Cynthia Hancox: National Council of Home Educators Government Liaison on the rising numbers of students being homeschooled

After a hugely successful year over the ditch, comedian Ryan Shelton is bringing his podcast 'Imperfect' to kiwi audiences in the form of a live show.  

Every episode Shelton, Hugh van Cuylenburg, and Josh van Culenburg are joined by a guest for a chat about how “perfectly imperfect” people are, raking in over a million downloads a month.  

Shelton told Tim Dower that their main motivation for the podcast is creating a safe space for people to tell their stories. 

The live show, he said, is raw vulnerability.  

Recording the podcast has a sense of safety, as they can edit the content if it goes awry. When it comes to a live show, there’s no editing, and no taking anything back. 

‘The Imperfects’, Shelton explains, is a comedy show with a bit of vulnerability wedged in.  

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Don’t You (Forget About Me), Alive And Kicking, Belfast Child, all well-known songs from one of the UK’s most successful rock bands: Simple Minds. 

Fans will have the opportunity to hear these iconic songs live as the band take to the stage for their Summer Concert tour and New Zealand is the first stop.  

The band formed in 1977, lead singer Jim Kerr telling Tim Dower that they dreamed it up themselves, no teachers or mentors in sight. 

“It’ll end someday, but until that day comes along, we take such pride in giving a great account every time we go on stage.” 

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The Maritime Union wants the Government to take the mega-ferry project off the chopping block in the wake of legal action against Interislander's operators. 

Maritime NZ, the entity which oversees safety on our seas, has filed a charge on health and safety grounds against KiwiRail. 

The charge relates to the Kaitaki incident, where roughly a year ago the ship lost power in Cook Strait with hundreds of passengers on board. 

Craig Harrison, Secretary for the Maritime Union, told Tim Dower that it’s unlikely that we’ll get the luxury of time when it comes to replacing the ships.  

He said that initially the plan was to retire the current vessels by mid-2025 or the end of 2026, replaced with new ships specifically designed to sail in heavier weather with more frequency.  

Those plans have now been kicked for touch, Harrison said, until the Government finds another solution. 

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Mediation in the unlawful termination case between the ABC and Antoinette Lattouf has hit a stalemate. 

Just before Christmas Lattouf was given a one-week contract to present the morning program on the ABC radio station in Sydney.  

She was fired after three days, according to ABC she defied instructions and made a controversial post about Gaza on social media. 

Lattouf maintains that she is a victim of racism and was fired because of her Lebanese heritage.  

Australian Correspondent Murray Olds told Tim Dower that nine newspapers have added fuel to the fire with the claim that an outfit called Lawyers for Israel effectively bullied ABC into removing her. 

ABC denies this claim, and an agreement was unable to be reached. 

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It’s a series of major failures that should not have happened.  

The US Department of Justice has released its report into the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas in 2022. 

For over an hour, 33 students and three of their teachers, many of whom were shot, were trapped in a room with an active shooter while law enforcement remained outside.  

In the end 21 people lost their lives. 

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Tim Dower that the incident was rife with misinformation and lack of preparation. 

There are 273 recommendations in the lengthy report. 

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Food prices look to be cooling, potentially bringing some relief to consumers. 

Stats NZ's latest figures show annual food price inflation's fallen to 4.8%, its lowest level in two years. 

Grocery inflation fell notably, increasing by only 5.4% compared to the 11% increase from 2021 to 2022. 

Meat only rose 2.3% last year. 

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen told Tim Dower that a number of other inputs have begun to move into a better position as well, such as international airfares dropping by 15% compared to this time last year. 

One area of concern, he said, was rental properties. 

Rent on new rental properties is up by 7% across the country, accelerating quickly with the increasing population growth. 

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Black Caps coach Gary Stead's backing Devon Conway's class to re-emerge after a lean run with the bat in T-20 cricket internationals. 

The opener's been dismissed for a duck, 20 and seven in the three matches against Pakistan. 

It follows a three match T-20 series in England last year where he failed to score double figures. 

Stead's been asked what Conway needs to do to turn things around. 

The penultimate match of the series against Pakistan is tonight in Christchurch. 

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Civil Defence staff are standing by on the West Coast as heavy rain rolls in.  

The wet weather is expected to batter Westland and the Grey Districts, with the worst arriving around midday between Otira and inland from Haast. 

West Coast Civil Defence Te Aroha Cook told Tim Dower that staff have been deployed to emergency operation centres in Westland, Greymouth, Franz Joseph, and Haast, to manage any escalations in the situation. 

She says councils will consider a declaration if more resources are required. 

Cook says locals know the drill, and they're working to ensure tourists are aware of the risk areas. 

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The Māori Development Minister is defending the Prime Minister's decision to skip a gathering organised by the Māori King. 

The National Unity Hui is expected to bring thousands of people to Ngāruawāhia's Tūrangawaewae Marae tomorrow. 

Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka told Tim Dower that it's his responsibility to go, but it's not a platform for politicians. 

He says it's primarily for those interested in the direction of the country to come together. 

ACT Party leader Davis Seymour has also said he won't be attending. 

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It was another big year for kiwi cyclist Aaron Gate. 

He took the gold at the Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, claiming the second rainbow jersey of his career.  

Glasgow was the first time that all cycling events together in one location for what was deemed a ‘Super Worlds.’ 

Gate took gold in the points race, telling Dower that it was a race he had wanted to win for a very long time.  

“I wanted to be able to race with dominance.”  

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