Larry Williams Drive

Let’s see if the outraged in football are going to back up their outrage with actual actions this time around. Once again, FIFA has proved it doesn’t care what anyone thinks and it’s chosen money over morals. It’s signed Saudi Arabia on as a sponsor of this Women’s Football World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Without telling Football Australia and New Zealand Football that they’ve done it. And needless to say, neither of them are happy about it. Because of course, Saudi Arabia has a shocker of a record when it comes to the treatment of women. Women still need permission from a guardian to get married or leave prison, and even get some forms of sexual and reproductive healthcare. Football Australia is “very disappointed”. New Zealand Football is "shocked and disappointed". And so they’ve written a letter to FIFA that’s somehow become public. Warning that they “cannot express strongly enough the potential repercussions and fallout that could result [from] this decision".  So let’s see what those repercussio

FIFA are facing backlash over their rumoured sponsor for the upcoming Women's World Cup. Visit Saudi, the official Saudi Arabia tourism authority may be selected to sponsor the event, despite criticism from human rights groups over the nation's treatment of women. Women's World Cup co-hosts New Zealand Football and Football Australia have written to FIFA to ask for clarification and to urge them against this choice. Women in Sport acting Chief Executive Nicky van den Bos says this decision was unexpected, and they don't support this sponsorship. Nicky van den Bos says New Zealand Football has started on the right foot by asking FIFA for clarification, as this is still speculative. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Insurers are warning it could be years before all the Auckland flood-related claims are settled. The Insurance Council has had to bring in extra staff to get through the 15,000 claims- and they anticipate that as a start. Insurance Council spokesperson Christian Judge says that the floods were a massive climate event that impacted most of the North Island beyond Auckland. Judge says that the majority of claims will be settled within a few months, but there will be a 'tail' of claims from more complex circumstances.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Teachers across England and Wales are expected to strike on the first day of planned industrial action for better pay. It has been estimated that at least 23,000 schools will be closed during these strikes, forcing 4.5 million children to miss a day of education. UK correspondent Kay Oliver says that this is part of a bigger wave of industry strikes, as train drivers and civil servants will be joining the planned walkouts. Kay Oliver says these next few days of planned strikes will be difficult for parents and families, especially those with high-needs children. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An economist says an extension of the fuel tax discount is dumb policy. It will be extended until the end of June alongside discounted road user charges and half price public transport fares. Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says the Government has done a complete turn around on this. He says it's not directly targeting those worse off and it will benefit the rich more than the poor by about three times as much. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

January 2023 has presented a strong start to the year for the financial markets. Key players such as The Dow, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq have all reported increases over the last month.   Milford Asset Management's Sam Trethewey says investors have increased confidence in the current market for three big reasons. These include economic hub China reopening, inflation data slowing in both New Zealand and the US, and a predicted pause in hikes from central banks. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are suggestions the next Official Cash Rate increase will be 50 basis points. Latest figures from the December quarter show the unemployment rate has risen slightly to 3.4 percent, which was higher than expected. It's sparked speculation from major banks that the next OCR hike to cool inflation will be lower, rather than the predicted 75 basis points. NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny says people might be tempted to celebrate, but a 50 percent basis point hike is still a significant increase. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New data from Centrix shows that 400,000 people ended last year behind on paying their bills. The number of people in debt from missed home loan payments and household bills has gone up by 10 percent from 2021. However, as more people go into debt, charities designed to help low-income Kiwis back on their feet are expecting to lose Government funding by June. Nga Tangata Microfinance chief executive Natalie Vincent says that she's noticed an increase in people needing their services over the last few months.  "What's been alarming to us looking at those figures is the increase in people who are applying for new consumer finance, like personal loans or credit cards, to get them through this time of high cost of living." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's edition of The Huddle, Georgina Stylianou, Director of Government Relations firm BRG and Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR joined in on a discussion about the following topics: What do we make of Wayne Brown's ongoing response to the Auckland floods, especially after his latest interaction with a Herald journalist and relationship to the media? The fuel tax discount and half-priced public transport have been extended to June 30th. Did Labour have to make this decision politically, or would they have gotten away with removing it in March? A Four Square in Port Chalmers refused to sell a cruise ship crew eggs during the current shortage- was it right for them to make this decision?  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Well as far election bribes go, I’ll have this one, thank you! Good move from Chris Hipkins extending the fuel tax discount through to June. To be fair, he had no choice. He could hardly start adding tax back onto fuel in the middle of cost of living crisis, could he?  Honestly, I’m a little surprised by the conversation this afternoon, to hear how many people are ungrateful and are calling it a stupid idea. I mean, be cynical, sure. This is an election bribe, no doubt about it. But being ungrateful and calling it stupid seems weird.  What would you rather have? The Government adding this tax back on and bringing in more money for them to spend? That’s not a good call. I have no confidence that any money I give them ends up making this country better right now. They’ll happily spend $9000 a week on consultants for a media merger that’s not going to happen, and are still to this day leasing office space for a bike bridge they’ve already canned at a cost of $600K. Meanwhile, we have a growing number of potholes

