Podcasts about mahuta

Donna Kerridge (Ngāti Tahinga, Ngāti Mahuta) is a Kaumatua with more than twenty years of experience sharing matauranga and wisdom on rongoā Māori.  She holds a strong belief in the importance of building connections and learning from our environment as essential to maintaining and restoring our own health. As part of EcoFest 2025, Donna will be facilitating an introductory workshop to Māori medicine, inviting participants to explore health through an Indigenous lens and learn more about the relationship between our taiao and the whenua.  Green Desk Producer Sara spoke with Donna this week to talk more about the workshop, and how rongoā Māori can benefit health outcomes in Aotearoa. Here is that interview. Thanks EcoFest!

Former Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta gives analysis on just how significant those three Chinese warships off the coast of Australia are.

Former MFAT Minister Nanaia Mahuta shares her views on the Government's position on the war in Gaza, mandatory referendums for Māori wards, and the scrapping of Three Waters. Then we discuss the latest in politics with panelists Lara Grieve and Jack Tautokai McDonald.

With Nanaia Mahuta and Benedict Collins

New Zealanders have voted for change with National soon to be in charge of the country and ready to govern with ACT. Labour's promised surge never happened and red seats fell across the country, flipping not only to National, but to the Greens and Te Pāti Māori. New Zealand First is back in the house - set to take eight seats in Parliament. For National leader Christopher Luxon it was a night of celebrations.  Labour ended the night with 26.8 percent National took back 21 electorate seats won by the Labour Party in 2020. That included Mount Roskill, won by Carlos Cheung from former Labour Party minister Michael Wood. Te Pāti Māori also won three seats Labour won last time, with Nanaia Mahuta the biggest casualty, losing her Hauraki-Waikato seat to New Zealand's soon to be youngest MP, Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke. Wood and Mahuta are two major casualties who won't be returning to Parliament, alongside another former minister in Phil Twyford. The Green Party added to Labour's pain, winning three electorate seats this year with Chloe Swarbrick retaining Auckland Central, while the capital turned Green with Wellington Central and Rongotai won by Tamatha Paul and Julie Anne Genter, respectively As well as Epsom, ACT also won Tāmaki. 

The government is supporting New Zealanders who want to get out of Tel Aviv, in the wake of war breaking out between Israel and Hamas. The government has partnered with Etihad Airways to set up a special flight for kiwis and eligible Pacific people, which will depart in the coming days, flying to Abu Dhabi. Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta says New Zealanders who can get out of the region on commercial airlines should do so as there are a limited number of seats. Mahuta spoke to Corin Dann.

Tonight on The Huddle, Curia pollster David Farrar 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! Deputy National leader Nicola Willis has criticised former National minister Paula Bennett for posting a public photo with ACT's Brooke van Velden. Is this an endorsement, or are we overthinking this? Nanaia Mahuta is facing a threat from Maori Party candidate Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke - do you reckon it's possible Mahuta gets kicked out by a 20-year old? Richard Prebble made a case for Jacinda Ardern getting involved in Labour's campaign to give it an extra boost- is this a good idea? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US and New Zealand have reaffirmed the positive relationship between the two countries in Wellington.  Foreign minister Nanaia Mahuta met with US secretary of State Antony Blinken in Wellington yesterday saying the US is among our closest friends. She says New Zealand would consider joining a non-nuclear component of the AUKUS alliance, which includes the US, Australia and the UK.

