Raw Politics

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: can Luxon find his debate A-game, fiscal holes swallowing everyone, and relief at NZ First's party list Does it matter who's the better talker in a leaders' debate? Does even one vote move into the correct column on November 7? Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses not only the aftermath of Chris Hipkins' anointed 'win' in the first big TV debate with Christopher Luxon but also how as winner and loser they should approach round 2, next Wednesday. Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva in Wellington and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland as they try to sift fact from fiction in the great political game of parties accusing one another of covering up fiscal holes. One of Murphy's takes, he thinks, puts him at risk of being cancelled by the Wellington beltway. The panel assesses the New Zealand First party list, with newcomers elevated to winnable spots and loyal time servers relegated into likely but not guaranteed positions.…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: voters get their last look at the books, will strategic voting help or harm National, plus Opportunity’s bottom lines The big reveal is over and the economy might well get a lot better a lot more quickly than thought, but might it be too late for voters doing it tough? Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses what we can read into the pre-election economic and fiscal update. Its current numbers are positive but its near future risks and worries are not, and unlikely to pierce the electoral gloom before November 7. Join associate editor Sam Sachdeva and political editor Laura Walters at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland as we ask if Labour is about to run smack, bang into a difficult fiscal reality and if its promises could be unaffordable. The panel also analyses calls for people on the right to vote strategically – for National in the electorate vote and for Act or New Zealand First for the party vote – to theoretically enlarge the total size of…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Are dirty politics happening before our eyes? Bouquets and brickbats for Parliament; and the Hager book assessed How big a deal for voters is the latest string of misleading, dirty and sometimes AI-generated attacks from across the political spectrum? And might they backfire? Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses false claims, out-of-context footage, AI slop and campaign disinformation which is happening even before we get into the official election campaign period Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland as the panel asks if two examples of ads that National has been pulled up on, and ongoing allegations between parties, matter at the ballot box. The panel also offers bouquets and brickbats for the just-concluded Parliament and a debating chamber riven by indiscipline, falling standards and a Speaker exhibiting inconsistent rulings. Our third topic is Dirty Work, the…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Is National and Labour's dominance over? Politicians get desperate on supermarkets; plus what to do about the police Are we at the end of days for the dominance by two big anchor parties in our governments, or will normal order be restored once things get back to ... normal? Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses Labour and National's combined polling being stuck down below 60 percent and whether the two 'major' parties will soon just be two of five or six parties of varying strength. Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland for analysis of the reasons behind National and Labour's decline. The panel also examines National's radical, interventionist plan to force NZ-owned grocery co-operative Foodstuffs to carve itself up into separate businesses to compel competition in the supermarket sector - while leaving Australian-owned corporate Woolworths exempt. Our third topic is…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Labour’s search for its second wind, hands up for a public supermarket, and Paris in election time Eight weeks until the election and Labour gets shocked out of its sleepwalk to possible defeat. Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses how Labour can and will react to one, yes, one poll placing it at 25.9 percent public support but its own internal polling obviously drifting lower as well. Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland for analysis of Labour’s acknowledged shift on to the front foot and concentrating on its policies now rather than its years of “oppositional” politics. The panel also examines a steady strengthening of the Greens’ polling and the party’s bold – and much criticised on the right – policy to create a state-owned supermarket chain by forcing the two big players to give up stores and distribution centres across the country. Is it a Soviet-style dead hand…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: the coalition eyes drastic change in the public service, Te Pāti Māori eyes drastic change in our constitution, plus why health imperils every government The Government's making no secret of its plan to cull, reshape and redirect government departments and ministries if it gets a second chance after November 7. Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses the scale of the planned abolitions, mergers and straight out headcount cuts ministers want to line up through 2027 and beyond. Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and political editor Laura Walters at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland for analysis of the radical overhaul planned for the public service in a potential second term. The panel also examines Te Pāti Māori's plans for constitutional reforms and paramountcy of the Treaty and how big an appeal its announcements will have among Māori voters, with the risk of likely coalition partner Labour copping any electoral backlash from voters on…

