A capital gains tax is being pitched as the best way to avoid overtaxing the poor.

Most of the 10-member Tax Working Group have reached an agreement that the tax on profit from asset sales should be a part of our system.

Chair Sir Michael Cullen told Mike Hosking without it, the money will have to come from raising income taxes.

"New Zealand has a very flat tax system by international standards, and it needs to be weighted towards taking more from higher income earners."

Cullen says using the capital gains tax as an election pledge, as we have seen time and time again, needs to be seriously looked at.

"You have to go into the election with the full programme absolutely clear so everyone understands it."

The group is due to deliver its report to the Government no later than February.

LISTEN ABOVE AS MICHAEL CULLEN SPEAKS TO MIKE HOSKING

Fruit, vegetables and meat in our supermarkets will soon be stamped with the country they came from.

The food covered under the bill are those with only one ingredient which are either unprocessed or have minimal processing.

They include fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables, seafood and meat, including cured pork products such as ham and bacon.

The bill is in the name of Green Party MP Gareth Hughes who told Mike Hosking there is a range of reasons why people care where their food comes from.

"Kiwi's want to know where there food comes from, and thanks to this bill they will be able to find out. I think people have the right to know where there food originates from."

Hughes told Mike Hosking he wanted a workable, pragmatic and cheap bill to enforce, and believes this will be a popular decision.

"We will now join 55 other countries in having some form of country of origin labelling for food, which is a great thing"

LISTEN ABOVE AS GARETH HUGHES SPEAKS TO MIKE HOSKING

An academic is concerned New Zealand's relationship with China could suffer after the GCSB decided Spark couldn't use Chinese equipment for its 5G network.

The GCSB says using Huawei hardware would raise a significant security risk. 

Victoria University strategic studies professor, Robert Ayson, told Mike Hosking it is a bold move.

"I think it's an important sign that New Zealand's approach to China is becoming more cautious. I think the special friendship between New Zealand and China is now a little less special in some ways.

He said it's a change in approach by New Zealand in how it's dealing with China.

"This is really going to be the further sign of New Zealand getting more concerned about China's activities including the activities of companies associated with China."

Ayson said the decision would have been based partly on security concerns and partly on the issues it could raise with the Five Eyes intelligence alliance.

"I think quite a few people will be reading this as New Zealand sitting in with the preferences of key partners Australia and the United States who have concerns."

"In a Five Eyes context, I guess one of the question is, does New Zealand want to be seen as a weaker link?"

The GCSB's apparent move comes after reports on Friday that the US was pressuring allies to drop Huawei.

Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway says he "had to weigh up Karel Sroubek's personal safety with public safety" when making the decision to grant the Czech drug smuggler residency.

Yesterday, the Immigration NZ review of the case found that Sroubek may be liable for deportation based on new information that Sroubek was convicted in the Czech Republic. Immigration NZ did not know this because Sroubek came to New Zealand under a different name.

Iain Lees-Galloway told Mike Hosking he had take into consideration the claim that Sroubek feared for his life if he returned to the Czech Republic. 

"There are expectations that we take into consideration peoples' personal safety, whatever they have done we are not a country that just sends people off into a situation where their personal safety is going to be at risk.This has to be weighed up against public safety."

"What I was doing was weighing his safety against public safety and on the information that I had, I made the determination that I did. Of course when I got new information, I got the full picture, I made a different decision. 

When challenged by Mike Hosking that he all the necessary information since the start, the Minister again reiterated that he had to take Sroubek's safety into consideration.

"I need to take into consideration a risk to his safety and then I need to take into consideration what the risk to his personal safety was."

Responding to questions over why the Czech drug smuggler's safety was of such concern, Lees-Galloway said "New Zealand is a country where we don't send people to their death".

"A judge has previously found that he thought he would be at risk if he returned to the Czech Republic."

When asked why he didn't seek legal advice prior to his decision, Lees-Galloway said he didn't feel he needed it.

"An enormous amount of work goes into preparing these files. Officials put these files together. There is legal advice during the preparation of these files. For me there was no legal question that I needed legal advice on."

"Of course, I took into consideration that he may be embellishing, that he may be misleading."

He said he followed the "usual process" with Sroubek's case.

"I also had in the file statements form official documents that he had no violent history in New Zealand, that he presented a low risk of re offending and that he had no connections with gangs."

The Immigration Minister said the fact that Karel Sroubek was wanted by Czech authorities when he was granted residency doesn't change the circumstances. 

"Just because I've got more information about what a person has done in this country doesn't necessarily change the risk to them back in their home country."

Iain Lees-Galloway says he accepts he could have asked more questions but stands by the decision he made.

"I made a decision based on the information I had. When I got new information and a fuller picture, I made a different decision."

