Podcasts about nz first

Labour leader Chris Hipkins has been quick to confirm his party would recognise Palestine as a state if Labour leads the Government after next year's election. On Saturday, while at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Foreign Minister Winston Peters announced New Zealand would not recognise the state of Palestine amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. Hipkins says Israel's actions are 'unacceptable' and not recognising Palestine sends Israel a message that New Zealand is okay with the 'unfolding genocide.' "New Zealand cannot stand by and cannot turn our backs on what's unfolding in Palestine. It is unfolding genocide, people are being starved to death." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week the Gals chat about the economy, the mood of the boardroom, Palestine, Trump and the United Nations and NZ First invokes the agree to disagree clause.    Yass Queen to our first female Reserve Bank governor and Beehave Mate to some serious flip-flopping.    Question Time: what do you make of the growing online political scene in NZ? 

The Swedes do central banking a little different to us, and I reckon it's good news we've got a Swede in charge. Riksbank - their RBNZ equivalent - is really big on this thing called transparency. There's three things to know - this is stuff they do that we don't, currently. 1. They rank amongst best performing on openness and honesty in the world.2. They publish an actual forward forecast for the OCR - we don't.3. They publish alternative scenarios and minutes. In the minutes, you get to see which of these guys voted which way and their justifications for dong so. Currently, we don't even get to know which way the committee members voted, let alone why. And remember, the Fed in the US and the Bank of England do - as does Riksbank. So here's hoping the Swede in charge will help shake things up and that changes will be made and sunlight will be shone. A new dawn, perhaps, for 2 The Terrace, after a dark and cloudy rollercoaster ride of terror under Adrian Orr. Her name is Anna Breman and her CV reads as you'd expect - current 2IC of Riksbank in her home country. And she's held academic jobs and been the Chief Economist at a retail bank. She's moving here with the family. Which is nice - but I don't know how NZ First will feel about us importing another migrant for a Kiwi job. The reality is, most of the heavy lifting will - hopefully - have been done by the time she sits down for her first briefing on December 1st. We've got two more reviews under Hawkesby in October and November. Then he's gone. Not just from the top job, but the bank entirely. And then they shut up shop for Christmas till February. Let's hope as she enjoys what I'm sure will be a welcome sunny Kiwi summer, she brings a bit of that sunshine - the best disinfectant in town - to 2, The Terrace. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New visa residence pathways for skilled workers has caused a rift between the government coalition, New Zealand First invoking the "agree to disagree" provision over "serious concerns". The Economic Growth and Immigration ministers today announced new visa pathways today, hoping to plug workforce shortages. But New Zealand first leader Winston Peters is refusing to back the policy, saying it will mean New Zealand turns into a stepping stone for people wanting to move to Australia. Giles Dexter reports.

New Zealand First is slamming the Government's latest immigration move - allowing more migrant workers to get a fast-tracked residency. The Government's announced two new pathways, one for skilled work experience and another for trades and technicians. NZ First has invoked the agree to disagree clause - voicing concerns that those who gain residency will become citizens and then leave for Australia. Deputy Leader Shane Jones claims New Zealand's had unfocused immigration policies for some time. He says the Government's focused on 'pumping up the tyres' of employers instead of training up Kiwis to fill the jobs. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Winston's back, banging the trusty old immigration drum. Election next year, so no surprises there. Nor should there be any surprise that National's keen to keep skilled workers in the country. It's what business wants. And, generally speaking, what business wants - with a Government right-of-centre - it gets. So before we go barking mad on migration, let's look at the facts. Is this an Oprah car competition, carte blanche residency lolly scramble? No. The numbers? Somewhere between 3,500 and 9,000 people. Which barely touches the sides of our 4.3 million working-age population. Will they flood in from all corners of the earth? No. They're already here. You have to be working here in order to qualify and proven yourself. You have to be well-paid - at least $36 an hour - and qualified. This is not a low-rent crowd. Is this a back door into Australia? Well, it can be. But to get through that door, you first have to become a citizen of New Zealand. Let's call that a 10 year process, plus the Minister reckons a further four across the ditch before you're a citizen there. So if you're willing to spend 14 years gaming the system to become a citizen of Australia, you probably deserve it in my book. Is this, as Winston's press release claimed, another example of our proud wee country being fleeced by take-all-give-nothing migrants? We train them up and look after them, then they ditch us across the ditch? No. These people are already trained and experienced and they will pay taxes like the rest of us. Does he have a point on the wider problem we have with educating and training people who are actually born here? Yes. But as even he points out, Governments of all stripes have been trying to fix that problem for decades and the fix remains elusive. But in the meantime, why punish decent Kiwi businesses who've managed to find themselves a decent, skilled worker? Welcome to globalisation. We sell stuff to the world, using, in part, a global workforce to do it. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer Brigitte Morten and AUT chancellor Rob Campbell joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! We're all waiting on Winston Peters to reveal if New Zealand will recognise a Palestinian state. Which way do we think this will go? NZ First invokes the agree-to-disagree clause over the Government's new residency pathways. Are NZ First right to do this? And are they trying to make immigration a big election issue next year? The Government's made some new changes to the Holidays Act - will this be good for businesses and employees alike? US President Donald Trump has linked paracetamol use during pregnancy to autism. Should we take this seriously? Sir Don McKinnon's idea to kickstart New Zealand is for us to host the Commonwealth Games. Is that really the best way forward? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government has announced two new pathways to residence for skilled migrants.  

It's another hit of the most insightful and sharp 30 minutes in political analysis. Panellists Heather Roy, Maria Slade and Corin Dann debate the big political stories of the day. Including the latest political poll results; the series of major job losses: what does it mean for the governemnt?; Shane Jones is NZ First deputy, offically now: could he be leader one day? and capital gains tax never dies: most NZers think it'll be in place before 2050.

Flower essences might look simple, but behind them is a deep connection to nature and healing. Jodi Linder from First Light Flower Essences of New Zealand explains how 185 different essences—from flowers, ferns, trees, seeds, and plants—support emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual wellbeing. She walks us through how they're used, why a 28-day cycle is often recommended, and the subtle ways people notice changes in their lives. Jodi also shares stories of how essences have helped with grief, anxiety, and creating a sense of balance.   Episode Highlights: 03:26 - Origins and founder's story 05:56 - Overview of different essence types 13:22 - How a simple blend of nature eased deep grief 16:38 - Jodie's journey with flower essences 19:48 - Uses and benefits of essences 25:55 - How to use and blend essences 31:00 - Duration of use and noticing effects 34:24 - How to use menopause sprays for premenopause support 36:34 - Resources for learning about essences 38:49 - Unique aspects of New Zealand plants 42:27 - Getting started with essences as a practitioner   About my Guests: Jodi Linder is a conscious business leader, qualified flower essence therapist, and General Manager of First Light Flower Essences of New Zealand® - a global pioneer and market leader in vibrational medicine for holistic healing and personal transformation.   With 20 years of experience working with the holistic healing power and intelligence of New Zealand's native plants for herself and with others, she is now dedicated to making these transformational flower essences accessible to people and communities worldwide.   All original formulations and metaphysical correspondences developed by Franchelle Ofsoské-Wyber, founder and creator of First Light Flower Essences of New Zealand®.   Find out more about Jodi Website: https://firstlightfloweressences.co.nz/   If you would like to support the Homeopathy Hangout Podcast, please consider making a donation by visiting www.EugenieKruger.com and click the DONATE button at the top of the site. Every donation about $10 will receive a shout-out on a future episode.   Join my Homeopathy Hangout Podcast Facebook community here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/HelloHomies   Follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/eugeniekrugerhomeopathy/   Here is the link to my free 30-minute Homeopathy@Home online course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqBUpxO4pZQ&t=438s   Upon completion of the course - and if you live in Australia - you can join my Facebook group for free acute advice (you'll need to answer a couple of questions about the course upon request to join): www.facebook.com/groups/eughom