A suggestion others in Labour's Maori caucus could follow Meka Whaitiri out the door. The Maori caucus called an emergency meeting on Friday. Political commentator Shane Te Pou says MPs, including Nanaia Mahuta, are unsettled, and there were a lot of hurt feelings at that meeting. He says Mahuta's dealt with a lot, but were she to leave it wouldn't necessarily be a shift to Te Pāti Māori. "She's been a member of the Labour Party incumbent for 26 years, I think if she was looking for change, it's probably say- that's it folks, I'm hanging up my boots." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Phil O'Reilly from Iron Duke Partners and former Labour Press Secretary Kaine Thompson joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day: Labour held an emergency hui on Friday night with the Maori Caucus and there are rumours Nanaia Mahuta may be next to defect after Meka Whaitiri. Does this seem likely? Did we watch the coronation this weekend? Why/why not? What were the highlights? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vanuatu has won UN support to get the International Court of Justice to rule on the Climate Crisis. The UN resolution overnight asks the International Court of Justice to consider a legal ruling that would tell big polluters exactly what consequences they could face if they fail to meet their climate obligations. The call was  led by cyclone plagued Vanuatu, which is still under a six month state of emergency after a rare pair of category 4 cyclones pummelled the country in March. Last night, on the cusp of the vote at the UN, locals, and foreign government representatives gathered at a concert in Port Vila. New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta - who landed in the country yesterday with a plane load of cyclone relief supplies - deviated from her schedule to attend the festivities as well.   RNZ Pacific reporter Caleb Fotheringham was there.  

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has returned from her visit to China. Nanaia Mahuta used her meeting with China's foreign minister to raise concerns about China's human rights abuses, developments South China Sea, and China's ties to Russia. NZME business commentator Fran O'Sullivan says the machinery of Government on both sides needs to work these discussions through and more information will come to light. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta is in China for the first  face to face  meeting with her new counter-part, Qin Gang, in Beijing.  It's the first visit by a New Zealand Minister to China since 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.  Meanwhile - thousands of kilometres to the West - China's president Xi Jinping has been meeting with Russia's President Vladimir Putin.  Overnight President Xi described Russia and China as "strategic partners" and "great neighbouring powers". Otago University associate professor Nicholas Khoo is a specialist in Chinese foreign policy  He spoke to Kim Hill.

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has to hold the balance between trade and politics with her Chinese counterpart today. It'll be the country's first diplomatic visit to Beijing in more than three years. The visit comes at the same time Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Russia for talks with Vladimir Putin. New Zealand China Council Executive Director, Alistair Crozier, told Mike Hosking the issue of Ukraine will come up, but the visit is economically important. He says a visit by the minister to pursue foreign policy objectives is part of the trade relationship between New Zealand and China. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will travel to China on Tuesday for two days. This will be China's first visit from a Cabinet minister since 2019, and Nanaia Mahuta will be meeting new Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang. Nanaia Mahuta's trip comes as China's President Xi Jinping travels to Moscow to support Russian President Vladimir Putin. NZME business commentator Fran O'Sullivan says the timing of this trip is a coincidence, as the Government has been looking to arrange a meeting between Foreign Ministers for some time. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the first anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine, Russia's ongoing actions continue to threaten global stability and "impact Aotearoa New Zealand", according to Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta. The country's envoy has also used the anniversary to announce a raft of new sanctions against Russia, including the sanctioning of 87 high-ranking Russian members of Russian president Vladimir Putin's inner circle.  Mahuta says New Zealand's support for Ukraine and opposition to the Russian-led war continues to be "unprecedented" for this country. She spoke to Guyon Espiner.   

