Larry Williams Drive

Australian politician Pauline Hanson has been suspended from Parliament for seven days after refusing to apologise for wearing a burqa in the Senate. The One Nation leader caused outrage yesterday when she walked in wearing the religious garment. Just five senators voted against the motion to censure her.  Australian correspondent Murray Olds unpacked the reactions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's proposing to abolish regional councils, and replace them with boards made up of mayors from the region's city and district councils. The proposals would deliver the most significant reforms to local Government since 1989. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says more details will be revealed later down the line.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Not much changes between formats for Blair Tickner, who's included in the 14-strong Black Caps squad for next week's opening cricket test against the West Indies in Christchurch. The 32-year-old, who performed well when called on across the white ball fixtures against the Windies, has spent the past two English County seasons playing for Derbyshire. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A-pluses all round for a nationwide maths trial. The $40 million Government programme targeted 1500 Year 7 and 8 students needing extra support, through small-group tutoring up to four times a week.  Education Minister Erica Stanford says early indicators show students averaged one to two years progress.  "It tells me that there's no substitute for excellent, explicit teaching in a structured way. And what that shows is that when we have a curriculum that supports that and professional learning and development that supports that, then you get these results."  All schools who requested to be part of the programme have been accepted.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ukrainian officials are expressing their thanks to the US, following disgruntled comments from the US President. Officials from both sides are negotiating details of the proposed 28-point peace plan in Switzerland,  which includes Ukraine ceding territory and reducing its military. Earlier this morning, Donald Trump accused Ukrainian leaders of showing zero gratitude over US peace efforts. UK correspondent Gavin Grey unpacked the ongoing discussions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank is set to make an announcement this week, and experts are expecting at least one more cut to the OCR. Markets are projecting the OCR will be cut down to 2.25, and they've priced it in accordingly. Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer and political commentator Liam Hehir and Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!  New reports claim New Zealand's wasting 1.2 million tonnes of food every year - but most of it is thrown away during production before it makes its way to the supermarket. What do we make of this? Ahead of the election, National is promising to increase KiwiSaver contributions by 2032 as part of their election campaign. Will this get votes? Speaking of the election, new polls show prospective voters are in favour of adjusting any capital gains tax for inflation. Labour has no plans to take this on board - should they consider this? Plenty of media commentators have outlined their concerns with Air New Zealand this week. Do we agree Air New Zealand needs to improve themselves? Will more Kiwis jump to Jetstar?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 24 November 2025, if you're building a new home or doing a biggish renovation you'll soon be forced to buy a building warranty in case of building faults. Building Minister Chris Penk talks to Heather about the details. Koura's Rupert Carlyon says employers should be stopped from decreasing salaries to accommodate higher Kiwisaver contribution rates. The eye-watering amount of food that gets thrown away every year - and the surprising worst offender. Finance Minister Nicola Willis hits back at suggestions that Prime Minister Chris Luxon might get rolled by one of his MPs. Plus, the Huddle debates why we're so fed up with Air New Zealand, its service and especially its prices! Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New surveys show Auckland business confidence is on the up, with reports indicating businesses are feeling less pessimistic ahead of the new year. Auckland Business Chamber CEO Simon Bridges says the latest November survey shows the city isn't 'out of the woods' but it's no longer 'stuck in the darkest part of the forest'. Bridges says there's room for the economy to improve, but the OCR's coming down and farmers are making more money - and things are feeling more hopeful. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's growing speculation that National is looking to oust Chris Luxon as leader ahead of the election, but Finance Minister Nicola Willis is disputing these rumours. Reports have claimed National is looking to replace Luxon with Chris Bishop, but this is mostly speculation. Nicola Willis says the party has a Prime Minister who's delivering significant reforms - and making good on the promises National campaigned on. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's talk about Air New Zealand. Look, if I was Air New Zealand, I would feel pretty beaten up after the weekend's opinion pieces. Bruce Cotterill  wrote a piece in one newspaper complaining that if Air New Zealand want to charge as much as they do, then they have to do the job better and be on time more often. And then, Sam Stubbs wrote a piece in another newspaper telling them to stop overcharging domestic travellers. Now, I cannot explain the timing. I can't explain why both those guys wrote harsh pieces about the same airline on the same weekend. But what's weirder about it is that I almost did exactly the same thing.  I almost had a bit of a rant about Air New Zealand myself this weekend, because I had to pull out of an event on account of their ticket prices. What it was is the husband and I were planning to go to a thing in Wellington. We started doing all the organizing, had the babysitter covered, organized to work out of Wellington for the day - and we went to book the flights and sa

