Todd Muller has been a part of the fabric of Parliament for decades, having first worked for Prime Minister Jim Bolger as a staffer and returning in 2014 as a National MP after a career in the private sector. A backbencher initially, he rose to national prominence after rolling Simon Bridges as leader - before resigning months later citing mental health concerns. As he prepares to deliver his valedictory speech, Muller joins Thomas to discuss his early political interests, his time with Bolger, ...
Aug 22, 2023•57 min
The Herald has been running a 'Poll of Polls' to look at what all the polls coming out say about how Parliament will look come October. Thomas is joined this week by the man behind the data, the Herald's Chris Knox, to discuss how polling works, how that informs the Poll of Polls, and some of the fiddlier bits of polling such as margins of error, electorate polling, and if they can become self-fulfilling prophecies. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Aug 18, 2023•25 min
Phil Mauger has spent 10 months as the new mayor of Christchurch, and says the experience has made him appreciative of his predecessor Lianne Dalziel's tenure as he digs into it. He talks to Georgina about his pitch for the Commonwealth Games, if more national focus should be put on Christchurch, and what he's learnt on the job. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Aug 10, 2023•27 min
Councils in New Zealand are in a precarious position and require a significant overhaul to secure their future which could include four-year terms, lowering the voting age to 16, amalgamation, and an annual transfer from central government starting at $1 billion. The independent Future for Local Government panel released its report into the sector last month after two years of work and meeting with every council in the country as well as other stakeholders. Panel chairman Jim Palmer joins Georgi...
Jul 20, 2023•32 min
On the Tiles is taking a break from new episodes this week due to Matariki and the rare Friday public holiday, but in a week where the polls are pointing at a close election leaning towards National and Act, we're revisiting Thomas' chat last year with Act leader David Seymour on his political philosophy and priorities. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 13, 2023•28 min
Fresh off following PM Chris Hipkins around China, Thomas is joined by Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls to review the trip, the highs and the lows, and look ahead to Hipkins' 'Hot Girl Summer' in Europe - is a secret trip to Ukraine on the way? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 07, 2023•23 min
While Thomas is away following Chris Hipkins around China, Georgina is going national this week - and what a week it has been! While Hipkins is finding success with our biggest trading partner, Minister Kiri Allan has come under fire, proving a welcome distraction for National after dropping the ball on their big law and order policy. To discuss all this and the other big political moments of the week, Georgina is joined by Newstalk ZB chief political reporter Aaron Dahmen. See omnystudio.com/li...
Jun 30, 2023•27 min
‘Coalition of chaos’, ‘bread and butter’, ‘if I may’ - all politicians have phrases they like to deploy in interviews and media appearances to try and sway the public to their cause, or take control of the interview. A new series from RNZ has taken a deep dive into the phrases and words used the most by Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, National Party leader Christopher Luxon, and former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern when they are being grilled by the media. The Interview journalists Guyon Espiner a...
Jun 23, 2023•22 min
For this week's Local Edition, Georgina is looking at the biggest stories across the country at a council level. She is first joined by Bernard Orsman for an inside look at Auckland Council's contentious budget process, and Katrina Bennett to discuss Welington's latest water concerns and why the issue is likely to get worse before it gets fixed. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 15, 2023•23 min
New Zealand's trade deal with China makes it one of our most important foreign partners - but it's a relationship proving increasingly controversial as China faces diplomatic battles with many of our other allies. Sam Sachdeva, author of the new book The China Tightrope, joins Thomas to discuss our relationship past, present and future, and how different leaders have handled the juggle. Plus, they dig into a problematic week with the Government that National failed to capitalise on. See omnystud...
Jun 09, 2023•33 min
Current polling shows that much of the public is unhappy with the direction New Zealand is going in - but those polls also how it is incredibly tight between the left and right of the political spectrum. So why isn't National rating better with the wider country? In the first of a series of examinations of the state of different political parties pre-election, Thomas talks to political commentator, lawyer and member of the National Party Liam Hehir about the state of the party and its internal a...
Jun 02, 2023•38 min
In a special monopod, Thomas runs over the major stories of the week - from the first post-Budget poll, how people have responded to that Budget, and how Christopher Luxon's u-turn on housing could shake up the election. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 26, 2023•17 min
After getting his initial thoughts out there yesterday from inside the Budget lock-up, Thomas is joined today by Wellington business editor Jenee Tibshraeny and Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls to discuss the policy winners and losers from Grant Robertson's sixth Budget, the Government's approach to spending, and which policy is the clearest election bribe. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 19, 2023•34 min
Live from inside the Budget 2023 lockup, this special episode has Thomas talking to Infometrics' Brad Olsen about some of the major figures from this year's Budget, with immediate reaction on what it could mean for the Government and inflation. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 18, 2023•7 min
Gore District mayor Ben Bell made history in October last year when, at the age of 23, he was voted in as the country’s youngest ever mayor. But his tenure has been fraught with scandal and conflict so far, with his relationship with his chief executive Stephen Parry deteriorating to the point a mediator had to be called in. For this special bonus, Georgina is joined by NZ Herald Christchurch senior reporter, Kurt Bayer, to discuss what has happened here, this week's extraordinary meeting and wh...
May 17, 2023•11 min
For the last of our Budget 2023 episodes, after talking to the left and right of the political spectrum, this week Thomas sits down The Opportunities Party leader Raf Manji for a centrist view on our economic outlook, his party's approach to taxes and the size of government, and what is coming for Ilam. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
May 12, 2023•45 min
Earlier this week, Restore Passenger Rail drew headlines after protests in Wellington sparked angry backlash from members of the public. For today's Local Edition, Georgina talks to spokesperson James Cockle about why they are taking this action and how long they plan to carry on for. Plus, Transport Minister Michael Woods and Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau respond to their actions - with Woods also weighing in on another rail matter that's caused chaos for Wellington. See omnystudio.com/listener ...
May 04, 2023•27 min
Former National Party finance minister Ruth Richardson is best remembered for 1991's 'Mother of all Budgets', but she also helped push through the Fiscal Responsibility Act while in Opposition. She joins Thomas this week to share her memories of fiscal and monetary policy from her time in Parliament and as Minister, her thoughts on current policy today, and on the IRD's study released this week into who pays how much tax in New Zealand. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 28, 2023•47 min
Budget Month is upon us - well, it's not May yet, but with four weeks to go, it's Budget Month for On the Tiles! To kick a series previewing and discussing Budget 2023 and all things government finances, Thomas is joined by economist Craig Rennie to discuss his time in Grant Robertson's office, what goes into preparing a budget, and what announcements we should and shouldn't expect on May 18th. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 21, 2023•48 min
In March 2003, the United States and the United Kingdom led a coalition of countries in invading Iraq under the guise of finding 'weapons of mass destruction'. New Zealand did not join the war, a decision that was debated at the time, but 20 years on, history has not looked kindly on those who supported the Iraq War. For a special episode of On the Tiles, Thomas is joined by former Prime Minister Helen Clark to discuss her memories of the lead-up to the war, the conversations that led to her dec...
Apr 13, 2023•38 min
Councils across New Zealand are going through the motions at the moment - most notably in Gore, as the Mayor and Chief Executive remain at loggerheads, while Auckland has quit Local Government New Zealand. To dig into what's happening with these councils, their budgets, and councillors looking to make it to the Beehive, Georgina is joined by former mayors Justin Lester and Nick Leggett for a panel on the latest local politics news. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Apr 06, 2023•27 min
Labour MP Stuart Nash this week lost his place in Cabinet after revelations he had sent confidential information to former donors. While his time in Cabinet is over, questions have now been raised about how the Prime Minister's office handled an Official Information Act request that could have revealed the controversial email sooner. Thomas is joined by Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls this week to discuss into what happened and if voters will pay attention. See omnystudio.com/listener f...
Mar 31, 2023•22 min
The sudden resignation of a Police Minister can really take over the political week - so this week, while Thomas is covering the latest developments from the Beehive, On the Tiles presents an episode of The Front Page , with host Damien Venuto and ZB Political Editor Jason Walls explaining the rapid-fire scandal that cost Stuart Nash one of the top government portfolios. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Mar 17, 2023•18 min
Dr Ayesha Verrall has only been in Parliament since 2020, but after a few years as an MP, she is now a key part of Labour's frontbench, holding the Health portfolio, alongside Research, Science and Innovation. Both portfolios have been hot topics of discussion in recent weeks, from controversies around health targets and the exit of Rob Campbell as Te Whatu Ora chair, to backlash from some sectors over the inclusion of Mātauranga Māori in science education. The Minister joins Thomas today to dis...
Mar 10, 2023•26 min
Getting an annual budget across the line is no easy task for mayors, with councillors acting as both their caucus and opposition, not to mention the public consultation process. Baldwin Boyle Group and a Heart of the City board member Chamanthie Sinhalage-Fonseka says mayors lead the direction of budgets and often go through them line-by-line with senior council officers before the draft version is tabled. Auckland Council is facing an almost $300 million shortfall. Residential rates will rise b...
Mar 02, 2023•30 min
The Reserve Bank made headlines this week by raising the official cash rate by 50 basis points despite the impact of Cyclone Gabrielle. The OCR now sits at 4.75 per cent, its highest level since 2008, and the impact of this will eventually feed into the economy as fixed mortgage rates expire. Speaking to Thomas and NZ Herald Wellington Business Editor, Jenée Tibshraeny, Deputy Reserve Bank Governor Christian Hawkesby admits that getting the balance right in the fight against inflation can be tri...
Feb 24, 2023•32 min
Judith Collins got a big promotion last month in the National portfolio reshuffle - but the resignation of a certain Prime Minister a few hours later dominated the news cycle. In her return to On the Tiles, Collins talks to Thomas about her new portfolios, why she keeps lasting in politics after 21 years, and her thoughts on Ardern's resignation and Chris Hipkins. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Feb 16, 2023•31 min
Auckland has faced devastating flooding over the last week, but as much attention has been on the response of Mayor Wayne Brown as it has been on the damage. Senior NZ Herald writer David Fisher this week added to the discourse after revealing messages Brown sent tennis colleagues that criticised the media. Fisher joins Georgina Campbell this week to discuss Brown's response to the floods, his leaked messages, and why his response to the flooding has proved so controversial. See omnystudio.com/l...
Feb 02, 2023•36 min
It has been a hectic and surprising start to the political in New Zealand since Jacinda Ardern's shock resignation as Prime Minister last week. A new PM has already been sworn in, with Chris Hipkins and deputy Carmel Sepuloni now leading the charge for the party to remain in power in October's election. This week, Thomas is joined by Newstalk ZB political editor Jason Walls to recap their shock at the resignation, what Ardern's legacy will be, and the reset and reshuffle Labour now has to conten...
Jan 27, 2023•37 min
In a shock announcement, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said that she will be stepping down on February 7th. This means she will not be standing again as leader of the Labour party, and will not contest the next election. Thomas is on the ground in Napier this week covering the Labour and National Party caucuses and was able to share his initial thoughts on the news with The Front Page's Damien Venuto . More analysis - plus a new Prime Minister to discuss - next week when On the Tiles properl...
Jan 19, 2023•13 min
