Fifty days out, the campaign ignites
Our hosts reconvene to digest the latest political headlines, including (but not limited to): National’s pledge to “pursue” a breakup of Foodstuffs, the Department of Internal Affairs’ report on the Phillips children and Act’s commitment wind down the Waitangi Tribunal.
18 Sep 2026
More about the episode
Just when you thought the two main parties were fixed on a do-little election, the National Party bursts out the triangulator and gazumps its Labour rivals with a pledge to pursue a breakup of the Foodstuffs group of Pak’nSave, New World and Four Square. Annabelle Lee-Mather, Ben Thomas and Toby Manhire race their trolleys to the studio to ask: will Nicola Willis’s bold call cut through the blancmange like a Smeg blade through an Ooshie? Will the popular appeal outweigh the pushback from local businesses? Are the KiwiMart Greens, NZ First and their "copycat" pals National now natural partners? Where does it all leave Labour? And does Annabelle deserve more respect for her "menage-opoly" bit?
Plus: The report on the four-year ordeal for the Phillips children has been released and it's a horror show. What are the lessons for agencies including Oranga Tamariki and the Police, and is New Zealand suffering from an “accountability sink”?
And what to make of the moves to wind down the Waitangi Tribunal?
