March 25, 2025 • 7 mins
The Prime Minister accidentally ponders Winston's health and diet, an Indian FTA, the Investment Summit, changes to RMA, a lift in GDP, Winston wanting us out of the Paris Climate Agreement and whether the latter's war of words with Chris Hipkins will win the Nats the 2026 election by default.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Wednesdays on the Country, the Prime Minister kicks off the show.
I ring him at quarter to eight religiously this morning.
This is obviously a pre record. He was running late,
so I just started reading the Herald website and there
was a story on Winston Peter's health and his diet.
I went to phone up the Prime Minister at eight o'clock,
as instructed, I phoned the wrong number. I had Winston
(00:22):
on my mind. I got him. I had to apologize
Prime Minister for ringing the deputy Prime Minister. But I'm
very impressed. I'm very impressed by Winston's diet. How's yours.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It's a constant struggle when you need to try to
day a weight, given you've got so much on. But
Winston is really decent, really really good at it, and
he's very disciplined. So he's got a limited number of
desserts he has. He's in great shape, so he's managed
it very well well.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
He puts it down to a decision he made on
the fifth of June nineteen eighty. Some of his fellow
politicians their waistcoat wasstcoats were bursting at the set, so
he thought, I'm not going to do that, so I'm
going to eat lots of fish, protein, lots of veggies,
get rid of the carbohydrates. He doesn't mention in this
story written by I think Audrey Young and the Herald
(01:11):
the Whiskey though.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
All the smoke he's doing it. Whatever he's it's suddenly
working so done. He's managed it really well. And he's
got a big travel schedule. He's got Parliament's not the
easiest place to throw and get food at the right
time and to manage all of that. So they say
every year he had five kgs. But yeah, it's a
cot some battle. But now he's a great example. But
more important, he's been out in the world doing some
(01:34):
good stuff for us over the last year. So and
just last night here and I were hosting obviously Promister
of Papa and you getdi as well on town. Not
just good. So it's really good. He's in good shape.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Well, he's not the only one out and about in
the world doing good work for New Zealand. Look in
the past couple of weeks since we last chatted, you've
had your India FTA trip, You've had your Investments summit,
You've produced much needed changes to the RIMA even while
you were away, the GDP went up point seven percent
for the last quarter of twenty twenty four. Christopher Luxen,
(02:03):
why don't more New Zealanders like you?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Well, look, I mean it's not about that. It's really,
frankly about getting this country sort of and getting it
in the right direction. And you're right, it's pretty encouraging
actually to see those GDP numbers come back in that
last quarter of last year. That's really good. What's also
really good is to see what the outlook is for
the agriculture sector, dearies looking strong. You've got you know,
Nathan guy who was away with me in India actually
tooking red meat, you know, talking about an extra one
(02:27):
point two billion coming into that sector over the coming year.
And you've even got wool guys that I've spoken to
in Farmers I was down at the wannic at AMP
show down at the Canary AMP show tomorrow and you
know they're telling me they're actually doing better than they've
ever done for a while. So that's good. You know,
still still a well we wead to go, but it is
agriculture once again leading us out. Good to see tourism up.
Tourisms are twenty three percent, services, manufacturing growing for the
(02:50):
first time. You've got interest rates down I think for
the retail interest rates down for third month in a row.
So you know, there's really you know, we've turned the corner.
There's some really encouraging So now we've got to push
on and ultimately, as I said to the investors, you know,
shape the country we want to have, because we've got
a great country, great future, but we've got to get
some investment into the place so that we can actually
get things built for people and lift our living se.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Yeah, but we're a long way from out of the
woods yet. Employment confidence latest numbers out lowest since the
lockdown September twenty twenty. Unemployment has yet to peak.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Well, that's the last thing that gets faxed, right, I mean,
if you spend eighty four percent more of your money,
you borrow a lot, you spend a lot, you end
up driving inflation. That drives interest rates. Interest rates drives
into a recession. Recession drives into unemployment. So that's the
history of economics and that's what we've had to relearn
as a country. And that's what the last lot didn't know.
We've fixed. You know, we've got spending a constant job
(03:44):
to make sure we're discipline with government spending, getting value
for money. Inflation's down, interest rates are down. You starting
to see the economy grow for the first time in
a long time, and with that will come rising employment.
So you know that's that is certainly the lag effect,
because once you've dealt with high inflation, high costs, and
suppressed demand, you're left with very few options but to
lay off people. And that's not what we want to see.
So that's due to peak in the middle of the year,
(04:07):
and then we'll start to track down from there.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
I just want to finish with Winston Peters and a
Facebook post this week he said, why are we making
a ride for our own backs being part of the
Paris Accord, punishing our farmers and our taxpayers and our
economy when China or the US could sneeze and produce
more CO two overnight than we do in a year.
