Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Thursday 14th of August 2025, Jacinda Arden and Chris Hipkins won't show face at the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Covid-19, Minister responsible Brooke Van Velden shares her thoughts.  Property owners are seeing the lowest resale profits in over a decade, Matt Ball from the NZ Property Investors Federation tells Ryan why.  New NCEA achievement data shows mixed results, Darfield school Principal Andy England breaks it down.  Plus, US Correspondent Mitch McCann has the latest on the Trump and Putin meeting.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The ACT Party's laying into the former Ministers who lead our Covid-19 response for refusing to front public hearings.  Labour leader Chris Hipkins, and former Ministers Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson, and Ayesha Verrall have declined to appear as part of the Royal Commission's Inquiry.  Commissioners are confident it won't hamper efforts. Act's Brooke van Velden, who's in charge of the inquiry, told Ryan Bridge these Ministers stood publicly and made huge decisions about people's lives. She says it's confusing for many members of the public who are still feeling the effects of the Covid lockdown.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yesterday they wheeled out three excuses for not fronting up and answering questions about why they went so hard on lockdowns and mandates which they then papered over with $66-billion in spending - second in the world only to the US - thereby helping fuel the inflation we're all now paying the price for taming.  1. First we heard they wouldn't attend the public hearing and give public evidence because they were worried about how the public might react - that some might use their videos to spread misinformation.  The Inquiry itself basically said this was nonsense because the public interest in them appearing outweighed the risk of some nutter altering their testimony video and sharing it on Facebook.  2. Then Hipkins fronted for a stand-up with another reason - I already answer these questions on a daily basis.  Which, again, makes no sense. If you were worried about videos being doctored of misinformation being spread, would it not apply as much to those comments in the media - which are

More heat pumps in households could cut energy bills by a total of $1.5 billion a year.  A report by the New Zealand Green Building Council has found replacing gas and electric heaters with heat pumps could save 40% of gas produced, each year.  It's also revealed this could protect thousands of  jobs, with three mills closing in the last year due to soaring energy prices.  Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority’s Richard Briggs told Ryan Bridge heat pumps are about 3.5 times more efficient than a resistive heater.  He says the upfront cost is quite expensive, but they are significantly cheaper to run.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Vocational Education Minister assures its Te Pukenga de-merger is responsible, despite Treasury raising concerns. Newstalk ZB can reveal it urged the Government to seek reassurance that allowing polytechs to go back to governing themselves would help their finances. The mid-March paper warned the financial situation would be the same, if not worse, than before the merger. Penny Simmonds told Ryan Bridge if they did nothing, Treasury would be right, but they haven't sat on their hands. She says they've spent 18 months with financial advisors working with each polytechnic, getting rid of excessive staffing levels and non-viable programmes. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Wednesday 13th of August 2025, Treasury warned the Government that breaking up Te Pukenga could leave polytechs worse off, Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds tells Ryan Bridge why they decided to go ahead anyway.  A report from the Green Building Council shows Kiwis could save up to $1.5 billion on their annual energy bill if we moved to full heat pump adoption.  Major America's Cup changes are coming, Interim CEO of yachting New Zealand Raynor Haagh tells Ryan the difference it'll make to the sport.  Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on a US woman who was hired as a killer and tried to shoot a man in the UK at point-blank range. Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People aren't telling pollsters they'd vote for Labour because they'd actually vote for Labour. Labour hasn't got any policies - they're an empty vessel.  It's captain is still, according to most recent polling, less popular than the current Prime Minister.  It's a protest vote. They're telling the PM to hurry up and do something else to rescue the economy the last lot, and a trade war, have suppressed.  You don't throw the baby out with the bath water and back a team that has no plan.  That clown that's running in the Wellington Mayoral race has more policies than Hipkins. He wants to turn the Basin Reserve into a swamp.  Sure, it's mad, but at least it's something.  Late last year and early this year, the recovery was on-track.  We then got hit by Trump's Liberation Day. Confidence and investment took a massive hit, the markets were in freefall, remember? That's thrown everything off course.  Now, you can argue that National went too hard and fast on cutting spending

Major gas users are looking to the Government for help, with many struggling with high prices.  A survey by energy management company Optima and Business NZ reveals gas prices have risen by more than 100% on average in the past five years.  Nearly half of industrial and commercial users have had to make cuts as a result.  Resources Minister Shane Jones is seeking advice whether rationing gas supplies is possible.  Major Gas Users Group spokesperson Len Houwers told Andrew Dickens Jones has proposed a triage-like system.  He says Jones is exploring reserving gas for industrial users instead of electricity companies.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s believed our trans-Tasman friends are keeping tourism strong in Queenstown.   Skyline Operators, who run the luge and gondolas, have seen international luge rides increase by 32.6% from 7.46 million in the last year to close to 10 million.   Gondola rides have also risen more than 21%.   Queenstown Mayor Glyn Lewers told Andrew Dickens they're crossing the ditch in numbers.  He says the latest stat from the airport shows routes from Aussie are up 145% on pre Covid numbers.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast 2025 Tuesday 12th of August, the government's deciding whether to formally recognise Palestine as a state, Massey University's John Battersby tells Andrew the difference it will make.  Queenstown tourism is booming; Mayor Glyn Lewers shares his thoughts.  There's a call for the Government to take immediate action in the gas sector as supplies reach a crisis point, major gas users group spokesperson Len Houwers tells Andrew what the Government can do.  Plus, Australia Correspondent Lesley Yeomans has the latest on Australia recognising Palestinian statehood.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The world's eyes will be on New Zealand over the next month as it weighs up a decision to recognise Palestinian statehood.  Australia's declared it will recognise Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September.  It's following suit behind other Western countries including the UK, France, and Canada.  Massey University defence and security studies professor John Battersby told Andrew Dickens there's widespread public opinion that something has to be done to pull Israel's action back.  He says there's internal dissent within Israel itself over the effect of its actions, so any move in this direction may be able to temper that.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So the big question of today is whether New Zealand should join other nations in recognising a Palestinian state.  Now this is a much bigger question than it seems. For some it's easy - call Palestine a state and then they have a legal foothold to fight for some land I guess. And in a way, we already have done that by calling publicly for a two state solution to the conflict in the Middle East. But it's easy to confuse nations and states.  States have a multi-layered definition. A state is a political and legal entity with sovereignty over a defined territory and population. It's focus is governance, law, and authority. So many of those provisos are missing. Obviously there is no defined territory. Or maybe there was, but it's been pretty much destroyed now.   There is no authority that is recognised by most, with Hamas having lost the mandate in the eyes of many countries and the Palestinian Authority long since discredited.  A state can easily be confused with a nation, which i

