December 12, 2024 • 34 mins
Christopher Luxon says he wants nothing to do with the Greens while he's Prime Minister.
Luxon's confirmed a National-Greens Coalition wasn't off the cards when James Shaw was co-leader of the Green Party.
But he says the party has changed significantly under new leadership.
The Prime Minister told Kerre Woodham he had great respect for Shaw and his commitment to the environment, and would have been prepared to work with him.
But he says the Greens have since moved to what he calls a more "socialist" position.
Luxon says the Government has not handled changes to Oranga Tamariki contracts well.
A children's charity is suing the Ministry for allegedly cancelling a $21 million contract which still has two-and-a-half years to run.
Stand Tū Māia says losing funding will end the service, which has a 100 year history of providing trauma care for children and whanau.
Luxon told Woodham the organisation has done some great work.
He says the matter is before the court so he can't comment much, but he has raised the issue with the Children's Minister this week.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Kerry Wooden Morning's podcast from News
Talk said be carry.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Wouldn't with you, and for the first hour we're joined
by the Prime Minister Christopher Luxen.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Great to see you, Good to see you. Yes, and
you've survived another year.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I've actually enjoyed this year. You're happier this.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Year than I think they en did last year.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (00:24):
Did you know the new government?
Speaker 3 (00:26):
I don't know what it is, better weather.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
What it is, but maybe giving up the bruis for
a year in over a year?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Now, wow, how you found it?
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Well, I've had the best year ever and I wonder
if by any chance it's related.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Yeah, well I never got onto it, so's've been every years.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Maybe it's the new government. Maybe it's giving up the
booze for the year. I don't know, but yes, no,
it's it's been a great It has been a good year.
Good I mean there hasn't been natural disasters.
Speaker 4 (00:51):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Look, I actually think it's been a tough year for
New Zealan I know, and I think people are exhausted,
aren't they. They're just getting to the end of the year,
and I think even people who were reasonably comfortable are
finding in the last three to four months. It's the
cost of living and the recession. It's called with them,
it's plaiting.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I think what's happened is that, you know, it has
been really difficult because people have been dealing with the
cost of living. But what has been good is that
people actually can see that there is a plan and
they can actually see that we actually we've turned the
corner on that because inflation is back down to two percent,
you've got interest rates starting to fall, but you've still
got you know, you've seen the last three to six months,
we've had unemployment start to rise because businesses have hung
(01:27):
in there with high inflation, high interest rates. The country's
been in recession for the last three years, and ultimately
the last time I.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
Left to do is layoff workers.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
But the good news is that, yeah, it's been tough,
but actually people can see the plans starting to work.
And you can see that because business confidence is at
a ten year high, consumer conference three year high. We
just had farmer confidence come out yesterday. It's about the
highest it's been since middle twenty seventeen. So all of
that's great, but it's now going to translate into growth,
which is the goal for next year and then obviously
you know, better playing jobs, which is good.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
So yeah, increased productivity so we can earn more to
pay more of.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
This right for the instructure and the things that we need.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
But about that, should we start with the negatives and
then go on to the because I have to say it's.
Speaker 5 (02:06):
A very thing.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Was a damp squib. Yeah, I'll just say that happened.
Did you have a plan and then Winston stuck is oron? No, no, no, no,
not at all.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
What we've got to is there was a ministerial advisory
group which says, right, what is the right size fery
that you actually need to have on the you know,
on the cook straight. And you know what we've got
is what we call two rail compatible fairies, which is
meaning that like we've got four of out of five
of them today that weren't.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
Like that they're the right size.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
They can be delivered significantly below the budget that was
being previously described up to three point two billion, almost
four billion. All we got the latest advice they'd got
advice that was closer to four billion, and it started
off as a seven hundred million dollar project, right, And
the problem is that people will say to me and
the labor guys will say, oh, I just spend that money.
And the point is, yeah, Grant Robertson was balking. Yeah, Well,
(02:51):
but they didn't do anything about it because Robertson and
we've been a bunch of people got that advice from
Treasury and they didn't do anything about it. And likewise
with Dunedin Hospital, frankly they got two or three reviews
of that project that said it was red it wasn't
on track. And the problem is that every time you say, oh, yeah,
just go spend four billion dollars on fairies, the problem
is that that's a whole bunch of schools and hospitals
(03:12):
and roads that you don't get to build the same
one to need in hospital. Yeah, I could say to you, yeah,
I'd love to go say yes, spend three billion dollars.
I don't make it the most expensive hospital in the
Southern Hemisphere ever built. But the point in that would
be I'm not building hospitals or strengthening hospitals in Fungrai
or Parmeston North or Totron or Nelson in that case.
So you know, when we say financial discipline and as
people and your listeners manage within their family budgets, and
(03:33):
small businesses run within their budgets. Government has to do
the same. And when you don't, what happens is you
drive inflation up, and you drive interest rates up, but
the economy and recession and you create unemployment. And that's
essentially what happened. And we've had to relearn the laws
of economics that we learned thirty five years ago. And
good financial management may not be particularly sexy or interesting,
but it's actually critically important because if you don't manage
(03:55):
the economy well, the people that hurt the most are
lower middle income working with cylinders and the other ones
that have to struggle paycheck to paycheck, the other ones
that go to find seven hundred dollars a fortnite because
the interest rates just went through the roof the other
ones that can't get food.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
So the good news is respect interest rates would have
come down anyway as part of the global cycle.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
No disagree, Well, they would have come to There's two
parts to it, right. Yes, you've got fiscal policy, which
is what the governments does with government spending. And then
you've got what's called monetary policy, which is what Adrian
or and the reserve Bank do, which is setting interest
rates essentially, and we focus the Reserve bank one hundred
percent on fighting inflation. They had what's called a dual
mandate under Robertson, get focused on your core job, which
(04:35):
is get inflation down, because when you're inflation down, that's
the lesson of economics if you don't control inflation. Remember
the days when you and I grew up in the seventies,
we had Carlos days and all sorts of crazy ideas
because inflation was out of control.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Well, the twenty three percent interest.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
And twenty three percent interest rates right, because we had
really high levels of inflation. And so the point is
if you and what essentially happened with the last lot
was that they didn't have any economic management there. They
then cranked up the government spending by eighty four percent.
That drove up our domestic inflation. So, yes, there's international
parts to inflation, but the dem signflation is within our control.
And so you had, you know, Hipkins and Robertson spending
(05:09):
money in their foot on the accelerator, just spraying cash
around everywhere. Unfortunately, the money that they spent didn't actually
buy us anything in terms of infrastructure, or anything that's
productivity enhancing. Basically just loaded up the credit card on
expenses and now I have a nine billion dollar interest
bill every single year because the debt went from five
billion to one hundred billion dollars and the tech you know,
(05:31):
they spent more, borrow more, tax more, and we didn't
get anything for it. And you don't mind borrowing money
if you're going to borrow it for good stuff that
is thirty fifty years going to help it and do better, right,
Like you borrow for your house, your verage for house,
but you don't borrow for your groceries.
Speaker 6 (05:45):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
It's kind of the just on that too. Like we've
got the Reserve Bank heading off for summer holes. You know,
I'm sure they work very hard and the Reserve Bank,
but your people are waiting for the next interest rector
see drop.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Yeah, so we've had sorry and.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
We're expecting it in Februar. Why can't they like everybody
knows all the banks are calling it for February, So
why can't they school it now to give everyone a little.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Yeah, So what they do is they look at sort
of in the back mirror sort of as to what's
been happening but they've then got to look at what
where they think the economy is going now.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Based off sort of leading indicators. Yeah, and the problem I.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Don't understand it's a Christmas rush. There'll be a Christmas yeah,
but there was.
Speaker 4 (06:21):
We just had the third cut. You know, they've got
a rhythm.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Unfortunately, they've got to look at it every month or
every every couple of months, and they have what's called
a Monetary Policy Committee that sort of comes together and
makes that decision. But you know what's amazing is we
had twelve interest rate rises, probably very very quick, and
you had seven hundred and fifty you know, it's probably
seven hundred bucks a fortnite. Peop had to go find
after tax what that does for. Yeah, I know everyone knows, right,
but I mean, but what your choices you've got to
(06:45):
make about your kids' sports and other trade offs you
had to make. And even with those three rate cuts
that we've been able to achieve in the first twelve
months because of we've got good fiscal management and they're
focused on you know, interest rates, you know, and in inflation.
We've now got a pince and move where both policies
are actually working together. What you had before was rob
(07:05):
some of and Hipkins with their foot on the accelerator,
had him or printing a lot of cash. All of
that stimulation just led to massive asset price inflation and
other things. And what we've had to do is put
the brakes on. He's put Now they've got the brakes on.
But for a while there we had the interest rates
being put on, the brakes inflation. Then we had Robertson
and hip Can still spending cash and the car was
pretty unstable. And it is it is basically like the
(07:27):
way I describe it is they took the keys to
the car and they drove it at great speed, put
it into a dirty, great big ditch, and we're now
hauling it out of the ditch, getting it upside up
the right way, and then getting into first and second gear,
and then we've got to get into top gear and
get moving. But that's been really difficult, and that I
don't think, you know, Nikola Willison and I've sort of
had to face up to that because that's probably one
of the most difficult economic challenges I think decade. He thought, well,
(07:49):
it's certainly his. I mean, and because you're standing on
things like a fairies. Project that you thought was budgeted
for seven hundred and seventy five million turns into three
point two maybe four. You thought you're standing on a
project that was Dunedin Hospital that was going to be
in for one point six and turned out.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
To be that it was blowing up before you got elected.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Yeah, but you didn't know until you get in there
and you actually see the numbers, you go, oh, right, okay,
it's a three billion dollar project that they've got one
point six set aside for the same with school project
buildings all that stuff.
