Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills

It's time for the third test between the All Blacks and the Springboks, and on Friday Sports Kick-off this week Nick, Coops and Piney talk the most importance test of the on the Greatest Rivalry tour.

The crew analyse Rennie's team "rotation", his performance as a coach so far, and give their score predictions for this "game of chess".

And is there still hope for the Wellington Lions for their upcoming game against Tasman? Have our...

For Politics Thursday this week Nick Mills is joined by Labour's Ayesha Verrall and National's Tim Costley to debate the top political issues of the week.

The highly anticipated Moa Point review is out, showing multiple organisations were at fault over many years. Nick asks our politicians - how can we trust the plant will improve in the future when no group wants to take accountability?

They also discuss a review into changing car...

Labour MP for Ōhāriu Greg O'Connor delivered his valedictory speech to Parliament last night and joined Nick Mills this morning to reflect on his time as an MP and what comes next.

Mills attempted to get the reason O'Connor will not return to parliament with Labour, with O'Connor suggesting it was relevant to his age. 

When asked if a run for Council was in his future, O'Connor responded, "the answer does not yet exist". 

Jade Evans was driving home for her family dinner when she was killed by a truck who did not stop at a stop sign.

Jade was only 18 years old and carrying her unborn child Lily when she died, now her mother Kathryn Stothers is calling for stronger accountability from careless drivers.

The driver's sentence was two months' community detention, losing his licence for 12 months and reparations of $8000 to the family.

Stothers has launc...

OPINION: 

On Tuesday's programme, Wellington Mayor Andrew Little and I had a pretty animated discussion about Tiaki Wai — and one question in particular: Could Wellington have sought another year before Tiaki Wai had to be established?

I said I had been told that a Council officer had explained to councillors that, legally, there was a mechanism to seek an extension under exceptional circumstances.

Andrew Little str...

Wellington City Mayor Andrew Little joined Nick Mills in the studio this morning to address the latest news around the Council and debunk rumours swirling around the city.

This week the mayor called for a refund from Deloitte for their $435,000 review.

He dismissed the report to Mills, saying the accountancy firm used out of date information and AI. 

Then the Mayor debunked claims the Tiaki Wai transition timeline could've bee...

Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners President Dr Luke Bradford joined Nick Mills on the show this morning, to share what GPs need for a sustainable future to support the overall health system.

Bradford told Mills while our government is contributing, policies are only piecemeal to the total help needed.

He discussed the staffing and recruitment issues but also the lack of stability between changing governments for GP...

Star chefs Manu Feildel and Colin Fassnidge touch down in Wellington for The Food Show and on the way join Nick Mills in the studio.

Manu and Colin compete against each other for Pitch to Plate at Hnry Stadium tonight, what can diners expect from these expert chefs? And who is the king of the kitchen?

Both have fostered a strong relationship with New Zealand over their years of travelling and experiencing our food and culture.

"Bea...

It's time for Friday Faceoff, Nick is joined in the studio by former minister and political commentator Peter Dunne and National Secretary of Public Service Association to debate the top stories of the week. 

Kicking off the faceoff is the claim we need $5 billion more invested into health. Our panel debate the issues within our public health system.

Dunne, a former Minister of Health, says what he learnt during his tenure was...

For Friday Sports Kick-off Nick is joined in the studio by Jason Pine and Adam Cooper to wrap the week in sports. 

The crew recap the All Blacks success last weekend and look forward to the next round - can the All Blacks maintain their energy against South Africa this weekend?

Our panel give their predictions for this next game and talk the changes Rennie has made to his side.

Should Lions fans become Northland fans at this p...

EDITORIAL:

Yesterday morning, Chris Hipkins walked into this studio — and I knew immediately something wasn’t right. 

Now I’ve interviewed Chris plenty of times, and I think I know him reasonably well. 

Whatever you think of his politics, he’s normally extremely composed, extremely confident, and extremely hard to rattle. 

Yesterday he looked rattled. 

He looked pale and a bit shocked. &n...

Yesterday on the show, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins said a man threatened to throw him in the harbour and later kill him, on the way to the interview.

Nick asks our politicians how the hate has changed over the years and do they feel safe in their position?

Is this behaviour now accepted as the norm?

The panel then face off over the social media bill and the speed at which it's moving. 

Plus, the rates cap and are we spending e...

Labour Leader Chris Hipkins joined Nick Mills in the studio this morning for his monthly chat but was threatened by a man on the way to the interview.

Hipkins recounted the incident to Mills. 

"We went onto the waterfront he clearly got out of his car and came and told me he was going to throw me into the harbour and as I walked away from him said he was going to kill me."

Hipkins said events like this happened “from tim...

Kiwi singer-songwriter Mel Parsons joins Nick Mills on the show this morning to chat the huge success of her new album, upcoming tour and reflect on the impact of Dolly Parton in the industry. 

Parson's newest album Castle Hill is her first to reach Number 1 in the New Zealand charts. 

Nick finds out how she juggles raising four kids while touring? How has the industry changed over her career?

And after the passing of leg...

For this week's business panel, Nick was joined by Kaffee Eis owner and Wellington City Councillor Karl Tiefenbacher, and owner of Wellington's Napoli restaurant Raf de Gregorio.

Tiefenbacher spoke about the frustration of making change around the City Council table, and claimed Labour-aligned Councillors breach the Local Government Act by premeditating their decisions.

The pair also discussed the state of business in the capital, ...

For Faceoff this week, Nick is joined by former Wellington City Mayor Dame Kerry Prendergast and faceoff newcomer and political commentator Esther Robinson to wrap the news of the week.

Starting with concerns the facts of the proposal of new bus lanes along the Harbour Quays are incorrect - found by Councillor Tony Randle before his passing. 

Should the bus lanes go ahead? And what would this mean for our CBD?

And a dive into ...

Before Councillor Tony Randle's passing, he shared concerns around a bus lane proposal with other councillors including Andrea Compton, who joins Nick on the show today.

Councillor Compton confirmed Randle's findings of a $60 million disadvantage from the planned Harbour Quays bus route change, which includes replacing a car lane each way with a bus lane. 

The proposal will be voted through mid-September by Wellington City Cou...

Experienced Wellington businessman Paul Ridley-Smith is not a fan of the Council's latest proposal of bus lanes along Harbour Quays.

The former Director of Wellington Airport and chair of Snapper Services, and currently Chair of the Regulatory Standards Board has advice for the proposal: "just stop it."

He joins the show with Nick Mills to share the numbers he has crunched and his expertise and questions on the proposal, which will...