Category: Public Media

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Motorcyclist dies in Ashburton crash

Source: Radio New Zealand

RNZ / REECE BAKER

A motorcyclist has died after a crash involving a car in Ashburton.

Police were called to the crash at the intersection of Hinds Arundel Road and Gills Road about 6pm.

The motorcyclist was found dead at the scene.

The road was expected to be closed for some time and motorists should avoid the area if possible, police said.

The Serious Crash Unit was attending.

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Fire at Auckland LGBTTQIA+ nightclub G.A.Y treated as suspicious

Source: Radio New Zealand

Google Maps

A fire at an Auckland LGBTTQIA+ nightclub at the weekend is being treated as suspicious.

A blaze broke out in G.A.Y on Karangahape Road early on Sunday morning.

It activated a fire alarm, and the road was blocked for an hour while fire crews worked to put it out.

One person was assessed by ambulance staff.

Police have revealed the fire started in a rubbish bin in a bathroom.

They say enquiries are ongoing but the fire is considered suspicious on the information so far.

Investigators will be reviewing security camera footage and further speaking to witnesses.

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Consumers warned to assume imported products not being tested after asbestos scare

Source: Radio New Zealand

The latest coloured sand products to be recalled over asbestos fears. Supplied

Consumers are being warned to assume imported products including kids play things are not being tested and its best to avoid anything that could be contaminated or faulty.

An asbestos scare has prompted a recall of several brands of children coloured play sand.

It expanded yesterday with two more products added; Rainbow Sand Art Toy, approximately 800 units have been sold at various discount stores nationwide, and sand craft.

Some of the coloured sands are laced with tremolite asbestos.

That is despite it being illegal to import any product containing asbestos.

University of Auckland law professor Alex Sims said shoppers should not assume the law is being followed.

“We’ve just seen it with the with the coloured sand, but I think to be honest, it’s not sort of a product that people naturally thought would have asbestos in it.”

Sims told Checkpoint it is up to retailers and importers to do checks on products, but that doesn’t mean it is always being done.

“There’s a whole lot of laws that cover kids toys…. and if you’re importing product it can’t have asbestos in it.”

“There’s lots and lots of laws, but it is up to the people selling it and importing it to make sure that the law is being followed.”

She said products having safety issues is not uncommon and has happened in the past, but often consumers don’t hear about it.

“What often happens is something happens… where some poor child almost dies and then they look into it, and then the prosecutions happens, but this after the fact.”

“One thing that could happen is the Commerce Commission and other people could do spot checks to see that the products are actually meeting specifications, but there’s so many that it might be impossible to do.”

If parents wanted to be reimbursed the cost of asbestos testing or any clean up, Sims said the responsibility lies on the retailer, which is in many cases Kmart.

“Under the Consumer Guarantees Act if a good is not safe, and if it’s contaminated with asbestos it’s not safe, then yes [you are entitled to] a refund of the money, but also the cost of the testing the cost of cleaning,”

“If the colour sand is all through a carpet and it can’t be cleaned properly then the cost of replacing that carpet as well.”

Despite this, Sims said she would be surprised if this would occur.

“The only real way at the moment is for someone to go to the disputes tribunal.”

Schools are also covered under the consumer guarantees act, said Sims.

Despite the laws in place, she said it was ultimately down to buyers to be aware of what they are purchasing.

“Unfortunately the laws don’t work…yes, we’ve got laws, but then as we’ve seen here, they’re not protecting anybody, so it is buyer beware.”

With Christmas around the corner, Sims said for now it might be safest to stick to simpler and more traditional toys, such as wooden items without paint on them.

MBIE product safety spokesman Ian Caplin said the Ministry is working retailers of children’s sand products to understand supply chains and determine the origin of the sand.

The Ministry said it is the retailer’s responsibility to sell a safe product, and the importation of a product containing asbestos is not allowed without a permit.

Kmart did not respond to a request for an interview about its sand products.

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Tall Blacks’ familiar foes first challenge in World Cup cycle

Source: Radio New Zealand

Tohi Smith-Milner from the Tall Blacks and Boomer Angus Glover will clash again in the world cup qualifiers. Jeremy Ward/Photosport

Boomers v Tall Blacks

Friday, 28 November

Tip-off 9.30pm

MyState Bank Arena, Hobart, Tasmania

Live blog updates on RNZ Sport

There will be no secrets between the Tall Blacks and Boomers when the Asia FIBA World Cup qualifiers tip off.

