Podcast appearances and mentions of thomas coughlan

Sara Firth, Foreign Correspondent based in Washington // Cathal Malone, Head of Legal Research, Thomas Coughlan & Co, Solicitors // Cormac Savage, from Co. Down, student in Harvard.

Questions to Ministers NANCY LU to the Minister of Finance: What are the Government's fiscal intentions and objectives? Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by all his Government's statements and actions? DAN BIDOIS to the Minister of Transport: What announcements has he made regarding rapid transit in Auckland? Hon CARMEL SEPULONI to the Minister for Women: Does she agree with the statement on the Ministry for Women website that "The majority (80%) of the gender pay gap is driven by harder to measure factors like conscious and unconscious bias and differences in choices and behaviours"; if so, how has this shaped her advocacy? CARL BATES to the Minister of Justice: How is the Government progressing with its plan to restore law and order? Hon MARAMA DAVIDSON to the Prime Minister: E tautoko ana ia i nga korero me nga mahi katoa a tona Kawanatanga? Does he stand by all of his Government's statements and actions? Hon BARBARA EDMONDS to the Minister of Finance: Does she agree with Associate Finance Minister David Seymour that "I actually think that Brooke van Velden has saved the taxpayer billions. She's saved the Budget for the Government"; if so, what are the savings from the changes to pay equity? Dr VANESSA WEENINK to the Minister for Mental Health: What recent announcement has he made about supporting Women's Refuge through the Mental Health and Addiction Innovation Fund? CHLÖE SWARBRICK to the Prime Minister: E tautoko ana ia i nga korero me nga mahi katoa a tona Kawanatanga? Does he stand by all of his Government's statements and actions? Hon JAN TINETTI to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety: Does she agree with Thomas Coughlan of the New Zealand Herald, who said about her changes to pay equity legislation that "It is deeply wrong that Parliament can take away that work in a matter of hours"; if not, why not? MARIAMENO KAPA-KINGI to the Minister for Children: Does she stand by her statement that "increased reporting also shows that people feel like they can report their concerns to Oranga Tamariki or other government agencies and that these reports are being captured and actioned"? TANYA UNKOVICH to the Minister for Regional Development: What reports has he seen on regional development in Northland?

