Six months ago, New Zealand was considered a safe haven for Kiwi expats living around the world.Many of them wanted to come home and make a life here but a new survey shows those attitudes may be changing fast.A survey by Kea Future Aspirations showed that 31 percent of respondents intend to return to New Zealand, and 25 percent of those within two yearsKea CEO Toni Truslove told Heather du Plessis-Allan expats are concerned about low pay, but opportunities are a bigger concern.“It’s really more that their skills and experience are gonna be valued. And that they’re gonna be able to put them to go use for Kiwi businesses. They’re really looking for opportunity.”LISTEN ABOVE

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

Toni Truslove: Opportunities are a concern for Kiwi expats

New Zealand had a successful day for rowing at the Olympics.Emma Twigg took home gold in the women’s single sculls, whilst the men’s eight won gold and women’s eight won silver.It was also eventful in the gymnastics after one of the world’s biggest stars pulled out.US gymnast Simone Biles pulled out of the Olympics over mental health issues.And the All Blacks have a new sponsor.Petrochemical company INEOS joined the All Blacks on a six year deal, which was criticised by Greenpeace.Phil Gifford and Bernadine Oliver-Kirby joined Heather du Plessis-Allan to discuss the week's sports news.

Sport Huddle: Rowing's successful day and gymnastics' mental health drama

More than 4000 people have been jabbed on the first day of the South Auckland mass vaccination so far with vaccinations still continuing.The event aims to vaccinate more than 16,000 people over three days with 5000 booked for today.Northern Region mass vaccination lead Alex Pimm told Heather du Plessis-Allan there have been a few people booked in who haven't turned up.“So I would just encourage everybody with an appointment booked tomorrow or Sunday to make sure that they arrive at their appointment time at MIT campus and we look forward to seeing them over the weekend.”LISTEN ABOVE

Alex Pimm: More than 4000 jabbed on first day of mass vaccination

The Justice Minister says it's not okay for parents to tell their 12 year old they can't go on hormone blockers.The government's introduced a bill banning practices that try to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity.The proposed law includes jail time of up to five years for people who perform conversion practices that cause serious harm.Kris Faafoi told Heather Du Plessis Allan it doesn't matter who you are, you can't try to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity."What we don't want is in some of those situations, either a priest, or a parent, or the rugby coach down the road, forcing their opinion around sexual orientation in an attempt to change somebody else's."But there are several hoops go through before someone is jailed for practicing conversion therapy.Faafoi says there's a long line between the practice and a criminal offence.He says first you have to prove it's targeted and has caused harm to a child or serious harm to an adult."Police will do their thing and try and make sure there is a case around intent to try and change someone's or suppress someone's gender identity. Then the Attorney-General of New Zealand has to give consent for that case or prosecution to go ahead."LISTEN ABOVE

Kris Faafoi: You can't try to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity

Hamish Bond has etched himself into the history books as the only New Zealander to win gold in three consecutive Olympics.The pairs champion along with Eric Murray from London and Rio has helped the men's eight win the iconic blue ribbon event emulating the 1972 eight from Munich on Sky Sport.Emma Twigg has finally broken her Olympic duck, winning gold in dominant fashion in the women's single sculls.Her victory comes after finishing sixth in Beijing, and fourth in both London and Rio.The women's eight have won silver completing New Zealand's equal best rowing medal haul of five at an Olympics.Hamish Bond and Emma Twigg both spoke with Heather du Plessis-Allan after their victories today.LISTEN ABOVE

