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.
The Education Act allows for public state schools to hold religious lessons for up to 20 hours a year. This is particularly common in primary schools, and it is claimed that they predominantly focus of Christianity.
Secular Education Network spokesperson Tanya Jacob told Radio New Zealand that there are cases where parents would be shocked and disgusted and that often they just go along with it because they don't want their child to be singled out, adding that it is Christian indoctrination.
Earlier this year in May, SEN filed a case with the human rights tribunal claiming that religious favoritism is prohibited under the Bill of Rights Act.
Producer Reuben McLaren spoke to Peter Harrison of the SEN to find out what exactly they are campaigning for.
New Zealand's flightless icon is also turning into a blind one.
An article in New Scientist has found three kiwi in a South Island forest are completely blind and several others have severe sight problems.
95bFM reporter Mark Casson spoke to Te Papa's curator of vertebrates, Alan Tennyson who is downplaying concerns the blindness could affect their survival rates. Mark then spoke to Forest and Bird's Kevin hague who said the noctural native birds appear to be doing just fine, despite the lack of sight.
India speaks to music promoter Emma-Hall Phillips, the founder of Moments — a collective which prioritises women and the LGBT+ community in their line ups and aims to create safe spaces and make sure all involved are comfortable and treated with respect.
On The Wire with India, Lucy and Mack, hear about the state of emergency in Vanuatu where a volcano is causing thousands of people to evacuate. Marama Fox from the Māori Party and Geoff Simmons from TOP dicuss how each party fared in the election.
We also hear from a Three-Minute Thesis winner interested in fast/slow fashion, the founder of inclusive music collective Moments, and about a new street newspaper for K’Road’s fringe community.
PHD researcher Miriam Seifert joins India to discuss her research into the slow fashion movement and her success in the three-minute thesis competition.
After ten months of campaigning, The Opportunities Party gained 2.2 percent of the vote, meaning they are fell well below the 5 percent threshold needed to gain a seat in Parliament.
India spoke to the party’s deputy leader Geoff Simmons about what’s next for the party, whether he’ll be taking over the leadership from Gareth Morgan, and why he believes the Greens should consider a coalition with National.
The election wrap-up show where Joel and Sam look at what the election results mean for New Zealanders. Sam spoke to Bryce Edwards who broke down his views on the election, Joel spoke to the Green Party's Chloe Swarbrick about the youth voting turnout, and the effectiveness of MMP systems. He also spoke to Julie-Anne Genter about what the election results mean for the Green Party, as well as speaking to Kendall Hutt from AUT Pacific Media Center about how the election affects Pasifika communities. Producer Jack also spoke to Rez Gardi, the founder of the Kurdish Youth Association about the referendum of independence taking place in Iraqi Kurdistan today.
Producer Jack Marshall speaks to Rezi Gardi, the founder of the Kurdish Youth Association in New Zealand, about the referendum on indpendence taking place in Iraqi Kurdistan today.
Joel spoke to freshly elected Green MP Chloe Swarbrick about how youth are not adequately represented in Government and how to get young voters more engaged in politics.
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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