At the end of each week, Mike Hosking takes you through the big-ticket items and lets you know what he makes of it all.

July 1st: 7/10

A lot of cool stuff started, including higher speed limits on roads where higher speed limits make sense and increase efficiency.

Helipads: 8/10

Amazing for so many reasons; well-known rich people, a ridiculous number of submissions, a massive waste of energy and, finally, they won.

Offensive to girls: 3/10

The fuss over the Warehouse and the backpack is pathetic. It was a joke. It was light-hearted.

The All Blacks: 7/10

A new season, new hope, new excitement and an easy opener.

Wegovy: 7/10

That was a lot of publicity in the news for a product next to no one can afford.

School lunches: 7/10

Because with the new stats, the new meals, and the new feedback, that is a good example of a problem solved. Now, are the media going to give the same amount of coverage to the answer as they did to the problem?

LISTEN ABOVE FOR MIKE HOSKING'S FULL WEEK IN REVIEW

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Republicans are celebrating after US President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful" bill crossed the line.

Trump is expected to sign his sweeping domestic policy bill tomorrow as he celebrates the Fourth of July at the White House.

House Speaker Mike Johnson claims everything was a disaster under the Joe Biden and Kamala Harris administration.

US Correspondent Richard Arnold told Mike Hosking there was a lot of drama throughout the entire process, but eventually, Trump bullied the vast majority of House Republicans into signing onto the bill.

LISTEN ABOVE

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There was a survey out last week that broadly supported the Government’s moves around KiwiSaver, as in the 3% and 3% going to 4% and 4%.

But they wanted the Government to do something about the cut in contribution from the state.

Small hint – if you rely on the Government for any consistency around long term projects, forget it.

From the very beginning of KiwiSaver, the Government were always going to be the weak link.

When it comes to big picture stuff, dedication and focus from a government is a casualty of the three year political cycle. They were never going to be our friend on retirement savings.

The best advice I offer anyone, including our kids, is do it yourself. It's your life, your decision and your future, so do it yourself.

To show you how hopeless we are at saving in this country, figures released last week in America showed their KiwiSaver, what they call their 401k, hit a record high at 14.3%.

So while we are mucking around on 3-4% they are up to over 14%.

Here is the kicker – the industry says it really should 15% if you want to be comfortable.

A psychological step change is required and I'm not sure we will ever get there.

Whether its employer contributions that get offered instead of more pay, or whether it’s the Australian style compulsion, a lot of countries do it a lot of different ways and most of them have dealt with the age of retirement as well.

We basically are stuck with 65-years-old, and angst around even a debate about changing it, and far too many people who get to retirement and are stuck with a state-funded payout that has never been good and will not serve you well, if it's all you have to live off.

There is of course no reason for this to even be a problem. Lee Kuan Yew many years ago in Singapore took a third world country, told them to save, forced them to save, and now they are rich.

The answers are all there. Australia has it sorted, the Norway fund is famous, and even the Americans at 14.3% seem to have it solved.

We need to look and learn and then get our act together and apply a bit of basic discipline to our long-term futures that don’t rely on a government.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.