The country’s two biggest political parties found common ground this week not once, but twice. Well, kind-of, temporarily, with not much grace or real commitment. Today, the Raw Politics panel discusses Labour’s decision to back National’s bill on limiting social media access for under 16s, and Labour’s grudging acceptance of a move to force a legislative cap on council rates. Join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland, for analysis of the two big blue-red (purple) agreements of this campaign. Both big parties have correctly read the public mood in belatedly proposing, then agreeing to back at the outset, a social media ban. Polls show support for measures to protect young people from social media harm. The rates cap probably has strong public support as well – who wouldn’t want increases in their rates bills forced under 4 percent? But that policy is fraught with risks for both reducing council services to the…

The election is 78 days away so it’s over time to start tuning in to what’s going on in the world of politics. Our Raw Politics podcast is here to help. From today, Raw Politics returns every Friday to dissect the major issues in politics and the political strategies playing out around them. Today, join senior political reporter Marc Daalder and associate editor Sam Sachdeva at Parliament and Newsroom co-editor Tim Murphy in Auckland, who look ahead into this perpetual election campaign and pick the people and moments to watch. Finally, we offer recommendations for you to read, watch or listen to over your weekend: Sam: Our press gallery colleague Hanna’s interview with long-time Opportunity Party candidate Jessica Hammond Marc: The NZ Geographic feature West Side Story, about the youth in Huntly who have ditched dirt bikes for horses. Tim: Lilian Hanly’s piece on RNZ asking a very pertinent question: Can one Minister handle 11 portfolios?

On this week’s Raw Politics podcast: We honour the standout performances and policies, good and bad, of this year, plus make our predictions for 2025 Four different MPs are nominated by our four Raw Politics panelists for the honour of standout politician of 2024 – and consensus is hard to come by for many of our other accolades. The Raw Politics podcast weighs the good and bad for 2024 – leaders, new MPs, policy pushes, controversies and cringeworthy moments. A sneak preview: the cringe of the year is shared by two big names in Parliament, both for their actions captured on video. A full bench this week of Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder, national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy shows we don’t succumb to groupthink on this podcast. The nominations, and the predictions for next year, are broad and varied, including a preview of the Newsroom press gallery’s more considered ‘Awards of the State’. The panel pitches forward into 2025 with…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: what voters want on climate change policy, will ministers ditch the foreshore repeal, plus Ayesha Verrall's faux pas Climate change is hard and changing New Zealanders' attitudes and behaviour seems harder still for this Government and its predecessors. Should the coalition accept that's the reality and go slow and low in its ambitions for change? The Raw Politics podcast looks at the coalition's latest report on methane from farm animals – a dense scientific fig leaf that could allow ministers to let NZ do less to cut emissions. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy ask if the national and international mood on dealing with climate change is enabling National, Act and NZ First to give up, even if just a little, on our national targets. For our second topic, Murphy recaps the short history of the foreshore, seabed Māori customary rights and the Marine and Coastal Areas Act. And he explains the…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Remembering Nikki Kaye, assessing the Labour Party one year on, and Christopher and Winston's nostalgia trip on foreign affairs Labour's MPs and party members gather in Christchurch this weekend, a year after a humiliating defeat took them from the historic, first majority MMP government into the wilderness, watching a centre-right coalition dismantle their legacy. The Raw Politics podcast assesses where the party finds itself, with the electorate and members of the public still not answering the phone, but too early to reveal a new strategy, policies or even a new leader. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy ask if Labour can do anything to beat the NZ aversion to throwing out one-term governments and if Chris Hipkins is the leader to pull off such a stunning upset. For our second topic, the panel assesses New Zealand's new foreign policy, Sam Sachdeva delivers his views having watched Christopher…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: The hikoi’s over, now for a half year of claim and counterclaim, dissent and debate. Plus: NZ speaks out of both sides of its mouth at COP29. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon did not meet the Treaty Principles Bill hikoi crowd, sees “nothing” of merit in the Act-proposed law but the Parliament his Government dominates will spend six months debating a “divisive” measure. That’s because he has accepted there needs to be “aeration” of people’s views on the Treaty, and his party acceded to Act’s pressure to include the Bill in the coalition agreement. So, having made this legislative bed, Luxon will now have to lie in it. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters and co-editor Tim Murphy look at how Luxon has played his cards so far, and how he might withstand an ongoing storm of criticism from Māori and others. For Act’s David Seymour, a possible nominee for most effective politician of the year before this latest play, the hearings on his Bill will finish just as he…

