Larry Williams Drive

The Wellington Phoenix are swiftly diverting their attention to the next piece of A-League silverware up for grabs. The club missed out on a maiden Premiers Plate last night after Central Coast won their final match of the regular season. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 2 May 2024, Green MP Julie Anne Genter is in hot water over her behaviour in Parliament last night. Former Speaker David Carter tells Heather what punishment she might face. Diplomatic trouble? The Foreign Minister Winston Peters is being threatened with legal action over comments against former Aussie Foreign Minister Bob Carr. All kids will be taught how to read using structured literacy starting from next year, the Education Minister Erica Stanford explains why the change is needed. The Huddle debates what to do about Julie-Anne Genter and whether canned food is good enough for a school lunch. And what's more important on a Rugby board? Boobs or rugby knowledge? 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.

The Government's about to go toe-to-toe with Canada again, over a trade dispute. Canada's refusing to comply in full with a ruling in our favour over dairy trade. New Zealand initiated the dispute in 2022, saying Canada's blocking dairy exporters’ access to its market, breached CPTPP rules. ACT Trade Spokesperson Parmjeet Parmar says Canada's refusal to comply is 'disappointing' and 'disrespectful.' LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Josie Pagani from Child Fund and ZB Wellington Mornings host Nick Mills joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Julie Anne Genter raised a few eyebrows after losing her temper at Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey in Parliament yesterday. What can the Greens do about this? What should the punishment be? Winston Peters has taken aim at his Australian counterpart on AUKUS, and Bob Carr has used him of defamation. How does this make New Zealand look on the world stage? The Government is set to announce a new model to provide school lunches at a lower cost, which could involve the use of packaged foods such as tinned fruit, muesli bars, bread and canned beans. Is this a good solution? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Labour's Foreign Affairs spokesperson says critical comments from Winston Peters are distracting from real issues. Peters criticised former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr in an interview - over his stance on the AUKUS pact. Carr's called those comments defamatory. Labour's David Parker says the comments are being used to obfuscate the Government shift on AUKUS. "Saying 'well, we should look at it' to saying, just a couple of weeks ago, there are powerful reasons for New Zealand to engage practically with AUKUS." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's optimism out of the provincial unions that they'll get what they want when New Zealand Rugby's governance saga likely comes to a head later this month. A Special General Meeting on May 30 will vote on a fully independent model backed by the national body - or another backed by the unions. The provinces want at least three future members to have served a minimum of two years on a provincial board. Mid-Canterbury Rugby chair Gerard Rushton says they have plenty of support. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An education union says there's more than one way to teach the basics in schools. The Government's committing $67 million in the Budget to roll-out structured literacy in state schools from 2025. It uses phonics to decode words - and teaches spelling skills and components like vocabulary, comprehension and writing. Educational Institute President Mark Potter says such methods are essential, but there are many. "Good, capable readers like yourself and myself - we use a variety of strategies. Phonics is only one of those strategies we do use." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A former Speaker of the House says Julie Anne Genter's behaviour yesterday was 'dreadful'. The Green MP crossed the debating chamber last night, confronting Associate Transport Minister Matt Doocey at his seat and waving a booklet in his face. David Carter says a 2007 scuffle between MPs Trevor Mallard and Tau Henare was outside the chambers. Carter says Genter could face a range of punishments. "They could actually expel her from Parliament - unlikely to do that - they could suspend her for a period of time, they could fine her, they could censure her and require her to come back into Parliament with a very fulsome apology." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Education Minister says teachers' stances on structured literacy are changing. The Government is putting $67 million from the Budget into bringing the learning method into state schools by the first term of 2025. The primary teachers' union, NZEI, says mandating a one-size-fits all approach does not work, and teachers know what is best for learners. But Minister Erica Stanford says she has evidence it works, citing figures from Maramarua School's principal. "His Māori students - 37 percent were at or above curriculum level for reading two years ago. Now he's got 67 percent using structured literacy." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

That was some outstanding rage from Julie Anne Genter, wasn't it? It probably won't surprise you to hear she's not at work today, she's working from home - I would be too, if that was me caught on that camera. The Greens have launched a disciplinary process, but I'm not expecting much from that, given how relaxed they seem to have been in the past about dealing with allegations against their MPs. Also, multiple parties in Parliament have now complained to the Speaker, and Gerry Brownlee will make a decision next week on whether he refers this to the Privileges Committee. Frankly, I think he's going to have to, don't you?  Because that was pretty outrageous behaviour. I mean in most professional workplaces, if you went up to a colleague, got your face about 30cm from them, yelled at them while waving a document in their face and then waved your hands repeatedly, I reckon you'd get a written warning - or a verbal warning at the very least. But it would be on your record, wouldn't it?  If you flipped the roles,

