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.
This week on the show, Jessica Hopkins speaks to Associate Professor Nicola Gaston from Stop Sexual Harassment on Campus about their call for an independent body to oversee how universities handle reports of sexual misconduct on campus.
Louis Macalister brings you two packages, one on funding for artists throughout the pandemic and another on vineyard labour shortages.
Finally Louis was joined by Cawthron Institute Freshwater Ecologist Dr Roger Young to talk about the recent Land Air Water Aotearoa report.
Last week, the arts sector received an additional $37.5m in emergency relief funding to support them during the lockdown. However, many artists have said this will no be enough to help them plan for the coming months.
Louis spoke to Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Carmel Sepuloni, Creative New Zealand's Cath Cardiff, Basement Theatre's Cat Ruka, and Nightsong New Zealand's Ben Crowder about this.
Louis talked to Cawthron Institute freshwater ecologist Dr Roger Young about the Land Air Water Aotearoa report's results for freshwater health and the need for more awareness about waterway pollution.
Louis was joined by Ethical Employer's Tanya Pouwhare, Mudbrick Vineyard's Janine Mears, and New Zealand Wine's Philip Gregan to talk about labour shortages in the wine industry and the Recognised Seasonal Employers scheme.
Today Noah is back in studio because we are now at Alert Level 3!
On the show today, News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston brings us a breaking story on potential breaches to the Covid-19 border in the South of Port Waikato region.
Noah Ferguson-Dudding speaks to MP Christopher Luxon about the National Party’s plan to deal with Covid-19 over the coming years
Noah talks to Melanie Webber from the Post Primary Teachers Association about how students have been doing in lockdown, amid recent news that achievement rates have declined over the past two years.
Noah also interviews Professor Shaun Hendy about the recent modelling of vaccination rates he did for the government, and whether we’re likely to see a way of out of this lockdown
Ilena Shadbolt speaks to Auckland Councillor Pippa Coom about the rejuvenation of midtown Auckland and the Council’s response to the government’s three waters proposal.
Last week, a number of researchers presented the government with modelling on the vaccination rates required to protect New Zealanders in the coming years. Noah Ferguson-Dudding spoke to one of the researchers, Professor Shaun Hendy, about the models and their implications. They also discussed New Zealanders' attitudes towards lockdown, whether the government could have prepared better in their rollout, and how Auckland's housing crisis is exacerbating the pandemic.
The National Qualifications Authority has announced that pass rates for NCEA have declined over the past two years, likely as a result of lockdowns. The number of achieved, merit and excellence passes at this point in the year have decreased by 6% from last year, and 20% from 2019.
Noah Ferguson-Dudding spoke to the Post Primary Teachers' Association Vice-President, Melanie Webber, about how students have coped during lockdown. They also discussed the 'device-divide' between students of different socioeconomic backgrounds, and what aspects of online teaching will be implemented into education systems in the future.
In breaking news, a member of the South of Port Waikato community says people have been breaching the Auckland border and wants Covid-19 police checkpoints to be set up at Port Waikato and at Onewhero village.
The Onewhero village resident told News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston that traffic using local roads to travel in and out of Auckland has quadrupled since New Zealand went to Alert Level 3 on August 31 and believes the traffic is non-local people breaching border restrictions. The community feels that not enough is being done to prevent people travelling out of Auckland and potentially spreading Covid-19 to the wider New Zealand population.
The resident speaks to Jemima about what they have seen in terms of non-local traffic driving in and out of Auckland within their area and they discuss what response the community has had from officials about this problem.
Jemima also reached out to a Police representative about the resident's concern and recieved this comment, "Police have patrols working on a 24/7 basis in the area covered by unsealed roads on the southern border. Staff patrolling are stopping all vehicles they encounter to ensure any travel is permitted. Anyone found in these areas attempting to cross the boundary can expect to face enforcement action as a result."
Jemima has also contacted Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins for comment and is awaiting a response.
NB: The resident interviewed for this piece wants to remain anonymous. Jemima has transcribed their interview and had Friday Wire Producer Ilena Shadbolt voice their words to maintain their privacy.
Ilena speaks to Auckland Councillor Pippa Coom about plans for the rejuvenation of Auckland's midtown. They also discussed Auckland Council's response to the Three Waters proposal.
Justin spoke to Health Minister Andrew Little about a health equity report he received, National's COVID plan, and results of the mental health stocktake.
He also spoke to National's Covid-19 spokesperson Chris Bishop about their plans to reopen New Zealand, and talked to Anu Kaloti of the Migrant Workers' Association on the government's new residency programe for temporary visa holders.
Neighbourhood Watch reports on SA banning spit hoods, traditional guardians of a QLD world heritage-listed rainforest getting back ownership, and Facebook running adverts of a controversial federal MP despite banning him.
Producer Trishil Kyle Dahya reports on the experiences of people who are on the autistic spectrum and autistic burnout.
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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