The Mike Hosking Breakfast

What's in the numbers?  Well-known economist Shamubeel Eaqub has crunched a few figures. It turns out if you want to see it, being a student at university is a miserable experience.  And boy does the media love a story of misery. Being a student is pricier than ever, they tell us. "Does it pay off?" was your headline.  The answer, and this isn't from the story, it's from me, is yes.  Yes, if you have a plan. Yes, if you are careful. Yes, if you are driven in a specific direction professionally.  Our most recent graduate at our house is fully immersed in her first job and loving it. She owes a shed load of dough, but wouldn’t for a minute have it any other way.  But back to the numbers. All we really learn, when you compare the cost of stuff from Shamubeel 20 years ago versus the cost of stuff now, is the cost of stuff has gone up. That's got little to do with university and a lot to do with life because all our bills have gone up.  Student support has gone up 86% but essentials have gone up 220%. In 2005 the allowance was $160 while essentials were $140 and you had $20 left over.  These days you're in the red to the tune of eight bucks, which I wouldn’t actually have thought was that bad.  University fees have gone up 113%. You might want to ask why.  But here is a reality check: the story tells us 35,000 students received some form of assistance. That number on the last quarter is up 5%.  But the amount they get is down 3%. So more get money, but not as much. Surely that’s good?  But here is the real number: how many students are there? ChatGPT tells me almost 400,000, so less than 10% get any assistance at all. 90% don’t need help. Isn't that the real story?  Too many stories and too many headlines are about what's wrong, not what's right, who is doing badly, not who is doing fine.  You can play with numbers forever. Palmerston North rents have gone up more than Auckland rents, so it's not as cheap to be at Massey as it once was, and so it goes.  But the big picture, the real story, surely is what you got out of university. What did the qualification do for you?  If it changed your life, set you on a path, set you up, got you a career and opened the doors then the bill is immaterial.  Like life, university is how you see it. Like life, the choices are yours.  So does it pay off? Guess what, if you want it to, you are already there. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A major moment in British politics as Peter Mandelson is arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.  It relates to his alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein.  The former UK ambassador to the US and Labour minister has been accused of passing on information to the sex offender when he was business secretary.  UK Correspondent Rod Liddle told Mike Hosking while this might deflect heat off Keir Starmer in the short term, it’ll likely come back around to him in the end.  He says that Mandelson was a Labour appointment, and it wouldn’t surprise him if he himself was almost directly responsible for appointing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as Trade Envoy in 2001.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Though he was never seen, Andy Wilman was an inextricable part of the success of Top Gear.  He’s the co-creator and executive producer of the show, which has been seen by over 350 million people around the world.   And when Top Gear came to a close, he was in charge of The Grand Tour, the show that picked up right where its predecessor left off, and now Wilman is running Amazon’s record-breaking show Clarkson’s Farm.   More than two decades later, he’s written a book about how it all came to be, looking behind the scenes in ‘Mr Wilman’s Motoring Adventure’.  While it may have started out as an ordinary TV show, Top Gear quickly became a phenomenon, and Wilman told Mike Hosking there were dozens of tiny moments that made them realise it.  “Richard [Hammond’s] crash, obviously, we were, I think we were already big by then, but Richard’s crash stunned us at how we were part of the nation’s TV watching fabric.”  “I think the, the things, the elements that were inevitable were because we were making things up as we went along, because we had no plan,” he explained.  “So you surprise yourself ... those moments in turn generate new material, which keeps you fresh.”   But as the viewership grew, so did the pressure, and the combination of a smaller crew size, ideological differences within the BBC, and the team getting “too big for their boots” started to cause problems.  “Those three elements were the perfect storm that led to our demise.”  A little further down the line is Clarkson’s Farm, which despite being a smaller production, Wilman says is more rewarding.  “[It’s] a far more challenging and rewarding show to make, simply because they shoot all the time.”  Since Clarkson is at work from the moment he steps out his front door, the filming has to cover everything.  “We just shoot and shoot and shoot and then we’ll see what sticks to the wall.”  And a large part of the show’s appeal is its supporting cast, which Wilman says was like catching lightning in a bottle for the second time.   “A bit like Jeremy, Richard, and James – you couldn’t plan that.”  “Magic happened.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Tuesday 24th of February, Finance Minister Nicola Willis explains why the Government has bought $200 million in Genesis shares.   The EU Ambassador to NZ Lawrence Meredith speaks on the 4th anniversary of the Ukraine war and what it will take for it to end.  Andy Wilman, the creator of Top Gear, Grand Tour, and Clarkson's Farm, joined to discuss the decades he’s spent behind the scenes and what it’s like to be the right hand man of his best friend, Jeremy Clarkson.   Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s some concern about our air traffic controllers being poached.   Airways New Zealand has raised the issue during an address before a Parliamentary Select Committee, warning that there’s a global shortage of controllers.  General Manager of Commercial James Evans told Mike Hosking that New Zealand is currently positioned very well to cope with tight numbers.  But, he says, there’s definitely a problem globally, and they are having overseas Air Navigation Service Providers approach New Zealand controllers.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today marks the fourth anniversary of Russian forces mounting a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.   Peace efforts to date have yielded little results, with casualties climbing day after day.   EU Ambassador to New Zealand Lawrence Meredith told Mike Hosking Europe's recognising it needs to do more in terms of defence.   He says the Ukrainians are not just fighting for their own peace and freedom, but for that of the free world.   Meredith says this is a global conflict and it's important the right side wins.   LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A battle for front door delivery as Bunnings joins Uber Eats in Australia and New Zealand.   More than 30 thousand tools, garden, and household items will be available on the delivery service sometime this year, claiming to be at your door within 60 minutes.   Takeaways, groceries, and pharmacy items are among the products currently available  Gorilla Technology Chief Executive Paul Spain told Mike Hosking it's a move to compete with Amazon.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Finance Minister says there's no mandate to reduce the state's shareholding in Genesis Energy.  The Crown's directing $200 million towards new shares to retain a 51% shareholding in the company, following a $400 million capital raise.   Nicola Willis told Mike Hosking if we don't take part in this raise, we'd be breaching the law requiring the state to maintain majority ownership – something the coalition's committed to.   She says we don't want to be a barrier to these energy companies growing in the way New Zealanders need to secure electricity supply.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Signs of a turnaround in the retail sector as sales rise.  Stats NZ data shows sales jumped by $239 million in December, compared to the September quarter – up nearly one percent.  The growth was driven by pharmaceuticals and other store-based retailers, as well as electronic goods and hardware supplies.  First Retail Group Managing Director Chris Wilkinson told Mike Hosking some of this is discretionary spending which is a great sign.  He says potential interest rate rises could have an impact in future, but they're hoping the momentum will continue.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are concerns using vaping as a tool to quit smoking contradicts the rest of the world. Health New Zealand's free vape programme has given out more than seven thousand devices to smokers, despite Newstalk ZB revealing last year's trial had a success rate of less than half. Now, a half-million-dollar contract has been signed to provide the devices through New Zealand-owned company, Alt. Auckland University vaping researcher Kelly Burrowes told Mike Hosking it isn't recommended as a quitting tool, due to the risk associated. She says that's why other countries aren't doing this. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.