/on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/rss 九一星空无限 Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:48:41 Z en /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-big-questions-for-this-critical-election/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-big-questions-for-this-critical-election/ This is election year, and this is possibly, in my opinion, and many other people's opinion, the most critical general election for New Zealand in a very long time.   I'm seeing it in the letters to the editor today in the paper, because there's a lot of people saying the same thing. This is a critical general election.   The right is saying it's a critical general election. We've got to keep the left away from the Treasury benches because they're going to blow all the money and they could ruin the economy.   And the left is saying we've got to keep the right away from the Treasury benches, you know, because they're destroying the environment and hurting the vulnerable, et cetera.   I agree on all of that. In a funny way, both sides are correct.   And here's an example of just how critical it is. Back in August of last year, Transport Minister Chris Bishop released some plans for road infrastructure spending. At the time, he warned about how much it might all cost. He warned of hard decisions, and he warned of a mediocrity if we don't actually get on with things. If you don't do anything, you're going backwards, he said.   So this week we found out about the Ministry of Transport briefing paper that he was basing his warnings on. And it's a scary thing. It says 1/4 of a trillion dollars needs to be spent on roads over the next 20 years. A quarter of a trillion is twice our current total GDP. And that's got all the headlines this week. And then when you read it a bit closer, it reveals that only $7 billion of the $56 billion cost of the current 17 roads of national roads of significance, are funded. $7 billion out of $56 billion.   So here's the question: where do we find the extra $49 billion? So the Ministry proposes road user charges and tolls on existing roads and new ones. The detail of the likely increase is, however, redacted.   Here's the thing: if Chris Bishop is serious about the roads, then new taxes, because that's what tolls and road user charges are, new taxes are coming, no matter whether you vote left or right.   And this is just roads. The state also has to find money for health, education, and for more police and bigger jails, and more pensioners. I mean, the bills go on forever, and none of it is wasteful spending. This is what we just need to get by.   So the big conversations we have to have this year and going forward is whether we want to stop and just slide ever backwards, or whether we want to pay more to live in our paradise. This is what makes this year's election critical to our future.   And the question for all parties is how do we find the money to pay for the stuff we need to cope with the people we have to have to grow our economy? And that's a big question, whether you're left or right. And I warn you, we're talking new taxes no matter which way you vote.  Thu, 15 Jan 2026 23:10:50 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-assault-of-dallas-gurney-is-incomprehensible/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-assault-of-dallas-gurney-is-incomprehensible/ My former boss and my friend, he used to be my boss at the radio station Classic Hits for a good 10 years, and then he became my boss here at 九一星空无限talk ZB, Mister Dallas Gurney has been assaulted at his general store in Whananaki.   A group was at his store, and they were effing and blinding and they're obviously a bit off their faces. And Dallas went to have a word because the whole thing about Whananaki and the general store and the campground nearby is that it's a family environment and it's peak holiday period. There's loads of kids around.   So Dallas went up to them and said, could you please keep it civil? And then the drunks in the party turned around and told him to eff off. So then he said, okay, well, if you're going to be like that, you can leave. So leave.   Then one of the party came up behind him and shoved him off the deck. We know of coward’s punches, this was a coward's shove. Dallas flew through the air, landed heavily on the concrete, fractured his shoulder. And then to add insult to injury, they laughed about it as they left.   Now I say none of this allegedly because his CCTV was filming the whole thing. It's now been widely circulated and it's clear what happened and who did it.   When I heard that Dallas said, "I flew a couple of meters in the air", I thought, you're exaggerating. I watched the video, he was not. He was given a fair shove and flew through the air, broke his shoulder.   I find the whole thing incomprehensible. Everyone was enjoying a summer day, even the drunk ferals, enjoying a summer day. They were enjoying Whananaki’s excellent takeaway food, and then they turned around, they effed and blinded, and when they were told to leave, they hurt their host, the man who cooked them the food.   