Hamish Bond and Emma Twigg: Rowers reflect on their historic victories

Former Napier woman Emma Twigg has claimed Olympic Gold after winning her women's single sculls on Friday.The 34-year-old Napier Girls' High School and Hawke's Bay Rowing Club alumni took the win in a time of 7m 13.97s, more than four seconds ahead of the Russian Olympic Committee's Hanna Prakatsen who placed second at Tokyo's Sea Forest Waterway.It was an Olympic best with Twigg blitzing the field and taking an early 500m lead at the start.Prakatsen took silver in 7m 17.39 and Austria's Magdalena Lobnig bronze in 7m 19.72s.Twigg has previously won gold at the World Championships as a single sculler in 2014 but this is her first Olympic medal.She was in disbelief as she cross the finished line."I didn't hear the hooter and thought I had stopped before the line," she said."I'm lost for words. I can't believe it. All these years, many, many disappointments. I can't thank the people I have surrounded myself with enough. They got me here. That's not my result, it's my team."I had a great moment with my coach Mike [Roger] before. He didn't know if he was going to be here with me after a car crash. This is fate," she said through tears.Rowing under the colours of the Hawke's Bay rowing Club, club captain Belinda VanderPeet said Twigg was "still 100 per cent a Hawke's Bay girl".The club's first Olympic medal win, she said they were "so very proud of her" for achieving her goal."She put the time in and so much work."The club has a rowers programme starting this weekend and expected a large turnout after Twigg's gold."It's so exciting. It puts excitement back into the sport."Napier Girls' High School principal Dawn Ackroyd said she was "on cloud nine" after the whole school packed into the assembly to watch Twigg row her way to gold."It was just incredible."The cheering was deafening and there were a few tears of joy."Ackroyd described the former Head Girl as role model student, and said current students would be inspired by what she had accomplished."I said to my students this could be you."It was Twigg's fourth Olympic Games, with two previous fourth-place finishes.She took two years out following Rio, worked for the IOC and it was while at the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018 that she started entertaining thoughts about a comeback.Abandoning a plan to cycle from Switzerland to Singapore, Twigg instead returned to New Zealand and her partner Charlotte (they married last year).She also returned to Lake Karapiro with a reinvigorated passion for the sport forged on the Clive River under the eye of her father Peter, a coach at the Hawkes Bay Rowing Club.It's New Zealand's fifth Olympic Medal after Grace Prendergast and Kerri Gowler won Gold in the Women's coxless pair and Brooke Donoghue and Hannah Osborne also won silver in the Women's double sculls.The Rugby Sevens took home silver while Hayden Wilde won bronze in the Men's triathlon.Text by Gianina Schwanecke, NZ Herald

Jason Pine: Emma Twigg had the performance of her life

Could we see this coming? That the mass vaccination event was going to go anything but smoothly today? Probably. They really needed this to go well. Because this is supposed to signal that NZ is finally off and running on the vaccinations.  This week the jab opened to the general public. The PM got her second jab. And now this big event of efficient, mass vaccinating in the most at risk area, South Auckland. This is supposed to inject confidence in the roll out and encourage everyone else to go in and get a jab because it’s a super-efficient process. Except apparently it’s a shambles. At least that’s what Emma on Twitter said.  Minimum delay already one hour – that was at 11:40 this morning. Spencer on Twitter said he turned up at 10:40 to hear the 9:50 group only being called then.So confirmation: about an hour delayed. 11:30 Helen texts us – still an hour’s delay.Ralph called and said the delay was so long he had to abandon the jab and – it sounded like – go back to work. Even before this started it was clear this bombing.  I mean you have to invite 140,000 people before you can fill the 16,000 slots – you know you’ve got a problem. That’s a response rate of 11.4%. That’s a decline rate of 88.6%. That’s not good by anyone’s measure. Frankly this event and the entire week has been a bit of a damp squib. As I said a few days ago: I’m starting to get a bit worried about how many people feel urgent about getting the jab. Hearing that you might have to take the day off work when it’s your turn because the system is delayed and slow is not going to help. 

Heather du Plessis-Allan: Could we see the mass vaccination go anything but smoothly?

A housing expert says we need to investigate rent controls in order to help housing market affordability.Rent controls limit the amount a landlord can charge for a property.New research shows rents rose 4.8 percent over the last year and affordability declined across the country.Massey University Professor Graham Squire told Heather du Plessis-Allan rent controls would be politically unpopular.“Certainly not palatable to landlords, of course. That’s why we need to see what it would look like in terms of the implications of putting certain rent controls at different price points.”LISTEN ABOVE

