Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Joel Armstrong, Castor Chacko, Oto Sequeira, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
Recent developments within global politics have been under great scrutiny by many journalists and political thinkers, and now the meme phrase “nothing ever happens” may not be so true.
This past month has seen the inauguration of Trump into office and his cozying up with Putin and the billionaires. He has also implemented great tariffs onto many countries meaning everything will continue to rise in price.
Sasha spoke to Professor Robert Patman from the University of Otago, Dunedin, about these recent global developments and the implications for the world. We also briefly touched on New Zealand’s response and potential implications for AUKUS
Recently, the Trump Administration has cut 90% of funding to USAID; the largest international aid organisation.
This move has received wide condemnation regarding what this will mean for those reliant on the support provided through the initiative.
At the same time, in his opinion piece on Newsroom, Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, Ritesh Shah, analyses the current international aid structure with the substantial funding cuts to USAID, and calls for international aid agencies to redirect what he says are their vested interests
News and Editorial Director, Joel, started off by asking him should other prominent aid agencies, including the New Zealand Agency for International Development, reevaluate how foreign aid is delivered.
For Dear Science this week, our expert, Doctor Cushla McGoverin chats with us about the cleanliness of the International Space Station, colours on birds of paradise, and stretchable display materials, thanks to MOTAT!
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Tuesday Wire Host Castor asked about the new citizen’s arrest policy and its potential impacts across society.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to the Principal of Papakura High School, Simon Craggs, about the roughly 50 principals from low-income schools who have expressed concerns about the new NCEA tests.
Castor spoke to the Co-Chair of Health Coalition Aotearoa, Professor Lisa Te Morenga, about the government’s new school lunch program.
And Joel spoke to a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, Ritesh Shah, about the substantial cuts to USAID, and whether we should revise the models of international aid organisations.
Roughly 50 principals from low-income schools have banded together to express their concerns regarding new online NCEA reading, writing, and maths tests.
Over half of NCEA students at low-income schools last year failed reading and writing tests, with three quarters of those failing numeracy testing.
Students will not be able to receive their NCEA qualifications without passing these tests
The alternative option to this, which is only available until the end of 2027, is to complete up to 20 additional credits in numeracy and literacy.
These principals also say that these online tests will result in a generation of students without qualifications, and will disproportionately affect Māori and Pacific students.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, spoke to the Principal of Papakura High School, Simon Craggs; one of the principals criticising these tests, about these concerns, and what he suggests as an alternative to this testing method.
They started off by asking him what are the barriers that students in low-income schools are facing regarding these new tests, and what he has been seeing at his own school.
The government’s new school lunch program, spearheaded by ACT party leader David Seymour, has come under fire for a raft of problems related to its implementation.
With rollout issues continuing since the first week alongside quality and quantity concerns, many are questioning whether the program change was necessary.
School lunches often support struggling families and students to maintain a healthy and balanced diet.
Tuesday Wire Host, Castor, speaks to Co-Chair of Health Coalition Aotearoa, Professor Lisa Te Morenga, about why a school lunch program is necessary and how the new program stacks up.
Concerns have been raised regarding Aotearoa’s animal protection system.
In his doctoral research, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Auckland, Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere, comparing our system with Alberta, Canada’s, Ferrere refers to our system as being ineffective, underfunded, and at risk of collapse, and has called for an animal welfare police unit to address the concerns with our current system.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, started off by asking him how grave of a concern our current system is.
Recently, Stats NZ have released findings from the 2023 Household Disability Survey (HDS), collected during the 2023 Census, that found that 63% of those with a disability in Aotearoa have called for better care in at least one aspect of their lives, such as with better support, reasonable accommodation, home modifications and equipment, and medical care.
The HDS found that in New Zealand, roughly 10% of children have a disability, with this being 18% of adults, equating to roughly 851,000 people.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the Director of Advocacy at IHC New Zealand; an intellectual disability advocacy group, Tania Thomas, about these recently released findings, specifically for those who have an intellectual disability.
This comes as the organisation is set to release a report using these findings in the coming months, highlighting the significant hardship faced by those with an intellectual disability; reinforcing the need for urgent policy to address these concerns.
Joel started off by asking her if these findings were surprising to her.
Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, and Producer Evie in studio to discuss students starting/going back to university!
For our weekly catch up with the ACT Party, Producer Evie spoke to Simon Court about government legislation for a four year parliamentary term, and the government giving further powers for citizen arrests.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, speaks to the Director of Advocacy at IHC New Zealand; an intellectual disability advocacy group, Tania Thomas, on the recently released Stats NZ figures showing a large number of individuals with a disability are needing better care in at least one aspect of their life.
Joel speaks to an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Auckland, Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere, on his doctoral research, calling for Aotearoa to adopt an animal welfare police unit.
And Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins us in studio to discuss students starting university for the year
Research from a new study of 185 countries has found that New Zealand and Australia have some of the highest rates of breast cancer diagnoses in the world.
