Q+A with Jack Tame
New Zealand's leading politics programme, hosted by Jack Tame. It covers current political issues and interviews key figures. The show is supported by NZ On Air.
Episodes
Full Show: 25 October 2026
Qiulae Wong's plan for future political decision-making
In under a year, Qiulae Wong has turned around the prospects of the Opportunity Party. Current polling - ranging from 4.8 to 8 percent support - points to the party making history on November 7 as the first genuinely new entrant into New Zealand's Parliament since the MMP electoral system was first used in 1996.
Qiulae Wong joins Jack Tame
Election 2026: The race for one of the bluest seats in NZ
Waitaki is known to be one of the National Party's strongholds, but with political veterans Damien O'Connor from Labour and Michael Laws from New Zealand First challenging incumbent Miles Anderson, the race is heating up.
Sam Olley reports.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Disinformation and parties' social media focus of NZ election study
Political parties rely on having direct access to voters through social media. And thanks to the power of social media algorithms, it's not just their dyed-in-the-wool supporters they can reach with their messages.
Mona Krewel, the director of Victoria University of Wellington's Internet, Social Media and Politics Research Lab and leader of the New Zealand Social Media Study, joins Jack Tame.
J
Last minute surge? Elections boss makes final enrolment plea
With enrolment closing at midnight tonight, New Zealand voters are being urged to update their details online or find one of the enrolment hubs popping up across the country.
At last count, youth enrolment is lagging behind the 2023 rates, with more than 100,000 eligible 18-24 year-olds set to be unable to vote. Chief Electoral Officer Karl Le Quesne joins Jack Tame.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A
Qiulae Wong's plan for future political decision-making
In under a year, Qiulae Wong has turned around the prospects of the Opportunity Party. Current polling - ranging from 4.8 to 8 percent support - points to the party making history on November 7 as the first genuinely new entrant into New Zealand's Parliament since the MMP electoral system was first used in 1996.
Qiulae Wong joins Jack Tame to launch Opportunity's final policy of the election peri
Friend or foe? America's foreign policy future
Zack Cooper is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and the Sir Howard Kippengerger Chair at Victoria University's Centre for Strategic Studies. He joins Jack Tame in the lead-up to the US' midterm elections, which polling suggests will see the Republic Party seriously dented.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support
Full Show: 18 October 2026
Chris Hipkins: The issues that will decide this election
Labour leader Chris Hipkins wants to make history as the first prime minister since Keith Holyoake in the sixties to be returned as prime minister following an electoral defeat.
He joins Jack Tame for his last Q+A interview before the general election on November 7 to explain how Labour will free up more than 2 million GP appointments ann
Election 2026: Red, blue or green for central city seat?
With incumbent Labour MP Duncan Webb retiring, Christchurch Central is up for grabs. New Labour candidate George Hampton, long-standing National candidate Dale Stephens, and Green MP Kahurangi Carter are all on a mission to convince voters that they're up for the job.
Ryan Boswell reports.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support o
Tākuta Ferris on Te Pāti Māori split and independent campaign
The last time an independent was elected as an MP was 1993. After a public split from Te Pāti Māori in 2025, MP for Te Tai Tonga Tākuta Ferris is looking to make history by defending his seat as an independent.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Election 2026: High-ranking MPs' do-or-die race
Labour MP Trevor Mallard held the seat for more than 20 years - but since 2017, Hutt South has flipped between National's Chris Bishop and Labour's Ginny Andersen. It's a fierce contest with high stakes: if Bishop loses the seat, currently held with a slim 1,332-vote margin, the front-bench government minister will have to rely on getting in on the National list - and that's no sure bet.
Whena Ow
Chris Hipkins: The issues that will decide this election
Labour leader Chris Hipkins wants to make history as the first prime minister since Keith Holyoake in the sixties to be returned as prime minister following an electoral defeat.
He joins Jack Tame for his last Q+A interview before the general election on November 7 to explain how Labour will free up more than 2 million GP appointments annually through phone triage, his pitch for giving schools t
Full Show: 11 October 2026
Q+A Finance Debate: Nicola Willis vs Barbara Edmonds
The National Party's Nicola Willis and Labour Party's Barbara Edmonds join Jack Tame for the Q+A Finance Debate, tackling the big fiscal issues facing New Zealand: superannuation, economic growth, and how to pay for natural disasters.