Just when I thought the issue of pay parity couldn't get any more confusing, the Government has made it so. Yesterday, the coalition government moved under urgency in Parliament to raise the threshold for proving work has been historically undervalued when making a pay equity claim. Under the new legislation, any current claims would be stopped and need to restart under the new higher threshold to show genuine gender discrimination and make sure the comparator settings were right. So 33 current claims will be stopped as a result. ACT's deputy leader and Minister for Workplace Relations Brooke Van Velden, the architect of the bill, said she supported pay equity, but the legislation introduced back in 2020 was problematic. “At the moment, people can choose a comparator for sex-based discrimination across the entire workforce. We're saying let's start firstly at home. If you can find people within your own employer, that would be a good starting point. If that comparison can't be made with a similar employer, that comparison's not there within your industry, if you can't find one there you've got to stop.” Which all sounds perfectly reasonable, because I've always thought how on earth do you compare completely different occupations? As van Velden told Parliament, Health New Zealand admin and clerical staff, as an example, have been compared to mechanical engineers. Health New Zealand librarians have been compared to transport engineers and Oranga Tamariki's social workers have been compared to air traffic controllers. I can't get my head around that at all. Equally, van Velden makes an interesting case about how wide-ranging and unwieldy claims can be drawing in vast numbers of employers. But the Government is moving or has moved so quickly, there's no Select Committee on the bill and as Thomas Coughlan points out in the Herald, officials didn't have time to write up a regulatory impact statement – which is an irony considering the changes were made by Brooke van Velden who is responsible for creating the regulatory impact statement. So before MPs vote on a bill they can have a look at the regulatory impact statement. How much is it going to cost? What are the effects? What are the wide-ranging impacts of introducing this legislation? They don't have that, and didn't have that when they went to vote last night. And as Thomas Coughlan concludes in his piece in the Herald, if the government cannot publish official papers that explain why this is a good idea, the public can be forgiven for concluding this is because it isn't one. It's the optics for me. Absolute optics. How can National champion pay parity in 2020 and champion the very legislation that they're now amending, and then say no, it's unworkable, unsustainable? They actually thought it was a jolly good idea in 2017. National began the process of amending the equal pay legislation in 2016. There's excerpts from speeches to Parliament back in 2020 when the equal pay legislation was introduced doing the rounds on Facebook, and quotes Nicola Willis saying this was a process National kicked off in the last government. “A bill was drafted, things were ready to go, and then there was a change of government – that's when Labour and New Zealand First formed the coalition. So my colleague Denise Lee, who believes very passionately in the concept of equal pay and pay equity, took a member's bill to this Parliament to progress pay equity in the absence of the new government where National had left off.” So she's taken credit for legislation that she now says is unsustainable and un-workable. How can you do that? Well, you can do that when you've got a bloody great hole in your budget, can't you? Yesterday, she said what this is about is ensuring we're clear, transparent and fair to ensure that where those claims are made, they relate to gender based discrimination and that other issues to do with pay and working conditions are raised during the normal employment relations process. So either the bill that that she worked so assiduously on and took credit for in 2020 was drafted poorly, or she's completely changed her mind about its workability. Or they didn't see through what the implications might be? And again, when you pass bills under urgency, which that was in 2020 and which this is now, you get those gaps because you don't have time to look at the far-reaching consequences – remember, there's no regulatory impact statement. So it was passed under urgency in 2020. Maggie Barry, at the time a National MP, harrumphed about it and said, for heaven's sake with Covid going on, we're passing this under urgency, this is a nonsense. But she still voted for it, as did National. And now they're saying it's unsustainable and unworkable. What this looks like is National stepping back from legislation they worked on, recommended and pushed through the House, and in fact took credit for it when it passed, so they can balance their books. It gives their critics all sorts of opportunities to lambast the government for stealing from the poorest paid workers to give rebates to wealthy landlords and tax cuts to the wealthy pricks. I actually happen to agree with the restrictions that Brooke van Velden is imposing, I think that they make sense. But it's a unique gift that this government has to make something right look so very, very wrong. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Politicians are among those paying tribute to prominent businessman, author, and former politician Sir Bob Jones. The 85-year-old, who launched the New Zealand Party in the 1980s, has died peacefully at his Wellington home. Labour Leader Chris Hipkins described him as a colourful character, saying there's no doubt he impacted the political landscape, while Christopher Luxon described him as a legend, and paid tribute to him as a businessman. NZ Herald Political Editor Thomas Coughlan joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to break down the responses to Jones' death. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Health Minister is making it clear he's not criticising doctors over pay - but their union. More than $5,000 senior doctors in the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists union have been striking today. Simeon Brown's urging them back to the negotiating table, saying thousands of surgeries - such as hip operations and knee replacements - have had to be delayed. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan questions if the doctors will accept a new offer. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Interislander's Aratere is heading towards its final journey - as work is underway to get rid of the Cook Strait ferry's decaying dock. Infrastructure is needed for new ferries, arriving in 2029, and work to demolish Aratere berth will in the coming months. It'll spell an end to the ageing ferry's operation because it can't use other Interislander docks. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan unpacks this announcement. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan will bring the General Scheme of the International Protection Bill to Cabinet today to speed up asylum applications - including a three-month time limit for decisions We get reaction to the plans from Nick Henderson, CEO of the Irish Refugee Council and also Cathal Malone, Immigration lawyer and Head of Legal Research at Thomas Coughlan & Co Solicitors.

The Government's plan to reduce the operating allowance from $2.4 billion to $1.3 billion is the smallest amount of new spending in a decade. Finance Minister Nicola Willis has decided to make departments metabolise their own spending in order to get books back into surplus. New Zealand Herald Political Editor Thomas Coughlan talks to Heather du Plessis-Allan about the ‘big' decision, KiwiSaver subsidies and Tory Whanau dropping out of the Wellington race. LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan will bring the General Scheme of the International Protection Bill to Cabinet today to speed up asylum applications - including a three-month time limit for decisions We get reaction to the plans from Nick Henderson, CEO of the Irish Refugee Council and also Cathal Malone, Immigration lawyer and Head of Legal Research at Thomas Coughlan & Co Solicitors.