Now, long-time listeners will know that I have said, I do say, and I will undoubtedly in the future say stupid things. In a career spanning decades, we are talking live on stage or live on air, television or radio. When you're going for the snappy one-liner and you're pushing the language out and you're trying to be clever and you're trying to be funny, a lot of the time you're operating on instinct. You have to speak without thinking. I know you're not supposed to, but when you're doing live radio, live television, live on stage, you have to speak without thinking. So the potential for saying something offensive or stupid or both is very real. That does not excuse you from the consequences of saying something out of line. I've had to suffer them before. It just explains how it happens. So, while I can see how Stuart Nash came to make his ill-advised one-liner on what defines a woman, I can also see and understand the repercussions. Especially for someone who works in executive recruitment for a company that presumably sees women as more than being how Stuart Nash described them. And also, for someone who wants to run for public office. Yesterday, Nash resigned from his job at Robert Walters after he gave his definition of a woman to The Platform media outlet earlier this week. For those who don't know what he said, text Nash to 9292 and we'll text it back to you. No, that's not what will happen, but you must know what he said! Anyway, as soon as the words came out of his mouth, he knew he'd gone too far. He asked his wife, "Was this a really stupid thing to say?" And she went, "Yeah, it really, really, really was, you complete and utter numpty." I'm putting words into Mrs. Nash's mouth, but I imagine it was that or somewhat stronger. He phoned The Platform back asking for the clip of what he'd said to be taken down. As if. It was all over social media in a matter of minutes. The matter's been bubbling away for a few days now and then Nash's employers, Robert Walters, the executive recruitment firm, took decisive action yesterday by encouraging, no doubt, Nash's resignation. Now Nash's potential employer, New Zealand First, is in a bit of a conundrum really, because Winston Peters is old school. He holds decorum and standards and ways of doing things, he holds fast to those old principles. He might swear – I've been at private parties where he's been. I've never heard him, but I'm not saying he doesn't, I've just never heard him swear. And I cannot imagine him ever using the words Nash used to describe women. Peters spoke to my colleague Nick Mills earlier in the week about the values pledge needed for new migrants, because too many people were coming to New Zealand without the requisite respect for equality and respect for women. Awkward. Winston doesn't like coarseness, and he doesn't like vulgarity. So that's against Nash. But he hates the media, and the media is who got his golden boy into trouble. What to do, what to do if you're the leader of NZ First? After some consideration, Winston Peters issued a statement saying the words used by Nash were not acceptable, and on that point, we agree with Mrs. Nash. End of statement. The irony is that Nash's definition of a woman, here it comes, for all of you who are texting 9292, he described a woman as a person with a "p***y and a pair of t**s", which is a rather crude reduction of what an individual might be, but nonetheless, that's what he said. But the irony is that definition of a woman could equally describe a trans woman. "P***y and a pair of t**s". Or a trans man. Nash has lost quite a lot without getting any further ahead. We are no further ahead in the definition. Peters has previously described Nash's transition from sacked Labour minister to NZ First party member as seamless. Well, there might be a few wrinkles in that seam now. But where do you stand on this one? Should he have resigned? He would have been shoved had he not. Personally, I don't think you can be a specialist recruitment executive and be on record as having reduced women to a "p***y and a pair of t**s". You can't look at a woman who is going for a high-powered job, well, any job really, and say, "Well, let's have a look at your qualifications." I mean, maybe if he was a recruitment specialist for Showgirls or any of the other strip clubs in town, sure, let's see what you've got. But not when you're looking for someone who's slightly more than that, you know, who needs a bit more than that to do the job. An MP? If he was still an elected MP relying on an electorate to vote you in, you could get the people of the electorate to decide. That would be really easy. They could make the choice of whether they thought it was a stupid, crude, poor old thing to say. The sort of thing you might say after many beers with the lads, maybe a few of the ladesses, you snigger, you move on. But you don't do it on a media platform when you're a recruitment executive. That just shows really poor judgment. And he's shown it before, there's form. Now you might want Winston and Shane if you're a NZ First voter, but you don't want Stuart. But when a political party relies on list MPs to get in, then Stuart's going to be part of the job lot. You've got to feel for Winston this weekend. What to do, what to do? Don't like what he said, gross. Ooh, hate the media – it's all your fault this boy's in trouble. I reckon he'll end up staying. What would you do? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Infrastructure NZ chief executive Nick Leggett and CTU economist Craig Renney joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Right-wing activist and speaker Charlie Kirk was fatally shot and killed in Utah earlier today. Are we worried about what this means for the future of political discourse? Stuart Nash has resigned following his infamous comments about what makes a woman - did he have choice in the matter? And what could this mean for his chances in NZ First? Should non-elected council members be allowed to vote? ACT is looking to change that - do we agree with this? Dame Noeline Taurua was stood down as Silver Ferns coach - do we think this is fair or another case of Gen Z being too fragile? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The NZ First leader, Foreign Minister, and former Deputy Prime Minister talks 9/11, the assassination of Charlie Kirk, KiwiSaver, National Super, ditching Paris, and Stuart Nash. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Labour Cabinet Minister turned NZ First supporter, Stuart Nash, has quit his job after a comment about women. RNZ reports Nash has resigned from recruitment firm Robert Walters, after a remark about womens' bodies on the Platform. The agency launched a formal review over the comments, which it said were made in a personal capacity, and were deeply inappropriate and didn't reflect the values or standards of the business. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says Nash's comments are likely to negatively effect his chances within NZ First, given leader Winston Peters isn't a fan of bad language. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has released a cabinet paper proposing a raft of changes to the Crimes Act. This is part of the coalition agreement with NZ First. It introduces new offences and strengthens existing ones. The proposals include a new strict liability offence for shoplifting, with a $500 infringement fee, doubling to $1,000 if the value of the stolen goods is more than $500. It would be proven simply by evidence that people, or the person, left the store with the goods, so CCTV footage, but with a reasonable excuse defence to mitigate against catching people who genuinely make a mistake, according to Goldsmith's paper. A strict liability offence means there's no requirement to prove a guilty mind. So, the offence removes the requirement to prove intent and introduces reverse onus. The burden of proof is shifted to the defendant for the ‘reasonable excuse' defence. Paul Goldsmith explained how he thought the new law would work on the Mike Hosking Breakfast this morning. “It's more akin to a traffic offence. So you know, you're speeding, you get a ticket. There's no sort of debate about it really, unless you've got a reasonable excuse, and you pay the fine. And the whole purpose of it is to come up with a quick and swift way to deal with shoplifting, other than the alternative, which is to go through the whole court process. “I mean, we've got to remember we've got a real issue with retail crime with this big increase in people going around stealing stuff. We've got to do something different. Currently, you've got to go off to court, that's a very high threshold and doesn't happen enough. And so what we're introducing is a swift and effective fine as an intermediate step to deal with things and so that there is a real consequence for that level of shoplifting.” Swift and effective fine? Who the hell is going to pay it? There are concerns the new shoplifting law would come up against the Bill of Rights, which says we have the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. Also, within the New Zealand Herald story on this that's online, there's a whole subheading saying, what it could mean for Māori, the disabled, the neurodiverse. Paul Goldsmith says in his paper, a strict liability offence increases the risk that misinterpreting the behaviour of deaf people, or people with an intellectual or neurodisability, could result in disproportionate impacts on this group. I get if you have an intellectual disability, you might not know it's wrong. Since when were deaf people shoplifters just because they were deaf? Since when were Māori shoplifters just because they were Māori? Sure, if you have an intellectual disability, absolutely. What it could mean for Māori, the disabled, the neurodiverse... the disabled and Māori and the neurodiverse aren't typically criminal? Honestly, how is how is being deaf going to make you a shoplifter? That it's going to increase the chances of you being pinged? My concerns are far more pragmatic. Whatever your reason for stealing stuff, whether you're a kid on a dare, you're desperate and starving, you're a low-life lazy thief – who's going to pay the fine? Maybe if you're a shoplifting former Green MP with PTSD and a fine taste in clothing, you'll pay the fine. But those sorts of people are still in the minority at the moment. I know they're trying to stop the courts getting cluttered up with shoplifters and that some shoplifters are getting away scot-free because the amount they stole doesn't meet the threshold for going to court. How many shoplifters, can you imagine, are going to sit down, oh, goodness me, I've got to pay that fine before I incur any extra costs. Must sit down and process the payment. There we go, job done. Or wander down to their nearest post shop with their $500 infringement fee clutched in their hot little hand and stand in the queue and go to the counter and say, sorry, I've got to pay my fine for shoplifting. I cannot see it. How many people shoplift accidentally? That's what I would like to know. There are also ways to mitigate that. I went to the supermarket with the grandchildren yesterday, chased down a poor security officer who was minding his own business and looking for trolleys of groceries going out the door of the New World. I said, look, I'm so sorry, excuse me, so sorry. Look, my granddaughter's just got some yoghurt that she didn't eat from her school lunch and she's going to eat that while we walk around and I'm very sorry, but we didn't. Yeah, okay, lady. Please get out of my grills, is what he seemed to be saying. There are ways and ways. What, you're going to say, I'm so sorry, I forgot I put this pack of sausages down the front of my trousers? I mean, what? How do you shoplift accidentally? How do you shoplift clothing accidentally? I'd really love to know. Perhaps you do. And equating it to speeding is just silly. Most of the time when people are speeding, nobody is impacted. I accept that when things go wrong, horrific. But most of the time if people are going 5 or 10 kph over the limit on an open road with nobody around, nobody's harmed. And if you do get pinged by a speed camera, you pay, because for the most part, just about everybody, I think, has gone over the limit. I mean, I'm making a huge general assumption here and put me right if I'm wrong. Most people have gone over the limit once or twice. If you're pinged, you pay your fine and that's that. Shoplifting's a whole other thing. Every time you slide a bottle of nail polish into your pocket or walk out with a trolley full of goods, we all get impacted. Retailers, insurers, shoppers, cops, the lot. What on earth is the point of introducing a law that the lawbreakers will simply ignore? Love to hear from you on this. Have you ever accidentally put something in your bag? A $500 sweater that you, oh, forgot to pay for? Or I know, you put something in your pocket, and you forget to pay for it? I just don't see how you can do it accidentally. And when you are stealing, quite often it's an act of intent. Speeding, it's sometimes your concentration lapses. And people generally pay their speeding fines. I paid one yesterday. You pay $30 for being pinged by a speed camera. And that's okay. Got it paid before the due date. How many shoplifters are going to be doing that? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's another hit of the most insightful and sharp 30 minutes in political analysis. Tonight Wallace is joined by NZME'S Jonathan Milne, government relations consultant Holly Bennett and RNZ's Guyon Espiner. They discuss: first timer Orini Kaipara's victory over established Labour MP Peeni Henare in the Tamaki Makaurau by-election; former Labour MP Stuart Nash's appearance at the NZ First conference and his subsequent comments about women; former PM Geoffery Palmer's interview where he stated democracy is in a fragile position and "Pav-gate", the 44 thousand dollars spent to send Christopher Luxon and Anthony Albanese to the top of a mountain to eat pavlova.