The greens want to lead the next government.  Co-Leader Chloe Swarbrick admits they’ve got ‘work to do’ - with the party polling just under 10% and Labour in the early 30s.  Former Green MP Catherine Delahunty told Ryan Bridge that Green will need to ‘team up’ with smaller parties if they want to push Labour out of the spotlight.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Federated Farmers says two new visas provide a clear pathway for seasonal international workers. Experienced workers like rural contractors can apply for the Global Workforce Seasonal Visa, which is available for up to three years and allows them to return on the same visa. The Peak Seasonal Visa will be for up to seven months.  Federated Farmers Dairy Chair Karl Dean told Ryan Bridge it's a welcome change. He says normally they'd get workers in on a working holiday visa for a year, but this makes much clearer what they're here for.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You've got to feel for Zelensky on weeks like this.  Friday's the big day. Putin will fly to Alaska and meet Trump for cup of tea and biscuit.  They'll negotiate the terms of ceasefire for what the Russians are calling a 'Ukraine crisis', rather than a bloody war they started.  The body count is as astonishing as the fact there's a war raging in Europe in 2025.  One million Russian soldiers killed or injured. 400k Ukrainian casualties, including between 60 and 100k dead.  Moscow now occupies 20% of the country.  And the guy responsible for this hellfire is not being dragged by soldiers into an international criminal court to face charges, he's about to be welcome, wined and dined by the most powerful man in the world to discuss terms for a ceasefire, which includes keeping land he's not entitled to.  If we put ourselves in Ukrainian shoes for a second, if war returns to the Pacific theatre.  It would be like Washington and Beijing meeting to decide that China can keep a

On the Early Edition with Full Show Podcast Monday 11th of August 2025, two new work Visas are on the way, Federated Farmers Dairy Chair Karl Dean tells Ryan about the difference it'll make.  The Green party wants to lead the next government, Former Green MP Catherine Delahunty shares her thoughts.  Andrew Alderson has the latest on the weekend's sport.  Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the latest on a joint statement issued by EU leaders on Trump's meeting with Russia.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time will tell if Vladimir Putin will postpone a meeting with Donald Trump, as he has done in the past.   The Kremlin says the US President and his Russian counterpart have agreed to meet in the "coming days".   The Trump administration has indicated, for the pair to meet, Putin must meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.   BBC Russia Correspondent Olga Ivshina told Ryan Bridge Putin's made progress towards his goals while pretending he's open for peace talks.   She says he's pushed Ukrainian forces out of Russia's Kursk region, while capturing some villages.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A US company is building the world's largest aircraft without having ever built a plane before.   The WindRunner is being constructed to transport large wind turbines and will be operating by the end of this decade. It's eight times as big as the largest military aircraft, with a cockpit as tall as a five storey building.  Radia CEO Mark Lundstrom told Ryan Bridge it's capable of moving gigantic things to hard to reach places, including for humanitarian missions and defence applications  He says the goal is to move a more than 100metre long turbine blade and land it on a piece of dirt within confines of a wind farm, which would reduce cost of wind energy by a third.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Friday 8th of August 2025, the Ardern government was warned that the spending spree during Covid would have dire consequences, Finance Minister Nicola Willis explains the impact it's had. There's been confirmation from the Kremlin overnight that a meeting between Trump and Putin will take place as early as next week, BBC Russia correspondent Olga Ivshina tells Ryan whether it will impact the deadline for sanctions.  A US company’s building the world’s largest airplane to transport massive wind turbines, the company's CEO Mark Lundstrom tells Ryan about the project.  Plus UK Correspondent Vincent McAviney has the latest on Israel's security cabinet meeting and the UK beginning operating its 'one in one out' scheme with France.  Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.           LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government says it won't make the same mistakes as the last if hit with an event similar to the Covid-19 pandemic.  A Treasury report has calculated the total cost of the pandemic at $66 billion.  It puts New Zealand among the highest spenders as a proportion of GDP on the Covid response in advanced economies. Finance Minister Nicola Willis told Ryan Bridge nearly half of the spending was on unnecessary initiatives.  She says it didn't make a difference to the economy, and racked up huge amounts of debt.   LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.