Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

There would not be a drama today about the Breakers basketball team not wanting to wear the rainbow flag on their jerseys if the basketball league had stayed out of politics in the first place.

Now, if you haven't caught up on this, there is unnecessary upset today because it's emerged that the entire Breakers team will not wear that little rainbow Pride flag on their jerseys during Pride Round next year because some of the players...

New data shows that more Kiwis will have to take on debt ahead of this coming Christmas season.

A nationwide survey by MYOB showed 35 percent expected to feel financially better off in a year's time, while 38 percent expected to be about the same, and 24 percent believed they would be worse off.

Personal finance expert Mary Holm says more Kiwi households will be struggling to afford presents for their kids, but there are workaround...

No child will be able to start taking puberty blockers from December 19.

The Government says the Ministry of Health has found a lack of evidence for the benefits or risks of gender dysphoria or incongruence treatment - gonadotropin - releasing hormone analogues.

Health Minister Simeon Brown says they're putting up safeguards until more evidence is available. 

"Effectively, what we're doing is putting in place a restriction on ...

Auckland bars are heaving as Metallica prepares to rock Eden Park tonight - its first Kiwi concert in 15 years.

About 40,000 visitor nights have been booked for the sell-out concert, with the city’s hotels at 100 percent capacity.

Roads near Eden Park are closed until midnight.

Kingsland's Full-Time Bar manager, Shane Don, says business is booming this afternoon.

"We're stacked in here, everyone's kitted out like bogans, I'm kitted...

Rotorua's mayor is overjoyed the era of emergency housing motels is over - with no families left in them. 

At its peak, more than 240 households were living across 13 motels

Tania Tapsell says delivering affordable houses has made a huge difference. 

She says the city's recent tourism lift has also helped mend its reputation. 

"Between building the homes we actually needed, affordable ones, and boosting our economy, ...

Winston Peters says logic has prevailed, as he confirms our new Cook Strait ferries are coming in under $2 billion dollars. 

The new Interislander vessels are expected to arrive in 2029 under budget.

The Rail Minister claims it's saved the taxpayer more than $2 billion on the canned mega-ferries project. 

Peters says he's confident the Government's done the right thing.

"This is common sense we're applying here, there are...

Donald Trump appears to have had his hand forced, over the Jeffrey Epstein files. 

A bipartisan bill compelling the Justice Department to release case documents relating to the deceased convicted sex offender has overwhelming Congress support. 

The President - who's repeatedly denied links to Epstein - must now sign it into law.

US correspondent Jonathan Kearsley says it's unknown when these files will be released, but th...

There's little hope New Zealand can reach its 2025 smoke-free targets. 

The annual New Zealand Health survey has confirmed rates are stagnating just below 7 percent, with 12 percent of adult Kiwis vaping daily.

Auckland University School of Public Health's Kathryn Bradbury says this smoking plateau - follows 10 to 15 years of really good progress.

"The goal is to get under five percent - I mean, we're pretty close. But it look...

There's concern about how many people drop out of apprenticeships, according to new reports.

Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds has told a conference more than half of trainees aren't completing training.

She says it's driven by a number of reasons, but she's pointing the finger at the previous Government incentivising training.

Simmonds says it means many signed up despite not being that interested - and didn't complete ...

Over in the UK, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood plans to impose visa bans on three African countries if they fail to take back their illegal migrants.

Angola, Namibia and the Democratic Republic of Congo face visa sanctions set to block tourists, VIPs and business officials from travelling to Britain if they don't co-operate.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey says the Government is hoping to reassure voters it can be tough on migration am...

Tonight on The Huddle, Thomas Scrimgeour from the Maxim Institute and Child Fund CEO Josie Pagani joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! 

Schools across the country are mobilising and publicly committing to upholding the Treaty, despite the Government's plan to remove the obligations from boards. Luxon has said the schools shouldn't focus on politics - does he have a point? 

New polls ...

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Monday, 17 November 2025, Transport Minister Chris Bishop explains why the Government is moving to make importing dirty cars cheaper.

The Supreme Court has ruled that Uber drivers are employees, Anita Rosentreter from the Workers First Union speaks about the implications for drivers.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis gives a very strong hint about next year's election date, a...

These polls that keep showing Labour ahead of National are a sign of how crap the economy is.

Up until a few weeks ago, I was ignoring polls because Labour didn't have any policy. Labour was ahead, but it didn't have any policy.

I thought, well this is a protest vote. They're pissed at National for not fixing the mess Labour left behind.

But the voters are not stupid. And they're voting for the no-policy party as a protest, no...

New polling data has revealed less Kiwis have faith the current Government can turn the economy around ahead of the upcoming election.

A New Zealand Herald-Kantar poll has found voters are evenly split on Labour's proposed capital gains tax and about 45 percent of respondents in an IPSOS survey scored the Luxon-led Government below 3 out of 10.

Finance Minister Nicola Willis says it's clear a significant number of people are still ...

A growing number of school boards are making public statements confirming their commitment to the Treaty after the Government announced it would cut the requirements.

Previously, the Education Act said schools must ensure their plans, policies, and local curriculum reflect tikanga Māori, but the Government's looking to change it.

Queens High school board chair Kate Keddell says schools have been weaving in Te Tiriti obligations int...