It is hard to have an air of mystery when the opposing coaches worked together for nearly a decade or when most of the players from both sides play in the same competition for 22 weeks at a time.

Tall Blacks coach Judd Flavell and Boomers coach Dean Vickerman have both predominately called on players based in the Australian NBL for two games that start the lengthy qualification process for the 2027 Basketball World Cup in Qatar.

Flavell works as an assistant for the Breakers when he is not with the national team, likewise Vickerman is head coach at Melbourne United when he is not stepping in to the Boomers top job to cover for head coach Adam Caporn who has not come back for this qualification window.

The links between the Tall Blacks and Boomers are numerous.

Flavell has coached some of the Boomers and Vickerman has the Tall Blacks captain Finn Delany in his NBL squad. Boomers big man Keanu Pinder matches up with Tall Blacks forward Yanni Wetzell every day in practice for their Akita Northern Happinets side in Japan’s B-League.

Alex Ducas who will represent the green and gold for the first time since 2023 is well aware of what Tall Blacks weapon Tyrell Harrison, who will pull on the black singlet for the first time this year, is capable of as they play together for the Brisbane Bullets.

Friday’s game in Hobart will be the fourth time the Tall Blacks and Boomers have played each other in 2025.

The Australians are leading this year’s tally 2-1 but the Tall Blacks were the winners of the last game played in the Trans-Tasman Throwdown in May in Hamilton.

There are some roster changes from that inaugural series with the New Zealanders injecting some height that Flavell has not had his disposal before now.

Brisbane Bullets centre Tyrell Harrison celebrates during their win over the New Zealand Breakers. photosport

“Sometimes we have the genuine bigs and sometimes we don’t but what a luxury it is to have [Harrison], Yanni Wetzell as well coming back and we have Sam Mennenga and we have Tohi Smith-Milner so genuine size all with a different skillset and our challenge is can we complement that all together and be a cohesive unit in this short window.

“Sometimes they are going to be asked to be interchangeable or be versatile and that is something I think Tall Blacks always have to do. Guys for their club team play a specific role and when they come into Tall Blacks they have to grow and they have to be able to step into these multi positional roles and that’s a strength of the Tall Blacks but that’s the way we have look at it and attack it.”

While the opposition in this qualification window is familiar, Flavell wants the Tall Blacks to also take a closer look at themselves while he looks at the big picture after 13 months in the head coach role.

“It’s given me a great opportunity to gather information over the last 12 months and have a good understanding of who we are again. Our focus for this window is to remember who we are and bring guys together.

“It’s a little bit of a start over again.

“We’re really laying a foundation for what lies ahead…that journey extends for a lot of these guys, for [17-year-old] Jackson [Ball] in particular, hopefully another 10 to 15 years for him so huge for us as Tall Blacks to keep developing our youth.”

The process to qualify for the Basketball World Cup starts in this window, continues in February and July next year. The Tall Blacks will plan to move into the second round of qualifying in August and November 2026 and March 2027. Before the global event in August 2027.

“I don’t think people can plan their lives over the next 16 months but while we can we want to continue to get as many people as we can back into the mix.

“This window is great, timing has worked out people are playing here or close to New Zealand, there are still a number of people who are not here as well but you can never really bank on what life is going to look like in six months time or whenever the next window is but while we have people we try to re-centre back to the Tall Blacks core and back to our kaupapa and remind themselves what it’s like to be a Tall Black and playing together.”

Re-establishing a long-time connection on the international stage

Tall Black Yanni Wetzell. Supplied

Wetzell has not played for the Tall Blacks so far this year and said it was “refreshing” to be back playing under Flavell who first brought him to basketball.

“I played for him as a junior, played for him in my first year as a professional when he was an assistant at South East [Melbourne Phoenix], now he got this job and it was an exciting call up and we have a great relationship so it was a no brainer for me to come back and join this team.

“I know what he likes out of players and we have that player-coach connection where there doesn’t need to be a ton of communication and we know how we see things so we will continue to grow that bond.”

Wetzell is also working on the connection and on-court chemistry with an eye on the world cup and the Olympics.

“There is nothing like playing with Kiwis it’s exciting to see a lot of the talent coming through I feel like we’re leaps and bounds from where we were 10 to 15 years ago.

“There is so much talent, not just within this group but you can see a bunch of these guys signing with big universities over in the States and there is going to be a massive influx of players coming through in the next few years to come.”

