A construction expert says customers could soon face price hikes of 25%.

Stats NZ data shows petrol prices rose almost 19% last month, while diesel prices were up almost 43%.

AUT Professor John Tookey says the industry heavily relies on oil for producing and transporting materials.

He says the destruction of oil wells and processing facilities in the Middle East could take years or decades to rebuild. 

Tookey says, if it continues, there will be major problems which could become the new normal.

LISTEN ABOVE

A construction expert says customers could soon face price hikes of 25%.
Stats NZ data shows petrol prices rose almost 19% last month, while diesel prices were up almost 43%.
AUT Professor John Tookey says the industry heavily relies on oil for producing and transporting materials.
He says the destruction of oil wells and processing facilities in the Middle East could take years or decades to rebuild.&nbsp;
Tookey says, if it continues, there will be major problems which could become the new normal.
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

John Tookey: AUT Professor of Construction Management discusses construction industry crisis

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/5971e60e-ccb2-4eb3-bf23-b42f00749e57/transcript

I know there’s a suggestion that maybe - just maybe - Moana Pasifika can be saved. But do yourself a favour and don’t waste your time hoping for it because I think this is going to be the club’s last season.

I don’t relish saying that because Moana Pasifika was absolutely one of the highlights of last year’s Super Rugby season. But it has never stacked up financially, has it?

The only reason it was able to pay its way for a while was because it received a temporary injection of Government money from various agencies. There was a bit of financial help from New Zealand Rugby, a bit from World Rugby and of course the fact it was majority owned by a charity that drew tens of millions of dollars in Government income.

Once that Government contract was cut, the financial support came to an abrupt end. Now the money has run out.

It’s lost its big star - Ardie Savea is now in Japan. It’s losing games, sitting at the bottom of the table again and the fans have drifted away. You could argue - and it would be a fair argument - that Moana Pasifika was never really given a fair go because it doesn’t even have a true home ground.

But even if you gave it a home ground and even if you had a star like Ardie Savea every single season, I’d still say it wouldn’t make enough money to wash its face - because none of the clubs do. Or very few of them, anyway.

So if you’re hoping against hope that someone swoops in to save Moana Pasifika, tell me who? It can’t be New Zealand Rugby - because if they step in for Moana Pasifika, are they also going to start bailing out the Hurricanes when they make a loss?

It can’t be the Government either, especially with the prospect of a global recession hanging over us.

That basically leaves private business. And if private business people do step in, it will be entirely out of generosity. And how long does generosity last if there are no results in the bank and no results on the field?

So I’d say: put your hopes away. This will be Moana Pasifika’s last season.

LISTEN ABOVE

I know there’s a suggestion that maybe - just maybe - Moana Pasifika can be saved. But do yourself a favour and don’t waste your time hoping for it because I think this is going to be the club’s last season.
I don’t relish saying that because Moana Pasifika was absolutely one of the highlights of last year’s Super Rugby season. But it has never stacked up financially, has it?
The only reason it was able to pay its way for a while was because it received a temporary injection of Government money from various agencies. There was a bit of financial help from New Zealand Rugby, a bit from World Rugby and of course the fact it was majority owned by a charity that drew tens of millions of dollars in Government income.
Once that Government contract was cut, the financial support came to an abrupt end.&nbsp;Now the money has run out.
It’s lost its big star - Ardie Savea is now in Japan. It’s losing games, sitting at the bottom of the table again and the fans have drifted away. You could argue - and it would be a fair argument - that Moana Pasifika was never really given a fair go because it doesn’t even have a true home ground.
But even if you gave it a home ground and even if you had a star like Ardie Savea every single season, I’d still say it wouldn’t make enough money to wash its face - because none of the clubs do. Or very few of them, anyway.
So if you’re hoping against hope that someone swoops in to save Moana Pasifika, tell me who? It can’t be New Zealand Rugby - because if they step in for Moana Pasifika, are they also going to start bailing out the Hurricanes when they make a loss?
It can’t be the Government either, especially with the prospect of a global recession hanging over us.
That basically leaves private business. And if private business people do step in, it will be entirely out of generosity. And how long does generosity last if there are no results in the bank and no results on the field?
So I’d say: put your hopes away. This will be Moana Pasifika’s last season.
LISTEN ABOVE

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Put your hopes away for Moana Pasifika

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/127e33a5-baed-452d-b1d1-b4310042a5df/transcript

Listen to the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Friday 17 April.

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 Friday 17 April. 
Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Full Show Podcast: 17 April 2026 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/7392b89e-89f4-43d6-a377-b42f00767358/transcript

In my opinion, National MPs need to bite the bullet and ask Chris Luxon to step aside.

I don’t enjoy saying this because personally I like Chris Luxon and have a fair amount of respect for him. But I think the chances are now very high that this is going to happen before the election. He is going to lose the leadership and perhaps the only real choice National MPs now have is how messy they allow this to become.

I’ll explain why I think he loses the leadership — and I think it’s simple maths.

National’s polling is really poor. It’s sub-30 in multiple polls. You can’t write those off as rogue results. The numbers are consistently bad and at that level the party is on track to lose around 11 MPs in November. Those 11 MPs do not want to lose their jobs and within that group are the people now agitating for a change of leadership.

For that agitation to stop, National’s polling would need to lift enough to save at least some of those MPs’ seats.
So how does the polling improve? The economy would have to improve. And is that going to happen between now and November? No, it’s not.

In fact, the economy is more likely to come under further pressure, particularly because of the situation in Iran and rising fuel costs. The most likely scenario is that the economy gets worse, National’s polling deteriorates further, and those 11 MPs — and potentially more — lose their jobs at the election.

Meanwhile, the destabilising campaign we saw in the Herald today continues. Someone is deliberately and repeatedly planting stories in the media. That won’t stop. It will continue to drive the polls down and make Luxon look increasingly like a lame-duck Prime Minister.

So if we assume the economy doesn’t improve, the polling doesn’t improve and the destabilising continues, then the most likely outcome is this: about three months out from the election, in the depths of winter, the National Party loses its nerve and rolls Chris Luxon in a desperate attempt to save the furniture.

I see no realistic alternative to that outcome.

That’s scenario one: hope and pray. And yes, that is technically a strategy — maybe something miraculous happens, the way COVID saved Jacinda Ardern in 2020. But that’s hope-and-prayer stuff.

Scenario two is that they pull the pin. They replace Chris Luxon with someone else and call an early election, allowing that person to seek a mandate while still enjoying a honeymoon period — and before winter and the Iran-related pressures make voters even more miserable than they already are.

If I were in the National caucus, I’d be opting for the second scenario. Because the polling is now so consistently bad that a leadership change is likely to happen anyway before the election. They can’t avoid it — they can only choose when it happens and how messy they let it get.

LISTEN ABOVE

In my opinion, National MPs need to bite the bullet and ask Chris Luxon to step aside.
I don’t enjoy saying this because personally I like Chris Luxon and have a fair amount of respect for him. But I think the chances are now very high that this is going to happen before the election. He is going to lose the leadership and perhaps the only real choice National MPs now have is how messy they allow this to become.
I’ll explain why I think he loses the leadership — and I think it’s simple maths.
National’s polling is really poor. It’s sub-30 in multiple polls. You can’t write those off as rogue results. The numbers are consistently bad and at that level the party is on track to lose around 11 MPs in November. Those 11 MPs do not want to lose their jobs and within that group are the people now agitating for a change of leadership.
For that agitation to stop, National’s polling would need to lift enough to save at least some of those MPs’ seats. So how does the polling improve? The economy would have to improve. And is that going to happen between now and November? No, it’s not.
In fact, the economy is more likely to come under further pressure, particularly because of the situation in Iran and rising fuel costs. The most likely scenario is that the economy gets worse, National’s polling deteriorates further, and those 11 MPs — and potentially more — lose their jobs at the election.
Meanwhile, the destabilising campaign we saw in the Herald today continues. Someone is deliberately and repeatedly planting stories in the media. That won’t stop. It will continue to drive the polls down and make Luxon look increasingly like a lame-duck Prime Minister.
So if we assume the economy doesn’t improve, the polling doesn’t improve and the destabilising continues, then the most likely outcome is this: about three months out from the election, in the depths of winter, the National Party loses its nerve and rolls Chris Luxon in a desperate attempt to save the furniture.
I see no realistic alternative to that outcome.
That’s scenario one: hope and pray. And yes, that is technically a strategy — maybe something miraculous happens, the way COVID saved Jacinda Ardern in 2020. But that’s hope-and-prayer stuff.
Scenario two is that they pull the pin. They replace Chris Luxon with someone else and call an early election, allowing that person to seek a mandate while still enjoying a honeymoon period — and before winter and the Iran-related pressures make voters even more miserable than they already are.
If I were in the National caucus, I’d be opting for the second scenario. Because the polling is now so consistently bad that a leadership change is likely to happen anyway before the election. They can’t avoid it — they can only choose when it happens and how messy they let it get.
LISTEN ABOVE

Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Maths doesn't lie - Luxon is out

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/7784f840-c291-422a-924b-ad9000bbad71/clips/959479a2-90c0-4582-9e79-b42f006ff235/transcript

John Tookey: AUT Professor of Construction Management discusses construction industry crisis

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