Latest / The SME Stream / The Country 10/12/25: Christopher Luxon talks to Jamie Mackay

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The Country 10/12/25: Christopher Luxon talks to Jamie Mackay · The SME Stream

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: For the penultimate time and twenty twenty five the Prime
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Minister on the country on a Wednesday. I want to start,
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Christopher Luxen with our free trade agreement with India. Todd
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: mcclay's doing great work. How close are we?
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: We're getting closer. I mean, you know, as you can imagine,
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: the Indians are really tough negotiators and you know it
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: all spoils down to a few issues at the end,
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: but you we're making really good progress. In fact, Todd,
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: we'll probably be heading up to India this week the
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: next couple of days again as well, so you know
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  Speaker 2: we're getting to the business end of it. But you know,
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  Speaker 2: I've done a lot of business India over the years,
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: and you know, one of the things that they are
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: outstanding negotiators. We're also really good too. We've got some
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: really great trade negotiators and we've got an outstanding trade minister.
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: But again, you know, I've spoken with you know, Prime
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: Minister and Foreign Minister and the Trade Minister myself, and
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  Speaker 2: you know, we're all committed to doing the deal, but
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: we have to get something that is the best possible
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: deal we can be and what I'm interested in is
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  Speaker 2: just beating Australian So that's my focus.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Could you get to the stage where you'd say this
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  Speaker 1: is not good enough, I'm going to walk away from it,
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: or we just have to take what we're given.
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: I think you know, over the last year, you know,
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  Speaker 2: the trading environment globally has actually incentivized parties to want
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: to work together, in particular India, which previously wasn't really
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: you know, we've worked really hard to build a relationship
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: to prioritize New Zealand to head of the EU and
• 1:25
  Speaker 2: other bigger places. They're obviously a country that's dealing with
• 1:28
  Speaker 2: a lot of pressure from the US and others. So
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: I've got an appetite to do a deal. We want
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: to do a deal. I don't like the fact that
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: today we are well behind Australia in some of our
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  Speaker 2: categories that we trade in, and I think we can
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: do you get ourselves a really good deal on a
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  Speaker 2: good basis and a starting point to move forward with.
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  Speaker 2: So you know, we're going to do the best deal
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  Speaker 2: we possibly can for New Zealand and for all our sectors.
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: And there's a lot of opportunity in India and you know, Jamie,
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  Speaker 2: since we started this conversation. I remember thinking, They'm going
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  Speaker 2: to be the third biggest economy in twenty thirty. Twenty
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  Speaker 2: thirty one happen in twenty twenty eight, so in a
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  Speaker 2: couple of years, So you know, that is a major
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  Speaker 2: we've got to be in. You know, they just added
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  Speaker 2: in their growth and economy the size of South Africa
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  Speaker 2: last year, so you know, they are growing fast and
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  Speaker 2: quickly and large. So there's a lot of opportunity. Obviously,
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  Speaker 2: it's a country that's probably per person, about a fourth
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  Speaker 2: as wealthy as China. So China's moved into middle income
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  Speaker 2: status over the period of our free trade agreement, which
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  Speaker 2: is create an opportunity. These guys are about to go
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  Speaker 2: through that same ride, and we want to get on
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  Speaker 2: that way early and ride that well.
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: Absolutely their most populous nation on Earth as well. Now, okay,
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  Speaker 1: let's move on to yesterday's announcement from Chris Bishop, and
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: I think he's done a really good job on this,
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  Speaker 1: on getting rid of the rama, simplifying the consenting process
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  Speaker 1: not only if you want to build a deck, but
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: also if you want to stay farming.
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, I mean this is something we've been focused
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  Speaker 2: on from an opposition day so that's why you've seen
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  Speaker 2: us kill off the labors approach. Make sure we get
• 2:56
  Speaker 2: the fast track in place as quickly as possible to
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: get the show moving. This is what our dreams is
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: to get down to two very simple bills, planting bills,
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: Natural environment bell we reckon forty six percent of consents
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: won't be needed going forward. We want this show radically
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: simplified because we've just become a country of bureaucrats, lots
• 3:13
  Speaker 2: of red tape, lots of green tape not adding any value,
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: endless meetings, lots of discussion, lots of debate, and particularly
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: for farmers, I mean like I mean, I spent a
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  Speaker 2: lot of time with farmers, as you know, and you
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  Speaker 2: know they tell me horrific stories of huge amounts of
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: money being spent on consenting every Tom Dick and Harry
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  Speaker 2: consulting and having input into what they're doing. You know,
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  Speaker 2: you've got property, it's your land. You should have property rights.
