The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The All Blacks have plumped for Hoskins Sotutu to replace the absent Ardie Savea for the third Bledisloe Cup match in Sydney on Saturday.
Savea is missing the match through paternity leave, with the Blues number eight taking his spot in one of three changes to the pack.
Sam Whitelock returns to the second row, while Karl Tu'inukuafe gets the nod for Joe Moody who is still going through the HIA protocols after his Eden Park concussion.
Former All Black captain Buck Shelford joined Mike Hosking to preview the match.
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In Australia, Queensland will reopen its border with NSW except for the Greater Sydney region, despite mounting pressure on Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to reopen the entire state.
Just a day out from the Queensland election, Palaszczuk said people in 32 local government areas (LGAs) in Greater Sydney will continue to be restricted from entering the state.
People in the rest of NSW will be able to return to Queensland for any reason from 1am on November 3, which is pushed out slightly from the original reopening date of November 1.
"That is to ensure that all the border passes that need to be renewed will be able to be renewed effectively and efficiently," Palaszczuk said.
As well as Greater Sydney, Queensland's border will also remain closed to Victoria.



Today's decision, which affects about five million in the Greater Sydney region, is based on advice from Queensland's Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young.
Dr Young said she was concerned Sydney was continuing to experience mystery cases that could not be linked to known clusters.
"New South Wales put out an alert for six different sites across the city where they were concerned that transmission could have occurred," she said.
"So based on that new information yesterday and the information up to that point, I believe it is important that Queensland remain closed to those 32 LGAs in Sydney.
"Outside those 32 LGAs (there) have not been any cases in the previous 28 days. So that is really good news and NSW has done exceptionally well."
Dr Young said as the cases in NSW crossed local government areas, it was appropriate to restrict the entire geographic area.
"They are the risk, they are the ones moving around," she said.
"My concern was that there were four LGAs and then we had three cases and they had been to multiple LGAs. And then it becomes impossible to manage.
"So it really has to be a sensible geographical area because people do not live in LGAs — they cross out of those areas to other places and that is why you need to have a sensible geographic area."
NSW travellers will be allowed to enter Queensland if they flying from Sydney Airport, but they cannot stop in Sydney on the way to the airport.
The 32 black listed Sydney LGAs are: Bayside, Blacktown, Burwood, Camden, Campbelltown, Canada Bay, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Hornsby, Hunters Hill, Inner West, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Liverpool, Mosman, North Sydney, Northern Beaches, Parramatta, Penrith, Randwick, Ryde, Strathfield, Sutherland Shire, Sydney, The Hills Shire, Waverley, Willoughby, Wollondilly Shire, Woollahra and Sydney Harbour (Unincorporated).
The nearby council areas of the Blue Mountains, Hawkesbury and Wollongong are not included in the Sydney ban.