Towards the end of last week, the government announced a number of measures aimed at expanding the available support services for rough sleepers. One of the five immediate actions, announced by housing minister Chris Bishop and Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka, included expanding the Housing First programme to fund up to 300 additional social homes for people already engaged with Housing First but still sleeping rough, however, both the Green Party and a number of city missioners have said that this wouldn't be enough to accommodate the total number of people on the social housing waitlist in Aotearoa. Additionally, earlier this week, Green Party MP Benjamin Doyle recently announced their resignation from parliament. Doyle announced that the reason for their resignation was a series of threats and ongoing abuse they'd received in March onwards, spurred by comments NZ First leader Winston Peters made about their social media posts.  And last Thursday, statistics released by Immigration NZ revealed that approximately 20,980 people in New Zealand had overstayed their visa, following a previous study in 2017 estimated the amount of overstayers at around 14,000. In response, Immigration Minister Erica Stanford announced a series of changes to the immigration act, which included: allowing criminals to be deported for serious crimes even if they have been permanent residents for up to 20 years, triggering deportations for providing false or misleading information, and crimes committed before coming to New Zealand. For our weekly catch up with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Oto spoke with MP Ricardo Menendez-March to discuss all these issues.

New Zealand First leader and Foreign Minister Winston Peters says Wellington's incoming council needs to bring the vibrancy back to the city. He spoke with Nick Mills on Wellington Mornings about how the city can be brought back to life, and offered his views on the current city leaders. Peters also discussed his party's compulsory Kiwisaver policy, and whether former Labour Minister Stuart Nash is likely to stand for NZ First at the next Election. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sacked Labour minister and former MP Stuart Nash has said if he was ever going to stand for parliament again then it would be with New Zealand First. Nash spoke at New Zealand First's Annual conference over the weekend, claiming Labour has strayed from its core values and is acting as an arm of the union. Stuart Nash spoke to Lisa Owen.

Stuart Nash turning up at the conference over the weekend - that was quite a coup for New Zealand First. Now, clearly what New Zealand First is trying to do is emulate what Reform - Nigel Farage's party - in the UK is doing. If you've been following what they're up to, they have had a huge number of politicians defect to Reform. And every single time it happens, the news media covers it and it makes Reform look like the party with the momentum. That is what New Zealand First is trying to do. That's why you had both Stuart Nash, formerly of Labour, and Harete Hipango, formerly of National, at the conference over the weekend. Now, despite the circumstances of Stuart leaving Parliament, he's actually a really big defection from Labour because he's a very capable politician. He managed to turn Napier into a red seat in 2014, despite the popularity of the Key Government at the time. He was one of the few ministers in the Ardern administration that voters on the right actually had time for. He is, and I think that's because he's a proper centrist in the Labour Party - not crazy left like a lot of them are, a little bit more to the right - which is why he's probably going to find a better home for himself in New Zealand First than the Labour Party of 2025. Now, I don't know if Labour realizes what they've lost with Stuart Nash leaving. I mean, of course, he's really been out of Labour since the moment Chippy fired him, but I don't think they even realized then what they'd lost because they haven't replaced him. And what I mean by that is they haven't gone looking for another true centrist politician. Back in the day, Labour had heaps of them. They had Phil Goff, David Shearer and just going back through time - Richard Prebble, Roger Douglas, Mike Moore - it wasn't that unusual to have a good little centrist or righty sitting in the Labour Party. Now, name one for me. I mean, you might have once been able to say Chippy, but he's allowed himself to be pulled so far to the left, I'm not sure you could call him a centrist anymore. Now, you cannot, as a Labour Party, win over the centre voter if you do not have politicians that the centre voter likes. And Stuart Nash, I think, was probably the last one of them. I would say: total coup for New Zealand First. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and Josie Pagani from Child Fund joined in on a discussion following the issue of the day - and more! The Tom Phillips saga has been eventful - what did we make of all this? Stuart Nash has switched over to NZ First and Labour lost big to Te Pati Māori in the Tamaki Makaurau by-election. What does this all mean for Labour? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We talk to the former Minister of Forestry about his NZ First candidacy, carbon farming and whether we should ditch the Paris Agreement.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First is backing major changes to KiwiSaver ahead of the election and it's sparked discussion about what this could mean going forward. The party's announced it will campaign on compulsory employee and employer contributions rising to 10 percent, to be offset with tax cuts. Finance Minister Nicola Willis says this will likely be a significant issue ahead of the election, but she's voiced concerns about the tax cuts. "For context, our tax package that we delivered after the election was $3.7 billion - so that is a heck of a lot of tax cuts. So the question then becomes - how do we fund that?" LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An economist has raised concerns over NZ First's proposed reform for KiwiSaver contributions - and claimed they're not feasible. NZ First recently promised to make it compulsory and increase contributions from employers and workers to 10 percent - offset by a tax cut. Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub says he approves of the idea of a compulsory scheme, but warns we can't afford a tax-funded one. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fugitive father who has been on the run with his children for four years was shot by police after an attempted burglary of a building in Piopio. Police are now searching for two of his missing childrenFormer Prime Minister Dame Jacinda Ardern says her five years in office felt like a decade. Speaking on Brodie Kane's Kiwi Yarns show Ardern explained how people who now mistrust treat it as a "sense of grievance" leading to "hostile acts" that they think are justified. Then many politicians point to others blaming them as the reason for that mistrust, which will work for them in the short term, but damage society in the long term.In his keynote speech at the NZ First Party conference leader Winston Peters has promised to make KiwiSaver compulsory, with contributions from employers and employees rising to 10% and tax cuts to curb the extra cost. He also condemned immigration, promoted nationalism, spent a significant portion of the speech criticising the left-leaning parties and transgender ideology as part of the "woke" left.Piers Morgan is joined by CEO of Zeteo, Mehdi Hasan, and former lieutenant colonel, IDF spokesman and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Jonathan Conricus, in a fiery debate.=================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠=================================Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZFollow us on BlueskyPat @patbrittenden.bsky.socialChewie @chewienz.bsky.socialEmily @iamprettyawesome.bsky.socialMagenta @xkaosmagex.bsky.social