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta has returned from her surprise diplomatic trip to India. Nanaia Mahuta left in order to strengthen the relationship between both nations and promote New Zealand's education, trade, and tourism interests to a new audience. BusinessDesk senior correspondent Dileepa Fonseka says this long visit was a clever move on Mahuta's part, as this will likely deepen the relationship beyond negotiating trade agreements. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National believes there's another reason for Minister Nanaia Mahuta to be sacked. It's been revealed the minister was advised against the controversial Three Waters entrenchment clause on October 25th - a month before she took it to caucus. National's Chris Bishop says caucus decided against the clause in May. He told Tim Dower the Prime Minister needs to show some leadership and sack Mahuta. A spokesperson for Mahuta says officials weren't working on entrenchment policy in October, and instead were providing advice on a wide range of changes requested by Green MP Eugenie Sage. LISTEN ABOVE    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National might be on to something here.  Chris Luxon, just in the last couple of hours, has called on the Prime Minster to sack Nanaia Mahuta for openly defying the Prime Minster. So what's happened is that a document has emerged that shows that Cabinet collectively agreed back on 30 May this year not to do the Three Waters entrenchment. But then, as we know, Nanania and the Greens stitched up a little deal where they did it anyway. Just at 60 percent not 75 percent. And as we know, this caught a lot of senior Labour Cabinet Ministers by surprise. The Prime Minister didn't know the entrenchment had passed until afterwards. Neither did Chris Hipkins who is the Leader of the House, and neither did David Parker who is the Attorney General and who advised against it. So it's starting to look like there is a chance. Nanaia Mahuta just went ahead and did what she wanted anyway in defiance of Cabinet. Now that would be, the Nats argue, in breach of the Cabinet Manual by acting against the instructions of Cabinet. And it's frankly embarrassing for the PM to be ignored.  Now if the Nats are right, if Nanaia has defied the PM like it looks increasingly that she might've, she should be sacked. And it's not only this, but it's also the fact that she's stuffed this legislation up so badly that councils up and down this country hate it. And also there's the lingering perception that something isn't quite right about her husband attracting all those Government contracts. There is more than enough against Nanaia Mahuta to sack her. But she will not be sacked. She is one of the leaders of the Maori Caucus and they are powerful. I doubt very much that they'll let the PM sack her. Nanaia is untouchable. You can see that from the way the PM has gone out of her way to defend Nanaia in this and say it was a team mistake. So even though Nanaia is causing all kinds of problems for Jacinda, and even though the Nats are right in that she's probably done enough to be sacked, I bet you now she's going nowhere. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are calls for Local Government Minister Nanaia Mahuta to be fired for breaking the Cabinet Manual and supporting the Three Waters entrenchment, despite Cabinet resolving to oppose entrenchment. National leader Chris Luxon has accused her of defying Cabinet during the vote to entrench part of the Three Waters legislation. Political editor Barry Soper has observed that Nanaia Mahuta had written to all political parties to get their support for the Three Waters entrenchment proposal, despite the rest of Cabinet ruling against the entrenchment. Barry Soper states that ministers are obligated to support any decisions that Cabinet makes, regardless of their own personal views. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National Party leader Chris Luxon is calling for Jacinda Ardern to show leadership and sack Nanaia Mahuta. Luxon says Nanaia Mahuta's gone against the Cabinet Manual by personally endorsing an anti-privatisation entrenchment clause in the Three Waters legislation and allowing it to be included in the proposed law. "She's clearly breached the Cabinet Manual, she's clearly not in support of something that she had Cabinet collective responsibility for, and clearly the Prime Minister's lost control of her and her Cabinet." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's edition of The Huddle, Nick Leggett, Chief Executive of Transporting NZ and NZ Herald senior writer Simon Wilson joined in on a discussion on the following issues of the day: Nanaia Mahuta was in favour of the Three Waters entrenchment clause despite Cabinet agreeing against it back in May. National Leader Chris Luxon is calling for her to be sacked because of this- was she out of line?  Wayne Brown has come out against the Auckland Art Gallery, comparing the lack of visitors to customers at a dairy and describing it as "the most uneconomic building in the city". Does he have a point? Wellington mayor Tory Whanau says she's concerned for her personal safety and wants to boost her personal security once she's officially put the rates up. Is this fair, or is she inviting more hate? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Minister-in-charge of Three waters says we've lost sight of its real aims. A new report's outlined proposed changes based on cross-party select committee recommendations. These include an annual shareholders meeting and a mix of rural, provincial and metropolitan councils present on regional groups. Nanaia Mahuta says that debate around co-governance has been a distraction - and we've lost focus on the reform's key drivers. She says these are that we have an unsustainable way of funding infrastructure, as well as a cost-of-living crisis - so we need to find a way through this. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Winston Peters continues to take swings at the Government, with claims co-governance was never a discussion at the coalition table in 2017. The NZ First Leader says scrapping co-governance will be a deal-breaker if he's king-maker after next year's election. He told Mike Hosking Labour Party ministers left him in the dark about co-governance discussions when he was Deputy PM. “He Puapua was ordered and came to the Minister Mahuta and the Prime Minister said she didn't know about it, and I said post-election ‘well if you didn't know about it, and Mahuta heard it from you she should be sacked, and you're not sacking her then you did know.'” Jacinda Ardern is accusing Peters of making extreme and wrong statements, but won't rule out working with him again. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our Public Service Commissioner is looking into the handling of Government contracts given to Nanaia Mahuta's husband. Mahuta has requested this investigation herself. With us now is Bryce Edwards, a political analyst at Victoria University. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on The Huddle: Jack Tame, host of Saturday Mornings and Q&A and Tim Wilson from Maxim Institute are here to discuss- Public service commissioner is to review contracts with Mahuta's husband companies at Mahuta's request. Does it still need to be looked into by our A-G as well? Noeline Taurua couldn't care less if Jamaica's coach is forced to play tonight (amazing from her) - how did this turn into such a mess? Netball NZ look like they'll seek redress too/ Are businesses being dramatic when they say they're losing faith in the justice system following the ST. Lukes smash and grab? Heather's 4.05 editorial is that they're not doing walkabouts because their reception won't look good compared to 2017 - is Heather right? Or being very cynical?  Festivals are back! Laneway's got a solid line up.. nature is healing!  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An investigation has been launched into how government agencies have managed conflicts of interest when awarding contracts to the family of senior cabinet minister Nanaia Mahuta. The National Party asked for an investigation last month. and now the the Public Service Commissioner has agreed. Nanaia Mahuta says she has declared all potential conflicts and their management - and suggested the probe herself. RNZ political reporter Giles Dexter has more.

