Kerre Woodham Mornings Podcast

It's estimated New Zealand throws away $3.2 billion of food every year.  The Prime Minister's Chief Science Advisor, Dame Juliet Gerrard, has issued 27 recommendations to the Government.  It calls for a national plan and target, smarter monitoring, better strategies to tackle food loss at source, promoting food rescue and upcycling to ensure edible food isn’t thrown out.  KiwiHarvest is a food rescue business, taking food that is still perfectly usable so it doesn’t get thrown away and giving it to charities and institutions where it would be of use.  CEO Angela Calver told Kerre Woodham that the best way to stop wastage in your home is to meal plan and plan ahead.  She said that a lot of waste happens because of demand, supermarkets doing their best to ensure that if you buy a loaf of bread today, that loaf of bread will be on the shelf tomorrow as well.  Calver said that planning and not over-buying food will help further down the supply chain and reduce waste.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A second Covid inquiry has been announced. And while that may sound like two Covid inquiries too many, this one may well get the answer a lot of us are looking for. New Zealand First has invoked the Agree to Disagree clause that allows a party within a coalition government to disagree in relation to issues on which the parties wish to maintain a different position in public. Generally, in a coalition agreement you like to present a united front, but when there are real disagreements, the clause can be invoked and that is what Peters has done.   He wanted the first inquiry scrapped, saying it was nothing more than a political tool being used to craft a message through its limited scope and the lack of suitability of the Commissioners. The chair is epidemiologist Professor Tony Blakely, who advised during the pandemic, the economist John Whitehead, and former National MP Hekia Parata. He's not wrong, though. Unlike most other recent Royal Commissions, New Zealand's focus is explicitly on planning for the next pandemic, rather than assigning blame for any failings from the decision makers. It's like oh well, that happened, let's look ahead and see what we can do next time around. Its full name is “New Zealand Royal Commission Covid -19 Lessons Learned”, and the parliamentary order bringing it into being describes its intentions as examining the lessons learned from Aotearoa New Zealand's response to Covid-19 that should be applied in preparation for any future pandemic.   So there would be no blame, no finger pointing, no public floggings in the public square. Really, it would be more like a series of patsy questions in Parliament. Did you do well? [Previous Labour government]. Thank you. Just how well did you think you did? [Previous Labour government]. What learnings do you think you can take forward? How many lives were saved? [Labour government]. You know, that sort of thing.   Now Brooke van Velden, Internal Affairs Minister, says that when this inquiry finishes its work a second one will get under way and this one will ask the hard questions.    “Where I think people are looking for more focus and what Phase Two will focus on, are things like the government's response and how that was weighed up against education, health, business, inflation. What its response did to debt and business activity? The social division that was caused in our society, and importantly also touches on New Zealand First’s commitment where they wish to look into vaccine efficacy. So it's a bit broader in range and I think answers a lot of those questions that will be on the top of people's minds. Was the government too fixated on just one aspect of its response?”    And I think that's a reasonable question. That was Brooke van Velden talking to Mike Hosking this morning. I think those are really relevant questions. The vaccine efficacy and safety, the extended lockdowns in Auckland, in Northland. Now that we have the luxury of hindsight, you have to look and say, okay was that worth it? Was having borders at the Bombay Hills worth it?   I'd be really interested to know whether there's any explanation for ‘the computer says no’ letters that so many families were given when they couldn't be with loved ones who were very, very ill or dying. Despite the fact that they were vaccinated, the family they were going to were vaccinated, there was just a simple computer say no denial from MBIE, a nameless official at MBIE, saying they could not be with a dying family member, or somebody who was very, very ill. And the pain that that caused was immeasurable. The grief that that generated was immeasurable. So I'd really love to know how you made the decision and who these faceless, nameless people were at MBIE who just deny, deny, denied access across the border, which all sounds incredibly weird.   