locked in and what it means for the future of Wellington. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Regulation Minister David Seymour says New Zealanders should only have to knock at one regulator's door to get something done. A Ministry report out today identifies almost 270 different organisations within our regulation system. They're spread across central and local Government, and statutory bodies, committees and tribunals. Seymour says this feels like New Zealand is a small country with a too-big Government, and changes need to be made. "You just feel that a lot of things would be easier if we looked at these and said - hey, maybe we need fewer agencies focused on doing things that are essential, we'd getter better results, less costs, it'd be easier to fix things." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kaitiaki Hauora has released a new analysis by Dr Jackie Cumming and Dr Bill Rosenberg looking at the funding level likely required to maintain New Zealand's public health system under current pressures. Tonight we are joined LIVE with co-author Dr Bill Rosenberg and spokesperson Dr David GallerGreen Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick and Act leader David Seymour discuss the cuts to public serviceThe government has updated its official branding to give greater prominence to English over te reo Māori, following a directive from new Public Service Minister Paul Goldsmith.++++++++++++++++++++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: If you listened yesterday, you heard it coming. We knew the Government was preparing to swing the axe again through the public service. What we didn't know was just how deep the cuts were going to be. Now we know. Nearly 9,000 public sector jobs gone by 2029. A 14 percent reduction. Public service numbers down from just over 63,000 to around 55,000. Government departments merged. AI and digital tools replacing roles. Nicola Willis says it'll save $2.4 billion. David Seymour says it's “just what the doctor ordered.” The Greens are calling it New Zealand's version of DOGE. And Wellington? Wellington wakes up this morning feeling like it's gone another round in the ring with Muhammad Ali. Bang. Bang. Bang. In quick succession. No time to recover. No time to breathe. No chance to get back on your feet before the next hit comes. But here's what really struck me out of all this news: If anyone thinks it's strange the Government is doing this before next week's Budget — think about it for a second. This is the soft blow before the big blow comes. This is the mowing of the lawn before they land the plane. Governments don't soften people up before good news. They soften people up before harder news. And maybe the reality is the Budget next week is going to be tougher than many Wellingtonians are ready for. Now look — I'm not going to sit here this morning and pretend the public service was never going to change. It grew massively after COVID. Technology and AI are changing every industry in the world. Every sector is having to adapt. Everyone has to. But what worries me is this city's confidence. Because every time one of these announcements lands, spending stops instantly. People stop buying coffees. Stop going out for dinner. Stop booking weekends away. Stop replacing clothes. Stop taking risks. And Wellington businesses feel it immediately. But at some point, we've got to stop sitting around asking what Wellington used to be — and start asking what Wellington is going to become. Because if the old model of Wellington being powered almost entirely by government jobs is changing, what's the new model? How do we fix Wellington? Seriously. Do we double down on hospitality, events and culture? Do we become the creative capital again? The tech capital? The startup capital? Do we back tourism harder? Do we make this city easier to invest in, easier to build in, easier to open businesses in? Do we stop fighting growth and actually encourage it? Do we make it easier to do business in Wellington? Because sitting around waiting for another ministry to lease another office floor on The Terrace probably isn't the future anymore. And I know this is a shock for a lot of people this morning. I genuinely do. There'll be families scared about mortgages, jobs, rents and what comes next. But Wellington cannot afford to become a city that only talks about decline. At some point we've got to shrug our shoulders, get on with it, and work out how we and this city succeed again. What the hell do we do to make Wellington great again? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Deputy PM is not impressed by his predecessor Winston's plan to buy the BNZ, plus he applauds Education Minister Erica Stanford cracking the whip on NCEA.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamie Mackay talks to David Seymour, Tom Young, Dom Jones, and P J Montgomery. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Associate Health Minister David Seymour welcomes Pharmac's proposal to change funding criteria for more type 2 diabetes medicines based on clinical need. Under the proposal, 25,000 more diabetic Kiwis will gain access to the treatments over the next few years. David Seymour says there's a lot of potential in investing in more GLP-1 medications to prevent other health problems impacting people down the line. "We've made a lot of progress on this kind of whole of society approach to funding medicines that will save us money in the long term, but that's some of the challenges we've run into so far." Pharmac has since confirmed the ethnicity criteria reference refers to the diabetes medicine consultation and they have separate recommendations for semaglutide funding applications. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon says National will consider changes to KiwiSaver policy ahead of the election while making his lines clear on immigration fearful that ACT will take more votes away from them, he has told businesses he would be choosing "social stability" over their bottom lines...which is code for 'tough on immigration'.Winston Peters was fiery on Breakfast this morning with his usual amount of venom for the media, but a pretty large dose for National as well telling Tova O'Brien that National would raid the Cullen fund to pay for their budget because of their "failed economic policies" and had a quite extraordinary perspective on a NZer being held in ICE detention.David Seymour and Marama Davidson went toe to toe on Ryan Bridge's show this morning with Davidson being clear that the message from ACT's position around suing in court over climate change was a statement to "vote them out" and, once again, an incredible focus on an Instagram account run by a former employee of the Labour party.++++++++++++++++++++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/

