Duncan Garner - Editor In Chief

Duncan dives into the trust problem currently rotting New Zealand politics. Whether it is Chris Hipkins flipping on capital gains or Chris Luxon introducing a new power "levy" that looks suspiciously like a tax, we ask if anything said before an election actually survives. Plus, economist Craig Renney and the Taxpayers Union’s Jordan Williams join us to debate the state of the economy and why Wellington is feeling so flat.

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We dive into the controversial cultural leave entitlements for Māori staff at Oranga Tamariki. Minister Karen Chhour joins us to explain why she finds the PSA contract disappointing and how she is campaigning for equality from within the system. Plus, Duncan tackles the Green Party proposal to grant whales legal personhood, calling it a constitutional experiment that could cause a logistical nightmare.

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On today's podcast, more on the whistleblower who came forward from Oranga Tamariki, with claims of race-based cultural leave that isn't available to other staff.

Duncan digs into why this government hasn't scrapped these entitlements yet, and reveals Minister Karen Chhour’s "please explain" that has been issued to her own ministry.

We also look at the "ethnic rankings" still being used in our health system.

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This episode starts with a whistleblower from inside Oranga Tamariki who says a newly negotiated collective agreement has crossed a serious line.

Duncan reveals a clause agreed between Oranga Tamariki and the Public Service Association that grants Māori staff discretionary paid cultural leave, with obligations self-defined and not open to challenge by managers. No equivalent entitlement exists for non-Māori staff. The whistleblower says they were too afraid to raise concerns internally, worried it could damage their career.

Duncan breaks down why he believes this is a race-based workplace entitlement that undermines trust, fuels resentment, and stretches the Treaty well beyond its intent. He also shares polling that points to a knife-edge election and responds to listener questions about Stuart Nash, cancellation, and forgiveness.

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Waitangi 2026 has come and gone, and all we got was noise, anger, and performance. Duncan breaks down why Māori politics looks broken and asks who is actually looking out for the aspirational Kiwis worried about jobs and housing. Plus, NZ First's Shane Jones joins us to discuss the "pantomime" at Waitangi and a major new minerals deal with the US.

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It was meant to be our year. That’s what we were told. But as 2026 kicks off, the numbers are telling a very different story.

Inflation is back up, unemployment is rising, and interest rates may not be done yet. On the podcast, Duncan Garner asks the hard question. Where are the green shoots we were promised? And what does it mean for Christopher Luxon as the election clock starts ticking loudly?

Duncan is joined by Bob McCoskrie and Ashley Church to unpack the credibility problem facing the government, why voters are running out of patience, and how economic pain is still hitting households where it counts.

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Is New Zealand being sold a lazy political narrative about Māori and this government? We reckon so.

As Waitangi approaches, Duncan takes aim at the claim that National is anti-Māori and starts pulling apart the record. From treaty settlements and co-governance to iwi wealth, education reform and charter schools, the evidence doesn’t match the rhetoric. Duncan lays out why the media keeps repeating a story that simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.

Political commentator Ani O’Brien joins the conversation to unpack activism, Party Māori, and why narrative has replaced outcomes in so much of our political debate. They also dig into education, why Māori achievement is finally lifting, and why real progress doesn’t always look the way activists want it to.

This is a straight-up challenge to the talking points, the media comfort zone, and the politics of outrage.

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For 20 years, our education system has quietly failed kids while the adults argued ideology, avoided accountability, and buried the data. Today, Duncan takes a hard look at why that matters and why things are finally changing.

We unpack the introduction of clear, national assessments and honest reporting in schools, why literacy and numeracy were allowed to slide for decades, and how measuring properly kills excuses fast. The results are already uncomfortable and hopeful at the same time, especially for Māori students who were written off under the old system and have surged ahead in weeks, not years.

Duncan also calls out the media silence around genuine reform, explains why bad news gets clicks while good news gets buried, and shares a very personal story about narrowly escaping serious injury after a freak accident at home.

Accountability, truth, and transparency. This is what real change looks like.

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What happens when the right to protest depends on who you are, not the rules?

This episode dives headfirst into the decision to block Brian Tamaki from marching across the Auckland Harbour Bridge, and why Duncan believes authorities have walked straight into a hypocrisy trap. You don’t have to like Tamaki, agree with him, or support his views. That’s not the point. The issue is consistency, fairness, and whether New Zealand still operates as a rules-based democracy.

Duncan lays out decades of examples where protests, marathons, bikes, convoys, and marches were allowed across the same bridge, then asks why this one was suddenly “too dangerous”. Ashley Church and Rod and Christie join the panel to unpack the political fallout, media silence, and what this sets up for the future of protest in New Zealand. From infrastructure failure to free speech, this conversation goes well beyond one man and one bridge.

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The Broadcasting Standards Authority is facing a terminal decline and they've come up with a desperate plan to stay relevant. They want the government to rewrite the law so they can police the internet and control what we say on podcasts and live streams. We talk to Ashley Church and Maurice Williamson about why this mission creep is a massive overreach for a 35-year-old regulator.

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