Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Jessica Hopkins, Castor Chacko, Nicholas Lindstrom, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
It has been one month since the government announced the Fast Track Approvals Bill, which has seen widespread criticism from conservationists and the general public, who say the bill is undemocratic and will push the biodiversity of Aotearoa further into decline.
As we are in the last week of submissions to the select committee regarding the bill, the Green party have opened up a submissions page on their own website that citizens are welcome to add their signatures to, and published a guide on how to add their own Submissions.
Oto spoke to Greens MP Ricardo Menendez, about submissions for the Fast Track Approvals bill and the current state of the bill since it was announced.
They also had a conversation about the government’s recent changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa, and what they mean for migrant workers here in Aotearoa.
It’s been one month since TVNZ announced a massive restructuring process, cutting their Sunday and Fair Go current affairs segments and axing 68 jobs in a cost cutting plan that they attributed to a decline in advertisement revenue.
Employees at TVNZ were reportedly only given a few days to review the restructuring proposal after it was announced and offer feedback. E Tu, the union for media workers in Aotearoa, said that both the cuts and the rushed consultation process were unacceptable and violated the collective agreement between TVNZ and their staff, which requires the consultation process for such a massive restructuring to be more comprehensive and to begin at a much earlier stage. As such, E Tu has filed a claim against TVNZ with the Employment Relations Authority, to get TVNZ to go back to the drawing board and consult their staff more effectively.
Oto spoke to Michael Wood, the negotiation specialist at E Tu, to discuss the union’s claim and what it means for the wider media landscape in Aotearoa.
In a recent report card on Aotearoa’s laws and policies for vaping, the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation New Zealand found the government still has significant areas for improvement to address the youth vaping epidemic.
Producer Sofia Roger Williams spoke to Chief Executive, Letitia Harding, about New Zealand’s current laws and policies for vaping, the importance of regulation and restriction, and what measures the Foundation would like to see the government take to better address these.
Last week, it was announced that 130 jobs at the Department of Conservation will be cut in a proposed restructure.
These are among the almost 2000 public service job cuts being made to meet the Finance Minister's cost-cutting target of a 6.5 percent reduction in spending.
Additionally, the cuts at DOC were announced the same day as the release of the Our Land 2024 report on Aotearoa’s natural ecosystems and landscapes.
Producer Sofia Roger Williams spoke to Group Manager of Conservation Advocacy and Communications at Forest and Bird, Richard Capie, about the impacts and significance of these cuts on the environment and the economy, in light of the Fast Track legislation, Our Land 2024, and the cuts to other departments contributing to the protection of Aotearoa’s environment
The missile attack launched by Iran on Israel drew responses from a number of Western countries, spreading concern and condemning the actions of Iran’s government.
The attack followed an airstrike by Israel on the first of April, on Iran’s embassy in Damascus, Syria.
While international organisations, including New Zealand’s government, were quick to respond to the recent response from Iran, few commented on this earlier attack. Wire host Castor spoke to Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa’s chair John Minto about this and New Zealand’s response to Israel’s actions more broadly.
Early in April, the Department of Conservation faced criticisms for spending $500,000 to remove one stoat from Chalky Island in Fiordland.
Wire host Castor spoke to the University of Auckland’s Professor James Russell, about conservation and pest eradication broadly in Aotearoa, individual community efforts, and this specific case of one nasty stoat.
For Dear Science this week, Professor Allan Blackman chatted with us about ancient Roman wine, dating a solar flare using polar trees, and the brightest cosmic explosion ever.
Wire host Castor spoke to the University of Auckland’s Professor James Russell, about conservation and pest eradication in Aotearoa.
He also spoke to Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa’s chair, John Minto, about recent hypocrisy from the government regarding Iran’s recent attack on Israel.
Producer Sofia spoke to the Chief Executive of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation New Zealand, Letitia Harding, about the government’s laws and policies for vaping.
She also spoke to Group Manager Conservation Advocacy and Communications at Forest and Bird, Richard Capie, about job cuts at the Department of Conservation.
Following the government announcing its plan to improve school attendance rates, News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, spoke to experts in the education sector about their thoughts on the proposal.