If it's not already obvious to you, the fact that Maiki Sherman has lost her job should now make it very clear: the media—especially the state broadcasters, both of them—are about to find out what it means not just to make and report the news but to be the news. Just look at what's happened this week alone. And this is only a sample—this has been building for some time.In one week, TVNZ political editor Maiki Sherman has lost her job over poor behaviour in a minister's office. David Seymour, the ACT Party leader, has taken a significant swipe at RNZ for hiring John Campbell, who is well known for voting left—something he's said himself. Seymour has even gone so far as to suggest the head of RNZ should lose his job over it. Then there's the BSA, effectively the head girl telling everyone off for bad jokes at the party, being abolished. The politicians are coming for the media and Sherman's case is an example of that. The National Party lined her up. They complained about her allegedly door-knocking Stuart Smith for 10 minutes at night. They confirmed that she had sworn at Nicola Willis' event in the office—which was unusual, given that Nicola effectively broke Chatham House rules that MPs normally guard jealously. Now, look—I feel sorry for Maiki losing her job. That's a very high price to pay. But I don't feel sorry for the media in general for what's coming. We've had this coming. For years, we've collectively pushed a certain world view through the framing of our stories. We decide who the victim is, who the bad guy is and what language we use—labelling things as “controversial” to signal to the audience that something is bad, like the “controversial Treaty Principles Bill”. We flip angles too—turning a positive government crime stats story into a negative gang-focused story for the same government. And when Radio New Zealand, which is supposed to be more impartial and balanced than any other outlet in this country, chooses someone to front its flagship programme who has explicitly said he votes for left-wing parties—well, that matters. We deserve what's coming to us in this election. We can't shove the scrum for years and not expect to become part of the on-field play. And I, for one, am not unhappy about what's about to happen. I think it's time for this to be sorted out. If this election brings media bias into sharper focus and forces all of us in the media to stop, reflect and think hard about what we've been doing, I don't think that's a bad thing. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamie Mackay talks to Erica Stanford, Michael Every, and David Seymour. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David Seymour has intensified his attacks on the country's state broadcasters, suggesting changes are coming for RNZ's leadership as the government reshapes its boards. In response, RNZ has staunchly defended its editorial independence and warned against political interference. Deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.

The Regulation Minister is taking aim at red tape he says is hampering the country's rooftop solar uptake. Katie Todd reports.

David Seymour has intensified his attacks on the country's state broadcasters, suggesting changes are coming for RNZ's leadership as the government reshapes its board. Lauren Crimp reports.

Jamie Mackay talks to David Seymour, Dr Jacqueline Rowarth, John McOviney and Chris Russell. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We ask the Act Party leader and Deputy PM whether his immigration policy is cutting Winston’s lunch? Plus, would he pass an immigration test himself? We also talk about TPM v Labour in the Māori seats and preview a big announcement on electrification this afternoon.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A pharmacist said there would need to be additional training if the profession was called on to offer more treatments to ease pressure on GPs. ACT leader David Seymour said his party would extend the role of pharmacists beyond changes already coming into effect next month. In a policy announced on Tuesday, he said pharmacists could treat chest infections, ear infections, skin infections and acute pain, and be responsible for triaging skin cancer concerns. From June, pharmacists will be able to offer funded treatment for six conditions including head lice, scabies and conjunctivitis. Pharmacist, director of Mangawhai Pharmacy, Lanny Wong spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.

In part two, ACT leader David Seymour says the government needs to go further and allow pharmacists to treat more conditions, reducing how often New Zealanders will need to go see a GP. Chair of GP advocacy group GenPro Angus Chambers says there are fishhooks in the idea. Then, how to solve low voting turnout? Online voting? A month-long voting window? Sausage sizzles? Well, why not have a look at the Lawrence-Tuapeka ward in the Clutha District. They clocked in a 70 percent voter turnout in the last local body elections. What's their secret sauce?

