Well, we are officially halfway through the election cycle. The coalition government has been in place for about 18 months now. David Seymour is our Deputy Prime Minister.

So, how are things going?

I did my first ever political roundup episode - I think it was episode three - and it ended up being one of our most popular ever.

Interestingly, you lot seem to care about what's going on out there, which is nice. So I thought we’d do a check-in, because it's been a year, right?

Just to set some guardrails: I'm very much talking about environmental and social issues. I'm not really diving into the economy (though it might get a mention), or the cost of living, or anything else like that. All big problems, all important topics - but I'm absolutely not educated enough to speak on them.

Much like the first time I did this, I'm going to try to be unbiased. I will probably fail, because I’m human, I’m violently sarcastic, and I’m obviously quite left-leaning.

Everything in here is factual. It’s been fact-checked. But as my mother would say: I might have a tone. Please forgive me.

In the episode let's talk about:

• Budget 2025 - the "no BS budget"
• What was cut in this budget?
• What were some budget additions that impact the environment?
• Some of the new legislation we should know about
• The Fast Track Approvals Act and what it means
• The shifting of the government's climate policy
• The agricultural legislation and how it impacts the environment
• Other changes including waste management, bottled water, and live animal exporting
• The impact of these changes on NZ's reputation and credibility
• The nonsense political narrative
• Some of the good things the government has done

The University of Canterbury submission's on Gene Technology Regulation:

https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/0e1aa118-5e68-4b43-b395-2a4487d90aa4/content

https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/fb5002ba-2e21-4a45-be4e-56d6259b4571/content

https://ir.canterbury.ac.nz/server/api/core/bitstreams/05dd6485-82e0-4f54-844b-8860e8548b68/content

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