Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

An economist says the economy has some forward motion. 

Stats NZ data shows a 1.1 percent GDP increase in the September quarter. 

Independent Economist Cameron Bagrie says he expects to see 2 to 3 percent growth over the next 12 months is likely. 

He told Francesca Rudkin there are other statistics trending in a positive direction. 
 
Bagrie says that includes more hours worked and greater bank lendin...

“Confirmation that the economy grew strongly in the third quarter of the year is welcome news before Christmas”, Finance Minister Nicola Willis stated in the first line of her press release yesterday.  

‘Welcome news’ may be a bit of an understatement, given the context of recent attempts to undermine Nicola Willis and the government’s approach to righting the economy. 

Willis also needed the good GDP news after a disappo...

It's thought there are few silver linings to come from the Government's road cone hotline. 

The pilot, which encouraged the public to report excessive cone use, ends tomorrow, six months ahead of schedule. 

Site visits found 86% of worksites were already compliant, and Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden says the trial has done what it needed to do. 

CEO of traffic management company Parallaxx Dave Tilton ...

One of the major banks is predicting some of the best quarterly GDP figures in years. 

Stats NZ is releasing the economic figures for the three months ending September this morning, with the Reserve Bank's forecasting growth of 0.4%. 

Westpac predicts a 0.9% gain, putting that down to a jump in activity across the board. 

Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold told Andrew Dickens it would fill in a hole from the previous quar...

The self-inflicted deaths of six Northland young people reveals dangerous flaws in our suicide prevention system.

An inquiry by Northland Coroner Tania Tetitaha into the deaths calls for a single, coordinated system. 

The youths had worked with up to 17 agencies - that hadn't seemed to identify or follow up on their need for support. 

Mindworks psychologist Sara Chatwin told Andrew Dickens we don't need more thinking grou...

I’m still in slack mouthed shock at Barbara Edmonds' performance on this programme yesterday.

After the release of the Government’s books showing we’re still in deficit and will be in deficit longer and with every day that passes our debt grows, Labour was quick to say National has screwed things up and we should have voted Labour onto the Treasury benches.

I would have thought that would mean they knew how to do things better. The...

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast Thursday the 18th of December 2025, it's the final GDP for the year, Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold tells Andrew what he's expecting. 

The Government's announced the road cone hotline will close as it hits it's objectives, Dave Tilton, Chair of the Temporary Traffic Management Industry Steering Group shares his thoughts. 

Coroner Tania Tetihaha says the sys...

A transport voice says there's some sense to the Government's new mega-Ministry idea. 

It wants to abolish the environment, housing and urban development, and transport ministries and introduce a new Ministry of Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport – M CERT. 

It argues these areas are undergoing reforms and right now the system's too fragmented.  

Transporting NZ's Dom Kalasih told Andrew Dickens navigating acr...

Labour believes it's more financially responsible than the current Government following the release of Treasury's Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update. 

It's predicting economic growth of just 1.7% in 2026, well down on the May Budget's 2.9% forecast. 

Labour's Finance and Economy spokesperson Barbara Edmonds was asked by Andrew Dickens whether her party would have increased taxes to get back in black faster. 

She sa...

A belief whistleblowers are vital to exposing voting failures after a South Auckland local body election was overturned.

Judge Richard McIlraith ruled irregularities altered the outcome of the Papatoetoe vote for the Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board.

The case involved stolen voting papers and fraudulent use.

A new election must be held by April 9.

Transparency International NZ CEO Julie Haggie told Andrew Dickens there’s no sign of wid...

On the Early Edition with Andrew Dickens Full Show Podcast  Wednesday the 17th of December 2025, The Government's books are worse than expected, with the surplus timeline pushed back to 2029/30, Labour Economic Spokesperson Barbara Edmonds shares her thoughts.

Transport, environment and housing are being merged in to one ministry, Transporting NZ Chief Executive Officer Dom Kalasih tells Andrew what he thinks of the idea. ...

Well, ladies and gentlemen, we’re broke. 

The Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update shows we’re still in debt and the debt is getting bigger.

So, we’re broke. Not enough money, everything's more expensive so it’s off to the money lender before the bailiffs come in and sell everything. Sounds like a lot of households around me. 

Ideally, we’d be in a surplus - that’s when we have more money than costs. But we aren’t and the...

Lawyers say they can't pinpoint the reason there's been an increase in complaints. 

The Law Society's annual report reveals more clients are raising their concerns, particularly around incompetence.  

New Zealand Law Association Vice President Julie-Anne Kincade told Andrew Dickens with more people using AI to research their legal issues, they're needing to manage expectations. 

She welcomes clients doing their own r...

We’ll get a clearer picture of the Government’s spending plans heading into an election year this afternoon. 

Treasury’s releasing the Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update at 1pm, alongside the Budget Policy Statement, setting out the economic outlook and spending priorities. 

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen Andrew Dickens governments are often expected to loosen the purse strings in an election year. 

He ...

A deadly terror attack at Sydney's Bondi Beach is feeding speculation of potential intelligence errors. 

Two gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration on Sunday evening, killing 15 people and wounding dozens more. 

A 24-year-old suspect remains in hospital under police guard, while his 50-year-old father, the other alleged offender, was shot dead. 

The younger man, who's suspected of orchestrating the attack, had ...

Yesterday was a sad, morose day reflecting on the Jewish deaths and their horror, made worse by a never-ending stream of video coverage from every angle.

Never has a massacre been as documented and then distributed. The power of citizens with broadcast studios in their phones. The uncensored images spread by the very social media that Australia banned for the under 16s this past week. 

And we saw the victims - dead, dying, and...

Today marks the beginning of road side drug testing - starting exclusively in the Wellington District.

The scheme's pilot will see police conducting random roadside saliva tests - screening for cannabis, methamphetamine, MDMA, and cocaine.

The initiative begins in the capital before scaling up from April until coverage is nationwide by mid next-year.

Any drivers whose tests come back positive, will need to do a lab test which also ...

After Bondi It now seems obvious that antisemitism is out the gate. Particularly in Australia with a large population who hail from the middle east, but increasingly so in this country and around the world.

and I don't think the genie is going to be put back in the bottle any time soon.

The conflict in Gaza starting with the Hamas attack on the music festival in October 2023 has only intensified the conflict between faiths.

and you...