The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Today on Politics Wednesday, Labour’s Ginny Andersen and National’s Mark Mitchell joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss the week thus far.  They discussed the newly-announced RMA reforms – how does Labour feel about the new acts?   There's been another development in the McSkimming saga, with Andrew Coster claiming he briefed both Chris Hipkins and Mark Mitchell on the situation previously – something neither of them recall.  And is the Ministerial Advisory Group for Retail Crime taking the mickey with how much they’re charging for their services?  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A classic pastime is getting its own national championship.  The Stone Skimming Nationals will be held next May at Lake Hāwea, with the winners heading on to the World Championship in Scotland.  Around 150 people are expected to compete, with more than 100 spectating the event.   Lake Hāwea Station’s Tourism Manager Richie Lang told Heather du Plessis-Allan originally there wasn’t a huge amount of interest in hosting the event, but then a cheating scandal at the World Stone Skimming Championships came around and put the sport on the world map.   After that, he said, they thought it was time to strike.   LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s an assurance RMA changes won't clog the courts.   The Government's confirmed it's replacing current Resource Management Act laws with two new pieces of legislation, one for the environment and one for planning.   It's expected to save about $13 billion in consenting costs.  RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop told Heather du Plessis-Allan there's too much Environmental Court litigation at the moment.  He says it’s inevitable there will be cases, but the aim is to reduce the amount of litigation and debate about things like the definition of “sustainable management”, which has been a topic of debate for around 30 years.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A mortgage broker is saying not to panic about rising mortgage rates.   Westpac has announced a 30 basis point increase to its 2-5 year fixed rates.  They claim the move reflects rising wholesale rates and higher costs for long-term funding.   Sue Tierney told Heather du Plessis-Allan that people do have the opportunity to negotiate rates.  She says the bank has an advertised rate, but that doesn’t mean you have to accept it.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Covid-type outbreak of common sense.  That's how Contact Energy's describing the Government's Resource Management Act reforms, which will see current rules replaced with two new pieces of legislation.   One will be for planning, and the other for the environment.  Contact Energy Chief Executive Mike Fuge told Heather du Plessis-Allan he likes what he sees.   He says it will liberate the country from the burden of bureaucracy and complication.  Fuge says the changes should provide much needed pace to infrastructure development.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A monumental change for people caring for severely disabled family members. A landmark Supreme Court ruling yesterday means those providing full-time care for severely disabled family members are entitled to pay. It was brought by two parents, Christine Fleming and Peter Humphreys, who care for severely disabled adult children. Disability Advocate Jane Carrigan told Heather du Plessis-Allan getting minimum wage is the bare minimum for these families. She says this will impact roughly 10 thousand families. LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So tomorrow's the big day, isn't it? And it is, I think, not an overstatement to say that the eyes of the world, well, at least politicians around the world, are going to be on Australia and whether the social media ban will actually work. And that is still a live question, isn't it? We're less than 24 hours from the thing taking effect and none of us can totally say for sure that we know it's going to work.  For two reasons: one, it's the internet, so there's always a workaround out there. And two, it involves kids, and if there's a workaround, kids will find the workaround. I'm going to call it for you now: it's not going to work, if your definition of working is that 100% of children under 16 get kicked off and stay off until they're 16.   But I think it is possible that it is going to work if your definition is a little bit more flexible, which is that most kids get kicked off and stay off because their parents force them to do it. And I think that is the key thing here, like it always is, parents getting involved.   Talking about whether it works or not, actually I think kind of misses the point here, which is that this gives parents something that they haven't had yet, which is permission to keep their kids off social media. Because what parents have been finding is it's very hard to keep 14 year old Susie off social media, off Facebook, off Instagram, off TikTok, off Snapchat, because all Susie's friends are on it. And if Susie's not on it, then she becomes the weird kid, and nobody wants their kid to be the weird kid, right? So you relent and you let Susie on it.   This has the potential to flip all of that pressure around. Now everyone's off. Now the kid that's on it, little Johnny's on it, Susie comes home and says, oh Johnny's on TikTok, can I go on TikTok? You go, no, Johnny's a naughty kid from a family that has no rules, no boundaries, no discipline. Susie, you've got boundaries and discipline your parents care about, you stay off. It gives permission for the parents to be able to do that kind of thing.   And if you're a parent, you know peer pressure is massive, isn't it? Especially in the teenage years. The Aussie government's doing its bit by bringing us to this point. The tech companies are being dragged into doing their bit and ultimately this will live or die in Australia based on whether Australian parents do their bit and actually step up to the plate and parent properly. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Working Class Man is back.  Celebrating the 40th anniversary of his landmark album, For The Working Class Man, Jimmy Barnes is bringing his most famous songs to our shores early next year.  The most successful artist in Australian chart history has long loved New Zealand because we showed his band, Cold Chisel, love right from the very beginning.  Cold Chisel headlined a Summer Concert Tour earlier this year, but 2026’s tour will be a solo venture for Barnes, as he plays the iconic album from start to finish, with a few additions from his chart-topping catalogue.  “It was such a, a record that was so pivotal in my life and career,” Barnes told Heather du Plessis-Allan.   “The songs on this record changed my life forever.”   LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast with Heather du Plessis-Allan Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 9th of December, what will the RMA reform, set to be announced this afternoon, look like? And why are Chinese warships shadowing our Naval vessels?   Investor Malcolm Gillies has bought Wellington Rugby's 50% stake in the Hurricanes as he looks to turn the franchise around and stop them leaking money.  Aussie singer Jimmy Barnes joined for a chat about visiting New Zealand on his next tour, and Working Class Man turning 40.   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.

The debate over out long summer break is heating up.  An op-ed from businessman Toss Grimley claims New Zealand’s extended shutdown hurts productivity, a stance backed up by Auckland Business Chamber CEO Simon Bridges.  Bridges says there’s a real perception the country “shuts down until March”, and that we’re seen more as “lifestylers” than serious businesspeople.   Massey University Professor of Innovation and Economics, Christoph Schumacher told Heather du Plessis-Allan that while our summer break is long compared to the rest of the world, the question shouldn’t be if it’s too long, but rather if we can afford it.  He says people do deserve breaks, but it needs to be structured a smarter way to keep productivity high.   LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.