On this week’s Raw Politics podcast: The Act and Māori parties at point-blank range, plus the risk of the Crown apology petering out Parliament saw two historic days this week, one of great solemnity and unity, the other a raucous and high-stakes stand-off between political foes over the Treaty of Waitangi. Raw Politics looks first at the volatile reception for Act’s Treaty Principles Bill at its first reading, how parties performed to their voting bases, and what lies ahead now in select committee hearings over the next six months. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters and co-editor Tim Murphy, co-piloting the panel with both Marc Daalder and Sam Sachdeva on assignment overseas, look beyond the heat of Thursday’s drama to search for any light in the arguments both ways for a law change. Before the first reading, Act leader David Seymour had claimed the bill was not “divisive”. National leader Christopher Luxon responded that it was divisive. Parties traded allegations over the origins of division. The…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: David Seymour floats a new law labelled the single greatest breach of the Treaty of Waitangi. Plus political editor Laura Walters joins us from the US. Each time the tide comes in, it comes further up the beach. Well, that appears to be the Act Party’s strategy launching its Treaty Principles Bill in Parliament with not a single vote in support of it passing likely from any of Parliament’s other five political parties. Raw Politics looks at the political motivations behind a Bill widely judged to be dead-on-arrival and the challenges it presents to everyone from the Waitangi Tribunal to the National, NZ First and opposition parties. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss the introduction of the Bill, with no fanfare and in the absence of its solo advocate Act leader David Seymour. Parties have undermined their coalition partners in the past, withdrawing support for proposals or making…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Who’s closing it out best ahead of next week’s US election; Act’s education wins; plus relaxing the checks on your new house The end of the country, or the end of its democracy. That’s what the two camps are predicting if their candidate doesn’t win the US presidential election next week. Raw Politics, from the great safety of half a world away, weighs in on the neverending American campaign, which many predict will go on in the courts, on the streets and in Congress even after polls close, voting is counted and the preliminary result declared. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy assess the closing arguments of vice-president Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump and the shows of confidence by their two campaign teams. Who to believe? What to trust? And how a statistical tie in the current pre-election polls nationally could end up perversely giving one or other candidate a substantial…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: This Govt was going to be push localism but is instead pushing in on cities and regions. Plus: Time for the Greens to rediscover the environment. And what's cooking with Brooke van Velden? Both Wellington and Otago councils lost a little of their political souls this week as the coalition Government grabbed control of the local levers of power. Raw Politics asks if the National ministers who promised 'localism' and devolving of power have now drunk the Bowen St kool aid and believe that only they can put things right for cities and regions as well as the nation. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss the twin interventions and some contradictions offered by Local Government Minister Simeon Brown in justifying central government stepping in. How did it come to this, and should other councils with high debt, high rates and political divisions be worried that their masters in Wellington will…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: There were two scandals over abuse of kids in state care - one was run from some of the highest offices in the land. Plus, the new NZ First party, polls and Nimbys vs the fast-track One of the biggest political and government scandals in NZ history - the abuse of thousands of children in state care - will soon be subject to a formal Crown apology. Raw Politics examines if this generation's politicians and mandarins can make it right. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss the enormity of not only the actual abuse but the state's campaign to silence and defeat court actions from victims, as set out in a powerful new series by Aaron Smale on Newsroom. His series - Crown cover-up? - forensically pieces together the findings of the Royal Commission with the who, what, when, where and why of the establishment, from Prime Ministers and Attorneys-General to police, justice, welfare and Crown Law leaders.…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: We mark one year since the election by rating the parties, MVPs and duds, and weighing their risks and opportunities for the next two years. Next week marks 12 months since the election that ejected the left from power and ushered in Christopher Luxon’s three-headed coalition of the right. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss how the parties of government and opposition have performed, and what their political risks and opportunities might be between now and the 2026 election. It has been a year of thunderous, cascading political change and the panel marks the high and low points for the government and Labour Party. We come up with a potential MP to succeed Luxon as PM, nominate most valuable politician, least valuable MP, the figure most likely to break up the coalition and MP most likely to get the boot. Finally, the panelists recommend something to read, listen to or watch on the weekend…

In this week's episode of Raw Politics: the Prime Minister declares himself wealthy and sorted, Darleen should say goodbye even though she's Green, plus a bad retweet. Chris Luxon can't win. When he owns seven houses he's a capitalist rack renter. When he sells some of them he's exploiting Government policy changes and saving on tax. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy ask if the political risk of the selldown, now, of the Luxon housing portfolio is as bad as the Prime Minister's response to media queries of: "I'm wealthy and I'm sorted". The panel also discusses if former Green MP Darleen Tana should leave Parliament of her own accord before her ex party is forced to act hypocritically and have her removed as an MP. Either way, the damage to the Greens will be transitory and all but forgotten at the election in two years. Our reader question asks how Labour MP Damien O'Connor could get away with retweeting an indefensible tweet on…

This week on Raw Politics: Are we being governed now by a cadre of middle managers? People who won't stay in their lanes but need to be dipping into the detailed operations of government agencies and making the small decisions, well. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, Newsroom national affairs editor Sam Sachdeva and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss the coalition's forked tongue approach to 'operational matters' in government departments and in relation to the boards of state companies. When the Prime Minister, no less, devotes his post-Cabinet press conference to whether public servants are working from home or gathering at offices, and shareholding ministers in Crown entities are wanting to be consulted on all manner of small value decisions, there's been a change of approach. Ministers will, with some justification, argue that an interventionist, hands-on management is needed given they can't trust the deep state to change itself adequately, fast enough. The panel discusses the sensitivities…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Is the Minister of the Week, Paul Goldsmith, an ideologue? Plus, awkward business closures for the coalition and Chris Hipkins' leadership. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, Newsroom Pro managing editor Jonathan Milne and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss the minister's harder line push this week on laws cracking down on gangs, changing his mind to allow police to search private homes for evidence of patches. We ask if he is a natural anti-crime hardman or if he's being egged on by the fringe parties in the coalition and is enjoying their approval. The Waitangi Tribunal report on the Government's planned amendments to the Marine and Coastal Areas (Takutai Moana) Act would have shamed any other minister at any other time, but its criticisms of Goldsmith for his motivation, facts, process, consultation and evidence have been ignored by the Government. The panel discusses the latest industrial closure, of the Oji mill at Penrose, and how these kinds of events can…

In this week's episode of Raw Politics, Christopher Luxon must wake up some days with the Sound of Music song of exasperation playing in his head. How does he deal with the problem of ACT leader David Seymour and his will-o-the-wisp coalition contrarianism? Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss Seymour's carefully calibrated political agitation, externally on the Treaty Principles Bill and internally in the coalition, sticking his ACT Party's view into other minister's portfolios, other parties' business. Politics doesn't come any bigger globally than Wednesday's presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, and the Raw Politics panel assess the fallout, and the media and social media verdicts on an historic face-off. Our reader question asks where and why public servants have been made to sign additional Non-Disclosure Agreements under this Government. The panel has fears for growing secrecy in the machinery of state.…

In this week's episode of Raw Politics, we discuss the response of our political leaders to the demands of the week-long tangihanga for Kiingi Tuheitia. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy discuss how coalition leaders faced the Kiingitanga movement and wider Māoridom at a time of acute political sensitivities. Then, the panel pulls a handbrake turn on Transport Minister Simeon Brown's spin about raising road speeds, cutting out speed bumps and funding future roading promises. Can the economy really be saved by drivers speeding up around town and on the highways? Our reader question asks if the Wellington Hospital proposal to cut out free toast and Milo for mothers who have just given birth was a serious plan or if it was bureaucrats employing the famous "Washington Monument" tactic to shame politicians. Finally, the panelists recommend something to read, listen to or watch on the weekend ahead. -------------------- This week's…

This week, Raw Politics looks at the coalition's all-consuming commitment to development, from the fast-track to energy to infrastructure. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy examine the breadth and pace of the blizzard of development initiatives that could change what and how the country builds in the short and long term. Then, the panel tries to understand the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's light heart and light hand when it comes to his ministers breaching the norms of ministerial behaviour and speech. As opposed to his "this is how I roll" dismissal of colleagues for average performance in portfolios. Has he got a form of Stockholm syndrome and now identifies with his partner party captors? Our reader question asks why NZ First leader Winston Peters is so obsessed lately with the 20th Century Māori politician Sir Āpirana Ngata. Turns out he is citing Ngata incessantly, alongside other Māori leaders from back in the days just before…

This week, Raw Politics discusses Christopher Luxon the wannabe details man, Chris Hipkins the nowhere man and David Seymour the man with 91 highly paid new staff. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy first assess the Prime Minister's repeated instances of misusing, misquoting or misunderstanding numbers, facts and comparisons. The panel then looks at the Labour Party 10 months on from its electoral hiding. The red side is being careful not to bark at every passing car, but its caution is leaving a void that a coalition that has been fast, and at times loose, is continuing to exploit. Our reader question asks how many staff will work in David Seymour's new Ministry of Regulation. And the answer is not the 30 or so indicated by the ACT leader. -------------------- This week's recommendations: Laura: The piece on Christopher Luxon’s bold speech to local government from Newsroom Pro editor Jono Milne: PM goes to war on council waste – and on…

In this week's episode of Raw Politics, we discuss if ministers crowing about the drop in interest rates deserve all, much or any of the political praise. Newsroom senior political reporter Marc Daalder, political reporter Emma Hatton and co-editor Tim Murphy weigh the coalition's claims to having started to beat the ravages of a high cost of living. We also assess this week's two big restructures of government agencies – one responsible for Crown-Māori relations and the other for services for the disabled community. Our reader question asks why the Government is dipping back into old fashioned welfare policies again, one of the core staples for the National Party over generations. -------------------- This week's recommendations: Emma - The Spinoff’s Joel MacManus on the shady conspiracy-aligned group setting itself up to influence the 2025 Wellington local council election. Tim - A revelation by Andrea Vance on The Post that David Seymour’s new regulation ministry is looking to hire a senior communications…

Another week, another series of hot political issues involving policies affecting Māori and the Treaty of Waitangi. This week, Raw Politics looks at why the Government is pushing ahead 'at pace' with such a broad range of measures looking to change the accepted status of the Treaty in laws and in public services. Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political reporter Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy examine the moves on Section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act, the amendment of the Marine and Coastal Areas (Takutai Moana) Act and everything from use of te reo by a minister to the Act Party bill coming down the line to re-state the Treaty's principles. We ask whether the reaction of Māori both at Parliament and around the country will reach the level of resistance to the original Foreshore and Seabed Act in the early 2000s and what motivates the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in allowing all these changes at once. Our reader question is on how much more cutting and restructuring can be…

This week, Raw Politics examines what has become a regular point of weakness for the coalition and asks why National, Act and NZ First can't seem to get on top of the health system's political risks. -------- Recommendations: Marc: David Williams' Newsroom story disclosing finance minister Nicola Willis overruled advice on a South Island waste-to-energy facility. Tim: Another in-house one here, for Laura Walters' Newsroom story analysing the wholesale changes at the top of the public service. Laura: The Guardian’s two-part analysis with in-depth interactive looking at all of the coalition Government’s policies that are expected to have a negative impact on Māori.

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Financial woes at Health New Zealand and the Royal Commission report challenges the Government’s gang crackdown ------------------- Recommendations: Sam: Analysis from Derek Cheng at the NZ Herald on how the Royal Commission’s recommendations will clash with the Government’s priorities Laura: Marc Daalder’s reporting on why the Government’s renewable energy promise has been side-tracked by fast-track work Marc: Jack Tame’s probing interview on Q+A with Climate Change Minister Simon Watts Raw Politics will be available on Apple podcasts or wherever you get your favourite shows every Friday.. ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: The Government drops a new climate plan and inflation falls faster than expected ------------------- Recommendations: Emma: The exclusive TVNZ interview with Darleen Tana, where she claims she's been silenced and isolated but doesn't give straight answers to big questions Marc: A scoop from his hated rival, RNZ climate correspondent Eloise Gibson, on the Government's plans to rollback insulation regulations Jonathan: Looking overseas, an analysis in The Economist on big business fears about Donald Trump's new vice presidential pick ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

On this week’s Raw Politics podcast: Why the Greens' annus horribilis hasn't sunk them in the polls, plus Biden, Peters, Luxon, ageing and diplomacy ------------------- Recommendations: Laura: The scoop from The Post on the leaked internal safety bulletin that shows Aratere crew couldn’t turn off its autopilot (as Winston Peters kinda suggested) Tim: RNZ political reporter Anneke Smith's scoop obtaining a leaked copy of the report to the Greens into the behaviour of MP Darleen Tana Marc: Andrew Bevin's story on Newsroom on Auckland's mayor being far from impressed with the city's 'embarrassing and expensive' new ad campaign ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

On this week's episode of the Raw Politics podcast: Who might be next as the cleanout of senior public servants and directors gathers momentum. ------------------- Recommendations: Emma – a piece from Australia's ABC: Disability organisations 'on life support' say budget cuts will force them to wind back services Tim – Our Newsroom foreign affairs editor Sam Sachdeva’s analysis of just what important defence deals came out of the Luxon visit to Japan Laura – Emma Hatton and Jonathan Milne’s Newsroom scoop on the Three top civil servants who ‘won’t have contracts renewed’ ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, we ask who needs evidence for policies, we talk ferries and pull apart the latest polls ------------------- Recommendations: Marc – A telling article from the US on Heatmap about that country’s troubles building one big power line: Laura – An Associated Press backgrounder on what led to thousands storming Kenya’s Parliament in what started as disputes over new taxes and ended up in a deadly clash Tim – Geoffrey Palmer’s speech we carried on Newsroom: NZ is an executive paradise, not democratic paradise ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, we look at the PM’s foot-in-mouth over low-level business types, scrutinise Scrutiny Week and work out what species we should pay up to save ------------------- Recommendations: Tim – A good look in The Guardian at the political weaponising of videos of Joe Biden – and Donald Trump to a degree – looking old and bewildered Marc – The New York Times article about key editorial figures at the Washington Post’s involvement in British phone-hacking scandals Laura – Marc Daalder’s article on David Seymour’s Snapchat interactions with school kids ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, we look at the chance of a Labour rebound, NZ's climate retreat and problems for Act. ------------------- Recommendations: Laura – A documentary from the late Stuff Circuit team on Chinese interference in New Zealand Tim – An American corporate/conservative view on the import of the European elections, by Gerard Baker, ex editor of the Wall St Journal Marc – Laura Walters' interview with Labour leader Chris Hipkins predicting a 'very good chance' of a return in 2026 ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube.

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, we look at the allegations against Te Pāti Māori over the misuse of personal data, and unpick the party’s political strategy. ------------------- Recommendations: Tim – Professor Chris Jackson’s commentary for Newsroom on the flaws in the Government’s failed promise to fund 13 new cancer drugs from this Budget. Marc – Bill McKibben’s latest newsletter on record heat: Intensity. Laura – David Wallace-Wells' New York Times newsletter on what’s driving the American – but also global – school attendance crisis ------------------- Raw Politics will be available wherever you get your podcasts every Friday, and you can watch it on YouTube. newsroom.co.nz

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, we peer over a fiscal cliff and search for the hits and misses of Budget 2024. ------- This week's recommendations: Laura - Joel MacManus' hilarious Spinoff Budget debate sketch from the House Marc - Tim Murphy's view on Newsroom of Nicola Willis' big Budget speech Tim – Tova O'Brien's story from the Budget lock-up revealing Willis overstated a crucial tax number ------- So many numbers, so many claims and counter claims, and so much planned so far into the future that we might never see it bear fruit. This week's Raw Politics tries to sift the real from the risible in this year's Budget and to judge whether the coalition will get political bouquets or brickbats from the voting public. First, the panel of Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, senior political writer Marc Daalder and co-editor Tim Murphy run their abacuses over the Budget's costly, broad-based tax cuts. Are the sums 'meaningful' as the finance minister hoped, or just 'not…

National promised a “back pocket boost” when it unveiled a tax package before the election, and now in Government in tough economic times its Budget next week will sort the easy promises from reality. The tax bracket changes and other in-work and family payment adjustments might need to land with a thump rather than a flutter for hard-pressed Kiwi households – but that isn’t easy to achieve. ------- Recommendations: Tim - A great exchange in the House on housing between Kieran McAnulty and Chris Bishop. Watch here. Emma - David Seymour’s inner circle, by Audrey Young in the Herald. Marc - The Return of Evan Price, by Emma Hatton on Newsroom. ------- The Raw Politics panel this week, Newsroom senior political writer Marc Daalder, politics and business writer Emma Hatton and co-editor Tim Murphy, look ahead to a Budget that will put the confident Finance Minister Nicola Willis and her new Labour counterpart Barbara Edmond to the test. The panel weighs the gains and losses from the mass layoffs in the public…

