One expert says today's GDP figures paint a bleak picture of the economy - but there's light at the end of the tunnel.

Stats NZ revealed this morning a 0.2 percent contraction for the three months to June, following 0.1 percent growth in the March quarter.

Kiwibank economist Jarrod Kerr says it's likely the economy won't start growing again until late 2025.

"The Reserve Bank's put a stake in the ground - they started cutting in August - and I think that'll mark the turning point."

LISTEN ABOVE

One expert says today's GDP figures paint a bleak picture of the economy - but there's light at the end of the tunnel.
Stats NZ revealed this morning a 0.2 percent contraction for the three months to June, following 0.1 percent growth in the March quarter.
Kiwibank economist Jarrod Kerr says it's likely the economy won't start growing again until late 2025.
"The Reserve Bank's put a stake in the ground - they started cutting in August - and I think that'll mark the turning point."
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

Jarrod Kerr: Kiwibank economist on New Zealand's GDP dropping 0.2 percent

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/5279d967-3642-4d4b-af1f-b1f0006646a8/transcript

Okay, once again - not for the first time on this show and probably not the last - thank goodness for Erica Stanford.

Normally, she’s righting wrongs in education but today it’s her other portfolio: immigration.

She has just introduced legislation to Parliament that would make it possible for New Zealand to say no to asylum seekers if they have committed a serious offence in this country. It might blow your mind to learn that this isn’t currently the case.

Right now, if someone comes to New Zealand and says, “I need to be a refugee” and then goes on to commit a serious offence before their refugee status has been decided - so no decision has been taken at the time - the officials making that decision are not allowed to take into account the fact that the person has committed a crime in New Zealand.

That is bonkers, isn’t it?

And it’s not theoretical. It has happened and it is happening. There are 14 asylum seekers in New Zealand awaiting a decision who have been convicted of serious offences: murder, serious sexual offences, serious drug offences and arson.

Under this change, those crimes will now be considered - and I hope to God in every one of those cases it’s a big, fat no. We do not need murderers in this country.

Apparently, though, we are a soft touch globally. What’s happening here is actually not unusual. Around the world, it’s standard practice to take into account crimes committed in country before granting refugee status.

The EU has rules that allow refugee status to be stripped for criminal offending. Australia goes even further — it has passed laws allowing refugee status to be revoked altogether, even after someone has already been declared a refugee.

So prepare yourselves for the usual hand-wringing from the usual suspects. But this is yet another example of Erica Stanford doing something that’s just plain common sense.

Yes, absolutely, we have a duty to protect people from persecution if they would come to harm by returning to their home country. But our first duty is to protect our own people.

LISTEN ABOVE

Okay, once again - not for the first time on this show and probably not the last - thank goodness for Erica Stanford.
Normally, she’s righting wrongs in education but today it’s her other portfolio: immigration.
She has just introduced legislation to Parliament that would make it possible for New Zealand to say no to asylum seekers if they have committed a serious offence in this country. It might blow your mind to learn that this isn’t currently the case.
Right now, if someone comes to New Zealand and says, “I need to be a refugee” and then goes on to commit a serious offence before their refugee status has been decided - so no decision has been taken at the time - the officials making that decision are not allowed to take into account the fact that the person has committed a crime in New Zealand.
That is bonkers, isn’t it?
And it’s not theoretical. It has happened and it is happening. There are 14 asylum seekers in New Zealand awaiting a decision who have been convicted of serious offences: murder, serious sexual offences, serious drug offences and arson.
Under this change, those crimes will now be considered - and I hope to God in every one of those cases it’s a big, fat no. We do not need murderers in this country.
Apparently, though, we are a soft touch globally. What’s happening here is actually not unusual. Around the world, it’s standard practice to take into account crimes committed in country before granting refugee status.
The EU has rules that allow refugee status to be stripped for criminal offending. Australia goes even further — it has passed laws allowing refugee status to be revoked altogether, even after someone has already been declared a refugee.
So prepare yourselves for the usual hand-wringing from the usual suspects. But this is yet another example of Erica Stanford doing something that’s just plain common sense.
Yes, absolutely, we have a duty to protect people from persecution if they would come to harm by returning to their home country. But our first duty is to protect our own people.
LISTEN ABOVE

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Another common-sense move from Erica Stanford

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/644aa397-f93f-4135-aa7b-b4110070bedf/transcript

Listen to the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 18 March.

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 18 March. 
Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Full Show Podcast: 18 March 2026 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/ed7287be-3ab5-4659-9bd5-b41100662a33/transcript

Fertility Associates is reassuring patients their processes are robust, after frozen embryos went missing last year while in its care.

It says this only involved one couple, that was treated at its Auckland clinic in 2025.

An audit done by an independent international lab expert has found its storage processes are secure - but it's now moving storage to a new, designated area in the clinic.

Chief Medical Officer Andrew Murray says they perform around seven thousand egg retrievals or embryo transfers every year.

"There are a lot of moving parts in this, and so we want to reassure our patients that this is an isolated incident."

LISTEN ABOVE

Fertility Associates is reassuring patients their processes are robust, after frozen embryos went missing last year while in its care.
It says this only involved one couple, that was treated at its Auckland clinic in 2025.
An audit done by an independent international lab expert has found its storage processes are secure - but it's now moving storage to a new, designated area in the clinic.
Chief Medical Officer Andrew Murray says they perform around seven thousand egg retrievals or embryo transfers every year.
"There are a lot of moving parts in this, and so we want to reassure our patients that this is an isolated incident."
LISTEN ABOVE

Andrew Murray: Chief Medical Officer at Fertility Associates reassures patients after embryos go missing

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/00ed9b64-71e9-459e-80bd-b4110066651d/transcript

Jarrod Kerr: Kiwibank economist on New Zealand's GDP dropping 0.2 percent

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