The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The new Hurricanes board chair is determined to turn around the books of the struggling Super Rugby franchise. 

Developer Malcolm Gillies has acquired the 50% stake in the club, offloaded by the Wellington Rugby Union to balance its own books. 

The franchise has collectively lost $4 million in the past three seasons. 

Gillies told Heather du Plessis Allan it's a good investment. 

He says there’s a lot of untappe...

Auditors are calling out schools for questionable spending on overseas trips and travel. 

The Auditor-General’s latest report flagged concerns with more than 170 school boards last year, many involving how principals used coaching and wellbeing funds. 

Around a third were tied to travel. 

Sector Manager for Schools, Jane Rogers told Heather du Plessis-Allan some boards allowed personal travel to be added onto work tr...

A New Zealand navy ship's been shadowed by seven Chinese warships in East Asian waters.  

HMNZS Aotearoa was carrying out surveillance and deterrence activities last month to enforce the UN's sanctions against North Korea.   

The Defence Force has confirmed the warships kept a safe distance throughout. 

Otago University international relations professor Robert Patman told Heather du Plessis-Allan it indicates Ch...

Contractors want one thing from the Government’s RMA overhaul: a simpler system. 

Ministers are today announcing significant changes to consenting as part of a shake-up to the Resource Management Act. 

It's expected to cut the need for consents in 46% of cases that currently need them. 

Civil Contractors NZ CEO Alan Pollard told Heather du Plessis-Allan RMA is the biggest barrier to getting projects off the ground qu...

Australian Correspondent Steve Price joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to chat about a recent poll showing 70% of Australian parents are in support of this weeks social media ban.

But, only 35% are confident that the platforms will effectively block children.

And, Sports Minister Anika Wells is in more hot water after charging taxpayers more than $4000 in flights so her husband could join her at three cricket events.

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United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will not confirm whether the video footage of a strike on a Venezuelan boat will be released.

Critics have called the strike a war crime. 

President Donald Trump is reportedly considering the replacement of long-time ally and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

And, self driving car company Waymo has recalled software after its cars repeatedly failed to stop for school buses.

LI...

Thousands of Police issued 'formal warnings' have been scrapped after findings that 63% were issued unlawfully. 

'Formal warnings' are used as alternatives to prosecutions where the offence is deemed unworthy of going through the courts. 

Last week, Police told all staff that compulsory training will be rolled out and an updated policy for formal warnings would be issued by the end of the year.

Defence lawyer John Munroe ...

Another major shake up is coming to the streaming sphere as Netflix agrees to acquire Warner Bros Studios.

The $125B acquisition includes HBO Max - giving them the rights to shows like Game of Thrones, Succession, and Euphoria. 

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos has said theatrical releases will become more limited, as Netflix sees them as not 'consumer friendly'.

Wall Street Journal media and entertainment reporter Joe Flint told H...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday the 5th of December with Heather du Plessis-Allan, Mark Mitchell responds to Andrew Coster's allegations and the police are having to do away with thousands of formal warnings because officers haven't followed protocol.

Prime Minister Chris Luxon responds to Coster's allegations and the taxpayers expected campaign against the Government.

Andrew Saville and Jason Pine take u...

Signs of a brighter economy in the year to come. 
 
ASB's forecasting annual growth of more than two-and a half percent in 2026.
 
It points to an accelerated housing market, more resilient exports, and a renewed willingness to spend.
 
Chief Economist Nick Tuffley told Heather du Plessis-Allan we can expect inflation to soften further,  with the Reserve Bank seeing more stimulus in the pi...

Police Minister Mark Mitchell's doubling down on his version of the McSkimming saga timeline - calling recent claims "absolute utter nonsense."

Former Police Commissioner Andrew Coster's come out over the weekend claiming Mitchell - and Chris Hipkins - knew about the McSkimming affair, years earlier than they're letting on. 

However Mitchell told Heather du Plessis-Allan he was only told on November 6th 2024. 

He says Cos...

It's the definition of madness. And stupidity. 

How many times do you have to do the same dumb thing with no result, thus proving your system doesn’t work, before you admit your system doesn’t work and give up? 

The last of the carbon auctions was held this week. You know where this story is going. 

I first got interested in this a couple of years ago when it struck me that this auction malarkey might be one of the b...

At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.   

Consumers: 7/10 

Confidence at a 6-month high. 

School lunches: 3/10

This is the stupidest story of the week. Four days it lasted – we've become myopic. We fixate on triviality. It’s got a small village idiot vibe to it, don’t you reckon?  

Social media ban: 6/10

Ma...

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Friday 5th of December, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon joined Mike to wrap the year before he takes off on holiday. 

They also exchanged gifts, and both of them were hugely impressed with each other's loot. 

And for the final time of the year, Kate Hawkesby and Tim Wilson Wrapped the Week, talking about the gift exchange and Mike's reaction.   

Get the Mike H...

The New Zealand retail experience, as summed up by a frustrated Katherine Hawkesby as of yesterday. 

She visited half a dozen shops - one was decent and the rest were useless. 

They were useless for a variety of reasons, but the common theme was service, or lack of it. 

How is it continually possible that we have a sector crying out for support and yet so unable to offer something worth spending money on, and a count...

The US Defence Secretary seems to be in hot water. 

A Department of Defence report concluded that Pete Hegseth put military personnel at risk when he shared information of a planned airstrike over Signal. 

The incident came to light when a journalist for the Atlantic was accidently added to the chat in which sensitive details of the strike on Houthi fighters in Yemen back in March.  

US Correspondent Richard Arnold t...

The Retirement Commissioner's unfazed at the prospect of a potential retirement village price rise. 

The Government's announced changes to the Retirement Villages Act 2003, aiming to ease the experience of elderly people and their families.  

Changes include ensuring money is paid back within a year after a resident leaves. 

Commissioner Jane Wrightson told Mike Hosking it’s been a five-year process with painstaking ...

The Education Minister's pleased to see secondary school teachers vote yes for their new collective agreement.  

PPTA members have accepted the Government's offer, which includes a 4.6% pay increase over two years and a million dollar a year fund for professional development.  

Minister Erica Stanford told Mike Hosking it's a good resolution and she's happy for teachers.  

She says they've worked hard to raise achiev...