Larry Williams Drive

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia supports the US strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities - but has voiced concerns about potential escalation. Albanese indicated no Australian resources or support were contributed towards the Trump administration's actions in the Middle East. Australian correspondent Oliver Peterson says the Prime Minister has maintained Iran must not be allowed to possess atomic weapons. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Du'Plessis Kirifi's decision to turn done an offer from Japan has been vindicated. The Hurricanes flanker is one of five new caps in the All Blacks squad to face France. He's also one of only five loose forwards in the 33 names read out today - with coach Scott Robertson opting to maximise game time of those selected. Newstalk ZB rugby commentator Elliott Smith explains further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Chris Luxon has expressed interest in scrapping regional councils as part of the new RMA reforms - and it's sparked debate among experts. NZ First's Shane Jones has expressed similar sentiments, having recently told a local Government forum he doesn't see a compelling reason for maintaining regional Government.  Greater Wellington Regional Council Chair Daran Ponter says there's a need to amalgamate local authorities. "Local Government's been up for that issue for quite a while for quite a number of years now - it's nearly 36 years since local Government reform gave us the current structure that we've got." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 19 June 2025, New Zealand has pulled almost $20 million of funding to the Cook Islands. Cook Islands News journalist Rashneel Kumar broke the story, he tells Heather how he found out and how terrible our relationship is right now. Kiwibank's Jarrod Kerr is celebrating a surprisingly good GDP number for the first three months of the year - but still thinks more cuts to the OCR are desperately needed to boost the economy. Another talkback-walkback! The Government u-turns on proposed changes to Fringe Benefit Taxes for utes. Heather speaks to the only one person in the country who can prescribe magic mushrooms, Professor Cameron Lacey. Plus, the Huddle debates whether it was a mistake to pull funding from the Cook Islands. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister  Sir Keir Starmer recently chaired a meeting to discuss the  UK’s response to the crisis in the Middle East. There's growing concerns the conflict could escalate further, should the US enter the conflict between Israel and Iran. UK correspondent Enda Brady says the UK Government will be weighing up a series of options, as the US hasn't revealed what actions they plan to take. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Auckland councillor Maurice Williamson and Wellbeing Economy Alliance director Gareth Hughes joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Farmers are up in arms over new changes to the FBT that could potentially impact ute owners. What do we make of this? Do we see the Government changing this? Was it a mistake for New Zealand to pull funding for the Cook Islands? How bad do the optics look here? Shane Jones is floating the idea of getting rid of regional Government altogether. Is this a good idea? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Israel-Iran conflict has continued on for a week - and it's seen markets dropping as more fear the conflict intensifying. Experts also believes markets are likely to drop further if the US gets more involved in the conflict. Sam Dickie from Fisher Funds explains the market impact of the conflict. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brendan Attrill, of Caiseal Trust in Taranaki, has been announced as the 2025 National Ambassador for Sustainable Farming and Growing. Attrill received the Gordon Stephenson Trophy at the National Sustainability Showcase at Tākina in Wellington. The Country's Jamie Mackay explains further.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New data out of Stats NZ reveals the country's gross domestic product grew by 0.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025. It's a stronger result than predicted by the Reserve Bank and Treasury. NZ Herald business editor at large Liam Dann unpacks these results - and voices his concerns about the future. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New research indicates New Zealand may be removing more carbon than it produces. A new study from NIWA has highlighted a potential carbon sink in Fiordland's native forests - and researchers found our environment absorbs at least 170 million tonnes of carbon per year. NIWA atmospheric scientist Beata Bukosa says it's still unclear where the carbon goes - and more research needs to be carried out. "It's maybe potentially exported somewhere else, so that's something we still need to figure out." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Federated Farmers is calling on Revenue Minister Simon Watts to rule out new changes to the Fringe Benefit tax that would impact utes. The IRD has proposed major changes to the way FBT applies to utes and farmers are concerned this would set them back thousands of dollars a year. Federated Farmers' transport spokesperson Mark Hooper says this issue started drawing in more attention post-Fieldays. "We've had a little bit of communication with the minister's office - as I said, we looked at it from a farm perspective, we could see that there were some issues with the categories they had laid out."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One expert has offered a positive view on Kiwi university ratings. Four of our institutions have improved their standing in the prestigious QS World University Rankings. Auckland University is highest at 65th place, and Otago is in the top 200 for the first time since 2022. Universities NZ chief executive Chris Whelan says they're good results. "Given the funding that we have per student is less than half of, say, the equivalent in the US and well below countries like Australia or the UK - we do incredibly well." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's claims the Cook Islands were left in the dark over New Zealand pausing funding.  Foreign Minister Winston Peters says a $20-million-dollar pot of development aid won't resume until trust is restored between our countries, who operate under a special relationship.  Its Prime Minister signed a comprehensive strategic partnership with China, without giving New Zealand any insight on the deal.  Cook Islands journalist Rashneel Kumar says the Government was caught off guard - and he explained that it has tried to ease fears the agreement with China may have caused.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kiwibank's chief economist says GDP figures released today show good momentum - but the next report isn't looking as good.  Stats NZ says our gross domestic product grew a strong 0.8 percent in this year's first quarter. It's much higher than predicted by the Reserve Bank and Treasury. Jarrod Kerr says there is less optimism around the quarter ending June.  "The data that we talked about was for the first quarter - obviously, it pre-dates Trump's tariff announcements, which has thrown a whole lot of uncertainty into the year. And it also predates the recent spike in oil prices."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Foreign Minister's pushing back on suggestions our geopolitical stoush 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 nation's cooperation deal with China.  Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls says Peters made it clear that New Zealand's issues are about the Cook Islands' lack of consultation with us.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After weeks and weeks of hearings, Erin Patterson's deadly mushroom trial is nearing its end. The 50-year-old is accused of intentionally serving a poisonous mushroom dish to her estranged husband's family in 2023. She maintains her innocence. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the jury is set to retire soon - and then a verdict will be unveiled. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Chiefs and Crusaders are set to face off this coming Saturday in the Super Rugby Pacific final. The event sold out Christchurch’s Apollo Projects Stadium and fans are gearing up for a memorable match. Sportstalk host Jason Pine outlined his predictions ahead of the match. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One single psychiatrist has been approved to prescribe psilocybin or 'magic mushrooms' for treatment-resistant depression. That psychiatrist is Professor Cameron Lacey, who welcomed the approval as an opportunity to provide treatment that can change people’s lives. Lacey says there's been a great deal of interest since he got permission to prescribe psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. "I think it speaks to the demand and eagerness of which people have been following this field." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Genetic testing giant 23andMe is being fined millions of pounds by the UK's privacy watchdog following a high-profile data breach. The breach saw the personal information of seven million people stolen. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says this is the most severe punishment the watchdog can impose. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister's revealed top-level legal advice was sought over the Reserve Bank's battle with Treasury for funding.  The bank received less money than it anticipated in the latest funding round - which prompted Adrian Orr to quit as Governor.  NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny unpacks the issue further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.