Midday Edition: 19 June 2025

The Midday Edition of News Fix for 19 June 2025, straight from the Newstalk ZB newsroom - bringing you everything you need to know in news, politics, business, entertainment and sport.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Good afternoon. I'm Malcolm Jordan and this is your midday
NEWSFACS for Thursday, the nineteenth of June. New Zealand's at
GDP increased zero point eight percent in the March quarter,
a little higher than the zero point seven that most
economists were predicting. It follows a zero point five percent
increased the quarter before. Activity increased across the primary goods

(00:25):
producing and services industries. The Foreign ministers pushing back on
suggestions our geopolitical stash with the Cook Islands will impact
our relationship with China. Winston Peters this morning confirmed the
government's halted development aid to the Cooks, with his ministry
unhappy over the lack of clarity around the island Nations
cooperation deal with China. Peters says he's made it clear

(00:48):
to China New Zealand's issues are about the Cook Islands
lack of consultation with us.

Speaker 2 (00:53):
So I went and told the Chinese put our special
relationship a long long time ago, and I went back
and on last visit to reiterate them there they entirely
understand what our rasture is.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
And Peters is rejecting criticism of his ministry's advice to
Kiwi's in the Middle East. The government's urging people to
leave Iran and Israel if possible as tensions ramp up.
A friend of a New Zealander stuck in Iran has
told are n Z the advice has been vague, but
Peters says people have been told not to go there
for months, and more clearly in recent days.

Speaker 2 (01:24):
There we are no flights, no trains, no buses, no
fuel in an absoluent crisis, and you've got people criticizing
an embassy or a group of several servants who are
working twenty four to seven to try and help them.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
Meanwhile, New Zealand's business and tourism sectors are seeing the
fruits of the Prime Minister's China visit. Chris Luxon and
his business delegation are hoping to boost diplomacy, trade, and
strengthen tourism and education ties. The Herald's Thomas Coglin says
the first day focused on trade and tourism. He says
Luxon confirmed a new flight from China to South America

(01:57):
will transit through Auckland, with transit fee requirements scraped.

Speaker 3 (02:01):
Timan has also announced a regulatory change which will allow
new Zealand's skincare producers to export their products into China,
allowing the much largest slice of the two hundred million
dollars cosmetics market.

Speaker 1 (02:12):
A furfth of Kyanga Order's vacant land is set to
go on the market and more than two hundred developments
are not going ahead. Chief Executive Matt Crockett's announced after
an assessment and decided two hundred and fifty four projects
will go forward, but two hundred and twelve won't. He
says they either don't stack up financially or are in
the wrong place. Housing Minister Chris Bishop says it's making

(02:35):
good financial progress.

Speaker 4 (02:36):
The government inherited a situation with King Aura where it
was a financial basket case running multi million dollar deficits,
with debt forecasts to grow to around twenty five billion
dollars by twenty six twenty seven.

Speaker 1 (02:48):
A major slip is delaying early opening of stretches of
Funga Purau's new pen Link Road near Stillwater and Arawaiti.
Final completion still scheduled for twenty twenty eight. Mushroom cook
Aaron Patterson's lawyer, has their final push across the Tasman
today to convince jurors she didn't intentionally serve a lunch

(03:09):
laced with death cap mushrooms to sport. Mystick's import Dennel
Wallam is nearing a return to Nepal's A and Z Premiership.
The Australian shooter suffered a wrist sprain last month and
has missed three rounds. The Black Sticks men have completed
a clean sweep of pool play at Hockey's Nations Cup,
beating Pakistan four to three in Kuala Lumpur to advance

(03:30):
to the semi finals, and the Wellington Phoenix women have
bolstered their A League squad for the upcoming season by
adding former Dutch international Tessel mid Arc to their roster
from Scottish club Rangers. I'm Malcolm Jordan. That's your latest
news fix. We'll be back with the next update at
five pm from the newstalk ZB newsroom