x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

With a straight down the middle approach, Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive on Newstalk ZB delivers the very latest news and views to New Zealanders as they wrap up their day.

news

All Episodes

99:33

Full Show Podcast: 12 February 2026

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 12 February, 2026, farmers are worried about a water tax - we hear from the Minister Responsible for RMA Reform. Winston Peters explains his push for a referendum on the Māori seats. A survey of children finds their main goal is to be a professional football player - not an All Black. And on the Huddle with Thomas Scrimgeour and Mark Sainsbury we discuss calls for safety regulations on blind cords after a toddler's death. Get the

en-US

2:07

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Should...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Right, so in the space of less than a day, a coroner has called for regulations to make corded blinds safe for toddlers, and the family of a little girl who died in one of these blinds has backed that call - and then the Government has said no, there will be no regulation. The whole thing has happened in less than a day. This, by the way - if you don't know what I'm talking about - is a parent's worst nightmare, isn’t it? It’s the idea that something in the house, something seemingly innocuous,

en-US

3:51

Morgan Connaughton: Rocket Lab vice-president of...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Government regulations and the sky aren't the limit for Rocket Lab, with the rocket launch cap multiplied by 10 to 1000. A review of space-launch-debris-regulations judged the environmental risk to be low. New Zealand comes third in the world - for frequency of orbital rocket launches. Rocket Lab's vice-president of communications, Morgan Connaughton says this bump is needed. She says Rocket Lab's already reached 81 launches. "Back when Rocket Lab started launching, 100 seemed like a fantasy. And

en-US

4:53

Graeme Rose: Window Treatments CEO explains why it's...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

An industry expert says it's not practical to regulate blind cords. A coroner's released a report on the death of three-year-old Tilly Cambie in 2023, after a cord tangled around her neck. She's one of several children to die that way since 2009. They recommend mandatory blind standards - which the Government's ruled out. Window Treatments chief executive Graeme Rose says blanket regulations wouldn't suit every household. "You can imagine someone installing a blind in a kitchen window with a bench

en-US

3:31

Matthew Bloxham: Auckland Council senior freshwater...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Electrofishing technology is being utilised to keep Auckland's Western Springs Lake pest-free. Electrocurrents are being used to stun pest fish and turtles so they can be scooped up, brought to land and killed, with no native species being harmed in the process. Auckland Council senior freshwater ecologist Matthew Bloxham says too many people are getting rid of their old pets when they become inconvenient - with many dumping them in Western Springs. "These things become enormous and they're

en-US

3:34

Andrew Little: Wellington mayor on whether an inquiry...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Wellington's mayor says questions can come later on who'll pay to fix the failed Moa Point wastewater treatment plant. The facility's failed catastrophically and wastewater's still flowing into the ocean - with no end in sight. Work's continuing at the site to lets teams assess what's gone wrong. Andrew Little says regional Wellington mayors have been quick to comment on whether they'll help pay. But he says those decisions haven't been made. "At the end of the day, Moa Point plant belongs to

en-US

3:23

Chris Bishop: RMA Reform Minister rules out proposed...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop has categorically ruled out implementing a 'water tax' that's mentioned in the proposed Resource Management legislation. Federated Farmers today asked the Government to remove clauses they say give Ministers sweeping powers to tax water as a tool for managing demand. Bishop says it's not that simple, and it's not a policy the current Government is proposing. "There's a provision in there to allow it to be turned on into the future, if the Government did policy work

en-US

4:56

Barry Soper: Newstalk ZB senior political...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Our newsroom can reveal Parliament's Speaker's been filing incorrect property declarations for the past two decades. Gerry Brownlee last year amended 15 of his 19 pecuniary interests declarations, dating to 2005. But some changes still appear to be incorrect. The inconsistencies stemmed from failing to declare a property entirely - and even declaring one he didn't own. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained further, and revealed whether Kiwis should be concerned. LISTEN

en-US

6:25

Murray Olds: Australian correspondent on Liberal...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Australian opposition leader Sussan Ley is facing additional leadership challenges after Angus Taylor resigned from the party's front bench. Reports claim Taylor's supporters have requested a special party room meeting to consider a so-called spill motion, meaning the party's leadership is up for contest. Australian correspondent Murray Olds says the Liberal Party is seeing a significant drop in the polls, and Ley's popularity is on the decline. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy

en-US

3:23

D'Arcy Waldegrave: Sportstalk host on the All Whites...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Lofty goals for the All Whites at this year's World Cup. New Zealand Football has confirmed a warm-up fixture against fourth-ranked England, nine days before their opening pool game against Iran. Sportstalk host D'Arcy Waldegrave explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

en-US

5:20

Winston Peters: NZ First leader on the party...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/12