However, our mortality rates from breast cancer were at the lower end of the scale, and reducing by 2.1% per year - well on our way to meeting the World Health Organization Global Breast Cancer Initiative goal of 2.5% a year.
Sofia spoke to cancer genomics researcher and data analyst, Dr Annette Lasham, from the University of Auckland Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences about the study and how we respond to breast cancer diagnoses in Aotearoa.
Last week, the council’s Civil Defence and Emergency Management (CDEM) Committee said they would be seeking to implement a number of recommendations that improve emergency readiness for disabled populations.
Following a hui last year where community members were invited to bring forward issues relating to future planning for natural disasters, Sara was interested to hear about how the council is taking suggestions on board.
As well, Auckland Council has been considering proposals to mitigate flood risks around the Wairau catchment, including one which would see the reduction of the size of the Takapuna Golf Course, to convert the space into a flood catchment.
Producer Sara spoke to Auckland Councillor Shane Henderson on both of these topics, firstly by asking him to discuss the desired outcomes relating to emergency preparedness for disabled people, and the council’s first steps to implementation
Zohran Mamdani has all but won the Democratic Primary in New York City after key competitor Andrew Cuomo conceded the race.
Mamdani will now be the Democratic candidate for New York City mayor.
His campaign was built on cost-of-living, where Mamdani presented himself as an authentic, Democratic Socialist, grassroots campaign leader.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to 95bFM reporter and South Asia correspondent Sanat Singh about Momdani’s win, what this means for the communities he represents, and where to from here.
A reported 131,000 submissions were made on the Regulatory Standards Bill.
The Bill, proposed by the ACT party, includes a set of principles outlining “responsible regulation.” Notably, it does not include any mention of either version of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Last weekend, hundreds of Destiny Church members marched on Queen Street in a rally that they called “in defence of faith, flag, and family.”
And the Labour Party has criticised the framing of a poll question by the Taxpayers Union/Curia on whether or not Cook Islanders should retain automatic New Zealand citizenship.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden asked Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about all of these topics.
Recently the Green Party commissioned independent legal advice to look into the government’s $200 million investment in new gas fields that was carried out last month and found out that the investment was in breach of the Agreement on Climate Change, Trade and Sustainability (ACCTS).
NZ First MP Shane Jones recently announced that he’d be drafting a member's bill to force Ngāpuhi into a single commercial settlement, which would prevent hapū from negotiating separate commercial redresses and remove any reference to hapū sovereignty from the settlement terms.
And the Green party recently issued a call to the New Zealand government to condemn the US strikes on Iranian Nuclear facilities, almost a week after Iran and Israel had both been trading missile strikes between each other.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke with MP Hūhana Lyndon to get the party’s take on all of these issues
Last week, Statistics Minister Shane Reti announced plans to scrap the nationwide census moving forward. The census is the largest statistical survey done in Aotearoa, and provides the bulk of population data used in research and decision-making. Reti says the census is “no longer financially viable” and will be replaced with a combination of smaller annual surveys and administrative data.
While the change looks good on paper, there are concerns around how the change in data collection could affect representation of marginalised and minority groups. Census data tends to be more protected from bias than administrative data and smaller surveys, meaning there are more opportunities for misrepresentation. Some statisticians are particularly concerned about the potential exclusion of marginalised rural communities.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked him about the census decision and its implications on marginalised and minority groups.
Associate Health Minister, David Seymour, has recently announced changes to Psilocybin and Melatonin availability.
Psilocybin, the compound found in magic mushrooms, will be available for certain patients suffering from poor mental health outcomes. Melatonin, which is used for insomnia and jetlag, is set to be available over the counter.
For our weekly catchup with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to him about this move, and the potential accessibility concerns with accessing these medications.
They also discussed taxpayers set to be funding newly-funded cancer medicines for private facilities.
Finally, they discuss opposition parties criticised Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, over a lack of transparency regarding the effectiveness of boot camps for youth offenders, especially as boot camps have received a boost of $30 million, despite the pilot programme still being ongoing.
But first, they discussed Psilocybin and Melatonin.
Last Saturday, over 2,000 protests took place across all 50 American States against President Donald Trump.
The protests coincided with Trump’s birthday and the 250th anniversary of the US Army, and they served as a direct response to the military parade in Washington, DC.
The organisers of the protests say they aimed to reject “authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarisation of our democracy.”
Wire Host Caeden spoke to Jeremy Pressman, Professor of Political Science at the University of Connecticut about the protests and the backlash towards them from the Trump administration.
Housing intensification is a key priority for Auckland Council as Auckland's population is forecast to reach 2.3 million by 2050.
But as planning for growth continues, some Auckland residents have expressed concern about the approval of developments in areas on flood plains or particularly prone to natural disasters.
With Kāinga Ora selling homes as ‘high risk investments’ in areas which were impacted by flooding in recent years, and 15 percent of all granted consents for new builds by Auckland Council being on floodplains, I spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about how the council is taking into account these issues for the coming years.
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