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New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has met with some Pike River families, who fear workplaces are about to get more dangerous. The Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill would exempt businesses with fewer than 20 workers from legally having to manage non-critical safety risk. The families are asking NZ First to withdraw it's support for the bill. Winston Peters spoke to Lisa Owen.
The latest poll has just been released. Let's look at the standings and trends thus far for 2026. Opportunity Party support is steadily growing, ACT has seen a trending decline.Te Pāti Māori are back in the game, laying out their election strategy for the 2026 election. Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke speaks to continuing to stand this election under the TPM banner.Winston Peters is prodded by a "refreshed" Ryan Bridge, who presses for an answer as to whether NZ First would consider working with Labour again, prompting Winston to call out Ryan's "Wanker question".++++++++++++++++++++Like us on Facebook.com/BigHairyNetwork Follow us on Twitter.com/@bighairynetworkFollowing us on TikTok.com/@bighairynetworkSupport us on Patreon www.patreon.com/c/BigHairyNewsCheck out our merch https://bhn.nz/shop/Donate to our work https://bhn.nz/shop/donation/
Has the Act leader and Deputy Prime Minister been knifed in the back by Simeon Brown, who compared him and Winston Peters to fighting children?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ministers have been searing in their condemnation of a botched immigration tech project, but Winston Peters took it to a new level today, saying public servants who mislead ministers should be imprisoned. It comes after Immigration Minister Erica Stanford yesterday accused her officials of deliberately witholding information. Deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Lisa Owen.
NZ First leader on shaking things up with Shane Jones at Fieldays. Plus, he talks about the state of farming, a recent positive poll, and superannuation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jamie Mackay talks to Sir David Fagan, Mike Green, Emma Poole, Adam Thompson, Kevin "Smiley" Barrett, Riley Kennedy, Tom Young, Winston Peters, Campbell Parker, Tania Houghton, and Hunter Darry.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jamie talks to Christopher Luxon and Todd McClay, Ray Smith, Kate Acland and Kate Scott, and Winston Peters. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The 'less polished version' of Winston Peters could be the next Prime Minister of Australia, with One Nation topping the polls Love her or loathe her, political survivor Pauline Hanson is rising again, winning a new generation of voters and topping the pollsFind The Detail on Newsroom or RNZ Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
Labour has announced it's first election promise of 2026, capping public transport costs nationwide in a bid to ease the cost of living for everyday people.Qiulae Wong, leader of the Opportunity Party sits down with Guy Espiner to break down some of the party's policies, including full tax system overhaul, citizens income and wanting to be the new 'Kingmaker' and overthrow Winston Peters from his throne.David Seymour's truancy fines for parents whose children are not attending school has affected the parents of children who are disables, unwell and in some cases dying, as reported by the blog 'Emily Writes'.++++++++++++++++++++Like us on Facebook.com/BigHairyNetwork Follow us on Twitter.com/@bighairynetworkFollowing us on TikTok.com/@bighairynetworkSupport us on Patreon www.patreon.com/c/BigHairyNewsCheck out our merch https://bhn.nz/shop/Donate to our work https://bhn.nz/shop/donation/
Secretly, I think Nicola Willis and Winston Peters are enjoying their performative scrap against each other. Their war of words highlights the differences between each party and their philosophies and that's handy in an election year. Nicola's warnings over superannuation reinforce her credentials as the representative of fiscal prudence - the guardian of our economy. Winston's refusal to change super in any way, shape or form reinforces his credentials as a defender of the rights of the elderly. But it also reinforces something we should never forget about Winston Peters. He's in this Government and is being seen, along with his coalition partners, as a warrior against excessive Government spending. Yet his track record suggests otherwise. I mean, who can forget his Provincial Growth Fund - that $3 billion lolly scramble that was criticised by the Audit Office for a lack of oversight? Even in this coalition Government, he has continued to have a slush fund for regional development. The New Zealand First Regional Fund is a $1.2 billion capital fund established in the coalition agreement. And now, his Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has been revealed to be a major funder of the Moana Pasifika rugby side since its inception. There is also talk he is willing to mount some sort of salvage campaign, again using taxpayers' money. I think it's important to remind ourselves that, in some respects, Winston Peters is an old-fashioned conservative -but he also resembles an old-fashioned socialist who believes in the primacy of Government and in the paternalistic splashing around of public money to curry favour. These are all things to remember if you are abandoning National for New Zealand First under the false belief that Winston will introduce greater financial rigour than already exists. It also serves as a reminder of why Winston went with Labour back in 2017 in the first place. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Keeping NZ super as it is, is a strike against intergenerational equity according to the Finance Minister Nicola Willis. Winston Peter's has described her comments as a "sad point". There were no changes to the super scheme in the Budget. But the finance minister took the opportunity to raise serious concerns about the cost of the universal benefit. Nicola Willis said super costs are rising sharply with the bill going from $20 billion in 2020 to a forecast $30 billion in 2030. NZ First Leader Winston Peters spoke to Lisa Owen.
