Kerre Woodham Mornings Podcast

While it looks to be a solid plan at first glance, there’s at least one major flaw in Donald Trump’s proposed peace plan for Gaza. 

If agreed to by Hamas, the war would end immediately, with Israeli troops withdrawing and Hamas releasing all hostages. 

No one will be forced to leave Gaza, and Israel won't occupy or annex the territory. 

The US President would lead a new transitional government, made up of Palestinian...

A significant slash to the number of quake-prone buildings. 

The Government's introducing an Amendment Bill to scrap and replace the New Building Standard – estimated to save building owners more than eight billion dollars. 

It'll see Auckland, Northland, and the Chatham Islands removed from the regime. 

Mt Hobson Group Director Hamish Firth told Kerre Woodham the review has come up with a system that is better balan...

The state of Palestine is recognised as a sovereign nation by 157 UN member states, and that represents 81% of members. New Zealand is not one of them. Not yet. Like Singapore, like Japan, Germany, South Korea, most Pacific states. New Zealand says, oh, sure, we support recognition, just not yet.

Winston Peters, in his speech to the UN over the weekend, said Palestine did not meet the traditional benchmarks for state recognition. B...

Good news for renters as prices are on the decline. 

At least a third of those taking out new tenancies this year are paying less in rent than the prior tenants, according to Ministry of Housing and Urban Development data. 

TradeMe Property has also seen rents fall, with supply outstripping demand. They say the market is offering more options and less competition.  

New Zealand Property Investors Federation President...

If you're a renter, it's jolly good news. At least a third of people taking out new tenancies this year are paying less rent than the tenants who lived there before them.  

According to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, for new tenancies since January 1, 30% were paying weekly rent lower than the initial weekly rent for the previous tenancy at that address. The data used a 500-day limit between the start of the la...

New Zealand Inc. is in trouble and it's on us —you and me— to fix it. Not politicians, not economists, not even our blessed farmers who've got us out of trouble time and time again – it is on us, New Zealand voters. 

It doesn't matter whether we vote left or right, red, blue, green, yellow, or black. We all have to give our political parties the cojones they need to enact the policies that will save this country. Treasury's be...

A former Finance Minister's discussing the Superannuation age in the wake of an alarming Treasury report. 

Treasury's long term fiscal statement notes the importance of responding to challenges with an ageing population. 

It suggests the cost of NZ Super could be kept stable by steadily increasing the age of eligibility, requiring it to rise to 72, by 2065. 

Steven Joyce told Kerre Woodham Superannuation policy gets ...

I have to say that the Herald's Mood of the Boardroom survey pretty much sums up my mood too. Yes, there are some excellent and capable ministers doing great work within their portfolios, and let's not forget how rare and wonderful that is, given the past administration. Come in Erica Stanford, Winston Peters, Chris Bishop, Simeon Brown – all good performers, all doing well, all delivering.  

But when it comes to the economy, ...

Infrastructure in New Zealand is being called out for being too political. 

A significant jolt to the construction sector thanks to Government investment to hospital and school infrastructure. 

Almost half a billion dollars will go towards upgrades and maintenance projects across the country. 

Construction activity is at a six year low, with thousands of jobs lost in the last two years. 

Infrastructure NZ CEO Ni...

The Government hopes to give a much-needed boost to the building and construction industry with the announcement of $413 million worth of accelerated school infrastructure projects. This follows a raft of school property announcements and the establishment of a new school property agency in July to oversee the planning, building, and maintenance of new school buildings.  

Hopefully, there will be some opposition input into thi...

Is there anything good about pine trees? Apart from for the people who own the commercial forests, the foresters. What earthly good do they do? Sure, they bring in much-needed export earnings, an estimated $5.89 billion for the year ending June 2025. So that helps towards the GDP. But look at the costs associated with the Pinus radiata. And they're mainly on the taxpayer, not on the industry itself.

The foresters have said, look, i...

Wilding pines, the invasive species also known as Pinus contorta, are posing a massive threat to the environment.

It was highlighted on Country Calendar last by Steve Satterthwaite, who runs Muller Station in the Awatere Valley in Marlborough.

He said the wilding pines don't just choke up pastoral land, there's also the downstream effect of  loss of water yield into the rivers, and in Marlborough, that effects the vineyards.

F...

It’s the last days of Art in the Park this weekend – a uniquely curated art show held annually at Eden Park. 

It showcases the works of both emerging and established New Zealand artists.  

The King’s Trust has been the charity partner of the event for the last four years – an organisation formed in 1967 with the vision that every young person should have the chance to succeed. 

It’s been running in New Zealand for si...

The news came in around quarter to 11 yesterday, and it was unwelcome confirmation of what many people had been experiencing, had been feeling. The economy had contracted, and worse, it had shrunk 0.9%, far worse than economists had been predicting.  

Economists at the Reserve Bank had forecast the economy would shrink just 0.3% during the June quarter. Retail banks said, "Oh, I don't think so. I think it'll be closer to 0.5."...

How much blame for the GDP drop can be placed at the feet of the Reserve Bank? 

Back when I was a kid, you knew the school holidays were coming up when the Seafarers Union went on strike. Sure as God made little apples, a week before the school holidays, the unions would be all out, brothers and sisters, and then there'd be all night negotiations between the cloth caps and the capitalist overlords, while parents waited anxiously to see if the annual road trip —south in our case— would take place to go down and...

The country's getting up to scratch on teaching Kiwis how to manage possible lone wolf attackers in crowded spaces. 

Our economy's been shrinking much faster than economists thought. 

Shane Jones' warning was clear and concise. As of 2029, if no new gas fields are found or an alternative energy source is not found, there will be no gas available for industrial, commercial, and domestic use.