Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

It's a massive weekend for Auckland as the much-awaited CRL, the City Rail Link, finally opens to the public. And there is excitement. Five and a half billion dollars and 10 years of chaos have come to this. The question will be asked: was it all worth it?

Firstly, I have to say it never needed to be so expensive because it never needed to be this late. The idea of a rail link between Auckland and Morningside was first mooted in 19...

Firefighters from the New York City Fire Department flew out to New Zealand to do the Sky Tower walk today to commemorate the 343 firefighters who were killed 25 years ago on September 11th, 2001.

New York firefighter Dave Morkal was on ground zero that day, and he joined Andrew Dickens to discuss. 

"As soon as we got there it was work is on. This is what we have to do. We have to save as many people as we can."

Beloved museums and zoos in New Zealand, like Wellington Zoo, Orana Wildlife Park, and MOTAT, are struggling to keep the lights on.

Orana Wildlife Trust Board co-chair Dr Ken Hughey joined Andrew Dickens to discuss the financial difficulties facing them and other similar attractions. 

The financial struggles are not contributed to visitor numbers, which Hughey says are increasing, but instead the operating costs.

"The difficul...

The Association of Migration and Investment Conference is going on right now prompting significant political debate about immigration policy ahead of the election. 

NZ First wants to restrict birthright citizenship and prevent asylum seekers from accessing work, while Labour wants to introduce a citizenship pathway for children born to undocumented parents and a longer permanent residency process.

ACT would change New Zealand'...

Chaos in UK airports, after an hours-long air traffic control outage led to the cancellation of at least 2,000 flights and left passengers stranded.

National Air Traffic Services CEO Martin Rolfe has faced criticism following the outage, and there's growing calls for him to lose the role. 

UK correspondent Enda Brady says this latest incident cost airlines millions and industry experts and passengers have voiced outrage.

LISTE...

An artificial intelligence researcher who worked with Anthropic recently quit the industry, and accused the AI giants of 'gambling with our lives' to grow the technology.

Jacob Coxon spent the past three years pre-training AI models, beginning at OpenAI and moving to Anthropic, but has since claimed neither of the big companies are 'acting responsibly'.

Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie says this is the latest in the case of AI expert...

Tonight on The Huddle, Auckland Councillor Maurice Williamson and senior NZ Herald correspondent Katie Bradford joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! 

Apple has unveiled their new foldable iPhone - retailing for over $4,000 on the low end? Is this worth the price?

Speaking of pricy things - would we pay $250 for a Te Pati Māori jacket? What do we make of all the political merch, anyway?&nb...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 10 September, 2026, Social Development Ministry boss Debbie Powers explains why she's fronted on a winter energy payments bungle - and not Louise Upston.

We ask David Seymour if ACT's plan to abolish the Waitangi Tribunal is realistic.

It's up and up for the Wahs. The marketing boss on how the NRL club's battling to satisfy the demand for merchandise.

And on The ...

You know what ACT's Waitangi Tribunal policy is? In my opinion, it's the kind of policy you release when you don't actually want to do the thing the policy gives the impression you're going to do.

ACT's headline policy is that it will scrap the Waitangi Tribunal, which many people, including me, may see as a good idea because the tribunal has gone completely off piste. It has started to resemble a branch of the Māori Party, finding...

New Zealand's largest Kmart has opened today, at Auckland's Westgate Town Centre.

The new store will be the retailer's first to debut the new Plan C+ format with checkouts at the front, and New Zealand's third 24-hour store after Sylvia Park and Manukau.

First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson says this new store is unlikely to draw people away from Sylvia Park, as both outlets have their own selling points.

"The reali...

Apple revealed its first foldable iPhone today, alongside the new iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max and some other new products.

The new 'Duo' product will be available by the end of next month - but Kiwis will have to pay at least $4199 for one on the low end.

BusinessDesk tech columnist Peter Griffin says we're all holding onto our phones for longer, and there's no need for most people to rush into upgrades. 

"You're talking about t...

People can't get enough of the Warriors this week, as finals fever grips fans all over the nation.

Saturday's big finals clash against the Dolphins at Mount Smart Stadium has seen historic demand, and jerseys and other merchandise are flying off the shelves.

Warriors COO of Commercial and Marketing Glenn Harris says everyone wants to be a part of the 'togetherness' and that's reflected in what they wear to the games.

"Everywhere we...

The ACT Party is looking to scrap the Waitangi Tribunal if elected, and leader David Seymour has claimed its original purpose has gone.

The party intends to limit the Tribunal to claims lodged before September 2008, and then it would be dis-established for good once those are sorted.

Seymour explained that he's looking to remove the Tribunal's jurisdiction over 'contemporary claims', where activists critique the Government. 

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A double-pronged mistake meant more more than 30,000 benefit payments were incorrectly suspended.

A review has found superannuitants were wrongly made to confirm their circumstances to get the Winter Energy Payment in legislation passed under urgency.

The high number of confirmations meant processing delays, and people’s benefits didn't continue when they should have.

The Ministry of Social Development's paid more than $2.5 m...

The Ministry of Social Development wrongly cut financial assistance in over 30,000 cases, according to new reports.

A recent review has found several Winter Energy Payments, main benefits, and supplementary assistance were mistakenly paused - and the Ministry has since issued an apology. 

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says Labour's Chris Hipkins has been quick to condemn this and says the MSD shouldn't...

New data from the Insurance Council of Australia has revealed the latest stats around car theft, as well as a growing black market propped up by sanctions.

Organised crime groups are reportedly stealing Australian cars and stripping them down to sell off the parts in Iran and Russia.

Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says there's a sophisticated network behind these growing cases, with many of these thefts happening in Victo...