Matt Ball: Property Investors Federation Advocacy Manager on Labour's rent-to-own scheme

On the Early Edition with Ryan Bridge Full Show Podcast Wednesday the 28th of October 2026, mortgage holders are bracing for another OCR hike, Westpac Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold tells Ryan what we can expect. The Labour party want state housing tenants to own their own home, Property Investors Federation Advocacy Manager Matt Ball shares his thoughts. Israel is going to the voting booth today, CBS Middle East Correspondent Linda Gradstein has the latest. Plus, UK/Europe Correspondent Gavin Grey has the details on two British nationals charged over an alleged plot to assist Iran's intelligence service as part of the investigation into the incident at RAF Fairford and the leaders of Norway and Finland held a rare 'frank' phone conversation with Vladimir Putin. Get the Early Edition Full Show Podcast every weekday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This morning I can't stay silent on this issue that's been raised on the campaign. This comment, made by New Zealand First candidate and former Defence Minister Ron Mark, is outrageous and wrong. Ron, Ron, Ron. There is nothing wrong with an expressing oneself via a man bun. Some call them twat tops. A douche donut. A head turd. They've been called a lot of things, but a sign a weakness? No. Have you never seen a Japanese Samurai? Or a Norse Viking? Both are elite warriors. Samurai fight with swords and use them to literally chop off their enemy's head. These guys are tough. Pete Hegseth tough. They're ruthless. They're clinical. But also, a bit stylish. What about Jason Mamoa? They don't call him a Hollywood heavyweight for nothing, do they? He's just bought a house in Queenstown worth $15m. Do you know what he paid with? Warrior cash. Do you know what he looked like doing it? Amazing. As anyone who's grown a bun, or a top-knot, knows all-too well... it takes balls of steel to stick it out through the awkward growth phase. Months of uncertainty. Of making a plan and sticking to it. You must wake up each morning to that clown mop, look it straight in the follicles and say... damn it, I am who I am and I'm not changing. That's what I call courageous. These warriors should be celebrated, not sidelined. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK's new Chancellor is set to deliver his first Budget. John Healey will set out Labour's tax and spending plans on October 28th, with tax increases possible. Business Correspondent Vicky Pryce told Ryan Bridge there have been some hints about what the Budget will include, such as some redistribution of funds from the wealthiest to those who need it the most. But she says it'll will be very tight fiscally, and will be watched very carefully by the capital markets. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There's potential for National and Labour to find common ground on education, despite disagreement over curriculum reforms. National's Erica Stanford told Ryan Bridge she tried to engage Labour while NCEA changes were being drafted, but to no avail. She says a recent meeting with Ginny Andersen revealed plenty they agree on —like the structured literacy mandate— but Labour still doesn't like the twice-yearly assessments or an hour of reading, writing, and maths each day. Andersen says learning support is one area where the parties could work together. She says there's an increasing number of children needing extra support, and it's one of the sector's biggest challenges going forward. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most voters have not realised how difficult New Zealand's fiscal predicament is, says a think tank boss. New Zealand Initiative executive director Oliver Hartwich said the ACT Party's manifesto shows it is the "most radical" about getting government spending to 2017 levels. Released yesterday, the manifesto pledged to cut "wasteful spending" by $22 billion over four years, getting debt $12.4b lower by 2031 than currently forecast. Hartwich told Ryan Bridge that the plan was different from what other parties were offering. Nine years ago, 28.5% of GDP was spent by the Government, but currently the figure sits at nearly 33%, he said. "I think that a lot of this extra government spending has not resulted in actually making us feel better, in actually delivering better services for Kiwis, and therefore it is right to ask whether we couldn't achieve better results with lower spending." Although that message is landing with some of the electorate, most people do not realise how problematic the fiscal situation is, Hartwich said. "We all know that our population is going to age over the coming years, and Treasury told us that by 2065 if we don't change our way, we'll face 200% debt to GDP, which would really mean that we would be bankrupt. These are the levels that we last saw, for example, for Greece in the middle of the Euro crisis." He said New Zealand ranks "relatively low" on government spending compared to European nations, but they are "all approaching bankruptcy", he said. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.