Shane Jones: Mining, oil and gas ban, and NZ First immigration policy
NZ First deputy leader - and the minist
Jacinda Ardern's former press secretary opens up in new memoir
From behind the scenes, Andrew Campbell ran government communications during one of the most turbulent periods of New Zealand history. His new book, In The Room, charts his time as chief press secretary to then-prime minister Jacinda Ardern: through the eruption at Whakaari/White Island, the March 15 attacks, and the government's Covid-19 response.
Now based in the UK, Campbell sat down with Jack
Q+A Finance Debate: Nicola Willis vs Barbara Edmonds
The National Party's Nicola Willis and Labour Party's Barbara Edmonds join Jack Tame for the Q+A Finance Debate, tackling the big fiscal issues facing New Zealand: superannuation, economic growth, and how to pay for natural disasters.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Shane Jones: Mining, oil and gas ban, and NZ First immigration policy
NZ First deputy leader - and the minister for resources, fisheries, and regional development - Shane Jones joins Jack Tame to outline his party's record in government and policies for the election.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Full Show: 4 October 2026
Supermarket boss hits back at 'populist' grocery break-up policies
Every political party - except ACT - is campaigning on a policy to intervene in the supermarket sector to bring down the cost of living. It's a move that's prompted 51 of New Zealand's business leaders to sign an open letter calling on politicians to respect property rights.
Chris Quin is one of them. The Foodstuffs North Island
“Illegal” foundations of NZ constitution: Legal scholar
Legal scholar and Auckland University professor Claire Charters joins Q+A to discuss her new book Sovereignty: The Case for Constitutional Transformation, which argues that the legitimacy of the New Zealand state rests on illegal foundations.
It comes after heated debates over the role of iwi co-governance and Māori decision making.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the q
Election 2026: The first ever debate on far-flung island
The Chatham Islands is home to just 620 people - but in a tight electorate race, every vote counts.
Reporter Whena Owen followed candidates for the Wellington Bays electorate when they flew over to the island for an historic debate.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Local govt leaders call for relationship reset with parliament
What local councils can and can't do has chopped and changed in recent years. As this parliamentary term comes to a close, local government leaders have grappled with new fast-track legislation, a rates cap of two to four percent on the horizon, and after rushing to put together amalgamation proposals, the work has abruptly stopped, with the future uncertain.
Local Government New Zealand presiden
Supermarket boss hits back at 'populist' grocery break-up policies
Every political party - except ACT - is campaigning on a policy to intervene in the supermarket sector to bring down the cost of living. It's a move that's prompted 51 of New Zealand's business leaders to sign an open letter calling on politicians to respect property rights.
Chris Quin is one of them. The Foodstuffs North Island CEO has also commissioned research which casts doubt on whether the
Full Show: 27 September 2026
Marama Davidson on Greens' super-rich tax, KiwiMart, and working with National
After scandal and tragedy saw five Green MPs leave parliament before the end of the term, the Green Party 'reset' in late 2025. Now, the Greens are polling higher than their 2023 general election result and are campaigning to keep their historic three electorate seats.
Their KiwiMart policy - a government owned super
Election 2026: How Auckland holds the keys to the next parliament
Auckland alone provides $172 billion of GDP and accounts for 37 percent of New Zealand's economy. It's little wonder then that political parties of all stripes will be wanting to convince the city's 1.1 million voters that they have the best vision for the future of the country.
1News business correspondent Jason Walls reports.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the question
Commerce Commission boss reveals $360 million bid-rigging problem
A Commerce Commission investigation into government procurement has indicated nearly one million dollars a day in public spending is lost through bid-rigging practices. Chair John Small says these contracts can go unnoticed, and it takes whistle-blowers inside the offending firms calling out anti-competitive behaviour in order for any action to be taken.