You know, I think you have to ask those questions before you can move forward. I don't know that it's going to resolve anything. I mean basically I'd be quite happy with stocks in the public square, quite frankly. But then there are others who will be not satisfied until anybody who dared to so much as criticise any of the decisions made, abases themselves before the likes of Ardern, and Hipkins, and Robertson, and all the public health officials and kisses the hem of their garment and repeats three times, I am so sorry. I am so grateful to be alive and it's only thanks to you. I am so sorry. I'm so grateful to be alive. And it's only thanks to you, which I think is tosh.   I do think the hard questions have to be asked this first patsy inquiry was precisely that. How well did you do Labour government? Ooh very well. Really. Just how well? Exceptionally well. Any learnings? Oh, a few. You have to be able to weigh the costs. You have to be able to weigh the different decisions that were made that had so many impacts on so many different people's lives. Some breezed through, loved it, thought it was amazing, thought every decision made was the right one, but not everybody did. And I think we're going to see the damage for a very long time to come. As I've always said, it'll be 100 years from now, there'll still be people debating whether that second year of decision making they were making the right decisions. But it would be good to start now, to ask a few tough questions now, rather than just sugar coating the response, which is all we'd have got from the first inquiry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why shoplift something you can afford?  Not every shoplifter is doing it out of economic necessity, some thieves taking despite having a high income, status, and a steady career.   After ex-Green Party MP Golriz Ghahraman pleaded guilty to four shoplifting charges today, the question of why an affluent person would commit retail theft is again being raised.  Dr Dougal Sutherland, a clinical psychologist with Umbrella Wellbeing, told Kerre Woodham that psychological pressures and stress can be behind the decision to shoplift.   He said that when people come under pressure they can come up with what, in hindsight, are quite irrational ways of getting out of a situation via self-sabotage.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

They promised they would. They said it would happen. I have to say it happened far sooner than I expected. Yesterday's post-Cabinet press conference saw Christopher Luxon, Shane Reti et al. announcing up to 26 new cancer treatments, alongside 28 other medicines to be funded as part of the government's $604 million health budget to honour National’s pre-election promise. The promise was made good on with knobs on. Some of the drugs will be available from October/November of this year. Others will be phased in as of next year and it is fantastic news.   I don't want to be a Debbie Downer, but it will be too late for some families. And as medical oncologist Chris Jackson, cancer expert extraordinaire, said on the Mike Hosking Breakfast this morning, having the drugs available and funded is all very well and good but we need to ensure our infrastructure can deliver them.   “We've never had any investment of this extent in the entirety of Pharmac’s history. I mean $600 million is a very, very, very big number and we have never had this many cancer drugs funded at once at any time. So despite the way we got here, I'm absolutely and utterly thrilled. There are still quite a few fishhooks though. You know, when you dump 26 cancer medicines into the system at once, the largest ever, you do create a bit of a capacity demand issue, and the cancer services are already pretty tight and there's a number of services around the country which have already got waiting lists in place. And so if we don't fund the infrastructure for them, the chemo units, the nurses and the like, then you can end up with cancer waiting lists in six to 12 months time. So we've got to be careful about how we do this.”  Absolutely. I couldn't agree more. It is interesting how the coalition government resolved the issue of how they would get the cancer drugs to the New Zealanders they'd promised them to. They could either direct Pharmac to buy the drugs, and that's a whole can of worms. David Seymour, whose Pharmac’s Minister and National’s coalition partner was very reluctant to interfere with the decisions of Pharmac. He said as much on this show a couple of weeks ago. So he didn't want that kind of interference, ‘You must buy those drugs with this money’, and rightly so I think.   