Politics Central

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown and Simeon Brown unveiled their new water plan for the city, which will see an increase of rates by 7.2 percent, rather than the 25.8 percent proposed by Watercare. Simeon Brown joins the Weekend Collective to explain further. Later, Julie Anne Genter has been accused of 'intimidating' behaviour after a disagreement saw the Green MP leave her seat to confront a Government minister during a transport debate. Former Speaker of the House, Sir Lockwood Smith, joins the Weekend Collective to explain why 'standards have slipped'. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The standard of Parliament has been called into question as Green MP Julie Anne Genter undergoes disciplinary action. Ms Genter confronted Minister Matt Doocey on Wednesday. She has until midday Monday to make any representations to the Speaker, before he decides if she will be referred to the Privileges Committee. Former speaker of the house Sir Lockwood Smith says Parliament standards have slipped. "Members of Parliament are meant to be seen as leaders, if you like. How they behave is important, because they should behave in a way that you'd expect of leaders." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A deal between Auckland Council and the Government has helped Aucklanders avoid the projected 25.8 percent increase in water rates. Auckland Council will retain local control of water assets, as part of the Local Water Well Done plan. Local Government Minister Simeon Brown says councils will have more control over their water assets under their scheme. Local councils will be asked to put forward their water service delivery plans for the next 12 months. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Politics Central, former Te Whatu Ora chairperson Rob Campbell criticises the organisation's decision to make savings at the country's hospitals, saying they are 'extraordinary' and signal poor management. Later, five academics and public figures were set to debate free speech at Victoria University in Wellington last Monday, but backlash within the university has seen the event postponed. Both Victoria University's Students' Association president and the university's Vice-Chancellor offer their takes. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Victoria University's Vice-Chancellor has his own concerns over an infamous free speech panel event. A selection of public figures and academics were set to debate free speech, but backlash within the university led to the event being postponed. Vice-Chancellor Nic Smith says it's a 'travesty' that people are no longer willing to listen and draw their own conclusions. "That's an issue that I've seen across multiple media - we create bubbles where everyone wants to agree with each other and shout in these polarised extremes." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's debate over Victoria University's decision to call off a discussion on free speech. It comes after outrage within the university, with claims the panellists didn't represent a balance of views. 600 people had registered to attend before the university's Vice-Chancellor postponed the event, saying they were going back to the drawing board. Students' Association president Marcail Parkinson says some speakers would've made students uncomfortable, and have a history of hate speech. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Te Whatu Ora has been criticised for telling public hospitals to bring the organisation back to budget, they need to make target savings of $105 million by July. It said several districts have gone over budget in the past three months. However, health unions have warned the constraints will impact medical care. Former Te Whatu Ora chair Rob Campbell says we should be trying to improve our health system - not just saving costs. "Once you get the emphasis on just saving costs, you end up cutting things that should not be cut." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr joined Helen Clark at Parliament this week, to warn New Zealand against joining Pillar 2 of the AUKUS defence pact, saying it is "fragrant, methane-wrapped bullsh*t," and funnily enough former opposition leader Don Brash tends to agree. Later, Shane Jones who has recently ben speaking about mining and fishing, this week let go with a broadside against the Waitangi Tribunal, saying they have "no business running it's operations as some sort of star chamber delivering pre-emptory summons for ministers." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Israel launched dozens of drones and missiles at Israel, in an attack that may trigger a major escalation between the regional archenemies. The United States has since pledged to back Israel. Waikato University's International Law professor Alexander Gillespie analyses the escalating situation. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a widely anticipated move, Iran has launched an aerial attack into Israel. The Israel Defence Force estimates Iran launched over 200 different kinds of drones, including killer drones, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. Waikato University Law Professor Al Gillespie says this attack was to be expected, as both sides had been 'goading' each other for the past few months. "I think the final provocation was the attack on the consulate, it was the bit that tipped them over the edge. And Iran felt they had to respond, because the provocation was too much." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Immigration Minister Erica Stanford makes immediate changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa, by introducing a minimum skills and work experience threshold, as well as introducing an English language requirement for migrants. Later, marketing professor Bodo Lang talks about about the triggering effects social media has on politics and democracy in this country, and how much political parties are spending on social media advertising. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's growing concerns from experts about the impact social media has on the political landscape. It's been revealed that social media giant Meta has limited the reach of political content on its platforms- inspiring increased worry about censorship. Massey University marketing professor Bodo Lang says platforms like Instagram and Facebook specialise in short-form content - and he believes those outlets aren't suited for political content. "We want people to think about these things- and social media isn't the best way to get people to think about these things." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Immigration Minister is confident changes to the Accredited Employer Worker Visa will get the balance of skill right. Changes include an English language requirement for some roles, and a minimum skills threshold. Erica Stanford says they're focused on attracting and retaining high-skilled migrants where there are shortages, and prioritising New Zealanders in jobs where there aren't shortages. She says in 2017, about half of migrants were high-skilled, but now that's switched. "We really had a big switch to low-skilled migrants. And that's not going to improve our productivity, our economy, our GDP- we need to have that switch back." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The University of Auckland is under fire after a picture of a designated study space for Māori and Pasifika students surfaced online. The University has since claimed they're obligated to respond to the needs of their diverse student population with facilities, spaces and support. ACT's Parmjeet Parmar has expressed concern over race becoming a big agenda item for more organizations. "The discussion is really important in my view. Because we don't want to go backwards, we all have fought hard for the values of inclusivity, and we need to stand by those values." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Labour leader & now leader of the opposition Chris Hipkins gave his State of the Nation speech in South Auckland today, he joined the Weekend Collective to discuss. SailGP Lyttelton kicked off in Lyttelton yesterday but was abandoned after a dolphin was sighted on the course. Today, SailGP CEO Russell Coutts delivered an emotional response- Otago University professor Liz Slooten joined the Weekend Collective to discuss. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A zoologist says Sir Russell Coutts has a simple view of dolphins and boats. Yesterday's SailGP racing was called off after a Hector's dolphin was spotted on the course. Sir Russell then said the event is handcuffed by unprecedented layers of bureaucracy and red tape. He also claimed that dolphins are extremely intelligent and inherently aware of boats around them. Otago University's professor Liz Slooten says dolphins love to bowride alongside boats, but not at the speed of SailGP boats. "It's kind of like saying children are inherently aware of cars and trucks, therefore there is never going to be a situation where a child's going to be hit by a truck, the child would just naturally get out of the way." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins has called for a better way to balance our tax system. Delivering his State of the Nation speech earlier today, Mr Hipkins says now is the time to have the tax debate, despite Labour ruling out both a wealth tax and a capital gains tax last year. He pledged to spend the next two years releasing discussion documents, to get them best prepared for the next election. Mr Hipkins says it's something that needs to be taken more seriously, especially when the IMF speaks out. "The reality is, salary and wage earners are shouldering a disproportionate share of the tax take, and we should be making sure that it's more evenly balanced." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He mentioned 'bulldust' academia, promised to rid the public service of 'co-governance', and accused the previous Government of holding 'contempt for democracy'. Today, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters gave his state of the Nation Speech, and he joined the Weekend Collective for an in-depth interview to unpack it all. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Winston Peters today outlined his plans to turn New Zealand around following his address in Palmerston North. In his State of the Nation speech this afternoon, the NZ First leader was back in familiar territory, after spending the majority of the first 100-days in Government in ministerial mode. Peters says he wants Kiwis to understand that the new Government is focused on getting the country lined up properly. "It'll take some time, but we can turn our present slide, so to speak, in economic and social performance around- and get back to doing what we used to do." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Winston Peters took a short break from being Deputy Prime Minister this afternoon, donning his New Zealand First leader hat instead. And no one was safe from his scorn, during his State of the Nation Speech in Palmerston North this afternoon. ZB political editor Jason Walls broke down Peters' 'combative' speech. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.