A law expert says the Family Court's dismissed warnings before, like those raised about the Marokopa children. 

An inquiry's laid bare failures by police and Oranga Tamariki before and during the four-year search for fugitive Tom Phillips and his children.

Their mother repeatedly expressed fears before Phillips went on the run with them a second time, but Oranga Tamariki assured the Court, they were fine in his care. 

Auckland University associate professor Carrie Leonetti says such failures are well established.

She explained almost nothing stops fathers getting extensive, unsupervised access to their children - even mental health conditions, substance abuse and a history of violence. 

LISTEN ABOVE

A law expert says the Family Court's dismissed warnings before, like those raised about the Marokopa children.&nbsp;
An inquiry's laid bare failures by police and Oranga Tamariki before and during the four-year search for fugitive Tom Phillips and his children.
Their mother repeatedly expressed fears before Phillips went on the run with them a second time, but Oranga Tamariki assured the Court, they were fine in his care.&nbsp;
Auckland University associate professor Carrie Leonetti says such failures are well established.
She explained almost nothing stops fathers getting extensive, unsupervised access to their children - even mental health conditions, substance abuse and a history of violence.&nbsp;
LISTEN ABOVE

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.

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Carrie Leonetti: Auckland University associate professor of law on the failings uncovered in the Tom Phillips report

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/15f73847-3d09-4ad6-9bbf-b4c700643d2a/transcript

Listen to the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 16 September.

Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Listen to the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 16 September. 
Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Full Show Podcast: 16 September 2026 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/5d04faa5-1172-46dd-ba6e-b4c70084798f/transcript

If my reaction to the National Party's supermarket policy was an emoji, it would be the one with the brains blowing out the top of its head. It would be WTF. It would be: Was the Greens' policy not nutty enough for you? Did you have to find something even more cooked and release it?

Because that's what's just happened.

The National Party has announced, completely unexpectedly, with nobody getting a heads-up that this was coming, that it wants to break up Foodstuffs into two separately owned businesses. One would be Pak'n'Save  and the other would combine New World and Four Square.

It won't be forcing any owners to sell their businesses because, by the way, these businesses are owned by Kiwi owner-operators. They're not going to be forced to sell. But they are going to be forced to move with their chosen brand.

Now, if what the National Party wanted was a water-cooler announcement, you know, the kind that gets so much attention everybody ends up talking about it at the water cooler, then they got it.

And for all the wrong reasons.

Because this is completely bonkers. Especially because it comes from a party that should know better: the National Party.

Now, I'm not defending supermarket prices here. I'm not saying it's okay that you're paying $300 to $400 a week just to feed your family. But what I am saying is that the Nats pushing the red button and going nuclear here may actually be worse.

Think about what this is going to do to confidence in investing in this country. Who is going to put serious money into business in New Zealand if this is the kind of country that just goes around splitting up corporates?

And it's not theoretical to say this is going to have a chilling effect. We know it will.

We're still trying to convince oil and gas companies to bring their money back into this country and back into the gas sector after Jacinda Ardern announced the oil and gas exploration ban. That was eight years ago and there is still no sign that confidence is returning.

It takes decades to undo this kind of damage.

Even having the so-called business-friendly party in New Zealand discussing a policy like this is damaging our international reputation right now.

And is it worth it?

Is it worth it?

Have a guess how much money this is going to save you each week when it's finally baked in at the end of the process.

Maybe $3.80.

$3.80 a week.

For all of this.

Is it worth it?

No. Of course it's not.

This is an incredibly damaging idea for apparently very little gain.

As you can imagine, I've had countless texts and conversations about this since it was announced. And the one that sums it up best is this:

"New Zealand is not a serious country anymore."

LISTEN ABOVE

If my reaction to the National Party's supermarket policy was an emoji, it would be the one with the brains blowing out the top of its head. It would be WTF. It would be: Was the Greens' policy not nutty enough for you? Did you have to find something even more cooked and release it?
Because that's what's just happened.
The National Party has announced, completely unexpectedly, with nobody getting a heads-up that this was coming, that it wants to break up Foodstuffs into two separately owned businesses. One would be Pak'n'Save &nbsp;and the other would combine New World and Four Square.
It won't be forcing any owners to sell their businesses because, by the way, these businesses are owned by Kiwi owner-operators. They're not going to be forced to sell. But they are going to be forced to move with their chosen brand.
Now, if what the National Party wanted was a water-cooler announcement, you know, the kind that gets so much attention everybody ends up talking about it at the water cooler, then they got it.
And for all the wrong reasons.
Because this is completely bonkers. Especially because it comes from a party that should know better: the National Party.
Now, I'm not defending supermarket prices here. I'm not saying it's okay that you're paying $300 to $400 a week just to feed your family. But what I am saying is that the Nats pushing the red button and going nuclear here may actually be worse.
Think about what this is going to do to confidence in investing in this country. Who is going to put serious money into business in New Zealand if this is the kind of country that just goes around splitting up corporates?
And it's not theoretical to say this is going to have a chilling effect. We know it will.
We're still trying to convince oil and gas companies to bring their money back into this country and back into the gas sector after Jacinda Ardern announced the oil and gas exploration ban. That was eight years ago and there is still no sign that confidence is returning.
It takes decades to undo this kind of damage.
Even having the so-called business-friendly party in New Zealand discussing a policy like this is damaging our international reputation right now.
And is it worth it?
Is it worth it?
Have a guess how much money this is going to save you each week when it's finally baked in at the end of the process.
Maybe $3.80.
$3.80 a week.
For all of this.
Is it worth it?
No. Of course it's not.
This is an incredibly damaging idea for apparently very little gain.
As you can imagine, I've had countless texts and conversations about this since it was announced. And the one that sums it up best is this:
"New Zealand is not a serious country anymore."
LISTEN ABOVE

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: The National Party should know better when it comes to business

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/79e88dd9-7cbc-40a3-9703-b4c70071ce0c/transcript

There's mixed results out of Briscoe Group, with the homeware and sporting goods retailer reporting a small lift in revenue and a downgrade in profit in its 2026 half-year results, with key sporting events helping boost performance.

For the 26 weeks ended July 26, 2026, Briscoe Group reported total sales of $374.2 million - up over $3 million compared to last year.

Briscoe Group managing director Rod Duke says the number of high-profile sporting events in rugby, football and the current NRL season have contributed to the boost, but the Iran war remains an economic concern. 

LISTEN ABOVE

There's mixed results out of Briscoe Group, with the homeware and sporting goods retailer reporting a small lift in revenue and a downgrade in profit in its 2026 half-year results, with key sporting events helping boost performance.
For the 26 weeks ended July 26, 2026, Briscoe Group reported total sales of $374.2 million - up over $3 million compared to last year.
Briscoe Group managing director Rod Duke says the number of high-profile sporting events in rugby, football and the current NRL season have contributed to the boost, but the Iran war remains an economic concern.&nbsp;
LISTEN ABOVE

Rod Duke: Briscoe Group managing director on the retailer reporting a lift in revenue

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/b6c22b4d-5213-473c-b347-b4c70070e352/transcript

Carrie Leonetti: Auckland University associate professor of law on the failings uncovered in the Tom Phillips report

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