Politics Central

The Government wants to speed up land acquisitions for critical infrastructure projects.

Private landowners will be offered a premium payment to help the process run smoothly.

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Health Minister Simeon Brown wants to introduce wait time targets for general practices. 

GenPro Chair Angus Chambers says GPs want to reduce wait times, and understand very well how bad it can be, but they don't have enough doctors to improve it. 

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Laws to keep firearms out of the wrong hands come into effect today. 

The Government is expanding firearms prohibition orders to cover gangs and other high-risk offenders. 

Courts are now allowed to grant and FPO on the basis of gang affiliation to a crime, keeping guns out of the hands of guns. 

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance at the White House yesterday. 

Things turned fiery when Vance began to question whether Zelenskyy was grateful for U.S. support. 

Geoffrey Miller says if Ukraine was asking of New Zealand what they are asking of the United States, we wouldn't be happy either. 

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The Government today has announced plans to overhaul the Overseas Investment Act. 

Among the reforms announced, it will fast track overseas investment for decisions to be made within 15 days, and empower the Government to intervene if a transaction is not in the country's best interest. 

The overhaul would make it easier for New Zealand businesses to get new investment from overseas, as well as pay higher wages. 

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More calls for Destiny Church to be struck off the charities list and lose their tax deductibility status; but as the conversation around charity status goes on, questions are being raised on whether other organisations should lose their status. 

Sanitarium is just one of the giants that are tax exempt in New Zealand, and with more than 28,000 registered charities with an annual income of over $21 billion, a change would bring the country an influx of cash. 

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ACT's David Seymour believes the opposition has drifted too far to the left - and it's dragged the party down.

Seymour has fired back at Labour after a full week of scrutiny and calls to resign following his letter advocating for Philip Polkinghorne and the Land Rover on Parliament's steps incident. 

He says Labour used to stand for equality and democracy and fairness, but they've gone adrift over the years.

"They've given up on the idea of one person, one vote. If you take Willie Jackson, one of their most prominent ministers, who says - oh democracy has changed now, one person, one vote's not that important . Actually, one person, one vote is the whole point of democracy."

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Labour's leader has labelled anti-LGBTQ protests 'pathetic'.

People linked to Destiny Church stormed a children's drag event at a west Auckland library, leading to some 30 people had being barricaded inside. 

Later, police intervened when a group disrupted Pride Parade festivities on Ponsonby Road with a haka.  

Chris Hipkins says we have free speech in New Zealand, but it's not that.

He says that sort of behaviour isn't an exercise in free speech - it's shouting other people down and stopping them from what they're free to do in a democratic country.

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This afternoon the Prime Minister announced New Zealand will be relaxing immigration settings for investors. 

Two new immigration categories will be created to encourage wealthy foreigners to invest in Kiwi businesses. 

Investors will need to invest a minimum of $5 million over three years, or $10 million over five years. 

The visa's English language requirement will also be stripped, which Luxon claimed had scared off potential investors. 

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Winston Peters has hinted at relaxing the foreign buyers ban for those who are willing to bring over the big bucks. 

The NZ First leader said plans to lift the ban are a work in progress.

He says if foreign investors are willing to pump millions of dollars into other parts of the country , he is open to allowing them to buy property. 

Williams Corporation Managing Director, Matthew Horncastle, joins to discuss. 

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