The Front Page podcast: Why student loans are keeping NZers in exile

Each week The Front Page takes you behind the scenes of the biggest story from the New Zealand Herald and Newstalk ZB. Today it's why student loans are keeping New Zealanders in exile. Hosted by Frances Cook.

More than 100,000 New Zealand student loan borrowers are living overseas, and some now say they feel trapped there, unable to even come home for funerals.

Hundreds have made the decision to declare bankruptcy, while others have taken the risk of coming home, and been arrested at the airport.

Others have stayed in New Zealand, but put off having children or buying a home, saying they simply can't afford it.

The Herald's Simon Collins looked into the problem for the Generation Debt series, and took us behind the scenes for the latest Front Page podcast.

For the interview, watch the video podcast above.

Read more of his series here:
Generation Debt: Ex-Kiwi student loan borrowers scared to come home
Generation Debt: Student loan for life was 'well worth it'
Generation Debt: How student loans have defined a generation
Generation Debt: Science trumps music when you have to pay for it
Generation Debt: Student loan always paid on time, yet doubled by interest
Generation Debt: Will fees-free tertiary education change lives for a new generation?

If you have questions about Herald investigations, or want to stay up to date on social media, you can find host Frances Cook on Facebook here , Instagram here and Twitter here .

You can subscribe to this podcast on the podcast apps, including iHeartRadio here , Apple podcasts here , Spotify here , and Google podcasts here .