Speaker 4 (08:15):
So we've had to sort through all that stuff over
the line.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
Charlie says, you promised us an up to date operating
Dunedon hospital before the election. You should hold to that promise.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
We are, we're going to build a gray hospital in Dunedin,
but we're going to do it two billion dollars or
one point nine billion doll.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
At three and when will it open.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
We're working that through right now. Retti and Chris Bishop
there Infrastructure Minister, are going through the options of how
they get that project right size so that actually delivers
for the people of the South. So Rester sure we're
going to you know, I'm frustrated as the people that
dned and our bull year. Next well, they'll know they'll
have the review done much quicker than that, I hope
early next year, and then we'll get cracking with it.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
Okay, we're going to take a break and remember that
Christopher Lexan is here for you. He will answer your questions.
So if you have one for the Prime Minister, this
is your last chance to do it for twenty twenty four.
News Talk said, b oh, you're coming in thick and fast,
so we'll go straight to the voters and the callers
because they are one. Paul A, very good morning to you.
Speaker 7 (09:12):
Yeah, hi, Kerry, here are you going?
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Good?
Speaker 7 (09:14):
Good are you doing? You're doing questions?
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
How are you?
Speaker 8 (09:21):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (09:21):
Here you going?
Speaker 8 (09:22):
I'm good.
Speaker 7 (09:23):
Just wondering how you feel about the media in this
country and obviously, I mean most of us know that
there's a pretty clear obvious bias in the media. And
how do you feel about that, and how do you
feel that you've been treated any differently compared to the
last government and do you think that puts a negative
spin on your on your policies.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Yeah, look, I appreciate the question, Paul, and it's one
I get asked a lot when I'm moving around the country,
but ordinary people, just from ordinary people sort of who
say that same thing. I think the reality is the
way I think about it is. Look, yeah, I could
complain about the media treatment that I do or don't get,
and the reality is that then there's a distraction from
what I'm here to do, which is to get on
and fix things and sort things out. But equally, you know,
(10:07):
I came to politics four years ago because I choose.
Speaker 4 (10:10):
To do the job.
Speaker 3 (10:10):
I want to do the job. I want to make
sure that New Zealand realizes it's potential. So I'm very
locked in on my mission of what I'm here to
do and what I'm trying to do with my team.
And frankly, if I listen to the pundits and commentators
and polls, I wouldn't get out of bed at four
thirty in the morning every morning. You just be in
the embryo position I suspect, rocking away quietly in your bed.
But look, the reality is, you know, that's a challenge
(10:31):
for the media sector in general. You know, what is
concerning the New Zealander is that trust in media is
down to I think thirty five percent. It's dropped twenty
points I think in a matter of four years. And
I think what's happened is a lot of news and
opinion have got mixed up and as a result, New
Zealanders are actually when you look at the research that
one of the countries is probably the number one country
in the world. We are curious about news, we're externally oriented,
(10:53):
we love news, but actually New Zealanders now are number
one in the world of actually actively avoiding news when
you look at the aut media results and stuff. So
it's really around you know. Yeah, I've got my view
on what I think, you know, just as an outsider
looking at that sector. If I was CEO of media companies,
how I'd be thinking about running them and the sector
in general. But that's up for the media community to
(11:15):
work out. You know, are they actually knowing their customer? Well,
they've got to adjust their business models because you know,
there's a digital world now, and that's why you'll see
me do a lot more social media because I can
get my messages directly out to young people or to
older focus. Well, most people now get their media news
from video online, not from news bulletins. At six o'clock
(11:35):
anymore so across all aged demographics. So what I've tried
to do with my media team is actually say, yep,
there's the Press Gallery in Wellington and they have a
very view of the world. They're very Wellington parliament centric.
But often why I get out so quickly out of
Wellington on Thursday's, Friday, Saturday Sundays is because I've always
been a believer, even in my business background and in politics,
is that you've got to get out and actually talk
(11:56):
to real people, and when you do, you find out
what's going on, and then you go back to that place.
And I see too many people get institutionalized in Wellington.
I think the Wellington bubble and the view and the
belt the right way to think about things, and that's
where all the intelligence here and all the commentariat and
stuff will set. But the reality is actually for people
out here. I think New Zealanders have seen through it.
And I can see it because our support post election
(12:19):
is stronger today twelve months than it was, you know,
twelve months ago.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
And that's a good thing.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
You know that people are actually, despite the tough decisions
we're having to make, us sticking with us. So yeah,
I could complain about the media. Frankly, they've got a
job to do. How they choose to do their job
is up to them and their sector, and the consequences
of whether they do or don't innovate or adapt or
understand their customer well enough is their decision and their problem.
My job is to communicate through all of those channels
which have deeply fragmented now across our environment.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Thank you very much for that, and you'll take a
short break back with your questions in just a moment. Sorry,
right now, we've sorted that out. Helen wanted a Christmas
Carol choice for the end of the show, and the
Prime Minister said.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
I'm going to reveal the song of the year. And
Helen was trying to say, I've got to have a
Christmas song and I think your listeners have got a
lot of Christmas songs and a lot of Michael Boublet,
But do I think it's a bet song? And if
I can't say that as Prime Minister there, what's the
point of being Prome Minister's got to.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Be the job to say no, I'm not going to
have a Carol. I want a song I really know
now and it's got a very interesting question here. Good
morning to you and.
Speaker 7 (13:23):
Hi Hi.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
I have a question.
Speaker 6 (13:28):
Basically, there's a big sway of Conservative Green votes and
you saw that Australian election, the last election. I feel
that obviously, you know, there's some pretty natty ideas coming
out of the Greens, but I think that where maybe
your coalition hasn't yet put together a proposition which is
(13:54):
meaningful to the average consumer. I mean, I was at
a roadside talk by Seymour and he mentioned about Questrian
credits and the work that was being which I think
is great, but I'd like to see something that's tangible
to the average family, like some tax relief on some
(14:16):
solar paneling or something they can take away.
Speaker 2 (14:19):
And I think you gain a lot more boat with
something in the manufact I though that was really interesting. Yeah,
I think it's true.
Speaker 3 (14:25):
Yeah, I think anton Zone, which is that if you
look at say Western Europe have MMP systems as well.
If you think about Germany and Engler Merkele for twenty
years you had what was called a blue green coalition,
you know, and that's what answer, and you've got a
blue green set. We've got a blue green group which
actually i'm key founding sort of personal involved with which
is that actually people like a good friend of mine,
you know, a great mentor of mine was a guy
(14:45):
called Rob Finnick, and Rob sort of got the fact
that you've got to have sustainability into business practices and commercials.
And I believe that as well, because I did a
lot of that at Unilever and obviously in New Zealand.
But I think there's something there that The only thing
I'd say to you is I think the Green Party
that wass James Shaw was a good friend of mine
and we're still very close. But you know, I could
see a national Green sort of deal under that sort
(15:07):
of environment working. But at the moment the Greens have
moved into a much more socialist kind of position beyond
the environment, into a lot of social stuff where we
would have different big differences on economics and social policy.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
So we saw Brick stated, yeah, and.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
I think that's different from what it was even under say,
when you had players like a James Show and others
around at that point in time, and that if James
reflected that membership, that would be great. But even James
was struggling at the end of you member holding his
leadership and the party so I like the idea of
the attraction of a blue greens or a teal kind
of arrangement. But it's also raising a good point, which
is that we are deeply committed to net carbon twenty
(15:40):
fifty and net zero. We yesterday or this week hopefully
hadn't got to see it, but you know, Simon Watts
launched our emissions reductions planned budget too, a missions reproductions
plan too, which is the legal requirement to make sure
we're hitting our missions budgets. That put us on track
for that for twenty fifty cost.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Because I know that Alan's going to ask this question,
but with the banking Alliance, the net zero Banking Alliance,
what is the point of net zero if there is
no alternative? If the bn Z believes that our electric
motor vehicle fleet is going to be.
Speaker 3 (16:12):
There's two issues, I think in closing our ants view,
I think there's a really good point about how do
we communicate what we're doing on the environment and the
climate change agenda, which is and there is got some
good ideas in there about how we can make people
more independent in a bunch of things. And so that's
a good challenge, fair enough challenge, but equally. You know,
we have to grow our economy and also deliver sustainability
and to live in zero twenty fifty, and we can
(16:33):
do both. Actually, Simon's plan says we can actually do
it in twenty four four up to the government. Not
only what I say is I was a bit concerned
when I saw that This week as well. You had
the ben Z saying they're going to defund service stations the.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Point farmers pay higher interest.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
And you go to rural New Zealand and you say
you're not going to fund a business like a service
station in rural New Zealand or even in the rest
of the country because you think that by twenty thirty
evs will be all over and there therefore they are
a bad investment. It didn't make sense because we've only
got two to three percent penetration of EV's at this point,
so that doesn't So that's that's not right, and that's
why we're really You would have seen Nicola and I
(17:07):
come out on Monday really tough on the banks because
we've had this Commerce Commission starting to say, look, it's
not competitive, they're making superprofits. You know, they're not innovative enough,
and there's fourteen recommendation and we're going to do that.