The police know who they are, so there will be repercussions. You could ask, where were the police? But the police can't be everywhere all at once and Whananaki is a way away from everywhere.   Dallas hopes that the perpetrators are feeling sheepish today after the booze wears off, but I don't think they will. There are so many New Zealanders who hit first and barely think afterwards, and do not understand the word sorry, and do not understand the word regret. They are scum and you let the country down. You let your family down and you let yourselves down and you don't even know it.  Tue, 13 Jan 2026 21:42:39 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-dissatisfaction-in-the-public-sector/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-dissatisfaction-in-the-public-sector/ The best and worst public sector workplaces have been revealed.   They did a survey of the staff – the staff says the service has been gutted. There are claims of workplace bullying and frustration over what staff call the overcooked use of all things Māori.   This is the 2025 Public Service Census. They talked to 44,000 government employees.   The Education Review Office are the most unhappiest – they've got very dissatisfied staff. There's only 28.5% who like working there.   Ministry of Defence staff were the happiest, with nearly 80% satisfied or very satisfied.   So the staff and the grumpy public service officers called for less micromanagement. They pointed to a culture of top-down and do-as-I-said leadership, and they claim that managers rarely have the time to stop and check on the well-being of staff members.   Others took issue with workplace culture, saying in some cases it's got so bad it's caused a continual exodus of staff.   The Government's cost-saving initiatives, which led to layoffs right across the sector, were frequently cited as a cause of low morale.   And one piece of feedback was that last year's restructuring gutted key areas of expertise, key positions remain vacant, and ongoing attritional vacancies are not being filled.   One public servant wrote, the priorities have not changed, the deliverables have not changed, but the size and the aggregate capability of the workforce tasked with them has significantly reduced.   But then again, no one's happy when staff is reduced because it means everyone has to work more. It is what it is, and it is apparently what we can afford, and it might be better if they stopped moaning about it and just cracked on to work us out of this hole. Mon, 12 Jan 2026 21:30:37 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-we-are-poorer-for-the-loss-of-sir-tim-shadbolt/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-we-are-poorer-for-the-loss-of-sir-tim-shadbolt/ Sir Tim Shadbolt has died after a long illness.   Now, I used to hate Tim Shadbolt, and I'll tell you why. When I went to uni in 1981, I ended up running Radio B. Now, fair to say, my coursework suffered. I was busy working, I was having far too good a time, so, you know, pfft, coursework.   So I crammed for the exams, really crammed for the exams. And I'd pass those exams. I'd get marks in the 70s.   And then I'd be told, you've failed the paper. And I go, why have I failed the paper? And they said, because you've failed your coursework. I went, what? Yeah, you've got to pass your coursework and you've got to pass the exam. You've got to pass both now. I went, I passed the exam. How is this fair? I asked my tutor. Blame Tim Shadbolt, he said.   Turns out that Tim, as a student radical, had argued that exams were unfair, and he was such a good arguer that he won the argument so suddenly you had to be judged on both. So to get a paper, you had to pass both your coursework and your exams. Thanks, Tim! Thanks a lot for nothing. If it wasn't for you, I might have been a lawyer instead of being a broadcaster.   But hey, that was Tim. He made things change.   In 1983, after doing his student stuff, doing his Jumping Sundays, which by the way, as a kid I used to go to, and after writing his memoir, 'Bullshit & Jellybeans’, which is just the best read. Anyway, in 1983, he forgoes fighting against the establishment and became part of the establishment, and he became mayor of Waitemata City.   Now Bob Harvey, who ended up running Waitakere, will say that Tim started the move for Waitakere to become an eco-city, preserving its natural heritage. I remember Tim fighting for a decent indoor stadium in Te Atatu. This is all decades before Auckland got Spark Arena.   Then, of course, he moved to Invercargill because, of course, I don't know, I don't care where, as long as I'm there. He was a tireless cheerleader for the region. True, he stayed too long. True, he made mistakes. But that should not detract from all he did from Southland. He was amazing.   