Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

Covid-19 has left its mark on the balance sheet of New Zealand's hosting of this year's America's Cup.Analysis found that financially, New Zealand was almost $293 million worse, but when net benefits are considered, the loss shrinks to $156 million.The impacts of the pandemic, having fewer challengers and high public investment contributed to significant deficits.AUT sailing professor Mark Orams told Tim Dower even within our closed borders, the event was held - at various times - under Covid levels two and three.“And that really constrained all of the hospitality sector, the movement of people, the ability of even New Zealanders to engage in the event in the way that was originally planned.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Act Party, as part of their Law and Order Policy, want gang members to receive their benefits on a card, which would restrict spending on alcohol, gambling and tobacco.However, it doesn't address why young people are still being drawn into gang life.Patched member of the Mongrel Mob Aotearoa Wairoa chapter and youth worker Bronson Tither, is trying to redefine what it means to be in a gang.Bronson Tither told Kerre McIvor he knows many gang members who don't use drugs, alcohol or gamble and singling them out isn't the solution."The solution needs to be more focused around doing the type of mahi with the gang members to change their mindset, so that they want to not be on the unemployment benefit and they can be supported into another pathway, another way of thinking."LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wouldn't New Zealand be the perfect place if it weren't for the gangs?Over the years you've probably heard dozens of politicians promise gang crackdowns, tough policies to curb them, rein them in, or just lock 'em up.Electronic Income Management is new terminology to me, but the idea itself has been around a fair while.The Act Party says it wants to impose it on gang members when they're receiving benefits.The idea is to make sure children being raised in the homes of gang members have their basic needs met.So, money coming in from a benefit would be controlled electronically so it couldn't be spent on, well, you know where it goes.Instead, Act wants it used on the children, making sure they're properly fed and clothed.In principle, I have no objection to that at all.Not so long ago, Simon Bridges was talking refusing benefits altogether if a gang member couldn't prove where their assets had come from, and that they'd been paid for legitimately.What about the kids caught up in that? They didn't get to choose

A man who was brought up in a gang, says education will benefit gang members' children more, rather than controlling benefit spending.The Act Party wants gang members to receive their dole on an electronic card that would restrict spending on alcohol, gambling and tobacco.Dave Letele, who also runs the Manukau food bank, told Tim Dower you're much better off educating and empowering people, rather than trying to do this.“It’s limiting and monitoring spending, it’s not dealing with the issue of why people are joining gangs and that’s the real issue here.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The pause on quarantine-free travel with Victoria's been extended until at least tomorrow.The Health Ministry says it needs a better understanding of the developing situation in the Australian state - including the number and pattern of Covid-19 cases.Correspondent Lesley Yeomans says Victoria was supposed to come out of lockdown tonight, but that's been delayed."The Premier Daniel Andrews indicated they still neds some more time and we're waiting to see what the numbers are today."Our Health Ministry will review the quarantine-free travel pause with Victoria and New South Wales tomorrow.Ministry staff are keeping in contact with Australian authorities about each state - including keeping a close eye on South Australia, which has a new community case.Meanwhile, Fiji has announced another 784 new cases and 15 new deaths overnight.LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Biden administration and Western allies formally blamed China on Monday for a massive hack of Microsoft Exchange email server software and asserted that criminal hackers associated with the Chinese government have carried out ransomware and other illicit cyber operations.The announcements, though not accompanied by sanctions against the Chinese government, were intended as a forceful condemnation of activities a senior Biden administration official described as part of a "pattern of irresponsible behavior in cyberspace." They highlighted the ongoing threat from Chinese hackers even as the administration remains consumed with trying to curb ransomware attacks from Russia-based syndicates that have targeted critical infrastructure.The broad range of cyberthreats from Beijing disclosed on Monday included a ransomware attack from government-affiliated hackers that has targeted victims — including in the U.S. — with demands for millions of dollars. U.S officials also alleged that criminal contract hackers asso

You may be surprised to learn Year 13 girls still think being pretty and popular on social media is more important than intelligence and academic achievements.This is our 16-18 year-olds, and perhaps most surprisingly, the information comes from interviews with the top achievers at four high schools.Dr. Eunice Price at Auckland University's faculty of Education and Social Work told Tim Dower parents need to be supportive and let their kids know it isn’t the be all and end all.“Some of the pressures they feel are really real, they almost feel as if some of their failures are a life or death experience… if I have one small failure that’s my future ripped away from me.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak will self-isolate for 10 days, after initially saying they would not despite coming in contact with someone who contracted Covid-19.Johnson and Sunak came in contact with Health Secretary Sajid Javid who tested positive.The two initially claimed they didn't need to isolate as they were taking part in a pilot scheme that involves daily testing. However, backlash ensued from opposition parties claiming there's one rule for them and one for the rest of the public.Meanwhile, almost all legal restrictions in England will be lifted today, including limits on gatherings and nightclubs reopening.UK correspondent Gavin Grey told Tim Dower that means virtually everything will go back to normal."No limits on how many people can meet, the one metre-plus social distancing guidance has been removed except in places like hospitals or passport control, or entering the country. You no longer require face coverings and that's the one that's been controversial."See