New Zealand's large ports are facing delays from a range factors, including some vessels just not arriving.
Shippers Council chairman Simon Beale says there needs to be good forecasting for shipping lines.
But he says some vessels have been delayed coming to New Zealand after port strikes in Sydney.
Beale told Mike Hosking operational changes following a recent death at Ports of Auckland, are also having an impact.
"Some vessels are going to Tauranga Port instead, which then impacts cargo movements on rail."
Beale says it could take until Christmas to clear the backlog.
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Building firms are seeing more light among the Covid-19 gloom than other industries.
A confident Construction Industry Council matches a bank survey showing building is more upbeat than retailing or agriculture.
Chairman Graham Burke told Mike Hosking the numbers are better than expected after a bleak forecast during the lockdown.
He says they haven't fallen off a cliff, and the residential sector is charging ahead.
Burke says commercial building is slower as a result of tourism and education struggling.
Burke says softer commercial investment by tourism and education, is being balanced by big government spends.
He says New Zealand isn't immune to the world economy, but we can talk ourselves into a slowdown.
Burke says the thriving residential market represents more than half of the industry by spend and workers employed.
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President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden are encouraging voters to turn out in person on Election Day next Tuesday, both campaigning in Florida, a state all but essential to the Republican's pathway to another term.
More than 80 million Americans have already voted, absentee or by mail, and Trump and Biden are trying to energize the millions more who will vote on Tuesday. While the Election Day vote traditionally favors Republicans and early votes tend toward Democrats, the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 227,000 people in the United States, has injected new uncertainty.
Trump and Biden were appearing in Tampa hours apart on Thursday. They're visiting the western end of the state’s Interstate 4 corridor, an area known for rapid residential growth, sprawling suburbs and its status as an ever-changing, hard-fought battleground during presidential elections.
“You hold the power. If Florida goes blue, it’s over," Biden told supporters Thursday.
Trump was celebrating a new federal estimate that the economy grew at a stunning 33.1% annual rate in the July-September quarter — by far the largest quarterly gain on record — making up ground from its epic plunge in the spring, when the eruption of the coronavirus closed businesses and threw tens of millions out of work.
“So glad this great GDP number came out before November 3rd,” Trump said in a tweet, predicting dire consequences if Biden is elected.
But economists warned that the economy is already weakening again and facing renewed threats as confirmed viral cases are surge, hiring has slowed and federal stimulus help has largely run out.
Biden, in a statement, criticized Trump over the report. “The recovery is slowing if not stalling,” he said, “and the recovery that is happening is helping those at the top but leaving tens of millions of working families and small businesses behind."
The visits come as Biden has framed his closing argument to voters on responsible management of the COVID-19 pandemic and Trump promises that the nation is on course to “vanquish the virus” even as it sets records for confirmed new infections.
The president had been scheduled to hit another Southern battleground state, North Carolina, on Thursday evening but canceled his event in Fayetteville as Tropical Storm Zeta brought wind gusts reaching 50 mph to the area.
Trump is holding three rallies on Saturday in Pennsylvania before launching on a whirlwind tour of battlegrounds including Florida, Michigan, Georgia and Pennsylvania in the closing 48 hours of the race.
Biden, meanwhile, heads later in the week to three more states Trump won in 2016: Iowa, Wisconsin and then Michigan, where he’ll hold a joint Saturday rally with former President Barack Obama. Biden's campaign also announced he will visit Minnesota Friday hours before Trump holds a rally in one of the few Clinton-voting states Trump is hoping to pick up this year.
The pandemic’s consequences were escalating, with deaths climbing in 39 states and an average of 805 people dying daily nationwide — up from 714 two weeks ago. The sharp rise sent shockwaves through financial markets, causing the Dow Jones Industrial Average to drop 900-plus points.
Trump, who frequently lauds rising markets, failed to mention the decline on Wednesday.
Trump is betting on the GOP’s vast field and data operations, and efforts known as “poll flushing” — monitoring precinct lists for who has and has not yet voted — to provide a late boost of votes on Election Day. The Republican National Committee, which has more than 3,000 field staff and claims more than 2.5 million volunteers, will use that information to reach out to Trump supporters to ensure they get to the polls.
Nowhere may those efforts be more important than in Florida. Without the battleground state’s 29 electoral votes, Trump’s path to victory is exceptionally difficult.
Trump was introduced in...

You beauty, Hastings!
The judges of the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Awards have confirmed what those who live in the Hawke's Bay town already know - Hastings is a beautiful place.
Hastings won the Most Beautiful Large Town and the Supreme Towns and Cities titles, at the awards held 'virtually' on Thursday night, winning a community mural valued up to $10,000.
The city battled competition from fellow finalist Cambridge to reign supreme at the awards which celebrate the environmental excellence of communities, businesses, schools and individuals in New Zealand.
"This is absolutely fantastic; these awards recognise the amazing efforts of all of our people, from our volunteers, staff and contractors, to our councillors and everyone in all of our communities," said Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst.
"I'm so excited and very proud of our district – not only do we know we are beautiful; but so does the whole of New Zealand!"
The awards, which are focused on sustainable practices and environmental excellence that keep urban spaces beautiful, were announced on Thursday night [Oct 29].
Thirteen category winners were announced after which Hastings was named the Supreme Winner.
The awards ceremony was to have been held in Auckland, however, because of the COVID situation at the time of planning, the ceremony was moved online.
Keep New Zealand Beautiful chief executive Heather Saunderson said Hastings stood out among all others.
"Out of all the towns and cities we visited, Hastings ranked the highest for community beautification, but also excelled across every other criteria, making it the clear winner of the Supreme Award," she said.
The Most Beautiful Large Town award is for towns with populations of up to 100,000.
There are 12 other awards, with each finalist having to demonstrate sustainable and environmentally conscious behaviours across four key areas; litter prevention and waste minimisation, community beautification, recycling projects and sustainable tourism.
Napier's Anderson Park was a finalist in the Best Loo category, but was flushed away by Hunua Falls Toilet, located in Auckland.
The winner of the Most Beautiful City was shared this year, with Hamilton being Most Beautiful Large City and Whanganui Most Beautiful Small City.
Arrowtown was the Most Beautiful Small Town.
The finalists were judged by Saunderson and award-winning journalist and wellness expert Rachel Grunwell.
Saunderson said celebrating the small wins of New Zealand is important in today's changeable world.
"This year Covid-19 has shifted the global landscape, and its long-term effects remain unclear," she said.
"Celebrating environmental excellence, small wins and beautiful behaviour, whether personal or professional is now more important than ever," she added.
By Louise Gould

