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 Zazi speaks with Brooke about Auckland moving to Alert Level 3, as well as Climate Change Minister James Shaw going to COP26, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland.
Zazi asks Brooke about Auckland's Alert Level changes. They discuss some of the positives with going down a level, local businesses staying afloat, and economic support.
In the second half, Zazi and Brooke talk about James Shaw's decision to attend COP26. Brooke talks about ACT’s objection to him attending, as well as ACT's proposed solution of the Emission Trading Scheme.
Doctoral Researcher at the University of Oxford, Paula Larsson, has written an article titled The inherent racism of anti-vaxx movements. Paula is currently researching the history of vaccination, and in this article writes about how vaccinations came to be, where anti-vaxx movements stemmed from, and what the repercussions of these movements mean for our future health and safety.
With the Government urging everyone in Aotearoa to get the vaccine, Zazi thought it would be interesting to talk to Paula Larsson about anti-vaxx movements. Yesterday afternoon they discussed Paula’s insights, as well as her views, on the racism within anti-vaxx organisations.
Zazi began by asking Paula to talk about her research, and how she came to write her article.
A recent study from the University of California, Los Angeles has found a correlation between too much free time and poorer mental health. The research involved over 25,000 participants and how free time impacts their wellbeing.
Louis talked to one of the researchers, Cassie Mogilner Holmes, about the findings and the consequences of lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic.
A new invasive seaweed species has been discovered on Aotea Great Barrier Island. Since its detection, the Ministry of Primary Industries and mana whenua have been working towards a dual response for controlling the spread.
Louis spoke to Ngati Wai's Martin Cleave about the species, its impacts, and how they are looking to respond.
New Zealand has voted to abstain on a temporary ban on seabed mining in the South Pacific. Although the vote passed, environmental groups have criticised New Zealand for not taking a stance on the motion.
Louis spoke to Greenpeace Aotearoa's seabed mining campaigner James Hita about seabed mining in the Pacific and his perspective on New Zealand's vote.
Today on the Tuesday Wire, we are presenting a Best of Level 4 Lockdown show!
It has been five weeks to the day that the 95bFM News Team started producing news and current affairs content from home. So today, News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston thought she would highlight some of the best Level 4 lockdown pieces created by each person that contributes to our daily current affairs show.
On the show Jemima plays snippets of interviews played on the Wire over the last five weeks. We’ll go over and update our pieces on Conversion Therapy Practices Bill submissions, a book called "Protest! Shaping Aotearoa", how to entice native birds into your garden, the Green Party's thoughts on David Seymour tweeting the Māori vaccination code, the impact of lockdown on climate change, the Canadian election, the latest Afghanistan crisis and the flooding event in West Auckland.
A massive thank you needs to go to our Wire contributors for their work over this time. Thank you Jessica Hopkins, Louis Macalister, Joe Wickins, Zazi Hewlett, Frances Wright, Justin Wong, Conor Head-McCarthy, Ilena Shadbolt and Noah Ferguson-Dudding.
You can hear any of the pieces played in this show in full on the Wire page on the 95bFM website.
On the Monday wire this week, Jessica Hopkins speaks to Professor Tim Dare, from the University of Auckland about possible ethical issues surrounding vaccine passports and Alicia Hall from Parents for Climate Aotearoa, about climate anxiety and the role parents are playing in climate action.
Louis Macalister interviews Greenpeace Seabed Mining Campaigner, James Hita about New Zealand abstaining on recent seabed mining vote. Then, Louis speaks to Ngati Wai’s Martin Cleave about new invasive seaweed on Great Barrier Island. Finally Louis talks to UCLA’s Cassie Mogilner Holmes about research on free time and mental wellbeing.
A COVID-19 vaccine passport is set to be implemented in New Zealand later this year. While some have welcomed this announcement, vaccine passports for both international travel and domestic activities such as work, and education have prompted riots and protests in some countries.
Concerns have also been raised about potential issues of discrimination and inequality for some communities.
Jessica Hopkins speaks to Professor Tim Dare from the University of Auckland about whether domestic vaccine passports are justified, and how they might work in Aotearoa.
A new global study has suggested that climate anxiety amongst young people is widespread, and that many believe Governments are not treating climate change as an emergency.
This follows the Government announcing a five month extension on its deadline to publish the Emissions Reduction Plan, which will set out how New Zealand will meet its climate targets.
Founder of Parents for Climate Aotearoa, Alicia Hall is calling for the Government to respond to the Climate emergency with the same urgency they have to the COVID-19 pandemic. Jessica spoke to Hall about her role as a parent in acting against climate change.
This morning, Ilena spoke to Green Party MP Jan Logie about their open letter to the Minister for ACC, Carmel Sepuloni, asking for birth injuries to be covered by ACC. Currently, injuries such as vaginal tears are not covered by ACC. Neither are injuries to the baby such as cerebral palsy through lack of oxygen.
On a whole, women receive far less compensation from ACC annually than men - almost a billion dollars less per year. For wāhine Māori, the difference in compensation is even wider, as Māori women tend to have more injuries than Pākehā and are less likely to be referred for an ACC claim by a healthcare professional.
Jan talked about the legal challenges of having birth injuries covered by ACC and the government’s response.
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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