Two athletes living in the Olympic Village have tested positive for Covid-19, the first to do so with the Tokyo Games opening on Friday.Organisers confirmed the positive tests on Sunday and both were listed as "non-Japanese". No names or other details were provided.Organisers on Sunday also said another athlete had tested positive but this person was not residing in the Olympic Village. This athlete was also identified as "non-Japanese".Organisers say since July 1, 55 people linked to the Olympics have reported positive tests. This accounting does include athletes or others who may have arrived for training camps but are not yet under the "jurisdiction" of the organising committee.The Olympic Village on Tokyo Bay will house 11,000 Olympic athletes and thousands of other support staff.Tokyo recorded 1,410 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, the highest in six months. It was the 28th straight day that cases were higher than seven days previous.The Olympics will open on Friday under a state of emergency in Tokyo and

Even before the Olympics are officially open, things are looking decidedly dicey in Tokyo.As of this morning, there are now 55 covid cases among people linked to the Games.This includes various contractors and suppliers, as well as the smattering of cases among the athletes themselves.Most recently, members of the South African football team have been told to isolate, after cases in their contingent.So far, the New Zealand team have not been directly affected.Let's hope it stays that way.But teams are flying in from all over the world...some from countries where the virus is totally out of control.Even with all our requirements about pre-departure tests and travellers supposedly being covid free...we get new cases arriving in managed isolation every day.To think the Olympics won't end up being a super-spreader event is living in dreamland.The first day of competition includes football and softball, as well as opening ceremony itself.Neither of those is a contact sport per se...but you can't have a game of eit

The more I see of this Three Waters legislation, the more it smacks of a dictatorship bent on centralisation, and the less I like it.This is a massive change in the way we live our lives, everyone needs water.But it's being hammered through with indecent haste, and the strategy seems to be to swamp us with very dodgy data and immensely complex legislation.The Prime Minister tried to win over local mayors yesterday with a sweetener, two and a half billion dollars to encourage them to go along with it.At the same time, the Government claims we need to spend anything from 120 billion to 185 billion, over the next 30 years.Now, I'm not denying that in some parts of the country there is a major infrastructure challenge.It can't be right that some councils have let their systems run down so much we see sewage in the streets when it rains, and beaches you can't swim at because they've gone code brown.It can't be right to have flood waters running through people's homes, when storm water systems can't handle the weat

The quarterly inflation figures are out today.If it's anything near one percent for the three months, it will take the annual rate into territory we haven't seen for a long time.There are concerns that the first digit on that annual figure could come out to a 3.And if so, is it a blip, or a sign the economy is overheating?Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan told Tim Dower there are a significant amount of inflationary pressures on our economy.“We’ve got oil prices rising, electricity prices are rising as well, container costs for international shipping are triple what they were before Covid and firms are also having to compete more for staff because the borders are shut.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s no secret social media giants are constantly looking for ways to get your attention, or better yet, your interaction.It's how they make their money.The granddaddy of them all, Facebook, is set to spend one billion US dollars getting influencers to create content on their platform.It's theorised this has come due to pressure from upstarts like Tik Tok.Tech commentator Paul Spain told Tim Dower when you’re dealing with the kind of numbers Facebook has, it’s a drop in the bucket.“When you’ve got that much money, you can afford to throw some of it around to make sure the best content creators are on your platform.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trucks, utes and even dogs will descend on city centres around the country today, as farmers take part in a huge protest.The Howl of a Protest event, organised by Groundswell New Zealand, will see thousands of farm vehicles rumbling through cities in protest against what farmers say is increasing interference from the Government, unworkable regulations and unjustified costs.The protests are taking place in 55 cities starting from Kaitaia to Southland.In Auckland, up to 50 tractors and utes are expected to take part in a convoy starting from Drury, on the Southern Motorway, at 9.20am.The convoy will be escorted by police as farmers head towards the Auckland CBD, where they are set to head down Queen St by the early afternoon.It will leave the motorway at Wellesley St, travel down Queen St before going along Beach Rd and rejoining the motorway heading south from Stanley St.Auckland motorists are told of a large convoy going through the CBD today. (File Photo / Mark Mitchell)A police spokeswoman said authorities

