Holiday Breakfast

Award-winning NZ businesswoman Joan Withers has been made a Dame Companion of the NZ Order of Merit for services to business, government and women. 

She’s led many prominent companies, including: The Warehouse, Mercury Energy, Auckland International Airport and TVNZ. 

Dame Joan Withers told Tim Beveridge “You’re the first person I've had call me that – it is weird.” 

Withers said “People with background like mine don’t expect to get that acknowledgement.” 

Dame Joan Withers has a message for younger women: "It doesn't matter where you come from. If you work hard, keep your integrity and do the right thing - you can do many things that you might not have anticipated."

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Australian Defence Minister, Richard Marles, was critical of China's military build-up during his speech at a security conference in Singapore. 

Marles later met with his Chinese counterpart to raise his concerns face-to-face. 

The Shangri-La Dialogue has continued over the weekend, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to speak on Sunday. 

Australian Correspondent Murray Olds told Tim Beveridge “China has become more and more aggressive – publicly aggressive.” 

Olds said China has apparently been pumping potentially deadly underwater sonar waves to hit Australian divers in international waters. 

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American Public opinion on former US President Donald Trump's guilty verdict has remained mostly unchanged.  

The Presidential candidate's been convicted of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the New York hush money trial. 

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Tim Beveridge “A poll has revealed today that Americans are divided – 50% believe that the verdict is correct, and 27% do not support it.” 

Arnold said “Trump’s lawyers are lashing out at the judge – defence lawyers talk big about appeals, yet they rarely succeed.” 

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The Government's Budget centrepiece has been passed in the House, meaning tax cuts will become law.  

Income tax brackets have been shifted, giving most earners an extra $4-40 take-home pay each fortnight. 

Infometrics Principal Economist and CEO Brad Olsen told Tim Beveridge “The IRD estimates there’s around nine thousand people who will get slightly less than a dollar a week over the course of the year.” 

Olsen said “The government’s also been challenged for not funding cancer drugs.” 

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The working class man and one of Australia's most beloved musicians, Jimmy Barnes, is heading back to our shores for his 'Hell of a Time' tour.   

Over the length of his career Barnes has achieved 15 solo number-one albums in Australia, becoming 21 when combined with the five earned as the lead singer of ‘Cold Chisel’, resulting in him having the highest number of any artist, including the Beatles and Taylor Swift. 

Late last year the musician underwent a health scare, sending him under a surgeon’s knife and leading him to cancel the rest of his shows for the year. 

He revealed on Instagram that the bacterial infection he was battling had spread to an already-weakened valve of his heart and was undergoing open heart surgery. 

Barnes told Newstalk ZB’s Roman Travers that there were a few points where he felt like he wouldn’t make it through. 

“It was pretty drastic.”  

He’s happy to report that he’s now feeling “fighting fit”, having come through the worst of it and is now back swimming, singing, and training once more. 

“I remember just literally lying in the hospital bed and thinking that, you know, I might not make it,” Barnes said. 

“And I just figured that when I came through it and I was okay, I figured that, you know, I’ve got to enjoy every moment of life, you know?” 

He decided to treasure all the little moments, particularly with his loved ones, making a point to call his kids and tell him he loves them if he ever feels the urge. 

“I savour every moment.” 

Barnes has returned to playing live, celebrating the anniversary of his 1993 ‘Flesh and Wood’ album with a self-described ‘intimate experience’ on his ‘Hell of a Time’ tour. 

“It’s a joy to be doing shows,” he told Travers. 

“It’s a joy to be playing live.” 

The New Zealand leg of his tour gets underway in July, with tickets still available for Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin. 

Some artists are incredibly picky when they perform, liking to have control of everything down to the minutiae. Jimmy Barnes likes to be ‘across it’, saying that you have to have an eye for details. 

“My job is to make sure I get out and do the best show for the public,” he said. 

“To do that I don’t just look after what I do, I gotta look after what the band does, what my band are playing, who I’m gonna work with." 

“The show starts as soon as the door opens up.” 

Barnes is picky with his opening act, telling Travers that he wants people to come in and see a good opener, someone who’s exciting to see. 

“From the minute people walk into the auditorium to the minute they leave, they’re entertained, then that’s me doing my job.” 

Every show on the ‘Hell of a Time’ tour is an ‘intimate experience’, Barnes forgoing the traditional rock concert, stripping it right back and digging into the stories behind the songs. 

“It’s quite interactive with the crowd,” he revealed, promising chats, laughs, and interactions with the entire Barnes family. 

‘My wife, and my daughter, two daughters, are actually on stage with us.” 

“It’s quite unique.” 

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Dawn services have been held around the country this morning. On ANZAC Day, thousands of soldiers who fought for New Zealand in the great World Wars are remembered. 

Winston Peters and the Kiwi Defence Force contingent are at the Gallipoli Dawn Service. The Defence Force had a rocky start to the visit, with lost bags amid the chaos of Dubai’s floods meaning they will now play a reduced role in the service. 

Defence Force Chief, Air Marshal Kevin Short tells Roman Travers thousands were in Wellington this morning making for a very moving dawn service.  

The Defence Force has assisted RSAs throughout New Zealand to put on commemorative services in small towns and cities.  

Short says the government can always do a bit more to support veterans, even while acknowledging dollar-based limits. 

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Labour Party Leader Chris Hipkins says yesterday’s cabinet reshuffle shows “the wheels are falling off already”.  

Paul Goldsmith will take over Melissa Lee’s role as Broadcasting Minister and Louise Upston will take over from Penny Simmonds as Disability Issues Minister. 

Hipkins tells Roman Travers Lee didn’t come up with a single new idea on how to deal with the changing media landscape in her six years as broadcasting spokesperson in opposition. He says one of the main problems for media is companies like Google and Facebook profiting from content that they don’t actually produce. 

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The Warriors are dusting themselves off from last week’s shocking loss to the Dragons. The team are looking to hit back hard in today’s ANZAC Day clash against the Gold Coast Titans.  

Former Warriors player and commentator Adam Blair tells Roman Travers the Warriors need to bounce back after letting themselves down defensively last week.  

The Warriors have lost their past eight ANZAC Day games but Blair says facing a different team this year may put something on our side of the waters. 

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Yesterday, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced a cabinet reshuffle, dropping Melissa Lee from the Media and Communications portfolio. Paul Goldsmith will take over the role. 

Former Newshub Head of News Mark Jennings tells Roman Travers when it came to the crunch, Lee didn’t deliver. A major factor in Lee’s removal was her failure to present a coherent plan or solution for problems currently facing the media. 

Jennings says Goldsmith has a challenge in making a difference in New Zealand media, due to different companies in many different mediums.  

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Prime Minister Christopher Luxon dropped a shocking cabinet reshuffle yesterday, stripping two ministers of their portfolios.  

Melissa Lee is out of cabinet and lost the Media and Communications portfolio and Penny Simmonds has been dropped as Disability Issues Minister. 

Luxon tells Roman Travers the complexity of the two portfolios has increased dramatically over the last few months and he wants them handled by more senior Cabinet ministers. 

Paul Goldsmith will take over Media and Communications, while Louise Upston will pick up the Disability Issues portfolio. Luxon says these ministers have good synergies in their respective portfolios to take these new roles on board. Goldsmith currently looks after Arts, Culture and Heritage and Upston is Minister for Social Development.  

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