It's hoped an investigation will provide clarity into how ministries award contracts, and declare conflicts of interest. The Public Service Commissioner has launched a probe into contracts awarded to family members of Nanaia Mahuta. It was requested by Public Service Minister Chris Hipkins and Mahuta herself, after persistent media reports. National MP Simeon Brown has been calling for an investigation. He told Mike Hosking in three cases under the microscope, contracts were given to Mahuta's husband despite her being an associate minister for the department in question. He says the reality is there are perceived conflicts, and taxpayers have high expectations of how these are treated. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ukraine's ready to buy weapons and other military assets from countries around the world. We're sending 120 NZDF personnel to the UK over the coming weeks to help train about 800 Ukrainian infantry recruits. The contingent will be deployed until the end of November. Ukrainian Ambassador to New Zealand Vasyl Myroshnychenko told Heather du Plessis-Allan he met with our Prime Minister, Foreign Affairs Minister and Defence Minister last week. He says they discussed the possibility of buying items from New Zealand. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our political correspondent ponders Winston, Luxon, Mahuta and the loss of democracy. And is Three Waters rapidly going down the stormwater drain as Three becomes Two? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nanaia Mahuta has condemned the execution of four political prisoners in Myanmar in a ministerial statement. She'll raise the issue when attending the ASEAN Foreign Minister's meeting in Cambodia. However, she was unable to back up her statement when National's spokeperson Gerry Brownlee questioned her statement. Furthermore, she's also come up with a clever way to introduce Maori wards into councils. She's slipped a change into a piece of legislation that would make it mandatory for councils to consider whether they should be introduced. Meanwhile, National leader Christopher Luxon wants an independent review into the Reserve Bank. Governor Adrian Orr has acknowledged interest rate decisions he has made during the Covid-19 pandemic, have contributed to inflation reaching the level it has. Newstalk ZB Political Editor Barry Soper joined Heather du Plessis-Allan. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a clever move by Nanaia Mahuta to try to essentially force Māori wards on councils, or at least make it very hard for councils to resist introducing Maori wards. Mahuta has slipped a change into a piece of legislation that will make it mandatory for councils every six years to consider whether they should introduce Maori wards. When they meet for their six-yearly Representation Review, the first step councils must take must be a decision about whether to establish Māori wards or constituencies. That makes it very likely, doesn't it, that a lot of councils will opt to introduce Māori wards. Because if they consider the wards and then actively choose not to introduce them, what are they?  They're racists. And no one wants to be called a racist so they'll probably just end up taking the easy option and introducing the Māori wards. Clever politics, Nanaia.  And what's more, because she popped these changes into an omnibus piece of law with a whole bunch of other boring, technical changes for local elections most people seem to have totally missed it. In fact, from what I can see, no one's reported on it in the 26+ hours since she put out her press release. What's especially clever here is that Nanaia is forcing something on ratepayers that ratepayers don't want, but really can't stop. Māori wards are historically deeply unpopular. In the nearly two decades since 2002, 24 councils tried to introduce Māori wards and only two ended up being successful. For example, Taranaki: their attempt in 2015 ended up voted down by 83 percent of ratepayers.   But Nanaia's now changed the environment so substantially that it feels like Māori wards are now more likely than not. Remember last year?  She took away the right of ratepayers to have referenda on Māori wards. Now, 35 councils will have Māori wards or constituencies at this year's election  You can say a lot of disparaging things about Nanaia Mahuta but what you have concede is that when it comes to really applying herself to undermining democracy she can be very strategic and clever. Well played Nanaia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Nicola Willis, Nanaia Mahuta and Andrea Vance.