And the second bit is we've got a banking inquiry,
which is where we're you know, pulling the CEOs and
the cheers through the slect committees. And well, actually that's
where the information came out this week about the defunding
(17:28):
of service stations, for example, with the conversation with the
bends in CEO, so that that is not that is
not right, I mean in terms of that doesn't feel right.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
How do you fix it?
Speaker 3 (17:37):
Well, that's why we want to get through that select
committee process, and then we really want to say, right, oh,
what are the regulatory things that we can do to
make sure that banks are making sure they are because
we've been concerned about rural banking for example, where bank
farmers have been under some pressure. They're often charge higher,
much higher interest rates than people in the cities, and
you know, we don't want them debanked as well. Because
of agriculture. Agriculture is on fire, it's coming back strongly,
(18:01):
and more importantly, all the sustainability innovation which I've spent
in the CUP meetings this week on Actually we've got
things like eco ponds, which are effluence innovations that actually
takes seven percent of the methane emissions out of our
dairy farms.
Speaker 4 (18:13):
You know that's available.
Speaker 5 (18:14):
Now.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
We've got things like bowlus coming, which would be really good,
you know, to get rid of methane cows. We've got
methane vaccines, we go a whole bunch of things that
are possible, you know that.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
We've really so the banks shouldn't be charging higher interest right, No, no, so.
Speaker 3 (18:26):
I mean that's why we really want to really get
under the hood of what are they doing in a
policy sense in banking in general? Why is it so
not competitive, not innovative enough. That's why we said, Locke.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Why are they the green police?
Speaker 4 (18:38):
Yeah exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
I mean they should be banking things on a rational
basis of saying, you know, not a moral basis.
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Exactly. We'll go straight back into the questions because you've
got lots of them, and they're jolly good ones, if
I may say, Benjamin, that tough one for the Prime minister.
Good morning to you, Hi, Benjamin, good morning, good morning.
Speaker 7 (18:54):
How are you.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I'm great?
Speaker 4 (18:55):
Thanks?
Speaker 6 (18:56):
Hey.
Speaker 9 (18:57):
My question to you is why would you cut a
service that provides huge support for vulnerable families and children.
I'm talking about Stand to Mind for Children.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
Yeah, look, I think that's something that has not been
well communicated or well handled.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
To be honest.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
What I rung A Tamaariki's trying to do there is
go through the five hundred and fifty providers that it
works with. It s means about half a billion dollars
five hundred million on it, and the idea is to
make sure that the contracts are actually delivering the outcomes
that they've contracted for. And also there's good safeguarding mechanisms
for children given the abuse in state care recommendations as well.
But I don't think we've handled that as well as
(19:35):
we should have or could have, and so that is
something I know.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Now.
Speaker 3 (19:38):
You know, there's particularly with that organization who's done some
great work. It's before the courts and I can't really
comment on that too much, but I think you raise
a fair point and it's something that I've raised with
the Minister in the course of this week as well,
which is that you know we have if I zoom out,
there's some bigger problems, to be honest, which is that
we do procurement or commissioning with a whole bunch of
(20:00):
social service organizations across government. And my observation coming in
from outside is that it's really difficult because and have
had family members working in this sort of sector. You
end up raising money trying to find a contract that
the government will pay for. You might have a one
year contract, two year contract, whatever. You spend three four
months trying to get the application together. Then you've got
to go recruit the social worker and then you don't
(20:21):
know you don't even got a longer term contract, so
you end up actually going back again to restart again.
I'm not sure whether you can keep that person in
a job or not. And the focus of the organization
is about having the contracting and the commissioning of these
arrangements with the government rather than actually doing the work
that you do so well, which is dealing with the pain,
the need, the frustration at the front lines. And we
have to partner better with the community sector. Your government
(20:42):
can do so much, but the community sector can deliver
outcomes in a much better way if we power them up.
Speaker 4 (20:48):
And so we have to do some work.
Speaker 3 (20:50):
And what we've done is we form what's called the
Social Investment Agency. We've made it a central agency. In
May of this year, which means it's one of the
ones that, like Treasury, that goes across the whole of government,
and that is what I want us to do, so
that we do it differently from how we have been doing.
There's a lot of replication, so much so like a
contractor can have an aroung a tamariki contract which they
(21:11):
might pay eighty percent of it and then actually the
other twenty percent comes from.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
Health or education. It's just so messy.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
And when you talk to the organizations and I go
out and meet with these social organizations typically every week,
the process is just so painful because we've made it
so complex and so hopelessly local and fragmented and so inconsistent.
People have contracts, you know, contracts. I always believe you
if you're in a contract, you're in a contract, and
you should sort of you know you're there until you're not.
(21:38):
And you know, people carry on getting funded without even
having contracts in place, and that just causes huge uncertainty.
And the real skill of the people in the community
organizations is what they do ministering to the people and.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Helping the people.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
So we do need to also, however, in the community organizations,
we need big hearts, but we need hard heads. And
that's why I've been saying, if we're going to give
you lots of money, then I expect to get a
return for that money. And so good examples would be
the work that we did in mental health with I
am Friday, Come b Friday, I am Hope. And the
reason is that every dollar we put in there, we
knew we were getting, you know, I think it was
(22:08):
four dollars or six dollars back, you know, and social
benefit that wasn't where people would then have to consume
other services of government.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
What about the ram Raiders program that Labor began in
response to the RAM raids with the young people, that
was the huge wrap around one. Yes, so is that
still being fund that seemed to have something?
Speaker 4 (22:25):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (22:25):
So what I'm true? So you're you know, you're right
as a caller sort of to raise the question around
what are we doing and are we managing it?
Speaker 6 (22:31):
Well?
Speaker 3 (22:31):
I don't think we are managing it well. That's why
Andrew Costa and Nicola Willis as Minister and SEEO of
that Social Investment Agency, their major focus will be on
commissioning and procurement to get that straight. As a process
that we can get the money flying through much easier
and have the process more simply. But I do need
I need those organizations to be able to talk about outcomes,
not just activity.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
So that one worked yes, and that's still being funded
to do yes.
Speaker 4 (22:53):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
And so what we're doing is I've got these nine
better public service targets and when you actually you can
get a lot of improvement with better management, as we
have done on emergency housing and stuff like that. But
when you think about kids are not in school, family violence,
when you think about housing and security, people with very
complex challenge needs, it's a cohort that keeps coming back,
that has got multiple challenges across the system, and so
(23:14):
we need a lot more innovation to deal and tackle
with those problems and what we've actually had and that's
what we call this thing called social investment. So that
is forcing us to say, right, oh, we need the
agencies to be like in christ chich we have all
the agencies working together incredibly well to identify and work
with those families and individuals that are showing across a
range of metrics as being being vulnerable, and we need
(23:37):
that replicated. So we have what we call these multi
agency table teams, and I meet with the and my
strategy sessions I have every couple of weeks. Now I've
structured it quite differently. I meet with those CEOs to say, right, oh,
we know christ Hitch is working really well to get
on top and to be engaged with these families and
these individuals. Because actually, in New Zealand, with a population
of five point four million people, we know these individuals, right.
(24:01):
We knew when we came to government we had six
hundred people in an emergency hotelommodation in New Zealand. It's
costing us a million dollars a week. It cost us
probably about two thousand dollars for a hotel room. You're
telling me for two thousand dollars, you can't get a
better solution than putting someone in a.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
Motel and and that's what you've done. Those numbers, Yeah,
and I've come down. They've come down, like seventy five
boot camps. But even so at the end of all
of that, you still get to a cohort people that
that have across.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
A range of our measures.
Speaker 3 (24:28):
And the question is what more inoration though we've known
that for years, what are we going to do differently
than what we've done for the last two decades around it.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
The boot camps. We were talking to one of the
CEO of the Billy Graham.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
Foundation who's yeah, they do some great, great, amazing work,
and he said.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
If it's extended the boot camps, and I get where
you say, well, we need to be able to spend
more time with them and to help them with what
they have. He said, they'll become institutionalized. They need to
be looming those skills out in the community once you've
done the circuit breaker.
Speaker 9 (24:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Correct.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
So where we got to on that and I spent
four hours down there and I wanted to see it
for myself. And so those ten young men, we're our
most problematic, persistent, toughest sort of offenders, right they've ended up.
There has been really good interventions.
Speaker 4 (25:12):
There with really good people. But you're right, and he's right.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
And where we had as a pilot with three months
residential nine months in the community.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
It won't necessarily be longer for all of them.
Speaker 3 (25:21):
Just under the new Serious Young Offender legislation coming in
next year, we could have an option where we could say, hey, listen, lot,
this individual's not quite ready to come out and we might.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Want way longer in residential.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
No, it might want them longer and residential, and it
might vary by individual. And then it's about the support
in the community exactly as you just said, because that's
the challenging part.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's where that's where the hard work begins.
Speaker 6 (25:41):
Right.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Well, we're under trainers instructions to get through quicker he
had to go quicker man, Chris, does the South Island
matter to your government? New infrastructure doesn't seem like a priority,
particularly for Canterbury.
Speaker 4 (25:55):
I disagree.
