The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The generation dubbed "the Zoomers" would prefer to see their workmates in the office -- than on a Zoom call.
New research by Mainstreet Insights shows seven out of 10 Australians see the workplace as their best source of social interaction.
Generation Z were more likely to find the face-to-face connection important, while boomers were less likely to.
Psychologist Gary Hermansson told Mike Hosking people like the convenience of working from home, but it isn't surprising they feel lonely.
"I think we're in a stage of transition in that regard. I think there has been quite a fundamental shift. We got a sense early on about wellbeing at home...that choice highlights contrast much more."
 
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Joe Biden is talking up the achievements, of the latest G7 Summit.
The US President has met with leaders of other powerful countries at the meeting in Cornwall.
The leaders agreed to fund a billion Covid-19 vaccine doses for poorer countries, and improve early warning systems to prepare for future health crises.
US correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking they also made a vague commitment, to phase out coal power.
"The significance of much of this remains to be seen. They did not reach any deal on a timeline to phase out coal for generating electric power."
Biden has also met with the Queen at Windsor Castle, before heading to Brussels for meeting with NATO and Vladimir Putin.
 
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The Government's being accused of disguising tax as a fee.
New rebates for new electric cars and used imports will be introduced next month.
People can get a discount of 8,625 dollars for new vehicles and 3,450 dollars for used.
The scheme will be funded by fees on higher emitting vehicles from next year.
Transport Minister Michael Wood told Mike Hosking that fee can be avoided.
"At least half of the vehicles coming in will either have a discount or be unaffected by the scheme. Plenty of vehicles actually don't get either a fee or a discount and people will have the choice to choose those cars if that's what they want. The nature of a tax is it's something you really can't avoid."
 
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Ransomware is a growing problem, and companies aren't making it any better by paying hackers the ransoms they're demanding.
The meat supplier JBS USA paid an $11 million ransom in response to a cyberattack that led to the shutdown of its entire US beef processing operation last week, the company said in a statement Wednesday evening. The Colonial Pipeline operator paid a similar ransom last month.
But Kevin Mandia, CEO of cybersecurity company FireEye is sympathetic to his customers who pay ransoms. First Move's Julia Chatterley spoke to Mandia Thursday.
Are we making it worse by paying these ransoms?
Kevin Mandia: Well, nobody wants to pay a ransom, and that's the beginning for all of these. You have to look at the risk. If you are a ransomware actor, you break into health care, and you impact the devices that maintain human life, the risk calculus is different in regards of payment of ransomware than if you run another type of business. Ransomware actors are targeting specific industires and public companies, recognizing the likelihood of being paid is far higher in those industries.
Are you in favor of banning these payments?
Kevin Mandia: You know, it is tough. If you go to the extreme, if you paid the ransom, you are propagating the challenge. You make the decision it is better to pay now and derisk our patients then the risk of moving your patients out of the hospital. A ban is far more complicated when you get below the surface. I've talked to the CEOs making these decisions. It is not simple and nobody wants to pay it and nobody wants to propagate the problem but they also do not want to hurt human life.
Explain why this is happening.
Kevin Mandia: If you can commit a crime from 10,000 miles away from a safe harbor with no repercussions, you are going to take shots indefinitely. And sooner or later they're going to work. If we don't find a way to impose risks or repercussions to those launching those attacks, over time, every company is going to have to deal with one.
How do we create repercussions?
Kevin Mandia: We are an international community. The internet connected all of us and been around since the 1980s. We got to figure out how we are going to work globally on this. If you want to be a part of the global economy, the bottom line is there are rules you have to follow. I think the answer is not just technological it is also diplomacy. It is going to take nations banding together to figure out what we are going to do about this. Most people think it has crossed the line of toleration. The status quo is no longer tolerable.
Talk about the impact of digital currencies. These payments are not being demanded in US dollars
Kevin Mandia: If you are an attacker and you want to monetize your hacking amendment, you hack into computers when you steal credit card data. Now you break in and you can deploy ransomware or you can steal documents and extort the feedback that you are going to publicly release private documents. So you had the anonymity of digital currency and now you can be anonymous in demanding your demand and paid it digitally. With every technological advancement, criminals figure out a way to use it. So there is no question we have to do little catch up now and look at digital currency and figure out how do we manage it in a way that's meaningful and prevent all the fraud that's occurring with the enabling digital currencies.
Are we winning this war or losing this war?
Kevin Mandia: I think you are fighting it every single day. Just because you read the headlines, we are certainly looking better and looking for ways for nation to respond cohesively. How do we respond as a nation? We are going to get better at this.
- text by Julia Chatterley, CNN Business

Nate Carroll is currently working with the Guinness Book of Records to get his year long record verified - 1,500,231 push ups in a year, and counting, seeing as he still has until June 13.
It equates to roughly 4000 press ups a day, and was done as a way to raise money for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation's Fallen First Responder home programme.
All done at the age of 45. 
Nate Carroll joined Mike Hosking.
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At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.
 
