Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

There are hopes Christmas will bring businesses a cash bounce.  The latest Retail NZ sales index —for the third quarter— shows many retailers sat in a holding pattern before the election.   59% reported increasing prices and just 57% felt confident their businesses would survive the next year.  Business NZ CEO, Kirk Hope, told Kate Hawkesby that there’s a lot more certainty after the election.  He said that there is a very clear pathway for businesses and a lot more clarity around what policy is going to be.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Further concern about the state of Wellington City Council's books as it agrees to a new budget for the Town Hall.  The council agreed to approve up to $147-million towards the redevelopment, an expense which could bring the total up to $329-million.  The heritage-listed building has been closed to the public for the past decade for quake-strengthening.  Wellington Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Simon Arcus worries this could impact rates or other projects.  He says they've raised concerns about debt for a long time.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You’ve got to think there’s something very rotten in the state of the public service in this country that they’re carrying on —in some quarters where they know full well they’re getting cancelled— that they’re carrying on hiring people, working on projects, spending money, commissioning work.   Why? They’re not going anywhere. Three Waters, light rail, Let’s get Wellington Moving... why are people on these projects persevering when they must know it’s over? They’re gone, surely the spending stops. It’s reckless and wasteful, and smacks of a deluded sense of entitlement that they can carry on in the false belief —or maybe just arrogance— that wasting taxpayers' money on contracts and outlay trumps the reality, which is they’re toast.   Give it up. Stop already. Hundreds of thousands of dollars are being spent on things that will be completely irrelevant and non-existent. There is a guy, as we know from yesterday, at Three Waters hiring people. What a waste of time and money.   This is another problem with dela

New Zealand's Government has made further public comment on the conflict in Israel and Gaza.   Outgoing Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, in consultation with incoming Prime Minister Chris Luxon, has joined international calls for humanitarian corridors in Gaza and designated safe areas.   Honorary Consul for Israel, Henri Eliot, told Kate Hawkesby that what's missing is the New Zealand government recognising Hamas as a terrorist organisation.   He says the hostages still being held in Gaza aren't being talked about enough.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Peter Dunne is someone I really respect because he’s emerged from a life inside politics to remain an engaged and informed observer on the outside.  He makes a lot of sense, which is why I love having him on this show. He recently gave an interview where he talked about the fact we shouldn’t have to wait this long for election results. I agree.   I’m sure most of us do. I mean we voted for a system like MMP which is not that clear cut so that parts on us, but surely the mechanism for counting special votes can be sped up. As it stands, special votes have to be sent back to their electorates. That’s your first hold up. Secondly they’re counted manually. They’re also taking all this time to scrutinize the roll, check for any duplication of votes, recount votes... and bear in mind there are around 567 thousand special votes apparently this year.   But Peter Dunne says we need to speed it up.   He said, “the votes need to be transmitted back to the electorates, they should be counted much more quickly and then t

Concerns that Wellington City Council's financial books aren't in a good state.  Castalia was commissioned by a group of locals for an independent analysis of public records, which suggests a one-billion-dollar budget blowout.  Group member and Wellington Lawyer, John Swan, told Kate Hawkesby that the council's 'reckless.'  He says they've bitten off more than they can financially chew, but concedes that some of it is down to inflation.  Council Chief Financial Officer Andrea Reeves says the analysis makes assumptions based on outdated information.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Rotorua Councillor says they'll be more transparent with the public, but some meetings need to be confidential.  A Chief Ombudsman review of eight councils has found some have effectively closed workshops to the public for invalid reasons.  It followed complaints they were undermining local democracy by making decisions away from the public eye.  Rotorua Lakes Councillor Fisher Wang told Kate Hawkesby that the community should also expect the council to be fully informed.  He says that means sometimes they have to meet and discuss things behind closed doors when the topic is of a confidential nature.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christopher Luxon's staying tight lipped about coalition discussions.   Meanwhile, ACT's David Seymour says he's happy to make the coalition agreement public once it's been struck.   Arrangements in 2017 weren't made public by Jacinda Ardern, with the Chief Ombudsman ruling details couldn't be requested under the Official Information Act as it came within her capacity as Labour leader.   Former National Health Minister Jonathan Coleman told Kate Hawkesby that historically, it's always happened behind closed doors.  He says negotiations are always kept private, and even in retrospect no one really knows what went on and why things were negotiated.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Emergency warnings have been issued for people in the way of fast-moving fires in southern Queensland.  From today, residents in several towns about 250 kilometres from Brisbane have been urged to leave their homes immediately.  Evacuation centres have been set up.  Australia correspondent Donna Demaio says one of the fires, which has burned about 200 hectares of land already, is deemed suspicious.  She says temperatures will also be hovering around the mid 30's which will make things extra tough.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How good is a long weekend?    And is Labour weekend not one of the best? It’s the downhill slide to Christmas, which by the way is just nine Fridays away now.   It’s heading into summer, it’s just a vibe. I notice people had an extra spring in their step – the sun was shining, the AB’s won a place in the final, we had two good games of rugby to watch in fact, there just seemed a real buzz over the weekend. I’m sure great weather helps, especially after the winter we’ve had.   But I always think Labour weekend signals just how crazy busy the summer season may get if you live anywhere near a tourist hotspot. Where we live rurally is near a thriving wee summer hotspot which attracts huge crowds of people – particularly at weekends, but even more so at public holiday weekends. And it’s a catch 22 for locals.   On the one hand you’re thrilled for your local pub and shops and village to get such great business, but on the other hand you can’t even get through the traffic to get a Pub lunch. So, happy for the Pub,