And I've met Tim many times after he screwed up my career, and I can tell you he was brilliant company. He could instantly skewer any political pretence. He delivered laconic, slow zingers in that voice, and you held on to every word, and then you'd wait for the kicker, and then it'd come in, and then he'd smile, his immense toothy grin, and we'd all laugh along. He was magnetic.   Tim Shadbolt, Sir Tim Shadbolt, was a great New Zealander. He was energetic, dogmatic, and funny, and he had a love for New Zealanders and his cities, and we are the poorer.  Thu, 08 Jan 2026 22:12:06 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-remembering-new-zealands-wars/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-remembering-new-zealands-wars/ This weekend, hundreds of people from around the country will descend on a Northland pā to remember one of the most famous battles ever fought on New Zealand soil.   It's the Battle of Ruapekapeka Pā, the final engagement of the 1845-1846 Northern War, which saw 400 Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Hine defenders against a force of about 1600 British troops and Māori allies.   It is the 180th anniversary of the Battle of Ruapekapeka Pā. It's been brewing for a while, the whole battle was. Anyway, back in the day, Māori were unhappy with how the settlers were treating them – they were making sniping attacks on Russell.   Meanwhile, Hōne Heke was merrily chopping down the Russell flagpole time and time again – he did it four times all up. So we ended up with troops arriving from Sydney and we ended up with a war. And remember, this is just six years after the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.   It all came to a head at Ruapekapeka. The Brits bought the guns and the cannons. The Māori built world-leading fortifications and bunkers and escape routes. They were clever. They chose a site where there was a well inside the pā, which meant that they could survive a siege. Now the war ended in a truce of sorts, with the Māori chief Kawiti famously telling Governor George Grey, if you have had enough, then I have had enough. But if you have not had enough, then I have not had enough either. Straight out of a movie, isn't it?   They all had enough, so there was a truce. Notably, no Māori land confiscations after the Battle of Ruapekapeka Pā, which became, of course, commonplace in the following Waikato and Taranaki Wars.   So look, these wars, these New Zealand wars, fascinate me because I never learnt about them at school. I guess at the time they were a guilty little secret to be kept from new generations. So as an adult, I was surprised to find out that these battles were a full-scale war – in our country.   The British Expeditionary Force numbers ended out at 18,000 soldiers. It was the biggest force the British had ever mustered up to that point outside their borders, outside their country. We were the empire's biggest war of the time, and yet here I was in a New Zealand school back in the 70s, not learning about it.   And of course, after the Waikato War, we had those series of land confiscations that happened to punish the Māori for their rebellion, and those land confiscations carry on today. In a moment of reflection, you might want to consider how the Irish and the Scots feel now about their historical battles with the English back in the day. And then you might understand how Māori back in the day really weren't feeling the “we are one people” vibe at all.   But this weekend, we will remember. Government ministers will go there, the Defence Force will go there, the British High Commission will be there. And this is an important part of our formation as a country, we had a war here.  Wed, 07 Jan 2026 22:01:12 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-government-could-step-in-regarding-manage-my-health-if-it-wanted/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-the-government-could-step-in-regarding-manage-my-health-if-it-wanted/ Let's talk about Manage My Health only briefly. Simeon Brown's interview with me yesterday was evidence that the Government wants to keep as far away from the issue as possible, while still giving the impression that they're very concerned. His argument is that Manage My Health is a private company contracted by GPs, no direct government funding, so all I have to do is review it when the dust settles and take some learnings. Now that is all true, but the core of our health service is public. And with GPs receiving funding for primary care from the Government, Manage My Health interacts with the public system, so the Government does have the say. And the excuse that Manage My Health is private, so not under the Government's control is handy. Private ownership didn't stop Scott Simpson messing with PayWave. Private ownership hasn't stopped politicians threatening to break up supermarkets. If he wanted to step in, he could. But he doesn't need the bother. But there's a lot of people bothered by the breach, the latest sexual violence victims who don't want their records everywhere. Now this is a weakness in a hybrid system of public and private. We get too many entities and too many chiefs and not enough accountability. So the interesting thing to come out of this is the review that we will get eventually when we've just about forgotten about the whole mess. And the review will look at whether private platforms like Manage My Health meet the same high standards expected of public agencies regarding protection of sensitive patient data. Simeon, I can write that for you now. Tue, 06 Jan 2026 22:06:22 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-new-zealands-on-the-brink-of-pulling-itself-out-of-its-funk/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-new-zealands-on-the-brink-of-pulling-itself-out-of-its-funk/ Yesterday I opened with the ongoing problems with Auckland’s motorway system. And I got a grumpy text after it asking for more positivity in a holiday programme, instead of gripes.  