Job Ads: 8/10
"Yet more data this week that shows there are jobs, jobs, and more jobs."
 
Recruitment Issues: 4/10
"Oh, the irony. Work galore and yet so little take up.
This will bite us, you can't grow using no people."
 
Govt's Visa Changes: 6/10
"They're overdue and not nearly enough.
But with a government that doesn’t get it, we'll take it."
 
Global Economic Forecasts: 7/10
"The World Bank came in with yet more growth forecasts that show the planet is on the comeback path in a very, very big way.
Bring it on."
 
Ollie Robinson's Suspension from International Cricket: 2/10
"Tangible evidence that the world has lost the plot."
 
The Nurses' Strike: 6/10
"I doubt many don’t back their cause, but standby for a heap load more where this came from.
Fair Pay Agreements are where this is heading, on turbo charge."
 
Greg Murphy's Bathurst Comeback: 8/10
"Proof you're never too old, class is permanent, and dreams live forever."
 
Elliot Johnstone Signing with the New York Mets: 8/10
"A New Zealander potentially playing Major League Baseball.
How good?"
 
Newstalk ZB: 8/10
Station of the Year.
And dare I suggest, ever so humbly, very well deserved."
 
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Marama Davidson is doubling down when it comes to visiting gangs.
At a justice select committee yesterday Davidson was asked about her meetings with the mongrel mob, considering the violence they perpetuate and in her role with family and sexual violence prevention.
It was also revealed that Marama had visited the gangs, but had not visited Victim Support NZ.
She even encouraged National spokesperson for police Simeon Brown to meet with the people "at the forefront" of the harm that we should be all accountable for.
Simeon Brown told Mike Hosking he struggles to explain the treatment gangs receive from the government.
“Gangs are recruiting faster than our police, and the government and the ministers are spending more time having cups of tea with gangs than holding them to account for the harm they’re causing.”
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Claims have emerged that our primary school staffing model is broken.
An independent review by former education minister Steve Maharey recommends smaller classes, more teacher aides and more investment in Māori medium education.
The system is also apparently racist and failing Māori.
Finlayson Park School principal Shirley Maihi told Mike Hosking teaching has not kept up with the times.
“Our teaching profession is really stretched; it’s difficult to get good quality teachers. But also, the number of children coming to school with such diverse needs now has changed drastically over the years, but the support for teachers hasn’t kept pace with that.”
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Joe Biden is trying to reassert America's role in international relations -- during his first trip out of the United States since taking office.
The US President has arrived in Cornwall ahead of this weekend's G7 Summit.
He's already met with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- where the pair discussed their shared goals, like fighting Covid-19 and combatting climate change.
Political commentator Iain Dale told Mike Hosking  he'll also meet with NATO leaders and Vladimir Putin, before returning home.
“A really crucial few days for Joe Biden to really make his mark on the world and bring America back into the family of nations.”
Biden has also used his trip to announce a donation of close to five billion dollars to pay for 500-million doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine for the world's poorest nations.
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The evidence is mounting, if not now irrefutable, that what the government and the Reserve Bank have done in concert with each other is not having the desired effect they wanted housing.
Both TradeMe and QV figures yesterday give no suggestion that the housing market is taking any direction at all.
At best, the QV number shows a slight, and I mean slight, decrease in the increases we have seen – 0.1 of 1 percent, to be precise.
That could easily be winter, or if it was government policy, hardly worth the drama around it.
So not only are the figures showing no progress, there are a slew of market indicators  that suggest the changes are being counter acted on an ongoing basis.
Labour is an issue and shows no signs of changing. Supplies are an issue in a twofold way: one, they are costing more and two, you can’t get them anyway and as a result current builds are being delayed.
Money is still cheap, one product in the market has money at below two percent, and another announced over the weekend a new low for the particular bank at very close to two percent.  
Supply is still a problem, and that’s not just from housing not being built as fast as they thought, it’s the number of houses for sale. People won’t sell if there is nothing to buy, it’s a self-fulfilling issue, and hence people are looking at fewer options, therefore paying higher prices
This, we remind you again, is happening from the Gold Coast, to the Gulf Coast, to the Cornish coast: places where prices are at record levels despite a slew of tax and regulatory regimes already in place that look remarkably similar to the new ones we just put on thinking they’ll make a difference.
There is the anecdotal talk of fewer investors inquiring, fewer first home buyers taking the leap.
The irony of the latter part of course is these very measures introduced were specifically designed to quote unquote tilt the housing market towards the first home buyer.
The reality is this: the market and its increases will slow a bit for the rest of the year because they simply can’t keep going the way they have been.
But it is not the new rules that will do it, because it never was going to be, but then we told you that.
If interest rates rise, that’ll put a brake on. But as long as money is cheap, people feel business is going ok, as long as we can’t travel, housing will be what it will be.
And as we have seen this week with two more sets of numbers: the facts don’t lie.