The House Podcast
1) Politics vs Governance: The Budget finale
This week the Governmentâs 2025 budget was finally approved by Parliament. The last major hurdle involved a long walk through a political minefield of questions, and even some answers. We look at the...Show More
2) The four month journey to budget approval
It's been over 100 days since Bugdet Day but lo and behold, the government is still in the process of securing Parliament's approval for the planned spending. The delay comes down to Parliamentâs len...Show More
3) Parliamentâs workload and pace squeezing out committees
Parliamentâs week is traditionally shaped across three days. That shape is increasingly being squeezed and select committees are being forced into the margins. We consider the factors at play.Go to th...Show More
4) The House on Sunday: Parliament's local MP
Each of New Zealandâs 72 electorates is unique, so what's it like to represent the heart of our capital city?Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
5) A Tikanga for Parliament
Are Parliamentâs colonial underpinnings out of date? A former Speaker says Parliament ought to be a reflection of everyone, but isnât, and the mental shift needed would take collective political will....Show More
6) The House on Sunday: slow government lawmaking and suggestions of lying
Several significant bills were passed through the House this week, two of them being Opposition bills. Meanwhile, the General Debate proved to be a test of the Speaker's tolerance for accusations of l...Show More
7) Lies, damn lies and parliamentary debate
Mendacity is the bane of good debate. In Parliament both lies and claims of lies used to be naughty, but the floodgates may have opened on the latter.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
8) Opposition backbench passes more bills than National backbench
Members' bills can come from any backbench MP. Usually, successful government bills far outnumber opposition bills â but not this parliament. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
9) Parliament this week: ETS reform, stalking, and spying
This week's bills are a mixture of unfinished business from last week and a selection of other bills plucked from the Order Paper, and awaiting their respective next stages. Go to this episode on rnz...Show More
10) Spine and Punishment: A review of Swarbrick v Brownlee
Last week the Speaker made a series of new rulings and interpretations on the fly in punishing an MP who dared governing party MPs to demonstrate some spine regarding Israel and Gaza. We survey and an...Show More