Parents, friends and partners of Taylor Swift fans will have the opportunity to take a college class on the pop star. Glasgow Clyde College aims to educate students on Swift's songs, 'evolving wardrobe and hairstyles' and crowd chants ahead of her tour's stop in Edinburgh. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says the course has been designed to get casual listeners up to speed on all things Taylor. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Restaurant Brands New Zealand is enjoying a strong first quarter for the 2024 financial year. The restaurant operator reported $302.6 million in sales, a 7.9 percent increase from the same period last year. Milford Asset Management's Jeremy Hutton explains Restaurant Brands' financial recovery. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government plans to tax commercial property owners an extra $575 million a year in order to fund residential property and income tax cuts.  Finance Minister Nicola Willis is standing by her decision to remove ability for commercial and industrial owners to deduct depreciation as an expense going forward. NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explains the impact of these changes. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Question marks over the Christchurch Call, as Budget Day approaches. Newstalk ZB's revealed the organisation led by Dame Jacinda Ardern has been accused of pressuring its advisory network to not publicise critical reports. Prime Minister Chris Luxon says it's done good things - but now there's a conversation to be had, on how the organisation evolves now, five years on. ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper wonders if the Christchurch Call can serve a purpose. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Insurance Council is backing calls for Kiwis to lift their understanding of the risks of natural hazards. The Reserve Bank has released an excerpt on insurance in its upcoming Financial Stability Report. It says insurers, Government, home buyers and lenders all need to up their knowledge, so that future insurance affordability challenges, can be better managed. Insurance Council chief executive Kris Faafoi says it's likely more places will become harder to insure as more risks are identified. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Foreign Minister Winston Peters has delivered a speech to the Institute of International Affairs at Parliament. Peters laid out the the challenges and opportunities facing New Zealand's foreign policy - touching on the war in both Ukraine and Gaza. He outlined our position in AUKUS, saying we must first be invited to join in the first place. ZB political reporter Sophie Trigger says Peters says the Government will need to weigh up the economic and security benefits and costs of any decision either way. A woman interrupted Peters, holding up a sign protesting AUKUS before being thrown out. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday, 1 May 2024, the unemployment rate has risen to 4.3% - the highest it's been in three years. BNZ's Stephen Toplis tells Heather whether this means we'll see interest rates drop soon. The Real Estate Institute is disappointed the Government doesn't want to regulate property managers anymore. Former National MP Simon O'Connor reveals how he found out he was targeted by Chinese hackers - but the Government didn't tell him. The Huddle gets into a rowdy debate over whether the Hamilton-Auckland train is worth our money, and whether we should keep testing the elderly before reissuing their drivers licences. Plus the best bits from James Shaw's final speech in Parliament. 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.

Tonight on The Huddle, Matt Heath from Radio Hauraki and Jack Tame From ZB's Saturday Mornings and Q&A joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! New reports show the Hamilton-Auckland Te Huia train service is meeting all its targets. Does this mean the Government should keep funding it? How long can the service last? The Government has scrapped a Bill designed to regulate property managers, with Housing Minister Chris Bishop blaming the added costs to property managers and marginal benefits. Do residential property managers need more regulations? Advocacy group Grey Power is calling for changes to elderly driver assessments, claiming the current process penalises licence holders in most need. Is this fair? What do we think? LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's hope that the Te Huia train service from Hamilton to Auckland is on track for more funding after July. An interim performance assessment of the past two years shows increased demand with targets for 250 passengers a day on weekdays and 100 on the weekend being achieved. It's also meeting its net emissions goal 80 percent of the time. Waikato regional councillor Angela Strange says the service has been exceeding established targets. "What the report doesn't show is that since we've added new services, we're smashing those targets out of the room." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grey Power is calling for a change in elderly driver assessments, claiming the current process penalises licence holders in most need. The SIMARD-MD and Mini-ACE are cognitive tests designed to identify drivers at risk, but these tests have faced criticism for not accounting for driving ability.  Grey Power vice president David Marshall says people have labelled these tests 'demeaning'. "A vast majority of the patients aren't at that stage, so they go through the stress of these tests - and then they can forget and fail and then have to be sent on for additional testing." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.