New Zealand First and ACT are opposing an Auckland Council plan for the Waitākere Ranges. The council wants to set up a committee including iwi, the Crown and Auckland Council. NZ First MP Shane Jones says it could easily morph into co-governance and ACT leader David Seymour claims it could let unelected decision-makers close tracks and dictate land use. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says the ball's in National's court on this matter. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Works toward improved public transport for northwest Auckland are a step closer after an investment case was endorsed by the Transport Agency, the Minister of Transport says. The announcement on the Northwest Rapid Transit plan - which includes public transport on State Highway 16 (SH16) from Brigham Creek to the city centre and a Northwest Busway - was made by Chris Bishop earlier in the week. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's a new push for changes to the FamilyBoost scheme, after the Government incorrectly estimated the number of families eligible. New data shows 249 families have received the maximum payment of $975 dollars a quarter since the scheme came into effect last year. 21,000 were originally forecast to be eligible. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan explains the impacts that come with this. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good news for Northlanders - as the Government settles on the Northern Expressway option. The new route will run from Warkworth, and be built over the Brynderwyn Hills east of the current route, then through Whangārei. The road across the Brynderwyns has suffered continued closures, since 2023's severe weather. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says it's tipped to be a costly project - but a new road is needed. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First wants the definition of a woman and a man etched into the law. Britain's Supreme Court has ruled the legal definition should relate to biological sex - excluding transgender women. Leader Winston Peters says the Bill would define a woman as an adult human biological female, and a man as an adult human biological male. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says it's unclear if a Bill of this nature will come to pass. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Labour has clarified it does not support Te Pāti Māori's policy for Māori to receive New Zealand Superannuation seven to 10 years before everyone else. Labour's finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds declined the opportunity to shoot down the idea when first asked to share her view - but the party has since confirmed their stance. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says Labour's initial hesitancy in clarifying their stance here doesn't paint a good picture of the party's future. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister has unveiled a major reduction to the Central Bank's planned spending. The Government and the Reserve Bank have agreed to reduce operating expenses by a quarter in the coming year. They've signed a five-year funding agreement, allowing $750 million of operating expenses, well below the $1 billion the Bank was asking for. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan unpacks the announcement further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister has unveiled a major reduction to the Central Bank's planned spending. The Government and the Reserve Bank have agreed to reduce operating expenses by a quarter in the coming year. They've signed a five-year funding agreement, allowing $750 million of operating expenses, well below the $1 billion the Bank was asking for. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan unpacks the announcement further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Police Minister says the patch ban for gangs has changed their behaviour, and made people feel safer. Gang laws are among policies the Government's crediting for surpassing its target for reducing violent crime victims - although it admits the data is volatile. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says the Government will still need to prove if they can keep meeting these targets long-term. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Prime Minister's dismissing suggestions of tension with his deputy over US tariffs and trade. Winston Peters last week said Chris Luxon was premature in calling other leaders - and yesterday labelled some language used around trade 'hysterical'. But Luxon says all the Ministers responsible, which includes Peters, are aligned on the fact a trade war would be bad for New Zealand. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says the trade issue has generated a bipartisan response, but it's unwise to draw too much attention to it. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 14 April 2025, Heather is back from maternity leave! The Finance Minister gets a grilling over tariffs and wool. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan on whether the stoush between Chris Luxon and Winston Peters is a media beat-up or real. A driving instructor tells Heather why he doesn't think the Government should get rid of the second practical driving test. Plus, the Huddle on the new Polkinghorne doco and whether it's okay to sleep in separate beds than your partner. 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.