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  Speaker 2: You should be able to crack on and get going with
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  Speaker 2: what you need to go to. You s there'll be
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  Speaker 2: a couple of people who genuinely are affected by what
• 3:41
  Speaker 2: you're doing, but it shouldn't be what it's been so
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  Speaker 2: I'm really excited about this, I reckon, you know, no
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  Speaker 2: government's really taken this on, you know, and fundamentally reformed
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: it over the last twenty years or so, thirty years
• 3:53
  Speaker 2: or so, and it needed to be done, and otherwise
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  Speaker 2: we just carry on having all these meetings and red
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  Speaker 2: tape and not doing and cost us a lot. I mean,
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: it's been the costs continuing costs of increased seventy percent,
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  Speaker 2: it's one point three billion a year. And actually the
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  Speaker 2: time it takes together consent has increased one hundred and
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  Speaker 2: fifty percent on the last time.
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: Are you going to be brave enough, Prime Minister to
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  Speaker 1: stop EWE having an overbearing presence on the consenting process.
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: Well, a lot of it is making sure that the
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  Speaker 2: people who actually are consulted actually are going to be
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: impacted by the effects of what's happening. And that's where
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: it's got out of control. And so we are simplifying
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  Speaker 2: all aspects of consultation. We need to honor treaty settlements.
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: But the other thing, I Jamie is a lot of
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  Speaker 2: EWE have a lot of commercial interests across this country,
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  Speaker 2: and actually many of them are very pro this because
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  Speaker 2: they are also recipients and have been frustrated by the
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  Speaker 2: RAMA process themselves. So it's so we're going to strip
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  Speaker 2: it all down, make it much simpler, much clearer. And
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  Speaker 2: as you've seen, the companion piece of this is also
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: then reforming local government and removing regional council. So you
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: know that's a part of what we're going to do.
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: Hellelujah, Now the latest One News variant pole, and I
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: know you'll trot out the old cliche. I don't comment
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: on poles, but you must be quite happy with this.
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: Were you smugly looking at that when it came out
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  Speaker 1: on Monday?
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  Speaker 2: Well, I don't comment on poles, Jamie.
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: Can I ask you do you think Chippy is conflicted
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: over the collapse and the to Party Maori vote because
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: it's a double edged sword for him. If he gets
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: to Party Maury winning all the Maori seats, he gets
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  Speaker 1: an overhang, it makes it easier for him to get
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: into Parliament. But if they collapse completely, I think it
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: will drive some middle voters, perhaps towards Labor, thinking they're
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: not going to be such a crazy lot if to
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  Speaker 1: Party Mary's out of the mix.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, look, I mean, as you can see on our site,
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: you know, it's pretty solid and that's that's solid Eve
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: in a really difficult economic part of the cycle. But
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: we're coming out of that. I you know, really it's
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: really for him. I mean, ultimately he wants to be
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: in business with the Greens for goodness sake, into party MARII.
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: All I know is that just means capital gains tax, wealth,
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: ba's death tax, inheritance tax, you know, tax everything, borrow everything,
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: and that's what got us into this mess. So, you know,
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: to be honest, Hipkins hasn't learned a single thing in
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: three years. He's going back to the same failed radical
• 6:18
  Speaker 2: economic tender of spend more, tax more, borrow more. I'm
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: telling you that ain't in the future for New Zealand.
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  Speaker 2: That is not how we That's what got us into
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  Speaker 2: this mess. That's what's caused the pain and suffering. But
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: if he wants to horse around and muck around with
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: the Green Party and to party, Maury, you know that's
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  Speaker 2: not what I'm doing.
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: Just finally, latest poll, not the one News variant pole,
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  Speaker 1: but the poll and what reading for Christmas? Lamb beats
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  Speaker 1: Ham this Christmas? Forty two percent say Lamb. I think
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  Speaker 1: thirty percent say Ham. Beef's probably too expensive. It's only
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: thirteen percent. What does the lux and household do?
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  Speaker 2: We're all in on ham. But the other weird thing
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  Speaker 2: that we've thrown into the mixed since living in america's turkey,
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  Speaker 2: believe it or not. And so it's been a bit
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  Speaker 2: hit and miss. I'll be honest, and I luck some
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: household where the oven hasn't worked at the right time
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  Speaker 2: on Christmas Day to cook the turkey. So we've been
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  Speaker 2: but we have ham turkey and and peas are actually
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  Speaker 2: our thing as well. There's a bit of shelling of
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  Speaker 2: peas that goes on on Christmas Eve as well, which
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  Speaker 2: is pretty cool. So and some new potatoes. You gotta
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  Speaker 2: get your potatoes in the mix as well.
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  Speaker 1: And a path. Hey, Christopher Luxlan, thanks for your time.
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  Speaker 1: We've got one more show to do next week, and
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  Speaker 1: I need you to put your thinking cap on because
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  Speaker 1: next Wednesday I'm going to ask you for your agg
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: Person of the Year.
• 7:30
  Speaker 2: Okay, Oh there's some worthy candidates actually when I think
• 7:35
  Speaker 2: about that, okay, I'll think about that over the week.
• 7:37
  Speaker 2: But mate, you have a great week, wan't you take
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: care