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Tuesday, 5 May, 2026, we hear from Local Government Minister Simon Watts on an ultimatum to councils to amalgamate or the Government will do it for them. ACT leader David Seymour explains why he wants pharmacists to treat more illnesses and prescribe antibiotics. We hear why services to treat kidney disease are stretched throughout the country. And on The Huddle, Carmen Parahi and Jordan Williams debate whether it's good for schools to let children do a "fun run" instead of cross-country. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's hope that the ACT Party's latest election promise will alleviate pressure on the wider health sector. David Seymour recently announced ACT would expand pharmacists' powers, including letting them treat more minor ailments, manage long-term medications and monitor some conditions. Seymour says most of the world is looking to better utilise their health professionals to take the load off GPs and Emergency Departments. "What's happened around the world is that pharmacists have got much greater use of robotic prescribing, so there's a lot less - as one pharmacist said to me - counting and pouring. And as a result, all of these countries are starting to make greater use of having a pretty well-trained health professional, usually in your community." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 4th of May, immigration is shaping up to a big election issue. Minister Erica Stanford has numbers of her own, plus she responds to David Seymour's six-point plan. The so-called Freedom Project is underway in the Strait of Hormuz – what does it mean, will it allow ships to go through, and does it break the ceasefire? Former Vice Chief of the US National Guard, Randy Manner gives his take. Former Williams team manager and Ferrari GM Peter Windsor gives his take on the changes to Formula 1 this season and what's likely to happen going forward. 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.

David Seymour joined Mike Hosking as acting Prime Minister while Christopher Luxon is in Singapore. They discussed the big topics coming into this week including the war in Iran and the USA's call for support, and ACT's new immigration policy. On the potential of NZ involvement in Iran Seymour told Hosking, "We're not going into a conflict zone, but if there was genuine, cross-partisan support for us to join a coalition of like-minded nations to ensure that trades on the seas can continue, that is in New Zealand's interest. "We're a trading nation. We need freedom of navigation." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ACT has launched its immigration policy ahead of this year's election - with surcharges and tougher limits for serious offenders. It includes a $6 a day infrastructure surcharge on temporary work visas, which is expected to pocket $80 million a year. The party also wants stronger English language requirements, and would also establish a dedicated unit around enforcement for people over-staying their visas. Leader David Seymour says New Zealand was built on immigration, but it's important to keep the right balance. "What those waves of settlement have done is two things. One is that they built a Kiwi character that's the envy of the world...whether it's our troops out there doing peacekeeping, our sportspeople, our businesspeople - Kiwis have a reputation that we can fix anything, we do what we say we're going to do, we're compassionate and thoughtful people." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 1st of May, Marcus Beveridge discusses some interesting immigration stats as our visa rejection rate falls to a post-Covid low. David Seymour provides some context around the school lunch situation and for all the news articles, there's been a minuscule number of issues compared to the millions of lunches delivered. Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson indulge Mike's want of a fountain in his lake, and discuss drinking cultures at work as they Wrap the Week. 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 Associate Education Minister's defending the school lunches programme despite dozens of early safety complaints. There were 21 food safety probes into the lunches from May 2024 to mid-November 2025. Some investigations came after reports of metal wire, fragments, or glass were discovered in food. David Seymour told Mike Hosking it's 21 lunches out of around 13 million. He says the issues are from when Government overtook Labour's scheme or the first term of their new scheme, which faced some teething issues. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The threat of prosecution for truancy is effective at getting absent students re-enrolled at school, according to the Associate Minister of Education. It's been revealed the parents of an alleged chronic truant are being taken to court by the government as part of crackdown on absent students. The Minister responsible for school attendance David Seymour said 34 cases have formally been notified to Ministry Of Education's Prosecution Unit, with 17 cases resolved before it got to court. But some don't believe heading to court is the way to achieve that goal. Scott Liddell, acting Principal of Kaiapoi High School spoke to Lisa Owen.

ACT leader David Seymour has floated the idea of giving every year eleven student five hundred dollars to invest. It would be supervised as part of a programme to raise financial literacy and encourage kiwis to diversify their investments. Matt Benassi teaches Commerce at Cashmere High School and spoke to Lisa Owen.

David Seymour's thinking about giving tens of millions of dollars away to teenagers. You heard right, but its not quite that simple. The ACT leader's floated the idea of giving every 15 year old school student $500 to invest. It would be supervised as part of a programme to raise financial literacy to encourage kiwis to diversify their investments. The money would come out the of the government's annual Kiwisaver subsidy. ACT leader David Seymour spoke to Lisa Owen.

