October 21, 2025 • 5 mins
The Prime Minister ponders the Alliance and Fonterra farmer votes. And why does Winston Peters have such a bee in his bonnet? Meanwhile, Chris Bishop is building new roads of national significance - great, but annual inflation at 3% - not so good. How will that affect future OCR drops? Plus, the mega-strikes and the weather are due to hit tomorrow, and Luxon farewells the last of the great farmer politicians.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Wednesdays on the Country. We to the bloke running the country,
(00:03):
Prime Minister Christopher lux and the Alliance vote went as expected.
I'm sure Fonterra will go the same way should politicians
and you and I discussed this briefly in Gisbon last Friday.
Be meddling into farmer owned cooperatives, you and David Seymour
in consistent on that, Winston and Shane the complete opposite.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Look, I just think farmers have had enough, as I
said to the other day, of politicians telling them what
they should or shouldn't do. It's their livelihood, that's their decision.
They're smart business people. We're very grateful for what they're
doing hauling us out of recession, and that's really a
decision for them. They're quite capable of making that decision
without politicians are injecting their reckons into the mix.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
So when you've got a coalition government, obviously coalition parties
can have their own opinions separate from the government. What
happened to towing the party line?
Speaker 3 (00:52):
Well, look, I think in a coalition government in a
mature MMP environment, yep. I mean the three parties are
very united around the core of what we're doing, which
is job number one, grow the economy, restore or in
order to better public services and health and education.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
But you know, that's what we're really focused on. But
of course each.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Party has its own sort of take on a different
set of the shoes and talking to its own constituents.
But you know, we've all got our personal view. I'm
a big fan of actually the disposal of the consumer
brands business. I just don't think the margins are as
good as what you get in a food service or
a food ingredients business. And I've seen the success of
Fonterra shift and strategy over the last few years, and
I think that they're on the right path of the
(01:27):
don't exceptionally well. But doesn't really matter what I think.
It's actually not my decision. You know, I can keep
my reckons. But the point is it's not helpful the men. Really,
it's the farmers that are actually making that call.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
I reckon. You've had quite a good week thus far,
Prime Minister. Is it about to get worse with the
strikes tomorrow and the weather.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Well like on the strikes, I just say, you know,
I think there has having huge impact on kids who
have already missed way too much school. We've got kids
about to go into NCAA exams in the next two weeks.
We're getting parents who are mucked around with changes to schedules.
We've got six thousand patients that have been waiting too
long for surgery. Just remember labor you know, blew the
wait list up for surgery up thirty times. It's all
(02:07):
politically motivated, frankly by the unions. And you know, we
value all the public sector employees, but it's the unions
that are actually decided they want to go to strike
and they don't want to come and get around the
bargaining table and compromise. And yet we've had a good
example recently, have the Primary Principals Union who actually did
come into the negotiation with very constructive, got a good
deal for themselves and did really well. But you know, frankly,
(02:31):
we've got a week this week where there's a lot
of teacher only days. We've got Labor Day on Monday,
and there's a strike going down just after we've had
school holidays and just before we about to have exams,
where the Secondary Teachers Union wanting to talk to the
minister about Palestine.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
You know, we've had. You know, we're not asking unreasonably.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
To say teacher only days and professional development could be
taken in one of the twelve weeks of the school holidays,
you know, for teachers, rather than taking class time out
for kids. We've offered binding arbitration to the senior doctors, saying,
let's let's someone else make the decision. You've been talking
about this for a year. Health New Zealand union, let
it go the binding arbitray to make the decision. So
we've made constant new offers. Often I've even not been
(03:08):
taken out to union members, and I just think unions
are not serving their members well. But most importantly, if
you're a kid, pairent or a patient across this country,
it's pretty frustrating.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
I still struggle to see why Palestine's on the agenda.
Look good news bad news week. In terms of one
of your henchmen, I shouldn't call him that. He's probably
doing quite a good job, Chris Bishop. Building new roads
of national significance, Bring them on, especially the four lane highways.