Harrison was first involved with the Tall Blacks in 2018 and he also played in Flavell’s first game in charge but the games against the Boomers mark a return to the side for the towering centre.

“I’d say we’re the underdogs but basketball is changing in New Zealand, it’s developing it’s improving and hopefully we can show that these two games as well.”

Harrison wants to be a regular for the national side as he too looks to the big events on the horizon.

“I try be available as much as I can and keep getting around this environment the culture and trying to get used to the coaching staff and the team.”

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Reserve Bank to deliver further cut to official cash rate

Source: Radio New Zealand

RNZ

  • Reserve Bank to deliver a 25 basis point cut to 2.25 percent
  • Attention on how wide the RBNZ leaves the door open for more if needed
  • Economy performing largely as forecast in August
  • Last appearance of short term governor Christian Hawkesby
  • New governor Anna Bremen starts on 1 December

The Reserve Bank is set to deliver a 25-basis-point cut to the official cash rate (OCR) to a three-year low, but attention will be on the central bank’s commentary and forecasts and how wide it leaves the door open for a further rate cut next year if needed.

The RBNZ has taken barely a year to cut the OCR from 5.5 percent to 2.5 percent, as it has tried to stimulate an economy going backwards while looking to control a revival of inflation pressures, which have edged to the top of the RBNZ’s 1-3 percent target band.

So is it one more cut and then an end to the easing cycle – the so-called ‘one and done’ strategy?

“Our base case is that November will bring the last OCR cut, but the risk remains for further easing in 2026,” ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley said.

“The statement’s forecasts and commentary will leave the door wide open for further easing if it is needed. Doing so will keep a lid on wholesale interest rates.”

Tuffley said such an approach would give the RBNZ breathing space to assess the state of the economy, and the strength of emerging signs of growth.

To an extent the RBNZ has boxed itself into a rate cut this week after saying in its October statement it was open to further cuts “as required for inflation to settle sustainably near the 2 percent target mid-point-in the medium term”.

Turning the economic corner

Partial indicators over the past two months have pointed to the economy turning the corner after it effectively stalled in the first half of the year.

BNZ head of research Stephen Toplis said a key question was how much slack – the output gap – was in the economy.

“Where it gets interesting is what does the RBNZ think is happening to potential growth?

“Net migration is coming in lower than the bank had assumed. Coupled with anecdotal evidence of increasing job shortages, this suggests that potential growth might need revising down again.”

Current picks for growth in the three months ended September range between 0.3 percent and 0.6 percent.

The slack in the economy is one factor expected to keep downward pressure on inflation.

HSBC chief economist for Australia and New Zealand Paul Bloxham said there were modest signs of an uptick in growth.

“Timely indicators of the manufacturing sector have risen for the past four months, and business sentiment has improved. Electronic card spending figures, building consents, and hours worked have all risen recently.”

He expected the RBNZ monetary policy committee to take a “dovish” tone in its statement with a clear signal that a further cut is on the cards.

The degree of dovishness will show through in its OCR rate track, which the RBNZ has said is only a signal of where the rate might be in coming meetings.

New year, new governor

The coming decision will be the last for governor Christian Hawkesby, who was rushed into the job after the abrupt and messy departure of Adrian Orr, added to by the departure of the chair of the RBNZ board, Neil Quigley.

Hawkesby was a candidate for the permanent appointment, losing out to Anna Bremen from the Swedish central bank who starts on 1 December.

It is expected in time he will return to private investment markets.

Bremen made much in her appointment news conference about the transparency of decision making.

“Will things at the RBNZ ever be the same again? A new governor starts next month who is likely to bring about a greater focus on transparency of the decisions made by the Monetary Policy Committee. We’ll see in February – OCR cut or not, ” Tuffley said.

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Reserve Bank set to deliver further cut to official cash rate

Source: Radio New Zealand

RNZ

  • Reserve Bank to deliver a 25 basis point cut to 2.25 percent
  • Attention on how wide the RBNZ leaves the door open for more if needed
  • Economy performing largely as forecast in August
  • Last appearance of short term governor Christian Hawkesby
  • New governor Anna Bremen starts on 1 December

The Reserve Bank is set to deliver a 25-basis-point cut to the official cash rate (OCR) to a three-year low, but attention will be on the central bank’s commentary and forecasts and how wide it leaves the door open for a further rate cut next year if needed.

