Early Edition with Ryan Bridge
A fresh and intelligent start to your day - catch the very latest international and domestic news developments, sport, entertainment and business on Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, on Newstalk ZB.
Episodes
Winston Peters is accusing Don Brash and Helen Clark of "relevance deprivation syndrome", after their criticism of his approach to China.
The former National and Labour leaders are warning the Government that it could be putting our largest trading relationship at risk by aligning too closely with the US.
Brash believes that it is unwise to shift priority from China to the US given the current tension between the two su...
UK and Europe Correspondent Vincent McAviney spoke to Ryan Bridge about German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's visit to the White House.
The chancellor presented President Donald Trump with a gift: The birth certificate of President Trump’s German grandfather, which seemed to go down well with the President.
Despite the positivity on the outside, McAviney said that the difference between the two nations’ approach to the war in U...
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Misleading vape labelling is a worry for youth vaping.
A study in the medical journal shows more than half of vape juices have incorrectly labelled how much nicotine they contain.
Most of the mislabelled products had significantly less nicotine than advertised—some by over 50%.
Vape Free Kids Co-Founder Charyl Robinson told Ryan Bridge there's no funded support for youth quitting vaping and families are paying the price. ...
On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Friday 6th of June 2025, there's pressure on the Prime Minister to separate New Zealand's foreign policy from America's Former National Party Leader Don Brash shares his open letter with Ryan.
It's the Super Rugby quarter finals this weekend, rugby commentator Tony Johnson tells Ryan who he thinks the favourites will be.
There's been a new study in the Medical Journal wh...
Well that was as chaotic as you'd expect.
I caught the first half of Parliament's debate on the haka-gate: Winston Peters went full attack dog, Willie Jackson fought back, Waititi brought a noose into the chamber, and Adrian Rurawhe, former Speaker and Labour MP, had the most sensible and respectable take of the debate.
I've had the pleasure of interviewing him a few times. He's a humble, quiet and observant sort o...
Fighting in Trump’s cabinet after Elon Musk lashed out at Trump’s “Big, beautiful bill”.
US Correspondent Mitchell McCann told Ryan Bridge that Elon Musk’s comments earlier in the week have gone unaddressed by the President so far.
Musk took to X and called the President’s new bill a “disgusting abomination.” Later adding that the bill would increase the budget deficit to $2.5trillion.
President Trump wanted th...
The Commerce Commission is ramping up efforts to disrupt the supermarket monopoly.
It says supplier charges and promotional pricing are reinforcing the dominance of Foodstuffs and Woolworths.
It's proposing a simplified grocery code, reducing the range of payments that supermarkets can charge suppliers.
Grocery expert Ernie Newman told Ryan Bridge that supermarkets are receiving billions of dollars in discounts - ...
Homeowners will have to pay more for home insurance to help the Natural Hazards Commission.
Associate Finance Minister David Seymour says levies will almost certainly need to rise further, with Cabinet set to decide on the changes in the coming months.
Insurance consultant Dean Lester told Ryan Bridge that these changes could cost homeowners two to $300 more a year.
The government says they'll carry $2 bi...
New Government reforms aim to tidy up inconsistencies in Fish and Game New Zealand.
It will be shifted to a nationalised fee collection system to reduce double handling of fees.
Fish and Game councils will also be required to consider the interests of other stakeholders, like farmers and the aviation sector, when it comes to decision making.
Hunting and Fishing Minister James Meager told Ryan Bridge he wants to en...
On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Thursday 5th June of 2025, The Grocery Commissioner has revealed changes to crack down on the grocery sector, Grocery Policy Expert Ernie Newman shares his thoughts.
Homeowners could be in for more insurance levies, Insurance Consultant Dean Lester tells Ryan Bridge why.
The Government's announced an overhaul of Fish and Game, Minister for Fishing and Hunting, Jame...
The Commerce Commission reckons we need fewer items 'on sale' at the supermarket.
That would mean less yoghurt on special at $4.99, fewer $1.99 chocolate bars at the checkout, and just less price yo-yo-ing in general.
This is counterintuitive. The job of Commerce Commission, through the Grocery Commissioner, is meant to score us cheaper prices and boost competition, right?
So, what the hell is going on here?
This morning, the...
Ukraine's struck a critical bridge connecting Russia and the Crimean Peninsula.
It's security service claims agents mined the supports of the bridge with more than one-thousand kilograms of explosives, severely damaging the foundations.
Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey told Ryan Bridge the bridge is a hated symbol of Russian occupation for Ukraine.
He says it's also a vital piece of infrastructure for Russia.
...Wellington's seen as the ideal place to host a major movie premiere.
That's due to a decade-old agreement between the producers of the Avatar franchise and the Government, given the amount of taxpayers' money that's been contributed.
In return, the producers agreed to roll out a red carpet in New Zealand for at least one of the three movies.
818 Publicity Managing Director Chris Henry told Ryan Bridge Wellington ...
The Building and Construction Minister's confident they're providing the right support while sector liquidation rates remain bleak.
Building Research Association data shows construction companies now make up about a third of all business liquidations – up 25% in 2022.
Minister Chris Penk told Ryan Bridge it's not a great statistic, but they're focusing on what they can control.
He says this includes turning arou...
Although visitor spending is on the rise, some parts of New Zealand are still doing it tough.
A Government survey's found international visitor spending increased by 10% and contributed more than $12 billion to the economy in the year ending March.
That's 9.2% up on the previous year.
It reflects an increase in international visitors, topping 3.3 million arrivals, up from almost 3.2 million.
Queenstown Mayor Glyn Lewers told Ryan B...
Tourism mojo.
Louise Upston fired off an enthusiastic press release last night.
"International visitor spend on the up” it proclaimed.
New data, which we get from the International Visitor Survey, showed a 10% jump in spending on the previous year.
Sounds impressive, right?
Sounds like we’re getting somewhere. Finally shaking off the Covid cobwebs.
But this is where we start to see the spin doctors earning t...
Australia's refusing to play ball with the US, which is demanding it up its defence spend to 3.5% of GDP as soon as possible.
Australia's currently tracking to lift spending to 2.33% of GDP in the next eight years.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese seems to be brushing off the demand.
Australia Correspondent Donna Demaio told Ryan Bridge that Albanese has said what you should do in defence is decide what you need...
Plenty happened in the sporting world over the long weekend, and Andrew Alderson joined Ryan Bridge to delve into some of it. On today's agenda is the latest from Roland-Garros, the Warriors' win and Mitch Barnett's unfortunate ACL injury, and a social media spat coming out of IndyCar.
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Minimal progress in another round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
The two countries have agreed, in Istanbul, to exchange sick and wounded prisoners of war, and those under 25.
Meanwhile, Ukraine's carried out drone strikes on several Russian air bases.
BBC's Olga Ivshina says even the loss of one plane is significant, as Russia can't replicate it quickly.
She told Ryan Bridge Russia has also l...
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