The Mike Hosking Breakfast Newstalk ZB

Tax cuts are expected to be front of mind for many people in today's Budget. 

Finance Minister Nicola Willis is releasing the 2024 Budget from 2pm today, unveiling the final shape of the promised tax cuts and how the Government plans to pay for them. 

Independent tax expert Geof Nightingale told Mike Hosking that he expects the Government to adjust the thresholds for the first time in 14 years. 

He said it’ll be a good thing because it will lower the tax burden on middle income Kiwis, but how its funded will be the fascinating thing. 

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The Education sector is hoping today’s Budget will address the staff shortages. 

$53 million was allocated to the training and recruitment of new teachers in a pre-Budget announcement, but NZEI’s Mark Potter said that it’s not going to be enough. 

He told Mike Hosking that they need both staffing and financial support, as well as specialists, therapists, psychologists, and so on to address the desperate needs around the country. 

They’re hoping to see some increase in the Operational Funding Grant, as the increased cost of living as increased the cost of education, Potter said. 

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There’s hopes today's Budget will go some way to addressing staff shortages in the health sector. 

The Budget’s release comes amid strike action from both junior doctors and blood workers. 

Sarah Dalton from the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists told Mike Hosking that it’ll take an extra $1.8 billion just to keep the health system ticking over as it is. 

She said that they would love to see funding tagged specifically to staffing increases, to ensure it goes where it needs to. 

Dalton told Hosking that there’s plenty of services who need more staff, and the employer agrees, but they're not willing or able to do anything about it.  

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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 30th May, a variety of sectors told us their hopes and wishes for today's Budget. 

Assistant police commissioner Mike Johnson joined to discuss how they are going to handle the Te Pati Māori backed protest clogging up major roads. 

Comedian Dai Henwood was in for an exclusive chat about his new memoir 'The Life of Dai'. 

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Kiwi Dai Henwood is one of the country’s most prolific comics. 

He's popped up on the screen in a number of programmes including Family Feud, The Project, Dancing with the Stars, and more recently, Taskmaster NZ. 

He went public with his battle against bowel cancer last year, and since then is now the healthiest he’s been in his life, he told Mike Hosking. 

Henwood joined Hosking to discuss his new memoir The Life of Dai, which is releasing next month. 

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Traffic is being disrupted around the country this morning with thousands of people joining motorcades and hikoi against the Government's positions on Māori issues. 

A campaign group named Toitū Te Tiriti (Honour the Treaty) planned a strike today to “demonstrate a unified Aotearoa response to the Government’s assault on tangata whenua [Māori people] and Te Tiriti of Waitangi”. 

Protesters were expected to meet around New Zealand from 6.30am with marches and vehicle convoys planned along motorways, main streets, and rallies in town centres. 

Te Pāti Māori, alongside the Toitū Te Tiriti, said in an online post that the action was intended to “prove the might of [the Māori] economy by disconnecting entirely from it”. 

Police Assistant Commissioner Mike Johnson told Mike Hosking that the largest protests are on Auckland's Northern, Northwestern, and Southern Motorways. 

He said that while they recognise the right to protest, they are there to minimise disruption and deal with people who break the law. 

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