Cathal Malone, Head of Legal Research, Thomas Coughlan & Co. Solicitors // Michael McDowell, Independent Senator

Winston Peters will deliver his State of the Nation speech this afternoon - off the back of high level talks in the United States last week. Similar speeches have come over the past months from the Prime Minister, the Opposition leader, ACT and the Greens - and today it's New Zealand First's turn. The address comes days after Winston Peters returned from Washington DC, where he met with senior players in the Trump Administration. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan speculated what the focus of the address could be. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government’s focus on economic growth and foreign investment is back in the spotlight this week. Later this week, the much-anticipated Investment Summit will take place in Auckland. Businesses from over 14 countries, with six trillion dollars of capital, will be in attendance across Thursday and Friday, with Government Ministers and Labour representatives in attendance. It comes at a critical time for the Government, with mixed poll results suggesting a difficult path to re-election next year. Today on The Front Page, to talk us through who’ll be in attendance and what it all means for the Government, we’re joined by NZ Herald deputy political editor and host of the On the Tiles podcast, Thomas Coughlan. Follow The Front Page on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network. Host: Richard MartinProducer: Ethan SillsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well, the announcement yesterday was on a par with John Key's resignation. The Reserve Bank Governor, Adrian Orr, pulled the plug on his career yesterday with no real explanation as to why – although it's no secret that there is friction between the Governor and the Finance Minister. You know, I know and certainly Adrian Orr knows that if she could have sacked him, she would, rather than inherit him with his five-year term as given to him by the former Labour government. Thomas Coughlan has written an excellent piece in the New Zealand Herald on the tension between Adrian Orr and Nicola Willis. He says while Willis observed the conventions of respecting the independence between the Beehive and the Bank, under questioning on Wednesday, she referred back to comments she made as the opposition finance spokeswoman when she was unmuzzled by ministerial warrant. When you're in opposition, you can say pretty much anything, you can criticise anybody you like. Once you become a minister, there are conventions to observe. So when she was asked questions about Adrian's resignation yesterday, she said, “I refer you back to earlier times when I could say what I liked”. And the comments she made back then were critical in the extreme of Adrian Orr's handling of the economy. Speaking of critical, if this is not the most withering, excoriating, damning assessment of a professional performance, I do not know what is. Former Reserve Bank senior staffer Geof Mortlock shared his thoughts on the Mike Hosking Breakfast this morning: “I was thinking that going through all of the Governor's since 1934, I would rank him as the worst in terms of competence – based really on the monetary policy results. You look at the inflation burst. Now some of that was external, but some of it was definitely a function of monetary policy actions. He's left taxpayers with over $10 billion of debt that could have gone into the public health system and other such things. He's nearly doubled the staff numbers of the Reserve Bank, and he's jacked up bank capital ratios to levels that I think are going to make it more difficult for the economy to actually start growing again.” Yikes. I heard that on the way into work this morning and let out a little nervous giggle-squeak in the car. I felt like I was back at school listening to a tongue lashing from Sister Clare, thinking, I'm glad it's not me, glad it's not me. ‘I've gone to 1934 and without a doubt, he is the worst in terms of competence.' There's been no explanation as to why Orr has resigned. It fits, I suppose, with his maverick nature that he'd just push off and stick two fingers to his colleagues and his staffers and indeed, the New Zealand public. The worst thing about the mess that's been left behind is that people are not criticising him with the benefit of hindsight. Even as he was making the decisions at the time, you might recall we had people ringing in saying this is going to cost us, it's too much, he's going too hard. There were people ringing in almost immediately saying we're going to pay for this and we're going to be paying for a very long time. There's going to be hell to pay along with $10 billion. And they were right. And they were calling it at the time. As a result of decisions made by Adrian Orr, and let's not forget: Grant Robertson. They were yoked together in tandem making those decisions, and a lot of Kiwis suffered. Interest rate increases in response to post pandemic inflation pushed the country into a recession and unemployment increased sharply - the words of Paul Bloxham from the HSBC who talked about the rock star economy a million years ago, when New Zealand used to have a good economy. He said, across the developed world HSBC's estimates suggest New Zealand's economy had the largest contraction in GDP in 2024 as a result of those decisions. And it's the real people, with families and jobs and bills to pay that suffered as a result of the poor decision making from the Reserve Bank Governor. It's hard to find anyone who's sorry that Adrian Orr is gone. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Prime Minister has made his expectations clear to David Seymour, about the repeated short comings related to the school lunches programme. The scheme's come under immense pressure, with questions being raised over the quality of the food, the timeliness of the deliveries and the variety of the meals. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says many impacted parents feel that these 'teething issues' demonstrate a lack of care on the Government's part. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If the theme of 2024 was ‘cutting back’, then 2025 is all about ‘growth’. The word appears 31 times in Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s State of the Nation speech – and for good reason. Luxon said it’s the “key to brighter days ahead” after experiencing the “biggest recession since the early 1990s.” Finance Minister Nicola Willis has been handed a revised Economic Growth portfolio as part of that planning, working on things like driving up tourism numbers, and international investment. This week on The Front Page, we’ll be unpacking some of the Government’s plans for the economy, how they’ll work, and if they are right for New Zealand. Later on, we’ll get some insight into how and whether New Zealand can actually stimulate growth from independent economist Cameron Bagrie. First up today though, NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan is with to explain why growth is the topic of conversation. Follow The Front Page on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network. Host: Chelsea DanielsSound Engineer/Producer: Richard MartinProducer: Ethan SillsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Opposition leader Chris Hipkins appears to be looking to move the party forward after their loss in the last election. Labour MPs met at their annual caucus retreat in Palmerston North to talk strategy after a new poll put them ahead of National for the first time in nearly two years. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says Labour's keeping their plans quiet at this stage - but it's likely we'll see more campaign promises as the year unfolds. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Experts are wondering about the future of New Zealand's health sector after the Prime Minister made some changes in Cabinet. Chris Luxon stripped Shane Reti of his Health Minister portfolio and handed the role over to Simeon Brown instead. Meanwhile, Nicola Willis is picking up a new Economic Growth role, and Chris Bishop became the Minister for Transport. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan unpacks what this could mean for the health system. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

