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.
In Australia last week, the New South Wales government condemned a Sydney primary school whose students made Black Lives Matter and anti police violence posters for their classrooms. NSW government officials have said that any teachers found politicising their classrooms will face disciplinary action and a full review will be made into the incident.
The NSW Minister for Education and Early Childhood Learning says that "politics has no place in the classroom". 95bFM News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston questioned this sentiment and set out to explore where Aotearoa stands on the inclusion of political discourse in education.
Jemima begins by explaining what happened in New South Wales last week. She speaks to Jason Wong, the President of the Lindfield Learning Village Parents & Citizens Association, who describes the 'political' task set for the students and the following backlash by the NSW government and the media.
Jemima then goes on to ask New Zealand education experts whether politics has a place in New Zealand classrooms. She speaks to Victoria University of Wellington Senior Lecturer in Education Bronwyn Wood, NZEI Te Riu Roa President Liam Rutherford and the New Zealand Principals Federation. They discuss the inherently political nature of the classroom, dealing with teachers' biases, and the relevance of the NSW story stemming from a reflection exercise on recent indigenous histories.
Isla Christensen and Stella Huggins bring you Tomorrow's World, a new Wire segment that explores how technologies and scientific issues affect people and the future of the planet.
This week Isla and Stella look into Elon Musk's new neuralink brain-chip which he recently demonstrated using a chimp. They speak to University of Auckland cognitive neuroscientist, Dr Paul Corballis, about the technology and what impact it could have on people.
The government has recently released a number of potential proposals to meet the Smokefree 2025 goal. These included plans to reduce nicotine levels in cigarettes and ban the sale of cigarettes to people born after 2004. Noah Ferguson-Dudding spoke to Health Promotion and Campaign's Manager for the New Zealand Cancer Society, Shayne Nahu, about the Smokefree 2025 goal.
Food and Beverage advertising is tricky to navigate especially for vulnerable communities and those with intellectual disabilities. David Corner is a Self Advocate Advisor with IHC and have an intellectual disability and talks to Ayana about the challenges faced in this area.
The Government announced yesterday a bank deposit protection plan, so Ayana talked to NZ Bankers Association Chief Executive Roger Beaumont about what it means, how that will be funded, and if industry has any concerns over this.
On the Friday Wire with Ayana Piper-Healion and Noah Ferguson-Dudding:
Firstly we have our weekly catch up with Christopher Luxon where Noah asks him about the Government scrapping District Health Boards and their Ihumatao deal.
Next Ayana talks to a self advocacy advisor from IHC about navigating food and beverage advertising with an intellectual disability.
Then, Noah talks to Shayne Nahu from the Cancer Society about Smokefree 2025.
Finally Ayana finds out what the new announcement about deposit protection in banks actually means for us with NZ Bankers Association Chief Executive Roger Beaumont.
Justin spoke to Health Minister Andrew Little at the 95bFM studio about his announcement on shaking up the health sector. The changes saw all 20 District Health Boards scrapped and replaced by one new body called Health NZ, and a new independent Māori Health Authority.
Sarah Dalton, the executive director of the Associaiton of Salaried Medical Specialists, talked to Justin on what medical practioners think of the health sector shakeup.
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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