The New Zealand First convention took place at the Distinction Hotel in Palmerston North over the weekend. And all these silver fern, pin-wearing NZ First faithful gathered, along with a few wannabes, like Stuart Nash, he spoke. Just a few formalities to go through and it looks like Stuart Nash will be a signed-up member of NZ First and one of their high-profile names going forward at the next election. I don't know how the coalition government decided who would go first in the Deputy Prime Minister's role. If they said how they did it, it's escaped me, I'm sorry. They might have tossed a coin. They might have played paper scissors rock. They might have put their names in a hat and Christopher Luxon drew out one. Might have been done on seniority - oldest and most experience goes first. You just know that Winston Peters, leader of NZ First, would have totally gamed the system to ensure he served first as Deputy Prime Minister because after a good stint of being Foreign Affairs Minister, which he still is and which he still works hard at, and a good stint of standing in for the Prime Minister when he was out of the country and fulfilling his obligations admirably, it free's him up now, now that David Seymour's in the role, to really get the campaigning underway for NZ First well before 2026 rolls around. To be fair, ACT are not far behind. David Seymour's State of the Nation speech at the beginning of the year was a rallying cry to the party faithful. But at NZ First's convention over the weekend, you heard speeches that sounded more like promises. Promises that would normally be made on the hustings. It wasn't a convention per se, it was more of a, "Let's get going, brothers. Let's start promising," the kind of glorious kind of promises that NZ First voters are looking for when it comes to political parties. Things like making KiwiSaver compulsory, contributions being raised to 10%, offsetting that raise with tax cuts. What's happened here is you've got thousands and thousands of people, hundreds of thousands have signed up, but they're not contributing. They're not saving. And so it's not as easy as some of the journalists thought, just to work out what's going on. But we're going to make it compulsory and we're going to ensure this is phased in at a level which you'll see comprehensively is followed overseas. We need to turn this into a super, super saving fund and a super investment fund at the same time, but not in the control of politicians. And when you talked about yesterday tax cuts, that's literally a tax cut for a person who's contributing to KiwiSaver, or is it a rebate or how would it work? That's a tax cut for the person contributing to Kiwi Saver and also for the employer. Right, so I would pay less tax if I'm contributing to Kiwi Saver. You still with us? Yes, I said exactly, yeah. I think there must have been a drop out on the line. That was Winston Peters talking to Mike Hosking this morning. There was more preaching to the converted. Winston Peters called for new migrants having to sign a Kiwi values document, incorporating respect for the flag, respect for democracy, one person, one vote, that sort of thing. I imagine it'd be much like the Australian values statement that migrants to Australia must sign. And Peters said the party was responsible for getting cabinet to agree to bring legislation to the House very shortly, making English an official language of New Zealand. As is generally the case with election campaign promises, there wasn't a great deal of specific detail. No costings from Peters on how much the Kiwi Saver policy would cost or how it would be implemented, other than to say the rise in contributions would be staggered, first 8% then 10%. But let him be perfectly clear, there is life in the old boy yet and he is determined to get himself and NZ First back into Parliament and back into government with even more sway than he had this time around. As far as Winston Peters is concerned, ‘25, as in 2025 is done and dusted. It is 2026, baby. NZ First is on the road, looking to win over voters who are unimpressed and underwhelmed by National and Labour. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An economist has raised concerns over NZ First's proposed reform for KiwiSaver contributions - and claimed they're not feasible. NZ First recently promised to make it compulsory and increase contributions from employers and workers to 10 percent - offset by a tax cut. Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub says he approves of the idea of a compulsory scheme, but warns we can't afford a tax-funded one. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First wants to make KiwiSaver compulsory, and increase contributions to eight, then 10 percent. Political reporter Russell Palmer has more.

New Zealand First held its annual meeting over the weekend, and with election year ahead, hints of campaign rivalry are beginning to creep into the coalition. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon spoke to Corin Dann.