New Zealand farms and food producers appear to be outpacing other countries when it comes to reducing food waste. A report commissioned by the Ministry of Environment reveals more than 1.2 million tonnes of food is wasted or thrown away here every year. The total proportion of food wasted is between 5 and 10 percent - considerably lower than the global estimate of 30 to 40 percent. University of Otago nutrition professor and report author Sheila Skeaff says household food waste is still as high as most other countries, but producers are ahead. "We produce a lot of food and we're pretty good at making sure that we make the best use of that, particularly on farms and in processing." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Wellington bar owner could be stripped of his liquor license for offering a bar tab as a pub quiz prize. Courtney Place's Dakota Bar advertises a first prize reward of a $150 tab. Owner Jose Ubiaga has to appear before the council's Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority. He says he's been told to reword offering winners a food and drink voucher, to avoid the perception he was giving away alcohol. He says it can be used to pay for anything at the bar. "Ironically, when people do redeem our bar tab, 95 percent of our sales will be food and non-alcoholic drinks." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A finance expert warns New Zealanders need reasons to pay in to KiwiSaver, if they're being told to contribute more. National's made a pre-election pledge to progressively raise baseline worker and employer contributions by 2032 - to six percent each. Koura Wealth managing director Rupert Carlyon says that's a nudge to contribute, but more's needed to turn it into a push.  He says the US, Australia and Ireland use incentives.  "These are all countries that use tax breaks, so tax deductions for contributions or tax deductions to allow you to kind of make your gains tax-free." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New rules aimed at protecting homeowners should be formally introduced next year. The Government's announced plans to require all warranties for new homes three storeys or less, and all renos worth at least $100,000. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk admits homeowners will pay a bit more, but it's worth it. "It's around half of one percent of the cost of a build, so I think that's a lot of of peace of mind - so I think that's a good trade off for the council not having to be involved in ratepayers being on the hook to the extent that they are now." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Luxon says National's KiwiSaver election pledge will be a bottom line in coalition negotiations. National's announced plans to lift default contributions to six percent by 2032. Employer contributions would increase by half a percent from 2029. NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says most of the policy is sound, but he raised concerns over some employers taking the increases out of their workers' pay checks. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Search teams have been unable to find a man who went overboard on a Melbourne to Auckland Disney cruise.  Reports claim a 73-year-old jumped from the Disney Wonder in the early hours of Saturday morning.  The vessel turned back for about five hours to search alongside search efforts from the air.  Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says this will likely come as 'harrowing' news to the passengers and crew members on board. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The All Blacks will review their campaign in the coming weeks as they take stock of a mixed year. The side are heading home in groups as they contemplate a 10-win, three-loss record. Those losses include a record demise to South Africa, a first defeat in Argentina and the disintegration of Grand Slam hopes to England. Sportstalk host Jason Pine recapped the action. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up to 15,000 passengers could be disrupted if Air New Zealand cabin crew go ahead with strike action next month. The airline's largely unionised crew plan to strike on December 8th demanding greater salaries and allowances. The flagship carrier's assessing the potential effect on operations. Expert and advisor to business leaders, Bruce Cotterill, says people have high expectations when it comes to Air New Zealand and CEO Nikhil Ravishankar's response has left some disappointed. "You do expect a level of performance and that level of performance isn't there at the moment. So it's frustrating - it's frustrating for travellers, I'm sure it's frustrating for Air New Zealand as well." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday 21 November 2025, Heather finds out more about the disquiet in the National Party about Christopher Luxon's leadership.   Auckland Pride are seeking a judicial review of the government's call to withdraw guidelines for transgender athletes in community sport. We find out the DIY medical tests may be as reliable as a coin toss. Plus, the Sports Huddle debates whether Scott Robertson is under pressure as All Blacks coach. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.