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.
Professor John Hewson is an economic and financial expert with experience in academia, business, government, media and the financial system. He has worked as an economist for the Australian Treasury, the Reserve Bank, the International Monetary Fund and as an advisor to two successive Federal Treasurers and the Prime Minister. He is the former Leader of the Federal Opposition in Australia. In February 2014, Professor Hewson joined the Australian National University as Professor and Chair of the Tax and Transfer Policy Institute.
Harry spoke with Hewson ahead of his speech at the University of Auckland on "The overlapping economic challenges and geo-political changes and tensions make the global economic scene riskier and more unpredictable than at any time since the late 1960s". They also took time to chat about NZ's economic place in the world, and the potential implications of the TPPA for this part of the world.
Lachlan spoke with Shadow Leader of the House Simon Bridges about the confusion over the election of Trevor Mallard to speaker. He also spoke with Dr Stephen Winter from the University of Auckland about the role of select committees and what significance the increase in seats from 96 to 108 will have.
Today on the show we are joined by National MP Simon Bridges who talks us through all the drama at the opening of our 52nd Government. Lachlan speaks with Steven Winter from Auckland University Politics Department on the week’s events in the house. We are then joined by Dr Liam Martin from the school of cultural and social studies at the University of Victoria, talking about the developments at Waikeria Prison, and Harry speaks with Professor John Hewson on his thoughts that the current global political economic scene is riskier and more unpredictable than any other time since the late 1960s, ahead of his speech at the University of Auckland tomorrow night. Finaly Ben takes us back to this day in history in 1989 when the Berlin Wall met its demise.
Lachlan spoke with Dr Liam Martin from the Victoria university of Wellington about the proposed "mega prison" that will possibly start construction next year in Waikato. They also discussed the state of prisons in Aotearoa more generally, and why we have such a large prison population.
We have Tracey for another week! Tracey is currently in the state opening of parliament I believe but I spoke with her earlier this morning and we talked about the incident in parliament yesterday, and what NZ First is thinking about the TPPA-11
The Auckland Art Gallery, Toi o Tamaki, is facing a funding shortage which may see it cutting opening hours or staff next year if the shortfall is not met.
The award winning gallery is currently open every day except for Christmas and attracts around 550,000 visitors annually.
The gallery’s Auckland Council funding has been cut from $12 million in 2012 to $6.9 million annually. Arts patron Dame Jenny Gibbs has called the current grant a disgrace and completely unsustainable.
Reuben McLaren spoke to Chris Brooks, the CEO of Regional Facilities Auckland, of which the Auckland Art Gallery is a division.
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has fired his successor as the country remains in economic turmoil. Reporter Conor Knell speaks with Roland Henwood, a political commentator from the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
Surf Life Saving Northern Region is raising concerns about their capacity to continue providing the service that they do. Matt Williams is the Chief Executive of the organisation and is saying that the service is running like a small business, which is not sustainable. They are hoping central government will get involved. Lillian Hanly spoke with Matt about the issues they are facing.
On today's wire, Allan Blackman talks to us about Marie Curie on Dear Science. Curie was the first women to win a nobel prize and her research into radioactivity has been influential.
Conor Knell talks with Roland Henwood about the political situation in Zimbabwe right now.
Tracey Martin from New Zealand First tells us about what happened in Parliament yesterday and the party's plans regarding the TPPA11.
The Auckland Art Gallery is facing a funding shortage and Chris Brookes, Regional Facilities Auckland CEO tells us more about that.
Surf Life Saving Northern Region is also facing an uncertain future due to unstable funding and Matt Williams, CEO, tells us about the role of a lifeguard.
On today's Wire, India speaks to Oxfam NZ's Executive Director about the Paradise Papers, a huge document leak which reveals how the world’s elite use offshore havens to avoid paying tax.
Dr Jackie Blue from the Human Rights Commission discusses Labour’s changes to paid parental leave and the Equal Pay Act.
On Green Desk with Conor Mercer, we hear about shallow reef systems, and the importance of citizen scientists.
We speak to Greer Rasmussen from Women in Urbanism about the importance of accessibility in Auckland’s transport, and illustrator Toby Morris discusses ethics in cartoons.
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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