John Small joins Jack Tame to explain the
Election 2026: The 'lucky' electorate with a four-way race
After a dramatic year of internal party turmoil, voters in New Zealand's northern-most Māori seat will have the choice of four high-profile candidates come November: incumbent and former Te Pāti Māori candidate Mariameno Kapa-Kingi of the newly-formed Te Tai Tokerau Party, Te Pāti Māori's new candidate Aperahama Edwards, Labour's Willow-Jean Prime, and the Green Party's Huhana Lyndon.
Reporter Wh
Marama Davidson on Greens' super-rich tax, KiwiMart, and working with National
After scandal and tragedy saw five Green MPs leave parliament before the end of the term, the Green Party 'reset' in late 2025. Now, the Greens are polling higher than their 2023 general election result and are campaigning to keep their historic three electorate seats.
Their KiwiMart policy - a government owned supermarket chain introduced to break up the Foodstuffs and Woolworths duopoly - prom
Full Show: 20 September 2026
Why the Taxpayers' Union wants government spending slashed
The New Zealand Taxpayers' Union is the largest taxpayer advocacy group, per capita, in the English-speaking world. They're known for high-profile stunts over public spending, like Porky the Waste-Hating Pig in 2017, Nicola's Fudge in 2025, and for the 2026 general election, the group have launched a Bribe-O-Meter tracking the projected f
Are National and Labour collapsing? Polling boss has the data
Mike Turner's Freshwater Strategy public polling firm has run the numbers in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. He joins Jack Tame to explain why he thinks the two big parties in this year's general election, National and Labour, aren't quite spent yet - and whether New Zealand has anything to learn from the rise of Reform in the UK and One Nation in Australia.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team an
Election 2026: The seat balancing on a 26-vote tightrope
Labour's Rachel Boyack held the electorate seat of Nelson by just 26 votes in 2023 - and that's after a recount.
Reporter Whena Owen meets the candidates vying to take New Zealand's oldest-continuous seat.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Why the Taxpayers' Union wants government spending slashed
The New Zealand Taxpayers' Union is the largest taxpayer advocacy group, per capita, in the English-speaking world. They're known for high-profile stunts over public spending, like Porky the Waste-Hating Pig in 2017, Nicola's Fudge in 2025, and for the 2026 general election, the group have launched a Bribe-O-Meter tracking the projected fiscal footprint of political parties' campaign promises.
Ex
Full Show: 13 September 2026
All aboard: Live from Day 1 of the CRL
A journey a decade in the making, 1News business correspondent Jason Walls joins Q+A live from on board one of the brand-new train services opening up to Aucklanders on the first day of the City Rail Link.
Unions prepare campaign against government policies
Council of Trade Unions president Sandra Grey says there are no regrets about the union's all-out c
Election 2026: "Stark choice" for largest general electorate
In the historic homeland of the Labour Party, the West Coast-Tasman electorate could be anyone's game this election year. Reporter Whena Owen reports.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Bank CEO on profits, 'woke banking', and the superannuation problem
After 17 years at ANZ, CEO Antonia Watson is handing over the reins of power to the bank's Chief Risk Officer - but don't read too much into that appointment, she says. Consumer confidence is up and Watson says New Zealand's economic recovery is finally arriving.
She joins Jack Tame to reflect on a unique period of disruption in the economy - Covid, the Iran war, natural disasters - and share her
Unions prepare campaign against government policies
Council of Trade Unions president Sandra Grey says there are no regrets about the union's all-out campaign against Christopher Luxon at the 2023 general election, and this year the union will be making it clear to voters where parties stand on the CTU's biggest policy asks: pay equity, Fair Pay Agreements, and scrapping 90 day trials.
She joins Jack Tame to launch the CTU's election campaign.
Jo
All aboard: Live from Day 1 of the CRL
A journey a decade in the making, 1News business correspondent Jason Walls joins Q+A live from on board one of the brand-new train services opening up to Aucklanders on the first day of the City Rail Link.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Election 2026: Morrinsville locals put big issues to parties
Should young farmers be able to dip into their Kiwisaver to buy their first farm? How would the government support livestock farmers if a foot-and-mouth outbreak erupted? Is New Zealand too reliant on Elon Musk's Starlink for rural connectivity?
Locals at Q+A's Rural Issues Debate in Morrinsville ask these questions and more to the panel of candidates: NZ First's Mark Patterson, Greens' Steve Ab
Election 2026: Q+A Rural Issues Debate
In this special Election 2026 debate, hosted at the Morrinsville Rugby and Sports Club, Jack Tame is joined by NZ First's Mark Patterson, Greens' Steve Abel, National's Todd McClay, Labour's Jo Luxton, ACT's Andrew Hoggard, and Opportunity's Daniel Eb, in front of a live audience of Morrinsville locals, to tackle the biggest issues facing rural and regional New Zealanders today.
Candidates share
Full Show: 30 August 2026
Willie Jackson: Labour's record on Māori issues
Labour lost all but one of the seven Māori seats at the 2023 general election. This year, to rival a controversial tactic from Te Pāti Māori asking voters to engineer an overhang in Parliament, Labour says they want to win them all back.
Willie Jackson, a front bench Labour MP and leader of the party's Māori campaign, joins Jack Tame to make his bi
War in Iran: NZ must reset foreign policy - expert
By some estimates, the war with Iran has now cost the United States more than 180 billion dollars. After peace talks broke down, US President Donald Trump this week announced a complete change in strategy: economic, rather than military, action.
Professor Robert Patman from the University of Otago joins Jack Tame six months on from the start of the conflict.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and f
Election 2026: The new electorate that's 'got issues'
Wellington Bays is the new name for what was the second-most left-voting electorate in the country in 2023. In the redrawn lines for Green MP Julie Anne Genter's electorate, residents are grappling with big water bills and a visible spike in homelessness.
Reporter Whena Owen meets the candidates vying to take those issues on in parliament in this year's election.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team
Should NZ break up the gentailers? Energy boss responds
In an election year marked by energy policy, both New Zealand First and the Green Party are campaigning on breaking up the country's four gentailers, citing soaring household energy bills.
Malcolm Johns, the CEO of gentailer Genesis Energy, joins Q+A, and previews the potential effects on bills if the government goes ahead with its promised LNG terminal.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find
Willie Jackson: Labour's record on Māori issues
Labour lost all but one of the seven Māori seats at the 2023 general election. This year, to rival a controversial tactic from Te Pāti Māori asking voters to engineer an overhang in Parliament, Labour says they want to win them all back.
Willie Jackson, a front bench Labour MP and leader of the party's Māori campaign, joins Jack Tame to make his bid for the Māori vote.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A
Full Show: 16 August 2026
Former health boss: Why hospitals are overwhelmed
New Zealand knows that flu season can overwhelm frontline health services and still fails to plan for it. Rob Campbell says the country needs a new, 'all-of-health' approach, including housing, education, and nutrition - something successive governments have failed to provide.
The former Health New Zealand chair and current chair of health allian
How to fix the economy? Be a 'good ancestor'
Economist and former Productivity Commissioner Ganesh Ahirao wants to see the way Governments plan borrowing and spending completely turned around: replacing the duty to return to surplus with a duty to provide every citizen with the basics they need to thrive.
He describes this central principle as 'being a good ancestor', and says it's the only way New Zealand will face down its biggest challe
What Kiwi soldiers in Ukraine want NZ to know
Since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, several New Zealand-trained soldiers have travelled to the other side of the world to take up the fight. The ones who have returned home face an uncertain future.
Whena Owen meets the volunteers who went against Government advice to fight alongside Ukrainian soldiers.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made wi
Former health boss: Why hospitals are overwhelmed
New Zealand knows that flu season can overwhelm frontline health services and still fails to plan for it. Rob Campbell says the country needs a new, 'all-of-health' approach, including housing, education, and nutrition - something successive governments have failed to provide.
The former Health New Zealand chair and current chair of health alliance Ngā Kaitiaki Hauora joins Jack Tame.
Join Jack
The NZSAS combat soldier standing for parliament
Josh Jacobsen, a former NZSAS combat soldier, and a veteran of Afghanistan, holds an NZ Gallantry Medal - and a Green Party membership.
