The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Young people continue to bear the brunt of job losses.  The latest Stats NZ figures reveal the unemployment rate among those aged 15 to 19 hit 23%, the highest in more than a decade.  The age group also lost more than 70% of the 32,000 net jobs lost last year.  Former Reserve Bank economist Michael Reddell told Mike Hosking young people typically bear the brunt.  He says it's never got below around 13% even when the economy is at its strongest.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Foreign Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand's not the only one in the dark about a potential deal between the Cook Islands and China.  Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown is heading to Beijing, where he's expected to sign a comprehensive strategic partnership.  He says it's part of a broader strategy to strengthen relations with all of its key partners and expand economic opportunities.  MFAT says it would have expected to be fully consulted on such a deal - but wasn't.  Winston Peters told Mike Hosking New Zealand's been blindsided, and we're not the only ones.  He says they've asked for information over a number of months, but it hasn't been shared with them or the Cook Island people.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Police Minister says recent incidents where vehicles have been driven into officers are part of a rise of anti-Police violence.  An officer has moderate injuries after being struck by a vehicle in Huntly on Wednesday night.  It comes weeks after Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming was killed, and another officer was injured after being struck by a vehicle in Nelson on New Year's Day.  Mark Mitchell told Mike Hosking these kinds of incidents are happening more often around the world, including here in New Zealand.  He says overall, the type of violent offending Police and first responders are having to deal with has been growing over the years.  The Government is promising tougher sentences, Mitchell saying he’ll be introducing a bill to address these types of incidents by the end of next month.  He says the bill will introduce tougher sentences, require cumulative rather than concurrent sentences, and clearly define emergency service workers.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's a hope US President Donald Trump's attention isn't drawn to the Cook Islands-China saga.  Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown will travel to Beijing in the coming days, where he's expected to sign a comprehensive strategic partnership.  He says it's about expanding economic opportunities.  MFAT says it would have expected to be fully consulted on such a deal but wasn't.   Auckland University international relations expert Stephen Hoadley told Mike Hosking Trump's been taking a hard line with China.  He says Trump will want his allies to do the same, so New Zealand allowing one of its realm countries to slide into China’s orbit could reflect badly on New Zealand.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I don't mind telling you, I've kind of been dreading making any sort of editorial comment or opinion on Waitangi Day.  Not because I don't think it's significant, but because I feel an expectation to say something about its importance in our calendar, how it's an opportunity to reflect on our history, and how we should use it to think about the way ahead.  Or something like that.  I'm not about to deny that it's an important day - especially for iwi and the Crown within the context of Treaty settlements and Crown-iwi relations.  But if I am honest - I'm kind of over it.  And I'd hazard a guess that for many people, the first think on their minds isn't politics or history - it's: What's the weather doing for our day off?  So, I'm not about to offer a lecture on what Waitangi means or should mean. There's no shortage of that if that's what you are seeking.  I guess I've just seen enough news coverage that either lectures us on what we should be thinking or pushes the most inflammatory images or stories they can get their hands on.  Of course, it's understandable that the feisty stuff will be what makes the news, but should we really be surprised that so many people are tuning out? I think that many of us have just grown weary with the predictable news cycle around Waitangi.  It's our own version of Groundhog Day - where we have the same pattern of event, the same dramas, the same tensions. Then, when the day itself rolls around, we're told what a wonderful occasion it is and how you really have to visit Waitangi to appreciate it as our national day.  Essentially, I don't think events in the lead up to Waitangi represent us very well.  They don't reflect how we relate to each other as New Zealanders. And they certainly don't make us feel united as a country - or even particularly good about ourselves.  Which is a shame, because the endless politicising of race in New Zealand betrays how well New Zealanders get on with each other.  We've been meeting, marrying, forming friendships, and building families together for generations. New Zealand today is a truly multicultural society.  In a few weeks' time, the netball season will be underway, and as I've said before on my show, if you want to see the New Zealand I relate to - you'll find it there.  Every night of competition, hundreds of kids and adults gather to play, compete, and have fun.  The faces you'll see are from a multitude of races, backgrounds, and cultures - all just getting stuck in and enjoying themselves.  That is the face of New Zealand today, and not one that is represented by what we often see unfolding in the lead up to Waitangi Day, when once again, we're defined and divided by race - Pākehā vs Māori. And frankly? I'm bored with it.  Now, there will be people who say: Oh, but you really have to go to Waitangi to appreciate what a wonderful occasion it is! That may well be true. But if the meaning of our national day can only be fully grasped by physically being in one place, then it's hardly the unifying celebration it's supposed to be.  That's a tough sell to five million people.  So, when it comes to the 6th of February, I'm probably with most people - I'll just be looking out the window, hoping for sunshine, and asking: How's the weather looking? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Funk pop duo Foley have been nominated for three Aotearoa Music Awards alongside two APRA Silver Scroll Awards. Their new album That's Life, Baby! drops on February 28th.  Gabe Everett is a vocalist from the duo.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three million trays of Zespri RubyRed Kiwifruit will be available this season - double last years quota.  That's 10,800 tonnes being shipped this year.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The U.S. President has laid out a plan to relocate Palestinians to neighbouring countries, and redevelop the war-torn region into what he described as the 'Riviera of the Middle East'. Former U.S. State Department Middle East Negotiator Aaron David Millers says he doubts Trump has a strategy to execute his plans.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1News reports Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown is travelling to Beijing on Friday to sign a deal.  Foreign Minister Winston Peters seems to have been caught off guard - given New Zealand's long-standing free association agreement.  Otago University international relations professor Robert Patman says the partnership has potential security and foreign policy implications, so New Zealand should have been consulted.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"A circus". That is how NZ First's Shane Jones described the powhiri for parliamentarians at Waitangi yesterday. However, the minister has now found himself in hot water after threatening to pull the Waitangi National Trust's funding.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.