In this week’s episode of Newsroom’s weekly politics podcast, the Press Gallery office patches in the Christchurch studio to discuss a big law and order announcement and Shane Jones’ undeclared dinner. --------------------- Read more: Jones’ undeclared dinner had two more mining industry attendees https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/05/15/jones-undeclared-dinner-had-two-more-mining-industry- attendees/ Mega-prison’s missing business case https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/05/14/mega-prisons-missing-business-case/ Health negotiators told to put sovereignty ahead of stopping pandemics https://newsroom.co.nz/2024/05/16/health-negotiators-told-to-prioritise-sovereignty-over-stopping-pandemics/ Strapped down, blindfolded, held in diapers: Israeli whistleblowers detail abuse of Palestinians in shadowy detention center. https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/10/middleeast/israel-sde-teiman-detention-whistleblowers-intl-cmd/index.html --------------------- Produced by newsroom.co.nz

Exhausted by the general election campaign, horrified by the twilight zone of coalition negotiations, distracted by the silly season and waiting for the honeymoon to begin, Raw Politics has been in hibernation since October. From today, we’re back. Our weekly political video show and podcast returns for a second season, and in a week with ups and downs for almost all the parties in Parliament. With our anchor, our rock, Jo Moir having graduated to a higher class of audio banter at RNZ, Raw Politics is led by Newsroom political editor Laura Walters, with co-editor Tim Murphy and senior political writer Marc Daalder. This week: We do a fast rewind on the missing six months of this three-way coalition’s gestation and early days. We look at Act leader David Seymour’s deft politics on school lunches and daft politics in using ‘woke’ to describe sushi. Then the panel analyses the separate meltdowns of the Greens Julie Anne Genter and Corrections Minister Mark Mitchell. Our reader question on how much MPs get paid…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: How good a PM might Christopher Luxon be, why Chris Hipkins shouldn't think of quitting, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori the big winners, and silence from Winston. Raw Politics signs off for 2023 with our panel's take on the government that might emerge from an election that had something for everyone, other than the Labour Party. Some raw takes: National's victory is a remarkable turnaround but hardly an epic triumph, the Greens' three seats will be a longer-term guarantee of making it back to Parliament, Te Pāti Māori stunned and buried the old wisdom that Labour is the party of tangata whenua. The Raw Politics panel looks at the first week of shadow governing among the three parties of the centre-right and concludes the public will probably welcome the political silence after such a raucous campaign. We argue why Chris Hipkins should hold his nerve and stay on and see what kind of Opposition leader and possible election contestant in 2026 that he could be. And we look…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: The final polls and what to expect on Saturday evening, plus how long it might take for a new government, and our nominations for best and worst political plays, and individual performers. It's almost time for a curtain call. The Raw Politics season nears its end, with the penultimate episode trying to make sense of the latest polls and how that will affect the timing and formation of the next government. Our podcast panel asks whether Chris Hipkins is realistic in hoping for a change from late polling to ballot box which could emulate 2020's 10-point movement between the two major parties. The problem for him was that that big movement actually saw the poorer performing party (National in 2020) going sharply down and the better performing party (Labour back then) going up. Which, if emulated, wouldn't help the Hipkins-Labour cause. We ask how long the country might wait for coalition talks to be started, negotiated and then signed off. One key date could see the…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: We ask if Covid and isolation has sucked the life out of Labour and Chris Hipkins' campaign, we wonder if fringe parties might do a deal to send their voters to NZ First and ask what's been eating National campaign chair Chris Bishop. Every week, Newsroom editors and political journalists talk through the big issues and scrutinise politicians’ performances in a lively 25-minute show aiming to take viewers and listeners inside the actions and motivations of our elected leaders.

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: We look at what common wins might await New Zealand First and Act if National needs them both post-election; Plus How good are the Greens in the polls, and do overseas votes count for much? Much of the focus of the political week has been on the three parties of the centre-right bloc, given National's Christopher Luxon accepting he might have to negotiate post-election with New Zealand First. Two and a half weeks out from an election, the governing party was partly in the background, other than the stirring performance by leader Chris Hipkins in the Newshub leaders' debate. The Raw Politics panel analyses what might emerge from post-poll talks involving the three centre-right parties and we highlight a couple of policies where Act and New Zealand First have common ground and could end up in a pincer movement forcing National to adopt harder-right approaches than it is promising. The panel also looks at the relatively fact-free TV debate and Hipkins' high-octane pressure…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: We ask why Labour leader Chris Hipkins has failed to fire, as his party would have hoped, in this campaign so far. Plus: this week's debate, the latest polls and how relatively good economic news changes things in the run-up to election day. Every week, Newsroom editors and political journalists talk through the big issues and scrutinise politicians’ performances in a lively 25-minute show aiming to take viewers and listeners inside the actions and motivations of our elected leaders. Watch Raw Politics on YouTube, or download or listen to it as a podcast on Spotify, or via Apple Podcasts.