Or you could set up a separate cancer drug buying agency that would have taken time and bureaucracy and faff. So, in the end the government had to fork out a whole lot more than they originally promised because Pharmac has a list of priority drugs it wants to fund, it only has so much money, and it must buy the drugs that will bring the greatest good to the most amount of people. Ultimately, there are other ways of doing it, but there are other considerations, but primarily that's what it must do. Look for the best deal on the best drugs that will deliver to the most amount of people. So they have a priority list, and some of those cancer drugs were in that priority list, but they were behind other drugs that weren’t for cancer. So Pharmac said all right, fine, we'll buy the drugs, but you have to give us the money that will allow us to get to their place on the list, if you see what I mean. To get to all the cancer drugs they promised they had to buy a whole lot of other drugs. So that means about 28 medicines that were not for cancer will now also be funded because they were ahead of those cancer drugs on the priority list. I think even though it's expensive, that is the right thing to do. You cannot, cannot, cannot politicise the Pharmac buying priority list, you just can't. As Chris Jackson said to Mike Hosking this morning, Pharmac may not be perfect, but it is the best option.   “The last thing you want is pollies picking drugs. You certainly don't want Big Pharma getting large blank checks from the state, and you don't want those who tell the biggest story through the media to queue jump. What we've had here is by lifting up Pharmac’s budget, you've had, cancer hasn't queue jumped all the other medications. There’s been 26 drugs, 50 total so other areas have benefited too. It's cost them an awful lot of money because of the political problem they've created. It would have been cheaper to do it another way, but I'm really, really pleased how we've landed.  We need to make sure the implementation's done well now, because if it's not, we're going to create another problem, just down the line.”  Yeah, absolutely. And that's what he was saying. All very well and good to get the drugs but you need to have the infrastructure so they can get to the people who need them. So I would love to hear from you on this one. Is this the best solution? I think it is. It is expensive, of course it's expensive. But you can't prioritise drugs just because you've got somebody fashionable and trendy who it can promote their drug over others. They get more media attention than others. There are less sexy diseases, less sexy drugs that don't get the attention, but the people who have the disease need it. The people who have the affliction need that particular drug, and why should they be further down the list simply because they can't get the right noise behind lobbying? It's got to be independent. It's got to be free of government interference and if it means that more people will have their drugs funded, well so well and good. There are a lot of these people who need the drugs have not brought this upon themselves. You know, it's just a roll of the dice. It is fate. That means they end up with a life-changing or life-threatening disease or illness that a drug can alleviate. They can't afford that drug, they die. They can't afford that drug. They live a life of perpetual misery. Surely this has got to be good news. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was a joyous and emotional win for the Auckland Blues on Saturday night.  The Blues are Super Rugby champions for the first time since 2003 after routing the Chiefs 41-10 at Eden Park.  Back with us again is former All Black Coach and Auckland Blues Board member, John Hart.  Hart told Kerre Woodham “I was so happy for the team, the club, the city and our fans.”  He said “We’d had a semifinal the week before and the crowd was quiet as a mouse – and on Saturday we had a total sell-out – what an atmosphere.”  LISTEN ABOVE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She's been a tough few months for Northland businesses and residents.    First, we had the Brynderwyns closing. State Highway 1 over the Brynderwyn Hills is finally set to open ahead of Matariki weekend after 17 weeks and three days. Lots of diversions, lots and lots of trucks on roads that where they really, really shouldn't be, and the crews have been working as hard as they can, but it's been slip after slip after slip. They've been trying to clear those and strengthen the road and shore up the hills.   And then yesterday, we had the massive power outage. Nearly 100,000 people spent the day without electricity in Northland after a transmission tower linking the region to the rest of the country fell over. And like, quite literally, fell over - collapsed. Power was restored to most of the region last night, but consumers were asked to conserve electricity and warned that their hot water cylinders would remain off while the amount of energy getting into the area was limited. Transpower said this morning that while power has now been restored to the majority of residential customers, full power would not be restored until over the weekend. Having a place in the Hokianga I'm used to power outages occurring, you know relatively often, but they're usually sporadic, they’re usually easily resolved.  It's a bit of fun camping until the power comes back on, not so much fun when you're a business that is utterly dependent on power.   