Duncan Garner - Editor-In-Chief

A brand new political poll is out, and the numbers are completely locked in stone. We ask if Labour has peaked and whether the Opportunities Party can actually break the five percent threshold this time around. Plus Duncan, Ani O'Brien, and Maurice Williamson dissect Labour's new list and look at the real numbers behind their massive transport announcement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The latest Taxpayers Union Curia poll has dropped, and while Labour is technically ahead, they are losing the argument. Duncan breaks down why Chris Hipkins is stuck in the doldrums and failing to win trust when it matters most. Plus, we take a look at the public transport policy that is falling apart under intense scrutiny. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Labour is promising a massive public transport cap for 1.3 million Kiwis, but they claim it only costs 65 million bucks. The math does not stack up, and the front bench cannot show their workings. Plus, Education Minister Erica Stanford joins us to explain how she took school property away from an incompetent Ministry of Education to build basic, warm classrooms without the architectural vanity projects. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Duncan stands up in court to face the music after getting caught driving 12 days short of his suspension ending. He takes full responsibility for getting the timeline wrong but calls out the breathless media coverage. Plus, we look at how confusing NZ license laws are and why rural Kiwis get hammered harder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Justice Select Committee finally reported back on the coward punch legislation, and it is a massive letdown. Despite big promises to get tough on one-punch thugs, they completely failed to recommend mandatory minimum sentences. We talk to Mike Angove from the Walk Without Fear Trust about how everyday Kiwis have been handed a complete pup by parliament. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Labour's new party list is out, and it looks less like a fresh start and more like a job protection scheme for politicians who have already been rejected by the public. We break down the lineup with pollster David Farrar to see who is safe and who got sidelined. Plus, we look at a staggering $230,000 advisor role at ACC that proves the message about government spending cuts is clearly not getting through. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The word racist is being thrown around far too easily these days, and it is quickly becoming completely meaningless. Tainui leader Tukoroirangi Morgan is labeling this the most racist government ever, claiming National is stripping away Māori rights at the Waitangi Tribunal. But has he suffered a massive memory fade? We look at the actual facts of what has been lost. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tainui leader Tukoroirangi Morgan has claimed at the Waitangi Tribunal that Christopher Luxon's National-led government is the most racist New Zealand has ever seen. Duncan Garner says it is time to call this out and hold Tuku's feet to the fire because the claim simply doesn't survive contact with reality. To call this political landscape the most discriminatory in our history means completely forgetting the past. We look back at the Foreshore and Seabed legislation under Helen Clark's Labour government, which actually stripped Māori of their legal rights to have customary claims tested in court. That was real discrimination that fractured relationships and birthed the Māori Party. This current government continues to fund Māori language education, kura kaupapa schools, Te Māngai Pāho, housing projects, and fully protects the budget for Te Matatini while other departments face massive cuts. Disagree with co-governance debates all you want, but calling this racial persecution is ridiculous. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

National is finally closing the loophole that allows unelected members of the public to get voting rights on council committees. Local Government Minister Simon Watts has moved to stop it, but let’s be honest, it’s the bare minimum. We talk to ACT MP Cameron Luxton, who drafted the original bill months ago, about why National took so long to protect our democracy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chris Hipkins has repeatedly said ministers were not told about key health concerns around the Covid vaccine rollout for 12 to 15 year olds. But a new tranche of official papers appears to move the timeline back. Duncan Garner has covered this issue before. This episode is the update. The new documents suggest Hipkins may have been closer to the information than previously understood, including a vaccine ministers meeting on August 13, 2021, which he chaired, and later references to myocarditis risk being removed from official communications. Aly Cook joins Duncan to walk through the latest paperwork, what it shows, what remains unanswered, and why she believes it goes directly to Hipkins’ credibility. This is not about being pro vaccine or anti vaccine. It is about trust, transparency, and whether New Zealand parents were given the full picture. Watch the full episode and tell us what you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is really going on at the Far North District Council? Duncan Garner is joined by councillor Davina Smolders, who says major governance changes are being pushed through without proper public scrutiny. She raises concerns over unelected iwi representatives getting voting rights on a council committee, ratepayer-funded requests, new Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements, and language recognising Ngāpuhi sovereignty. Smolders says another five agreements could be signed soon and argues the public deserves to know exactly what these deals mean before they are locked in. Duncan asks the big questions. What power do these agreements actually create? Why has there been no proper consultation? And when will the Government step in? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The government wants us to think they are being caring but responsible with this budget, but the economists aren't buying it. We look past the 30 press releases to find out what this means for your back pocket. From a sneaky new banking tax on savers to kicking real savings down the road, we break down why the math just doesn't add up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A special weekend episode of Duncan Garner: Editor in Chief, with two sharp cuts from two very different conversations. First, Duncan talks to Aly Cook about documents she says raise serious questions about the youth Covid vaccine rollout, myocarditis safety information, and what Labour ministers knew at the time. The central question is blunt: if key safety information was kept out of public communications, were parents ever given the full picture? Then Ashley Church and Maurice Williamson join Duncan for a Budget 2026 breakdown. Maurice digs into the numbers and questions whether the Government’s spending forecasts stack up, especially around police funding. Ashley looks at the politics of the Budget and whether National has finally read the room. This episode is about trust, transparency, spending, debt, police, and whether voters are being told the truth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The dust is settling on Budget 2026, and we are digging past the political marketing to look at the real maths. Nicola Willis delivered a masterclass in selling a narrative, but when you look closely at the numbers, things look incredibly heroic. We break down the magic show, look at the massive debt track, and reveal the inexplicable cuts hidden deep in the police budget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It is Budget Day in New Zealand, and we are looking at the brutal truth behind the numbers. Nicola Willis says the adults are back in charge of the books, but is this just creative accounting? We look at how banking public service cuts, before they even happen, are the only reason we are getting back to surplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are told the country is broke, and every day Kiwis need to tighten their belts ahead of the budget. Yet Social Development Minister Louise Upston is claiming over $1,000 a week in taxpayer-funded allowance for a Wellington apartment she owns outright. It is completely legal, but it fails the sniff test. We break down the political hypocrisy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Labour wants New Zealanders to buy into a massive new Future Fund, but they refuse to tell us what assets are actually in it until after the election. Chris Hipkins claims voters do not want the details, but we think you deserve transparency when billions of dollars are on the line. Plus, researcher Aly Cook joins the show with a paper trail that completely challenges Hipkins' timeline on what he knew about youth vaccine risks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The cost of living crisis is keeping families awake at night all across New Zealand. Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick steps into the studio with me to look at the massive gap between the rich and the poor, the reality of loan sharks targeting vulnerable Kiwis, and why she thinks our current economic model needs a total shakeup. Chlöe shares her personal journey with financial stress and explains why she believes the system is rigged against regular workers. This episode was made possible thanks to our friends at enable.me Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the podcast today, Duncan looks into New Zealand’s staggering government spending. With another massive budget rolling out, why hasn't this government made the tough decisions to effect meaningful change? Duncan, Ashley Church, and Maurice Williamson break down our addiction to taxpayer cash, a bloated public service, and why the politicians are too terrified to rein it in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are diving deep into a massive local issue that could break the back of New Zealand’s business. A local tribe in Tauranga is demanding up to half a billion dollars in compensation over the expansion of the Port of Tauranga. Duncan chats with Regional Development Minister Shane Jones about whether national infrastructure is being held to ransom and what this means for our economy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices