Andrew Dickens Afternoons

There's an ad on ZB these days about reversible vasectomies. It talks about how easy it is to make the wrong decision and then have regrets. The example it uses is the Auckland Harbour Bridge, which has become famous as the bridge that austerity failed to build sufficiently. Back in the 50s the Bridge was proposed to be 6 lanes wide with a movable centre barrier. But to keep the cost down both economically and politically, only 4 lanes were built. Within 2 years the bridge was packed and 10 years later we had to add 4 more lanes at great expense. It's a lesson we fail to learn. We're currently in the middle of the same thing with Dunedin's new hospital. For the sake of a saving of 100 million on a 1.7 billion dollar project we were on the verge of cutting the construction of operating theatres and ward rooms. Facilities that will invariably need to be built in the future and ill inevitably be far more expensive to build. It's the Bridge all over again. The government is slowly crumbling on the issue but you h

Some of the things that have scuppered the Labour Government are their use of hyperbole, and exaggeration, and magical word salads that are easily debunked and ridiculed The good old favourites like the 100,000 houses from Kiwibuild or the light rail that would be started by 2021. Too many times the words and promises have not matched the deeds and that reduces trust in their ability to govern. So with this quite obvious it's a gimme for Opposition parties in their campaigning. All they have to do is project competence, and common sense, and achievable goals and aspirations and we'd consider them a government in waiting. So on Friday, Chris Bishop launched National's Electrify NZ policy. This is designed to create more renewable electricity to power on a green future away from oil, gas, and coal. I was doing Drive so I got the first crack which is always hard because you haven't had long to digest the policy. But right from the start, I realised that the policy principally involved shortening the resource con

Welcome to the new world of performative politics and the battle of the outraged. Though it's not a new world, but the same old world now amplified by social media and our move away from the written and spoken word and into pictures on screens. The visit of Posie Parker went exactly as anyone could predict over the weekend and the fallout is just as predictable. All sides played their part in this passionless play. All feeding on each other for validation. All throwing out vast generalisations. It all started with with the calls to ban her entry. Free speech crusaders railed against it. Trans activists bellowed for it.  Ignoring the fact that entry could only de denied on criminal record. Posie Parker is many things but she's never been a criminal. But the drama acted out broadcast by media entities both professional and social who only report what's right before their eyes Posie Parker is nothing without opposition and we'd all be ignorant of her stance if opponents hadn't highlighted it. She claimed to be r

So, it's been a week since I was last on ZB, and last Monday we were talking law and order and what really needs to happen. But of course in the week since, the former Police Minister Stuart Nash has had a spectacular meltdown and we now have our 5th Police Minister in 5 years. In fact, it's our 10th in 14 years. Police would like the revolving door to stop spinning so fast, but that's not in their control. But the funny thing I noticed about Stuart Nash's supposed crime is how little anybody really cared. In fact, one woman questioned by telly over the weekend said the classic line: he was just saying what everybody is thinking. The people who were most vocal about Nashie's misbehaviour were the opposition MPs. Particularly Mark Mitchell and David Seymour. "A flagrant overreach of ministerial authority and an instantly sackable offence" they chanted in unison. What Stuart Nash did was suggest what the police should do operationally. The Cabinet manual for all parties forbids this. It also forbids instructing

Have you ever considered how amazing it is that the health system operates at all. If you think about the pure logistics of every operation that will happen in New Zealand today, it is an awesome collaborative exercise that most industries couldn't match. A half dozen extensively skilled practitioners have to meet in a purpose built room. Some of them will have studied for 15 years or more to be at this level. The surgeons not only need knowledge but physical prowess and stamina as surgeries can last as long as 12 hours or more. The whole team need to be spotlessly clean and hygienic.  As does every piece of highly technical equipment they're about to use. An army of post operative carers need to be ready to provide 24 hour attention after the procedures. It's a small miracle that happens every day and we take it for granted. But at the same time as recognising the brilliance of our health system, we also have to admit the system is broken. The past weeks' headlines of staff shortages, room shortages and bure

So it is now officially the silly season as Christopher Luxon finally got off his State of the Nation speech and released his first policy in the election year. And who saw that coming? National has promised it would give households with a joint income of up to 180-thousand dollars a year a 25 percent rebate on their child care costs. Now strangely enough the last politician to use an early education bribe was Jacinda Ardern. And that was only last November and the new settings come in next month. National has taken that policy a bit further.  It's a classic case of not staying in your lane, hijacking another party's policy to swing some of their supporters your way. And that makes it good politics. The policy is not cheap at $249 million dollars. But National says it will claw that money back from the amount consultants currently charge the government.  There's a certain irony that National will fire consultants to give tax rebates so that parents can hire consultants to look after their children. Now painti

