At Large with Toby Manhire

Epizódok

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  OK so is AI really about to wipe out the humans? (And what is NZ doing about it?) 16.09.2026 38p

  Estimates of the potential for artificial intelligence to make humanity extinct are everywhere, and not just in the sci-fi dystopias. Exiles and employees from the AI giants are sounding the alarm – even the AI bosses are pleading for a slowdown, to which Donald Trump hollers “hoax!” Tom Barraclough of Brainbox and Syncopate joins Toby to talk through the warnings, to explain why it’s all happening now, and to discuss where New Zealand stands now in its AI policy and political debate.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The coalition v the Māori language: how has Te Reo fared this term? 14.09.2026 35p

  It’s been a bumpy few years for the Māori language in New Zealand (or is that Aotearoa?). Liam Rātana, Ātea editor at the Spinoff Ātea, joins Toby to walk through the various measures pursued by the Act, NZ First and National parties – and what impact that has had on the broader tide.Plus: In How Good, Alex Casey gives her verdict on new NZ film Mum, I’m Alien Pregnant.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The kingmaker myth, and the hill Qiulae Wong and Opportunity must climb 10.09.2026 24p

  Opportunity is pitching itself as an alternative kingmaker to Winston Peters and New Zealand First for the 2026 election. But is the kingmaker scenario really that common across 10 MMP elections? Peter Dunne, who has seen the inside of many post-election negotiations, says not. He joins Toby to talk about the role smaller parties play in our elections, the challenge that awaits Opportunity as it hovers around the 5% threshold, and whether major parties at 30% is an aberration or the new normal.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Labour falls under 26% – one bad poll or time to change course? 08.09.2026 26p

  The Labour Party has registered just 25.9% in a new poll for the Taxpayers’ Union by Curia. That’s lower than their calamitous result in 2023, and lower than National, who themselves fell to a low 29%. Lyric Waiwiri-Smith joins Toby to talk through the pickle that Chris Hipkins finds himself in. Is the small target strategy backfiring, are there bold visions to come, and what can they do to turn it around?Plus, in How Good, Hayden Donnell is here to share his fascination with the breeding habits of kākāpō, for it is their season…At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  How National ankle-tapped Labour on KiwiSaver, with Sam Stubbs 07.09.2026 33p

  Sam Stubbs once looked a lot like a finance bro – he’d made a small fortune at places like Goldman Sachs in London and Hong Kong. But 10 years ago, the gamekeeper turned poacher; Stubbs founded Simplicity, a KiwiSaver non-profit. In the years since it’s spawned a housing developer and now an infrastructure engine, InfraKiwi.Stubbs is rarely shy about sharing his views on politics, and so he’s paying close attention to the 2026 election, which comes at what he calls a crucial juncture for the country. He sits down with Toby to talk about KiwiSaver, about tax, and about the election campaign. Plus: given his political engagement, could he go one step further and stand for parliament?Then, in How Good, the Spinoff’s Sophie Albornett goes to hand-pulled noodle heaven at FJ Noodles and Dumplings in Wellington.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  ‘Freaking bizarre’: NZ’s former man in Washington on trade, Trump and a whole lot more 03.09.2026 42p

  Tim Groser was posted to Washington by John Key on the basis that the trade minister turned ambassador would likely be engaging with a US administration led by President Hillary Clinton. Instead, in came Donald Trump.The former National Party MP joins Toby to revisit those years, Trump’s approach to trade and the international order, and whether New Zealand is right to keep its head largely below the parapet in response.But wait, there’s more: Tim Groser has more stories to share, including a high-octane day in Moscow as Putin invaded Crimea, his time as a staffer for Rob Muldoon and his role in the night of the snap election, and the truly formative years, on the stage in Wellington with Sam Neill and Paul Holmes. At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Simeon Brown is a no-show at the senior doctors’ conference. What is their message for him? 02.09.2026 29p

  The annual conference for senior doctors and dentists is about to start but one person is missing: the minister of health has pulled out. In an election year, with health ranked the second top issue for voters, and countless headlines about hospitals and workforces at breaking point, what would members of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists be telling Simeon Brown if he were there? We asked Sarah Dalton, executive director of the union.Plus, in How Good, Henry Oliver is hooked on Spanish football.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  The electric election: Mike Casey on a solar revolution 31.08.2026 34p

  Suddenly politicians of almost every stripe are jumping on board the rooftop solar train. But does the argument for a transformation in our energy mix really stack up? Mike Casey, the celebrated electric cherry orchardist and CEO at Rewiring Aotearoa, joins Toby to talk through the vision, the hurdles ahead, and the lessons he learned from the campaign. Where did it all go right?Plus: Emma Gleason celebrates the glories of the sporting mullet.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Luxon vs Brown, and how the govt fell so violently out of love with localism 27.08.2026 33p

  Christopher Luxon sailed into NZ politics six years ago as a champion of localism. Since becoming prime minister, his government has fallen deeply out of love with devolution. Changes including a rates cap and National’s ruling out of a bed tax have especially irked Wayne Brown, mayor of Auckland and the most powerful local politician in New Zealand. He’s gone from denial to anger to … what exactly? Joel MacManus and Hayden Donnell – fresh from interviewing Brown – join Toby to tell the story.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  How will NZ’s under-16 social media ban work? (And why do NZ First and Act hate it?) 25.08.2026 29p

