Larry Williams Drive

MPs have had their say in the overturning of Roe v Wade.Nanaia Mahuta called out the decision, despite her voting against legislation to decriminalise abortion.Meanwhile, Grant Robertson wrote a lengthy post on social media on Sunday explaining his reaction to the decision while recounting on his own experiences.Robertson says Labour has delivered on the promise to deliver on decriminalising abortion and the issue is now a health one for them.Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An anti-monarchist group says New Zealand may ditch the Royal Family as our head of state in the not too distant future.Prince Charles has given the green light to any Commonwealth country if they want to become a republic if it wants to.15 countries currently have the Queen as their head of state, including New Zealand.New Zealand Republic chair Lewis Holden told Heather du Plessis-Allan it will depend on Queen Elizabeth's death.“The end of the Queen’s reign, I think will be a huge epoch in terms of our history and around the world, and I’d expect, actually, that the change would happen relatively soon after that.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Ukrainian community is disappointed our Prime Minister won't meet with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.Jacinda Ardern says she turned down an invitation due to travel commitments, but it doesn't change New Zealand's commitment to supporting the country.Ukraine Association spokesperson Anton Stafurin told Heather du Plessis-Allan if she turned down the meeting for security reasons, he doesn't buy it.“Many leaders of the free world already made it. Boris Johnson made it twice, Justin Trudeau amid the Omicron, Nancy Pelosi, Lloyd Austin, Angelina Jolie.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Claims it's better to support a woman to have a baby rather than terminate the pregnancy.This from an American anti-abortion activist after the US Supreme Court removed legal protection for the right to an abortion.It's opened the door for individual states to ban terminations, sparking widespread domestic protests and global outrage.Students For Life's Autumn Higashi told Heather du Plessis-Allan abortion hides the real reasons women don't want children.“Why do women feel like they need abortion? Is it because they are in poverty? Is it because they don’t feel like they have the correct resources to choose life?”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Grant Robertson has come out strongly in the abortion debate in wake of the Roe v Wade overturning.At today's post-Cabinet, he accused Luxon of political spin in wake of statements over the weekend saying he would not seek to change New Zealand’s abortion laws.The calls come after Luxon instructed MP Simon O’Connor was instructed to remove an anti-abortion post on social media while saying O’Connor is entitled to his opinion.Nanaia Mahuta also labelled the decision 'draconian' on social media, despite voting against New Zealand's abortion legislation bill.Newstalk ZB Chief Political Reporter Jason Walls joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

NSW Police has a message for climate activists who caused chaos for Monday morning commuters in Sydney – expect a knock on your door.Protesters took to the streets of the CBD in an unauthorised demonstration to protest political inaction on climate change.Terrifying aerial vision has captured the moment one vehicle ignored traffic controllers, driving into police and protesters blocking traffic.Strike Force Guard detectives are aware of the vision and are conducting inquiries.It is not known if anyone was injured during the incident. Jesus Christ: car rams people as it drives through Blockade Australia protest pic.twitter.com/kntTsenJdi— cammyboo AO (@cameronwilson) June 27, 2022 Demonstrations began around 8am at Hyde Park, where police allege about 60 protesters joined protest activity across the city’s streets.Eleven people have been arrested, the majority taken to Surry Hills and Day Street police stations, where charges are expected.Protesters threw concrete blocks, garbage bins, bikes and lad

Joe Schmidt has been called in to help coach the All Blacks in their first test against Ireland at Eden Park on Saturday after a Covid outbreak in camp.Schmidt was not due to start his selector/analyst role with the All Blacks until the Rugby Championship but after head coach Ian Foster, forwards coach John Plumtree and defence coach Scott McLeod all caught Covid, he will now attend team trainings this week.In further disruption for the All Blacks, Crusaders midfielders David Havili and Jack Goodhue have also been removed from the team due to Covid. Crusaders centre Braydon Ennor has joined the squad as cover.Schmidt coached Ireland from 2013-19 – a period that included their first win and maiden home victories against the All Blacks – before returning home last year. Schmidt's intimate knowledge of Ireland's senior players and management (Irish head coach Andy Farrell was his assistant) is sure to prove valuable.Losing their most experienced coaches causes significant disruption for the All Blacks, however.G

Rongotai Labour MP Paul Eagle has finally confirmed he’s having a go at the Wellington mayoralty.Eagle will take a leave of absence from Parliament for three months between July and the election.He says he’s going to donate his salary to charity during that time.Political commentator and Massey University Associate Professor Grant Duncan joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tomorrow is the very first public holiday to celebrate Matariki.In March the Government announced $100,000 in funding will be given to the Matariki Festival in the Mackenzie District.It’s one of two Matariki festivals to receive government funding.Mackenzie Tourism Development Manager Lydia Stoddart joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A proposed bylaw in Tasman District Council is causing outrage.The proposed law will require farmers to hold sheep 50m back from a road while shifting stock until all cars have driven past.Federated Farmers Nelson Provincial President Stephen Todd says it could end up being an unworkable joke.The Country host Jamie Mackay joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Britain faces the second of three national railway strikes Thursday after new negotiations between union and employers ended in deadlock.The Rail, Maritime and Transport Union accused the government of “wrecking” Wednesday’s talks and said the 24-hour walkout by 40,000 cleaners, signalers, maintenance workers and station staff would go ahead as planned. The union's action this week is Britain's biggest and most disruptive railway strike for 30 years.Rail infrastructure company Network Rail said it was “disappointed that the RMT have again chosen to walk away from negotiations. We remain available for talks, day or night.”The union held a daylong strike on Tuesday that brought the U.K. rail network to a crawl, with only a fifth of passenger services running. Another walkout is planned for Saturday.The dispute centers on pay, working conditions and job security as Britain’s train companies aim to cut costs and staffing after two years in which emergency government funding kept them afloat.The strike pits the un

Air New Zealand has announced it's relaunching 14 international routes in 16 days.It will have three-quarters of its international and domestic routes up and running by July 9th.Houston, Honolulu, and Tahiti are among the destinations that are being restarted from Auckland, while flights to Fiji and Australia are restarting from Christchurch, Queenstown and Wellington.NZ Herald Business Editor at Large Liam Dann joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It is the worst time to be a first homebuyer since 1957 apparently.Infometrics say millennials are signing up to a lifetime of debt and they're likely to be much worse off than baby boomers.They say the two key factors for this are the average proportion of a household's income needed to service the loan throughout the mortgage and the expected increase in the value of the property over the life of the loan.Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are we running this country on Blu-Tack and paperclips?We almost had power cuts again this morning and apparently we need to get used to it because this is just the way our winters are going to be from now on.So what happened was that Transpower issued a grid emergency just before 8am warning that we might not have enough electricity to power the country.Reporters were on the radio telling people to delay charging laptops and cell phones and consider turning off unnecessary lights.Lines companies were turning ripple-controlled hot water systems in people’s homes.Three things went wrong all at the same time: a gas turbine in Stratford failed to spark, one of Huntly’s turbines stopped working properly and the wind dropped which mean the wind farms stopped producing enough power.This is close to a repeat of what happened last year when a bunch of things went wrong all at exactly the same time: some seaweed got stuck in a hydro pump, Huntly couldn’t fire up another generator fast enough and the wind dropped.Last

New Zealand's first alcohol free bottleshop has opened in Auckland.It aims to remove some of the stigmas surrounding people who don't drink alcohol.Power grid problems continue to plague New Zealand winters.Transpower declared a "grid emergency" this morning when there was an unexpected loss of electricity generation caused by a gas turbine extract failing to start, one of Huntly's turbines stopped working and the wind dropped.It's now harder to be a first homebuyer.A new report from Infometrics has revealed that a combination of record house prices and the limited further potential for growth makes this year the worst for first-home buyers since 1957.You now might be able to have your dead grandparents read bedtime stories again.Amazon has announced that it's working on a feature that can synthesise audio clips of a person's voice and reprogram that as longer speech for Alexa.Simon Wilson and Ben Thomas joined Heather du Plessis-Allan on The HuddleSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand now has it's first-ever alcohol free bottleshop.AF Drinks (Alcohol Free) opened today on Ponsonby Road.It hopes to remove some of the stigmas attached to those who don't drink alcohol.AF Drinks founder Lisa King joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israel Adesanya will not fight in New Zealand again.He made the decision after seeing the treatment of his City Kickboxing teammates by media and police while under Covid-19 restrictions.The Black Caps’ final test in England kicks off tonight.The team will be playing for pride when take on England in their dead rubber test at Headingley in Leeds.Sportstalk host D’Arcy Waldegrave joined Heather du Plessis-Allan.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Polio has been detected in London for the first time in nearly 40 years.A national incident has been declared after UK health officials detected the virus in London sewage samples.Polio New Zealand president and survivor Brian Robinson told Heather du Plessis-Allan it's likely been passed on from someone jabbed against the virus to another who's unvaccinated.He says it shouldn't be a problem in New Zealand due to our high vaccination rates.“People are vaccinated as babies and then a bit later on with a booster, so we’re probably OK, but it could be a concern for someone who’s not been vaccinated.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This morning's power woes came close to a repeat of the power cuts which occurred in August last year.Transpower declared a “grid emergency” during the period of peak morning demand.It was due to a mechanical failure at one of Contact Energy’s power plants, a sudden drop in wind speeds, and a drop in power from one of the five turbines at Genesis Energy’s Huntly Power Station.Energy consultant Murray Ellis told Heather Du Plessis Allan New Zealand's power system is running too close to the edge on its total capacity.“When things like the wind speed is dropping, it's not exactly unforeseen or unexpected.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A worker from a nearby cafe has detailed the moment bystanders took down a knife-wielding attacker on Auckland's North Shore.Police say the local man is in custody at North Shore Hospital after stabbing and moderately injuring four people at Murrays Bay.He then fled on foot to Mairangi Bay, but was apprehended by bystanders.Montrose Cafe manager Damien told Heather du Plessis-Allan customers coming in filled him in on their witness accounts.“A member of public in crutches tripped him up and a construction worker from the nearby construction site working of the waterway pinned him down and he got hit on the head with one of the crutches.”Police say there were no warning signs of the attack, and it was not planned.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.