Four years on from the March 15th Christchurch terror attacks, the coronial inquest is beginning today. Coroner Brigette Windley will hear up to eight weeks of evidence.   She will determine the cause and circumstances of the 51 deaths and make recommendations to prevent similar tragedies in the future.   Herald reporter Anna Leask told Kate Hawkesby that the coroner will look at whether people could've lived if emergency services or hospital staff had done things differently.   She says there are a few other questions the families don't feel have been answered, including whether the gunman had help.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The outgoing and incoming governments are blaming the caretaker convention for keeping tight-lipped about the situation in the Middle East.   The convention applies when an outgoing administration is preparing to make way for an incoming one.   International Geopolitical Analyst Geoffrey Miller told Kate Hawkesby that New Zealand's done the minimum: condemning the Hamas attack, calling for restraint from Israel's response, and funding humanitarian aid.   He says beyond that, ministers have been reserved by design because of the caretaker convention.   Miller says we're waiting for formation of a new government for a fuller response.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A macroeconomics professor is hitting back at a forecast our economy is on track for a soft-landing.  Infometrics has revised its expectations for next year up to 0.9% growth, saying strong migration figures are having an effect.  Auckland University Professor Robert MacCulloch told Tim Dower that the report is silly.  He questions how they could come out with a line like that when next year the International Monetary Fund ranks our GDP growth at 180 out of 189 countries in the world.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are suggestions that we need to redefine what constitutes a one-in-75 years flood.  A new housing development on land which flooded during Auckland's record-breaking January downpours is drawing criticism.  AUT construction expert John Tookey told Tim Dower that there's legislative requirements that you have to be able to deal with degrees of flooding.  He says if you're in a zone such as this, you need to have design features within the property which reduce the worst effects of a one-in-75 years flood.  The site's developer declined to comment.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fresh concerns today about alcohol advertising near schools.  Today's Medical Journal reports on a survey around more than 50 Auckland schools, which found each of them had at least one alcohol ad within 500 metres.  And it's pointing out there was alcohol advertising close to 63% of low-decile schools.  Instinctively, that doesn't sound so good but can we just back up the bus here for a second?  One alcohol ad within 500 metres of a school... does that strike you as an end of the world is nigh situation?  No, me neither.  If it's the only ad for anything in that 500 metre radius and it's as big as a house, maybe that would register but would it send you steaming off to a bottle shop?  Did advertising have anything to do with your early choices around drinking? No? Thought not.  More likely the influences that steered you towards or even away from a particular product, or from alcohol altogether, were a lot closer to home.  Wouldn't it have been your peers, your family, and the way they conducted themselves a

Tomorrow morning brings with it what is set to be an intense match.  The semifinals between the All Blacks and Argentina kicks off at 8am.  Former All Black and Sky Sports Presenter, Jeff Wilson, told Tim Dower that this tournament was never going to be won in round one.   He said once you get to this point of the tournament, the draw doesn’t matter as the teams have nothing to lose.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK Prime Minister has publicly pledged his support for Israel, in Israel.  Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Rishi Sunak says he stands by Israel's right to defend itself in line with international law.  He says he also welcomes Netanyahu's decision to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, and the UK will increase its aid to the region.  UK Correspondent Vincent McAviney told Tim Dower that he was echoing the same sentiment of the US, warning them to be cautious about occupating Gaza.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dire scenes in the Middle East.  At least 500 people have been killed in an airstrike of a Gaza Hospital.  Hamas says it was caused by an Israeli strike, while Israel claims a rocket from a militant Palestinian group falling short is responsible.  Jacqui Southey, Research Director at Save the Children, told Kate Hawkesby that the humanitarian situation is becoming dire.  She said that food, water, and medical supplies are running out, but it’s impossible to get aid in without a ceasefire.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I want to thank Auckland airport shareholders for being vocal on the state of Auckland airport.  They got grumpy and got into it with the airport at the annual meeting this week. And it's not before time. Issues with delays, queues, bags, lack of service, lack of staff, have been going on far too long and too many travellers have already suffered needlessly.   The worst time I think was when the airport CEO came out and said 'it's complex'. Well, that's running an airport, isn't it? Of course it's complex, yet airports all over the world, in countries all over the world, way busier and bigger than us manage to do it every day. So why can't we?   So frustrated shareholders apparently grilled the airport over all the problems, for which the airport and biosecurity officials apologised. But is an apology enough? I'd say no - what we need is action, we need it turned around, we need it fixed. It was reported that 'one shareholder hit out at the airport's inconsistency in service.' They'd called the airport 'an ab

Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin may be re-charged over the shooting of his colleague on the movie set Rust.   Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed during rehearsal in 2021, after the gun Baldwin was handling went off.   US correspondent Mitch McCann told Kate Hawkesby that special prosecutors dropped the involuntary manslaughter charges five months ago, because the gun might have been modified and malfunctioned.  He says since then, they've reportedly received new analysis of the weapon, which could lead to new charges in the coming weeks.   Baldwin's lawyers are calling this a misguided prosecution.    LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.