You're going to have a problem convincing Winston and see
More perhaps that you need to stay in the Paris Accord.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Well, no, they both signed up for it. They both
signed up for it as a cabinet decision just recently
where we actually said look, we know it's in New
Zealand's and the reason they did it is because it's
in our national interest to do so. Right now, we're
not interested in punishing our farmers. We want agriculture pumping
the economy growing as fast as it possibly can. And
I'm telling you, when I was down at the Wannaker
(04:51):
Amp Show the other day, farmers say, yep, I can
tell you there are multinational, big large multinational companies and
many other countries that compete with us. And you think
about the dairy producing countries around the world who would
love nothing more than to use this as an excuse
to kick New Zealand products off our shells around the world.
I'm telling it they will do that. So this is
brutally us acting in our own national interests to do so.
(05:12):
We've been very pragmatic. The increase that we know, the
fifty one percent over two thousand and five compared to
the previous fifty fifty percent is actually as a very
pragmatic increase. It puts us back into line with our
next zero domestic numbers rather having a different commitment internationally.
That's all really good stuff. So no, this is about
brutally in our national interest. We're not going to risk
(05:33):
punishing our farmers by having their products kicked off shells.
That ain't gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I just want to finish once more. It sounds like
I'm fixated on Winston, but he's had a war of
words this week with Chippy Chris Hipkins. Chris Hipkins basically
called them an angry old man. This is actually good
news for you because the only pathway I could see
to Labour winning the election at the end the next year,
as if they could convince New Zealand first to change sides.
No one wants to party Maori anywhere near the Treasury benches.
(06:01):
Are you going to win the selection by default?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
No, We're going to do everything we can to show
New Zealanders in twenty twenty six that they are better
off than they were three years ago and that this
coalorship deppment and manage things a difficult situation well and
they need to see results. And that's why it's old
sixteen months until it Jamie Frankly to be talking about
an election. We've got a long way to go. We've
got a lot to do and I want everybody focused
(06:24):
on my team on making sure every day they show
up here, they are actually even the country forward. And
that's what you're seeing. GCC deal, the UAE deal, India
is kicking off negotiations, Investor summits improving, GDP, improving many
of the sectors. It's coming and so we're moving. That's
the plan. That's the plan we had from day one,
(06:44):
and we have three years to show the New zeal
On people that they are better off under us and
they are under the last lot. And I'm telling you, yep,
a labor Greens to party MARTI would be chaos. You've
got a whole bunch of You've just heard the Greens
in the House, yes said they're wanting to not have growth,
not wanting people to make profit. You know, just completely
ideologically insane. So I just say to you, I'm not
worried about the election. I think it's way too early,
(07:06):
been talking about it, and I don't think about it
because I actually am here every quarter to make sure
I'm doing the business for New Zealand and make sure
we're improving the joint.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Prime Honester, thanks for your time, Well done on Undia.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Thanks, I have a great week. Yeah,
Wednesdays on the Country, the Prime Minister kicks off the show.
I ring him at quarter to eight religiously this morning.
This is obviously a pre record. He was running late,
so I just started reading the Herald website and there
was a story on Winston Peter's health and his diet.
I went to phone up the Prime Minister at eight o'clock,
as instructed, I phoned the wrong number. I had Winston
(00:22):
on my mind. I got him. I had to apologize
Prime Minister for ringing the deputy Prime Minister. But I'm
very impressed. I'm very impressed by Winston's diet. How's yours.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It's a constant struggle when you need to try to
day a weight, given you've got so much on. But
Winston is really decent, really really good at it, and
he's very disciplined. So he's got a limited number of
desserts he has. He's in great shape, so he's managed
it very well well.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
He puts it down to a decision he made on
the fifth of June nineteen eighty. Some of his fellow
politicians their waistcoat wasstcoats were bursting at the set, so
he thought, I'm not going to do that, so I'm
going to eat lots of fish, protein, lots of veggies,
get rid of the carbohydrates. He doesn't mention in this
story written by I think Audrey Young and the Herald
(01:11):
the Whiskey though.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
All the smoke he's doing it. Whatever he's it's suddenly
working so done. He's managed it really well. And he's
got a big travel schedule. He's got Parliament's not the
easiest place to throw and get food at the right
time and to manage all of that. So they say
every year he had five kgs. But yeah, it's a
cot some battle. But now he's a great example. But
more important, he's been out in the world doing some
(01:34):
good stuff for us over the last year. So and
just last night here and I were hosting obviously Promister
of Papa and you getdi as well on town. Not
just good. So it's really good. He's in good shape.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
Well, he's not the only one out and about in
the world doing good work for New Zealand. Look in
the past couple of weeks since we last chatted, you've
had your India FTA trip, You've had your Investments summit,
You've produced much needed changes to the RIMA even while
you were away, the GDP went up point seven percent
for the last quarter of twenty twenty four. Christopher Luxen,
(02:03):
why don't more New Zealanders like you?
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Well, look, I mean it's not about that. It's really,
frankly about getting this country sort of and getting it
in the right direction. And you're right, it's pretty encouraging
actually to see those GDP numbers come back in that
last quarter of last year. That's really good. What's also
really good is to see what the outlook is for
the agriculture sector, dearies looking strong. You've got you know,
Nathan guy who was away with me in India actually
tooking red meat, you know, talking about an extra one
(02:27):
point two billion coming into that sector over the coming year.
