Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

A new proposal could see protest groups in the UK banned in a similar way to terrorist organisations.   Extracts of an upcoming report show recommendations will be made for a new category proscribing “extreme protest groups”, defining these as those which routinely use criminal tactics to try to achieve their aims. Protest groups such as Just Stop Oil and Palestine Action could have sanctions that restrict the groups’ ability to fundraise and rights to assembly in the UK.  Plus, a new device might cut down hospital time for cancer patients.   The Liberty has been given regulatory approval. The device allows patients to take blood tests and upload the results at home without supervision.  Europe correspondent Gavin Grey tells Mike Hosking the device has only been tested on a small number of types of cancer.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the A-League semi-finals, the Wellington Phoenix had a nil-all draw against the Melbourne Victory. The Phoenix return home this Saturday for the second leg of the semi.  The Warriors suffered another loss, going down 38-18 to the Roosters in Sydney. The game brought on injury concerns as Shaun Johnson left the field in the second half.  And, Aimee Fisher has beaten Dame Lisa Carrington in the K1 500 canoe sprint final at the canoeing World Cup in Hungary.  ZB Sports Andrew Alderson wraps the latest from the weekend in sport.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Big changes are coming to parking in Auckland’s CBD.  Auckland CBD residents and visitors will be stung with new 24-hour parking charges covering overnight, at weekends and on public holidays from July – as Auckland Transport seeks to collect more money.  Heart of the City CEO Viv Beck tells Mike Hosking news of the parking charges is out of the blue and “completely out of step” with the normal procedures.  AT’s approach to parking is based on demand. Auckland CBD has high demand for daytime parking, but information for outside of this has not been supplied.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unlike the US, the UK is not withholding arms to Israel.  Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that their position is not comparable with that of the US, since the UK is not a large state-to-state arms supplier to Israel.  However, they don’t support a large-scale invasion of Rafah unless there is a plan to protect civilians in place.  UK Correspondent Vincent McAviney told Mike Hosking that what the UK provides is export licenses for UK weapons manufacturers to export to Israel.  He said that it’s a very different situation, and the UK is not going to retract those licenses.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's doubts a potential raising of the international visitor levy will impact tourism numbers.  Overseas visitors pay $35 collected through visa applications, which is evenly split between conservation and tourism.  Speaking at the TRENZ conference, Tourism Minister Matt Doocey says that advice he's received shows it would have to rise to about $42 in today's market.  Backpacker Youth Adventure Tourism Association chair Haydn Marriner told Mike Hosking that's just the cost of business.  He says to expect the same value from that $35 today is to ignore everything we've always had.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Archives New Zealand's shutting down its digital archiving programme.  It's part of an initiative to digitise historically significant images and documents.  But the agency says it's been unable to secure further funding, and it will have to cut at least three jobs.  Historian Paul Moon told Mike Hosking that this is important work and should remain.  He says the Government should cobble together the small amount of funding needed to keep it going.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A potential power outage is looming in the chilly air.  Many parts of the country have seen temperatures dropping below zero with an early season cold snap.  Electricity grid operator Transpower's warning households to limit power use between 7 and 9 Friday morning where possible.   It suggests turning off lights and heaters and delaying use of appliances.   Contact Energy Chief Executive Mike Fuge told Mike Hosking that there are lots of plans and investment in growing generation capacity.   He says Tauhara —the sixth geothermal power station near Taupo— is being commissioned, which would provide another 160-170 megawatts.  Fuge says the cold's come a bit earlier and the project's running a bit late.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another pro-Palestine encampment was cleared by Police, resulting in the arrest of 33 protestors.  Hundreds of police stormed the grounds at Washington’s George Washington University early this morning, using pepper spray to clear the encampment.  This came just hours before city officials were due to appear before Congress to justify their actions, or lack thereof, regarding the protest.  US Correspondent Katherine Firkin told Mike Hosking that at least 50 campuses are now involved in the protests.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Air New Zealand's reliability has fallen, and it's trailing Jetstar in figures for last month as it grapples with engine problems.  Only 77% of its domestic flights arrived within 15 minutes of scheduled times last month, down from 88% in January.  Jetstar reported no domestic cancellations last month and almost 79% of flights were on time.  Aviation Commentator Irene King told Mike Hosking that Jetstar is an insignificant airline in comparison to Air NZ’s operations.  She said that they only have five planes, all of the same type, so you’d think they’d get it right every time.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Wellington City Councillor says the fight isn't over to remove the heritage listing from derelict buildings.  RMA Minister Chris Bishop has signed off on the council's housing recommendations, unlocking the potential for up-zoning across the city.  But an amendment to de-list 10 buildings to allow for demolition wasn't approved due to legal constraints.  