Former National MP Chester Borrows has died, aged 65. He was diagnosed with cancer last year. Borrows campaigned in two elections before winning the Whanganui seat in 2005, which he held for four terms. He served as Courts Minister and Deputy Speaker of the House in John Key's Government, before retiring in 2017. Andrew Dickens reflected on the political legacy of Chester Borrows after his death. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As part of getting back to basics and bread and butter, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins announced that Three Waters is over. Just the name, mind It's an acknowledgement that the Opposition's campaign against Three Waters has tarnished its’ name.  So it's gone.  Not the reform. Just the name That was met by crowing by National Party members. In reply, I have said all along that I will not be voting for any party that doesn't have a cogent water reform policy. If you've listened to me you'll know that Labour's water reform rankles with me because of the appropriation and redistribution of assets and debt raised on them.  It penalised the councils doing well and rewarded councils that have been slack in investment and maintenance. But it did address the issue of raising enough equity to fund the work that is necessary for a water system we can be confident in So I was quite excited to see that National had finally stirred itself to present a water reform policy which they've called "Local Water Done Well". So what

It's been a week since I was on the radio. It's been one of the worst weeks in New Zealand as Cyclone Gabrielle did its worst in areas that were not expecting it. There's much to talk about the present but talk has started about the future. To fix our battered country up is going to take a lot of money. 13 billion was Grant Robertson's first forecast. Where do we find that? Over summer I was bailed up by a grandfather who felt for his grandchildren who were being lumbered with a crippling debt because of this bloody socialist government. I said the debt is not that bad in reality. This weekend Stephen Toplis the BNZ economist talked about our current debt to GDP target of 21.4%. Currently we're about 30 percent. Now to give you some context on that debt. Japan tops the list at over 250% debt to GDP, The United States is around 120%, Canada 110%, the UK at 100%.  Now sure, these are not levels to aspire to. So let's look at our brothers Australia. They're on 36%. My point is that we're not the macro financial

Philip Duncan from WeatherWatch joined Andrew Dickens to give an update on Cyclone Gabrielle and the current weather around the country. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is so much to unpack from the great Auckland anniversary weekend flood and organisational screw up that I’m just going to detail a few points. Firstly that the storm was unexpected and unforecasted. Well, it was and it wasn’t. All Spring we were told that La Nina was into its third successive cycle. The implication of that was a very warm, wet, and windy summer. Well that sure came true. Some have immediately jumped onto the storm as evidence of climate change. Except this weather cycle was already predicted and has happened many times before. Climate change may be adding to the impact of La Nina, but that’s a very difficult calculation to make and certainly not one that should be barked at local body politicians hours after the event. Forecasters knew it would be a significant event, but not quite as significant as it turned out to be. That said, the fact that we sent 40,000 Elton John fans out into the eye of that storm and the concert was not cancelled until 15 minutes before showtime is still inexpl

Happy New Year. It's nice to be back after a long summer break during a summer that was both brilliant and awful. When it was beautiful it was very beautiful and when it was horrible it was appalling. The East Coast mutilated not just by the elements but by the slash washed down from the hills. This is not the first time this has happened by any stretch and it has to stop.  The industry is well aware of the risk.  Like any industry you need to be able to clean up after you. And now the new year welcomes a new Prime Minister. Firstly, the resignation of Jacinda Ardern saw the most incredible outbreak of Jacinda Derangement Syndrome I've ever seen. Fans and acolytes from the left were left wailing and despairing. Truly bereft. Grown men crying. Meanwhile champagne corks were popping in the Koru Lounge, rural pubs filled up and the right wingers felt that all their troubles were over. All of which was a wild over exaggeration of Jacinda Ardern and her acheivements and abilities. For the past 5 years I've been sa

So the election result in the Hamilton West by-election is proof that this election year is going to be a thrilling ride. The electorate was always a soft blue one which swung hard red after the government's handling of Covid. But now it has swung back to the sort of political leaning it had before the pandemic. In fact it may have gone hard blue. But it needs to be taken with a grain of salt, as only 31 per cent of the electorate voted. The election was also missing a Green candidate, Gourav Sharma also took 1200 votes with him, which was a surprisingly good result in my book. Crucially National Leader Christopher Luxon also saw that it wasn't as one sided as some made out and warned the party against arrogance and lethargy. It must be tempting as a National party supporter to hear the constant criticism of this Government and then see the turning of the tide in polls being confirmed by this by election result and think you're home and hosed. And this Government is constantly criticised. "The most incompeten

So I went to Billy Joel on Saturday. Great concert. The sound for the top tiers of the stadium was not good, but I blame that on Billy's team who had a rushed set up. The video walls were also very loose but the music was amazing. The real beef was transport. There were no trains because Kiwirail scheduled maintenance without anyone looking at what was on that weekend. It created a lot of chaos. Now, I live on the Shore and taking a ferry and a train to Eden Park is normally a delight. So instead we opted to take our electric scooters to the Park taking the NW motorway bike path. Not ideal. Had to stay sober but hate delays and not fond of buses. So we ferried to downtown which took 15 minutes. Then rode up Queen Street and on to Eden Park.  That took us 15 minutes. Coming back it was well lit and we were in a hurry so it took us just 12 minutes. So it was surprisingly efficient and a lot of fun. But the real take home is that we were the only people on the bike path. Now, that's not the path's or the council

