Larry Williams Drive

Some good economic news, for now. Stats NZ figures show GDP increased 0.9 percent in the three months to June, and 3.2 percent in the year to June. The figure for the March quarter has been revised to 0 percent - up from a 0.1 percent drop. But Kiwibank Chief Economist Jarrod Kerr says they're still predicting a double-dip recession. "We think the second half of this year will be quite painful for households- we still have a lot of households rolling off very low interest rates onto higher interest rates, and 40 percent of them will happen in the next 6 months." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Queenstown's mayor says putting filters on regional water sources is expensive. The area is in the grips of an outbreak of infections from a waterborne parasite. Known cases of cryptosporidium illness have reached 21 - and the boil water notice could last for months. The national water regulator has slapped a compliance notice on the region. Mayor Glyn Lewers says there are a lot of water intakes, and six don't have filters. "There is a cost element to it but there is a progressive program at work, and we try to manage those costs because of the rate burden on our ratepayers." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Labour Party insists its Ohariu candidate isn't telling voters to only give him their electorate vote. The Post reports Greg O'Connor told voters at a meeting that with polling going the way it is, National Deputy Leader Nicola Willis is likely to be the next Finance Minister. ZB political editor Jason Walls says Greg O'Connor was 'too honest' about his intentions by encouraging voters to only give him their electorate vote.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia's Opposition Leader has angrily rejected Anthony Albanese's probe into the Covid-19 pandemic response. Peter Dutton has labelled the year-long investigation into Australia's response as a 'desperate attempt' to distract voters. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says this reaction is the latest instance of Dutton trying to inspire angry reactions. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The police watchdog has deemed the treatment of a Christchurch teenager in custody 'appalling'. The IPCA established police were justified in using force during a 14-year-old's arrest last year - but her care in custody was inadequate. The teenager was driving in a convoy of three stolen cars driving dangerously across Christchurch. She urinated and soiled herself during arrest before being taken into custody. The girl was given a sink and wipes to clean herself and a change of clothes, but was denied a request for a shower. Canterbury District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill agrees with the report's findings- and that his team had an obligation to take care of civilians they interact with. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Athletics New Zealand are distancing themselves from banned runner Zane Robertson after his arrest in Kenya. Reports have emerged that he's been arrested in possession of an unlicensed AK-47 rifle and 23 rounds of ammunition in his house on the outskirts of Iten. Kenyan publication The Standard also revealed Robertson was under investigation for sexually assaulting a woman at a party. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An increasing number of people are dipping into their retirement savings to meet soaring living costs. KiwiSaver members made 18,291 withdrawals worth an average of $7921 over the year, according to new data. NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explains why this is happening. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National's Nicola Willis is satisfied with her party pulling ahead of the competition in another poll. The latest One News-Verian poll puts the National Party on 37 percent - down 2 points - and Labour on 27, down one. NZ First has crossed the 5 percent threshold again- meaning the party could join National and ACT in Parliament. Nicola Willis says this poll shows voters are in the mood for change, which she believes a vote for National could fix. "A vote for any other party risks 3 more years of Labour, beholden to Te Pāti Māori and the Greens. That would be a coalition of chaos." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