The transmission tower collapse, which happened in Glorit, about 45kms west of Warkworth, happened at the same time as another circuit connecting Northland to the grid was down for maintenance. So basically, the whole region was completely and utterly on its own. Northland MP Grant McCullum said this highlights how fragile the infrastructure in Northland is and he said it was the very last thing that Northlanders needed, which was a sentiment echoed by Darren Fischer, North Chamber CEO, Chamber of Commerce.  “Spoke to some of our more regional business associations yesterday and how they described it is, this not the knockout blow for a lot of small businesses, it's certainly a standing 8 count. You know it could be very well one of the things that just keep piling on top of some of these small employers you know.”  Yeah, it's tough. Thank heavens the Brynderwyns road will be open, thanks to NZTA, for Matariki weekend to give the businesses a much-needed boost.   But is it just the nature of the beast? Is it the nature of nature, if you will? There's not much you can do when there are massive landslips, or is there? Should there have been more investment in shoring up the sides of the hills and strengthening the roads before you absolutely had to? Have we been putting infrastructure on the back burner right around the country, but for far, far too long? Putting it off where we can, generation after generation. This is not on one government; this isn't even really on one generation. Have we been taking infrastructure for granted? And now we're seeing the result of that. I mean Northlands suffering at the moment, but there'll be other regions of that you can be sure.   When you are utterly dependent really on one road, one major highway in and out for the transportation of goods and the transportation of services, when there are any frailties or when nature decides that it's going to have its say, there's not much you can do. You have to cobble together detours and patch in highways. When you are utterly dependent on one or two sources of power when one goes, you’re stuffed.   Are we too small to be able to have even a 98% confident reliance on our infrastructure? Are we simply too small? Our population mass is too small. We certainly don't have the money right now, but then what were we doing in the previous years? Or is it just Northland that is the forgotten child? The one who's been left behind while the rest of the country has agitated for more power, more resources, more money. I think there'd be plenty of regions that would argue they've been forgotten, so I don't think that's the answer. Northlanders might feel a bit bereft having been promised bridges that didn't turn up. Having been left pretty much isolated from the rest of the country with the Brynderwyns closed. Is it just the nature of New Zealand's terrain, or has it been poor decision making from those who should know better? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Tony Astle ate at Sahana, a South Indian restaurant specialising in Chettinad cuisine. Their website boasts the cuisine to be the most aromatic in India, synonymous with spice that has a kick even for the Indian palate.  Tony sampled a variety of both vegetarian and non vegetarian dishes, including the Dosa, the Crispy Shredded Lamb and Raita, the Eggplant Curry, Aloo Gobi, and the Lamb Saag.    LISTEN ABOVE    Recipe of the Week: Chocolate Souffle  Serves 6   Ingredients  10 free-range whole eggs, separated  3 tbsp castor sugar  1 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint  350g dark chocolate  6 tbsp brandy  Butter, to grease ramekins  3 tbsp castor sugar, to dust    Method  Beat egg yolks, sugar and mint in a food processor until thick and creamy. Melt chocolate with brandy over a double boiler. It is important not to let the water come to a boil underneath or let the bowl touch the water.   Combine melted chocolate with the egg mixture; mix thoroughly. Set aside until required. The mixture could be refrigerated at this stage.  Butter individual ramekins thoroughly and dust with the second measure of sugar. Set aside.  Gently re-heat the chocolate mixture to tepid, stirring continuously. Preheat oven to 180°C.  Whip the egg whites to soft peaks. Fold a quarter of the whites into the chocolate mixture, then carefully fold in the remainder. Pour into the ramekins to just below the top. Bake for 15 minutes or until cooked. Serve immediately, dusted with icing sugar and lashings of whipped cream. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Blues and Chiefs will be facing off before a packed-out Eden Park for the Super Rugby Finals.  The game kicks off at 7:05pm this Saturday, tickets for the match selling out within a couple of hours.  Former All Blacks coach and Blues Board Member John Hart told Kerre Woodham that to have a full sellout crowd within a few hours of tickets going on sale shows that there’s a lot of enthusiasm for the game.  