Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

The Government's decided against making university entrance harder in its tertiary education shake-up.  Universities Minister Shane Reti recently announced a package of initiatives to modernise the sector. Reti's refresh only accepts 23 of 63 recommendations made by the University Advisory Group. The group's leader, Sir Peter Gluckman, says they recommended changing up entry requirements, as it would ensure quality.  "We're trying to make sure that we don't see degree inflation - and actually have degrees that maintain New Zealand's high quality in standards globally." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK Government is set to introduce tighter rules for migrants granted asylum bringing their families to the UK. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is set to unveil new  criteria for family members - including tougher English language standards and access to sufficient funds. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says immigration is likely to become a key talking point at the next election, and the Government's feeling pressure from Reform's popularity. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New economic data impacting the US came out last week and it's got experts speculating over whether rate cuts will come. Harbour Asset Management's Shane Solly explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Trish Sherson from Sherson Willis PR and Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! There's growing calls among educators to make learning a second language compulsory for schoolkids - do we agree with this? Foreign buyers can now buy homes in New Zealand - if they have invested over $5 million, they can buy a home worth $5 million or more. Has the Government stuck the right balance here? Cornwall Park in Auckland was shut yesterday afternoon because of the storm. Is this proof we've gone too far with our safety concerns?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 1 September 2025, the $5 million dollar rule. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford tells Heather why foreign investors will soon be able to buy expensive homes in New Zealand.   Should we make learning a second language compulsory? Juliet Kennedy from the NZ association of language teachers tells Heather why we should. Heather asks Associate Finance Minister Chris Bishop why Helen Clark and John Key are going to China's big parade - but no current Ministers were invited. Plus, the Huddle debates whether we've lost the health and safety plot, shutting one of Auckland's biggest parks because of some heavy wind. 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.

We've got to talk about Cornwall Park. So over the weekend, it was quite windy in Auckland. If you're in Auckland, you know what I mean - that was some crazy-ass wind that was going on out there, definitely found the drafts of my house. If you're out of Auckland, it was kind of like a day in Wellington, but in Auckland. So it was unusual for us. Now, I don't know where we got to in the end, but the forecast was for gusts of up to 120 km per hour. So the people who run Cornwall Park closed it on Sunday because of flying wood. They were worried that staff and punters might be struck by flying wood, so they shut the gates and they closed the toilets and they closed the café and they closed the creamery, and they closed everything - closed the big store, closed everything - because of the flying wood. Meanwhile, on Sunday, when Cornwall Park was closed, I went to another park, which was Victoria Park in the central city - which is also actually incidentally full of really old trees, and therefore bits of wood, lots of branches and twigs and stuff lying around. And despite the fact that there were three of us at the park and it was quite windy, none of us was struck by flying wood, remarkably. We also walked to the park down a road which is lined with old plane trees that have been there for at least 100 years. So if you're going to be struck by a flying tree - you know, like one of them falling down on your head - it'd be one of those. None of them fell on our heads, nor did any of their branches or any of their flying wood. Now, obviously, it's their park. So the Cornwall Park Trust board can shut the park if they like. And probably what they will say is that they didn't want to put their staff at risk. And there'll be a lot of people in this country who'll nod their heads and say - “Look, that is the wise thing to do. After all, it is windy and there could be wood flying all around, and it might hit a staff member right in the eye and blind them forever. You never know. Better to take care.” I look at this and think that's ridiculous that we are so worried and anxious - and frankly neurotic - that even wind is freaking us out now. I would urge the people who run Cornwall Park to get a grip. Farmers, they may be shocked to discover, often work outside in the wind, and there are lots of bits of wood flying around. The Department of Conservation probably want to reconsider this, but at the moment, they still allow us to walk around in the bush in high wind. There are definitely lots of bits of wood lying around in the bush, if you know what I mean. I mean, some people also have old trees in their backyards, and they're still there when it's windy, shockingly, and the trees don't always fall down in the wind. This, I think, is the perfect example of how we are getting to be ridiculous over safety. Yes, of course, you should reduce your extreme risks. Don't take unnecessary risks. But you don't want to be reducing every single risk. Otherwise, you're just gonna be sitting in your house all day. I don't think flying wood in a park on a windy day in Auckland is so extremely risky that staff must be sent home and members of the public must be banned from entry. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's plenty of solutions being suggested to clear up the current energy crisis - and the former head of Mercury Energy has just unveiled a potential idea. Fraser Whineray recently suggested the time has come to drop the carbon price that we've put on coal through the ETS in order to bring power prices down.  He says the ETS is designed to encourage people to use green alternatives, but there isn't a green alternative applicable here as of yet. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former New Zealand Prime Ministers John Key and Helen Clark will attend a large Chinese military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the Chinese victory against Japan in World War Two. The ceremony in Tiananmen Square on Wednesday will also feature leaders like Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un.  National Minister Chris Bishop says he thinks the invitation reflects the historical circumstances of their Governments. "Helen Clark and John Key - their Governments had good relations, we did the free trade deal under the Clark Government, which continued on." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New research has found fewer students are studying languages now than in the 1930s - and educators are calling for a solution. The report, Language Learning for New Zealand’s Future, says second language learning should be a core requirement for students from years seven to ten. President of the New Zealand Association of Language Teachers, Juliet Kennedy, says it's important for Kiwi students to learn another language. "It's also really important that students have a chance to learn other languages, including heritage languages which are spoken in our community - but also world stage languages such as Chinese or French or Spanish or German or Japanese." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand has risen two spots to third place in this year's Global Peace Index.  Countries are ranked based on measures including societal safety and security, and the degree of militarisation.  We currently sit behind Iceland and Ireland, and ahead of Austria and Switzerland.  Otago University Emeritus Peace and Conflict Studies professor Kevin Clements says recent defence purchases could count against us next year.  He says New Zealand's never not been in the top five.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.