Larry Williams Drive

The boss of Hospitality NZ says the Government's reasons for not backing an Auckland America's Cup bid don't stack up. Auckland Unlimited has confirmed the denial of funding has put it out of the running for 2027. The Prime Minister and Finance Minister say there are better uses for the money. Hospitality NZ Chief Executive Steve Armitage says the money wouldn't go into a black hole.  "Actually, the Government can help to bolster Government coffers through GST revenue - from the teams being here and established over a period of time. There's investment in technology, boat building, componentry, even before you get to the visitations." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand Rugby boss Mark Robinson is relieved a quick resolution has been found to the Ineos stand-off. The petrochemical giant and NZR have reached a settlement after the latter launched legal action following Ineos terminating the deal three years early. Robinson says he's satisfied with this decision. "We're pleased there's been a settlement reached, we've been pretty open from when we started communicating this, we believed we had a pretty strong position."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Pati Māori won't attend a Privileges Committee hearing tomorrow - despite being summoned over a haka performed by MPs during reading of the Treaty Principles Bill last year. Te Pati Māori says its request for a joint Party hearing was turned down, and its legal counsel isn't available. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper wonders why the party isn't playing by the rules. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia's Reserve Bank has kept its Official Cash Rate unchanged - as it waits for the impact of tariffs expected from Donald Trump tomorrow. New Zealand's Central Bank is still expected to drop our Official Cash Rate 25-basis points next week. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the uncertainty around the economy has created complications for the Central Bank. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Auckland's chances of hosting the 38th America's Cup defence in 2027 have sailed over the horizon without Government investment. Team New Zealand has responded with a statement, saying the syndicate completely understands as 'times are tough'. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's scepticism in the education sector over a newly proposed English curriculum. The Ministry of Education has released suggestions for year 7-to-13 studies - for consultation until June. Suggested texts include making Shakespeare compulsory for Years 12 and 13 - and all years reading books by New Zealand authors. English Teachers' Association President Pip Tinning says the draft feels like a 'tick-box', with little clarity on assessments. "I would hope that there's actually better consultation and working with the sector around that, because the lack of transparency with this curriculum should be concerning everyone." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump have recently had 'productive negotiations' about the economic relationship between the UK and US.  The leaders have agreed to keep discussions going ahead of the US' much-anticipated tariffs update this week.  UK correspondent Gavin Grey says the UK will want to avoid any negative economic impacts that come with these tariffs. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Auckland Airport has cut its airline charges after the Commerce Commission found the airport’s forecast revenue was “excessive” and its targeted returns were unreasonably high. In June, the commission said Auckland Airport’s revenue and targeted returns exceeded what was reasonable, but the airport’s planned investment seemed appropriate. In its final report today, the regulator again said the airport’s forecast investment was within a reasonable range, but said its targeted returns were unreasonably high. BARNZ Executive Director Cath O'Brien explains how this happened. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Donald Trump is set to unveil a barrage of tariffs on April 2nd - and industry experts have voiced concerns. The day has been dubbed 'Liberation Day' by the President and his aides, and business experts and economists are worried it will cost jobs and create economic turmoil.  Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explains what could come out of this - and what risks it holds for New Zealand. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Thomas Scrimgeour from the Maxim Institute and Josie Pagani from Child Fund joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Winston Peters says the Government has signed off on the option of two new Interislander ferries that can carry cars, passengers and rail. It will all be much cheaper of course than the iRex project, but no actual contract has been signed yet. What do we think of this? There was a big fuss over the Greens' Benjamin Doyle and some posts he made on a private social media account. The posts included images of their child with bylines that appear to be sexualised references. Winston Peters is calling for an investigation - what do we make of this? President Donald Trump has indicated he's willing to run for a third term - should we take this seriously?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister is hopeful she can bring more competition to the supermarket sector.  The Government's seeking advice on breaking up the duopoly, possibly separating their retail and wholesale arms. Nicola Willis says New Zealand currently has one of the least competitive grocery markets in the world - and Kiwis are paying more at the checkout as a result. "What I want to achieve is a properly competitive market, to put downward pressure on prices, to motivate innovation and to ensure that shoppers get more choices." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government's asking people to dob in too many road cones at work sites. A telephone hotline is planned - for people to report excesses. It'll be manned and funded by WorkSafe. It's been announced at the same time as Health and Safety at Work Act changes, with a focus on reducing the load on smaller businesses. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper has voiced support with this idea. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I reckon Nicola Willis is bluffing - she's having a laugh. She's not really going to take a sledge hammer to the supermarkets. She has threatened to do this, she's had consultants come and do some work on it, but she's not serious about doing it. There's two main reasons as to why not. One: Splitting up the brands like Pak N Save and New World form each other is a drastic action to take. It could affect hundreds of mum and dad-owned stores who run their own local supermarkets and form part of co-ops around the country. Then there's the problem of prices - the fact that co-ops like Foodstuffs exist means they can spread their costs around the country and make prices more even between the regions. What happens to the price of Pams biscuits at Pak N Save Kawerau if it's split from its brother and sister stores? Does it come down or go up?  If it goes up, so does Nicola's credibility. Splitting retail land  from wholesale also risks creating a middleman to go between the two, thus pushing prices up