He's 25 on the Party's list and standing in the North Shore electorate. He joins Jack Tame to explain how his career in the defence force led him to a party that advocates non-violence.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that m
Full Show: 16 August 2026
Paul Goldsmith: Expanding citizen's arrests, move-on orders, and voting law reform
After an eventful week led to senior minister Paul Goldsmith being landed with 11 ministerial portfolios - possibly the most a single minister has ever had - he joins Jack Tame to say why, with victims of crime declining, the Government has expanded citizen's arrest powers and is seeking to pass move-on order laws
Qiulae Wong: Why newcomer party wants stricter donation laws
In less than a year, Opportunity have gone from sub-one percent support to eight percent in the latest 1News Verrian poll. On those numbers, leader Qiulae Wong would be entering Parliament joined by eight of her peers from the Opportunity party list come November.
She joins Jack Tame to launch Opportunity's Clean Up Politics policy, which would strengthen lobbying transparency and political party
Paul Goldsmith: Expanding citizen's arrests, move-on orders, and voting law reform
After an eventful week led to senior minister Paul Goldsmith being landed with 11 ministerial portfolios - possibly the most a single minister has ever had - he joins Jack Tame to say why, with victims of crime declining, the Government has expanded citizen's arrest powers and is seeking to pass move-on order laws by the end of the term.
And with National needing a new candidate for safe seat Kai
Full Show: 9 August 2026
Simeon Brown: Energy prices, hospital pressures, and National's polling
With power prices in the spotlight, Energy Minister Simeon Brown has become one of the key figures in Christopher Luxon's cabinet.
He joins Jack Tame to explain why the Government isn't moving to break up the gentailers, the cost of maintaining frontline health services, and whether National's caucus backs Christopher Luxon.
New laws: Will voters be turned away?
In late 2025, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith celebrated the passing of a new law which he said would speed up the voting count after a general election: unlike previous elections, in 2026, no one will be allowed to enroll once early voting starts, 13 days before election day, November 7.
It's driving Electoral Commission Chief Executive Karl Le Quesne to make sure as many New Zealanders as possib
The last hold-outs against housing development
With just one new housing development, the town of Prebbleton, on the outskirts of Christchurch, could increase its total number of households by over 25 percent.
Birchs Village would bring 530 new houses to Prebbleton. After facing difficulties getting resource consent, the development has been listed with the Government's fast-track legislation.
Q+A reporter Whena Owen meets the development's wo
Simeon Brown: Energy prices, hospital pressures, and National's polling
With power prices in the spotlight, Energy Minister Simeon Brown has become one of the key figures in Christopher Luxon's cabinet.
He joins Jack Tame to explain why the Government isn't moving to break up the gentailers, the cost of maintaining frontline health services, and whether National's caucus backs Christopher Luxon.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions th
Full Show: 2 August 2026
Outspoken former Children's Commissioner cut short in role
Dr Claire Achmad was given around five weeks' notice that she would be exiting her role of Children's Commissioner. First appointed to a five-year term to advocate for young people in New Zealand, that became a one-year term in 2025, and when she signed off on Friday July 31st, she left office two years earlier than she’d expected.
She s
"Discriminatory" law focus of Green MP's bill
Migrant families can be split apart when family members are denied visas on the basis that their disability would be a burden to New Zealand's health system, a Green MP says.
Green MP Lawrence Xu-Nan's members bill would remove the ability to discriminate and carve out a way for affected families to challenge these decisions: by making a complaint to the Human Rights Commission.
Join Jack Tame a
Most people want fewer cars, Dutch academic says
Twenty years from now, people will look back on high speed limits we have in cities now and find them just as unbelievable as smoking indoors - a relic of the past. That's the dream of a visiting Dutch academic.
Professor Marco te Brömmelstroet holds the Chair on Urban Mobility Futures at the University of Amsterdam and spoke at the Public Transport Association conference at Te Papa this week. Whi
Outspoken former Children's Commissioner cut short in role
Dr Claire Achmad was given around five weeks' notice that she would be exiting her role of Children's Commissioner. First appointed to a five-year term to advocate for young people in New Zealand, that became a one-year term in 2025, and when she signed off on Friday July 31st, she left office two years earlier than she’d expected.