Speaker 3 (25:56):
We've got forty nine of the bridge. Yeah, we've got
forty nine, one hundred and forty nine projects under fast
tracker in the South Island. We've got the hope By
passed up and Nelson, we've got Pegasus and Auckland and
christ Church. We've got the ashburs and Bridge. We've got
a transport package in Queenstown, transport package and christ Church
as well. So yeah, and we're doing everything we can
to get our farmers and the regulation and all that
(26:17):
stuff out of the way. We've got a new hospital
build or extension happening in Nelson, and we've got obviously
a one point nine billion dollar investment into Eden. So look, honestly,
I'm from the South End. I think of myself as
from christ Church and Canterbury and I'm proud of what
we're doing down there.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
Okay, cool Eric, you have a question for the Prime Minister.
Speaker 5 (26:34):
Good morning, mister Luxelmy my questions about the state of
the hierarchy golf YEP. Four elections ago. I was overseas
and I've got an email from my friend to say
that National, if they get into power, we're going to
do something about cleaning up the hierarchy golf. Well I'm
still waiting. And now they've bought in this new scheme
(26:55):
that's going through at the moment where large areas are
going to be excluded from recreational fishes and yet like
ie the Alderman Islands and the Super Island off the
East Coast or a fish and areas in the hierarchy
golf are going to be excluded from recreational and yet
the commercial interests are school going to be allowed to
fish in there. So firstly, when is National going to
(27:18):
do something about it? Because I have no faith in
Shane Jones doing anything about it. It's like having a
fox in charge of a hen House. Well, what I'd say,
tell me when you're going to do something about it.
Speaker 4 (27:28):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
So we're doing something about it now. We've actually had
the Hierarchy Golf Protection Bill coming through the Parliament and
in fact all parties have been really as good bi
partisan support around it just in highlight terms and interests
have been quick. We're going from seven percent of the
golf protected up to eighteen percent. Yes, you're right there
is some very limited fishing, but it's with five fishes
with boats less than six meters. It's only on three
species for a certain part of the year, and it's
(27:50):
actually I think only eighteen tons of fishing taken out
where there's about eleven thousand tons been taken out currently.
So there is a bill going there, There is a
bill going through that will become law, and that is
from all parties have that support. I appreciate there'll be
people with stakeholders in the golf as men, if there's
all sorts of folk with interests in it.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
But I think we found a really good way forward
where you've got more of the golf being protected, which
is what actually every day key weis want a respect
of their politics.
Speaker 2 (28:14):
All right, Sean. Good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Oh Carrie, good you sound you sound relieved to talk
to Kerry or tired or fatigue. They're sure that side
you've been waiting, haven't you.
Speaker 8 (28:27):
No, no, no, no, mister Prime Minister. I'm a dairy
farmer down in the in the South Island here and
we we we we hear your rhetoric about wanting to
increase or double the income from.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
The primary sector exports.
Speaker 2 (28:50):
Yep.
Speaker 8 (28:51):
Frankly, frankly, what I've I've I've seen and heard from
this government is there's a bit of window dressing around
the side, but basically you've still got the handcuffs on us.
Speaker 4 (29:02):
I disagree.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
I disagree, mate.
Speaker 8 (29:05):
Can I please, can you please let me finish?
Speaker 5 (29:08):
Right?
Speaker 9 (29:10):
We have.
Speaker 8 (29:12):
We have a dairy industry right now that's doing the
heavy listing in this economy and has done for probably
the last one hundred and twenty years. We are dropping
two percent a year in cown numbers, so effectively in
fifty years time, we don't have a dairy industry. Now,
that's fine. We live in a democracy and if New
Zealand doesn't want dairy farmersts, I get it, you know,
(29:35):
And I'm quite Frankly, I'm.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
Old enough that you have to finish the question right.
Speaker 8 (29:40):
So I've been down to our lovely people at RC.
I've heard you on Jamie McKay's station talking about that
it's not up to the government to decide whether dairy
farmers can increase their businesses or not. It's up to
local authorities.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
I've been to I.
Speaker 8 (29:58):
I've got land on my bottom boundary and a top
boundary that I could cut the fence tomorrow and Milcombe
RC say so you can't. We can only interpret the
rules that the government have given us. So they are
saying it's your fault. You're saying it's their fault yep.
Speaker 3 (30:15):
So you want to job made you answer, yeah, go
for it. So yeah, look, we do want to value
that double the value of our exports. The bottom line
is agriculture and farming is the backbone of this country.
You should be deeply valued, not treated as villains. The
last lot went to war with you, they had twenty
three regulations. We've taken twenty one regulations out on the ORC.
We were really unhappy with them because we're changing some
things like freshwater management plans. We've got RMA reform coming
(30:37):
as you know, we're fast trap. But then next year
we've got the permanent RMA reforms coming through. We said
to ORC and every regional council, you know we've got
laws changed, don't don't carry on with.
Speaker 4 (30:47):
The old laws.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
They didn't, so we actually bought legislation and over the top,
particularly for ORC who didn't. We're making farmers go through
a process that's going to be redundant. But you asked
some good questions. I'm not we're not. We're not out
there saying we want to see the hood size go
down or anything like that. We actually want farmers to
actually grow. We want to grow dairy. We're going to
do it through technology. Sorry, what's going to happen with
the ORC? Then we'll be all of fresh on the
(31:10):
farm plans which they were running. We've actually said we've
actually put legislation because they didn't follow our guidance not
to follow. We said, look, don't put farmers in council
people through work that's going to get changed under new
laws next year. Anyway, they didn't do that, so we
put law over the top say you now stopped doing
that work. But we've got RMA reform coming to actually
liberate the system too, goes.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
Down there and says I want to expand. The RC
will now have to let him.
Speaker 4 (31:31):
Well, no they will.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
That will be depending upon what his individual situation actually is.
But what I'm saying is we've got macro reform of RMA,
which is actually what the councils then have to respond to,
and that law is all changing. As you've seen. We
killed you know, Parker's RMA before Christmas last year. We've
got fast track coming in now. We've also got there
next to the middle of next year, what we call
rm A three, our final solution for that, which will
be much simpler, more rooted on property rights, all of
(31:55):
that good stuff.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
All right.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
News Talks said, b carry, you sound angry with lux
and I think he's doing a bloody good job, says
muzz Mus. I can tell you. I'm in the studio
with her.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
I said at the beginning, you are happier this year
than you were at this time last year. I appreciate
your defense of me, but actually, in fairness, I think
Carrie's been much kinder to me this year than she
was last year. She was grumpy last year. I was
a bit grumpier and the year before. Yeah, the year
before you were very grumpy.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
To be fair, Christopher Hipkins wore the worst of that.
Speaker 4 (32:26):
I thought I walk on.
Speaker 8 (32:27):
No, no, no no.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
If you compared notes, you'd still see some of his scars. Anyway,
that's us. I mean, it goes so quickly, doesn't it. Well,
I brought your Christmas gift awkward. So I've got you
a lovely car with Amanda and I on the front
of it. Oh, how lovely. That's personal for me.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
And then I've got you some.
Speaker 3 (32:46):
Linch chocolates because I need those like a hole on that.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
And then because you've.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Gone alcohol free, I've got your Curious af Sparkley Rose
and also the Variety four pack so you can carry
on that.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
That's what they saved on your New Zealand. Yeah, that's
a really good thought.
Speaker 3 (33:00):
And then and then because you're being on aboutt Heath
not cleaning up the studio and Matt's note a good
job coming out out of what he's been doing.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Yeah, there, he's done a.
Speaker 3 (33:09):
Great job, but he's obviously got studio etiquet problems. So
I've left you some death old clean whipes as well.
But hey, listen, can I just say I hope you
have a great Christmas with your family. I know you
hang out with your grandkids and it's awesome. They've got
such a cool grammar like you. And to all the listeners,
I want to say, look, I know it's been a
tough year for everyone. I hope people get a sense
of the plan and starting to work, and we're turning
(33:29):
the corner. This is a country with great future. I
think twelve months down the road, I feel more optimistic
about what's possible. Yeah, I do, I honestly do. With's
no reason why we can't build the best small advanced
country on Earth period if we all work together on
doing that job. I feel very motivated about that and
very excited about that. And then I say to everybody, look,
just refresh, recharge, reflect, get time with your loved ones,
make some new memories, you know, decompress and getting up
(33:52):
for next year.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
Which will be when are you signing off.
Speaker 3 (33:55):
I'm going to go right up until Christmas eve, and
then I'll take a break between Christmas and just after
New Year, and then I'll be back into it early
mid January, so it'll be good. Craky, I'm ready to go.
We want to get going. We've got a lot to do,
a lot to sort out.
Speaker 2 (34:08):
Wow, there's not much of a break.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
No, but no, I'll be good.
Speaker 3 (34:10):
It'll be good, and I'll get ten days with my
family and it'll be fantastic.
Speaker 9 (34:14):
Great.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Well, I'm glad. So thank you very much for your
time this year, and I know the listeners appreciate you
coming being accessible to them. Now this is your choice,
Chris Stapleton and do a leaper.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
Yeah, this was a great song, Chris Stapleton song song
of the Year. I think I'm in love with you
and I thank you Helen for playing my song rather
than the Christmas music at Boublet.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
What do you Why are you pointing? Because Helen is
the one who decides on the music. Helen, Helen is
the arbiterrible things. Okay, Christinepleton, do a liper Merry Christmas,
Prime Minister, and yeah, he's to a prosperous and happy
New Year for all of us, all of us. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
For more from Kerry Wooden Mornings, listen live to news
talks it'd be from nine am weekdays, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Kerry Wooden Morning's podcast from News
Talk said be carry.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Wouldn't with you, and for the first hour we're joined
by the Prime Minister Christopher Luxen.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
Great to see you, Good to see you. Yes, and
you've survived another year.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I've actually enjoyed this year. You're happier this.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Year than I think they en did last year.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (00:24):
Did you know the new government?
