Pressure is mounting on Cook Strait ferry services after yet another problem.

An engineering issue has forced the Interislander's Kaitaki out of action —again— only one day after it had the all-clear to sail again.

The ferry hasn't been able to take passengers from the end of January when it lost power and had to make a mayday call.

Jon Reeves from the Public Transport Users' Association told Mike Hosking that it's time for an independent inquiry into the state of the ferries.

He says it jeopardises supply chains, tourism, and the average person when it doesn't work.

LISTEN ABOVE

Pressure is mounting on Cook Strait ferry services after yet another problem.
An engineering issue has forced the Interislander's Kaitaki out of action —again— only one day after it had the all-clear to sail again.
The ferry hasn't been able to take passengers from the end of January when it lost power and had to make a mayday call.
Jon Reeves from the Public Transport Users' Association told Mike Hosking that it's time for an independent inquiry into the state of the ferries.
He says it jeopardises supply chains, tourism, and the average person when it doesn't work.
LISTEN ABOVE

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Open your mind to the world with New Zealand’s number one breakfast radio show. Without question, as New Zealand’s number one talk host, Mike Hosking sets the day’s agenda. The sharpest voice and mind in the business, Mike drives strong opinion, delivers the best talent, and always leaves you wanting more. The Mike Hosking Breakfast always cuts through and delivers the best daily on Newstalk ZB.

Open your mind to the world with New Zealand’s number one breakfast radio show.

Without question, as New Zealand’s number one talk host, Mike Hosking sets the day’s agenda.

The sharpest voice and mind in the business, Mike drives strong opinion,...

The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Joe Reeves: Public Transport Users' Association says its time for an independent inquiry into the state of ferries

Owning a car is getting more and more expensive.

Online Insurance Platform Quashed reported a 40% increase in average comprehensive and third-party quotes over the last year. 

Stats NZ is reporting a 22.6% overall.

Consumer NZ CEO John Duffy told Mike Hosking that there’s a lot of causes behind this, but a big one is unforeseen weather events such as Cyclone Gabrielle.

He said that insurers are seeing that that kind of event could happen again, and are updating their pricing accordingly.

LISTEN ABOVE

Owning a car is getting more and more expensive. 
Online Insurance Platform Quashed reported a 40% increase in average comprehensive and third-party quotes over the last year.  
Stats NZ is reporting a 22.6% overall. 
Consumer NZ CEO John Duffy told Mike Hosking that there’s a lot of causes behind this, but a big one is unforeseen weather events such as Cyclone Gabrielle. 
He said that insurers are seeing that that kind of event could happen again, and are updating their pricing accordingly. 
LISTEN ABOVE

John Duffy: Consumer NZ CEO on the increasing costs of car insurance

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has confirmed a general election will take place July 4th. 

It comes as the ruling Conservative party trails Labour by 20 points in the polls. 

UK political commentator Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking that despite that, Labour's not in a good position with its deputy being investigated by police and split views over Gaza. 

He says they're also in trouble in that no one really knows what they stand for, but that might not matter as the polls show everyone's had enough of the Tories.

LISTEN ABOVE

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has confirmed a general election will take place July 4th.  
It comes as the ruling Conservative party trails Labour by 20 points in the polls.  
UK political commentator Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking that despite that, Labour's not in a good position with its deputy being investigated by police and split views over Gaza.  
He says they're also in trouble in that no one really knows what they stand for, but that might not matter as the polls show everyone's had enough of the Tories. 
LISTEN ABOVE

Rod Liddle: UK Correspondent on a general election being confirmed for July

An industry in reportage appears to have sprouted.

Never before have I seen such coverage of what the Government is being told about their new polices and how said polices are no good.

What might be a bit misleading about all this reportage, apart from its increasing volume, is none of it is news.

Everything from the Oranga Tamariki 7AA repeal, to the fast-track law, to the Waitangi Tribunal and ACT's Treaty bill, to charter schools, and to school lunches.

Everyone who has a say has that say increasingly splashed into the media.

The mischievous thing about this is advice like this is run of the mill. Everyone gives it. It's one of the outworkings of a Government department or a lobby group.

But when the media was more compliant under the early days of the previous Government the fascination in advice didn’t seem to be as prevalent.

Case in point is the so-called fast-track law. The Ministry for the Environment has given some advice. What do you think will say?

Think about it - a fast-track bill that will build more big projects, more ministerial power, less court time, will do more and we'll talk less. Take a guess what you think their advice on this is going to be.

They don't like it. "Ministry for the Environment warns of fast track bills significant risks" is the headline.

What are their concerns? Diminishing local voices, it violates Treaty commitments, impacts human and environmental health, opens legal risks to ministers, is an unprecedented backdoor for prohibited projects and erodes the value of conservation land.

They said everything you would expect them to say and nothing you couldn’t think of yourself.

You will note the backdoor bit to prohibited projects. A project is only prohibited if it's against the law. If you change the law, it's not prohibited, is it.

Anyway, most department could, and presumably do, roll out the same stuff.

But the key question is, does the way we do it now work well? Do we build big projects well, on time and on budget?

Is there a massive infrastructural deficit? Yes. So why are we working overtime to defend what doesn’t work? Is defending the unworkable more waste?

Do we want to get on with it or not?

Do we want this country off its knees and running, or not?

So how about less noise, less angst, fewer papers, fewer alarmist headlines and more action.

Imagine if we just actually got on with it.

An industry in reportage appears to have sprouted. 
Never before have I seen such coverage of what the Government is being told about their new polices and how said polices are no good. 
What might be a bit misleading about all this reportage, apart from its increasing volume, is none of it is news. 
Everything from the Oranga Tamariki 7AA repeal, to the fast-track law, to the Waitangi Tribunal and ACT's Treaty bill, to charter schools, and to school lunches. 
Everyone who has a say has that say increasingly splashed into the media. 
The mischievous thing about this is advice like this is run of the mill. Everyone gives it. It's one of the outworkings of a Government department or a lobby group. 
But when the media was more compliant under the early days of the previous Government the fascination in advice didn’t seem to be as prevalent. 
Case in point is the so-called fast-track law. The Ministry for the Environment has given some advice. What do you think will say? 
Think about it - a fast-track bill that will build more big projects, more ministerial power, less court time, will do more and we'll talk less. Take a guess what you think their advice on this is going to be. 
They don't like it. "Ministry for the Environment warns of fast track bills significant risks" is the headline. 
What are their concerns? Diminishing local voices, it violates Treaty commitments, impacts human and environmental health, opens legal risks to ministers, is an unprecedented backdoor for prohibited projects and erodes the value of conservation land. 
They said everything you would expect them to say and nothing you couldn’t think of yourself. 
You will note the backdoor bit to prohibited projects. A project is only prohibited if it's against the law. If you change the law, it's not prohibited, is it. 
Anyway, most department could, and presumably do, roll out the same stuff. 
But the key question is, does the way we do it now work well? Do we build big projects well, on time and on budget? 
Is there a massive infrastructural deficit? Yes. So why are we working overtime to defend what doesn’t work? Is defending the unworkable more waste? 
Do we want to get on with it or not? 
Do we want this country off its knees and running, or not? 
So how about less noise, less angst, fewer papers, fewer alarmist headlines and more action. 
Imagine if we just actually got on with it.

Joe Reeves: Public Transport Users' Association says its time for an independent inquiry into the state of ferries

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