Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby

I feel bad for Mike King, not just him actually, but for every family he’s tried or is still trying to help and can’t get funding for.Yesterday the government told him they’re not funding Gumboot Friday to provide free counselling for young people struggling with mental health. I find this ironic given the government’s talked a big game on mental health, handed out 1.9 billion for it, acknowledged it’s a problem, say their work is ongoing, yet they’re not supporting this.It’s also ironic they can find the money to fund a cycle lane over the Harbour Bridge for a handful of Auckland cyclists, but they can’t find money for this. Likewise, they can throw 50 million at a slush fund to look for alternatives to cotton buds, but they can’t fund this. There are plenty of examples of money being printed and handed out from the Beehive and I’m just not sure how this one doesn’t make the cut.Our mental health stats are woeful. The government’s well aware of it, has had solutions offered to them, people with practical tan

The number of people studying nursing in New Zealand has stalled and is closing in on a decade low.The Nurses Organisation are concerned the mounting pressure on current nurses are keeping people from entering the profession.Dr. Sandy Richardson, College of Emergency Nurses chair, told Kate Hawkesby“It’s more what do we do with them once we’ve got them into nursing? How do we find placements for them when they’re training? And how do we find jobs for them when they’ve finished training?”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Britney Spears' father has asked the court overseeing his daughter's conservatorship to investigate her statements to a judge last week on the court's control of her medical treatment and personal life, which she called overly restrictive and abusive.James Spears emphasized in a pair of documents filed that he has had no power over his daughter's personal affairs for nearly two years.His filing says the court must investigate "serious allegations regarding forced labor, forced medical treatment and therapy, improper medical care, and limitations on personal rights.""Given the nature of the allegations and claims, it is critical that that the court confirm whether or not Ms. Spears' testimony was accurate in order to determine what corrective actions, if any, need to be taken," the documents said.The filings come a week after Britney Spears spoke for the first time in open court in the conservatorship that has controlled her life and money for 13 years. She condemned those with power over her, saying she has b

Prince Harry and Prince William almost look as though they've buried the hatchet, putting on a united front to celebrate their late mother's 60th birthday early Friday (NZT).The feuding brothers smiled and laughed with each other as they arrived together at Kensington Palace, looking to be in high spirits as they greeted a small number of guests at the unveiling of Princess Diana's memorial statue.It was an emotional day for the family of Diana - who died in 1997 - with her beloved sons releasing a rare joint statement shortly after the ceremony."Today, on what would have been our Mother's 60th birthday, we remember her love, strength and character – qualities that made her a force for good around the world, changing countless lives for the better," it read."Every day, we wish she were still with us, and our hope is that this statue will be seen forever as a symbol of her life and her legacy."Britain's Prince William, left and Prince Harry unveil a statue they commissioned of their mother Princess Diana, on w

More companies around New Zealand and overseas are letting staff pick their own working hours.Deloitte Australia is the latest big player to give it a go.One staff member is making the most of it by working two hours in the morning, surfing in the lunch break and then coming back to do another six.A dairy farm in Canterbury, Align Farms started the same thing recently.Align Farms CEO Rhys Roberts told Kate Hawkesby the flexibility has attracted workers from other industries.“That dairy farm actually just employed the head trainer at f45 in Ashburton, which is obviously a whole new skill set and diversity into the team. You’d argue we wouldn’t be able to employ someone of that calibre onto a dairy farm 12 months ago without that flexibility.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I am just wondering how many parents are , like me, watching a generation of kids who don’t or won’t cook.And how much of this has been exacerbated by Covid?What I mean by that is, yes during lockdown people cooked from home more, but they also ditched the supermarkets a bit and got into meal kits and takeaways. We know this from a recent Herald survey which looked at life ‘post-Covid’ for Kiwis.Feels weird saying ‘post-Covid’ given we didn’t really have Covid here like other countries did, but also are we ever really ‘post-Covid?’ I think it’s something we’re going to have to live with forever. But this Lifestyle Survey by Colmar Brunton and the Herald found that how we eat has changed.I know for our family, a couple of our kids became hooked on Uber Eats. Easy, convenient, you can get what you feel like, you don’t have to leave the house, you don’t have to waste time cooking. There are no dishes.Our kids got dependent on it for their flat, it was the easiest solution to the ‘what to have for dinner’ questio