Over $1 billion allocated for KiwiRail's planned network investments in the Budget means “all the things we want to upgrade are going to happen”, Rail Minister Winston Peters says. He told Mike Hosking they have not asked for more than they should get. Peters says it's based on the fact that it's a business or industry that's been turned around rapidly where it's going to make a greater profit. The Rail Minister says getting that funding was a “great thrill” but it was common sense to fund rail, which was 2.5 times more fuel efficient than road transport. And on the subject of the Middle East, Peters says the Iranian regime 'somewhat' knows what it's doing. US sources report US and Iranian negotiators have agreed to a deal which would extend their ceasefire for 60 days, begin nuclear talks, and open the Strait of Hormuz. It's understood the new agreement hasn't yet been approved by the leadership of either country. The Foreign Minister spoke with the Iranian Foreign Minister on Wednesday. Peters told Hosking Abbas Araghchi laid out details in the memorandum of understanding. He says all the details were included except denuclearisation. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 29th of May, we got the trades' reaction to the Budget and an economist's thoughts on what the books might look like in a couple years' time. Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Winston Peters both relay their wins from Budget Day. And Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson discuss Mike's holiday, the Music Awards, and Oura Rings. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Well, you would have done well to heed Nicola Willis's warnings ahead of this Budget that there would be no spend-up, because there is no spend-up. There is no money for - well, there is money for the important stuff. You've got the schools and the classrooms, and the hospitals, and the Waikato Expressway, and Winston Peters' pet projects. But everywhere else, there is just no new money. It is tight. Now, that is exactly how it should be. And in fact, I would say this still doesn't go far enough. For the third Nicola Willis Budget in a row, it isn't tight enough because we haven't even hit our debt peak yet. We are still going up that peak mountain. That is still two years away, which means that interest payments are already at $9 billion and they're only going to go up. It's going to take us to about 2040, roughly, before debt is back to where Bill English left it as a proportion of GDP. And that is just the most optimistic scenario. The rest of the scenario is basically never getting back down to where Bill English left it. Nicola Willis is making a virtue today of the fact that she's getting the books back in black by 2028/29, which she says is earlier than expected. But that is a little bit of game-playing that's going on, because it was always going to be 2028/29 until December. Then in December it changed, then it became 2029/30. Now it's just been brought back again to where it was about six months ago. And that is only, by the way, because Nicola Willis is using a made-up measure, OBEGALX, which makes surplus appear a year earlier than the standard old measure, which basically would have had surplus arriving only in 2030 or thereabouts. And by the way, all of this is a broken promise, because Nicola Willis promised the country that if you voted for National at the last election, she would have the books back in the black. When? Today. This year. But after three Budgets, I think we've learned to temper our expectations on that front. Now, on the bright side though, she has decided to borrow $6 billion less than she had planned to. I will take that. And while there is a lot of poor spending that continues, at least there isn't new, more poor spending. And for that, I suppose you have to give the Budget a solid holding-pattern score of 6 out of 10. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 28 May, 2026, Nicola Willis debuts her 2026 Budget - sugar hit not included. She tells Heather why she didn't cut harder. Chris Hipkins gives his take on the Budget. He says the Government continues to fail at making life better for Kiwis. How good will a newly announced extension of the Waikato Expressway be? Cambridge Mayor Mike Pettit couldn't be more excited. Plus, Katie Bradford and Maurice Williamson discuss how Winston Peters got away with more cash for his pet projects. 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.
