Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Joel Armstrong, Sara Mckoy, Max Micheel, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
For City Counselling this week, Beth Torrance-Hetherington spoke to Counsellor for Waitakere Shane Henderson about Auckland Council's new Flood Viewer, which allows people in Tāmaki Makaurau to view the most flood-affected areas in the region.
A year ago the Consent Law Reform campaign, led by founder Layba Zubair, handed over a petition to parliament calling for a change in our consent law under the Crimes Act.
Caeden spoke to Layba about what the campaign has achieved in the past year, especially in the context of the election and the impact this law change could have for survivors.
Content warning for discussions of sexual violence during this story.
Research has shown there has been a large decline in children reading for enjoyment. Many say the impacts of this are great, as reading for pleasure increases children’s empathy, and introduces them to ideas and experiences that are different from their own.
Olivia spoke to the Chair of the Storylines Children’s Literature Trust, Christine Young, about the importance of this issue, and what Storylines does to encourage children to read more for enjoyment.
Caeden spoke to Consent Law Reform Campaign Founder Layba Zubair about the campaign in the context of the election and year since their petition handover.
Beth spoke to Shane Henderson for City Counselling about Auckland Council’s new Flood Viewer, which allows people in Tāmaki Makaurau to view the most flood-affected areas in the city.
And Member of the Rainbow Charitable Trust Board Steven Oates about the LGBTQ+ fundraiser ‘Give Out Day’ tomorrow.
Olivia spoke to Chair of the Storylines Childrens' Literature Charitable Trust Christine Young, about the importance of children reading for enjoyment.
And Associate Professor from the Department of Marketing from the University of Auckland Business School Dr Mike Lee about Current Election Marketing Strategies and Branding.
In 2022, the Rainbow Charitable Trust’s funding initiatives raised $60,000 to go towards 13 Rainbow organisations.
This year, the Rainbow Charitable Trust will be hosting Give Out Day, four days of national fundraising that will go towards ‘LGBTQ+ community groups, non-profit organisations, events and profits’. For the Wire today, Beth spoke with Rainbow Charitable Trust Board Member Steven Oates about Give Out Day, which is set to launch on Friday the 8th of September at 7pm and will be livestreamed across the nation.
Emilia spoke to the Green Party’s Chlöe Swarbrick about student issues and how the Greens intend to help students.
Nicholas spoke to Stephen Judd from FACT Aotearoa and Nicole Skews-Poole from The Disinformation Project about misinformation and disinformation leading up to the general election.
Arno interviewed two union representatives, Sarah Thompson and Nicholas Mayne of E tū and FIRST Union, respectively, about fair pay agreements amid workers striking across several industries.
Arno also spoke to Funeral Directors Association New Zealand Chief Executive Gillian Boyes about calls to increase Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ) funeral grant payments and those eligible for it.
Cleaners at Auckland Airport are going on strike to protest a pay increase of zero this year.
They are also campaigning for a Fair Pay Agreement, a process where unions work with companies to ensure fair pay for union members.
E tū union is the biggest private sector union in New Zealand, representing workers from dozens of industries.
Arno spoke with director Sarah Thompson to find out more about Fair Pay Agreements and how they function.
Next, Arno spoke with FIRST Union organiser Nicholas Mayne. Last week on Friday workers at the Warehouse took strike action, protesting a low wage and dangerously low staffing levels in stores. Arno set out to find out more about the strike and what can be done going forward to improve conditions for low-paid workers.
The Labour party has announced a new free dental plan for those under thirty 95should they be re-elected. Josh spoke to Tim Tenbensel from the University of Auckland to get his thoughts on this proposal.
From Dec 27 to Jan 18, all train lines across Tāmaki will be shutting down for summer maintenance, a closure which is expected to be the last of its kind ahead of the opening of the City Rail Link.
The current measles outbreak in Tāmaki is being continually monitored, with exposure sites being updated daily on info.health.nz. The public are encouraged to track whether they’ve been in possible contact with the virus, and get up to date on any vaccinations to limit possibilities of transmission.
Auckland Council are supporting arts initiatives across the summer months, with Music in the Park kicking off in early January, and Movies in the Park following in February.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about these topics, and also asked for comment following the attack by two gunmen at Bondi Beach earlier this week.