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Who to believe over the state of the nation's books, and why the public might not even care; Plus What's eating the Act Party as its historic highs in the polls fade at a critical time? Both major political parties used the opening of the books this week to claim that their theories on the state of our economy and their solutions deserve your vote. Things are either hopeful or dire, depending on the colour of your election rosette. Our panel debates whether the numbers matter to individual voters or if they're so intent on 'change' that they won't take Grant Robertson's advice and be careful what they wish for. The same can be said for economists picking holes in National's tax policy to levy foreigners for purchasing homes costing more than $2m. Voters seem to have taken any wrong assumptions or calculations by National in their stride so far, according to the polls. National seems to be getting the benefit of a great collective shrug, and an impatience for the country…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Lame attack ads, how the infiltration the Labour campaign launch backfired, who's got all the money and how are they spending it - and why did Christopher Luxon discard his ceremonial Pasifika necklace? One week down in the election campaign proper, and the Raw Politics panel looks at who's got off to the best start. The two main parties got diverted almost from the outset by so-called 'attack' ads and whether things are turning too personal already, but the content of most of the messages on display this week was both tame and lame. National and Act continue to pull in the big bucks, with the blue side raking in almost four times as much as Labour in the $20,000-plus donations category, and the two parties of the centre-right are saturating the social media channels as Labour and the Greens deploy digital funds more tactically. A reader question focused on one fleeting moment at National's launch, wondering why National leader Christopher Luxon removed a Pasifika…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: Tax, fiscal holes, and disinformation. Plus: With just 43 days until the election, how is the campaign shaping up? Raw Politics ponders how National’s $14.6 billion tax plan landed both politically and in real terms for those who will benefit from the proposed tax relief. Then we cast forward to the campaign launches this weekend in Auckland where Labour and National will lay out their visions for the country if in government after October 14. Newsroom Pro editor Jonathan Milne was one of two journalists to get his hands on the Castalia report that National commissioned to get its t’s crossed, i’s dotted, and maths analysed ahead of its announcement on Wednesday. Milne notes National was transparent in saying where its numbers differed from Castalia’s and says it’s worth remembering the analysis was commissioned by the leader’s office and on Christopher Luxon’s terms. Political editor Jo Moir and senior political reporter Marc Daalder then explain the manic vibe in…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: The latest 1News poll confirms Labour really is the underdog now. Plus: Will National's 'diverse' party list lead to a diverse caucus after the election? Raw Politics tries to make sense of a wild political week in which a senior National MP threw in the towel with some glancing blows and faint praise, one of his colleagues was found guilty of being "objectively threatening" at Parliament, and the Prime Minister finally embraced the position of underdog. National's party list 'reveal' left leader Christopher Luxon tongue-tied when asked if gender had played a role in the selections, but the sidelined MP Michael Woodhouse had no such hesitancy in revealing the disadvantage that he and some of his colleagues might have felt as diversity took centre stage. The panel analyses the latest 1News-Verian poll, the one that showed the gap between the major parties opening to 8 points and Labour dipping officially under the 30 percent mark. It confirms a trend that's basically…

This week on the Raw Politics podcast: What's wrong with Labour governing by focus group, if its GST and parental leave policies help it win back support? And National is about to release its party list for the election with little room to diversify its team. Raw Politics pulls back the curtains on Labour's blitz of populist policy announcements - to discover that while they're 'in it for you', they're also in it to win. If that means running on things they think are popular, they'll be no brainers, despite the views of experts, opponents and even some of their own party members. The removal of GST from fresh fruit and veges, extension of partner parental leave, the Covid-19 rule relaxation and another multi-billion dollar packaging of transport measures have thrust Labour from managers to campaigners and there'll be little turning back. On the eve of National's big reveal of its party list rankings for October 14, the panel discovers there's little room for the party to diversify the top end of who it's…