First, she spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, Dr Brian Marsh, about what factors are responsible for low truancy rates in the past few years.
She also spoke to Senior Lecturer in Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, Dr John Fenaughty, about how we can make school a more inclusive space that is safe for LGBTQIA+ students.
Small business, Trade Jobs NZ, is facing a legal dispute with Trade Me over its name and branding, with Trade Me claiming copyright infringement for using the words 'Trade' and 'Jobs'.
Trade Me told 95bFM they cannot go into the details of the case while it is before the Court, but they provided us with the following statement:
“We have used the name Trade Me Jobs since 2006. It’s an important part of our business. We’ve worked hard to build a distinctive brand that is recognised and trusted by Kiwis. We rarely take the decision to go to court and we don’t take the decision lightly – it is something we would only consider as a last resort.”
News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, spoke to Trade Jobs NZ owner, Colleen Getley, about their business and opposition to Trade Me’s claim.
A recent symposium by the National Wetland Trust has emphasised the critical role of wetlands in carbon absorption and supporting the ecosystem. With New Zealand having lost 90% of its wetlands over the last 150 years, experts have emphasised the need for conservation and restoration efforts.
Producer Ezra spoke to Associate Professor of Environmental Science at The University of Waikato, David Campbell, and Senior Ecologist at Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, Olivia Burge, about the climate-saving potential of New Zealand’s wetlands.
Disability communities have been rallying against a surprise change in purchasing rules in the Ministry of Disabled People Whaikaha. Communities have said the changes will have massive impact, despite no consultation on these changes or a formal announcement.
The Department of Conversation also recently proposed staffing cuts to meet funding demands. DoC controls a third of Aotearoa’s landmass which is all conservation land. It remains uncertain how job losses in the Ministry could impact conservation land management.
For weekly catch-up with the Labour party Wire Host Caeden spoke to Labour spokesperson for Disability Issues and Conservation Priyanca Rahdakrishnan about both of these issues.
For our weekly interview with the ACT Party, News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, spoke to MP Simon Court about the government’s proposal to increase student attendance rates and his post on X last week, in which he stated he stands with Israel.
The Ministry of Social Development is not immune to job cuts seen in other public service departments, with MSD calling for voluntary redundancies after cost-saving efforts failed to meet Government targets. For our weekly catch-up with Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni Wire Host Caeden asks her about the impact of cuts at MSD, especially amongst other Government policies disadvantaging beneficiaries.
They also ask about the Samoan Citizenship Bill led by Teanau Tuiono, and the impact of losing independent media giants such as Newshub for democracy.
A proposal to merge the Ōtara-Papatoetoe and Māngere-Ōtāhuhu local boards has been met with criticism, with consultation opening at the end of next month.
A new report has also been released on the quality of living in Tāmaki Makaurau with our city receiving mixed results by scoring high on some areas (the environment), and lower on others (education).
Wire Host Caeden speaks to Counsellor Lotu Fuli about both these topics for City Counselling.
For this week's Get Action! Sofia spoke to petitioner Abdul Safi and his campaign to place sanctions on Israel amidst genocidal acts that are widely considered war crimes.
If you want to sign this petition, you can find it here:
For City Counselling this week, Wire host Caeden spoke with Counsellor Lotu Fuli about the early morning vandalisation of the Rainbow Crossing on Karangahape Road.
They also ask about the end of half-price fares for under 25s, and the relationship Wayne Brown, as well as Auckland Council more generally, has with Auckland Transport.
It is estimated that 50 million people worldwide are currently involved in some form of slavery. Many of those who have been enslaved for their labour, and work as child labourers, produce goods that we import and consume on a regular basis here in Aotearoa.
Currently, there is no existing legislation in Aotearoa that requires companies to disclose the source of their goods, or to ensure that their products are being ethically produced; giving them free rein to indulge in modern slavery in order to cut their production costs.
Producer Oto spoke to Dr Susan Maiava, Co-Founder of the ethical directory Fair & Good who have created a petition and open letter urging the government to introduce modern slavery legislation.