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 31 March 2025, Rail Minister Winston Peters speaks to Ryan Bridge about the two new ferries he's got Cabinet to sign off on. Auckland Pride's Bhen Goodsir speaks about the controversy surrounding Green MP's Benjamin Doyle, and their use of sexualised terms next to images of their child on social media. Finance Minister Nicola Willis tells Ryan she's not afraid to break up the supermarket duopoly if need be. Plus, All Black Damian McKenzie reflects on signing with the Chiefs until 2029 and why being in the All Blacks is more important than money. 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.

Auckland Pride has been quick to accuse Winston Peters of 'conspiratorial fear-mongering' following his criticisms of Green MP Benjamin Doyle. The Deputy Prime Minister has criticised historic Instagram posts by Doyle that included sexually suggestive captions. Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick says Peters' constant attacks fan the flames of hate - with Doyle receiving death threats. Auckland Pride chair Bhen Goodsir says the language Doyle used was designed to connect with vulnerable communities.   "As I understand, this was just one photo and a whole reel of photos that Benjamin posted - and their role was to connect with communities. So what we're seeing here is the intersection of their work, their identity as a queer person, and their role as someone who's part of a family." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Damian McKenzie has turned down overseas offers to remain in New Zealand through until 2029. The All Blacks and Chiefs playmaker says there were offers to return to Japan on a full-time basis. But McKenzie says he still wanted to stick around and experience all the All Blacks had to offer. "There's no place like home either - in fact, the next two years are going to be a big couple of years for myself and both teams, so the option to stay in New Zealand was an easy one in the end." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australian households are set to gain some federal help to cut down on their energy bills. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese aims to cut down the cost of household batteries to make electricity costs more manageable for Australian households. Australian correspondent Jake Battrick says these batteries are solar-powered - and cost households up to $10,000. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Damian McKenzie is singling out the 2029 tour by the British and Irish Lions to New Zealand as a major reason behind his re-signing with NZR. The Chiefs and All Blacks playmaker is the first player to ink a deal that incorporates the next Lions tour. Sportstalk host Jason Pine explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Minister-in-charge has promised Interislander's ferries are safe until our new ones arrive. The Government's announced specifications for two ships - rail enabled and larger than the current pair - for roll out by Christmas 2029. Picton's port infrastructure will be replaced, but money will be saved by modifications and refurbishment in Wellington. Previous plans were canned in 2023, after cost blowouts. Minister for Rail Winston Peters says KiwiRail's given him an overview of the existing ships. "They are very confident that these present utilities are going to be capable of going well past 2029." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Small businesses will have less health and safety obligations under new reforms.  Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden has revealed her first changes to the Health and Safety at Work Act.  She says small businesses will only need to manage risks relating to death or serious injury to reduce compliance costs.  BusinessNZ Chief Executive Katherine Rich says it will bring a sigh of relief from small businesses - who are able to just focus on their success. "Safety is still paramount, but what we're seeing here is a clarification of what the responsibilities are." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.