Winston Peters won't say if a referendum on abolishing the Māori seats would be a post-election negotiations sticking point. He's announced the NZ First policy today - reigniting its 2017 campaign, which didn't make it into the coalition agreement with Labour that year. Peters says things could be different this election. "No use saying it's the bottom line if they don't give you the tools - how can it be a bottom line? If you walk in here with not enough votes, you're not going to be able to get

en-US

10:52

The Huddle: Covid inquiry, Saudi Arabia trip, and...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

Tonight on The Huddle, Morris Williamson, Auckland councillor and former National Party minister, and Jack Tame, host of Saturday mornings and Q&A, joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! Nicola Willis announced a surprise inquiry into the Reserve Bank's actions during Covid with questions arising over the timing. And, Winston Peters visits Saudi Arabia and sits ringside at Joseph Parker's fight. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy

en-US

2:13

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: 'Fix that...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

Tell you what—I'm not feeling terribly hopeful about the situation for vulnerable kids in this country after reading the coroner’s recommendations following the death of Malachi Subecz. You’ll remember the case of Malachi. I’m not going to go through the details again; sufficient to say it happened about four and a half, nearly five years ago, and it fired up public anger because of the number of times his wider family tried to warn authorities that something was going to happen—and yet he was not

en-US

3:57

Henry Newrick: Publisher of shamed businessman Ron...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

A memoir has been written by shamed business titan Ron Brierleywho was imprisoned and lost his knighthood after his conviction for possession of child sex abuse material in 2021. The book, titled The History of Brierley Investments Ltd - Not As Boring As You Think, is being published by Henry Newrick. Newrick defended his decision to publish the book saying, "he's perfectly entitled, anybody's entitled to, write about whatever they want to write about." He told Heather du Plessis-Allan, "I did it on

en-US

99:24

Full Show Podcast: 11 February 2026

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday, 11 February, 2026, Nicola Willis tells us why the Government's now decided to do an inquiry into Reserve Bank actions during Covid-19. We ask the Safeguarding Children chief executive if an abuse awareness campaign is likely to be effective in the wake of the murder of five-year-old Malachi Subecz. The publisher of a new book on Ron Brierley explains why he thinks people need to hear the disgraced businessman's story. And on the

en-US

3:26

Erica Stanford: Education minister on Teaching...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

An independent external review of the Teaching Council was carried out by consultant Debbie Francis late last year. It has found that the agency has lost focus on its core function of safeguarding children and needs transformative change. CEO Lesley Hoskin is on agreed leave pending the outcome of an independent investigation into her conduct. The report identified multiple issues in the operations of the council. Education minister Erica Stanford told Heather du Plessis-Allan, "those two things

en-US

2:44

Willow Duffy: Safeguarding Children CEO says being...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

Malachi Rain Subecz was 5 years old when he was murdered by his caregiver, Michaela Barriball, who is now serving a life sentence with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years. Coroner Janet Anderson has now made several recommendations including the development and implementation of an awareness campaign to encourage the identification and reporting of suspected child abuse. Safeguarding Children CEO Willow Duffy told Heather du Plessis-Allan, "I think a very well designed public health campaign

en-US

3:25

Dan Mitchinson: US correspondent chats congress mass...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

US correspondent Dan Mitchinson joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to chat about today's biggest news in the USA. Congress is seeing a mass exodus with 51 House members and ninesenators choosing to not stand for re-election this year. Mitchinson said the departures have been partially attributed to a 'toxic partisan atmosphere'. They also spoke about the news that one person has been detained over kidnapping of TV anchor, Savannah Guthrie's, mother Nancy Guthrie. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener

en-US

4:51

Michael Reddell: Former Reserve Bank governor on...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/11

Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced a surprise inquiry into the actions of the Reserve Bank during the Covid-19 pandemic with a stated purpose to identify any lessons that could be learned to improve the monetary policy response to future major events. Adrian Orr was the Reserve Bank governor from 2018 until his resignation last year. Former Reserve Bank governor Michael Reddell welcomes the inquiry but believes the actions of the Reserve Bank were not malicious. "It wasn't political, it wasn't

en-US

4:47

Enda Brady: UK correspondent on Keir Starmer's...

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive ·

2026/02/10

The Prime Minister of the UK is fighting for political survival - after fallout over his appointing a controversial Ambassador to the US. Peter Mandelson's been sacked after his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein came to light, but it's thrown Keir Starmer's leadership into uncertainty. UK correspondent Enda Brady revealed what this news could mean for Starmer's political future, or what this could mean for Labour ahead of the next UK election. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for

en-US

9,842 results

Similar Podcasts

Expres Ráno

Expres FM

PBS News Hour - Full Show

PBS News

CD Voice

China Daily

Israel Today: Ongoing War Report

Noa Levi

Jeffrey Epstein: The Coverup Chronicles

Bobby Capucci