And you've even got wool guys that I've spoken to
in Farmers I was down at the wannic at AMP
show down at the Canary AMP show tomorrow and you
know they're telling me they're actually doing better than they've
ever done for a while. So that's good. You know,
still still a well we wead to go, but it is
agriculture once again leading us out. Good to see tourism up.
Tourisms are twenty three percent, services, manufacturing growing for the
(02:50):
first time. You've got interest rates down I think for
the retail interest rates down for third month in a row.
So you know, there's really you know, we've turned the corner.
There's some really encouraging So now we've got to push
on and ultimately, as I said to the investors, you know,
shape the country we want to have, because we've got
a great country, great future, but we've got to get
some investment into the place so that we can actually
get things built for people and lift our living se.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
Yeah, but we're a long way from out of the
woods yet. Employment confidence latest numbers out lowest since the
lockdown September twenty twenty. Unemployment has yet to peak.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Well, that's the last thing that gets faxed, right, I mean,
if you spend eighty four percent more of your money,
you borrow a lot, you spend a lot, you end
up driving inflation. That drives interest rates. Interest rates drives
into a recession. Recession drives into unemployment. So that's the
history of economics and that's what we've had to relearn
as a country. And that's what the last lot didn't know.
We've fixed. You know, we've got spending a constant job
(03:44):
to make sure we're discipline with government spending, getting value
for money. Inflation's down, interest rates are down. You starting
to see the economy grow for the first time in
a long time, and with that will come rising employment.
So you know that's that is certainly the lag effect,
because once you've dealt with high inflation, high costs, and
suppressed demand, you're left with very few options but to
lay off people. And that's not what we want to see.
So that's due to peak in the middle of the year,
(04:07):
and then we'll start to track down from there.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
I just want to finish with Winston Peters and a
Facebook post this week he said, why are we making
a ride for our own backs being part of the
Paris Accord, punishing our farmers and our taxpayers and our
economy when China or the US could sneeze and produce
more CO two overnight than we do in a year.
You're going to have a problem convincing Winston and see
More perhaps that you need to stay in the Paris Accord.
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Well, no, they both signed up for it. They both
signed up for it as a cabinet decision just recently
where we actually said look, we know it's in New
Zealand's and the reason they did it is because it's
in our national interest to do so. Right now, we're
not interested in punishing our farmers. We want agriculture pumping
the economy growing as fast as it possibly can. And
I'm telling you, when I was down at the Wannaker
(04:51):
Amp Show the other day, farmers say, yep, I can
tell you there are multinational, big large multinational companies and
many other countries that compete with us. And you think
about the dairy producing countries around the world who would
love nothing more than to use this as an excuse
to kick New Zealand products off our shells around the world.
I'm telling it they will do that. So this is
brutally us acting in our own national interests to do so.
(05:12):
We've been very pragmatic. The increase that we know, the
fifty one percent over two thousand and five compared to
the previous fifty fifty percent is actually as a very
pragmatic increase. It puts us back into line with our
next zero domestic numbers rather having a different commitment internationally.
That's all really good stuff. So no, this is about
brutally in our national interest. We're not going to risk
(05:33):
punishing our farmers by having their products kicked off shells.
That ain't gonna happen.
Speaker 1 (05:37):
I just want to finish once more. It sounds like
I'm fixated on Winston, but he's had a war of
words this week with Chippy Chris Hipkins. Chris Hipkins basically
called them an angry old man. This is actually good
news for you because the only pathway I could see
to Labour winning the election at the end the next year,
as if they could convince New Zealand first to change sides.
No one wants to party Maori anywhere near the Treasury benches.
(06:01):
Are you going to win the selection by default?
Speaker 2 (06:04):
No, We're going to do everything we can to show
New Zealanders in twenty twenty six that they are better
off than they were three years ago and that this
coalorship deppment and manage things a difficult situation well and
they need to see results. And that's why it's old
sixteen months until it Jamie Frankly to be talking about
an election. We've got a long way to go. We've
got a lot to do and I want everybody focused
(06:24):
on my team on making sure every day they show
up here, they are actually even the country forward. And
that's what you're seeing. GCC deal, the UAE deal, India
is kicking off negotiations, Investor summits improving, GDP, improving many
of the sectors. It's coming and so we're moving. That's
the plan. That's the plan we had from day one,
(06:44):
and we have three years to show the New zeal
On people that they are better off under us and
they are under the last lot. And I'm telling you, yep,
a labor Greens to party MARTI would be chaos. You've
got a whole bunch of You've just heard the Greens
in the House, yes said they're wanting to not have growth,
not wanting people to make profit. You know, just completely
ideologically insane. So I just say to you, I'm not
worried about the election. I think it's way too early,
(07:06):
been talking about it, and I don't think about it
because I actually am here every quarter to make sure
I'm doing the business for New Zealand and make sure
we're improving the joint.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Prime Honester, thanks for your time, Well done on Undia.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Thanks, I have a great week. Yeah,
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