Speaker 3 (00:26):
I don't know what it is, better weather.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
What it is, but maybe giving up the bruis for
a year in over a year?
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Now, wow, how you found it?
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Well, I've had the best year ever and I wonder
if by any chance it's related.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Yeah, well I never got onto it, so's've been every years.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Maybe it's the new government. Maybe it's giving up the
booze for the year. I don't know, but yes, no,
it's it's been a great It has been a good year.
Good I mean there hasn't been natural disasters.
Speaker 4 (00:51):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
Look, I actually think it's been a tough year for
New Zealan I know, and I think people are exhausted,
aren't they. They're just getting to the end of the year,
and I think even people who were reasonably comfortable are
finding in the last three to four months. It's the
cost of living and the recession. It's called with them,
it's plaiting.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I think what's happened is that, you know, it has
been really difficult because people have been dealing with the
cost of living. But what has been good is that
people actually can see that there is a plan and
they can actually see that we actually we've turned the
corner on that because inflation is back down to two percent,
you've got interest rates starting to fall, but you've still
got you know, you've seen the last three to six months,
we've had unemployment start to rise because businesses have hung
(01:27):
in there with high inflation, high interest rates. The country's
been in recession for the last three years, and ultimately
the last time I.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
Left to do is layoff workers.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
But the good news is that, yeah, it's been tough,
but actually people can see the plans starting to work.
And you can see that because business confidence is at
a ten year high, consumer conference three year high. We
just had farmer confidence come out yesterday. It's about the
highest it's been since middle twenty seventeen. So all of
that's great, but it's now going to translate into growth,
which is the goal for next year and then obviously
you know, better playing jobs, which is good.
Speaker 2 (01:55):
So yeah, increased productivity so we can earn more to
pay more of.
Speaker 3 (01:58):
This right for the instructure and the things that we need.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
But about that, should we start with the negatives and
then go on to the because I have to say it's.
Speaker 5 (02:06):
A very thing.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Was a damp squib. Yeah, I'll just say that happened.
Did you have a plan and then Winston stuck is oron? No, no, no, no,
not at all.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
What we've got to is there was a ministerial advisory
group which says, right, what is the right size fery
that you actually need to have on the you know,
on the cook straight. And you know what we've got
is what we call two rail compatible fairies, which is
meaning that like we've got four of out of five
of them today that weren't.
Speaker 4 (02:29):
Like that they're the right size.
Speaker 3 (02:31):
They can be delivered significantly below the budget that was
being previously described up to three point two billion, almost
four billion. All we got the latest advice they'd got
advice that was closer to four billion, and it started
off as a seven hundred million dollar project, right, And
the problem is that people will say to me and
the labor guys will say, oh, I just spend that money.
And the point is, yeah, Grant Robertson was balking. Yeah, Well,
(02:51):
but they didn't do anything about it because Robertson and
we've been a bunch of people got that advice from
Treasury and they didn't do anything about it. And likewise
with Dunedin Hospital, frankly they got two or three reviews
of that project that said it was red it wasn't
on track. And the problem is that every time you say, oh, yeah,
just go spend four billion dollars on fairies, the problem
is that that's a whole bunch of schools and hospitals
(03:12):
and roads that you don't get to build the same
one to need in hospital. Yeah, I could say to you, yeah,
I'd love to go say yes, spend three billion dollars.
I don't make it the most expensive hospital in the
Southern Hemisphere ever built. But the point in that would
be I'm not building hospitals or strengthening hospitals in Fungrai
or Parmeston North or Totron or Nelson in that case.
So you know, when we say financial discipline and as
people and your listeners manage within their family budgets, and
(03:33):
small businesses run within their budgets. Government has to do
the same. And when you don't, what happens is you
drive inflation up, and you drive interest rates up, but
the economy and recession and you create unemployment. And that's
essentially what happened. And we've had to relearn the laws
of economics that we learned thirty five years ago. And
good financial management may not be particularly sexy or interesting,
but it's actually critically important because if you don't manage
(03:55):
the economy well, the people that hurt the most are
lower middle income working with cylinders and the other ones
that have to struggle paycheck to paycheck, the other ones
that go to find seven hundred dollars a fortnite because
the interest rates just went through the roof the other
ones that can't get food.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
So the good news is respect interest rates would have
come down anyway as part of the global cycle.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
No disagree, Well, they would have come to There's two
parts to it, right. Yes, you've got fiscal policy, which
is what the governments does with government spending. And then
you've got what's called monetary policy, which is what Adrian
or and the reserve Bank do, which is setting interest
rates essentially, and we focus the Reserve bank one hundred
percent on fighting inflation. They had what's called a dual
mandate under Robertson, get focused on your core job, which
(04:35):
is get inflation down, because when you're inflation down, that's
the lesson of economics if you don't control inflation. Remember
the days when you and I grew up in the seventies,
we had Carlos days and all sorts of crazy ideas
because inflation was out of control.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
Well, the twenty three percent interest.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
And twenty three percent interest rates right, because we had
really high levels of inflation. And so the point is
if you and what essentially happened with the last lot
was that they didn't have any economic management there. They
then cranked up the government spending by eighty four percent.
That drove up our domestic inflation. So, yes, there's international
parts to inflation, but the dem signflation is within our control.
And so you had, you know, Hipkins and Robertson spending
(05:09):
money in their foot on the accelerator, just spraying cash
around everywhere. Unfortunately, the money that they spent didn't actually
buy us anything in terms of infrastructure, or anything that's
productivity enhancing. Basically just loaded up the credit card on
expenses and now I have a nine billion dollar interest
bill every single year because the debt went from five
billion to one hundred billion dollars and the tech you know,
(05:31):
they spent more, borrow more, tax more, and we didn't
get anything for it. And you don't mind borrowing money
if you're going to borrow it for good stuff that
is thirty fifty years going to help it and do better, right,
Like you borrow for your house, your verage for house,
but you don't borrow for your groceries.
Speaker 6 (05:45):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
It's kind of the just on that too. Like we've
got the Reserve Bank heading off for summer holes. You know,
I'm sure they work very hard and the Reserve Bank,
but your people are waiting for the next interest rector
see drop.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
Yeah, so we've had sorry and.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
We're expecting it in Februar. Why can't they like everybody
knows all the banks are calling it for February, So
why can't they school it now to give everyone a little.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Yeah, So what they do is they look at sort
of in the back mirror sort of as to what's
been happening but they've then got to look at what
where they think the economy is going now.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Based off sort of leading indicators. Yeah, and the problem I.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Don't understand it's a Christmas rush. There'll be a Christmas yeah,
but there was.
Speaker 4 (06:21):
We just had the third cut. You know, they've got
a rhythm.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Unfortunately, they've got to look at it every month or
every every couple of months, and they have what's called
a Monetary Policy Committee that sort of comes together and
makes that decision. But you know what's amazing is we
had twelve interest rate rises, probably very very quick, and
you had seven hundred and fifty you know, it's probably
seven hundred bucks a fortnite. Peop had to go find
after tax what that does for. Yeah, I know everyone knows, right,
but I mean, but what your choices you've got to
(06:45):
make about your kids' sports and other trade offs you
had to make. And even with those three rate cuts
that we've been able to achieve in the first twelve
months because of we've got good fiscal management and they're
focused on you know, interest rates, you know, and in inflation.
We've now got a pince and move where both policies
are actually working together. What you had before was rob
(07:05):
some of and Hipkins with their foot on the accelerator,
had him or printing a lot of cash. All of
that stimulation just led to massive asset price inflation and
other things. And what we've had to do is put
the brakes on. He's put Now they've got the brakes on.
But for a while there we had the interest rates
being put on, the brakes inflation. Then we had Robertson
and hip Can still spending cash and the car was
pretty unstable. And it is it is basically like the
(07:27):
way I describe it is they took the keys to
the car and they drove it at great speed, put
it into a dirty, great big ditch, and we're now
hauling it out of the ditch, getting it upside up
the right way, and then getting into first and second gear,
and then we've got to get into top gear and
get moving. But that's been really difficult, and that I
don't think, you know, Nikola Willison and I've sort of
had to face up to that because that's probably one
of the most difficult economic challenges I think decade. He thought, well,
(07:49):
it's certainly his. I mean, and because you're standing on
things like a fairies. Project that you thought was budgeted
for seven hundred and seventy five million turns into three
point two maybe four. You thought you're standing on a
project that was Dunedin Hospital that was going to be
in for one point six and turned out.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
To be that it was blowing up before you got elected.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Yeah, but you didn't know until you get in there
and you actually see the numbers, you go, oh, right, okay,
it's a three billion dollar project that they've got one
point six set aside for the same with school project
buildings all that stuff.
Speaker 4 (08:15):
So we've had to sort through all that stuff over
the line.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
Charlie says, you promised us an up to date operating
Dunedon hospital before the election. You should hold to that promise.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
We are, we're going to build a gray hospital in Dunedin,
but we're going to do it two billion dollars or
one point nine billion doll.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
At three and when will it open.