We are now just moments away from the nationwide vigils and protests against retail crime planned to take place outside dairies and Labour MPs offices. This comes after the murder of 34 year old Janak Patel outside the Rose Cottage Dairy in Sandringham last Wednesday. In the half week of debate after this crime we have seemingly talked about every aspect of crime without touching the major factor behind the Rose Cottage crime. People assumed it was part of the ram raid fad that has taken hold this spring, that it was theft of cigarettes and vapes that have gained a new transactional value due to their high price due to the taxes imposed upon them. That the offenders were youth who have no fear of consequence from the NZ Police or Justice System. That this crime was spurned on by a government that is portrayed as soft on crime. As we have found out in the fullness of time, the alleged offender was 34. His accomplice 42. These were not kids.  It was not a ram raid.  They were after the cash register not the cig

The debacle that was the awarding of the Football World Cup to Qatar is once again back in focus with the start of the tournament. But make no mistake there's been controversy ever since the awarding of the tournament back in 2010. The appointment turned heads.  The smallest country to ever host the cup, the first Arab country. The first country to host the cup that had never qualified for the cup.  A country with little football history.  But a country with a lot of petro dollars The appointment came as 2 FIFA officials were suspended due to allegations of corruption and money laundering. And the appointment process has been tainted ever since even though there is now concrete allegation as yet. Immediately there was concern about human rights of the country's construction workers because they don't have any of their own. Arab countries have long imported their labour from South East Asia, paying them little and taking their passports causing allegations of modern day slavery. Meanwhile 10 years ago, the Gua

Friday saw the committee charged with reviewing public submissions on the Three Waters water reform return their recommendations. Changes to co-governance was not in their list of suggestions It beggars belief that out of the 88,000 New Zealanders that bothered to make their voices heard that co-governance wasn't high on the list of concerns. But as I said on the Friday drive show, the lady is not for turning. Co-governance appears to be a hill that this Labour Government is prepared to die on. But as I also said on Friday, co-governance should be the least of your worries if you're concerned with creeping socialism. The Three Waters reform suggested is property theft and that's the reason that Phil Goff was against it and had to be bought off. This Government wants to seize assets paid for by ratepayers, amalgamate them and then borrow off them, so that funding for water stays off the Governments and Councils books. It's blatant nationalisation by a left wing government It's like needing to do urgent repairs

A couple of weeks ago, I warned you that Winston is back and I was right. The latest political poll by Horizon Research released today finds New Zealand First with 6.75% support – and in a position to decide which parties would form a Government. This result would deliver the party 9 seats in a 120-seat parliament. So, Horizon finds Labour would win 40 seats, the Green party 15. A total of 55.  Not enough to form a Government. Meanwhile, National would win 37 seats and ACT 17. A total of 54.  Again not enough. Meaning that NZ First would be the kingmaker once again.  To get back into parliament the party needs either an electoral seat or 5% of the vote and on this poll it does that. Horizon is a company that involves Graeme Colman, ex of NBR, and other professionals with 30 odd years of experience so I don’t feel it is biased. So the coalition partners are stable. ACT continues to be strong with 13% of the vote but that seems to be coming from National voters.   This result should worry both the main parties.

As we digest the local government elections, it's important to realise that in the wider world our concerns are small change. Roadcones, cycleways and speed limits are small fry compared with Ukrainian war, global recessions and rampant inflation worldwide. And then there's climate change and controls on our emissions. In the past fortnight, you may not have noticed stories that put climate issues into perspective. The sabotage of the Russian gas pipe was the single greatest man-made climate disaster in history. The pure mass of methane that escaped into the atmosphere was incredible. Remember that methane is over 80 times more effective at warming the atmosphere than CO2. Decades of emission controls were written off in just a few days. Meanwhile, the Government admitted that the drive to replace the entire Government fleet with electric vehicles by 2025 is way off track. It's looking like 25% of the fleet will be electric, and not by 2025 but more like 2030. Why? There are just not enough electric vehicles

As this is my first time on ZB since the death of Elizabeth the Second, may I add my gratitude to the many who have praised her exceptional service. In the days since the expected but still devastating news I have been struck by how history is unfolding before our eyes. History is made up of milestones and crossroads and we are in the middle of an astounding period of change that we will all point to in the future. We are at the end of the Second Elizabethan age.  A 70 year period of incredible progress and modernisation, where technology has aided and abetted more individuality and self-determination than ever before. In coincides with the greatest pandemic for 100 years. The most impactful war since the World conflicts of last century.  Brexit and other economic developments changing world trade patterns. A worldwide inflation outbreak. And a climate that is becoming increasingly volatile. I feel people in the future will look back to this point as a significant point in this planet's history and here we ar