But annual inflation at three percent as expected not so good.
We know it's going to track lower, but could this
(03:39):
be a spanner in the works for another one or
two ocr jobs.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Well, I don't think so, Jamie.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
I mean, we've got a Reserve Bank of New Zealand
target range for inflation, which is between one and three percent,
and that's where you ideally want it sitting. The Reserve
Bank lookout and say, look, we're interested in medium term
inflation as to how they set their interest rates around
in our seeing inflation sort of sitting around the two
percent next year, which is why they continue to our
interest rights. So I just remind everybody it wasn't that
(04:08):
long ago under labor that we were at seven point
three percent under labor and people getting and we're in
our band at three percent, so you know it'll bounce
around around the three percent. That the bottom line is
the trend is really good that we're in the two
percent type range. And most importantly, for God's sake, I'm
inflation at three percent, so I'll have of a lot
(04:28):
better being at seven point three.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Now tomorrow the Mega strikes, As we mentioned, mother Nature
doesn't look like she's going to pay play ball. That
would be ironic, wouldn't they if they had to cancel
the Mega strike because of the weather. But I guess
on a more serious vein Prime Minister, we farewell the
great helmsman, the last of the great farmer politicians, Jim Bolger.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Yeah, I think that's going to be a very special farewell. Actually,
I think it's an amazing family, the Bulger family, and
his contribution to New Zealand is pretty special.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
I mean, he.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Sorted out us in ecotough economic times. He pivoted us
towards Asia, which was important for all our export growth
that you still see today. You know, heal you. He
dealt with the Treaty Settlements, which I think has been
a very good move. And ultimately, you know, he also
introduced MP in a constitutional sense, so you know there's
some pretty big legacies coming out of him in his
government and the senior ministers at that time. But yeah,
(05:22):
really really great guy that said lunce once before. You know,
like I was with him in a bar and why
can I once and you know, he just loved people
and he just loved politics. So yeah, so it'll be
quite a special day tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
The rest in peace, Jim Bolger, Prime Minister, Christopher lux
and thanks for your time is always on the country.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Great to be with Jamie have a great week,
Wednesdays on the Country. We to the bloke running the country,
(00:03):
Prime Minister Christopher lux and the Alliance vote went as expected.
I'm sure Fonterra will go the same way should politicians
and you and I discussed this briefly in Gisbon last Friday.
Be meddling into farmer owned cooperatives, you and David Seymour
in consistent on that, Winston and Shane the complete opposite.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
Look, I just think farmers have had enough, as I
said to the other day, of politicians telling them what
they should or shouldn't do. It's their livelihood, that's their decision.
They're smart business people. We're very grateful for what they're
doing hauling us out of recession, and that's really a
decision for them. They're quite capable of making that decision
without politicians are injecting their reckons into the mix.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
So when you've got a coalition government, obviously coalition parties
can have their own opinions separate from the government. What
happened to towing the party line?
Speaker 3 (00:52):
Well, look, I think in a coalition government in a
mature MMP environment, yep. I mean the three parties are
very united around the core of what we're doing, which
is job number one, grow the economy, restore or in
order to better public services and health and education.
Speaker 2 (01:04):
But you know, that's what we're really focused on. But
of course each.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Party has its own sort of take on a different
set of the shoes and talking to its own constituents.
But you know, we've all got our personal view. I'm
a big fan of actually the disposal of the consumer
brands business. I just don't think the margins are as
good as what you get in a food service or
a food ingredients business. And I've seen the success of
Fonterra shift and strategy over the last few years, and
I think that they're on the right path of the
(01:27):
don't exceptionally well. But doesn't really matter what I think.
It's actually not my decision. You know, I can keep
my reckons. But the point is it's not helpful the men. Really,
it's the farmers that are actually making that call.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
I reckon. You've had quite a good week thus far,
Prime Minister. Is it about to get worse with the
strikes tomorrow and the weather.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
Well like on the strikes, I just say, you know,
I think there has having huge impact on kids who
have already missed way too much school. We've got kids
about to go into NCAA exams in the next two weeks.
