Morning Edition: 15 July 2025

The Morning Edition of News Fix for 15 July 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 morning, I'm never ready Manu, and this is your
morning news fix for Tuesday, fifteenth of July. In this update,
border officials are calling for stronger laws to seize childlike
sex dolls. Unlike the UK and Australia, New Zealand officers
are limited to confiscating only fully unit dolls, meaning parts
are making it through the Chief Customs Officer and the

(00:27):
Child Exploitation Operations Team. Simon Peterson says there have been
seven border seizures and four post border seizures of the
high tech dolls since twenty seventeen. Almost fifty full in
part dolls were seized nationally by the Australia Border Force
during the past twelve months alone. The tertiary education unions
accusing the government of sugar coating its polytechnic reforms by

(00:50):
saying they're restoring regional governance. It's splitting ten of the
country's institutes off from tempul Kinga from January. A decision
will be made midnight on what happens with the remaining four.
The union says the move won't be possible without cutting
hundreds of jobs, courses and opportunities. NCEEA results have improved

(01:12):
slightly with fifty seven percent of students achieving the numeracy standard,
sixty one percent achieving the reading standard, and fifty five
percent achieving the writing standard. But Albany Senior High School
Principal Clear Amos says it's a feeling negligible change and
the results are still disappointing. Donald Trump's threatening very severe

(01:33):
tariffs against Russia if a ceasefire deal with Ukraine isn't
reached within fifty days. He's also confirmed plans to sell
top of the line weapons to Ukraine through NATO, saying
he's very disappointed with Russian President Vladimir Putin, so I'll talk,
and then missiles go in to Kiev and killed sixty people.
It's got to start. Auckland is being consistently outperformed on

(01:56):
economic performance and competitiveness, according to the third annual State
of the City Report. It says unlocking Auckland's next cycle
of growth will require sustate cooperation between government, business, EWI,
and civil society. Latest infometrics figures show grocery supplier costs
increase two point one percent in the year to June,

(02:18):
up slightly from the year to May. Costs are up
across the board and particularly for dairy products chocolate noodles
and produce. A jump in burial and cremation fees could
add more financial stress to grieving families. The Funeral Directors
Association says some regions are seeing council burial fees increase
by percentages in the double digits and cremation costs that

(02:41):
far exceed CPI Chief executive Gillian Boys says the average
burial now costs four thousand dollars, but the Wind's Funeral
Grant for lower income families is only about two thousand,
six hundred dollars. In Sport, England have won the third
cricket Test against India at Lord's by twenty two runs

(03:02):
to take a two to one lead in the five
match series. Simon Yates has triumphed on the Stage ten
Mountain leg of the Tour de France. Ben Healey has
donned the leader's yellow jersey. The steel have finished the
A and Z Premiership Netball season with a sixty one
to fifty five win over the Stars and in the
Cargo and All Blacks. Coach Scott Robertson has offered fans

(03:23):
the chance to send their quirkiest rugby tactics to him
in the name of innovation. I'm Neva retty Manu that
your latest newsweeks. We'll be back with the next update
at midday from the news talk zb news roup