The 2026 Budget was delivered by Finance Minister Nicola Willis today, and it aimed to be more 'careful' amid the ongoing economic turmoil and international conflicts. Healthcare, education, and infrastructure were the key priorities - and the Government's claimed the books will return to surplus in the 2028/29 financial year. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says Winston Peters has lucked out, as he's secured an extra financial boost in terms of foreign aid. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The funding feud between Nicola Willis and Winston Peters is continuing, amid revelations the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will not have to find savings in this year's Budget.
Winston Peters has come out on top in his funding feud with Nicola Willis, successfully saving his Ministry of Foreign Affairs from any cuts in this year's Budget. Deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to John Campbell.
Join Wallace for New Zealand's most explosive 30 minutes of politics. He is joined by panellists Andrea Vance, Phil Goff and Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira. On the slab for discussion today: the government's public service cuts; Winston Peters and the resurrection of the BNZ, the NCEA replacement and the return of grades; regulations minister David Seymour says the country's regulators is a "twisted spaghetti" and is the government walking a tightrope between Crown and Maori relations?
The Finance Minister says she's disappointed by revelations MFAT is exempt from cutting spending this year. It's been confirmed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade won't be given a reduced baseline budget. Most agencies face two percent cuts - but MFAT will be subject to the same five percent reduction for most agencies next year, and the year after. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ian Rogers, editor of BankingDay.com discusses NZ First's idea to buy back the BNZ from National Australia Bank. He spoke to John Campbell.
It's been a busy start to the week, and Mark Mitchell and Ginny Andersen are back with Mike Hosking to delve into some of the biggest political stories so far on Politics Wednesday. They discussed Labour's Future Fund policy, which is light on the details, Winston Peters' idea to buy back BNZ, and the Government's cuts to and plans for the public service. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 20th of May, Finance Minister Nicola Willis unpacks the public service cuts and we hear from the head of Commonwealth Sport as Auckland hosts the Oceania National Olympic Committees' General Assembly. Team NZ CEO Grant Dalton joins out of Sardinia as the America's Cup officially gets underway. And Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell discuss the lack of details in Labour's Future Fund and Winston Peters' idea for BNZ on Politics Wednesday. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Today on the podcast, we look at the government's latest promise to cut down the size of the public service. Duncan breaks down why this feels like a rerun and questions if it highlights a first-time failure. Plus, Education Minister Erica Stanford joins us to discuss her major curriculum reforms and new primary school funding. We also check out your feedback on Winston Peters' big policy bombs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Winston Peters is back in the headlines with a couple of massive policy ideas, but we reckon he is only half right. While making KiwiSaver compulsory is a smart move that is long overdue to fix our retirement time bomb, his plan to buy back the BNZ for billions is total nostalgia dressed up as economic policy. Maurice Williamson and Ashley Church join us to break down the madness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Here's a question for you: if you really like Winston Peters' idea of buying back the BNZ - why? What problem do you think will be solved by buying it back? Do you think the banks are ripping you off because they're owned by Australians, and that if only one of them were owned by us again, they wouldn't? Take a look at the home loan rates Kiwibank is offering right now. They're basically the same as - if not higher than -those offered by the Australian-owned banks. Do you think this might improve competition? In that case, how does taking BNZ and Kiwibank and combining them into a single bank - leaving one fewer bank in the market - help competition? Do you think it will stop $1.5 billion in profit heading to Australia, making us richer? Sure, the logic stacks up at first glance. But first, we'd have to borrow huge amounts of money to buy the bank and pay significant interest on that debt. It could take 10 to 20 years before we start seeing those profits flow into New Zealand rather than going toward interest payments. And all of this comes at a time when two credit ratings agencies have warned that we can't keep increasing our debt without risking a downgrade next year - which would make all our borrowing more expensive. That's not even considering the fact that we can't be sure BNZ would generate the same level of profit under Government ownership as it does under private ownership. In fact, I would argue the opposite is more likely. Publicly owned assets often become less efficient - they can grow bloated, unproductive and undisciplined. That might explain why BNZ collapsed back in 1990 when it was publicly owned and hasn't repeated that since returning to private ownership. To me, this policy looks like a classic nostalgia play by Winston Peters - appealing to voters who believe life would be better if we could just go back to 1992. I suspect this will be the first policy dropped in any coalition negotiations. It's likely the first thing Winston Peters will let go of because it's simply too expensive, and he knows it. So don't get too attached to this policy. I just can't see it happening. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 18 May, 2026, former Finance Minister Ruth Richardson on why we can't buy back the BNZ as Winston Peters suggests. Finance Minister Nicola Willis reveals part of her pre-Budget speech will be on setting a target of reducing the number of public servants to 1% of the workforce. We talk to chief victims adviser Ruth Money about why removing character references for sex offenders' sentencing is a good thing. And on The Huddle, Trish Sherson and Josie Pagani discuss whether taking "weed" helps you exercise. 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.
Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Luxon's comments about immigration have raised a few eyebrows, especially from Labour's Chris Hipkins. What do we make of this? Winston Peters has expressed interest in buying back BNZ. Do we think this is a good idea? Will this really fix our economic issues? Is National right to scrap 'good character' assessment for sex offenders' sentencing? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has unveiled a plan for a new national bank
Buying back the Bank of New Zealand and making KiwiSaver enrolment compulsory at birth are among the commitments New Zealand First is making to voters this election. New Zealand First leader spoke to John Campbell.
Winston Peters live after unveiling election promises; Erica Stanford live on post-NCEA education reforms; Weekly interview with Prime Minister; What Trump's China talks could mean for New Zealand; Auckland FC CEO live ahead of historic final
On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Monday the 18th of May, Winston Peters tries to speak his bank buying idea into being. The Prime Minister responds to Winston Peters wanting to buy BNZ. Jason Pine and Andrew Saville cover Auckland FC, the Warriors win (and also loss) and the surfing in Raglan. Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Chris Luxon is firing back at Winston Peters over his latest comments about immigration. The New Zealand First Leader has been accusing his Coalition partners National and Act of being too slow on immigration. The Prime Minister and National Leader says he feels like there's a bit of anti-immigration cos-playing going on, whereby some politicians pretend to be Donald Trump, Nigel Farage or Marine Le Pen. He told Mike Hosking that the remarks by Peters are an example of that. Luxon says New Zealand doesn't have uncontrolled immigration, while the US has 13 to 14 million illegal immigrants. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The New Zealand First leader says they'll be telling the National Australia Bank we want our bank back - as he lays out plans for the Government to buy BNZ. The party will campaign on the purchase - after its sale in 1992 - and merging it with Kiwibank to create a National Bank of New Zealand. Winston Peters told Mike Hosking that the bank may not be for sale, but they'll make sure it is. He says he doubts the National Australia Bank would turn them down - so Kiwis won't be ripped off for much longer if NZ First gets back in. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
I have learned a lot about kids and university, having had two attend and graduate and one still immersed in the experience. Here are the takeouts. Generally, you go for a reason. You have an idea of what you want to achieve and those who don't, flounder quickly. I have many examples of kids who enrolled because "that is what you do". Schools too often give university as a default. It has a snobbery about it as if successful people only go on to tertiary learning. It seems the wider lesson we have all learned is Jacinda Ardern's "next year is on me" was fatally flawed because funding the first year was literally a waste of money and even when it got put to the back end of study, it would seem the world hasn't been changed. So they are scrapping it. The reality is people on a path will incur debt in the belief that whatever it is they are studying will serve them well, provide challenge and enjoyment, and hopefully pay a wage that allows them to pay back the loan and get on with their lives. University has always been heavily subsidised anyway on the idea that we all benefit. But to suggest you study for anyone other than your own personal satisfaction and enhancement is farcical. So no more first year/last year artificiality. The money will be put elsewhere, perhaps into the more practical side of the workforce. Personally, I wouldn't mind it being saved. It's not like we actually have the money in the first place anyway. But the Winston Peters argument appears to be the trades, which makes it yet another of those debates that is constantly tinkered with and never really resolved. Is paying an employer to train a person any more or less wasteful, or artificial, than paying a university to train a doctor? We need doctors as much if not more than we need plumbers. Both are valuable, both are in short supply. The Peters argument will of course be driven by the immigration aspect of it all. If we don't train who we need, we bring them in and before you know it you have a "butter chicken tsunami". It's of course a government again picking winners and I would have thought we had already learned that lesson. Peters' other idea, if you remember back, was bonding students to regions, or indeed immigrants to regions. That didn't work either. The trick here is not to repeat past mistakes. And yet the budget is destined to include at least one. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jamie Mackay talks to Scott and Stacey Mackereth, Emma Higgins, Dr John Roche, Winston Peters, and Jane Smith.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Tonight on The Huddle, artist and local Government politician Oscar Kightley and Tim Wilson from the Maxim Institute joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Labour's Chris Hipkins recently claimed no-one outside of Newstalk ZB is fussed about the Auckland lockdowns from 2021. Does he have a point? Will we find out come November? Yesterday, Prime Minister Chris Luxon said he'd always choose social cohesion over businesses bottom lines when it comes to immigration. Labour's Chris Hipkins has raised concerns, especially following some other comments from Winston Peters and Shane Jones. Does he have a point? How badly did we get ripped off if it's true we paid $3 million to get Robbie Williams here - especially if Singapore reportedly paid $3 million for six Taylor Swift concerts two years ago? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jamie Mackay talks to Winston Peters, Wayne Langford, Jane Smith, Callum McDonald, and Chris Russell. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The NZ First leader and former Deputy PM is his normal combative self when it comes to NZF propaganda, TPM, and the age of eligibility for National Super. However, he has praise for Judith Collins and a convenient memory lapse when it comes to 2017.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We are on a collision course with a massive 30 billion dollar problem. Duncan and economist Ed McKnight look at the uncomfortable truth about our retirement age and why it might have to hit 72 just to keep the lights on. They also discuss why no real change can happen while Winston Peters is in the room. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The coalition government is promising to "repurpose" the millions of tax payer dollars being spent on the fees-free policy for tertiary students. Winston Peters' confirmed the scheme, which has been through a few versions, will be scrapped. It was introduced in 2018, under Jacinda Ardern's government. Back then, students were eligible for their first year of study free and $194 million was paid in fees. Grant Robertson, was Labour's finance Minister when the fees-free policy was brought in and is now Vice Chancellor at the University of Otago. Grant Robertson spoke to Lisa Owen.
Finance Minister Nicola Willis has backed the decision to scrap the fees-free scheme for good. Last week, Winston Peters revealed to Newstalk ZB on Friday the Government's doing away with the free final year of tertiary education. Nicola Willis says it's important for the Government to invest in things that Kiwis really need and want - not a failed policy that didn't achieve any of the goals it aimed to accomplish. "New Zealand has been in deficit since 2019, we're carrying a heck of a lot of debt, we've got some real priorities for our budget in terms of the health system, the education we want to give our young kids, the defence system we want to build up, the infrastructure we want to build - all of those things have a better call on money." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
We're never going to know for sure what tipped the Government into finally cutting the fees-free policy but I would like to take some credit for this show's part in it. We have harped on about the need to get rid of that policy for so long that it actually started to get boring, even for me. But as with everything: persevere and you will succeed. And finally, the policy is gone. We had it confirmed by Winston Peters on Friday. Now, I've already had emails from people who are upset about this. I've heard students complaining and I've heard some parents complaining as well. And I understand - it is never fun to have free Government money taken away from you. It is because of this kind of angst that free Government money is so rarely clawed back once it's started being handed out. But this policy was a dog from the start. It cost perhaps $350 million a year - and $350 million a year is a lot of money. For that money, it didn't do what it was supposed to do, which was to lift enrolments among poorer kids. If it didn't achieve that - if those kids were going to uni anyway and are still going - then all we were doing was wasting $350 million. And to those worrying about students living in poverty or being unable to afford study, please remember: we taxpayers already subsidise about 70 percent of what it costs Kiwi kids to go to university. We already provide interest-free student loans. It is already relatively cheap, by global standards, to go to university here. You could argue that our system is already so generous that even making it more generous didn't lift enrolments. It's already generous enough. Now, I am going to withhold judgment on Nicola and Winston and what the plan is from here because this Government does tend to save money only to spend it again. They're going to take some of that money and spend it on trades training. That might be a good idea - but then again, it might just be the same kind of slop as fees-free, only in a more worthy place. We'll see. But as for the cutting of Jacinda's wasteful and pointless free year of study - RIP. And may we'll be more careful with our spending in the future. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon plans to start lifting the pension age if National get back into government after the coming election. Bipartisan support will most likely be needed to make this happen as parties, like NZ First, are staunchly against the reform. "Please do not attack grandmother and grandmother's savings to try and disguise for a brief time your economic incompetence," Winston Peters said to Heather du Plessis-Allan LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday, 8 May, 2026, Winston Peters insists he won't support efforts by the National Party to raise the retirement age. We talk to one of the women who's accused Sir Rod Drury of inappropriate conduct about him handing back his New Zealander of the Year award. The New Zealand Herald's media insider Shayne Currie on who should succeed Maiki Sherman as TVNZ's political editor. And on the Sports Huddle, Adam Cooper and Paul Allison discuss Luke Metcalf's future with the Warriors. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
I do worry about Paul Goldsmith's ability to make a decision. The BSA and its abolition is a “done by morning tea, let's move onto the important stuff” sort of thing. And yet he seems to have been waxing and waning and pontificating for the past two years of Government. At last, he has got there. The Broadcasting Standards Authority is over and thank the good Lord for that. It was from another time: pre-streaming, pre-international, no borders broadcasting. It caught the few originals left in a weird, old net that made no sense. And that's on top of the fact they had next to no complaints given no one can be bothered and most of the industry is professionally run anyway. The NZ Media Council will apparently take over duties, which I'm sort of torn over. I think we need someone who corrects mistakes. A decision this week over a story on the Interislander found the numbers used in the story on costings was wrong. Winston Peters complained, he was right, they needed to correct the record. The point in that example is he went to the company who published and they rejected his argument. You would like to think they were better than that, hence the need for the council. But those sorts of examples aside, what these quasi-courts end up doing is adjudicating on nuance and argument based on the moaning of some bored loser in suburbia, who would probably be better off watching less TV or reading less news and writing fewer letters. I do worry about the council. The current lot appear all lawyers and consultants, with not a single proper broadcaster. They do, they tell me, have some industry people who offer advice. But let me tell you this; unless you have driven a three-hour live radio programme or a live TV show with its varying unpredictables, you have no idea of the pressure that unfolds literally instantly, therefore the potential for verbal carnage. And yet that's the sort of thing they pass judgement on. Anyway, the BSA – been there, done that. It made no difference. It was an idea past its time. And it will not be missed. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has put his hand up, admitting he made a mistake by not consulting the Prime Minister's office before releasing a bombshell email chain about the government's stance on the Iran war. But he's not apologising for making them public saying there's no reason they shouldn't be out in the open. The Prime Minister isn't happy, his office said he expects more of the man who's spent four decades in public office. Political reporter Lauren Crimp spoke to Lisa Owen.
Former United Future leader Peter Dunne spent more than three decades as an MP, he was also a Minister. He supported a Labour coalition Government, New Zealand First was part of that arrangement and was also part of National led coalitions. Peter Dunne spoke to Lisa Owen.
The Prime Minister says he called Winston Peters to his Beehive office last night, over the release of emails regarding the US-Israel war in Iran.
Christopher Luxon's handling of disunity within his own party's ranks has begun exposing rifts in the coalition. Now he and deputy Nicola Willis have both publicly retaliated against coalition partner Winston Peters, saying he's scaremongering, anti-immigrant and making mischief. Mr Peters' complaint: no heads up from the PM about a potential leadership spill he initiated on himself. Political reporter Russell Palmer has the story.