He said that there’s been a lot of negativity surrounding New Zealand rugby this year, and people have forgotten what’s happening on the field.  The changes have made a fantastic product, Hart said, and he thinks people have recognized that this game is something very special.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environmental awareness and the risk of dolphin bothering seems to have been behind SailGP’s decision to withdraw its racing from Lyttelton next year and move the whole kit and caboodle to Auckland.   You may remember they looked at Auckland but there was inability to provide the kind of spectator stands that Russell Coutts wanted, So off to Lyttelton they went, with the caveat that you have to be mindful it's a dolphin sanctuary, and if the dolphins turn up then racing has to stop. Sure, fine, everybody agreed. Then back in March, the opening day of racing was called off due to a dolphin sighting on the course. And while the second day of racing was able to go ahead without a hitch, and according to some commentators served up one of the best days of racing in the league's history, Russell Coutts said no, that's it. We can't be stopping every two seconds. It's not ideal. It's a beautiful amphitheatre, great racing, but if the Dolphins are going to be stopping racing every two seconds, we can't be coming back.   Among Sail GP athletes Lyttelton Harbour was voted as the league's best location to sail. It was an anonymous poll amongst the athletes are following their event in Dubai, late in 2023. Great Britain strategist Hannah Mills said there were pros and cons for whether the league should return to the venue in ‘25 after the way things played out. She said it's the most amazing place to sail. It's really beautiful, so many people came to watch, the conditions were incredible. For a sailor, it's perfect, but we have to be more conscious around the places that we go, the effects that we have and the traces that we leave, said Hannah Mills, the British strategist.   And that's the big thing behind Sail GP. They talk about being champions for change, they talk about raising awareness of conservation ideals through their sport. Better sport, better planet, so you can't be mowing over dolphins while you’re promoting that sort of ethos within your sport. And a lot of the sailors within the sport would feel very much the same way. Sure, let us sail, but we don't want to cause harm while we do it.   So, Auckland it is. And that must mean the issues around the Wynyard quarter have been resolved because when Auckland events manager Nick Mills announced last year that Sail GP wouldn't be coming to Auckland, he said that they'd worked really hard with Russell Coops and the Sail GP team to find a way to hold the event the way Russell wants to hold it. That is, in the middle of the harbour, with a stand on either side of the harbour and he said it's just not possible to do it this year because the land that Coutts wanted to use for the stand was where the old tank farm used to be. And although the tanks have been removed there's been contamination and it hasn't been cleared to be used for any other purpose. So presumably, the situation is that Russell Coutts and Sail GP have said no, Lyttelton Harbour’s too hard. Too many dolphins. Too much stress on the environmentally aware sailors and the environmentally aware landlubbers, terrified that Dolphins will be hit, so we'll move it up to Auckland, where presumably there are also dolphins, but not as many. It's not a sanctuary. And the land will have been remediated so that Russell Coutts can have the course exactly as he wishes. And let's face it, he who pays, says.   If Russell Coutts wants to bring a whole lot of money, a whole lot of television coverage, a whole lot of good juju to a town or a city, he can say this is the way I want it. And if you don't like it, he'll go somewhere else.   So, I'd love to get your thoughts on this - could it have worked at Lyttelton? Was there good will? Or was the fact that the course was in the middle of a dolphin sanctuary, just silly and unworkable? I mean, it looked like a beautiful natural amphitheatre and certainly was well supported by the locals. It's a great race. It's a great initiative. It's a great idea. Good people are involved, good people are supporting it. If not Auckland where?   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The news New Zealand is out of a technical recession isn't necessarily cause for celebration.   Stats NZ figures show GDP rose 0.2% in the three months to March and 0.2% in the year to March.  But Herald Business Editor Liam Dann told Kerre Woodham that we could still see a series of further per capita contractions over the next few quarters.  He says if we don't end up back in a technical recession, things could go backwards in another quarter due to the crunch starting to bite on interest rates.   The Reserve Bank says the growth outlook for the rest of this year is slightly more positive.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.