New Zealand First held its annual conference over the weekend with compulsory KiwiSaver and a migrant values contract put on the table. Leader Winston Peters spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Monday the 8th of September, NZ First leader Winston Peters speaks after his party conference over the weekend. Scott 'Razor' Robertson is on the show on a Monday after an incredible win over the Springboks at Eden Park. Jason Pine and Andrew Saville discuss the All Blacks win, the Warriors loss and buildup to the playoffs and the first "Sunday" football in the NFL. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Zealand First election campaign may have begun, and Winston Peters believes the party is marching forward with practical solutions. MPs and supporters gathered in Palmerston North over the weekend for the party's annual conference. Members discussed 55 remits, which could end up being policy proposals in next year's election campaign. Party Leader Winston Peters told Mike Hosking NZ First is compellingly different from other parties, doing the right thing for Kiwis. He says the party sits in the middle, is pragmatic, and talks about common sense solutions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unfinished business for a former Labour minister, who may jump ship and campaign for New Zealand First. Stuart Nash, who was Police Minister during the last Government, made a surprise appearance at New Zealand First's annual convention in Palmerston North over the weekend. He was sacked from the last Government's Cabinet after a string of scandals including revealing confidential information to former donors. Nash told Ryan Bridge he's been enjoying running a business, but believes there are things that need to be done in Parliament. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First's annual conference has just drawn to a close, and leader Winston Peters made a speech to his audience of near 1000. He announced New Zealand First will campaign on making KiwiSaver compulsory, and introduced 10% contributions, which would be compensated by tax cuts. All this on top of a potentila new candidate for next year's election - Stuart Nash. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Labour minister Stuart Nash has put his hat in the ring to be a candidate to become a New Zealand First MP at the party's AGM this weekend. Nash was sacked from Cabinet in 2023 after disclosing confidentiall information from a Cabinet meeting to two businessmen. Now, Winston Peters says he would be a 'seamless' addition. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The bulk of New Zealand First's announcements are expected today for the final day of its annual conference. Party members and supporters have gathered in Palmerston North along with surprise guest Stuart Nash, a former Labour Minister. NZ Herald political reporter Adam Pearse says up to 1000 people are expected for Winston Peters' address this afternoon. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday, 3 September 2025, we've chosen a shipyard to build our new Interislander ferries - but Ferry Holdings' Chris Mackenzie explains they're not quite ready to reveal who will do the honours. Almost 60,000 Aussies have signed a petition calling for Kiwi born neo-Nazi Thomas Sewell to be deported back to New Zealand. But Australian senator Lidia Thorpe tells Heather deporting one nazi won't get rid of Australia's wider problem. Climate Change Minister Simon Watts tries to explain why we shouldn't quit the Paris Climate Agreement - even though ACT and NZ First are both advocating for it. Plus, the Huddle debates that PR stunt of an announcement from Amazon and how a grandfather might have got himself banned from pick-up duty for life. 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.