The RBNZ has taken barely a year to cut the OCR from 5.5 percent to 2.5 percent, as it has tried to stimulate an economy going backwards while looking to control a revival of inflation pressures, which have edged to the top of the RBNZ’s 1-3 percent target band.

So is it one more cut and then an end to the easing cycle – the so-called ‘one and done’ strategy?

“Our base case is that November will bring the last OCR cut, but the risk remains for further easing in 2026,” ASB chief economist Nick Tuffley said.

“The statement’s forecasts and commentary will leave the door wide open for further easing if it is needed. Doing so will keep a lid on wholesale interest rates.”

Tuffley said such an approach would give the RBNZ breathing space to assess the state of the economy, and the strength of emerging signs of growth.

To an extent the RBNZ has boxed itself into a rate cut this week after saying in its October statement it was open to further cuts “as required for inflation to settle sustainably near the 2 percent target mid-point-in the medium term”.

Turning the economic corner

Partial indicators over the past two months have pointed to the economy turning the corner after it effectively stalled in the first half of the year.

BNZ head of research Stephen Toplis said a key question was how much slack – the output gap – was in the economy.

“Where it gets interesting is what does the RBNZ think is happening to potential growth?

“Net migration is coming in lower than the bank had assumed. Coupled with anecdotal evidence of increasing job shortages, this suggests that potential growth might need revising down again.”

Current picks for growth in the three months ended September range between 0.3 percent and 0.6 percent.

The slack in the economy is one factor expected to keep downward pressure on inflation.

HSBC chief economist for Australia and New Zealand Paul Bloxham said there were modest signs of an uptick in growth.

“Timely indicators of the manufacturing sector have risen for the past four months, and business sentiment has improved. Electronic card spending figures, building consents, and hours worked have all risen recently.”

He expected the RBNZ monetary policy committee to take a “dovish” tone in its statement with a clear signal that a further cut is on the cards.

The degree of dovishness will show through in its OCR rate track, which the RBNZ has said is only a signal of where the rate might be in coming meetings.

New year, new governor

The coming decision will be the last for governor Christian Hawkesby, who was rushed into the job after the abrupt and messy departure of Adrian Orr, added to by the departure of the chair of the RBNZ board, Neil Quigley.

Hawkesby was a candidate for the permanent appointment, losing out to Anna Bremen from the Swedish central bank who starts on 1 December.

It is expected in time he will return to private investment markets.

Bremen made much in her appointment news conference about the transparency of decision making.

“Will things at the RBNZ ever be the same again? A new governor starts next month who is likely to bring about a greater focus on transparency of the decisions made by the Monetary Policy Committee. We’ll see in February – OCR cut or not, ” Tuffley said.

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New building for equipment maintenance and repairs at Burnham Military Camp opened

Source: Radio New Zealand

Defence Minister Judith Collins at the groundbreaking ceremony for the $82.7 million regional supply building. Construction is expected to take about two years. Anna Sargent

A new $58 million building for equipment maintenance and repairs at Canterbury’s Burnham Military Camp will help to modernise the Defence Force, the Defence Minister says.

Judith Collins opened The Forge – Te Toki, which housed weapons, army vehicles, tools and spare parts, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday.

She said it was a modern complex that would make it easier for personnel to do their job in an “increasingly complex and very contested world”.

“I just think it’s fabulous and everyone is so excited to be working in it. It’s purpose built, it’s just what the army needed. You’ve got to have your logistics together, you’ve got to be able to do what you have to do in one place,” she said.

Anna Sargent

“By following the same design and process as the Linton facility, it has been delivered ahead of time and $6.25 million under budget.”

Collins was also part of a ceremony marking the start of construction on a $82.7 million regional supply building at the Burnham camp that would act as a key hub for equipment and supplies.

Approximately 600 people would be employed during the construction phase of about two years.

Collins said upgrades to Defence Force infrastructure were important for national resilience and security.

“We are living through the most challenging times that I can remember in my lifetime,” she said.

“The global rules-based order is under pressure, regional sovereignty is being tested and the pace of technological change is accelerating. Defence is not something that can be mothballed until it’s needed. It must be ready, resilient and responsive.

“These new facilities represent a change in how we deliver logistics in support of our military activities.”

Defence Minister Judith Collins on a tour of the new $58 million building for equipment maintenance and repairs at Burnham Military Camp. Anna Sargent

Defence Force vice chief Rear Admiral Mathew Williams said New Zealand was facing its most challenging and dangerous strategic environment for decades.

