The Mike Hosking Breakfast

A rural doctor says the government's hospital investment is still not enough. Health Minister Simeon Brown's announced a $100million boost for 21 local projects, aimed at improving clinical spaces and support services. General Practice Aotearoa chair Dr Buzz Burrell told Mike Hosking that the investment will be only for touch ups. He says there will only be $5million per project over two years, it's not going to be world changing. Health New Zealand's also allocating $20million dollars to increasing frontline ED staff. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If only nostalgia paid the bills.  But when it comes to peaches, it doesn’t.  Wattie's is out. Pams do a good line of imported stuff, and those who buy peaches in tins like it cheap.  A lot of us like cheap.  Cheap has never been more appealing in a cost of living crisis. If I was in the business of patriotic purchases, I would close my door and go home.  It does work to a degree overseas. Australia is running an "Australian Made" campaign which has had traction.  Canada gave it a good push post the tariff debacle. The French are into it. But a place like New Zealand, despite the rhetoric, has never really excelled at being good at backing local.  Pams do peaches at $0.99. Wattie's is $3.90. They would have to be some pretty spectacular fruit for that price, and that is why Wattie's is out.  They told us yesterday demand is down. Who needs Brian down the road in Hawke’s Bay when you have fruit from Lord-knows-where at a fraction of the price?  Peaches are also out of favour. As Greg my hairdresser and I were talking during the week, who buys cans of peaches anyway?  It's school camp food, he suggested. But he might just be one of those trendy urbanites.  I walked him down memory lane with my childhood canned fruit salad that had peaches and pears and apples and two cherries. The cherries were the prize. I'd happily burn a whole can of syrupy crap to land the two cherries.  But here is the thing – one of the tricks in life is honesty.  When we face these issues, we burn a lot of energy and time on things we know aren't going to work, or are past their used by date, or are a waste of time.  Marching for Gaza is not saving a single life or stopping the war.  Turning up at COP30 isn't getting an inch closer to Net Zero and Helen Clark is never going to think more concerts at Eden Park is good.  We don’t like local anything if we have to pay more than some cheap crap from Vietnam or on Temu.  It is what it is. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.    Farmer confidence: 8/10  In an economic world of woe, it's good to see a decent chunk of people doing well and enjoying it.    GDP: 2/10  Sort of the turgid, rank, icing on the rotten economic cake. How does a Reserve Bank not see a contraction of that size?    Eden Park: 7/10  Best news of the week as reality finally arrived in suburban Auckland. Have a massive facility and actually use it? How novel.      Shane Jones: 6/10  Didn’t we already think he was the deputy?    Jimmy Kimmel: 3/10  If they stuck with being light and entertaining, not angsty and angry, they might not be getting yanked off air or sacked.    Benjamin Doyle: 2/10  What a hapless, self-aggrandising waste of time. The Greens have got a massive credibility issue when it comes to candidate selection.    LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Was this the final nail in the Adrian Orr coffin?  Can we add Christian Hawkesby and the entire monetary policy committee? After all, it's easy to blame a governor, but it’s a committee that votes on what to do with the cash rate.  After the famed Q2 finished (remember April, May and June), we come to the next committee decision in July. Orr is gone, Hawkesby is up, and they have just witnessed the previous three months.  And what do they do? Nothing. No change. They held.  Why? Because they felt things were in hand.  They also said the economy would contract 0.3%.  Yesterday came the proof that it's hard, when you are actually paid as a so-called expert, to get it more wrong than they did.  We all felt it and knew it. Most of us wouldn't have been able to put a number round it like the banks have to, but most of us don’t have the data they have access to.  But what we all knew was it was bad, it was tight, it was ugly, and it wasn’t going in the right direction.  But the gap between -0.3% and -0.9% is inexcusable.  The same way it is inexcusable to stand there in July and tell us more stimulus wasn’t needed.  At some point someone has to be held to account. Yes, Orr is gone, but only because he packed a sad. Yes, Quigley is gone, but only because he got found out.  No one has actually been held to account for a spectacular failure to do the job. Why are the Monetary Policy Committee members still in work? How many of them are there because of their so-called "expertise" versus being appointed for the so-called “right” reasons?  Results count. Facts matter.  And here is the issue for the Government: as the poll showed us this week, a lot of New Zealanders blame the Government for the economy.  They have been let down in no small part by the Reserve Bank and when the Prime Minister the other week on this show fired off a bit of advice, all the pointy heads wrote op-eds whining about independence.  Independence is fine. But not if you're useless. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Friday so Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson are back with Mike Hosking to Wrap the Week that Was.  Mike decided to end the week with another pop quiz – this time on things that were covered on the programme this morning. Kate was not enthused.   Plus the school holidays are coming up, so they had to touch on everyone’s plans.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 19th of September, Sir John Key has some advice for Finance Minister Nicola Willis, who has some tough questions to answer after that Q2 GDP result.  The Government is flying the flag for the wool industry in China.  Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson take a pop quiz and discuss school holidays plans as they Wrap the Week.  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.