She says that she has been a "fair and balanced critic" of Governm
Spy allegations: NZ's relationship with Russia in focus
Russia's principal security service says a Russian citizen has been detained in the country's far East. The man is accused of spying for New Zealand's SIS.
Jack Tame sits down with Russia's Ambassador Stanislav Krans at the Russian Embassy in Wellington to ask more about the case. And nearly four and a half years into the military invasion of Ukraine, and following 35 rounds of New Zealand sanctio
Full Show: 26 July 2026
Chlöe Swarbrick: Greens want one-year ban on AI data centres
The Greens have announced an election campaign policy to put a one-year moratorium on the consenting and building of AI data centres in New Zealand, citing a need to put in place strong regulations before the emerging tech industry can have irreversible impacts on the country's natural resources.
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick joi
Does NZ need move-on orders? "No" says former judge
Anthony FitzGerald served as a judge for 27 years and has seen first-hand the fortunes of Auckland's homeless caught in the justice system. This week he appeared before a parliamentary select committee to oppose the Government's move-on orders legislation.
He joins Tova O'Brien to explain why he thinks communities and businesses are being misled about move-on orders as a solution to antisocial be
Up-and-comers talk Stuart Nash, smartphone ban, and their leaders
Labour MP Arena Williams and National MP James Meager join Tova O'Brien to discuss the big stories of the week, including Stuart Nash's election-killing comments on maternity leave, what local investment in data centres should look like, and their future ambitions for leadership.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
Does the deepfake bill go far enough?
First-term ACT MP Laura McClure captured headlines by holding up an image in parliament that appeared to show her naked: the image was a deepfake. She is the backer of a bill that would explicitly criminalise the creation and distribution of pornographic deepfakes, after hearing the stories of Kiwi women who were victimised by AI-generated images.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answ
Chlöe Swarbrick: Greens want one-year ban on AI data centres
The Greens have announced an election campaign policy to put a one-year moratorium on the consenting and building of AI data centres in New Zealand, citing a need to put in place strong regulations before the emerging tech industry can have irreversible impacts on the country's natural resources.
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick joins Tova O'Brien, and also discusses the party's energy and t
Chris Penk: Defence workforce shortages
Former naval officer Chris Penk took over the helm of the defence portfolio from ministerial veteran Judith Collins in April of this year. Since then, the geostrategic environment has only grown in intensity and complexity with the continuation of conflict in Iran.
Freshly returned from the NATO summit in Turkiye, and in the wake of a Chinese ballistic missile test in the Pacific, he joins Q+A to
Why Paul Henry thinks ACT can save New Zealand
Paul Henry has worked in broadcasting for more than forty years, becoming one of the most recognisable names in New Zealand television from his time as a presenter, and more recently serving as a board member for TVNZ.
On Tuesday he announced his candidacy for the ACT Party list. He says while the decision came together quickly, he wants to be in parliament to create a better future for his ten g
Alienation in the "ahistoric age": Sarah Irving-Stonebraker
Historian Sarah Irving-Stonebraker joins Q+A to discuss her ideas around increasing societal alienation, and in her view why diminishing knowledge of shared history contributes to it.
Irving-Stonebraker is in New Zealand to deliver the Maxim Institute's Sir John Graham lecture, which this year explores what it means to be a steward of history.
Clark, Ardern senior staffer up-close view of political contest
Mike Munro was one of the most senior behind the scenes figures in both Helen Clark, and Dame Jacinda Ardern’s governments.
In an interview with Q+A with Jack Tame, he explains why politics is such a seductive profession for competitive people to get into, how the political arena has changed over decades, and what it was like to work in coalition with Winston Peters.
Munro also offers insights
Full Show: 28 June 2026
'Perverse incentive': MSD staff metrics include emergency housing grants
Ministry of Social Development (MSD) managers are being told they can face performance management if, among other measures, their staff approve too many emergency housing requests, documents obtained by Q+A reveal.