It's Friday, which means Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson are back to Wrap the Week that Was. They discussed the state of New Zealand's politicians, David Seymour's new financial literacy proposal, and the gift Mike received from what may be his youngest listener. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The CEO of a financial literacy programme for kids believes David Seymour's youth investment idea has promise. The ACT Leader's floating the idea of giving every Year 11 student $500 to learn to invest and be tested on how they're doing. The financial literacy course would cover term deposits and risk funds, and any returns could potentially be given back to the students. MoneyTime co-founder Neil Edmond told Mike Hosking from a student perspective, it's an excellent opportunity to get some hands-on experience in investing. He says many kids don't have role models in that area or money to invest, so giving them a bit of a heads up and a head start is a positive thing. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ACT leader David Seymour says the Government should stick to a planned increase to petrol taxes, despite the Middle East conflict driving up fuel prices. Transport Minister Chris Bishop has claimed it's 'unlikely' the taxes will go up by the planned 12 cents per litre early next year. David Seymour says no one knows what the fuel prices will be like by 2027 - and we shouldn't cancel the increase as a result. "The roads do need to be built, they do need to be maintained and the National Land Transport Fund is actually not funded by taxpayers, it's exclusively funded by road user charges and the excise tax on petrol." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Deputy PM and Act Party leader comments on Luxon and Trump and denies dictatorships are the best form of democracy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamie Mackay talks to Walt Cavendish, David Clark, David Seymour, Mark de Lautour, and Phil Duncan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Help for struggling pharmacies could be on the way. The Government's proposing letting pharmacists prescribe funded medicines for conditions like scabies and conjunctivitis, so people no longer have to see a GP or pay the full pharmacy price. It would also cover medication for UTIs and the emergency contraceptive pill. Associate Health Minister David Seymour told Mike Hosking smaller, local pharmacies are really battling. He says this would be a way to use them while taking pressure off emergency departments and GPs. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when a council stops looking like democracy and starts looking like intimidation? That's where we begin today, as Duncan digs into the government's warning to the Far North District Council and asks whether local democracy is being pushed off course. Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour joins us to talk through the claims, the growing pressure on the government, and what happens when elected representatives say they're being frozen out or threatened. We also get into the wider question here: who gets to make decisions in New Zealand, and how far ministers should go when councils appear to be losing control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The number of children in charter schools is growing, with Act leader David Seymour saying it proves parents want choice. Head of Twin Oaks Classical School Amanda Goodchild spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

David Seymour believes financial flexibility is playing a role in the rapid growth of charter schools. New figures show more than 1,400 students were enrolled in 16 schools as of last month. The first seven schools established have seen their rolls jump more than 200% from 215 to 650. The Associate Education Minister told Mike Hosking charter schools demonstrate what's possible within the learning environment. He says they can be shut down if they don't reach targets like attendance and academics, but in return get the flexibility to use money their way. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's time to start prioritising who gets diesel according to a leading economist. Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold expects 91 to crack $3.70 a litre in the next week and for Diesel to be not far behind, Diesel fuels Aotearoa freight, farming and other industries. Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour spoke to Lisa Owen.

Labour's support for an India Free Trade Agreement remains tentative as it digs through the details. Leader Chris Hipkins has written to Trade Minister Todd McClay concerned the deal's contents don't line up with the version he's presented. Hipkins is warning it would be recklessly irresponsible for McClay to sign onto it without majority backing across Parliament. But Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour told Mike Hosking Labour needs to look at the broader benefits to exporters. He says the Government has a sea of red ink stretching out for decades looking at Treasury's accounts. Seymour says Labour needs to man up and put the best interests of the country at heart. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 31st of March, new economic forecasts have been released amid the uncertainty of the war. Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour responds to Labour's hesitance towards the India Free Trade Agreement and Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones offers reassurances around the country's fuel and diesel supply. Michelin Star winning Kiwi chef Matt Lambert is opening a fresh venture in what most would describe as a tough environment, so what does he see in our sector that others don't? 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.

David Seymour says schools will remain open as long as possible as fuel prices continue to rise. The Ministry of Education's been developing contingency plans as rural schools grapple with a shortage of relievers and falling attendance. Seymour —the Associate Minister of Education— says the Government won't repeat Labour's mistakes during the Covid era. He told Mike Hosking schools will only move to online learning if we face severe fuel disruptions. Seymour says we're not even close to that right now. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 26th of March, the fuel issues continue. Jetstar has started cancelling flights to New Zealand, but Channel Infrastructure is looking at storing more fuel at Marsden Point. The Ministry of Education is considering remote learning options as fuel costs increase, but Associate Education Minister David Seymour says the shift will only happen if we face severe disruptions. Kiwi singer Jenni Smith has a new single and a debut album set to release tomorrow, so she joined us in studio for a song and a chat. 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.