ACT believes New Zealand needs to be more realistic when it comes to the Paris Agreement. The party, along with NZ First, have expressed interest in withdrawing from the agreement unless we can negotiate a better deal. Associate Agriculture Minister Andrew Hoggard says that trying to meet our current targets is costing the country too much. He told Mike Hosking that we've got a lot of good stuff going for us, and we shouldn't beat ourselves to death over being some sort of sacrificial guinea pig. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters says he wasn't dragged kicking and screaming into a new foreign investors deal. The Government's approved changes to allow people with an investor residence visa to buy or build one home, starting at $5 million. They're required to invest an extra $5 million into the economy to qualify. Peters told Mike Hosking he supports the changes and wants to make very clear it's not a change to the foreign buyers ban. He says it's a change to investment rules to attract money to the country that we desperately need. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You know a Government is in trouble when you see a major news organisation running an online poll asking people whether they think the Prime Minister has had a good week or not. Which I saw the other week. And you know a coalition is in trouble when you get one of its senior members telling a public meeting that the Prime Minister is hiding. Which is what NZ First's Shane Jones did yesterday. Things come in threes, of course, so let's add the findings of the latest Ipsos Issues Monitor Survey, which has found that voters see Labour being most capable of doing something about the cost of living. And that people have more confidence in Labour, the Greens and Te Pati Māori collectively to do something about 17 of the top 20 issues facing New Zealand, with National owning just three: the economy, crime and defence. But even on those issues it's losing ground. So what conclusion can we take from all that? There's only one. People are losing confidence in the Government. To see how bad it's got for the Government, you just need to think about that stat about the left block being seen as having much more of a handle on the cost of living and the 16 other issues they beat the Government on. Because, hand on heart, are you telling me that - if there was an election right now - and you couldn't bring yourself to vote for National, ACT or NZ First, that you could bring yourself to vote for the likes of Labour? Or the Greens? Or Te Pati Maori? If I had to vote today, I'd have no idea who to vote for. The Ipsos monitor is a quarterly survey that asks New Zealanders what they consider to be the most important issues facing the country, and the political parties they have faith in to sort them. Its latest survey shows the cost of living is still the number one issue concerning voters, with 60 percent of people saying it's an issue. And most people think Labour is the party to deal with it. The second most-concerning thing for people is the hospital and wider health system. Most people think Labour is the party to sort that out too. The third most concerning issue is the economy. National still holds public confidence on that one. Housing supply and the cost of housing is the fourth most concerning issue for voters. And more people have confidence in Labour on that one, too. Rounding-out the top five is crime and law and order. National still beats Labour on that front and the Government will have been very relieved with the latest crime stats which show crime is down. But, whichever way you look at it, people are losing confidence. And it's not just in the data. It's also in the reactions we've seen to recent Government anouncements. The supermarket stuff last week. The debacle with the paywave surcharges and the Government thinking it had a brilliant solution which, we all worked out pretty quickly, won't save us any money. They're just a couple of examples. And I know that some people will say that people are always down on the Government during winter. But I don't think the first day of spring is going to bring any relief for the Government. I'm not surprised the Government is getting such harsh treatment criticism. But I am surprised that so many people think the parties on the left could do a better job on so many of the big issues facing the country. I don't have much faith or confidence in any political party. What about you? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I'm assuming the instigators of the second Covid Inquiry are deeply disappointed in what is unfolding, in terms of accountability. Inquiry Part 1 was a Labour Government stitch up. It was an exercise in smoke and mirrors. Inquiry Part 2 is a coalition deal driven by ACT and NZ First, and was designed to look into areas not touched on in Part 1: access to vaccines, lock downs, economic damage, and so on. I have argued since the start that we needed an advisorial approach. In other words, we do it like the Brits, who called people to a witness stand and held them accountable. We didn't do that and now we're paying the price. Ardern and Hipkins, along with Robertson, have declined to appear. No kidding. What a surprise. I wonder why? Grant Illingworth KC, who is in charge of the current work, has the power apparently to pull them in. He is choosing not to do so, hence my assumption of disappointment at political party level. The Illingworth justification is the aforementioned operators are cooperating with proceedings. That's not good enough in my book, or indeed anywhere close. Simple question: is there a broad expectation among ordinary, everyday New Zealanders that those who made life-changing calls in a life-changing period of New Zealand owe it to us all to front and be questioned under oath about why they did what they did? Another question: what does it say about the morals and characters of said people, who seek public mandate and public support and approval, that when things get a bit awkward they are nowhere to be seen? Where is the courage of their conviction? Where are their spines and gonads? Can a person like Hipkins, and indeed Verrall, who I also understand is refusing to front, possibly present themselves to the voting public next year with a straight face and ask once again for the power to run the land, having been the same people who in august of the year before ran for the hills when accountability came calling? The rules of engagement were lacking. We were let down. As the head of this with power to do better, Illingworth is letting us down. But nowhere near the level of Ardern, Hipkins, Robertson, and Verrall, who should be ashamed of themselves. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Could a triangle of land at the entrance to Whangārei Harbour hold the key to Northland's future prosperity? Peter de Graaf reports.

NZ First's spoken about defunding sporting bodies that support trans inclusion - but its 2023 manifesto also spoke about making people healthier by promoting exercise and sport programmes including 'assisting people into sport that can't be involved' - surely those two sentiments juxtapose each other.

New Zealand First should be stripped of the tobacco and vaping portfolio, according to an advocacy group set up to keep kids off nicotine. The call comes after RNZ published documents alleging close ties between tobacco giant Philip Morris and New Zealand First. Guyon Espiner broke the story, and spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.

The Sports Minister's standing up for a coalition-based decision directing Sport New Zealand to remove its community sport trans guidelines. The 2022 principles allowed people to play community sports according to their gender identity. Sport Minister Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking most fair-minded Kiwis would agree with the move, which honours safety and fairness. He says as part of a New Zealand First coalition agreement, they decided not to dictate what sporting bodies should be doing, saying the bodies themselves know best. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Panel, Wallace Chapman is joined by panellists Jo McCarroll and Mark Knoff-Thomas. First they discuss the RNZ story by Guyon Espiner about NZ First's relationship to the nicotine industry. They then examine proposed changes to allow more housing on food productive land, and, finally, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says New Zealanders are not getting a raw deal on butter: discuss!

Philip Morris allegedly pitched draft legislation to NZ First as part of a lobbying campaign for its Heated Tobacco Products, according to documents released in litigation against a US vaping company. Guyon Espiner spoke to Corin Dann.

Tonight on The Huddle, former High Commissioner to the UK and former Auckland mayor Phil Goff and Thomas Scrimgeour from the Maxim Institute joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Sky TV has bought Three for $1. What do we make of the deal? What does this mean for the future of the industry? New Zealand has joined the international calls for an end to the ongoing war in Gaza - but do we need to let actions follow words? A new Talbot Mills poll reveals the majority of the nation thinks the country is on the wrong track, and half of NZ First's voters think National doesn't deserve to be re-elected. Do you think we're looking at a one-term Government? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is cash still king? NZ First thinks so, with a members bill looking to protect its use for all stores selling goods worth under $500. The panel speaks to a banking expert. Then, they head to Wanaka where a young entrepreneur is working hard to revive a little-known kiwi clothing brand.

A newly appointed KiwiRail board director is associated with a company which donated to NZ First. Farah Hancock spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.