Larry Williams Drive

Calls for for resignations from Auckland Council's executive team. Mayor Wayne Brown has met with National MPs today, discussing its governing body's ballooning $270 million dollar budget hole. He's ruled out plugging it with a 12 percent rates rise. Auckland Ratepayers Alliance spokesperson Josh Van Veen says Council Chief Executive Jim Stabback needs to go, and so does the entire leadership team. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This weekend was a big one for New Zealand rugby, as we had the All Blacks win their test match against Wales and the Black Ferns advance to the final for the Women's Rugby World Cup. Jason Pine, host of Weekend Sport, talked about the highlights from both matches, and gave us a rundown of what to expect from the Black Ferns' final match against England next weekend. England's team is a strong one, and the upcoming final is set to be a fairly intense clash for both teams. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's latest post-cabinet conference touched on banks making record profits  in a cost of living crisis impacting a substantial portion of New Zealanders. Not long before her Monday afternoon press conference, Westpac announced that they had made a full year profit of one billion dollars before the end of the year, a full 12 percent from last year. Jacinda Ardern says that banks need to demonstrate a social licence in this current climate and operate in a way that serves their communities. Political editor Barry Soper explained what approaches Jacinda Ardern and Labour could take to addressing this current situation. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While many high schools across the country have decided to refuse to televise 1st XV rugby matches, Napier Boys' High thinks otherwise. Napier Boys' High has stated that they think televising the 1st XV rugby matches is good for the players' development, and have worked out a deal where one match per week is broadcast on Maori Television. Other Super 8 schools in the central North Island, such as Hastings Boys' High, will be doing something similar with their 1st XV rugby matches.  Brendon Ratcliffe, the Director of Rugby at Napier Boys' High School says that televising the matches is good for the players, as they work really hard to get to their current level. As such, Brendon argues that having the matches on TV helps them take pride in their skills. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to microloan non-profit Nga Tanagata Microfinance, wage earning and partial wage earning clients now outnumber beneficiaries when it comes to needing loans.   Chief Executive of Nga Tanagata Microfinance Natalie Vincent says that it is “actually alarming.” LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two Hollywood directors have signed on to make the long awaited America’s Cup Reality TV show a reality. The show will go behind the scenes of 2024’s Cup, held in Barcelona. Sports Marketing Expert at AUT Marilyn Giroux joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss the show. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After fifteen months of collecting cobwebs, Hutt Valley’s Birthing Centre is reopening with a new lease on life. Instead of birthing, the centre will now be used for Post-natal care. The centre was privately run, and its doors closed last year amid controversy and a struggle to obtain DHB funding. Former DHB Board Member Prue Lamason joins Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss the reopening. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Waikato Chamber of Commerce says simply cutting speed limits is a “wet band aid on a gaping wound.” Waka Kotahi is reducing the limit on State Highway 1 between Cambridge and Piarere to 80 kilometres and bringing in other safety measures like median barriers and rumble strips. The area's been a crash hot spot. Chamber CEO Don Good told Heather du Plessis Allan that the only rational solution is to build the Expressway extension to Piarere now. He says they need to understand taking 10 years is way too long. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Air New Zealand is flying into the future with a date for its first emissions-free flight. The national carrier's joining developers to turn the aviation game green - including launching a zero emissions aircraft here by 2026. The airline is promising to replace its Q300 domestic fleet with a sustainable substitute by 2030 - likely using hydrogen or a battery hybrid. Head of fleet strategy Baden Smith says the deadlines are tight. He says they want to create real ambition in the industry because of its grave importance. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Taupo man has plead guilty to seven counts of sabotage - the first person convicted of the charge in New Zealand. Open Justice reports IT professional and anti-vax campaigner Graham Philip was initially charged with wilful damage in December - which was upgraded to sabotage charges this year. Details are suppressed out of fears of copy-cat offending. Waikato University law professor Alexander Gillespie says it has a lower threshold of proof than a terrorism charge. He says if other people do similar things, the charge may be re-used. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New numbers out of the UK show that the amount of foreign born people in the region has reached 10 million. This accounts for 1 in 6 people in the UK, which is a new record. The number of Romanians in particular has gone up following working restrictions being lifted.  