Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Several Kiwi businesses are feeling the impacts of a tougher economic climate as they report their earnings.

Significant cost inflation and rising interest rates have impacted demand, and New Zealand's biggest companies aren't immune to the associated cost challenges.

Milford Asset Management portfolio manager Mark Riggall says it's gotten harder for businesses to offset input prices with consumer demand.

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The Prime Minister's highlighting controversial comments by ACT Party candidates.

Rangitata candidate Elaine Naidu Franz has stood down after revelations she'd likened Covid vaccines to Nazi concentration camps.

In the House, Seymour asked Chris Hipkins if his promise of a rigorous campaign means mis-characterising remarks by other parties- and Hipkins fired back.

ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper says the accusation that ACT's being propped up by anti-vaxxers will be the next controversy sticking to the Party.

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The Government has added a Cyclone Gabrielle provision into their controversial bright-line taxation rules.

It was revealed yesterday some cyclone-affected homes would be caught up by the bright-line test, which charges a capital gains tax on properties sold within 10 years of being purchased.

Tax adviser Bruce Bernacchi says this provision only covers those who accepted a buyout from central Government or regional authorities.

"It still doesn't address the issue, for example, of people who can't live in their house because their house has been cyclone-damaged and they're out of it for 12 months while it gets repaired."

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The Australian Government is considering a rule change that would see employers banned from contacting employees outside their working hours.

Under the proposed amendment to fair work laws, employees would have the legal right to ignore calls, texts and emails from their bosses off the clock- unless they're being compensated.

Australian careers expert Sue Ellson says she approves of the concept, but it comes with 'challenging' practical applications. 

"Clearly, there's a lot of people who feel they are always on, and that's been exacerbated by the idea of working from home. For a lot of people, the lines between work and home have become blurred."

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A former National staffer says diversity is an aspect of the Party's list ranking selections.

Dunedin-based List MP Michael Woodhouse said 'diversity won' - and told the Otago Daily Times he lost a contest between diversity and experience.

But he denies the paper's reports he also said being male cost him his spot.

Former staffer Ben Thomas says there are several ways to get into caucus, and Woodhouse fit none.

"The first one is to be part of his Cabinet considerations, the second one is to help with the diversity, and the third way is to win an electorate seat."

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Pressure on ACT over past anti-vaccine comments posted by candidates.

Elaine Naidu Franz has resigned after creating a post comparing vaccine mandates to Nazi  concentration camps.

Another candidate, Darren Gilchrist, has apologised for suggesting drownings were connected to the vaccine.

A third candidate called Covid-19 a ScamDemic.

ACT Leader David Seymour says the Nazi comment is unacceptable- and says he just disagrees with the others.

"If we're going to have purity tests and beat people down and have a 'right way' of thinking, that won't work. Because a whole lot of people, if they don't have the fashionable view, will find democracy's closed off to them."

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Tomorrow is D-Day for scientists releasing treated nuclear wastewater from the Fukushima plant into the Pacific Ocean.

It'll be done over the course of 30 years.

A tsunami and earthquake in 2011 caused the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl.

It's caused one cancer death, but long-term studies are needed to reveal other radiation related fatalities.

Curtin University Physics Professor Nigel Marks says dumping the water mightn't be politically popular - but it's scientifically sound.

"They've looked at in in great detail, and there's no question that it's an acceptable thing to do. The real problem is the social and political conception."

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The race is on to pick a future Republican presidential candidate- but front-runner Donald Trump is set to skip a key debate.

Trump won't join the eight hopefuls gathered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin tomorrow, and he explained on social media that the public 'already knew' what he could offer.

US correspondent Dan Mitchinson says Trump is set to appear on Tucker Carlson's online show that night- which may steal attention away from the upcoming debate.

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Concerns not enough is being done to meet demands of an aging population.

A report from commercial real estate company JLL says an extra 22,000 retirement village units are needed by 2033, a 33 percent annual increase.

It says demand's on track to be met, in terms of construction and planning.

The Aged Care Association's Katherine Rich says she's worried there won't be enough beds.

"We'd need another 13 and a half thousand by the end of this decade, and the Government has no plan. The problem is, they keep issuing loss-making contracts, so providers are closing their doors and not building enough."

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It pains me to say this, it really does, but unfortunately for Michael Woodhouse- diversity does matter in politics, as much as I hate that it does.

I think Michael Woodhouse has been treated poorly. There are other white men who work less hard than him and should’ve been bumped down the National Party list instead.

But he’s been punished because he’s not in right friendship group in National, and he’s a bloke. That’s really what it comes down to.

Now, the Nats will try to avoid admitting that he’s been punted down the list for being a bloke, because they know that heaps of their voters don’t like this kind of diversity nonsense. But that’s absolutely part of what’s happened.

Luxon’s been banging on about the need for diversity since before the Tauranga by-election, where the spot to be National’s candidate was fought over by four white men in suits. They got so much grief for that- so Luxon ramped up the calls.

Now, of the top 30 on the National list- 15 are women, just like Labour.

Six sitting male MPs have been dumped into insultingly low list positions in the 50s- Joseph Mooney, Scott Simpson, Stuart Smith, Tim van de Molen and a couple more who deserve to be further up.

And way higher up the list at 20, 21, 22, 23 and 27, there are five women you’ve probably never heard of because they aren’t in Parliament. That’s very high on the list for newbies.

Now, personally I hate this stuff. Because I would hate anyone to think that I got any breaks because I was a woman.

But this is how it works in politics. And parties have to do this, they have to play the diversity game.

And they have to play, because the media play. The media are obsessed with whether political parties or corporates or whoever have enough women or Maori or people of colour or members of the rainbow community.

And if that is what the media care about, then that is what the media will writes stories and headlines about. And therefore, it becomes an easy way for opponents to attack a party.

Just like National got attacked and got negative stories and negative headlines for having too many white men last year.

And so the political parties, if they want to give themselves the greatest chance of winning an election, have got to neutralise any weak spots that can create negative headlines. So they have to play the diversity game.

Look at the current parties in Parliament- every single one of them have a man, a woman and someone Maori in the top four. 

This is the way it is, and this is the way it will be until we stop being fixated on gender and race. Until then, white men will be bumped down, like Michael Woodhouse.

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