Duncan Garner - Editor In Chief

This one might just be the poll that flips the script. National’s finally seeing results after a long, flat year, Labour’s had a bump too, and the left… well, that’s another story altogether. The Greens face-plant, Te Pāti Māori collapses to 1 per cent, and voters look like they’ve simply walked away.

We dig into why this shift matters, how economic optimism is creeping back in, and why Christopher Luxon suddenly has a bit more spring in his step. Duncan’s blunt about the mess inside Te Pāti Māori, and pollster David Farrar joins us to make sense of the numbers, the mood, and what this might mean heading into next year.

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We’ve seen some wild housing stories over the years, but this one takes the cake. In today’s episode, we break down the quiet Kāinga Ora deal that handed almost 20 state houses to Tainui for $10 million… and then locked every non-iwi Kiwi out of buying them.

No tender. No open market. No chance for anyone else.

Duncan unpacks why this long-standing treaty clause is suddenly being used at scale, why it’s stirring real anger, and what it means for home ownership, fairness, and the idea of one New Zealand. Then our panel - Ashley Church and Rawdon Christie - jump in to debate whether this is racial division or simply a treaty promise being honoured.

We also get into Andrew Coster’s fight for credibility, the year’s political winners and losers, and the moments that truly shaped 2024.

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Are we actually getting the truth about the state of New Zealand’s finances? Today we dig into what the government says it’s cutting, what it’s really spending, and why the numbers simply don’t stack up. Net debt is rising, weekly borrowing continues, and the tough calls we were promised still haven’t shown up.

Ashley and Maurice jump in with their usual firepower, breaking down everything from the cost blowouts to the Treasury warnings keeping people awake at night. We also look at next week’s massive RMA reforms, which could genuinely shift the dial for housing if the government gets them right. But who wins, who loses, and why is farming carved out for now?

Plus, Maurice unleashes on rates caps, traffic management madness and the staggering cost of bureaucracy that punishes ratepayers. It’s a session full of straight talk, sharp numbers and zero spin.

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Andrew Coster’s exit should’ve been simple. Instead, we’ve ended up paying for a slow, messy departure that highlights everything broken about accountability inside the public service.

Today we break down what really happened behind the scenes, how Coster fought to stay on full pay, and why his golden handshake feels like an insult to taxpayers and to the woman failed by police leadership.

We dig into the IPCA findings, the culture that protected senior officers, and the decision to keep paying Coster even after the writing was on the wall. And the big question that should have everyone rattled: why has the door been left open for him to return?

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This one has everything. Politics, pressure, and a school lunch saga that went seriously sideways. Today we unpack the spectacular backfire that’s dominated the headlines, after principal Peggy Burrows tried to pin spoiled lunches on David Seymour’s free school meals programme… except the facts didn’t land where she hoped.

We run through what actually happened, why the provider’s records tell a totally different story, and how a stack of week-old meals left sitting at the school turned into a national spectacle.

Then, David jumps in from the back of a car heading through the Waterview Tunnel to explain the investigation, the delivery logs, and why millions of lunches have gone out without issue.

Another big day on Editor in Chief. Let’s get into it.

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We knew the rates cap was coming, but no one expected the government to drag it out this long. On today’s episode, we dive into the plan to finally rein in council rate hikes… in 2029. That’s six years after National took office. People need relief right now, not in the next political lifetime.

Duncan reckons it’s a great policy torpedoed by hopeless timing, and Jordan Williams from the Taxpayers’ Union joins us to break down why councils are already licking their chops.

With spending up, payrolls swelling, and some councils proposing record increases, the delay effectively gives them three years to pump rates even higher.

We also get into the government’s wider economic credibility, the slow-walked reforms, Nicola Willis’ spending story, and whether this National-led government is sleepwalking toward becoming a one-term wonder.

Find out why Duncan says this delay is nothing short of a masterclass in political uselessness.

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We’ve got a Code Blue on our hands. Today we dive into the explosive claims from a senior health leader who says our hospitals are so stretched they’d be treated like a patient in full emergency mode. We talk about why Kiwi-trained nurses are being left on the bench while overseas staff walk straight into jobs, and why the system feels like it’s working against its own people.

Chris Luxon also gives the green light to move-on orders for Auckland’s homeless, and the team unpacks whether the plan is workable or just wishful thinking. Then we check in on Labour’s conference, their “ready to govern” pitch, and the policies that look good on paper but come without the numbers to back them.

Plus, Duncan shares a private nursing job opportunity for anyone keen to put their skills to use. Big stories, big opinions, and plenty to chew on.

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It makes no sense at all. We are crying out for nurses yet freezing out the ones we just trained. Duncan asks why we are pushing young talent to Australia when our hospitals are desperate. Plus the media ignores a massive win in maths because it doesn't fit the negative vibe. And is the PM actually in trouble?

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This one kicked off with a simple question: if Christopher Luxon really was facing a leadership challenge, who would you want running the National Party? So we put it to our YouTube audience, and nearly a thousand of you delivered a fascinating result. Chris Bishop edged out Erica Stanford by just a single point, with Luxon miles back and Nicola Willis taking a real hammering.

Duncan digs into why Bishop and Stanford are resonating right now, what each brings to the table, and why Luxon’s position suddenly looks a whole lot more fragile than the Beehive might like to admit. We talk momentum, credibility, and the difference between being a fixer and being a leader who can move the country.

There’s also your feedback on New Zealand’s strange lack of mandatory third-party insurance, plus a few thoughts on why consequences on our roads feel far too soft. Another sharp, punchy episode of Editor in Chief.

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This one’s a powder keg. Duncan takes aim at the government’s overhaul of the Hauraki Gulf, where so-called high protection areas somehow still allow commercial operators and Māori customary fishers in… while shutting out everyday recreational fishers.

It’s a setup that feels unequal, looks unequal, and is being sold as “protection” even though the sea only gets half of it. And heading into summer, Duncan reckons the backlash is going to be massive.

Then, we shift gears into another slow-burning problem - illicit tobacco. Duncan talks with illicit tobacco expert Rohan Pike, who warns that New Zealand is heading down the same path as Australia, with organised crime flooding the market, excise revenue disappearing, and violence likely to follow if nothing changes.

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