The Mike Hosking Breakfast

A proposed law change will prohibit universities from adopting positions on issues that aren't related to their core role and functions.   They'll be required to actively promote an environment where ideas can be challenged, controversial issues discussed, and diverse opinions expressed.   Universities will have to adopt a statement on freedom of speech and report annually on it.   Former Victoria University dean and NZ Initiative senior fellow Michael Johnston told Heather du Plessis-Allan it's not a silver bullet to solve the culture problem at universities, but is necessary.   He says problems on campuses are in part a result of a political bias pretty strongly to the left.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the most surprising things about that judge allegedly yelling at Winston Peters in the Northern Club is that she is still in her job.  I want to be clear; I don’t want her to lose her job over this, and I don’t even want to be seen to be calling for her head.  I’m just pointing out that she should lose her job.  Because what happened was actually quite serious. We are talking about a judge yelling, not denied, at the deputy Prime Minister, the second most senior politician in the country.  She also accused him, again not denied, of lying in front of a room of people.  Now, you flip that around and imagine it’s a senior minister doing the same, yelling at very senior judges and saying they’re lying in front of a room full of people.  Tell me, does that minister keep their job?  No way. They go.  There’s no way that would be tolerated because no Government would want to be seen to tolerate that kind of behaviour, and it’s got to be the same for the judiciary. They cannot be seen to tolerate verbal attacks on ministers of Government.  Particularly right now. Maybe a few years ago it wouldn't have mattered quite as much.  But right now, there is actually considerable tension between the judiciary and the Government to the point it's actually boiling over at times.  We’ve got courts and lawyers taking cracks at Parliament and that Parliament passing multiple laws to reign in judges.  We’ve got accusations of the Waitangi Tribunal overreaching, Shane Jones making comments about so-called "activist judges" and there is a real concern that comity, which is the mutual respect between the two, is breaking down.  This is so fundamental to a democracy likes ours working.  It is so bad for the judiciary to be perceived to be this hostile towards the current Government.  I can’t see how Ema Aitken keeps her job. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most Kiwis will know the name Mark Hadlow.  The NZ Order of Merit recipient is best known internationally for his roles in King Kong and the Hobbit, but he has his fingers in many pies.  In 2017, Hadlow had a one man show called MAMIL (Middle Aged Man in Lycra), exploring the male midlife crisis and the way many of them turn to road cycling.  The show received rave reviews, touring the country for eight years.   Seven years on, Hadlow has created a sequel – GOMIL, standing for Grumpy Old Man in Lycra, premiering in Christchurch in early 2025.  He told Heather du Plessis-Allan that it was great being back in the saddle – literally.   “The show opens with a big sequence, so it’s really interesting getting back on the Pinarello again,” he said.  “Oh goodness me, that was fun.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As always, there are winners and losers in High Performance Sport’s latest funding round.  In the lead up to the LA Olympics in 2028, the organisation has allocated $163 million to 36 different sports.  Rowing, yachting, athletics, cycling, and canoeing all got a funding boost, while sports like hockey, equestrian, and men’s sevens are worse off.  Director Steve Tew says past performance was key when making the decision.  He told Heather du Plessis-Allan they really need to hone in on the sports, athletes, and teams that are tracking towards a top eight or podium in LA.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 19th of December, Heather du Plessis-Allan asks just how bad is our Q3 GDP will be, and whether we’ll slip back into a technical recession?  High Performance Sport NZ has decided who they're dishing out the funding to – so who are the winners and losers?  Kiwi actor and NZ Order of Merit recipient Mark Hadlow is bringing back his stage show 'Middle Aged Man in Lycra', by doing a sequel - ‘Grumpy Old Man in Lycra’.  Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An economist says the third quarter was tough in pretty much every sector, for the New Zealand economy.  The major banks are all predicting between 0.2% to 0.4% contraction when Stats NZ releases the GDP data for the third quarter just before 11am today.  It'll likely mean our third technical recession in two years.  ASB's Chief Economist Nick Tuffley told Heather du Plessis-Allan the agriculture and forestry sector were essentially the only positive performers.  He says construction, retail, and manufacturing all felt the pressure, with electricity struggles also taking place during this quarter.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s uncertainty around whether a large gas supplier staying in New Zealand will benefit the sector in the long run.  One of New Zealand's largest gas suppliers, OMV, will stay in the country.  Its executive board's decided not to sell 100% of its shares.  Enerlytica Director John Kidd told Heather du Plessis-Allan the sector needs continual re-investment.  He says the real question is if they keep investing, given they tried not to be the owner of the assets.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Government is defending its budgeting for the torture redress of Lake Alice survivors.  It's set aside more than $22 million for eligible survivors who were tortured at the psychiatric hospital in the 1970s.  They'll be able to choose between a one-off $150 thousand payment or apply for independently assessed redress.  Lead coordination minister Erica Stanford told Heather du Plessis-Allan it was a hard call to settle on $150 thousand.  She says there's no precedent for this situation anywhere in the world – other countries have paid out for torture in very different circumstance and the victims were adults.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A 17-year old female student is the suspect in a school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin.  One teacher and a teen student have died, and six people were injured at the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School.  Police say the suspect was found dead.  CNN reports this is the US's 83rd school shooting this year, overtaking last year's record 82.  US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Heather du Plessis-Allan that evidence suggests the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.   He says the family is said to be cooperating, and the girl left behind a note.   LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We knew the Government books were going to be bad, but not this bad.  No way we’re getting to the surplus we expected in 2028. That is now so far away it’s not even in Treasury’s forecast period anymore.  It’s some time, who knows when, in the 2030's.  We’ll have to borrow another $20b in debt to tide us over for the next four years. That’ll push our interest payments over $10b every year.  So we’ll be spending more on our debt interest than we spend on Defence, Corrections, Police, and Customs combined.  Now, this is not the current Government's fault. This is a recession caused by Adrian Orr and the Reserve Bank to deal with Labour’s overspending.  But National are not doing what they need to.  They need to be cutting way harder than they are.  There is a measure we use to look at how much the Government is adding to, or reducing from, economic growth.  It’s called public consumption.  They were supposed to cut that by 1.4% this year. They cut it by 0.2%.  That’s basically no cut.  Next year it's supposed to cut by 2.2%. Now, it's by another 0.2%, which is to say they’re actually not cutting much at all.  We still pay the wages of 14,000 more public servants than we did in 2018. They’ve only cut one public agency, which is the Productivity Commission.  Nicola Willis spent more in her last budget than Grant Robertson ever did.  National keeps saying they can’t cut more because they don’t want austerity, but we are so far from austerity it’s not funny.  We are spending more and hiring more public servants than five years ago.  The trouble with that is we’re in a recession, which we weren’t five years ago.  National needs to treat this like the economic trainwreck it is and cut their cloth accordingly.  They might not be responsible for the mess we’re in, but they are responsible for fixing it and so far, they’re really not fixing it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.