Yesterday, the latest six-monthly survey of housing support providers under the National Homelessness Data Project, or NHDP, showed that homelessness in Auckland has more than doubled in the year to September. The report also found that 14 of the 21 agencies interviewed reported an increase in homelessness.
As well as this, Australia’s ban on social media for children under 16 has taken effect. And according to an interim report into social media harm, a social media ban for children in New Zealand is worth exploring further.
And last week the Government announced the replacement of the Resource Management Act, or RMA. The coalition said its replacement will slash red tape and supercharge growth.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Max spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about the Government’s new RMA reforms and a potential social media ban in New Zealand.
But first they discussed the latest report on Auckland homelessness.
The Parliament’s Workforce and Education Committee has released an interim report on an inquiry into the harm young New Zealanders face online. The government has recently announced an overhaul of the Resource Management Act and introduced two new bills in its place, the Natural Environment Bill and the Planning Bill.
For our weekly catch-up with the National Party, Producer Vihan spoke to MP Carl Bates, who is also the Deputy Chairperson of the Workforce and Education Committee, about the new findings of the interim report, the new Natural Environment Bill, and the Fast Track Approval Amendments Bill.
The government has announced the overhaul of the Resource Management Act (RMA), which will be replaced by two different bills, the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill. The RMA is set to be fully replaced by 2029.
The RMA, which has been in effect for 34 years, is polarising across the political spectrum.
In announcing the reforms, RMA Reform Minister, Chris Bishop, says that “pretty much everything” will be quicker and less costly under the new regime.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host Joel spoke to MP Simon Court about this overhaul of the RMA.
They also discussed The Education and Workforce Committee’s interim report on the harms young people experience online, with a majority recommending a ban on social media for under-16-year-olds.
But first, they discussed the overhaul of the RMA.
On Sunday, “Block the Ban” held a protest against the government’s decision to ban new prescriptions of puberty blockers for young people with gender dysphoria.
The United Nations’ committee for the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination has released a report warning that New Zealand is at serious risk of weakening Māori rights.
And last week, the government rejected the recommended methane emissions targets.
This is despite officials warning against the government doing so, stating that lowering methane emissions targets could increase New Zealand’s contribution to global warming.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Shanan Halbert about all of these topics.
Safety measures on public transport are of growing concern this week following the fatal and unprovoked attack that took place on route 76 in East Tāmkaki on Monday night.
Earlier this week there were also multiple critical incidents that occurred simultaneously across Auckland’s West Coast beaches and waterways, seeing an unusually high deployment of emergency services and surf lifesavers for this early in the summer.
Swedish home and furniture retailer Ikea opened in Sylvia Park a week ago today, drawing huge excitement for many.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Councillor Shane Henderson about these topics.
Last week was scrutiny week, where Parliament focuses entirely on holding government agencies and ministers to account, to check-in on how well the Government is performing.
Many of the questions surrounding scrutiny week have been focused on climate change, with many recent reports highlighting the Government’s questionable decision-making.. The biggest headline was that the coalition had chosen to reject all three of the climate change commission’s recommendations to strengthen New Zealand’s emissions targets.
Along with this, the United Nations released a new report, where they’ve warned that New Zealand is at serious risk of weakening Māori rights and entrenching disparities for the indigenous population. In the 14-page report, the UN expressed concerns over multiple government policies affecting Maori, including the disestablishment of the Maori Health Authority, cuts to public funding for Maori services, and minimising the role of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Max spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about the report released by the United Nations, but first they discussed Scrutiny Week and the Government’s recent climate change decisions.
The government is pausing the new prescriptions of Puberty Blockers to gender diverse and transgender young people from the 19th of December onwards, following a similar move by the UK after the results of the NHS’s Cass Review.
Wire Producer Flo spoke to activist Lauren Craig about the effects of the legislation, her petition “Reverse the decision to deny transgender and takatāpui young people access to puberty blockers” against the changes and the wider political motivation for the policy.
If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here
The biannual Scrutiny Week took place in Parliament last week, with meetings across select committees and government departments focussed on scrutinising the outcomes of government work.
These include hearings on ministries like Health, Housing, Environment and Justice.
Wire Host Sara spoke to National MP Carl Bates about Scrutiny Week, firstly by asking him to talk about the meetings he was involved in
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