Wellington Central MP and Green Party police spokesperson Tamatha Paul is under fire for comments she made about beat cops at a 'radical alternative to policing event' in Christchurch. 

She claimed "Wellington people do not want to see police officers everywhere" and all beat police do is "wait for homeless people to leave their spot, pack up their stuff and throw it in the bin". 

The MP joined Nick Mills to discuss her comments, as well as react to new proposed electorate boundaries which will see changes to her Wellington Central seat. 

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It’s a huge weekend coming up in the capital.

Wellington’s Cuba Dupa street festival returns to Cuba St with more 170 performances across Saturday and Sunday spanning music, dance, theatre and visual arts.

One of the acts is called Fun and Funner - a children's band fronted by comedian Karen O’Leary and dad and teacher Tom Watson and sax player Eilish Wilson alongside Orchestra Wellington.

The trio joined Nick Mills in studio to talk about the festival and perform a song.

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Wellington's famous Cuba St will see more than 170 performances this weekend as the famous street festival Cuba Dupa returns for anotther year.

So who are the headliners, and what other artists are taking to the various stages?

Wellington Mornings music man James Irwin joined Nick Mills to preview the festival. 

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Bob Geldof is a musician, an activist, a charity man, and a Knight of the British Empire... despite being an Irishman.

He rose to fame as a member of The Boomtown Rats, but in 1984 an item on the 6 o’clock news sparked him to create one of the world’s most memorable charity drives; Band Aid and then eventually Live Aid, raising money to end famine in Ethiopia.

Geldof is in Wellington this week to share stories of his life and joined Nick Mills to discuss his legacy and what audiences can expect at Saturday's show at the St James Theatre.

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New Zealand First leader Winston Peters has delivered his state of the nation speech, decrying wokeism and DEI, and calling to "make New Zealand first again". How has his speech gone down?

Also, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has returned from a trip to India. What will come out of the trip?

Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls joined Nick Mills for the Beehive Buzz.

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The equivalent of the entire population of Levin have become jobseeker beneficiaries in the last 12 months, with more than 200,000 people now receiving jobseeker. How do we get people into work - and will things get better as the economy improves?

Also, The Wellington City Council pocketed $24,000 per week in fines from the new fixed bus lane cameras in Manners Street between June and December. The AA says it's abhorrent, and is punishing hard-working people from getting from A to B. Are these fines fair or should people know not to drive in bus lanes?

To answer those questions, legendary broadcaster Polly Gillespie and Hutt City Councillor and mayoral candidate Karen Morgan joined Nick Mills for Friday Faceoff. 

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The All Whites are in town to face Fiji in a Fifa World Cup qualifier match. What can we expect - and can we make it to the World Cup for the first time since 2010?

Also, the Breakers basketball team has been sold - who's bought the team, and what does it mean for it's future?

Weekend Sport host Jason Pine and All Sport Breakfast host Adam Cooper joined Nick Mills for the Friday Sport Kickoff. 

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Nick was joined by National's MP for the Wairarapa Mike Butterick and Labour's Police spokesperson Ginny Andersen for Politics Thursday.

They discussed the gross domestic product (GDP) rise of 0.7% in the December 2024 quarter, following a 1.1% decrease in the September 2024 quarter.

They also looked at Health Minister Simeon Brown's spat with public health workers, the Prime Minister's trip to India, a 12% rise in Jobseeker benefit numbers and ACT's plans to enter candidates in local body elections this year.

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The New Zealand Herald's Wellington Issues reporter Georgina Campbell is finishing up after nine years working at Newstalk ZB and the Herald in Wellington.

In the final Capital Letter slot, she reflects on her most memorable stories, and how the journalism scene has changed since 2016.

Nick also took a trip down memory lane to one of Georgina's first live radio crosses on Wellington Mornings - reporting to former host Tim Fookes from the opening of the David Jones department store.

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Nick was joined for this week's business panel by Gillies Group owner Malcolm Gillies, and tech entrepreneur and founding member of Vision Wellington, Luke Pierson.

They discussed how their particular industries are faring in the current economic climate, and how the government and councils can help things move forward.

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