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Recent items from Focus on Politics
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Māori dissent sets the scene as Parliament returns
7:00 PM.The resumption of Parliament this week has been underlined by outcry from Māori, soon matched by fury within the debating chamber.
With just two weeks before the Christmas break and Waitangi Day fast… Read more Audio
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Distractions assail coalition as it lays out ambitious agenda
7:00 PM.The new government's first week in office saw it get straight to work, setting high expectations and unveiling its 100-day plan - but it's not exactly been smooth sailing.
Fixing the economy and… Read more Audio
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Bonus episode: The meaning of Tāmaki
5:00 AM.When ACT's Brooke van Velden won the Auckland seat of Tamaki at the election, it was a triumph of shrewd campaigning. But it was also a failure for Christian conservatism in mainstream politics. In… Read more Audio
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Coalition deals signed and sealed, now it's time to deliver
7:00 PM.It took 40 days and 40 nights - but at long last, the country knows what its new government will look like.
New Zealand's first-ever three-way coalition: National, ACT and New Zealand First finally… Read more Audio
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Te Pāti Māori plans for future as it reflects on success in Māori seats
9:00 AM.After its most successful election - taking all but one of the Māori seats - Te Pāti Māori is amping up for the next three years as "the only true opposition".
It's a dramatic turnaround for a party… Read more Audio
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Coalition talks pick up pace behind closed doors
7:00 PM.With National's potential partners ACT and NZ First finally getting together in Wellington this week, a sense of momentum is building for the trio to form a government.
Labour's Chris… Read more Audio
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Peters' stock rises on final vote count, how much will Luxon pay?
7:00 PM.The final act of the 2023 election has reset the calculus, blowing apart National's dream scenario and driving up the price for forming government.
With NZ First's support now a requirement, Winston… Read more Audio
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Labour faces vexed reset and return to opposition
10:00 AM.After a devastating collapse in their vote on election night, the Labour Party is examining what went so wrong and who is best to lead them from the opposition benches.
Current and former MPs alike… Read more Audio
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Election results in a clear winner, a clear loser, a complex path to power
10:00 AM.The battle for the hearts, minds and votes of New Zealanders is over - nearly - with the preliminary results on Saturday putting National in a position to form the next government and Labour consigned… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, final week: The highs and lows
7:00 PM.It has been a rollercoaster campaign, fiscal fights, feisty debates - all with the aim of taking the government benches.
In Focus on Politics this week, a look at the campaign as it all comes down to… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, week five: Luxon grapples with his 'last resort'
10:00 AM.TVNZ's multi-party debate this week illustrated key features of this election campaign: the minor parties' rising popularity, and the complicated role of NZ First.
With polls they would need Winston… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, week four: The week of Winston Peters
10:00 AM.Call this the week of Winston Peters - with the New Zealand First leader, riding a wave of renewed relevancy.
In not one, but two TV polls, New Zealand First featured above that critical 5 percent… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, week three: Debates, polls, sausage and cheese rolls
7:00 PM.The minor parties gave glimpses of their own cooperation styles at the Newshub Nation Powerbrokers' debate, while polls continued to signal Labour on the downturn.
GDP numbers also showed no… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, week two: Tax plans and spending
10:00 AM.The second week of the election campaign has been all about the economy.
There was the pre-election opening of the books, with National's tax plans and Labour's spending coming under fire.
This… Read more Audio
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On the campaign trail, week one: False claims and ad campaigns
10:00 AM.One week into the official election campaign and the hyperbole is flying thick and fast.
Distractions persisted throughout the week, with protesters at the major parties' campaign launches, outrage… Read more Audio
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Political parties talk strategy as campaigning begins in earnest
7:00 PM.The Parliamentary term came to an end this week after a tumultuous term, and Labour and National's election campaigns are launching this weekend - with just six weeks remaining before the big day.
… Read more Audio
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Labour sells its vaping crackdown - but is it too late?
10:00 AM.The government's pointed to vapes as a key weapon in the war against cigarettes.
In the rush to reach its smokefree targets, however, there are fears the horse has bolted - with children exposed to… Read more Audio
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Labour's GST-free fruit and vege strategy falls foul of the experts
7:00 PM.Set the table for bread and butter - or in this case, fruit and veg: Labour fired its opening election campaign salvo on Sunday with a starkly populist pitch for tax-free produce.
The party is… Read more Audio
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ACT's top six candidates share their history and priorities
7:00 PM.ACT has not only held onto the 10-fold increase in voter support it enjoyed last election, it's maintained a stable caucus and gained further traction.
With polls anticipating an even bigger stable… Read more Audio
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Polls and fiscal holes put major parties on notice
7:00 PM.With recent polling giving both major parties cause for concern and the election less than three months away, the countdown is on - and the policies are starting to roll out.
Labour has launched… Read more Audio
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Labour grapples with Kiri Allan's resignation, leak claims
7:00 PM.Tragic circumstances putting a halt to the political career of one of Labour's rising stars, East Coast MP Kiri Allan, was just the start of the party's headaches this week.
Along with speculation… Read more Video, Audio
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Focus on Politics for Friday 21 July 2023
6:30 PM.In Focus on Politics, RNZ deputy political editor Craig McCulloch breaks down Labour's law-and-order week and the tragic events which brought it to an end. Audio
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Green co-leader Davidson touts party's 'healing' ahead of AGM
6:30 PM.Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson says this election is the final chance to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, curb environmental degradation, and reduce inequality.
Following bruising… Read more Audio
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Hipkins passes diplomatic test with China's Xi
10:00 AM.Prime Minister Chris Hipkins' week-long trip to China centred on a meeting with China's President Xi Jinping, one of the world's most powerful men.
Amid tense geostrategic conditions and with a trip… Read more Audio