Speaker 3 (08:29):
We're working that through right now. Retti and Chris Bishop
there Infrastructure Minister, are going through the options of how
they get that project right size so that actually delivers
for the people of the South. So Rester sure we're
going to you know, I'm frustrated as the people that
dned and our bull year. Next well, they'll know they'll
have the review done much quicker than that, I hope
early next year, and then we'll get cracking with it.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
Okay, we're going to take a break and remember that
Christopher Lexan is here for you. He will answer your questions.
So if you have one for the Prime Minister, this
is your last chance to do it for twenty twenty four.
News Talk said, b oh, you're coming in thick and fast,
so we'll go straight to the voters and the callers
because they are one. Paul A, very good morning to you.
Speaker 7 (09:12):
Yeah, hi, Kerry, here are you going?
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Good?
Speaker 7 (09:14):
Good are you doing? You're doing questions?
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Yes?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
How are you?
Speaker 8 (09:21):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (09:21):
Here you going?
Speaker 8 (09:22):
I'm good.
Speaker 7 (09:23):
Just wondering how you feel about the media in this
country and obviously, I mean most of us know that
there's a pretty clear obvious bias in the media. And
how do you feel about that, and how do you
feel that you've been treated any differently compared to the
last government and do you think that puts a negative
spin on your on your policies.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Yeah, look, I appreciate the question, Paul, and it's one
I get asked a lot when I'm moving around the country,
but ordinary people, just from ordinary people sort of who
say that same thing. I think the reality is the
way I think about it is. Look, yeah, I could
complain about the media treatment that I do or don't get,
and the reality is that then there's a distraction from
what I'm here to do, which is to get on
and fix things and sort things out. But equally, you know,
(10:07):
I came to politics four years ago because I choose.
Speaker 4 (10:10):
To do the job.
Speaker 3 (10:10):
I want to do the job. I want to make
sure that New Zealand realizes it's potential. So I'm very
locked in on my mission of what I'm here to
do and what I'm trying to do with my team.
And frankly, if I listen to the pundits and commentators
and polls, I wouldn't get out of bed at four
thirty in the morning every morning. You just be in
the embryo position I suspect, rocking away quietly in your bed.
But look, the reality is, you know, that's a challenge
(10:31):
for the media sector in general. You know, what is
concerning the New Zealander is that trust in media is
down to I think thirty five percent. It's dropped twenty
points I think in a matter of four years. And
I think what's happened is a lot of news and
opinion have got mixed up and as a result, New
Zealanders are actually when you look at the research that
one of the countries is probably the number one country
in the world. We are curious about news, we're externally oriented,
(10:53):
we love news, but actually New Zealanders now are number
one in the world of actually actively avoiding news when
you look at the aut media results and stuff. So
it's really around you know. Yeah, I've got my view
on what I think, you know, just as an outsider
looking at that sector. If I was CEO of media companies,
how I'd be thinking about running them and the sector
in general. But that's up for the media community to
(11:15):
work out. You know, are they actually knowing their customer? Well,
they've got to adjust their business models because you know,
there's a digital world now, and that's why you'll see
me do a lot more social media because I can
get my messages directly out to young people or to
older focus. Well, most people now get their media news
from video online, not from news bulletins. At six o'clock
(11:35):
anymore so across all aged demographics. So what I've tried
to do with my media team is actually say, yep,
there's the Press Gallery in Wellington and they have a
very view of the world. They're very Wellington parliament centric.
But often why I get out so quickly out of
Wellington on Thursday's, Friday, Saturday Sundays is because I've always
been a believer, even in my business background and in politics,
is that you've got to get out and actually talk
(11:56):
to real people, and when you do, you find out
what's going on, and then you go back to that place.
And I see too many people get institutionalized in Wellington.
I think the Wellington bubble and the view and the
belt the right way to think about things, and that's
where all the intelligence here and all the commentariat and
stuff will set. But the reality is actually for people
out here. I think New Zealanders have seen through it.
And I can see it because our support post election
(12:19):
is stronger today twelve months than it was, you know,
twelve months ago.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
And that's a good thing.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
You know that people are actually, despite the tough decisions
we're having to make, us sticking with us. So yeah,
I could complain about the media. Frankly, they've got a
job to do. How they choose to do their job
is up to them and their sector, and the consequences
of whether they do or don't innovate or adapt or
understand their customer well enough is their decision and their problem.
My job is to communicate through all of those channels
which have deeply fragmented now across our environment.
Speaker 2 (12:44):
Thank you very much for that, and you'll take a
short break back with your questions in just a moment. Sorry,
right now, we've sorted that out. Helen wanted a Christmas
Carol choice for the end of the show, and the
Prime Minister said.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
I'm going to reveal the song of the year. And
Helen was trying to say, I've got to have a
Christmas song and I think your listeners have got a
lot of Christmas songs and a lot of Michael Boublet,
But do I think it's a bet song? And if
I can't say that as Prime Minister there, what's the
point of being Prome Minister's got to.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Be the job to say no, I'm not going to
have a Carol. I want a song I really know
now and it's got a very interesting question here. Good
morning to you and.
Speaker 7 (13:23):
Hi Hi.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
I have a question.
Speaker 6 (13:28):
Basically, there's a big sway of Conservative Green votes and
you saw that Australian election, the last election. I feel
that obviously, you know, there's some pretty natty ideas coming
out of the Greens, but I think that where maybe
your coalition hasn't yet put together a proposition which is
(13:54):
meaningful to the average consumer. I mean, I was at
a roadside talk by Seymour and he mentioned about Questrian
credits and the work that was being which I think
is great, but I'd like to see something that's tangible
to the average family, like some tax relief on some
(14:16):
solar paneling or something they can take away.
Speaker 2 (14:19):
And I think you gain a lot more boat with
something in the manufact I though that was really interesting. Yeah,
I think it's true.
Speaker 3 (14:25):
Yeah, I think anton Zone, which is that if you
look at say Western Europe have MMP systems as well.
If you think about Germany and Engler Merkele for twenty
years you had what was called a blue green coalition,
you know, and that's what answer, and you've got a
blue green set. We've got a blue green group which
actually i'm key founding sort of personal involved with which
is that actually people like a good friend of mine,
you know, a great mentor of mine was a guy
(14:45):
called Rob Finnick, and Rob sort of got the fact
that you've got to have sustainability into business practices and commercials.
And I believe that as well, because I did a
lot of that at Unilever and obviously in New Zealand.
But I think there's something there that The only thing
I'd say to you is I think the Green Party
that wass James Shaw was a good friend of mine
and we're still very close. But you know, I could
see a national Green sort of deal under that sort
(15:07):
of environment working. But at the moment the Greens have
moved into a much more socialist kind of position beyond
the environment, into a lot of social stuff where we
would have different big differences on economics and social policy.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
So we saw Brick stated, yeah, and.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
I think that's different from what it was even under say,
when you had players like a James Show and others
around at that point in time, and that if James
reflected that membership, that would be great. But even James
was struggling at the end of you member holding his
leadership and the party so I like the idea of
the attraction of a blue greens or a teal kind
of arrangement. But it's also raising a good point, which
is that we are deeply committed to net carbon twenty
(15:40):
fifty and net zero. We yesterday or this week hopefully
hadn't got to see it, but you know, Simon Watts
launched our emissions reductions planned budget too, a missions reproductions
plan too, which is the legal requirement to make sure
we're hitting our missions budgets. That put us on track
for that for twenty fifty cost.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Because I know that Alan's going to ask this question,
but with the banking Alliance, the net zero Banking Alliance,
what is the point of net zero if there is
no alternative? If the bn Z believes that our electric
motor vehicle fleet is going to be.
Speaker 3 (16:12):
There's two issues, I think in closing our ants view,
I think there's a really good point about how do
we communicate what we're doing on the environment and the
climate change agenda, which is and there is got some
good ideas in there about how we can make people
more independent in a bunch of things. And so that's
a good challenge, fair enough challenge, but equally. You know,
we have to grow our economy and also deliver sustainability
and to live in zero twenty fifty, and we can
(16:33):
do both. Actually, Simon's plan says we can actually do
it in twenty four four up to the government. Not
only what I say is I was a bit concerned
when I saw that This week as well. You had
the ben Z saying they're going to defund service stations the.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Point farmers pay higher interest.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
And you go to rural New Zealand and you say
you're not going to fund a business like a service
station in rural New Zealand or even in the rest
of the country because you think that by twenty thirty
evs will be all over and there therefore they are
a bad investment. It didn't make sense because we've only
got two to three percent penetration of EV's at this point,
so that doesn't So that's that's not right, and that's
why we're really You would have seen Nicola and I
(17:07):
come out on Monday really tough on the banks because
we've had this Commerce Commission starting to say, look, it's
not competitive, they're making superprofits. You know, they're not innovative enough,
and there's fourteen recommendation and we're going to do that.
And the second bit is we've got a banking inquiry,
which is where we're you know, pulling the CEOs and
the cheers through the slect committees. And well, actually that's
where the information came out this week about the defunding
(17:28):
of service stations, for example, with the conversation with the
bends in CEO, so that that is not that is
not right, I mean in terms of that doesn't feel right.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
How do you fix it?
