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The Panel for Wednesday 23 July 2025

The Pre-Panel for 23 July 2025 

Jesse Mulligan is joined by The Panel host Wallace Chapman and producer Tessa Guest to preview this evening's marlarky.

Relaxed smile portrait of Wallace Chapman on grey background

Photo: RNZ / Jeff McEwan

The Panel with Jo McCarroll and Mark Knoff-Thomas Part 1

Tonight, on The Panel, Wallace Chapman is joined by panellists Jo McCarroll and Mark Knoff-Thomas. First, they discuss the RNZ story by Guyon Espiner about NZ First's relationship to the nicotine industry. They then examine proposed changes to allow more housing on food productive land, and, finally, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says New Zealanders are not getting a raw deal on butter: discuss!  

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Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii

The Panel with Jo McCarroll and Mark Knoff-Thomas Part 2

The government says councils need to focus on core services like water infrastructure, waste management and civil defence and only spend on art if there's money left to spare. The Panel hears from a Christchurch businessman who says arts is crucial to development. And finally, we pay tribute to the great Ozzy Osbourne. 

INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 08: Musician Ozzy Osbourne performs during half-time of the NFL game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Buffalo Bills at SoFi Stadium on September 08, 2022 in Inglewood, California. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Photo: AFP / Getty Images / Kevork Djansezian

The Panel Plus

An extra half hour of The Panel with Wallace Chapman, where he's joined by Nights host Emile Donovan. 

Then we hear about why sorry the hardest word to say. According to The Times though, Britons have no problem dropping a S bomb multiple times a day. But our in-house linguist Rory O'Sullivan says New Zealanders are fans of saying "sorry" at the drop of a hat too.

 

Sign that reads 'Sorry, We are closed' hanging in a shop front in Central Auckland during Lockdown Level 3.

Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly

The Politics Panel

Wallace Chapman and the Politics Panel discuss and analyse the main political stories of the day. He is joined this week by RNZ's Corin Dann, the NZ Herald's Fran O'Sullivan and former government minister Phil Goff. 

On the slate today: Nicola Willis says Kiwis are not getting a raw deal from high butter prices (after meeting the CEO of Fonterra); Defence Minister Judith Collins told a crowd of graduating Army recruits last week that they should prepare for "combat";  just 38 percent of respondents to a Talbot Mills poll say the government deserved a second term; is the government using local councils as a whipping boy and National seems to have found a bright spot in one area of it's party policy: Education. 

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Photo: RNZ / Mark Papalii