Should NZ’s Wealthiest Pay a Bigger Share? | Thoughts on Politics EP4

The full, unedited interview with Christopher Luxon, Leader of the National Party, recorded ahead of Election 2026.

This is the complete conversation, exactly as it was recorded. Nothing has been cut, trimmed or edited.

Christopher Luxon is in conversation with Andrew Curtis.

They discuss the role of government, the Government's record on education, planning reform and law and order, the economy and cost of living, coalition arrangements under MMP, policy trade-offs, the role of faith and community organisations, the proposed separation of Foodstuffs' supermarket banners, outcomes for Māori and the Treaty Principles Bill, the recent caucus confidence votes, and the party's position on possible coalition partners.

As part of our Election 2026 coverage, we invited the leaders of the major NZ political parties, and the minor parties polling over 5%, to sit down for a conversation.

Every interview is published in full and each leader speaks for themselves.

We'd encourage you to hear from all of them before you vote.

CHAPTERS
0:00 Introduction and The Role of Government
5:54 Record & The Economy
16:12 Coalitions & Trade-Offs
23:25 Faith & Community Groups
26:43 Supermarket Competition
34:12 Māori and The Treaty
37:53 Leadership and Coalition Options

← Back to Election 2026

Brendan Malone weighs up whether horror films and Halloween have any place in the Christian life, and where the real stumbling blocks lie.

Mr Malone argues there is no blanket answer: it depends on who is watching, what they are watching and how much. He warns against the near occasion of sin and against stirring curiosity in young minds, and draws a sharp line between gothic horror like Dracula and Frankenstein, which carries deep Christian themes, and slasher films, which he says are never acceptable. He also highlights a rising wave of nihilistic horror set in a world without God, and unpacks the Christian intent behind The Exorcist. Both men warn that the occult is a real spiritual danger, not mere entertainment, and that we grow what we feed.

Chapters
1:12 A friend who left the occult
1:58 Halloween & young children
3:52 Gothic, slasher & nihilistic horror
5:33 The spiritual reality of the occult
6:45 The Christian message of The Exorcist
8:50 Seeing Jesus in the darkness

#Halloween #HorrorMovies #ChristianFaith #SpiritualWarfare #TheExorcist

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Nathan Seiuli of PILLAR weighs up what freedom really looks like ahead of New Zealand’s election, from the earlier enrolment cut-off to the policies of the major parties.

Mr Seiuli argues that voting is a luxury won through the sacrifice of earlier generations rather than a right, and that enrolling two weeks out is a reasonable ask. He warns that neither major party measures up on freedom, highlighting the gang patch ban as a framework that could be applied to any club, and proposed online safety rules that risk censoring everyone. He also urges Christians to stay informed and engaged, saying faith in Christ doesn’t exempt believers from serving others through their vote. (https://www.nzpillar.com)

Chapters
0:29 The earlier enrolment cut-off
0:58 Voting: a right or a luxury?
2:01 Party incentives & remembering sacrifice
3:49 A freedom test for the major parties
4:52 The gang patch ban
5:20 “Fashion police” warning
6:51 State control of the internet
8:28 Why Christians should stay engaged

#NZElection2026 #VotingInNZ #FreedomOfSpeech #OnlineSafety #GangPatchBan

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Follow us on INSTAGRAM!
- https://www.instagram.com/thoughtsandcommentsnz/
- https://www.instagram.com/thebrightsidenz/
- https://www.instagram.com/rhemadriveshow/
Visit our WEBSITE! https://www.rhema.co.nz/home
Join our FACEBOOK Page to engage with us! https://www.facebook.com/nzrhema

Support Rhema: https://donate.rhemamedia.co.nz/?brand=rhema

Would you like to pray for others or have a prayer request? 🙏
- Our Prayer Wall: https://www.rhema.co.nz/faith/prayerwall

To contact the studio
- Email: studio@rhema.co.nz
- Phone: 0508 474362
- (NZ) Text: 8168 with the keyword: RHEMA