Graham Squire: Rent controls would be politically unpopular

Disney has hit back at Scarlett Johansson over her lawsuit claiming the entertainment giant breached her Marvel contract.The company went as far as to call the litigation "sad and distressing". Disney's statement was published on Deadline."There is no merit whatsoever to this filing," the statement read, and it appeared to call out the actress for disregarding the impacts of the pandemic."The lawsuit is especially sad and distressing in its callous disregard for the horrific and prolonged global effects of the Covid-19 pandemic."Disney has fully complied with Ms. Johansson's contract and furthermore, the release of Black Widow on Disney+ with Premier Access has significantly enhanced her ability to earn additional compensation on top of the $20M she has received to date.""Breach of the agreement"Johansson is suing the Walt Disney Co. over its streaming release of Black Widow, which she said breached her contract and deprived her of potential earnings.In a lawsuit filed Thursday morning in Los Angeles Superior Court, the Black Widow star and executive producer said her contract guaranteed an exclusive theatrical release. The Wall Street Journal first reported the news of the lawsuit.Johansson's potential earnings were tied to the box office performance of the film, which the company released simultaneously in theatres and on its streaming service Disney+ for a $30 rental."In the months leading up to this lawsuit, Ms. Johansson gave Disney and Marvel every opportunity to right their wrong and make good on Marvel's promise," the lawsuit said. "Disney intentionally induced Marvel's breach of the Agreement, without justification, in order to prevent Ms. Johansson from realising the full benefit of her bargain with Marvel."Scarlett Johansson potential earnings were tied to the box office performance of the film. Photo / APAfter its release was delayed more than a year because of Covid-19, Black Widow debuted to a pandemic-best of $80 million in North America and $78 million from international theatres three weeks ago, but theatrical grosses declined sharply after that. In its second weekend in release, the National Association of Theater Owners issued a rare statement criticising the strategy asserting that simultaneous release lends itself only to lost profits and higher quality piracy.Once taboo, hybrid theatrical and streaming releases have become more normal for many of the biggest studios during the pandemic, with each adopting its own unique strategy. This weekend, Disney is employing the same strategy with Jungle Cruise, and next weekend Warner Bros. big budget The Suicide Squad opens both in theatres and on HBO Max.The revised hybrid release strategies over the 16 months have occasionally led to public spats from not just theatre owners, but stars, filmmakers and financiers who are unhappy with the potential lost revenues and the alleged unilateral decision-making involved.The WSJ said Warner Media, for instance, paid over $200 million in "amended agreements" with talent over its decision to release its entire 2021 slate simultaneously in theatres and on HBO Max.But none have been as public as Johansson's lawsuit. The actor, who has been in nine Marvel movies going back to 2010's Iron Man 2, quickly became a trending topic on Twitter on Thursday after news of the suit broke.

Dan Mitchinson: Scarlett Johansson sues Disney over Black Widow streaming release

Six60 has decided to buy their legendary Dunedin flat on 660 Castle Street where their band began.They plan to use it as accommodation for students on performing artists scholarships that they will also offer.Six60 frontman Matiu Walters said “it’s been a pipedream for a long time; we kind of joked about one day owning the house, and fast-forward years and we’re in a position where we can do it.”LISTEN ABOVE

Matiu Walters on buying his iconic Dunedin flat

We’re paying too much for not enough selection at our supermarkets, because of a lack of competition.The Commerce Commission’s draft report says the duopoly of Foodstuffs and Countdown is working against consumers and food producers.Heather du Plessis-Allan asked Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, David Clark how hard he’s willing to go to bring prices down.LISTEN ABOVE

David Clark: Supermarkets are ripping us off, so what's the government going to do about it?

Barry Soper spoke to Heather du Plessis-Allan about whether Helen Clark was involved in the government reversing their decision to allow a Fiji covid patient into New Zealand.LISTEN ABOVE

Barry Soper: Was Helen Clark involved in allowing a Fiji covid patient into New Zealand?

A University of Auckland professor has stepped down from one of his roles after controversy erupted around his views on the role of Māori knowledge in education.Professor Douglas Elliffe was one of seven signatories to an open letter, which took issue with plans to elevate mātauranga Māori to the level of science in the school curriculumEmeritus Professor of Psychology Michael Corballis, one of the letter's other signatories spoke to Heather du Plessis-Allan about why they felt elevating the status of mātauranga Māori would “discourage [kids] from coming into science”.LISTEN ABOVE

Michael Corballis: Elevating mātauranga Māori discourages kids from science

NZ Rugby has confirmed a six year sponsorship deal with British petrochemical company INEOS.From next year the company name will appear on the shorts and training jerseys of the All Blacks, Black Ferns, and Sevens teams among others.Greenpeace has hit out at the move saying NZR shouldn't do business with a company that contributes to global warming.Mark Robinson the CEO of NZ Rugby says “we’re really comfortable with the due diligence we’ve done and the partnership we’re setting off on with INEOS”.LISTEN ABOVE

Mark Robinson: Comfortable partnering NZ Rugby with a petrochemical company

With a straight down the middle approach, Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive on Newstalk ZB delivers the very latest news and views to New Zealanders as they wrap up their day.

hubhopper

Heather du Plessis-Allan Drive

hubhopper