Speaker 3 (17:37):
Well, that's why we want to get through that select
committee process, and then we really want to say, right, oh,
what are the regulatory things that we can do to
make sure that banks are making sure they are because
we've been concerned about rural banking for example, where bank
farmers have been under some pressure. They're often charge higher,
much higher interest rates than people in the cities, and
you know, we don't want them debanked as well. Because
of agriculture. Agriculture is on fire, it's coming back strongly,
(18:01):
and more importantly, all the sustainability innovation which I've spent
in the CUP meetings this week on Actually we've got
things like eco ponds, which are effluence innovations that actually
takes seven percent of the methane emissions out of our
dairy farms.
Speaker 4 (18:13):
You know that's available.
Speaker 5 (18:14):
Now.
Speaker 3 (18:15):
We've got things like bowlus coming, which would be really good,
you know, to get rid of methane cows. We've got
methane vaccines, we go a whole bunch of things that
are possible, you know that.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
We've really so the banks shouldn't be charging higher interest right, No, no, so.
Speaker 3 (18:26):
I mean that's why we really want to really get
under the hood of what are they doing in a
policy sense in banking in general? Why is it so
not competitive, not innovative enough. That's why we said, Locke.
Speaker 2 (18:37):
Why are they the green police?
Speaker 4 (18:38):
Yeah exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
I mean they should be banking things on a rational
basis of saying, you know, not a moral basis.
Speaker 2 (18:44):
Exactly. We'll go straight back into the questions because you've
got lots of them, and they're jolly good ones, if
I may say, Benjamin, that tough one for the Prime minister.
Good morning to you, Hi, Benjamin, good morning, good morning.
Speaker 7 (18:54):
How are you.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I'm great?
Speaker 4 (18:55):
Thanks?
Speaker 6 (18:56):
Hey.
Speaker 9 (18:57):
My question to you is why would you cut a
service that provides huge support for vulnerable families and children.
I'm talking about Stand to Mind for Children.
Speaker 3 (19:08):
Yeah, look, I think that's something that has not been
well communicated or well handled.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
To be honest.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
What I rung A Tamaariki's trying to do there is
go through the five hundred and fifty providers that it
works with. It s means about half a billion dollars
five hundred million on it, and the idea is to
make sure that the contracts are actually delivering the outcomes
that they've contracted for. And also there's good safeguarding mechanisms
for children given the abuse in state care recommendations as well.
But I don't think we've handled that as well as
(19:35):
we should have or could have, and so that is
something I know.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Now.
Speaker 3 (19:38):
You know, there's particularly with that organization who's done some
great work. It's before the courts and I can't really
comment on that too much, but I think you raise
a fair point and it's something that I've raised with
the Minister in the course of this week as well,
which is that you know we have if I zoom out,
there's some bigger problems, to be honest, which is that
we do procurement or commissioning with a whole bunch of
(20:00):
social service organizations across government. And my observation coming in
from outside is that it's really difficult because and have
had family members working in this sort of sector. You
end up raising money trying to find a contract that
the government will pay for. You might have a one
year contract, two year contract, whatever. You spend three four
months trying to get the application together. Then you've got
to go recruit the social worker and then you don't
(20:21):
know you don't even got a longer term contract, so
you end up actually going back again to restart again.
I'm not sure whether you can keep that person in
a job or not. And the focus of the organization
is about having the contracting and the commissioning of these
arrangements with the government rather than actually doing the work
that you do so well, which is dealing with the pain,
the need, the frustration at the front lines. And we
have to partner better with the community sector. Your government
(20:42):
can do so much, but the community sector can deliver
outcomes in a much better way if we power them up.
Speaker 4 (20:48):
And so we have to do some work.
Speaker 3 (20:50):
And what we've done is we form what's called the
Social Investment Agency. We've made it a central agency. In
May of this year, which means it's one of the
ones that, like Treasury, that goes across the whole of government,
and that is what I want us to do, so
that we do it differently from how we have been doing.
There's a lot of replication, so much so like a
contractor can have an aroung a tamariki contract which they
(21:11):
might pay eighty percent of it and then actually the
other twenty percent comes from.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
Health or education. It's just so messy.
Speaker 3 (21:17):
And when you talk to the organizations and I go
out and meet with these social organizations typically every week,
the process is just so painful because we've made it
so complex and so hopelessly local and fragmented and so inconsistent.
People have contracts, you know, contracts. I always believe you
if you're in a contract, you're in a contract, and
you should sort of you know you're there until you're not.
(21:38):
And you know, people carry on getting funded without even
having contracts in place, and that just causes huge uncertainty.
And the real skill of the people in the community
organizations is what they do ministering to the people and.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Helping the people.
Speaker 3 (21:48):
So we do need to also, however, in the community organizations,
we need big hearts, but we need hard heads. And
that's why I've been saying, if we're going to give
you lots of money, then I expect to get a
return for that money. And so good examples would be
the work that we did in mental health with I
am Friday, Come b Friday, I am Hope. And the
reason is that every dollar we put in there, we
knew we were getting, you know, I think it was
(22:08):
four dollars or six dollars back, you know, and social
benefit that wasn't where people would then have to consume
other services of government.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
What about the ram Raiders program that Labor began in
response to the RAM raids with the young people, that
was the huge wrap around one. Yes, so is that
still being fund that seemed to have something?
Speaker 4 (22:25):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (22:25):
So what I'm true? So you're you know, you're right
as a caller sort of to raise the question around
what are we doing and are we managing it?
Speaker 6 (22:31):
Well?
Speaker 3 (22:31):
I don't think we are managing it well. That's why
Andrew Costa and Nicola Willis as Minister and SEEO of
that Social Investment Agency, their major focus will be on
commissioning and procurement to get that straight. As a process
that we can get the money flying through much easier
and have the process more simply. But I do need
I need those organizations to be able to talk about outcomes,
not just activity.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
So that one worked yes, and that's still being funded
to do yes.
Speaker 4 (22:53):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
And so what we're doing is I've got these nine
better public service targets and when you actually you can
get a lot of improvement with better management, as we
have done on emergency housing and stuff like that. But
when you think about kids are not in school, family violence,
when you think about housing and security, people with very
complex challenge needs, it's a cohort that keeps coming back,
that has got multiple challenges across the system, and so
(23:14):
we need a lot more innovation to deal and tackle
with those problems and what we've actually had and that's
what we call this thing called social investment. So that
is forcing us to say, right, oh, we need the
agencies to be like in christ chich we have all
the agencies working together incredibly well to identify and work
with those families and individuals that are showing across a
range of metrics as being being vulnerable, and we need
(23:37):
that replicated. So we have what we call these multi
agency table teams, and I meet with the and my
strategy sessions I have every couple of weeks. Now I've
structured it quite differently. I meet with those CEOs to say, right, oh,
we know christ Hitch is working really well to get
on top and to be engaged with these families and
these individuals. Because actually, in New Zealand, with a population
of five point four million people, we know these individuals, right.
(24:01):
We knew when we came to government we had six
hundred people in an emergency hotelommodation in New Zealand. It's
costing us a million dollars a week. It cost us
probably about two thousand dollars for a hotel room. You're
telling me for two thousand dollars, you can't get a
better solution than putting someone in a.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
Motel and and that's what you've done. Those numbers, Yeah,
and I've come down. They've come down, like seventy five
boot camps. But even so at the end of all
of that, you still get to a cohort people that
that have across.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
A range of our measures.
Speaker 3 (24:28):
And the question is what more inoration though we've known
that for years, what are we going to do differently
than what we've done for the last two decades around it.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
The boot camps. We were talking to one of the
CEO of the Billy Graham.
Speaker 3 (24:40):
Foundation who's yeah, they do some great, great, amazing work,
and he said.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
If it's extended the boot camps, and I get where
you say, well, we need to be able to spend
more time with them and to help them with what
they have. He said, they'll become institutionalized. They need to
be looming those skills out in the community once you've
done the circuit breaker.
Speaker 9 (24:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Correct.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
So where we got to on that and I spent
four hours down there and I wanted to see it
for myself. And so those ten young men, we're our
most problematic, persistent, toughest sort of offenders, right they've ended up.
There has been really good interventions.
Speaker 4 (25:12):
There with really good people. But you're right, and he's right.
Speaker 3 (25:15):
And where we had as a pilot with three months
residential nine months in the community.
Speaker 2 (25:18):
It won't necessarily be longer for all of them.
Speaker 3 (25:21):
Just under the new Serious Young Offender legislation coming in
next year, we could have an option where we could say, hey, listen, lot,
this individual's not quite ready to come out and we might.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Want way longer in residential.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
No, it might want them longer and residential, and it
might vary by individual. And then it's about the support
in the community exactly as you just said, because that's
the challenging part.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
That's where that's where the hard work begins.
Speaker 6 (25:41):
Right.
Speaker 2 (25:41):
Well, we're under trainers instructions to get through quicker he
had to go quicker man, Chris, does the South Island
matter to your government? New infrastructure doesn't seem like a priority,
particularly for Canterbury.
Speaker 4 (25:55):
I disagree.
Speaker 3 (25:56):
We've got forty nine of the bridge. Yeah, we've got
forty nine, one hundred and forty nine projects under fast
tracker in the South Island. We've got the hope By
passed up and Nelson, we've got Pegasus and Auckland and
christ Church. We've got the ashburs and Bridge. We've got
a transport package in Queenstown, transport package and christ Church
as well. So yeah, and we're doing everything we can
to get our farmers and the regulation and all that
(26:17):
stuff out of the way. We've got a new hospital
build or extension happening in Nelson, and we've got obviously
a one point nine billion dollar investment into Eden. So look, honestly,
I'm from the South End. I think of myself as
from christ Church and Canterbury and I'm proud of what
we're doing down there.