Homelessness advocates say the scale of rough sleeping is unprecedented in New Zealand, and that government
“Social conservatism”: Why Alfred Ngaro joined NZ First
Former National MP and minister Alfred Ngaro joins Q+A to talk about his political journey towards becoming a candidate for NZ First, his socially conservative values, and Christian Zionist beliefs.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
“Prince of the provinces”: On the road with Shane Jones
Senior NZ First MPs are on a long tour of town halls around the country, with more than 30 dates planned before the election campaign begins.
Reporter Whena Owen went to Kaikōura to see Shane Jones in action, as controversies swirl over recreational fishing, the party’s coalition positioning, and limousine usage.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter
Why Labour thinks it can make rapid return to government
Labour strategists are hoping for a return to government just three years after one of their worst-ever election results. Campaign chair Kieran McAnulty sets out why he believes there could be a one-term National government.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
'Perverse incentive': MSD staff metrics include emergency housing grants
Ministry of Social Development (MSD) managers are being told they can face performance management if, among other measures, their staff approve too many emergency housing requests, documents obtained by Q+A reveal.
Homelessness advocates say the scale of rough sleeping is unprecedented in New Zealand, and that government policies are part of the reason why. Jack Tame put the documents, obtained
Full Show: 21 June 2026
Helen Clark: New Zealand's unsolved problems and fragile peace in Iran
Productivity, sensible taxation and the ballooning cost of superannuation are among the uniquely thorny, long-lasting issues that New Zealand hasn't been able to conquer. It's a politically-motivated cycle of short-term flip-flopping on these important issues that The Helen Clark Foundation's new book, Facing Up To Our Future,
Real estate agents, doctors shouldn't be punished for free speech: ACT policy
The ACT Party has introduced a new campaign policy which it says will stop professional regulatory bodies - like the Medical Council, or Real Estate Agents Authority - from policing workers' privately-held beliefs. ACT says these regulators are increasingly overstepping their statutory roles and enforcing ideological views across their industry.
ACT MP Simon Court joins Q+A.
Join Jack Tame and t
Live from National's 90th annual party conference
The Prime Minister and National Party faithful are gathering in Wellington for the party's 90th annual conference. With less than five months until the election, the biggest party in parliament is preparing to switch into campaign mode, with Christopher Luxon set to announce new policies.
1News senior political reporter Benedict Collins joins Q+A live from Wellington.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A
Helen Clark: New Zealand's unsolved problems and fragile peace in Iran
Productivity, sensible taxation and the ballooning cost of superannuation are among the uniquely thorny, long-lasting issues that New Zealand hasn't been able to conquer. It's a politically-motivated cycle of short-term flip-flopping on these important issues that The Helen Clark Foundation's new book, Facing Up To Our Future, diagnoses as the problem - released, strategically, in a general electi
Will newcomer Andy Burnham oust PM Sir Keir Starmer?
Yet another challenge has been made to the embattled UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer's leadership. Former Manchester mayor and newly-elected Labour MP Andy Burnham is calling on the PM to consider his options for a handover of power just two years into the government's five-year term, the legacy party searching for renewed energy in the face of surging support for Nigel Farage's Reform party.
Full Show: 14 June 2026
Does Labour's public transport fare cap policy add up?
The Labour Party - the biggest party in Opposition, maintaining a tight lead in this year's polls - has decided to open its election year campaign with a public transport fare cap policy: $20 a week in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, and $10 everywhere else.
Labour's transport spokesperson, MP for Palmerston North Tangi Utikere, says t
Why prison numbers will surge: Writer Asher Emanuel
New Ministry of Justice projections forecast a 35 percent growth in New Zealand's prison population over the next ten years, with those kept in remand - people who have been charged but not convicted, or convicted but not sentenced - set to swell by nearly fifty percent.
Asher Emanuel, a public lawyer and author of bestselling book The Valley: Crime and Punishment in a New Zealand City, says the
"Between one week and five years" to repair Strait of Hormuz
The United States appears poised to sign a deal to end the war in Iran following three and a half months of global disruption from the closed Strait of Hormuz.
Energy analyst David Keat joins Q+A to discuss how the conflict has permanently changed energy markets.
Join Jack Tame and the Q+A team and find the answers to the questions that matter. Made with the support of NZ on Air.