Councillor Ben McNulty told Mike Hosking he believes Bishop wanted to approve the changes but was constrained by the legal framework.  McNulty says they'll keep trying.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A public health academic says David Seymour's claims he can reduce funding for the school lunch programme while delivering the same results is a big call to make.   The Associate Health Minister's unveiled a slimmed down version of the programme he says will save $107 million a year.   He says they'll reduce costs by bulk buying and serving simple items.   But Health Coalition Aotearoa Co-Chair Boyd Swinburn told Mike Hosking that what's being called savings is really a withdrawal of investment in childhood nutrition.  He says we're doing nothing otherwise about problems we have with childhood obesity, rotten teeth, poor mental health, and so on.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israeli tanks have now entered Rafah, taking control of the border.  Yesterday saw Hamas agree to a ceasefire proposal, but Israel believes the terms do not go far enough and as such, are continuing their mission.  Despite this, a delegation is being sent to negotiate, trying to reach an agreement.   Former Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum told Mike Hosking the ceasefire discussion has been quite confusing.  She said that they’d previously presented five ceasefire deals, all of which were rejected by Hamas.  As soon as they sent out warning leaflets to the residents of Rafah, Hassan-Nahoum said, suddenly they come back with an approved deal on an offer that was never made.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are lessons to be learned from the Auditor-General's review of last year's election.   The report's found the final check of the official election results was done within a few hours on the day it was announced.   The rushed assessment failed to identify multiple errors.  It also recommends improvements to controls, quality assurance, recruitment, training, and risk management  Political commentator Grant Duncan told Mike Hosking that people at the polling stations seemed to be under a lot of pressure.   But, he says, it's good to see a systematic approach taken by the Auditor-General and robust recommendations.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More coal's being burned to keep up with energy demand.  The Gas Industry Company has revealed there was a 12.5% reduction in gas production last year.  It's also found nearly 30% less gas was produced in the first three months of this year than projected.  Energy Minister Simeon Brown says it's because the last Government's disincentivised gas production.  He told Mike Hosking that the low production's threatening our energy security.  He says news from Genesis Energy shows they're burning a lot more coal to meet that need, which is twice as carbon intensive than burning gas.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Australian pilot operating in international waters was forced to take evasive action.  A Chinese military jet detonated flares close to the Navy helicopter as it flew above the Yellow Sea near South Korea.  The Defence Department has described the actions of the Chinese Air Force plane as “unsafe and unprofessional”.  Australian Correspondent Donna Demaio told Mike Hosking that there were thankfully no injuries or damage.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The OECD is pointing to an economic hangover in our economy in its biennial report.  It's advising the Government to gradually get the books back into surplus, with economic growth still sluggish and productivity waning.  The OECD also supports cutting government spending but warns of unintended consequences from doing so.  Independent economist Cameron Bagrie told Mike Hosking that there was one issue in the report for the Government to be especially aware of.  He says it's expected poor education outcomes will take a bit of an economic hit to our productivity over the coming years.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's throwing $1.9 billion at Corrections with a pledge to restore law and order.   It will add more than 800 extra beds at Waikeria Prison and recruit 685 more frontline Corrections staff.   Criminal defence lawyer John Munro says more beds will result in more people in prison.   He told Mike Hosking that we need to be careful we don't end up following in the footsteps of the United States.   Munro says we still need to get the balance of rehabilitation and recidivism right, so the community is kept safe but people leaving prison don't go back to crime.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government has made its first move in its Local Water Done Well reforms – the replacement for Three Waters.  A deal has been brokered with Auckland Council which will allow Watercare to borrow 1.9 billion over the next ten years for long-term infrastructure. The deal will stop the proposed 25.8 percent water rates increase this year, bringing it down to 7.2 percent.  Water NZ CEO Gillian Blythe tells Mike Hosking that ultimately, the challenge comes down to balancing local accountability with affordability.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing down his critics after another set of poor election results.   Europe correspondent Gavin Grey tells Mike Hosking the infighting has begun within Sunak’s party following local council, Mayoral and Police Commissioner elections as well as on by-election all delivering huge losses for conservatives.  And, security is being tightened in Sweden ahead of the Eurovision song contest this week.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Warriors have suffered their third defeat in a row, falling 14-8 to the Newcastle Knights.  The men’s and women’s New Zealand sevens-teams have completed back-to-back victories to finish the world series regular season. The series-leading women defeated Australia 31-21 to win the Singapore leg, while the men pipped Ireland 17-14 to move into third in the standings. Both sides advance to a finale in Madrid.  And, the Wellington Phoenix now know who they will face in their A-League semi final.  ZB Sports Andrew Alderson tells Mike Hosking the latest in sport.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.