Speaker 2 (26:30):
Okay, cool Eric, you have a question for the Prime Minister.
Speaker 5 (26:34):
Good morning, mister Luxelmy my questions about the state of
the hierarchy golf YEP. Four elections ago. I was overseas
and I've got an email from my friend to say
that National, if they get into power, we're going to
do something about cleaning up the hierarchy golf. Well I'm
still waiting. And now they've bought in this new scheme
(26:55):
that's going through at the moment where large areas are
going to be excluded from recreational fishes and yet like
ie the Alderman Islands and the Super Island off the
East Coast or a fish and areas in the hierarchy
golf are going to be excluded from recreational and yet
the commercial interests are school going to be allowed to
fish in there. So firstly, when is National going to
(27:18):
do something about it? Because I have no faith in
Shane Jones doing anything about it. It's like having a
fox in charge of a hen House. Well, what I'd say,
tell me when you're going to do something about it.
Speaker 4 (27:28):
Yep.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
So we're doing something about it now. We've actually had
the Hierarchy Golf Protection Bill coming through the Parliament and
in fact all parties have been really as good bi
partisan support around it just in highlight terms and interests
have been quick. We're going from seven percent of the
golf protected up to eighteen percent. Yes, you're right there
is some very limited fishing, but it's with five fishes
with boats less than six meters. It's only on three
species for a certain part of the year, and it's
(27:50):
actually I think only eighteen tons of fishing taken out
where there's about eleven thousand tons been taken out currently.
So there is a bill going there, There is a
bill going through that will become law, and that is
from all parties have that support. I appreciate there'll be
people with stakeholders in the golf as men, if there's
all sorts of folk with interests in it.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
But I think we found a really good way forward
where you've got more of the golf being protected, which
is what actually every day key weis want a respect
of their politics.
Speaker 2 (28:14):
All right, Sean. Good morning to you.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
Oh Carrie, good you sound you sound relieved to talk
to Kerry or tired or fatigue. They're sure that side
you've been waiting, haven't you.
Speaker 8 (28:27):
No, no, no, no, mister Prime Minister. I'm a dairy
farmer down in the in the South Island here and
we we we we hear your rhetoric about wanting to
increase or double the income from.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
The primary sector exports.
Speaker 2 (28:50):
Yep.
Speaker 8 (28:51):
Frankly, frankly, what I've I've I've seen and heard from
this government is there's a bit of window dressing around
the side, but basically you've still got the handcuffs on us.
Speaker 4 (29:02):
I disagree.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
I disagree, mate.
Speaker 8 (29:05):
Can I please, can you please let me finish?
Speaker 5 (29:08):
Right?
Speaker 9 (29:10):
We have.
Speaker 8 (29:12):
We have a dairy industry right now that's doing the
heavy listing in this economy and has done for probably
the last one hundred and twenty years. We are dropping
two percent a year in cown numbers, so effectively in
fifty years time, we don't have a dairy industry. Now,
that's fine. We live in a democracy and if New
Zealand doesn't want dairy farmersts, I get it, you know,
(29:35):
And I'm quite Frankly, I'm.
Speaker 2 (29:36):
Old enough that you have to finish the question right.
Speaker 8 (29:40):
So I've been down to our lovely people at RC.
I've heard you on Jamie McKay's station talking about that
it's not up to the government to decide whether dairy
farmers can increase their businesses or not. It's up to
local authorities.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
I've been to I.
Speaker 8 (29:58):
I've got land on my bottom boundary and a top
boundary that I could cut the fence tomorrow and Milcombe
RC say so you can't. We can only interpret the
rules that the government have given us. So they are
saying it's your fault. You're saying it's their fault yep.
Speaker 3 (30:15):
So you want to job made you answer, yeah, go
for it. So yeah, look, we do want to value
that double the value of our exports. The bottom line
is agriculture and farming is the backbone of this country.
You should be deeply valued, not treated as villains. The
last lot went to war with you, they had twenty
three regulations. We've taken twenty one regulations out on the ORC.
We were really unhappy with them because we're changing some
things like freshwater management plans. We've got RMA reform coming
(30:37):
as you know, we're fast trap. But then next year
we've got the permanent RMA reforms coming through. We said
to ORC and every regional council, you know we've got
laws changed, don't don't carry on with.
Speaker 4 (30:47):
The old laws.
Speaker 3 (30:48):
They didn't, so we actually bought legislation and over the top,
particularly for ORC who didn't. We're making farmers go through
a process that's going to be redundant. But you asked
some good questions. I'm not we're not. We're not out
there saying we want to see the hood size go
down or anything like that. We actually want farmers to
actually grow. We want to grow dairy. We're going to
do it through technology. Sorry, what's going to happen with
the ORC? Then we'll be all of fresh on the
(31:10):
farm plans which they were running. We've actually said we've
actually put legislation because they didn't follow our guidance not
to follow. We said, look, don't put farmers in council
people through work that's going to get changed under new
laws next year. Anyway, they didn't do that, so we
put law over the top say you now stopped doing
that work. But we've got RMA reform coming to actually
liberate the system too, goes.
Speaker 2 (31:28):
Down there and says I want to expand. The RC
will now have to let him.
Speaker 4 (31:31):
Well, no they will.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
That will be depending upon what his individual situation actually is.
But what I'm saying is we've got macro reform of RMA,
which is actually what the councils then have to respond to,
and that law is all changing. As you've seen. We
killed you know, Parker's RMA before Christmas last year. We've
got fast track coming in now. We've also got there
next to the middle of next year, what we call
rm A three, our final solution for that, which will
be much simpler, more rooted on property rights, all of
(31:55):
that good stuff.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
All right.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
News Talks said, b carry, you sound angry with lux
and I think he's doing a bloody good job, says
muzz Mus. I can tell you. I'm in the studio
with her.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
I said at the beginning, you are happier this year
than you were at this time last year. I appreciate
your defense of me, but actually, in fairness, I think
Carrie's been much kinder to me this year than she
was last year. She was grumpy last year. I was
a bit grumpier and the year before. Yeah, the year
before you were very grumpy.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
To be fair, Christopher Hipkins wore the worst of that.
Speaker 4 (32:26):
I thought I walk on.
Speaker 8 (32:27):
No, no, no no.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
If you compared notes, you'd still see some of his scars. Anyway,
that's us. I mean, it goes so quickly, doesn't it. Well,
I brought your Christmas gift awkward. So I've got you
a lovely car with Amanda and I on the front
of it. Oh, how lovely. That's personal for me.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
And then I've got you some.
Speaker 3 (32:46):
Linch chocolates because I need those like a hole on that.
Speaker 2 (32:48):
And then because you've.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
Gone alcohol free, I've got your Curious af Sparkley Rose
and also the Variety four pack so you can carry
on that.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
That's what they saved on your New Zealand. Yeah, that's
a really good thought.
Speaker 3 (33:00):
And then and then because you're being on aboutt Heath
not cleaning up the studio and Matt's note a good
job coming out out of what he's been doing.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Yeah, there, he's done a.
Speaker 3 (33:09):
Great job, but he's obviously got studio etiquet problems. So
I've left you some death old clean whipes as well.
But hey, listen, can I just say I hope you
have a great Christmas with your family. I know you
hang out with your grandkids and it's awesome. They've got
such a cool grammar like you. And to all the listeners,
I want to say, look, I know it's been a
tough year for everyone. I hope people get a sense
of the plan and starting to work, and we're turning
(33:29):
the corner. This is a country with great future. I
think twelve months down the road, I feel more optimistic
about what's possible. Yeah, I do, I honestly do. With's
no reason why we can't build the best small advanced
country on Earth period if we all work together on
doing that job. I feel very motivated about that and
very excited about that. And then I say to everybody, look,
just refresh, recharge, reflect, get time with your loved ones,
make some new memories, you know, decompress and getting up
(33:52):
for next year.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
Which will be when are you signing off.
Speaker 3 (33:55):
I'm going to go right up until Christmas eve, and
then I'll take a break between Christmas and just after
New Year, and then I'll be back into it early
mid January, so it'll be good. Craky, I'm ready to go.
We want to get going. We've got a lot to do,
a lot to sort out.
Speaker 2 (34:08):
Wow, there's not much of a break.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
No, but no, I'll be good.
Speaker 3 (34:10):
It'll be good, and I'll get ten days with my
family and it'll be fantastic.
Speaker 9 (34:14):
Great.
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Well, I'm glad. So thank you very much for your
time this year, and I know the listeners appreciate you
coming being accessible to them. Now this is your choice,
Chris Stapleton and do a leaper.
Speaker 3 (34:25):
Yeah, this was a great song, Chris Stapleton song song
of the Year. I think I'm in love with you
and I thank you Helen for playing my song rather
than the Christmas music at Boublet.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
What do you Why are you pointing? Because Helen is
the one who decides on the music. Helen, Helen is
the arbiterrible things. Okay, Christinepleton, do a liper Merry Christmas,
Prime Minister, and yeah, he's to a prosperous and happy
New Year for all of us, all of us. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
For more from Kerry Wooden Mornings, listen live to news
talks it'd be from nine am weekdays, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
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