National's support has slipped, but a poll shows it's still miles ahead of the competition. The latest One News-Verian poll puts the National Party on 37 percent - down 2 points - and Labour on 27, down one. The Greens and ACT are both up two points - neck-in-neck on 12 percent - and NZ First is steady on 5. Only the centre-right bloc could form a Government- but Hipkins and Luxon are tied as preferred Prime Minister with 23 percent. ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says this is proof NZ First will have to be part of a National/ACT coalition, because 61 seats is a very narrow majority. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's been a busy 24 hours of crime in Christchurch, with police chasing down out of control youths. They've been smashing their way into shops, fleeing police and reportedly driving on a footpath dangerously close to a woman pushing a pram. It marks the second day in a row Christchurch police have dealt with repeated incidents- on Monday, 10 youths were arrested before dawn. Police Association President Chris Cahill says these criminals are endangering police and civilians- and many will be repeat offenders. "A lot of them are repeat offenders- they're literally getting apprehended and there's no secure vent for them. They're getting released again and they're back out on the streets." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora is asking the Employment Relations Authority to help resolve its pay dispute with senior doctors and dentists. Members of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists have scheduled a four-hour strike tomorrow. Te Whatu Ora Chief Executive Margie Apa says they've asked for help, because they're at an impasse. "We're yet to hear back, so we're hoping that we are chasing them, because we'd like to get it in front of them as quickly as possible."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The alarm is being sounded about a future drop off in Pharmac funding. A boost for the drug buying agency announced in Budget 2022- ends in 2024. Medicines NZ Chief Executive Graeme Jarvis wants the major parties to commit to continuing the money. He says if the gap isn't filled, Treasury is warning there will be years where it won't be possible to keep funding the same medicines. "So in other words, there's going to have to be either a reduction in the number of medicines funded- or patients won't get access to them if we do not fund this $181 million dollar hole." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Help and support for exploited migrants will be delivered in a new Government scheme. The Government has confirmed a package of basic financial support, for accommodation and essential living costs. It plans to stop 90-day trial periods for employers using the Accredited Employer Work Visa. Immigration Minister Andrew Little says they're tightening the scheme meant to fill gaps by letting businesses employ offshore. "The vast majority of employers are doing exactly that, they're doing a good job. There is a small number, a very small minority who seem to have found an opportunity to scam others." Little says investigations into employers are underway. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another snapshot of how political parties are faring in the polls is out at 6pm - in another One News -Verian poll. Its figures last week had National leaps and bounds ahead of Labour, which have been on stubbornly low 20s for weeks. Newstalk ZB chief political reporter Aaron Dahmen says even a one percent bump would help Labour. National has been criticised for not releasing costings for its multi-billion-dollar tax cut package- and Dahmen says that could play into today's rankings. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elon Musk has hinted that Twitter, now X, could soon go behind a paywall. Currently, the platform only charges users for the service X Premium, which offers benefits such as a verification badge. US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says Elon believes the fee would keep bots and artificial accounts away, an issue that has plagued the platform.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chris Hipkins revealed an unexpected policy announcement in last night's debate. During last night's event, Hipkins said he wanted to ban sugary drinks in secondary schools- claiming they already were in primary schools. Today, he claimed he'd misremembered banning sugary drinks from primary schools, but had consulted on this issue as Education Minister. Health Coalition Aotearoa co-chair Boyd Swinburne said Chris Hipkins had the opportunity to introduce tougher measures against sugary drinks in schools.  "It was a kind of policy that didn't have much impact. But it was put on the table by the Ministry of Education and went out for consultation about what schools should be doing in this respect." LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Black Caps will decide whether senior pace-bowler Tim Southee will be available for next month’s ODI Cricket World Cup in India. The veteran seam bowler will have surgery on his broken thumb tomorrow, with a decision on his availability for the World Cup to be made early next week. Sportstalk host Nick Bewley explained Southee's selection will swing on whether he can tolerate the pain when he returns to training. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

London police have received an accusation of sexual assault dating back 20 years, following media reports about accusations against comedian and actor Russell Brand. The statement from the Met Police says the assault took place in 2003 in central London's Soho. Brand's accused of sexual assaults and rape dating from between 2006 and 2013. UK correspondent Enda Brady says this has led to several stand-up performances being outright cancelled. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Neale Jones from PR firm Capital and Paddy Gower from Paddy Gower Has Issues joined in on a discussion about the following topics- and more! Labour appears to have quietly scrapped their prison reduction target- is this a big deal? They had achieved a 30 percent drop in the last two terms but it's since climbed again to 20 percent. Does it seem to you also that Hipkins accidentally announced this?  More young people are behind violent crimes- in the last couple days, we've seen an 18-year-old in court following a deadly car accident and a 16-year-old accused of murder at Albany. What's going on? Is this nation growing more violent?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A leading economist believes New Zealand's economy is at the "bottom edge" when compared to other developed countries. This follows the Government laying out their Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Update and revealing a surplus has been pushed out an extra year amid a lower tax take. HSBC's Paul Bloxham says inflation isn't coming down fast enough, when compared to other countries. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.