A set of professional conduct rules kick in today for New Zealand's lawyers.Enforced by the Law Society, the rules clarify the standards of behaviour expected of lawyers around clients and colleagues.Aotearoa Legal Workers Association director Harrison Cunningham says there are three key changes.He told Kate Hawkesby two are clear definitions of bullying and harassment.“And the third one is a lowering of the threshold for essentially when lawyers have to tell on each other.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the world comes out of the pandemic, the international luxury hotel market is heating up.After what would have been a difficult period for most, there's now going to be more pressure on hotels to push the boundaries, and try outdo each other.For the last few years, the Gevora Hotel in Dubai has been the world's tallest hotel.But, there is competition now with the J Hotel Shanghai Tower also claiming to be the highest hotel.General Manager of Gevora hotel in Dubai Jairaj Gorsia told Kate Hawkesby he can already see the signs that things are returning to normal again.“I guess part of the reason is people have been locked down so many months and have extra disposable income to spend, so I guess they want to splurge and have a god time.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's scepticism at predictions water bills could balloon to nine thousand dollars a year, if water services aren't consolidated.The services of 67 councils could be put into just four water entities, under the Government's reforms.South Canterbury mayors say they don't know where the Government's getting its numbers from.Timaru District Mayor Nigel Bowen told Kate Hawkesby he has his doubts about the figures.“It just looks like a marketing campaign; the data is coming out in a timely fashion that suits the government.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bill Cosby has been freed from prison after Pennsylvania's highest court overturned his sexual assault conviction.In a stunning reversal of fortune for the comedian once known as "America's Dad," the state Supreme court ruled that the prosecutor who brought the case was bound by his predecessor's agreement not to charge Cosby.Cosby, 83, has served nearly three years of a three- to 10-year sentence after being found guilty of drugging and violating Temple University sports administrator Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. He was the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era.Bill Cosby's Twitter account released this photo of the comedian inside jail earlier in his sentence. Photo / TwitterThe former "Cosby Show" star was arrested in 2015, when a district attorney armed with newly unsealed evidence — the comic's damaging deposition testimony in a lawsuit brought by Constand — brought charges against him days before the 12-year statute of limitations ran out.But the Pennsylvani

British police said Tuesday that they are investigating the circumstances around the seeming harassment and intimidation of England's chief medical officer by two men in a park in central London.The incident, which was captured in video footage and shared on social media, shows Prof. Chris Whitty struggling to get away from the pair, who appeared to be manhandling him while trying to take a selfie.British Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the "thugs" accosting Whitty, who has been one of the most prominent voices during the coronavirus pandemic."I'm shocked at seeing the despicable harassment of chief medical officer Chris Whitty," Johnson said. "I condemn the behaviour of these thugs. Our hard-working public servants should not have to face this kind of intimidation on our streets and we will not tolerate it."The 20-second video shows the two grinning men grabbing Whitty as they shout "Oi oi" and ask for "One photo please?" As the clearly perturbed Whitty attempts to walk away, the men try to grab him a

In the never ending battle of what we can and can’t eat, the one consistent evil these days appears to be sugar.And now a new study published by Frontiers in Neuroscience says ‘children who consume too much sugar could be at greater risk of becoming obese, hyperactive, and cognitively impaired as adults’.Cognitively impaired, that's serious.So just how much sugar are we eating?According to the study, children and adults in more than 60 countries have a diet consisting of more than four times the sugar recommended by the WHO. So the WHO recommends 25 grams a day, most of us are consuming 100 grams a day.The worse news is that over eating sugar leads to more general over eating. We tend to eat more processed food, the more sugar we eat.Long term sugar consumption ‘significantly boosts weight gain, elicits an abnormal and excessive stimulation of the nervous system and it also alters both episodic and spatial memory,’ the study says.This is similar, apparently, to what happens with attention deficit and hyperact

The Statue of Liberty is one of the biggest tourist attractions in the world.And in an exciting week in New York, a second Statue of Liberty is arriving just in time for Independence Day.Like the original, the statue has been gifted by France, it is slightly smaller though, about one sixteenth the size of the original.President and CEO of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation Jesse Brackenbury told Kate Hawkesby the logistics of moving such a piece across the Atlantic is considerable.”“It hasn’t been entirely straightforward, but it’s a lot easier than getting the 300ft version here. It did take a crane and a specialty crew and specialty company.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oranga Tamariki is being told it needs to find staff who are up to the job.A whistleblower has released footage taken at a secure residence.It shows staff tackling a boy and twisting his arms behind his back, and putting another into a headlock before throwing him to the ground.Whanau Ora chair Merepeka Raukawa-Tait told Kate Hawkesby children in Oranga Tamariki care have complex needs, requiring staff who understand behaviour, trauma and the brain.“We don’t hire for the skills required and the level of skills required. What I saw there could have been de-escalated.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today is the last possible day for the government to release the next set of its three year targets for child poverty reduction.But despite some fighting words from the Labour government in tackling child poverty, there is word it will be a press release and that there will be no major changes to targets.Jacqui Southey, the Advocacy and Research Director at Save the Children told Kate Hawkesby children can’t afford to wait for the help they need.“Our children need to live good lives now, and that means not living in poverty.”LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.