“These two facilities are significant enablers of our ability to deliver the capabilities that New Zealand needs. At a superficial level, new buildings, equipment and better ways of working improve the job satisfaction of our soldiers and the ability of capabilities essential for a deployable army,” he said.

Selwyn MP Nicola Grigg said the upgrades were important for the district.

“A large amount of our military personnel live and reside here in Selwyn and their kids go to the local schools, and their partners work locally and this is all a big part of the defence upgrade which actually does a lot for the morale of the people and [makes them want to] stay here and be a part of it,” she said.

Collins said improving defence logistics was part of the government’s $12 billion defence capability plan released in April.

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Man charged after 21yo died while hunting on Stewart Island

Source: Radio New Zealand

Jock Grant Davies. Facebook

A man has been charged five months after 21-year-old Jock Grant Davies died while hunting on Stewart Island.

The 31-year-old from Ashburton has been charged with careless use of a firearm causing death.

Davies died near Lords River on 5 July, with police notified about midday.

Police say a search and rescue team was deployed to the island via helicopter, where he was found.

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Ministry privacy breach sees the names of five people seeking compensation for sexual abuse published

Source: Radio New Zealand

Lydia Oosterhoff is a human rights lawyer and senior associate at Cooper Legal. Jimmy Ellingham

Warning: This story contains references to suicide

  • Ministry of Social Development publishes online names of five people making compensation claims for sexual abuse in state care
  • Their lawyer says the privacy breach is the worst of its kind
  • The documents were taken down late last week but Google AI summaries still included information from them for days
  • MSD issues unreserved apology.

The names of five people seeking compensation for sexual abuse in state care were published online in a privacy breach by the Ministry of Social Development.

The ministry has removed the link to documents naming the five, but Google searches of the names were still bringing up the MSD information in the search engine’s AI summary yesterday morning.

The ministry has apologised and says the breach was due to human error.

Breach found by chance

Wellington human rights lawyer Lydia Oosterhoff was searching online last week for an RNZ story when she discovered an Official Information Act request from her firm, Cooper Legal, on the MSD website.

In the published information she was shocked to find that the names of five clients weren’t redacted.

“These are five people who are seeking redress for serious sexual and physical abuse that they were subjected to by the state while in state care,” she said.

“In the scheme of things I cannot think of a more serious privacy breach. This is clearly identifiable that these five people are seeking redress and this is on the internet, accessible by everyone.”

One of the five in particular felt ashamed because of the abuse he suffered.

Oosterhoff worried information linking him to a redress claim was still available on Google’s AI summary when his name was searched yesterday.

“It wouldn’t be hard to figure out that he is taking a claim with MSD about serious sexual and physical abuse.

“So anyone who was to Google that young man [yesterday] morning would be able to figure that out.

“And I can tell you that if he finds that out or if he even Googled himself there is a real, real, real risk that this young man is going to take his own life.”

‘Over my dead body’ – lawyer shocked by MSD proposal

Oosterhoff alerted MSD to the breach on Friday morning.

“Obviously, they were quite distressed,” she said.

“I mean, who wouldn’t be? But they said, ‘Oh, we’ll just reach out to these people and let them know and apologise.’

“I said, ‘Over my dead body you will.’ These are some of New Zealand’s most vulnerable people.”

Cooper Legal and MSD would instead need to come up with a plan to tell the five people about the error in a sensitive manner, especially for the client who had suicidal thoughts, she said.

“If someone from MSD was just to randomly call him up and say, “Oh look, sorry, we published your details on a website to say you’re asking for redress,’ I have a real concern this young man would seriously harm himself.”

MSD has apologised unreservedly.

Its general manager for ministerial and executive services, Anna Graham, said Cooper Legal alerted it to the breach on Friday morning.

“The information was immediately removed from our website,” she said.

“We know the OIA was only viewed three times in the period between publication on 20 August and the time it was removed from our website.

“We have taken a precautionary approach and have notified the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. We have also let the Office of the Ombudsman know.”

Graham said MSD was working closely with Cooper Legal to contact the people affected to apologise directly to them.

“The privacy breach was a human error on our part. We take our responsibility to protect people’s privacy very seriously. We apologise unreservedly for this breach.”

Oosterhoff though said it took hours for the Official Information Act documents to be removed from the website.

