Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

The Police Minister says he'd never second-guess an officer's actions during a police incident. 

Multiple investigations are taking place after an officer shot two people after a domestic dispute.

An officer shot a man carrying a hunting knife, with fears he'd seriously injure a woman.

The officer then shot the woman dead, when she threatened officers.  

Mark Mitchell says he feels for the officer. 

"My thoughts go o...

A constitutional lawyer says the Royal Commission of Inquiry has the power to summons ex-ministers to front for its Covid enquiry. 

It's called off its second week of hearings after Chris Hipkins, Dame Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson, and Ayesha Verrall declined to appear. 

It says it shouldn't diminish the inquiry - as all have privately given evidence.

Lawyer Graeme Edgeler says the Commission just needs to consider if ...

Chris Luxon is defending saying Israel's leader has 'lost the plot' in the face of pushback.

The Prime Minister criticised Benjamin Netanyahu over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where people are starving.

Israel's Deputy Foreign Minister responded that Luxon can't comprehend the challenges of facing Hamas.

NZ Herald political editor Thomas Coughlan says Luxon's put his own views out there - in a change of pace from factoring in W...

Anthony Albanese has hit back against Hamas propaganda' after the Islamist group put out statements overnight welcoming his pledge to recognise Palestinian statehood.

Hamas co-founder Sheikh Hassan Yousef claimed he welcomed the 'political courage' of the Australian Labor Government in an earlier statement.

Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says this situation has prompted additional concerns.

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He’s descended from a Treaty signatory, an All Black and the ‘Voice of New Zealand’, but John Bryers Ruddock can't get his kids New Zealand citizenship - so he's taking legal action.

John himself was born overseas and was dismayed to discover there was no easy way to secure Kiwi citizenship for his US-born children, in part because he was born offshore.

He says it would have been easier to get approved if he was coming in as a migr...

The number of migrants to cross the English Channel in small boats since the Labour party came to power 13 months ago is expected to have reached 50,000. 

The Government says it’s an 'unacceptable number of people' but pointed to the 'one in, one out' returns deal with France as a deterrent.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says opposition MPs have been quick to accuse the Government of 'surrendering the borders'.

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Tonight on The Huddle, Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson and Jack Tame from ZB's Saturday Mornings and Q&A joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! 

Jacinda Ardern, Chris Hipkins, Grant Robertson have all declined to be interviewed publicly by the Covid inquiry. Should they have fronted?

Did Chlöe Swarbrick deserve to get booted out of Parliament today? Should she have apologised? Wh...

Unionised secondary teachers who say kids' needs aren't being met in school will strike next week, nationwide.

They'll step away from the job next Wednesday after rejecting a three percent pay increase over three years.

The PPTA says experienced teachers will be crucial to successfully rolling out proposed Government NCEA reforms.

President Chris Abercrombie says the teachers introduced a counter-offer, but it's up to the Governmen...

I can't blame you if your assessment of Parliament today is that it's become a circus, because what happened today is kind of hard to defend or even explain.

Chlöe was kicked out, Brownlee suspended her for a week and all of the Government parties voted for that punishment - and that includes New Zealand First, before Winston Peters then got up to tell Jerry Brownlee that the punishment wasn't fair, even though he just voted for th...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday, 13 August 2025, Jacinda Ardern, Chris Hipkins and other former Labour Ministers have declined to give evidence at a public Covid inquiry. National's Chris Bishop says it's "disgraceful".

Drama in Parliament, with Greens co-leader Chloe Swarbrick kicked out of the House for the second day in a row. Former Speaker Sir David Carter says Gerry Brownlee is right to c...

Education Minister Erica Stanford has received some backlash by excluding most Māori words from five-year-olds' school phonics books.

A Ministry of Education report shows Stanford decided to exclude all Māori kupu - except characters' names - last year, out of concern it would confuse children.

Canterbury University's professor Gail Gillon helped develop the phonics readers.

She says confusion doesn't appear to be an issue. 

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New Zealand Embassy staff have made contact with Sarah Shaw - the Kiwi woman being detained along with her son at a US immigration facility.

The pair were detained on the Canadian border three weeks ago.

Shaw's lawyer Minda Thorward says she's using every legal process she can to get the pair out - but it's ultimately up to DHS.

"We're hoping that they're just going to release her and her son later this week - although they may sti...

Current and former Labour leaders and ministers deciding not to appear at the Royal Commission's Covid inquiry is being described as 'disgraceful'. 

Jacinda Ardern, Chris Hipkins, Grant Robertson and Ayesha Verrall, who were all involved in Covid decisions - have declined invitations to appear. 

They say it would have been performative - not informative - and there's a risk livestream recordings could be manipulated and m...

There was drama and controversy in the House today, after Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick doubled down and refused to apologise for saying MPs with spines would act on Gaza.

Swarbrick has since been booted from Parliament for not apologising.

Former Speaker Sir David Carter says he should have asked Prime Minister John Key to withdraw - when he told the Opposition to 'get some guts' in 2015.

"In hindsight, when you get a chance to...

There was drama in Parliament today after Greens co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick doubled down and refused to apologise for comments made yesterday.

She was kicked out of the House for again not apologising for saying Government MPs with a spine should support sanctioning Israel more over Gaza.

She was 'named', which means her pay will be docked.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says everyone's talking about Chlöe Sw...

There's uncertainty over how Donald Trump's dialling up of law enforcement in Washington DC will play out. 

The President has placed the DC Metropolitan Police Department under federal control, and has deployed roughly 800 National Guards.

US correspondent Jonathan Kearsley says local authorities have claimed Trump's measures to crack down on crime in DC aren't necessary - and that violent crime is at a 30-year low.

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