The head of New Zealand's foreign ministry says there is "no question" Russian troll farms have been spreading disinformation online here under direction from the Kremlin.Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade chief executive Chris Seed said intelligence provided by the Five Eyes security alliance showed a "high degree of assurance" Russian-sourced disinformation was being pushed into New Zealand.This was similar to instances in other Western jurisdictions, and had been confirmed by tech platforms too, he said."It is a basic statecraft of the Russian system these days."Seed said there were examples in the anti-vaccination arena."The issue is the extent to which the troll farms and the way they are operating, the way in which that is directly directed by the Russian state, there is no question about that," he told a Parliamentary select committee, after questions from National Party MP Gerry Brownlee.Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said this disinformation was also harmful in its effect on how people were perceiving the Russian war on Ukraine and international response to it.Chief executive at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Chris Seed says there is "no question" troll farms are operating here under direction of the Kremlin. Photo / SuppliedMahuta said the most recent cyber attacks were in May. She said the Government had placed sanctions on eight individuals and entities regarding propaganda around the Russian war on Ukraine.The comments come after two recent speeches by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern warning of disinformation, first in her Harvard address and then overnight at the Nato leaders' meeting in Madrid.Speaking to media after the meeting, Mahuta said the troll farms were concerning."That's why we undertook to put sanctions on Russian troll farms."We can anticipate that they're fairly widespread. And it creates a misconception about what is actually happening in the war."There are several other examples and social media is the obvious platform to go to to see some of those examples, though. The point though, of the disinformation campaign is it does not age a clear-eyed view of what is happening in Ukraine."Brownlee also asked about the presence of the Russian ambassador in New Zealand and what engagement there had been.Seed said they had met five times with the ambassador since the war began, and most recently two weeks ago.In that meeting officials had "continued to express outrage at the invasion", drew attention to human rights violations, rights of prisoners of war, and steps they were planning around the International Court of Justice, Seed said.Mahuta was also asked about China's role in the upcoming Pacific Islands Forum, and what sort of discussions were planned around the superpower's recent push to build security alliances in the region.Mahuta said the Pacific was increasingly "a contested space" and it was up to Pacific nations themselves to decide if they are to enter bilateral relationships."But when it gets to a regional conversation, that potentially is an entirely different matter."She said she anticipated the topic to be "fleshed out" at the forum.Mahuta said regardless, climate change was the main security threat facing the region.- by Michael Neilson, NZ HeraldSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As if the Government didn't have enough credibility issues, the inevitable Mahuta investigation has begun against the backdrop of the Prime Minister saying she had her full confidence.There is something not right about the whole Mahuta thing. The Foreign Affairs appointment came so far out of left field it made the Poto Williams appointment look like a stroke of genius.A person who hates flying but is Foreign Affairs Minister. A person who has barely travelled post Covid, telling us the Pacific is fine and we can wait until the Pacific Leaders Forum next month while the Chinese park themselves locally aiming to achieve God knows what, and Penny Wong on a plane most days to try and mop up the potential damage.There is a power struggle between the Prime Minister and the Māori caucus. There can be no other explanation for the ridiculous defence over a Minister who is low profile, work shy, and letting her portfolios down.Adding insult to injury this absurd business of family members collecting money and jobs. The official explanation is that when conflict occurs, she steps aside and her mate Kelvin Davis steps in to oversee matters.I am assuming the investigation will determine whether the explanation is true or not. But here is the simple truth, when you are in public office and when you are spending other people's money, you have to be squeaky clean and you have to be beyond reproach.The Australians call it the pub test. Does the fact Mahuta's husband and other family members getting money for contracts pass the pub test? A simple and easy no. Does the fact family members receive high-powered appointments pass the pub test? The answer is a simple and easy no.The amount of money so far doesn't appear to be massive but that's not the point. The question that needs to be asked and answered is, do the jobs and the contracts go to people in the Mahuta family who offer skills experience and expertise that no one else can offer? The answer is an obvious no.So why did they get it?Part of the defence has come in the form of examples of other governments and appointments from times past. The weakness there is each deal, appointment, or contract must stand on its own.Does it pass the pub test? If the answer is yes, you can give a job or money to anyone you like.Dame Annette King to Canberra I think most people saw as perfectly sensible and acceptable. Trevor Mallard to Europe? Not so much.Also, previous poor decisions do not make current poor decisions any better.The whole Mahuta thing stinks. It should never have happened, and they should have been smart enough to know that.And yet here we are, more mess, more murk, and more reputational damage.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter Goodfellow has resigned as National Party President after 13 years at the helm.However, former senior MP Maurice Williamson has criticised the announcement, which came after the party's board nominations had closed, saying it reeks of the "old boys network".Nanaia Mahuta's family members are under investigation.It comes as three of her family members, including her husband Gannin Ormsby, were appointed to Māori advisory rōpū on waste management.The other family members are part of the Ormsby family, and Mahuta was described as the pair's aunty in another contract application.Newstalk ZB Chief Political Reporter Jason Walls joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVE

Yet another case of Government money going to a consulting firm owned by Nanaia Mahuta's husband.This time, $73,000 paid by Kainga Ora for "facilitation services for hui and workshops".National's Public Services Spokesperson Simeon Brown says this creates a pattern where there appears to be a conflict of interest.Simeon Brown joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVE

China's creeping influence in the Pacific was front-and-centre as the New Zealand and Australian foreign ministers met in Wellington today. It was the first official sit-down between Nanaia Mahuta and Penny Wong - but has also drawn attention to their so-far very different approaches to the role. Here's our deputy political editor Craig McCulloch.

Australia's foreign minister Penny Wong is heading for her second trip to the Pacific in less than two weeks. This time she's visiting Tonga and Samoa - countries who've both recently signed deals with China - as its foreign minister continues his blitz of the region. National Party's Foreign Affairs spokesperson Gerry Brownlee spoke to Corin Dann.

MPs Megan Woods and Mark Mitchell joined the Mike Hosking Breakfast to wrap the week's political news.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The great tragedy, or sadness, for me out of the Nanaia Mahuta revelation is that we are being let down so badly by hopeless people.Forget politics and your personal view of the world, surely what you want in the leadership of your country is enquiring minds, experience, and institutional knowledge. You want people, who even though you may not agree with, at least you can see what they are trying to do and why.One of the great privileges of this job has been to meet everyone who has run this place for the past 40 years, basically from David Lange on.Lange was brilliant. He was bright, well-read, and articulate. Different world view from me, certainly, as it turned out from Sir Roger Douglas, but came to the job with some credentials. Sir Roger himself had a plan, had a vision, and saved this country from economic calamity by floating the dollar and cutting the subsidies.Ruth Richardson. Yes, a purist. But she could back the arguments up with fact, knew what she wanted to do, and had the intellectual heft to make it happen.Helen Clark. Say whatever you like about her, but you can't possibly argue she isn't connected, isn't well read, and understands vast swathes of the world and how it works.Sir John Key. Self-made, been out in the world, understood the markets, money, and therefore the economy like few others.And so they go.Fast forward to Mahuta, who can't even pick up a phone. She was an appointment you knew from day one was odd. You wondered, "How the hell did that happen?" And now, we have evidence of the greatest crime of all, whether in politics or not, the lack of an inquiring mind.The best excuse they can come up with is that's not the way it's done.What crap.What insulting, condescending, and embarrassing crap. When you are in charge, it's done the way you want it done.People who can't be bothered do my head in. I detest laziness. The higher up the pole you are, the more you can do, and that's a privilege. What a thrill to be able to make a difference, to change a course, to be hungry, to grasp the detail, to immerse yourself into something you can affect and improve.And yet look at them.Clare Curran, hopeless and gone. David Clark was sacked for being an idiot. Kris Faafoi is asleep at the wheel and desperate to get out. Phil Twyford is an abject failure. Poto Williams is a disgrace hiding behind a lack of interest and Mahuta-type excuses about operational matters. Mahuta herself is too lazy and disinterested to even pick up a phone.For those of us who long for better, this is a shabby and incompetent let down. Being useless is one thing, but being lazy and useless is the ultimate crime.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A concern our Foreign Affairs Minister isn't doing her job properly.Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta has had no direct contract with the New Zealand ambassador or our embassy in Russia during the Ukraine crisis.She says such talks are usually headed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.Neither has Mahuta made contact with New Zealand diplomats in the Solomon Islands since its China pact, apart from a letter.National Party Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Gerry Brownlee told Mike Hosking diplomats are stationed there for a reason. He says the minister needs to contact people directly on the ground in case something unusual or unexpected happens.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand and Australia have reacted with frustration to the news that Solomon Islands has gone ahead and signed a security agreement with China. The possibility of such a deal had led to concerns, shared by the United States, that it could provide for China to establish a military base in the Pacific. Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said the agreement is unwelcome and unnecessary. She told Morning Report the terms of the security agreement are a mystery to everyone in the Pacific. The deal apparently allows Chinese forces to help maintain social order in the nation. Mahuta said the signing of the agreement is not a foreign affairs failure and will be discussed at the inter-governmental Pacific Islands Forum in June.

The Foreign Affairs Minister isn't hiding her extreme disappointment with the Solomon Islands, over its new security pact with China.China says it's given the deal a final sign-off.Nanaia Mahuta says New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific community respect the sovereignty of the Solomon Islands, and their right to make their own foreign policy decisions.But she told Tim Dower we have a long-term relationship with the country, and provided support to deal with recent unrest.Mahuta says at the bare minimum, the Solomon Islands Government should have respected previous commitments, and raised the issue before signing the China deal.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The foreign minister Nanaia Mahuta says New Zealand isn't necessarily ready to provide lethal military aid to Ukraine. Ukraine is pleading with western allies to provide more weapons, ahead of an expected Russian push in the east. Mahuta was on a virtual call with NATO foreign ministers last night. She told Morning Report New Zealand does not have the supply of equipment like other countries closer to Ukraine, but can consider other ways to support the multi-lateral effort.

Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta is to take part in a NATO Foreign Ministers virtual meeting tomorrow morning. As well as NATO members , Sweden, Finland, Georgia, Australia, Korea, and Japan will also attend. Auckland University Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations Stephen Hoadley spoke to Corin Dann.

The Foreign Minister says there's a lot of evidence "piling up" of war crimes by Russia in Ukraine. On Monday the Prime Minister said there was evidence of war crimes by Russia in Ukraine, but she stopped short of calling President Vladimir Putin a war criminal. Mahuta told Morning Report expelling the ambassador is an option, but NZ is currently keeping diplomatic options open. "We've called the ambassador in a number of times. Moscow is under no shadow of a doubt about where New Zealand stands on this war." Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta told Morning Report there's enough evidence for the international criminal court to make an assessment of events in Ukraine. "There is, again, no shadow of a doubt, based on the images and descriptions that people are seeing reported from Ukraine, that there is enough there for the International Criminal Court to make its assessment and we support them to do that." Mahuta said the court's legal threshold needs to be passed before words like genocide can be applied.

My gut says the idea that the Three Waters programme is on its inevitable path to nowhere. We have predicted since the start of this that the consultation would be rejected.  We have seen the delays, legislation was going in last year, then April this year, and now it's delayed until who knows when. A committee was set up to rummage around the remnants of what is left, to try and come up with something that is workable. That went back to the Minister a bit over a week ago, but already with councils including Auckland rejecting the rework. Questions at this point were also raised around the future of Nanaia Mahuta as the lead protagonist on the project. We mu,st remember the Minister in any venture is a critical player and not all Ministers are created equal. And my hunch is that when the obituary of this Government is written one of the more intriguing revelations will be the explanation around Mahuta and what they were thinking. For a person so high up the tree, she doesn't appear to be on top of much, far less an expert in anything. Does it get to a point where the Government decides a change of look is required to spark a reset? Anyway, shares for councils are an idea among a bunch of other stuff that essentially waters, no pun intended, the whole idea down to a point that makes you wonder whether any of it's worth it. Yes, we all agree the infrastructure in this country needs help. Yes, thanks to Wellington and their spouting footpaths and lack of fluoride we can all see the people who are currently in charge aren't up to much. But just because it's broken, does a gerrymandered idea fix it? Does a half-baked, watered-down compromise driven by politics, agendas, and ideologies mean we improve the whole system in a way we would all agree has been worth it? To this point, it's a big fat no. So, at some point the clock is going to come into play. This Government is already in poll trouble and it's 18 months out from a vote. 2023 cannot be the year of contentious decisions, so they have this year to get it sorted. It's the end of March already, to this point they agree on nothing, and there is a question mark over the Minister. My bet that this thing sinks into oblivion looks safer by the day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Foreign Minister says the decision not to provide lethal aid to Ukraine was deliberate. The Government yesterday announced it would contribute $5 million to a NATO fund that provides non-lethal aid to Ukrainian forces. It's also sending personal protective equipment from Defence Force stocks. Minister Nanaia Mahuta told Morning Report the assistance was requested by the Ukrainian Government. "At this stage, we haven't made the decision to go down the route of providing military support. "There are many other countries who had stronger procurement lines of military aid that actually giving in that area." Mahuta said the Government will keep monitoring the situation in case more is needed.

The Foreign Affairs Minister has denied New Zealand's response to Russia's invasion was late.  Last week, the Wall Street Journal identified New Zealand as the only US ally yet to ramp up sanctions against Russia. The Government's now urgently passing a bill that includes freezing assets in New Zealand, a travel ban on more than 100 people and economic targeting of people supporting invasion, including oligarchs.  Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta told Mike Hosking New Zealand's response hasn't been tardy.  “We were preparing to act in accordance with international partners and what we were observing based on intelligence.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.