Voters seem to be losing confidence in the Government with the latest Taxpayers Union Curia poll showing Labour opening up a lead on National, and all the coalition parties slipping, National and NZ First by 2 points each. FInance Minister Nicola Willis didn't win many friends when she said the latest unemployment figures weren't bad, as they were better than forecast, and those who lost their jobs shouldn't take it personally. The Government's boot camp programme for young offenders looks like it will need a reset after 80% of the graduates reoffended, and Treasury's final 2025 Long-term Insights Briefing is critical of Labour's response to the pandemic saying it spent too much, drawing a strong reaction from our guest for this edition Professor of Macro Economics at Auckland University, Robert MacCulloch.