That said, I’ve also received quite a few messages saying I’m presenting a positive programme.  And I reflected on that when reading Simon Bridges’ article on his hopes for 2026, which was published online yesterday afternoon.  He said the problem for an advocacy group like the Chamber of Commerce is maintaining an optimistic tone, but at the same time you have to outline the problems that are standing in our way.  He says it’s a balancing act, and I’d agree. Sometimes I talk about the bad stuff because I want to find an answer so we can get rid of it. I also need to report it so we know exactly where we stand.  There’s is no benefit in giving a view through rose coloured glasses, because that’s basically being biased. But nor should I report on everything like I have a lemon in my mouth.  So for the guy who called me negative I’d say this:  I believe New Zealand is on the brink of pulling itself out of its funk. It won’t be like we have seen before. It won’t be because house prices are starting to rise, thereby opening our wallets. It will real, but limited, growth. And that means jobs.  I believe that the conclusion of big projects will enliven us. The CRL, the International Convention Centre, the One NZ Stadium in Christchurch, the new Waikato Regional Theatre in Hamilton, and a host of other projects that have dragged on will suddenly open new doors and our eyes to possibility.  I believe that a number of companies who have done the hard yards through the pandemic and recession and restructured themselves are well placed to take off this year. Again, that will mean jobs.  And I hope that a sense of bi-partisan consensus is about to break out and take the conversation into how we can make it better for the majority, instead of pandering to a noisy minority.  I’m pretty positive. Always have been.  Mon, 05 Jan 2026 20:26:19 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-its-time-nz-gets-off-the-fence/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-its-time-nz-gets-off-the-fence/ So as we heard yesterday, China's President Xi Jinping has vowed to reunify China and Taiwan, in his annual New Year's Eve speech in Beijing.  Speaking the day after the conclusion of intense Chinese military drills around Taiwan, Xi said, "the reunification of our motherland, and trend of the times, is unstoppable."  The military drills were amongst the biggest ever seen, and they came after the United State gave Taiwan $11 billion to help with their defence funding, and China took umbrage.  Several governments, though, have come out and criticised China's drills this week - including the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia, the Philippines, the European Union, and the United States.  We however, said nothing.  Last February, when China did live firing drills in the straits of Taiwan, we were all over it! Winston Peters was saying all sorts of things, but today? Nothing.  Whether it's because we're all on holiday, or whether we're now playing a game of sitting on the fence - whatever. Our silence was deafening.  Our love of China trade is keeping our mouths shut.  So what evolved was a debate last year on whether China is a threat or a friend to the South Pacific, and I was on the side of threat, along with former MPs Cam Calder and Defence Minister Wayne Mapp.  With China using its wallet to carry favour in the South Pacific, especially in the Cook Islands, we had to consider this as being threatening - and it is.  Against its wisdom, South Pacific academics pointed out that China has never been guilty of colonising aggressively in the Pacific, they argued China is our friend.  We argued back by saying, "so far..." But threats, of course, involve the future. Not what happened in the past.  So what happened on New Year's Day in China included boasts about their technological advancements, and scenes from their massive military parade last year, and it left me in no doubt that China is getting more and more confident in throwing its weight around in our neck of the woods.  But we're saying nothing.  A time is coming, and it may be soon, that we're going to have to get off the fence and start standing with our allies.  And on that, China's new beef tariffs appear not to affect us, because to affect us we'd have to double our output, and with all the will of the world are we going to double our output? No.  