We're getting parents who are mucked around with changes to schedules.
We've got six thousand patients that have been waiting too
long for surgery. Just remember labor you know, blew the
wait list up for surgery up thirty times. It's all
(02:07):
politically motivated, frankly by the unions. And you know, we
value all the public sector employees, but it's the unions
that are actually decided they want to go to strike
and they don't want to come and get around the
bargaining table and compromise. And yet we've had a good
example recently, have the Primary Principals Union who actually did
come into the negotiation with very constructive, got a good
deal for themselves and did really well. But you know, frankly,
(02:31):
we've got a week this week where there's a lot
of teacher only days. We've got Labor Day on Monday,
and there's a strike going down just after we've had
school holidays and just before we about to have exams,
where the Secondary Teachers Union wanting to talk to the
minister about Palestine.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
You know, we've had. You know, we're not asking unreasonably.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
To say teacher only days and professional development could be
taken in one of the twelve weeks of the school holidays,
you know, for teachers, rather than taking class time out
for kids. We've offered binding arbitration to the senior doctors, saying,
let's let's someone else make the decision. You've been talking
about this for a year. Health New Zealand union, let
it go the binding arbitray to make the decision. So
we've made constant new offers. Often I've even not been
(03:08):
taken out to union members, and I just think unions
are not serving their members well. But most importantly, if
you're a kid, pairent or a patient across this country,
it's pretty frustrating.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
I still struggle to see why Palestine's on the agenda.
Look good news bad news week. In terms of one
of your henchmen, I shouldn't call him that. He's probably
doing quite a good job, Chris Bishop. Building new roads
of national significance, Bring them on, especially the four lane highways.
But annual inflation at three percent as expected not so good.
We know it's going to track lower, but could this
(03:39):
be a spanner in the works for another one or
two ocr jobs.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Well, I don't think so, Jamie.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
I mean, we've got a Reserve Bank of New Zealand
target range for inflation, which is between one and three percent,
and that's where you ideally want it sitting. The Reserve
Bank lookout and say, look, we're interested in medium term
inflation as to how they set their interest rates around
in our seeing inflation sort of sitting around the two
percent next year, which is why they continue to our
interest rights. So I just remind everybody it wasn't that
(04:08):
long ago under labor that we were at seven point
three percent under labor and people getting and we're in
our band at three percent, so you know it'll bounce
around around the three percent. That the bottom line is
the trend is really good that we're in the two
percent type range. And most importantly, for God's sake, I'm
inflation at three percent, so I'll have of a lot
(04:28):
better being at seven point three.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Now tomorrow the Mega strikes, As we mentioned, mother Nature
doesn't look like she's going to pay play ball. That
would be ironic, wouldn't they if they had to cancel
the Mega strike because of the weather. But I guess
on a more serious vein Prime Minister, we farewell the
great helmsman, the last of the great farmer politicians, Jim Bolger.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
Yeah, I think that's going to be a very special farewell. Actually,
I think it's an amazing family, the Bulger family, and
his contribution to New Zealand is pretty special.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
I mean, he.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Sorted out us in ecotough economic times. He pivoted us
towards Asia, which was important for all our export growth
that you still see today. You know, heal you. He
dealt with the Treaty Settlements, which I think has been
a very good move. And ultimately, you know, he also
introduced MP in a constitutional sense, so you know there's
some pretty big legacies coming out of him in his
government and the senior ministers at that time. But yeah,
(05:22):
really really great guy that said lunce once before. You know,
like I was with him in a bar and why
can I once and you know, he just loved people
and he just loved politics. So yeah, so it'll be
quite a special day tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (05:33):
The rest in peace, Jim Bolger, Prime Minister, Christopher lux
and thanks for your time is always on the country.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Great to be with Jamie have a great week,
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