Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

There's growing concerns about the economic impact of the conflict in the Middle East. Flurries of missiles are still crossing borders and the BBC reports Israel's launched more strikes on Lebanon. UAE officials are responding to Iranian missile threats and Qatar has intercepted several drones.  Fisher Funds expert Sam Dickie explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karn Dhaliwal was the New Zealand recipient of the Zanda McDonald Award, and it's a big honour in the rural world. Dhaliwal built a diverse horticultural and cropping business and is recognised for his entrepreneurial approach to growing, leadership within the vegetable industry. The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, Thomas Scrimgeour from the Maxim Institute and broadcaster Mark Sainsbury joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more! The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has sparked concerns about the future of the global oil supply, and the Government is looking into solutions in case our supply gets low. Do we need to find an alternative solution - or encourage more people to walk or bike? New reports show beneficiary numbers have soared to a 12-year high, despite the Government promising a reduction. Do we think things will turn around?  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Now look, I don’t think there’s any reason to panic, but if you’ve been reading the news closely - and especially if you’ve been reading more widely than just the New Zealand news - you’re probably starting to feel a little nervous about what might happen to fuel supplies here and the possibility that we may have to start rationing. The Strait of Hormuz is still effectively shut. The Iranians have now attacked 13 tankers. The boss of the Saudi-backed oil company has warned this could be catastrophic for the world’s economy if that strait isn’t opened relatively soon. South Korea has floated the possibility of banning fuel exports. That’s a problem for us - it’s where we get roughly half of our fuel. Parts of rural Western Australia have already run out of diesel because the townies are buying so much of it. They’re panicking. We have around 50 days’ worth of fuel in this country. Half of that, though, is on the water - and ships can be and have been diverted - so you can only really lock in about half of what we’ve got. The Minister is now taking advice on how to manage demand, meaning how to get us to use less. One of the ideas he’s considering is the return of carless days. There are normally very level‑headed people now warning us that we should at least start mentally preparing for the possibility that we may have to ration the fuel we use. Now, rationing sounds bad. It sounds like something from World War II. But it might not be that bad. It may not be carless days all over again - although that does feel like a significant escalation of the situation. And of course this whole thing might blow over tomorrow. In fact, Donald Trump is likely to call the attacks off the minute they start having really significant negative impacts on oil supply and world economies because he is so fixated on global markets and making money. The moment he cannot talk markets back into a good place is the moment I think he starts to call it off. But the thing is, it’s already having an impact, isn’t it? It will already be wiping money off our GDP. And the longer it goes on, the more it takes out of GDP. Now, I’m thinking this is not going to end in the worst-case scenario the Minister is preparing for. I don’t know whether that’s my wishful or my rational brain talking but as they say - hope for the best, prepare for the worst. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Thursday, 12 March, 2026, Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones tells us about emergency fuel measures as the Iran war goes on. Heath Mills on his hopes for a private franchise T20 league as he quits as the Cricket Players' Association boss. A new star-studded Lord of the Rings movie - we ask a film reviewer if it's starting to lose its appeal. And on The Huddle, Mark Sainsbury and Thomas Scrimgeour tell us whether they're in Team Emily or Team Chelsea. Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Social Development Minister is certain it's only a matter of time before beneficiary numbers fall from a 12-year high. New figures show 427,000 people were on a main benefit in December - including more than half on Jobseeker.  That's despite the Government declaring it would curb welfare dependency shortly after taking office.  Louise Upston says businesses sentiment is improving. "When businesses are confident, they take on more staff. The staff they've got, they give more hours, they lift wages. So we are really confident things have started to turn the corner."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A legal battle is looming over primary teacher pay deals. The NZEI's taking action over the Government letting non-union teachers accept individual pay offers. The Public Service Commissioner yesterday confirmed boards can directly approach about 10,000 teachers, after the union’s rejected three recent pay deals. Lead negotiator Liam Rutherford says they're frustrated and angry about the timing. "This is a break from decades of tradition, where we settled the collective agreement and then teachers that aren't members of the union get that passed on through an IEA." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kate Winslet is set to return to New Zealand shores for a new role in Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, which is set to start production this year. Andy Serkis is set to reprise his role as Gollum and direct the movie, and Ian McKellen and Elijah Wood are set to return too.  Entertainment journalist and film reviewer Dominic Corry says there's clear demand for new Lord of the Rings content among film fans. "It still feels rather under-exploited, if that's a word we can use. And also, I still think there's a huge amount of goodwill on the audience's side for this franchise."  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One expert has suggested Jetstar won't follow Air New Zealand in cutting upcoming domestic flights. The airline plans to cancel about 1100 flights over the next six to eight weeks because of fuel price hikes - impacting about 44,000 passengers. It's already raised fares to help cover costs. Board of Airline Representatives NZ executive director Cath O'Brien, says Jetstar's unlikely to do the same because Air New Zealand's domestic network has a wider spread. "They have a wholly different problem than Jetstar, which is operating trunk services and jets only." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

All options are on the table for conserving fuel if the US-Israel war on Iran continues. Iran's retaliating with hits on neighbouring countries, and blocking shipping transit through the Strait of Hormuz - sending global fuel prices spiking. Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones says the Government's working on a plan in case our supplies come under threat. Jones says we have 50 days fuel here and on the way, but continued supply rests on the length of the conflict. "Kiwis expect their Government to be proactive, Kiwis expect us to deal with the fact that other countries are hoarding their fuel." LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.