The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Some simple observations on part two of the Covid Inquiry.
1) It's cheaper than the British equivalent finished last week that cost over half a billion dollars.
2) It says pretty much what you thought it would.
3) I'm convinced it’s a waste of time because a pandemic response is about the ideology and Government of the day, not medical process.
4) Why do I say that? Read the report. It says numerous times good advice was ignored.
5) Did the Labour Government, broadly, cock it up? Yes.
6) Badly? Yes.
7) The report says, at its heart, people tried hard. They wanted to do the right thing.
8) Is that an acceptable answer? Sort of. But wanting to do well isn't the same as actually doing well.
9) It's hard to work out what's worse – the medical cock-ups or the financial ones.
10) Grant Robertson and his economic vandalism come out of it probably as bad as Jacinda Ardern and her megalomania.
11) They were too slow, I would argue because they were lazy. They sat in Opposition for nine years not expecting to get to Government, they weren't sharp or ready, so not only did Winston hand them a lifeline, they got a pandemic. They never stood a chance. They weren't match fit.
12) It's as much our fault as anyone. A party that gets about 30% support in an MMP election got 50% in 2020. Too many of us loved being told how to wipe our bums and too many of us were too lazy to think and work out where it was all heading.
13) The tide turned and (given any response whether it be a pandemic, war, or just plain policy is reliant on public goodwill) once it did turn Labour were done for.
14) The fact Ardern can't live in the country tells you very clearly how badly the tide turned.
15) I am no more confident today that we are any more ready for a pandemic, although if we can take anything from the report;
16) It’s the recommendation that public debt needs to drop so we can be more ready for an unpredictable world. War, anyone?
17) Neither of the reports were really needed. We are the experts because we lived through it. Some of us still bear the scars.
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The White House says the conflict with Iran will end when Donald Trump decides it will end.
The US President says the mission is almost complete, but the US is "going to go further".
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says US strikes are ramping up today, the Iranian regime is "totally and decisively defeated", and Iran's leaders are "desperate and scrambling".
US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking that Trump’s giving mixed messages about the timeline of the conflict.
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Seven Iranian football players have now been granted asylum in Australia.
Five players from the women’s team, including captain Zahra Ghanbari, slipped away from the team hotel under the cover of darkness to claim sanctuary from Australian officials, the Australian Government announced.
At least two more members of the team applied to stay later in the day, according to reports.
Australia Correspondent Steve Price told Mike Hosking that those who wanted to return left the country last night, catching a flight to Sydney, then to Kuala Lumpur.
Where they go from now, he says, is uncertain, as commercial flights obviously can’t enter Iranian airspace at the moment.
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Kiwis are spending less time on hold to customer service call centres.
Research from AI platform ServiceNow estimates New Zealanders spent 22 million hours waiting on hold last year – two million less than the year before.
It says banks and retailers have the fastest resolution time of 2.4 days on average, while government and manufacturing lag behind at 6.5 days.
ServiceNow Country Manager Kate Tulp told Mike Hosking the improvements are being driven by AI.
She says 72% of New Zealanders say that they're willing to embrace AI and actually want to use self-service first.
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On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Wednesday 11th of March, we dig into the findings of the Covid Inquiry, and look at just how long Air NZ’s prices will be raised, considering fuel prices have mostly been corrected.
Former Covid Minister Chris Hipkins explains his position on the inquiry.
And on Politics Wednesday, Ginny Andersen and Mark Mitchell talk the Covid inquiry and Mark's house in Bali – you'll never believe what he paid for it.
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