Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

Newstalk ZB
  • 0.0 (0)
  • NEWS
  • UPDATED DAILY

A fresh and intelligent start to your day - catch the very latest international and domestic news developments, sport, entertainment and business on Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, on Newstalk ZB.

  1. 12 HR AGO

    Tim Adams: Auckland FC Fan Group Representative previews the A-League Grand Final clash

    Auckland FC are heading for their first A-League grand final at a sold-out stadium.  It’s both the first time a grand final has been played in New Zealand, and the first time a Kiwi team has made it this far in the competition.   Auckland FC Fan Group’s Tim Adams told Ryan Bridge that the game is going to be insane.  “The ability to comprehend being in a final and being in a home final after having a club for only two years, it’s actually just crazy.”  He says the hardcore fans are going to make sure it’s an event that won’t be forgotten.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    3 min

  2. 12 HR AGO

    Paul Giberd: Social Housing Aotearoa CEO on the social housing overhaul and possible impact on elderly people

    There are concerns elderly people will be left behind in a housing support overhaul.  This year's Budget includes hiking the amount social housing tenants have to pay, from 25% of their income to 30%.  It means low-income earners in private rentals receive an average increase of nearly $15 a week.  Social Housing Aotearoa Chief Executive Paul Gilberd told Ryan Bridge thousands of people in social housing are older, and many can't afford current rental prices.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    4 min

  3. 12 HR AGO

    Michael Baker: Otago University Public Health Professor on Pharmac's proposal to expand free flu vaccines

    Pharmac's looking to expand free flu vaccines to the group with the highest rates of influenza.  The agency's looking at providing jabs to an extra 260 thousand children, between six months and five-years-old, from next year.   Otago University Public Health Professor Michael Baker told Ryan Bridge a small number in this age range die from influenza every year.   He says given they often infect other family members, other countries around the world are already funding vaccines for under-fives.   Baker says vaccines remain the best way to develop immunity.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    4 min

  4. 12 HR AGO

    Ryan Bridge: What's cruel versus fair in the social housing debate

    Nicola Willis' Lotto comment yesterday was clumsy, but in the end, much ado about nothing. The politics of this housing thing are pretty simple. You've got 80,000 social housing tenants who probably weren't going to vote National, who now definitely won't vote National.  You've got 110,000 better-off voters who might soften to you. You've got a frothy media and opposition who will use this as a stick to beat the Government with until November. But here are the facts. If you're a voter worried about rent, they're now materially cheaper than they were under the last lot. The average is down $30 a week nationwide, from $660 to $630 in April according to Realestate.co.nz. They shot up for a couple of reasons, one of which was Labour's landlord-bashing interest deductibility shocker. Which didn't hit mega-slumlords, by the way, it hit mum-and-dad investors, many negatively geared, who couldn't afford to hold on to their retirement nest egg any longer, got hit with new tax and compliance costs, and got out. Shortages help push up prices. The bad news is Labour's more likely than not to do this again if they get back to the Treasury benches. The social housing waitlist was 25,000 in 2023. It's now 19,700. Labour was paying $1 million a day on motels. So, let's talk about what's cruel and what's fair, and what motivates these politicians. Let's play "who's more cruel". Willis and Bishop are changing rules to even the playing field. It's cost neutral. The Government's not saving money here. Hipkins and Co. were banking $1.8 billion in extra taxes that other legitimate businesses weren't having to pay. Just landlords. In which of these two scenarios are Kiwi renters better off, and in which are they worse off? If there's one thing worse than being cruel to be kind, it's being careless. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    2 min
  5. Full Show Podcast: 22 May 2026

    17 HR AGO

    Full Show Podcast: 22 May 2026

    Listen to the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast for Friday 22 May. Get the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    34 min

  6. 1 DAY AGO

    Kate Acland: Beef + Lamb NZ Chair on the research finding incentives could help farmers reduce emissions

    Climate policies for farmers may be revealing a competitive gap.   New research by Beef + Lamb suggests there should be a focus on incentives for farmers who achieve climate change outcomes.   Chair Kate Acland told Ryan Bridge we need to keep an eye on what the rest of the world's doing.   She says most of the world doesn't have agricultural-specific targets, but a lot of countries are incentivising farmers to reach any kind of reduction.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    3 min

  7. 1 DAY AGO

    Ryan Bridge: The AI takeover isn't coming, it's here

    The AI and robot takeover isn't coming, it's here. Well, sort of.  A bunch of data's come out on this over the past few days.  Seek says job ads mentioning AI have doubled in the past year, up 4.1% from March to April.  Nicola Willis reckons AI tools will help shave 9000 odd jobs off the public service in the next four years.  Meta has this morning started firing 10% of its workforce, around 8000 workers in the first round, to make way for AI tools.  The workers are so brassed off, a bunch of them are signing petitions demanding that Zuckerberg NOT collect their computer-use data.  That data is being used to train the AI models that will replace them. Their work is being copied and pasted into a bot that will soon replace them.  A petition will not stop this. Nothing will stop business becoming more efficient.  Resistance is, in this case, futile.  In some cases, new technology is being used to plug gaps, rather than create them.  And this is the irony of the new workforce, which is not human labour, but technology: it cuts both ways.  Take China, for example. Their problem is not a shortage of jobs but of workers. The ageing population and lack of babies is about to hurt their factories.  They're going to lose 37 million workers in the next ten years. That's a few holes to fill in mega-factories.  Enter humanoid robots. Barclays, the British bank, reckons 60% of those jobs will be performed by humanoid robots inside the next ten years.  Basically, there's more chance your next new colleague will be a bot or an AI tool than ever before.  Either learn to get along and play nice with them, or they'll replace you.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    2 min

  8. 1 DAY AGO

    Alan McDonald: Employers and Manufacturers' Association Head of Advocacy and Strategy on the 13% increase in job ads

    More encouraging signs in the job market despite global uncertainty and fuel concerns.  Fresh Seek employment data shows job ads rose 0.8% in April, up 13% year-on-year.  The Employers and Manufacturers' Association's Alan McDonald told Ryan Bridge after last year's tariffs, momentum had been building before the Middle East conflict escalated.  He says the export sector is still going strong, so at least something is holding up these numbers.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    4 min
See All (2.1k)

About

A fresh and intelligent start to your day - catch the very latest international and domestic news developments, sport, entertainment and business on Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, on Newstalk ZB.

Information

More From Newstalk ZB

You Might Also Like