While Donald Trump's campaigning on the ground, Joe Biden's making the most of online.
The US presidential election is next week.
Former Republican National Convention chairman Michael Steele says Trump thrives off having crowds around him.
He told Mike Hosking Biden's campaign reflects the realities of Covid-19, and is more digital as a result.
"Not seeing traditional big campaign efforts from Biden should not be taken as an indication he's not campaigning hard for the job."
Steele says there are multiple states where Republican incumbents are struggling.
He says there are also states where Republican incumbents have resigned.
More than 75 million people have already voted, more than a third of registered voters.
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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.
Oliver Hartwich.
9/10.
"Read his piece this week.
We don’t know how to have a national conversation, and we have fostered a social conformity that makes it hard to speak one's mind.
It's true, it's an awesome insight, and it's a must read."
Donald Trump.
8/10.
"If energy is votes, he's home free."
Joe Biden.
4/10.
"Is he really so far ahead he has to do virtually nothing?"
Melbourne and Victoria.
7/10.
"Because having been through lockdown ourselves we all felt the relief, didn’t we?
But they were only there because of a scurrilous and scandalous amount of ineptitude."
LVRs.
4/10.
"Almost certainly back, at least for investors, next month.
Adrian Orr will be reading OneRoof and freaking out."
Biscuits and the Labour/Greens Negotiations.
2/10.
That’s been our government for two weeks now.
A couple of meetings, no comment, just talk about biscuits.
Fortunately, there's nothing really important going on..."
Free Money for SMEs.
4/10.
"Kiwibank called them grants. But free money is free money.
And I can't help but think it’s the banks wanting the government to do what they should be working harder at, supporting small business."
Heart Foundation's Recommendations on Red Meat.
4/10.
"350 grams a week, one lonely steak.
And, as it turned out, it got a lot of pushback from a lot of you that clearly like a steak, and won't be told what is good and what is too much."
Scott Dixon's 6th IndyCar Championship.  
9/10.
"Still amazingly underrated despite all the success.
He is literally one of the greatest of all time, and yet the Americans know him better than we do."
Sport.
8/10.
"Between the AFL, the NRL, and the baseball, it was a great week.
Three seasons were completed this week, and how grateful have we been for sport?"
LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW

I hope you’ve noticed this week the government literally missing in action.
I know they're somewhat limited as we wait for votes, tallies, and confirmations. But the overarching sense I get is that they are in no more of a hurry to do anything now than they were before we voted. Part of that is because a decent chunk of us are asleep at the wheel and expect little, if anything, from them.
They have discovered the elixir of happiness for a lot of the population. Borders closed, do nothing, supply the welfare, and heaps of us are happy as.
The Ports of Auckland has taken over border testing such has been the government's failure. Epidemiologists are now suggesting a quarantine at home programme. Vets are screaming for help on bringing in skills from offshore. Tourism continues to cry out for any sort of plan around the border. Air New Zealand laid off another 900 cabin crew yesterday. Banks are suggesting grants for SMEs such is the misery at their workplace. SMEs are crying out for a pandemic plan. Sir Ray Avery joined the growing chorus of those wanting an inquiry into the response.
And the government says what? Hello? Heeeelllllooooo? Anyone one there, at all?
Add to that the stark and chilling revelations this week around vaccines. There isn't one, the chances of one by years end now is close to zero, even if we get one there isn't enough for Europe far less us, and the head of the British body says the early ones most likely won't work, if in fact any of them ever work.
So the big question to add to the myriad of questions, what's the plan? Given the only plan that we seem to have to this point is to wait for a vaccine. If one doesn't turn up, or if it does and this is merely a flu like scenario, what then?
When does the border open? And to who and how? How long does the government welfare tap continue to flow? How long before the cold stark realisation that an asset driven support programme isn't a long-term strategy? Once the Reserve Bank has launched its FLP programme and gone negative on rates, then what?
These are real and present questions, based on real and present facts. All of which have been part of the news landscape this week.
This stuff happened this week. And the government? Where have they been? What are their answers? What's the road map? When does anything actually get attended to?

David Seymour says once the End of Life Choice Act is voted in, it will be difficult to shake.
Preliminary results of the cannabis and euthanasia referendums will be revealed at 2pm this afternoon.
The Act party leader told Mike Hosking it's taken five years to prepare, along with 16 months in the select committee process.
He says if the result is what he hopes, the law will be in place for a long time.
"Members of parliament generally run a mile from these type of issues. If the result is what we hope for today, we will have this law for a long time."
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