Fresh allegations have emerged linking former UK-US Ambassador Lord Mandelson to Jeffrey Epstein.

Newly released files suggest Mandelson shared internal Government information with the convicted sex offender.

UK correspondent Enda Brady says Met Police are investigating these claims and Prime Minister Starmer is calling for Lord Mandelson to leave the House of Lords.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank of Australia started the year off with an increase set to impact mortgage holders.

The RBA increased the official cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.85 percent, citing increased concerns about inflation.

HSBC chief economist Paul Bloxham explained the increase further.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Further lifts at the South Island wool auction in Christchurch indicate things are going well for New Zealand's wool sector.

Wool has seen some notable increases this year, indicating wool is on the up as opposed to just seeing a short-term spike.

The Country's Jamie Mackay explained further.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Following the launch of Australia's ban on social media for under-16s, there's been debate over whether New Zealand should follow this example.

Meta's Global Head of Safety, Antigone Davis, has labelled the full ban a 'fool's errand' and claims parental controls are the way to go.

Former Facebook CEO for Australia and New Zealand Stephen Scheeler says parental controls are a safety feature that should be considered - but it won't solve the wider problem.

"I don't think it's a total solution, but I think it is another tool in the toolkit."

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tonight on The Huddle, lawyer and political commentator Brigitte Morton and CTU economist Craig Rennie joined in on a discussion about the following issues of the day - and more!

Labour MP Peeni Henare has confirmed he won't be seeking re-election - and that he wants to take a step back from politics and focus on his family, wellbeing and future, and will depart from Parliament in the coming weeks. What's really going on here?

Transport Minister Chris Bishop confirmed there will be no more full drivers' license test from next year. After passing the restricted license test, drivers under the age of 25 will have to wait out a mandatory 12-month period as a restricted driver before they can apply for a full licence. Do we think this is a good idea?

Does New Zealand need to become Australia's 7th state? Do we need the extra protection?

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast for Tuesday, 3 February, 2026, we talk to champion driver Greg Murphy about changes to our driver licensing laws.

Are parents to blame for children starting school without even being toilet trained?

David Farrar tells us why it's time for New Zealand to become a seventh state of Australia.

And on the Huddle, Brigitte Morten and Craig Renney discuss Labour's show of unity with the Greens at Waitangi.

Get the Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive Full Show Podcast every weekday evening on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You know what that Labour and Green Party unity news conference at Waitangi today looked like to me? It looked like desperation.

Parties don’t generally get other parties to stand next to them and hold their hands in an election year just to convince people to vote for them.

Now, having said that, it’s obviously not the first time we’ve seen something similar from Labour and the Greens. You’ll remember that before the 2017 election, Grant Robertson and James Shaw did a similar-ish thing.

They released their Budget Responsibility Rules to try to convince us they could be trusted with the Government’s finances. That was an act of desperation, because they’d been battered by Steven Joyce’s 'fiscal hole' allegations for so long they had to do something.

And just like in 2017, this is an act of desperation, because Chippy knows his biggest problem this time around -trying to get into Government - is convincing voters that his coalition mates are not just a bunch of nut jobs, but can actually be trusted to run the country together.

Which is why he left the Māori Party out of that unity press conference - because that party is chaos on stilts.

The trouble for Chippy, though, is that the Greens aren’t exactly the picture of internal discipline, are they? What with Golriz the thief, Bussy the awkward parent, Darleen the questionable employer, the spate of staff resignations -and that’s not even mentioning the electorally toxic plans to tax us all into poverty.

Chippy is off the mark if he thinks this is going to solve things for him, because the truth is his only realistic path to Government this year is with Winston Peters. Winston has said he’s not going to go with Chippy, but that is still Chippy’s only way back into Government.

And that’s where Chippy should be putting his energy - schmoozing Winston until Winston changes his mind, because Winston changing his mind is not unheard of.

But doing a news conference with the Greens seems not only like a waste of time, but actually an unfortunate reminder to us all that a Chippy-led Government comes with Green-coloured baggage.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Senior Labour MP Peeni Henare's announced he's leaving politics, after what he calls a 'tough' 2025.

Henare says he's not seeking re-election for Labour this year, and will leave Parliament in the coming weeks.

It comes after he lost the Tamaki Makaurau seat to Te Pati Māori for a second time in last year's by-election, a seat he'd held for six-years from 2014 to 2020.

Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained further.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.