When challenged over what new information he has now, Lees-Galloway said he has to look at the bigger picture.

"I have to think more thoroughly than that. I've got to actually consider all the facts in the case."

The Minister said he has to take Sroubek's safety into his decision. 

Lees-Galloway said he won't resign over this issues because he doesn't want to "run away from it".

"Quiting is running away from this issue. I want to face up to it. I want to sort it out ad I want to make sure that all these decision are made correctly every single time, that responsibility is on me and I am facing up to that responsibility."

Lees-Galloway has apologised to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern over his handling of the matter.

Case history

Lees-Galloway had cancelled Sroubek's deportation liability in September and granted him residency in his real name, even though Sroubek had gang associations and is in prison for smuggling MDMA.

Earlier this month, the minister ordered a review of the decision after a court document noted that Sroubek twice travell...

Stuart Nash is hoping the review into bullying in parliament will see MPs who manage a large number of staff members get more training and support. 

Yesterday, Speaker Trevor Mallard announced a review into the nature and extent of bullying and harassment at Parliament. 

While the review had been planned for some time, it has been given renewed impetus following the sexual assault scandal surrounding Russel McVeigh, allegations of bullying behaviour against Botany MP Jami-Lee Ross - who denies acting improperly - and Dame Laura Cox's report into bullying and harassment of the UK's House of Commons staff.

Police Minister Stuart Nash told Mike Hosking Parliament has the same issues as any other workplace.

"There are a lot of people who work in Parliamentary services [and] I'm assuming unfortunately it's the same in all businesses but there are pockets where there are bullies and there are those who work in fear, and that is not right in any way shape or form."

"It will be interesting to see what Trevor's investigation uncovers, but I hope, and I sincerely hope that what it does uncover is that there are small pockets where we need change."

He said hopefully the review will help increase support for MPs who manage a large number of staff.

"I think what he is signalling, more importantly, is that maybe some MPs need a little bit of training around how to manage people before they come or as part of their induction, because there are a whole number of MPs who are arriving here with no managerial experience whatsoever and yet they have staff who work in their offices and without experience or a level of competence in that area it can be difficult."

Rodney MP Mark Mitchell agrees, telling Mike Hosking it's very common for MPs to arrive with no experience managing people.

"Some may have a lot of managerial experience. They may have their own companies or manager their own teams and understand how to build a team and have a healthy culture."

"But you have others who have no experience, and I'm not saying they are not capable of building a healthy culture and a good team, but there is a huge disparity there and I have always felt and always said to parliamentary services that as part of the induction you must get in there and identify where people have got strengths, weakness and experiences and fill the gaps."

Auckland Council's car-free trial in the central city won't come without challenges.

Yesterday, all councillors voted in favour of the trial, with only one expressing concern over the project. 

The trial will start next year, with Queen Street and other surrounding streets set to be temporarily closed to non-essential vehicles.

The plan is being met with scepticism from some urban planners. 

Bruce Weir, from the Auckland Property Group, still love their cars, and many people will drive into the city regardless.

He told Mike Hosking that if you are going to ban cars from the CBD, you need a complementary strategy.

"Where do you put the cars, because at the moment we have a limited number of parking buildings."

Weir says that there are no easy fixes to solving the problem.

The plan is being supported by those who live in the city.

Central City Residents Group spokesperson Emily Reeves say it'll be interesting to see how Queen Street will adapt to the change.

"We just think it's a bold idea and it's a chance to really transform the city, so we look forward to seeing how it turns out." 

The project will be open to public consultation before anything goes forward. 

LISTEN TO BRUCE WEIR TALK WITH MIKE HOSKING ABOVE

Former Warriors captain Monty Betham is warning against reading too much into the Shaun Johnson versus Warriors saga. 

Shaun Johnson has requested to be released from the final year of his contract after the Warriors made it clear they are in no rush to re-sign him beyond 2019.

Monty Betham told Mike Hosking it is a hard situation but unfortunately, it's "just business".

"How can you not get emotional about it? When you love the club as much as you do, when you get up on the highs and lows as only the Warriors can do - you get emotional."

"However, having been there as a player myself and having seen some of the greats of the game [...] finish in a way that isn't a fairy tale ending ... it's just business."

He said the process has been messy and has put both sides in tricky positions. 

"I don't know if that is actual fact that there is nothing past 2019. I know Shaun has said that but maybe it's nothing in terms of what he was interested in."

"I think you have got one club that is doing the right thing as a business organisation which they should be commended for."

"Then you have got a player as well, who is probably doing the right thing from his standpoint at 28 years of age because not everyone wants to go on one-year contracts to test the waters, to potentially get injured and then your value decreases," he said.