She also disputes that they were only viewed three times, saying she knew of more than three people who saw it.

RNZ viewed the information on two separate devices.

Oosterhoff said she’d only had a brief email from the ministry since Friday.

AI presents new challenge

The AI summaries still visible for days after the document were removed from MSD’s website are a complicating factor.

Victoria University programme director of artificial intelligence Dr Andrew Lensen said fixing such an issue would depend on how Google had used the documents.

“One option is that they might have used it to train their model directly, in which case it can be quite challenging to potentially remove that because it might be baked into the model,” he said.

Victoria University of Wellington AI programme director Andrew Lensen. Supplied / Robert Cross

“Probably more likely is that they’re doing what we call retrieval augmented generation, which is when the model makes a summary it can find other documents that are online, so they almost to a live search.

“Then based on that it will incorporate that into its response.”

Lensen said that option was more likely, and that if that were the case the information should disappear from Google searches in days or weeks.

By yesterday afternoon it appeared to have gone.

“This is indicative of a bigger issue, where we have documents that have been ingested by these companies and then summarised and made public,” Lensen said.

“And of course those AI summaries themselves can be unreliable sometimes.”

Oosterhoff still can’t make sense of how the error happened.

“When I saw it I was shocked. I was flabbergasted,” she said.

“How on earth could someone not have stopped and said, ‘Wait, these are five names of people [and] literally the most sensitive information about them.’

“This is information about severe abuse that they were subjected to and that they are asking for a tiny little bit of money to recognise this from the state.

“Did not one person say, ‘Wait, we should not be publishing these people’s names online?'”

She said she would be seeking compensation for the five people.

She also worried about possible effects on future legal action connected to the five people, and said the episode reflected poorly on MSD, especially after findings from the Royal Commission brought to light the poor attitude to abuse survivors from government agencies.

Where to get help:

  • Need to Talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason.
  • Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357.
  • Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO. This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends.
  • Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 or text 4202.
  • Samaritans: 0800 726 666.
  • Youthline: 0800 376 633 or text 234 or email talk@youthline.co.nz.
  • What’s Up: 0800 WHATSUP / 0800 9428 787. This is free counselling for 5 to 19-year-olds.
  • Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 or text 832. Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, and English.
  • Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254.
  • Healthline: 0800 611 116.
  • Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155.
  • OUTLine: 0800 688 5463.

If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.

Sexual Violence

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Chris Bishop says he’s not plotting to roll Christopher Luxon

Source: Radio New Zealand

Chris Bishop says Luxon is doing a “wonderful job” as Prime Minister. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone

Senior National MP and minister Chris Bishop has categorically denied plotting a leadership challenge, insisting that Christopher Luxon remains the best person to be prime minister.

Speculation surrounding the prospect of a coup has intensified in the past week given dissatisfaction within the National caucus after a series of worrying polls.

Addressing reporters at Parliament on Tuesday, Bishop said he was “definitely not” planning to roll Luxon as leader and dismissed the commentary as people “interviewing their typewriters”.

Asked if he could give a firm commitment that Luxon would remain prime minister through to the election, Bishop responded simply: “yes”.

Bishop was asked several times whether Luxon was the best person for the top job, to which he said Luxon was “fantastic” and “outstanding”.

He eventually responded directly: “Correct… absolutely, he’s doing a wonderful job as prime minister.”

“We’re in difficult economic times, as I think everybody knows, and this is the first time we’ve had a three-way coalition Cabinet in New Zealand history,” Bishop said.

“That produces its own challenges and trials and tribulations. But he’s doing an excellent job leading a government that is… firmly focused on long term structural reform to drive higher living standards.”

Bishop said he spoke to Luxon “almost every day” including about the rumours.

Erica Stanford shrugged off questions. RNZ / Mark Papalii

Earlier on Tuesday, another MP touted as a future leader Erica Stanford shrugged off a question over whether anyone had approached her about potentially taking over.

“All I’m concentrated on… is doing my job,” she said. “I don’t talk to people about leadership.”

Standing alongside Stanford, Luxon said she was doing an “outstanding job” and the National Party had a “great team doing an amazing job”.

Asked whether he would step down if National sunk below a certain level in the polls, Luxon said that was “not a concern”.

He said he did not hold any concerns for those National MPs who would lose their jobs on current polling: “No.”

Speaking on NewstalkZB on Monday, Luxon said he did not believe the rumours and described Bishop as a “great minister” and “good friend”.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand