Kerre Woodham Mornings Podcast

Auckland Emergency Management deputy controller Rachel Kelleher joined Kerre Woodham to provide an update for residents following Tuesday's deluge and flooding. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The National Part has ruled out coming to any arrangement with Te Pāti Māori in forming a National-led government after the 2023 election, after leader Christopher Luxon appeared on Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking Breakfast earlier. Newstalk ZB Political Editor Jason Walls joined Kerre Woodham to discuss the development. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A huge boost for our defence forces, with pay rates being boosted by $4000 to 15,000 over 4 years and a three $128 million upgrade of New Zealand Defence Force assets and infrastructure. I confess, I'm surprised it's happened under this Labour government. It sounded as though it came as a bit of a surprise to the Defence Force and political commentators like former Defence Minister Ron Mark. This year's budget has been pitched by the Prime Minister as a no-frills budget, and rightly so given the parlous state of New Zealand's economy. But the Prime Minister says the dedicated women and men of our defence forces were one group of New Zealanders whose wages had lagged behind. He says not only is it unfair, it's leading to significant rates of attrition. It's not just the poor pay, of course. Defence Force personnel hated working MIQ and many left as a result of being assigned to guarding hotels. Defence Minister Andrew Little said the funding boost would mean 90 per cent of New Zealand Defence Force personnel would now be paid at, or close to, market rates, and improving the lot of servicemen and women had been his top priority since he took over the portfolio. There is absolutely no point in having a Defence Force if there is no investment in it. You cannot pay lip service to a Defence Force. The funding announced today will take the overall spend as a percentage of GDP to about 1%, according to Little. And while that may not sound like a lot, it's a lot more than other countries in their OECD spend, apart of course from the US. If you have a Defence Force, you have to commit to it. The men and women in the forces have to feel valued, and this announcement will go a long way towards improving morale and making a career in the defence seem like a viable option. In 2022, Defence Force recruitment numbers were below targets, as recruiters battled a strong civilian labour market and a high attrition rate. Defence Force targets for 2022 were 935 across the Navy, Army and Air Force as of March 2022 enlistments were just 396. Just like everyone, the Defence Force’s in a competition for talent. And without being able to pay anywhere near the market rate, it was a competition they were losing. Now they're back in the game.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The future of the crucial inland route through the Coromandel has just been revealed. Waka Kotahi has confirmed the damaged section of State Highway 25A between Kopu and Hikuai will be rebuilt as a bridge. It says a contractor will be ready to start work early next month, with it expected to be finished early next year. Minister of Transport Michael Wood joined Kerre Woodham from the Thames-Corormandel District Council, where he made the announcement this morning. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're just under 35 hours away from the King's Coronation. The bunting is up, jewels polished, parties are planned and London is ready. Jennie Bond has been a journalist and Royal correspondent for 35 years, 14 of those the BBC's royal correspondent. She's had closer view of royal history than most, covering the rollercoaster of royal events from weddings to divorce, Jubilees to royal tours around the world. Jennie Bond joined Kerre Woodham. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A link has been found between head injuries and violent crime. AUT research shows even a single concussion can increase the risk of violent behaviour in the following decade of a persons life. This goes beyond what happens on a rugby field. Everyone is at risk of mild Traumatic Brain Injuries, from traffic accidents or even hitting their head on a kitchen cupboard and the potential cost to society is "huge". Dr Alice Theadom, Professor of Clinical Sciences at AUT joined Kerre Woodham. LISTEN ABVOE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand's unemployment rate is unchanged at 3.4 percent. Stats NZ has just released the March 2023 quarterly figure, which hasn't budged since the December 2022 figure. Economists had picked the rate would stay close to record lows. NZ Herald Business Editor at Large Liam Dann joined Kerre Woodham to break down the figures. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Looks like Census 2023 is another failure. Stats New Zealand is not on track to achieve its target of getting responses from 90 percent of the population. Still time, but it seems unlikely to meet that target, despite protestations from the Minister of Statistics Deborah Russell that it's still early days. The low return rate has nothing to do with the effects of Cyclone Gabriel, most of the unreturned forms are from major cities. And the failure of 2023 aligns with the failure of the 2018 Census, where response rates were even worse. They fell to just 86 per cent, even worse for Maori and Pacifica, with 65 and 63 per cent return rates respectively. You would have thought they would have learned lessons from the past, and they did, a bit. There was a review into the 2018 Census and it found that there was too much focus on a digital-first approach. That focus led to too little attention to on-the-ground requirements to get the Census done. Basically, people knocking on doors and handing over papers and then going to collect them. I absolutely guarantee you could put the lack of response down to distrust of the Government and suspicion around how the information will be used. Dave Letele, who was employed as an ambassador for the Census 2023, said there's a massive distrust between our people and the Government and that's what we need to overcome. He said a lot of people are wary about sharing their personal information with authorities, but it's not just something you can throw money at to fix, which is quite true. So there's been the breakdown of trust, there's been suspicion, and I understand that, but by choosing not to participate, the Government is going to have to come up with another way of allocating resources. How else to do it other than with the Census? Many of the communities who need schools and hospitals and money to go into community groups and outreach services the most will miss out. Five years from now, when you hear people from communities bemoaning the lack of facilities for their neighbourhoods, I will remember to ask them, or make a note for my successor to ask them, did you fill out your Census? If you say no, you're getting no sympathy from me.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A concession from Census officials: they will have to switch from the carrot to the stick. Stats NZ is handing out food vouchers and free Warriors tickets to encourage those yet to complete their forms, to do so. So far 4.4 million people have returned their papers. Deputy Government Statistician Simon Mason told Kerre Woodham he's got no desire to prosecute people, but it may come to that. He says they will probably end up prosecuting a small group of society who continually refuse to do the Census. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's not a new idea.  It's been around for a while and it's certainly something a number of you have been wanting. National announced over the weekend that, if elected, newly qualified nurses and midwives will receive up to $4500 per year towards their student loans, if they agree to stay working in this country for five years. The bonding scheme will also be open to nurses and midwives who have recently graduated. If you graduated last year and think you’ve missed out, not to worry - Christopher Luxon will extend that to you as well. He says we have to do all we can to hold on to the nurses and midwives we've trained in this country.  Now there is a bonding scheme of sorts that exists right now, but it's only open to those who work in hard to staff areas such as mental health and aged care, and it's only available in a handful of regions such as the West Coast.   National’s proposed bonding scheme would be open to everyone. Everyone, everywhere, all at once, if you will. This is just one of the measures announced to try to bolster the under-siege health workforce. The other measures put on the table by National include allowing nurses to come into this country on six-month visas to have a look-see. They're also looking to offer relocation grants to up to 1000 nurses who want to come in from overseas.  As I say, it's not a new idea to bond young professionals.  I think Peter Dunne’s talked about it. Certainly Winston Peters has. So why isn't it standard practice? To me it makes sense. I know a lot of young people say it's not fair, we had to pay for our loans and you old people didn't. Well, there was a much more stringent and strict criteria to get into university. Not everybody who wanted to go to university could go. And on the basis that it's a slightly freer application system, it means you have to carry the cost of some of your education, but ultimately most of it is borne by the New Zealand taxpayer. You are not paying the entire cost of your degree or your training. The taxpayer is picking up the lion’s share of it.   Many of you are taking out large loans that you're finding pretty burdensome. Is it a win-win if you get your money back, and we get you for five years before you go off seeking greener pastures? To me it is and I would love to know why it hasn't worked before. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.