OPINION: Some disturbing news came across my desk yesterday. I got a lovely email from Nicola Cranfield with the sad news that Cranfield's on Johnson St near Lambton Quay is closing. Often shops close during a recession and unpredictable times. Shops close because they go broke. Businesses close when owners have just had enough. But Cranfield's has been operating in Wellington for 33 years and reading Nicola Cranfield's email really affected me. Nicola has fought endlessly against Let's Get Wellington Moving and the Golden Mile project. She's met with counsellors, she's met with businesses, she's gone to every meeting she possibly could have gone to, just to fight the cause to save Lambton Quay from both Let's Get Wellington Moving and the Golden Mile project. She's had the acrimony of presenting to Wellington City Council with councillors not even looking her in the eye, looking down at their devices not caring what she has to say.,not caring what she and her mother had done for our city over 33 years. Absolutely no respect whatsoever. But that didn't stop Nicola from fighting. That didn't stop Nicola from being a proud Wellingtonian wanting her successful family business to carry on against all the distractions and inconvenience that was thrown at her by those two major projects and our council. Things got so frustrating for her that she decided that she would not renew her long term lease and go month to month. Unfortunately for us in Wellington it didn't work for Nicola Cranfield and her shop is closing. A Wellington institution gone, just like that. It's interesting Nicola is not blaming or even bringing into the equation the public sector job losses due to government cuts. I've met Nicola a few times she's the most positive, bright, energetic and focused businesswoman you could ever expect to meet. She's someone you talk to and say to yourself ‘gosh aren't we lucky to have a person like that running a business in our city'. Well no longer; she joins the long list of fabulous Wellingtonians who ran amazing businesses that got caught up in the downward spiral and are out… An article in the Herald today from Thomas Coughlan, outlining the effects and breaking down the job losses by numbers is very interesting. It shows it's more of a self-perpetuating downhill spiral than actual cash disappearing from the community. People that haven't lost their job still have the disposable income to spend - they're just adjusting and being extremely careful. Even last night I met a couple who hadn't lost their jobs, still had disposable income and they felt guilty for going out. It felt wrong to them, with everything going on. Our city is in a bad place, and no, it's not just because of these public service cuts, which much of us would agree are needed to some extent. No, its a wider issue. It's an economy on the slump, it's a council that doesn't seem to understand the big issues, its uncertainty over projects like the Golden Mile. I love this city, I love it a lot - but Wellington doesn't feel like it did five, ten or twenty years ago. We're in a slump, we're in a spiral - and I think most of us know it. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand Herald's deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan is here to talk ferries, fast track legislation and privatising Kiwibank.

The Labour Party is on a mission to win voters back - and the calls for change have been well-received. Labour is holding its annual conference in Christchurch this weekend, the first time its members have met since losing the 2023 election. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says Chris Hipkins has indicated interest in at least a capital gains tax. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The New Zealand Herald's deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan joins Emile Donovan to talk about the big political stories of the week.

Greetings, my spectral spectators!

Kamala Harris has fallen short. Donald Trump is set to return to the White House after securing more than the 270 Electoral College votes needed to secure the presidency. Harris has since gone radio silent but is expected to formally concede the election at 10am this morning. NZ Herald Political Editor Thomas Coughlan told Mike Hosking that the writing was on the wall only a couple of hours after the results started to roll in. “They do realise that they need to change,” he told Hosking. "Almost every county has swung Republican – Harris performed worse than Biden.” He says it's very clear that what the Democrats had on offer was profoundly inadequate for what the people wanted. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kamala Harris will not speak tonight. Donald Trump is making his way towards his headquarters. NZ Herald Deputy Political Editor Thomas Coughlan is at Harris' HQ and tells Heather du Plessis-Allan the space has been largely empty throughout the night, and many campaign staff are heading out. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are making their final pushes for the presidency on the eve of election day. Harris is spending the day in the largest battleground state, Pennsylvania, and Trump's turned his attention to North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Michigan. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan is in Pennsylvania. He says everyone seems confident - but it's not over until it's over. "At the moment, it looks like all the races and all of the swing states will be close - and tomorrow night will be fairly inconclusive." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thomas Coughlan looks at the fallout from Andrew Bayly calling a worker a loser and the Local Government minister Simeon Brown's decision appoint a crown observer to Wellington City Council.

NZ Herald Deputy Political Editor Thomas Coughlan speaks to Jack Tame about the recent week in politics, regarding Casey Costello and release of her independent advice, no more free Covid tests, Keytruda, Parking penalties increasing, and more... LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Chris Luxon's feeling 'stoked' with today's Mood of the Boardroom survey results. The nation's business heavy-weights have ranked Government ministers in the Herald's annual survey - and they're feeling pretty optimistic with the state of the current Government. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says the nation's business community always feels more positive when they get a centre-right Government aligned with their needs. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The deputy political editor of the New Zealand Herald looks at the government's renewed focus on infrastructure, the fallout from the decision to pause the new hospital build in Dunedin and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's profit from selling his Wellington apartment.

There's hope a new-look Resource Management Act will make building easier for Kiwis.  Minister Chris Bishop's revealed two laws will replace the old system - one to manage environmental effects arising from activities, and another to enable urban development and infrastructure. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says the Government's moved quickly with these proposed changes - but will need extra time to process things. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Māori and non-Māori, are expected to make their way to Turangawaewae Marae to visit Kīngi Tūheitia as he lays in state. The past two days were set aside for Iwi from the Tainui Waka. The Prime Minister has visited the Marae and said he remembered the Māori King as kind and generous. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says the Government made a very 'moving' tribute to the deceased leader. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deputy Political Editor at the New Zealand Herald Thomas Coughlan joins Emile Donovan to talk about the big political stories of the week.

