The Wire with Castor

The government has announced its intention to scrap legal funding for section 27 cultural reports. These reports are used in court sentencing for judges to learn more about the offenders’ cultural background and their lives. This decision has been criticised, with experts saying that scrapping reports would make trials slower and more expensive, and would negatively impact Māori. 

Olivia talked to Professor of Law at AUT, Kris Gledhill, about this decision, the issues with it, and how Aotearoa New Zealand compares with other countries.

The Labour Party’s controversial Three Waters reforms were repealed last week. National’s replacement plan seeks to address the complaints of many who pushed back against the bill, while maintaining support for challenged regions. 

Additionally, this Sunday saw National Leader Christopher Luxon pushed out of the yearly Big Gay Out event by protestors. Amongst other issues, the protestors are standing against proposed changes to the school curriculum, removing and replacing gender, sexuality, and relationship-based education guidelines. 

Producer Castor spoke to National’s James Meager about the Three Waters replacement, including recent environmental concerns. He also discusses the curriculum changes, and how the National Party supports queer young people.

This week on The Wire, Milly rejoins the news team for a fleeting moment alongside her producer Sofia! Castor speaks to National's James Meager about the Three Waters replacement and changes to the sex and gender school curriculum, Sofia speaks to Gerard Rushton Chairman of Meningitis Foundation Aotearoa about vaccines and first year university students, as well as  Professor Troy Baisden, the Co-President of the New Zealand Association of Scientists, talking about impending cuts in the science sector. There's also Dear Science with Alan Blackman. Do not be surprised by impromptu updates on Grant Robinson's resignation from parliment!

The term “one-in-100-year event” is often used to describe extreme weather events such as last year’s Cyclone Gabrielle. However, the term can generate misconceptions about probability and change the way the public reacts to such events. 

Producer Castor spoke to Lecturer of Emergency Management at Massey University’s Joint Center for Disaster Research, Doctor Lauren Vinnell about the term and the consequences of its use.