Midday Edition: 07 August 2025

The Midday Edition of News Fix for 07 August 2025, straight from the Newstalk ZB newsroom - bringing you everything you need to know in news, politics, business, entertainment and sport.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Good afternoon. I'm Susie Nordquist. This is your midday news
fix for Thursday, the seventh of August. Higher unemployment could
continue to be a handbreak on the country's economic recovery.
More Kiwis are out of work, with unemployment now at
a five year high, and kiwi's that are working are
earning less, with wages not keeping up with inflation over

(00:25):
the past twelve months. Retail NZ Chief executive Carolyn Jung
says that's having ripple effects. If consumers don't have anything
left in their pockets, they're not going to be out
buying anything else. If they're not confident in their job security,
they're not going to be thinking about buying other things.
The Prime Minister is blaming the figures on the last government,
Chris Likesen told Kerry Woodham. When inflation rises, interest rates

(00:48):
go up, the economy shrinks and people lose their jobs.
It's lovely being having the big party and the big
spend up, which is what Labour did. But actually the
consequences of that are quite the hangover after the party's
quite big. A view that higher than average grocery prices
show something is clearly wrong with our grocery sector. The
Commerce Commission has revealed our prices are the fifth highest

(01:10):
in the developed world. It highlights the market doesn't support
new players and major supermarkets continue to wield power over
smaller stores. Grocery policy expert Ernie Newman says there's no
good reason for us to pay so much for a
country like this, which is a dreamly efficient food producer.
We shall be paying way way below the OECD average

(01:32):
and years ago we did. The government is putting product
labelling regulations under the microscope and another attack on red
tape regulation. Minister David Seymour says more than thirty different
codes need to be complied with for sectors as diverse
as pharmaceuticals, building products and agricultural chemicals. At Auckland cafe

(01:53):
threatened with closure over unpaid rates nearing one million dollars,
has promised to stop trading without a line since Ruper's
Cafe in Freeman's Bay was spotted open last week. Despite
closing on July fourth, The Council says the operator now
has an awareness of rules and has stopped trading. The
final countdown has begun for Inter Island is at Teddy

(02:15):
with their last trip across the Cooks Straight announced for
August eighteen. The theory has been retired to let work
begin on port infrastructure for new vessels arriving in twenty
twenty nine. Demolition will begin on ar Teddy's pict in
Dock this year. A half century old musical is returning
to New Zealand after sixteen years. Just a Jump to

(02:37):
the Last Kiwe Richard O'Brien's iconic rocky horror show will
bring songs like Time warb to Stages and Auckland, Wellington
and christ Church in March. This production, directed by Christopher Luskin,
has been a hit in London's West End to Sport
Now and Jacob Duffy will don the Black Caps at

(02:59):
Test Whites for the first time and the second and
final match against Zimbabwe in Bulaweo tonight, with Will O'Rourke
and Nathan Smith sidelined. Stand in Captain Mitchell Satner says
Duffy will debut alongside possibly one or two others. Sonhi
Youngman has officially ended his ten years stay at Tottenham

(03:19):
after leaving for LAFC and a record Major League Soccer transfer.
Australian winger Lachland Brook will join Auckland FC for the
upcoming A League season. I'm Susie Nordquist and that is
your latest news fix. We will be back with a
next update at five pm from the News talksi BNUS room.