Josella Waldren, UK correspondent, broke these statistics down further and explained how these rates look compared to census data from a decade ago. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We had Australia’s Central Bank announce a slower rate hike earlier this week and the U.S Federal Reserve just went up another 75 basis points. And we're not far away from hearing what the Bank of England is going to do, as they’re set to announce their interest rates in a few hours. Sam Dickie from Fisher Funds talked us through the lead-up and explained why a historically high basis points raise is looking likely. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dairy NZ has recently taken a stand against the Government's He Waka Eke Noa tax scheme.  The organisation has been aligned with the Government, but Chairperson Jim Van De Poel threatened to pull support unless changes were made to the tax scheme, because no deal seemed better than a bad deal to them. Jamie Mackay, host of The Country, stated that this is a strong position for Dairy NZ to take, as they had previously established strong ties with the Government. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A 'Rebuilding Better' series will be out in the Herald tomorrow about how New Zealand can rebuild - economically and socially - post Covid-19. The project will be focused around examining aspects of New Zealand life, starting with the economy, but covering health, social division, crime, and national identity to find out if New Zealand can emerge as a fairer and more prosperous nation post Covid.  NZ Herald business editor Liam Dann is involved with this project, and he explained that the goal of this series is to find out how we can emerge as a better form of our nation out of the shadow of the pandemic. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A2 Milk has finally got the all clear to sell its infant formula in the U.S. It applied for the approval back in May when America announced a nationwide shortage, and finally got to break into the market this month. Adrian Allbon, Jarden's director of equity research, considers this a positive development. The approval process only lasts til January currently, but A2 Milk has an opening to extend their approval and expand their brand into a US market.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on The Huddle: Simon Wilson, NZ Herald senior writer and Nick Mills, Newstalk ZB Host, joined us to talk about the following topics- and more! First Union say this two year collective agreement that includes wage rises of 12 percent could lay the ground work for a Fair Pay Agreement - is First Union too optimistic? Do you think there's enough integrity in our postal voting system? Is it too easy to commit electoral fraud?  Efeso Collins says he lost 20,000 votes due to his skin colour - believable? How did he quantify this? Jurgen Klopp has told Sky News it is "not fair" to expect political statements from players, ahead of the World Cup in Qatar. Is Klopp right? A job in Haast went viral after being reported about, 1300 people ended up applying and now DOC has a shortlist of 40 applicants. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The rising price of diesel is burning a big hole in one company's pocket. Yesterday, the cheapest diesel in Tauranga was $2.39 at Gull Speedlane, while 91 petrol was $2.28. Rotorua-based Patchell Group, transport trailers and equipment manufacturers, say diesel cost the company an extra $87,000 dollars in the first six months of this year. Chief Executive of Brent Whibley says they didn't expect it to have such an impact. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

18 thousand supermarket workers have accepted better pay offers. Members of First Union at Countdown supermarkets have voted in favour of wage increases starting at 11.5 percent, the supermarket chain's also implementing a starting living wage and more options for sick leave. Increased pay means Countdown workers will be some of the highest paid in the sector, with the union celebrating what they're saying are better conditions. First Union Secretary Ben Peterson says it's what the workers deserve. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Consumers can't buy electric utes in New Zealand, but they remain a popular and useful vehicle. How can we get around this? James Hardisty, a farmer turned electrician, may have found a solution to the puzzle by developing his own. James Hardisty has converted a 1983 Toyota Hilux into an EV, and he talked us through how he constructed and developed this ute. Despite costing him $80,00 to finish, he believes converting utes into EV's is a viable option, given how many we currently have in the country.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lately, a subset of farmers have been refusing to fill in the Agricultural Census, despite it being a legal requirement.  Groundswell is a driving force behind these farmers, as they're united in wanting to protest the Government's emissions tax. Co-founder of Groundswell, Bryce McKenzie, says that he's noticed this protest is having some effect on the Government, as they've extended the Census collection deadline. "We're not saying we don't want to do this, because there's a lot of good that can come from doing a Census as well. But what we're saying is- let's change the metric so that we're actually getting fair value for what we're doing." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.