There's relief now the sun's shining above Auckland, but the region isn't out of the wet yet. Auckland is still in a state of emergency after Friday's deluge, which closed roads, caused slips, and toppled homes. Auckland Council says more than 2300 rapid building assessments have been completed since Saturday. More than 160 homes have been red-stickered - meaning they aren't safe to enter - and over 650 buildings have restricted access. It's estimated up to 6000 properties still need to be assessed. Deputy mayor Desley Simpson says it's hard to judge when the city will be back to normal because of the extent of the damage, particularity in the Northern and Western regions, but hundreds of people are out there helping. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The storm clouds may have passed Auckland, but the region isn't out of the woods yet. Tamaki Makaurau will remain in a state of emergency for the rest of the week, and road closures and slips are still an issue. The Education Ministry now says schools can open from tomorrow, if possible. Auckland Transport's group manager for Metro Services, Darek Koper says they'll be prioritising school bus services in order to get students to school. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank may be able to pull back its heavy lifting of interest rates to manage inflation. Unemployment edged up to 3.4 percent in the December quarter with inflation stubborn at 7.2 percent. ASB's Senior Economist says it shows the economy isn't as hot as the Reserve Bank had feared early this year. Mark Smith says factors suggest the labour market will slow more and the economy is due for a turning point later this year.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Transport Minister says extending the fuel tax discount isn't an election year bribe. It'll continue alongside half priced public transport and discounted road user charges until the end of June. Michael Wood says it's a quick way to directly reduce cost of living pressures for struggling Kiwis. He says the $700 million dollars it'll cost comes from Ministers saving money in their departments and from projects that may no longer go ahead. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has extended fuel tax cuts and half-priced public transport until June 30th. This is a reversal of an earlier Government decision to scrap these offerings by the end of March. ZB's senior political correspondent Barry Soper says this will likely add to inflation, as the extra money saved will be sucked into the economy and drive up prices. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US is being affected by a nationwide egg shortage, and prices are surging. A deadly outbreak of avian flu has tightened the worldwide egg supply, and inflation has forced up the price of eggs from $2 ($3.11 NZD) to $7 ($10.87). US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says this makes it harder for US consumers to be able to purchase affordable protein, as they had turned to eggs when meat prices shot up. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wallabies coach Eddie Jones has promised that the Wallabies will claim a Bledisloe Cup victory over the All Blacks in August. In his first appearance to the media of his current contract, Eddie Jones says the team is 'after the All Blacks', and if they can take down New Zealand, they'll be in a good position for the Rugby World Cup. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave says this statement is designed to hype up both sets of teams for an eventful rugby season. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A supermarket owner-operator has quickly cracked down on cruise ship crew planning to clear their store out of eggs. Four Square Port Chalmers has a one carton per customer limit during the nationwide egg shortage. But a cruise ship sent in the captain and 22 crew members to buy a carton each. Aaron Challis caught on to the ploy - and says it was ethically important to stop the attempt. "When you've got a shortage like we have at the moment, it's important we do adhere to the one carton per customer rule so that our local customers, your everyday customer, can come and get those basics." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On last night’s double poll: Really, this is not so much a story about the Labour party’s success as it is about the National party needing a rocket. I mean, sure Labour should absolutely celebrate the bump in their polls, but let’s put this in context. The best this poll bump gives Labour is a hung parliament. That’s a draw. Their big, pre-planned election year reset hasn’t given them an outright win, they must be a little bummed by that. National though should be very bummed out that it is drawing with a Government many consider one of the worst Governments, if not the worst Government in living memory. How is that happening?  Over the BBQs this summer I heard the same thing consistently from people who want to vote Labour out. They can’t vote for National, because they don’t know what National stands for. National is gonna have to start fronting up with some policies, or they risk doing serious damage to themselves and Chris Luxon. One of the worst things out of that poll night for National was that only 3

The UK's Defence Secretary has confirmed the British Army is in decline and is no longer regarded as a top-level fighting force. This has come off the back of a US general warning that the British Army's decline needs to be reversed faster in wake of the Russia-Ukraine war. UK correspondent Enda Brady says this decline is the result of successive conservative governments slashing funding to the British army over the years. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.