"Everyone is saying Shaun is getting a little bit emotional or his ego is getting in the way but in actual fact, he may be looking at stability. He has never been like this before. He has never had to go year to year and now he is in a position where that might happen."

Betham said it's still unclear whether the Warriors don't want Shaun Johnson playing for them or whether they just don't want to be paying $1 million. 

"There are a lot of people out there saying, throughout the year, that Shaun's not worth $1 million. They are saying that one week then the next week he is absolutely worth the $1 million so with the NZ Warriors supporters they are up and down each week, just like the team [so] it is pretty hard."

"It makes it very difficult to escape any pressures especially when you're Shaun Johnson, especially when you have got X actor [and] especially when you have been the face of the Warriors for many years."

Regional hubs could soon be a reality as the government struggles to keep the regional postal and banking services open.

The moves follows plans by New Zealand Post to close its last 79 shops along with various regional bank branches shutting down.

The Johnsonville Community Association are fighting to keep the branches open.

President Simon Pleasants told Mike Hosking they are worried because they don't know what a regional hub will actually look like.

"It does depend on what services are available, where the place is and what sort of staff it has."

He said the changes are unnecessary and the services should be left alone. 

"I don't see why we shouldn't just have what we have at the moment which is post offices with the Kiwibank in them. I think the Prime Minister and Grant Robertson, the Minister responsible for New Zealand Post, are spot on to be concerned over the loss of services and banking."

The banks are closing because they say people don't use the branches, however, Pleasants said he doesn't think that's true. 

"As far as I am concerned the one in Johnsonville does work. Whenever I go in there, there is always something of a queue."

He said the banks are only closing the branches because they are worried about money and not regional communities.

"The documents that are OIA revealed show they are only really concerned about the money and that is a key focus for them - the cash flow."

"The State-Owned Enterprises Act requires them also, equally, at the same time as being a money-making enterprise to be a good employer, which is fine, but also to be a good neighbour. It requires them to exhibit a sense of social responsibility."

Pleasants said the banks should consult the communities before making any changes.

New research shows New Zealand has the highest motor neurone disease mortality rate in the world and five times the global average.

The risk of developing the disease in New Zealand is one in 300 with more than 800 Kiwis diagnosed each year.

It is still unknown what causes the disease but the Director of the National Institute for Stroke and Applied Sciences, Valery Feigin told Mike Hosking it is more common in high income countries. 

"The causes of motor neurone disease are not well known. High income countries ave the largest mortality and prevalence rates."

"It is most likely that the burden of all neurological disorders including motor neurone disease will continue to rise. We have had an increase in the burden of neurological disorders from 1990 to 2016 of about 50 percent."

He said we are making "good progress" in the treatment of the disorders but not the prevention.

"Prevention and causes of neurological disorders many of them, if not most of them, there is still a big job to be done."

He said anyone who is above 40 could develop motor neurone disease. 

However, Motor Neurone Disease New Zealand's Carl Sunderland told Kate Hawkesby there isn't an explantion for why so many New Zealanders are dying.

"There's no conclusive evidence of why. There could be a variety of reasons but it is quite alarming that we do have such a high rate."

The early diagnosis of the disease is incredibly important but Kiwis face extremely long waiting lists to see specialists."

"One of the issues you have got with motor neurone disease is that it takes a long time to diagnose, because to give someone basically a terminal diagnosis every other option has to be ticked off first. So getting in to see a neurologist early is the key."

A summit on brain health - is being held at AUT in Auckland today but, in general, Sunderland says there is not enough research into the disease.

"There is not that much research happening in New Zealand and there really does need to be a bit more."

He said the impacts of motor neurone disease is largely unknown in New Zealand. 

"Unless you're actually effected by it I think the awareness is actually quite low."

"It is seen as a rare disease because the actual number of people living with it at any one time in New Zealand is reasonably low, compared to other disease, but the diagnostic rate actually is quite high - it's the third highest neurodegenerative disease that is diagnosed in New Zealand after Parkinson's and Alzheimer's."

Nine-time Grammy Award-winner Norah Jones is making her long-awaited return to New Zealand next year for a massive run of five shows.

Since her groundbreaking 2002 debut album, Jones has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide, traversing genres including jazz, country, folk, rock and soul.

Jones told Mike Hosking she has to keep motivated to perform her best music, which is one of the reasons she is touring.

"I enjoy trying new things and changing the way I perform to keep things exciting. I want to keep excited, so that is why I am coming down to New Zealand."

When asked if she preferred making albums or touring the world, Jones said she likes to keep a healthy balance.

"Touring all year is just too much, it is really fun to use the internet to get my music out there so I can do the things I want to do."

This visit will mark the Come Away With Me singer's first performances in New Zealand in 14 years.

LISTEN ABOVE AS NORAH JONES SPEAKS TO MIKE HOSKING