The latest unemployment figures show once again youth are hardest hit during economic headwinds.  AUT Professor of Economics and NZ Policy Research Institute director Gail Pacheco speaks to Kathryn.

More than 80 percent of councils around the country are planning a double-digit rates rise this next year. Local Government New Zealand president and Selwyn District mayor Sam Broughton says the funding system for councils is broken.

Comedic duo Michele A'Court and Irene Pink bring this week's lighter moments, including the cat who climbed into a postage box and travelled more than 1000 kilometres across America.

Qatar has made a surprise bid to host the finals of the new Rugby Nations Championship from 2026.  And in Mini-Golf news, Kiwi Matt Ansley finished second in a major world tour.

Work on the almost-completed Palmerston North cycleway has paused as arguments rage. Also, why ratepayers are facing an eye-watering bill for a new sewage treatment plant.

Lisa Adler from Unity Books Wellington reviews You Are Here by David Nicholls published Hachette

Jeremiah Manele has been elected as the Solomon Islands' new Prime Minister. Meanwhile police in Honiara are on high alert with the capital having a well-documented history of public unrest around political events. RNZ Pacific Editor Koroi Hawkins

The government has introduced new measures to increase school attendance, but some schools have devised their own initiatives to boost attendance and tackle the "truancy crisis".

Pensioners who bought their homes under an Auckland Council affordable housing scheme are worried for its future, as units stay empty amid a housing shortage in the city.

Film and TV correspondent Perlina Lau joins Kathryn to talk about Origin (cinemas), a thought-provoking film based on Isabel Wilkerson's best-selling book Caste: The Origins of our Discontents. She'll also talk about Netflix's popular Baby Reindeer series and new Kiwi film from Loren Taylor The Moon is Upside Down. Perlina Lau is host of RNZ's Culture 101 programme