  A new law has been drafted to ban social media for under-16s in New Zealand. Robbie Nicol joins Toby to answer all the big questions. Which platforms meet the definition of “social media”? How will it be enforced? When will the rules kick in? And is it really a government bill? Winston Peters doesn’t think so. We work through some of the objections, from NZ First, Act, the Greens and Labour. (Since this podcast was recorded, Labour has announced it will support the bill on first reading, and urged the government to proceed before the election.)Plus, in How Good, Alex Casey sings the praises of Lynda Topp on Guy Montgomery’s Spelling Bee.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Where in NZ is basking in economic recovery, where is not – and why? 24.08.2026 26p

  After years of malaise, the economy is bouncing back – or it is, at least, in some pockets of the country. Shamubeel Eaqub joins Toby to crunch the numbers that tell us which parts of New Zealand are on the up, which parts are stuck in the doldrums, and why.Plus: In How Good, Lyric Waiwiri-Smith reports from Election Meltdown, the political comedy show at Circa Theatre in Wellington.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  From Ooshie-itis to Smeg-mania, supermarket promo fever grips NZ 20.08.2026 22p

  Whether it’s Woolworths’ little plastic Disney Ooshies or New World’s fancy Smeg knives, supermarket promotions have seeped into the national consciousness, prompting secondary markets and school bans. Alex Casey joins Toby to talk through the allure of these campaigns in a cost of living gloom, and to look back at some of the greatest and strangest supermarket promotions of the 21st century.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Flu season overdrive in NZ – how bad is it and what can we do? 18.08.2026 21p

  Schools and elderly care centres are getting smashed, health providers are splitting at the seams thanks to a late seasonal surge in respiratory illness. Emma Gleason joins Toby to talk through the impacts and how we can respond.Plus: Hayden Donnell continues his peanut butter passion project. Which peanut butter will take out the smooth crown? At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Think hot, think deep: The odds on a geothermal silver bullet for NZ’s energy future 17.08.2026 33p

  Former National minister Tim Groser joins Toby to explain why they’re plunging a drill into the magma beneath the Taupō volcanic zone – and how supercritical geothermal success could prove a gamechanger for energy security, for climate change and for the economy as a whole.Plus: In How Good, NZ Fashion Week is under way. Emma Gleason picks her highlights.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Tiki Taane on a life in music, quitting Spotify and doing it different 14.08.2026 37p

  Tiki Taane has been making music since the last decade of the last millennium in Christchurch. From the early successes of Salmonella Dub through some really dark days and on to a thriving solo career, he’s seen a whole lot of changes in musical form and production, and a revolution in the music business. Today, with the 20th anniversary of Past, Present, Future just around the corner, he’s still exploring new ways of doing things. A year ago, he quit Spotify and he’s now jumped on the new NZ-based platform Lume. He sits down with Toby to reveal how that’s going for him so far. At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Luxon on the brink: emergency caucus meeting countdown 11.08.2026 28p

  A nightmarish fortnight has ended with the prime minister summoning MPs to Wellington for an urgent in-person National Party caucus meeting. On the agenda, not for the first time: his own leadership. Spinoff editor Veronica Schmidt joins Toby Manhire to trace the path to Christopher Luxon’s moment of truth and ask: what will the MPs be weighing as they make their way to that 9.30am showdown?Plus: Liam Ratana on an unprecedented, pulsating, potent haka at the Warriors.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Election 2026: State of the race with three months to go 10.08.2026 31p

  As we count down the days to a knife-edge election, where do the parties stand? Spinoff parliamentary reporter Lyric Waiwiri-Smith joins Toby for a stocktake: the headline policies, the slogans, and of course the mojo.Plus: In How Good, Alex Casey learns to sing.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  CRL opening date is go – is it really a gamechanger? 06.08.2026 27p

  At last we’ve got a date for the opening of the City Rail Link – is it really going to transform Auckland? Hayden Donnell joins Toby to talk through the decade-long, multibillion project, how it will change things from an economic and practical standpoint, who deserves the credit on the Donnell index, and where we sit on the utopian-to-sceptic spectrum.Plus: In How Good, Claire Mabey raves about the survivalist TV show Alone.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Unemployment hits 11-year high – with Bernard Hickey 05.08.2026 37p

  New Zealand has not seen jobless numbers like this for a decade. Bernard Hickey of the Kākā joins Toby to talk through the latest quarterly numbers, the reality they reflect, whether there is something brighter on the horizon, and how they fit with the mood Christopher Luxon encountered in Rotorua the other day.Plus: In How Good, Tara Ward gives her verdict on the new NZ television drama Ms X.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Christopher Luxon’s communication problem 03.08.2026 28p

  The prime minister got a shock when he saw the media coverage of his breakfast meeting with Rotorua businesspeople – it talked of him scolding them about a “parent-child mentality” in government-business relations, urging “adult” behaviour and recounting his own attitude in Chicago corporate life. So his office issued a transcript of the exchange, which didn’t much help. Duncan Greive, founder of The Spinoff, joins Toby (with a cameo from Claude AI) to discuss the PM’s communication challenges, and his ongoing struggle to take any grip of the narrative.(Since this podcast was recorded, Luxon has apologised for the remarks.)Plus: In How Good, Te Aihe Butler on the old tech that is healing his brain.At Large with Toby Manhire is produced by Te Aihe Butler, Jin Fellet and The Spinoff. Read more at ⁠thespinoff.co.nz⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices