Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

The All Blacks’ 2024 schedule has been revealed, with 14 tests set for the upcoming season under new coach Scott Robertson.

It opens with matches against England in Auckland and Dunedin, followed by a highly-anticipated clash clash against Fiji in San Diego.

NZ Rugby boss Mark Robinson says the newly released schedule is part of a long-term plan to increase global interest in the sport.

"We need to get cracking to build awareness as a global game in that market, and we need to make sure that the All Blacks, and Fiji for that matter, are seen as the most loved teams."

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The All Blacks are expected to cover a wide array of venues in the coming months.

Five home All Blacks tests in 2024 will be played at three venues - Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin - with a test against Fiji to be played in San Diego.

Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explains further.

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An ex-cop says the police need to be more flexible about mandatory fitness if they're to attract more people.

The Government is committed to training 500 new officers within two years.

Former policeman Gavin Benney says the Physical Competency Test isn't fit for purpose.

He says some people who'd make great cops may not be able to do some aspects - such as the wall climb.

"Police are struggling to recruit suitable people. So they've limited themselves with people who can run, who can do that fitness test."

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If you listen to what Winston Peters is saying today, it sounds a hell of a lot like he’s keen to get us involved in AUKUS- the alliance between Australia, the UK and the US, which involves the Aussies buying those nuclear subs.

Clearly, AUKUS is coming up in the discussions that he and Judith Collins are having with their counterparts over in Australia today.

Now he was on Sky News this morning, and the host pointed out that Jacinda Ardern didn’t seem to love the idea of AUKUS, given that she reaffirmed NZ's ban on nuclear powered vessels and that that would definitely apply to the Aussie subs.

And then the host asked Winston if he had a problem with them as well.

And Winston said- "Well I don't know why you’re quoting the previous Prime Minister who gave up after all... but on these issues, the then-Prime Minister displayed an enormous lack of understanding or lack of clarity."

Shots fired!

But listen to what he’s saying, he disagrees with Jacinda and he sounds keen on AUKUS. And actually the more I read about it, the more I think I agree with him.

Anyone who believes there is no reason for us to join an alliance like AUKUS needs to stop being naïve about what's happening in the world.

If the risk of war was a temperature setting on an oven, the dial has been moved up quite a lot in just the last few weeks.

Governments across Europe are warning of war. The Germans, the Swedes- the UK head of army spoke about maybe needing conscription, for goodness sake.

Maybe they’re being alarmist for their own ends, but maybe they’re right. There are after all two significant wars going on at the moment in the Ukraine and the Middle East that could spiral with one ill-considered action.

Never mind the considerable build up of Chinese warships and planes near Taiwan just in the last few days.

There's a debate about whether AUKUS even wants us- maybe we’re getting ahead of ourselves asking to be included. But if they do want us, I think we should want them too.

We need to get real about how worried Governments are about the world’s temperature right now.

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Post-Brexit controls on food, plant and animal imports to Britain from the EU have recently come into force.

Health certificates will now be required on goods ranging from produce, to meat, to even cut flowers.

Industry experts warn these changes could create delays and push up costs- but some hope it will encourage UK farmers to be more competitive.

UK correspondent Gavin Grey explains what these changes mean for the UK going forward.

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Tonight on The Huddle, former NZ First Press Secretary Georgina Stylianou and Capital director Ben Thomas joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day- and more!

Mark Mitchell was forced to stand up and pretend he made a mistake by telling everyone it's going to take longer than promised to get the 500 new police officers. Did he make a good point? Who will be proven right in two years?

An unfortunate recording of an exchange between an ex-prisoner and his Work and Income case manager has surfaced- is this an isolated incident or evidence of a concerning issue?

The new recycling rules kick in on Thursday, February 1- how prepared are we? 

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ANZ has released their latest Business Confidence survey, creating a complicated picture for the economy.

Business confidence rose 4 points to +37 in January, while expected own activity fell 3 points to +26.

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says businesses are forecasting a clearer economic pathway following a tough couple of years- but we're not out of the woods yet.

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The Government has decided against scrapping a new regime aimed at preventing banks, insurers and non-bank deposit takers from mistreating customers.

This Code of Conduct was established following a 2018 Royal Commission exposing questionable behaviour by Australian banks.

NZ Herald Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny explains why institutions were surprised by this 'inevitable' announcement.

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The holidays have wound down and central banks are back in action- what can people expect for the new year?

2023 was dominated by rate hikes to curb rampant inflation generated by the Covid-19 pandemic, and now the focus has turned to the prospect of cuts.

Milford Asset Management's Katlyn Parker says there's a risk the market is expecting too much too soon, as inflation is still sticky.

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The Government are denying there's confusion around the proposed target to get 500 more police officers within two years.

Police Minister Mark Mitchell has had to correct the record in the House, after saying the Government had extended its deadline to deliver 500 more cops.

National and New Zealand First agreed to meet the goal in two years - but Mitchell previously stated they needed three, due to significant challenges.

ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says Mark Mitchell was 'hung out to dry', as recruiting that many new officers remains an unrealistic goal.

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