One of the England football players targeted with online racist abuse after his team's loss in the final of the European championship condemned social media companies Thursday for doing too little to block "hateful and hurtful" messages on their platforms.In comments directed at Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, Bukayo Saka said he didn't want anyone else to be targeted by the kind of messages he and teammates Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho received after the three Black players missed penalty kicks during the shootout that ended Sunday's game."I knew instantly the kind of hate that I was about to receive and that (it) is a sad reality that your powerful platforms are not doing enough to stop these messages," the 19-year-old Saka wrote on Instagram. "There is no place for racism or hate of any kind in football. …"The U.K. Football Policing Unit is investigating potential hate crimes linked to the online abuse, and four people have already been arrested, according to a statement from the National Police Chief

I was holding my breath for a moment listening to our 2 o'clock news yesterday.In the end, the interest rate didn't go up, but the flag's been raised and the printing of money is coming to an end; the party's almost over.You've probably noticed signs of inflation in your supermarket shop, a couple of things I buy regularly have sneaked up all of a sudden.That big pack of toilet roll jumped by a dollar, from $8 to $9, only a dollar, but it's still a 12 and a half percent hike.Dog food has gone up 50 cents a bucket, and sure, it only works out to a few dollars more every week, but in percentage terms it's quite a hike.Even a small coffee has sneaked up to 5 bucks from 4.50, that's well over 10 percent.Petrol is up more than 20 cents a litre since last year, 95 is at least $2.35, the average over 2020 was $2.11 a litre.You might say that's just a return to normal conditions.I saw broccoli priced at $4.99 a piece yesterday, I think that's a record, and cauliflower is off the charts, I've seen an asking price of 8

The Senate's top Democrat is backing a bill that would strike down a longstanding federal prohibition on marijuana, embracing a proposal that has slim chance of becoming law yet demonstrates growing public support  for decriminalizing the drug.Proposals to legalize marijuana are nothing new. But Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is a sponsor of the effort unveiled Wednesday, underscoring how a once-fringe idea is increasingly mainstream. The measure would erode a central pillar of the decades-long war on drugs, which has disproportionately affected communities of colour in the United States."I will use my clout as majority leader to make this a priority in the Senate," said Schumer, of New York, who is the first Senate leader to support such an effort. "It's not just an idea whose time has come, it's long overdue."The bill would treat marijuana much like alcohol or tobacco, allowing it to be taxed and regulated. States could still outlaw its use. And those under the age of 21 couldn't purchase it. It would

Declaring Venice's waterways a "national monument," Italy is banning mammoth cruise liners from sailing into the lagoon city, which risked being declared an imperiled world heritage site by the United Nations later this month.Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said the ban was urgently adopted at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday and will take effect Aug. 1. It applies to the lagoon basin near St. Mark's Square and the Giudecca Canal, which is a major marine artery in Venice.Franceschini said the government decided to act fast "to avoid the concrete risk" that the U.N. culture agency UNESCO would add Venice to its list of "world heritage in danger" after it begins meeting later this week in Beijing.The Cabinet decree also "establishes an unbreakable principle, by declaring the urban waterways of St. Mark's Basin, St. Mark's Canal and the Giudecca Canal a national monument,'' the minister added.Before the coronavirus pandemic severely curtailed international travel, cruise ships discharging thousands of day-trippers

For those who have entered into the housing market in the past seven years, the prospect of a rising interest rate will be new.ASN and Kiwibank have moved already, hiking fixed mortgage rates.ASB expects the Official Cash Rate will rise half a percent next month, and it's not the only big bank thinking that way.For your average property prospector, the question remains as to whether these projections are right.Nick Goodall is Corelogic's Head of Research and he told Tim Dower he is waiting to see how the situation plays out.“They see some of the pressures on inflation as being still a bit one-off and temporary, and if that’s the case then they still may wait until November until they make any lift on that one.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A mass vaccination event in South Auckland needs to address the failure so far to vaccinate vulnerable groups including Māori, Pasifika, and those in south Auckland, health experts say.Five months into the vaccine rollout and nearly 1.4 million doses having been administered, the rate of Māori fully vaccinated is more than 40 per cent behind Pākehā per capita.Pasifika are also about 20 per cent behind, despite both groups being identified as about twice as at-risk from Covid-19 and expert advice they be prioritised.Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said these reasons, and proximity to the border, were behind the country's first mass vaccination event, delivering 15,000 doses over three days, being held in Manukau, South Auckland.The event would target Manukau Institute of Technology students, staff and families and take place at the Vodafone Events Centre over the weekend of Friday, July 30, to Sunday, August 1.Other population centres with density could expect to see similar events to "top up" vaccina