But Australia, who are actively standing against China, are going to be hit by about a billion dollars. It's a billion dollar hit from those tariffs for Australia.  For us? Nothing.  Think that's a coincidence? LISTEN ABOVE Thu, 01 Jan 2026 22:58:28 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-maybe-wear-flats-next-new-year/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-maybe-wear-flats-next-new-year/ From my drive in this morning, the New Year has been a big one.  Normally at 3 in the morning, when I'm on the road, I'm alone. Not today though. Traffic was like a Tuesday afternoon.  When I got into the downtown area it was absolutely bustling - I could hear sirens everywhere, fire engines and ambulances were criss-crossing the city, and there were these small hoards wandering around, tired people - tired, confused people, all wondering "where do we go next?" When I got to work, just outside the door there was this continuous stream of groups of young people heading back into the city, they were trying to find another venue to keep the party going, or they were looking for a way home. And you know what? They were wet.  One group of young women, four of them, were so soaked that their dresses were see-through. They were all carrying their shoes. The shoes that had crippled them all through the night.  I don't understand why women who know that they're going to be standing around for hours and hours decide to go out with the high heels and get crippled and complain about it. Just wear some flats, for goodness sake. Guys know this. There was one girl, most seriously, she was soaked, she was see-through, and she had no shoes at all. Where she left them? Anybody's guess.  Anyway, for some, January the 1st of 2026 has not started as a happy new year. On the arterial route out of my suburb, someone had written off their car.  It had obviously gone off the road. Fast. Into a stone fence. The car was totalled. There were about half a dozen fire engines, tow trucks, and cops, all picking up the pieces.  I don't know if the guy was injured or not, but obviously it was a bad scene, and a reminder it's always worth having a hmm and making a plan that doesn't have risk, and maybe wearing some flats and not high heels.  LISTEN ABOVE Wed, 31 Dec 2025 21:33:27 Z /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-you-cant-get-rid-of-working-for-families-and-stay-in-government/ /on-air/holiday-breakfast/opinion/andrew-dickens-you-cant-get-rid-of-working-for-families-and-stay-in-government/ Fascinating read in the Weekend Herald as Liam Dan interviewed the Finance Minister Nicola Willis on Saturday. Of course, she was supposed to be debating Ruth Richardson about how to save the economy, but Ruth bailed as the event became a circus sideshow. But anyway, Nicola Willis's replies to Liam Dan's questions will be giving the taxpayers union and Ruth Richardson holiday nightmares, because it shows how little real difference there is between Labour and National. In reply to questions about how much more she could cut in our spending, she defended herself. And in an appointed comment, she said, she keeps getting asked, ‘why don't you just get rid of the Ministry of Women's Affairs?’ Very common comment. She reckons that would save a whole $12 million. So make no difference at all to our deposition, but likely to cost some women's votes. And that's important. for Nicola. On our debt position, she describes it as modest in comparison to the rest of the world. Heard that before? That's exactly Labour's line. They use it to justify spending more. Nicola is using it as justification to cut less. She also is using that to dampen down the hysteria about our debt position, which I thought was a bit rich because that hysteria has been ramped up by the Prime Minister and herself.  And then she talks about real spending like superannuation and working for families. She reckons if she cut working for families, like Ruth and the taxpayers union would like, she would leave 330,000 low-income families $180 a week worse off. They would be poorer, and they vote. It would make the cost of living even harder for the poorly paid. You can't get rid of working for families and staying in government. And here's the thing I feel about working for families. Helen Clarke brought it in, John Key called it communism by stealth, and then when he got in charge, he actually increased its level. And now we're dependent on it. It's suppressed our wages as employers use it to subsidize their workers instead of paying them what they're worth. They rely on the state to increase their margins. We could cut it, but we would suffer immense pain. It's artificial. It's artificially keeping wages up. I mean, there's only one way out of our mess, and that's for workers to be paid more and then pay more tax. And the only way to do that is for employers to up their productivity, rather than hoping the government can wave a magic wand. LISTEN ABOVE Sun, 21 Dec 2025 21:17:36 Z