We’re in the business end of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, but a former Black Ferns captain is warning against getting cocky.  The Black Ferns have made light work of Spain, Japan, Ireland, and South Africa, leading them to the semi-finals.  Saturday morning will see them face off against the World No 2 team – Canada.   Former Captain Dr Farah Palmer told Mike Hosking that although it’s likely we’ll make it through and face England in the final, she wouldn’t take Canada lightly.  She says the last time we played Canada was a draw, and the time before that was a loss, so we need to focus on Canada first, not the finals.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The axing of Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show has sparked debate around freedom of speech.  Kimmel has been pulled off air indefinitely by ABC over his comments relating to the Charlie Kirk killing.  The late-night host suggested Kirk, who was shot at a Utah University last week, was killed by a pro-Trump Republican.  US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking reactions are sharply partisan.  He says that some, like former Fox host Geraldo Rivera, believe Kimmel’s statements were inappropriate and it’s wrong to overthink the suspension and make it about government, censorship, and other issues.  But on the other side, Arnold says, is people like former President Barack Obama, who says cancel culture has been taken to a new and dangerous level.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Negotiations between senior doctors and the Government have broken down.   They've rejected a $160 million offer and are set to strike for 48 hours next week.   The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists had put a proposal which would have cost about $300 million.   Executive Director Sarah Dalton told Mike Hosking doctors are playing catch up.   She says doctors haven't had pay increases lower than inflation since the pandemic.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis says a new Reserve Bank Governor will be announced “very shortly” as she comes under growing pressure to tackle New Zealand’s economic woes. Economists are calling on the Reserve Bank to cut the Official Cash Rate more aggressively after yesterday’s shock GDP result. New Zealand’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.9% in the June quarter, a reduction well over market expectations. Expectations were for a 0.4% decline in GDP, while Reserve Bank forecasts were for a 0.3% drop. The worse-than-expected outcome could mean the Reserve Bank will cut its Official Cash Rate (OCR) more aggressively than was previously thought, economists said. In an interview with Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking this morning, Willis was asked what she expects from the Reserve Bank to address the situation. “I will very shortly be announcing a new governor for the Reserve Bank. Obviously, we’ve had a chair change at the Reserve Bank. We are refreshing that institution and I think that is very good indeed,” Willis said. She would not give a specific date for the announcement, instead describing it as happening “very shortly”. She confirmed she knew who the new Governor is. Christian Hawkesby is the current Acting Governor of the Reserve Bank. He was appointed to a six-month term in April following Adrian Orr’s resignation in March. Willis told Hosking Kiwis shouldn't get down about the latest drop in GDP and we mustn't talk our way into a recession.  She says we shouldn't overreact to a bad quarter – we've got to keep playing the full game, dig in, and do the things that are needed to grow the economy.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.