The Government has overturned a long-running ban on gene technology outside the lab. Legislation will be introduced to Parliament this year and passed by the end of next year, ending the ban and establishing a new regulator. NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan says New Zealand is catching up to decades-old developments - and it's unclear how the regime will impact trade. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deputy Political Editor at the New Zealand Herald Thomas Coughlan joins Emile Donovan to talk about the big political stories of the week.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he is prepared to see schools deferring arts and music curriculum to raise achievement in maths and reading. Speaking to Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking Breakfast, Luxon said unions could complain about the Government all they wanted, but the Government was worried about parents and children. ”We are focused on outcomes: achievement in maths and reading and getting kids to school. “That may well mean we're going to defer our arts and music curriculum for now. But we're going to do everything to get those jobs done. “How on earth do you get a four-lane highway from Auckland to Whangarei with future generations that can't do maths. “How do you become the world leading in agriscience if we don't have our kids knowing how to do maths and read properly.” Yesterday, the Government announced an “overhaul” of the Education Review Office's reporting on schools as part of an effort to lift school standards in maths. Schools that need extra help will face intervention from the Ministry of Education “earlier and more often” than currently according to Education Minister Erica Stanford. Stanford announced the change today as part of a blitz of policy announcements, begun at the weekend, aimed at lifting maths achievement. “The Ministry of Education will intervene earlier and more often in schools which need extra support. The ministry will sharpen its approach to intervening in schools when student achievement is at risk, redirecting and targeting resources to schools with inadequate student achievement,” Stanford said. “There will be an overhaul of the Education Review Office's reporting, so it is focused on progress, achievement and assessment. There will also be clearer reporting to parents on what schools are getting right and what they aren't,” she said. Over the weekend, Stanford announced a suite of curriculum and workforce changes to lift maths performance. These include introducing a new Years 0-8 maths curriculum a year early, from Term 1 2025, with resources available to support teachers. She said the Teaching Council had agreed to lift maths entry requirements for new teachers and that $20 million had been set aside for professional development in structured maths for teachers. Stanford said data on performance had previously been hidden from parents. She promised clearer reporting for parents. Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said he agreed with many of the changes, some of which were in train under Labour, including the curriculum change. He said data on school performance was “still hidden” because the Government has not “published the data they are referring to”. “Overall in this area, including in the literacy space, there are only a few things they [the Government] are doing things slightly differently... broadly, the direction of travel is the same,” Hipkins said. “Overall, the issues around numeracy are quite complex and longstanding. We're not talking 10 years, we're talking 20 or 30 years in the making,” he said. New reporting from the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study published on Monday showed that in maths, just 22% of students at Year 8 were meeting curriculum expectations. This figure was 28% at Year 6, and 20% at Year 3. Curriculum Insights is an update on the National Monitoring Study of Student Achievement (NMSSA). It assessed a nationally representative sample of students at Years 3, 6 and 8 from English-medium state and state-integrated schools in reading and maths. While these figures are concerning the organisation that collates the study said that the Curriculum Insights and Progress Study as well as NMSSA “indicates that at Year 8, there has been no statistically significant change in mathematics achievement scores since at least 2013. On average, students scored about the same in 2013, 2018, 2022, and 2023″. One of the study leads, Dr Charles Darr, said “what we're seeing in mathematics is a change in curriculum and a new benchmarking process rather than a change in achievement”. “We've been tracking student achievement in mathematics at Year 8 for more than 10 years, and in that time, there has been no evidence for improvement or decline. We do have a new draft curriculum however, and the provisional benchmarking exercise we carried out indicates it requires a higher level of proficiency than the 2007 curriculum.” Thomas Coughlan is deputy political editor and covers politics from Parliament. He has worked for the Herald since 2021 and has worked in the Press Gallery since 2018. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan joins Emile Donovan to cover the latest on the Darleen Tana saga and the government's plans to flood the housing market.

NZ Herald deputy political editor Thomas Coughlan joins Emile Donovan to discuss the government's new funding for charter schools, the prospect of selling Kiwibank, and a lookahead to Budget Day.

Cathal Malone, Thomas Coughlan & Co, Solicitors and John O'Brennan, Professor and Director of the Maynooth Centre for European and Eurasian Studies

Cathal Malone, Thomas Coughlan & Co, Solicitors