Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Castor Chacko, Alex Fox, Emmanuel Orange, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
A new poll has highlighted that 82% of National voters said it was important to them to protect lakes, rivers, and drinking water. 54% cited specific concerns for nitrate contamination in water.
This is despite proposed Government rollbacks on fresh water protection, which Greenpeace claims will lead to “more polluted lakes, more unswimmable rivers, more contaminated drinking water, and more extinction.”
Caeden spoke with Greenpeace’s Will Applebe about why there is such a disconnect between what voters are saying in polls versus what the Government is actually doing.
For their regular catch-up, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March about the government’s recent Q3 action plan for 2024.
He spoke to Professor Bob Hancox, Medical Director for the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation to discuss Australia’s new vape laws and his calls to the New Zealand government to tackle the youth vaping epidemic.
And he spoke to professor Chris Ogden, also from the University of Auckland, to discuss the recent general elections in India.
Caden spoke to Greenpeace’s Will Applebe about the government rolling back fresh water protections despite their strong public support
Castor spoke to President of the New Zealand Council for Trade Unions, Richard Wagstaff, about a new law disallowing private contractors from challenging their employment through the courts
Last month, the 2024 Indian general elections were held, leading to the third re-election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.
To many, the re-election of Modi signals the rise of Hindu nationalism in Indian society and the country’s shift towards theocracy and authoritarianism.
Associate Professor and Director of Global Studies in the University of Auckland Faculty of Arts, Chris Ogden, talked to us about the significance of Modi’s election victory and why we should be keeping a closer eye on the world’s largest democracy.
The coalition government recently announced it’s action plan for Q3 of 2024, Introducing 40 new laws under the categories of Infrastructure, Public Services, law and order.
For their weekly Catchup, Oto spoke to Green Party MP Ricardo Menendez-March to discuss the party’s opinion on the action plan and it’s effectiveness. We started the interview by discussing the areas of the plan focusing on law and order.
Australia recently passed new legislation regarding the sale of e-cigarettes, only allowing those over the age of 18 to purchase them from pharmacies and requiring those under the age 18 to have a prescription to buy them.
Discussing the new legislation with the Wire, Bob Hancox, Medical Director of the Asthma and Respiratory foundation, said that the government of New Zealand should look into implementing similar policies, and do more overall to combat the youth vaping epidemic here in Aotearoa.
For Dear Science this week, we chatted with Doctor Cushla McGoverin about rifleman making new noises, Antarctic ice melting, and news in quantum computing.
For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Hamish Campbell about the future of the Interislander ferry following the crash of the Aratere and the recently increased alcohol levy.
And producer Elle spoke to Senior Lecturer of Urban Planning Dr Timothy Welch about the long term planning implications of the axed regional fuel tax.
On the night of the 21st of June, the Aratere Interislander ferry was grounded due to a steering issue. The interislander currently operates as an informal part of State Highway One, and as such is crucial to freight deliveries in the South Island.
The previous Labour government had planned investments in a further two ferries and terminals, which were cancelled under the current government, with finance minister Nicola Willis calling the proposal a search for “Ferraris” instead of using the trusty “Toyota Corolla”, in this case the grounded Aratere. The government was met with criticism for this decision, and has been called on to provide an alternative during their term.
The government also recently increased the alcohol levy for the first time since 2009. The alcohol levy funds measures to reduce alcohol related harm, and as of the changes will sit at $16.6 million.
An independent review recommended that the fund be increased to $37 million, with a minimum increase to $21.5 Million to account for inflation. For context, this would translate to a 1.1 cent increase to an average can of beer and an 8 cent increase to the average bottle of wine.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Hamish Campbell about the future of the interislander ferry and increases to the alcohol levy.
Last week, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith announced he would introduce a bill to parliament that would officially make stalking illegal by the end of the year.
The announcement comes after an open letter and petition with more than 21,000 signatures called for the government to introduce anti-stalking legislation.
The movement to criminalise stalking was ignited after the murder of 21-year old Farzana Yaqubi in 2022, who was stalked for several weeks leading up to her death, and was effectively ignored by New Zealand police as there are currently no laws criminalising stalking.
Wire host Sofia Roger Williams spoke to the Chair of the Coalition for the Safety of Women and Children, Leonie Morris, to discuss why the government has brought the introduction of the bill forward, prevention measures, and indications of what the bill might look like.
For their weekly catch-up with the ACT Party, Wire host Sofia speaks to ACT MP Laura Trask about public sector job cuts, military-style academies for youth offenders, and the Māori wards bill.
She also speaks to Dr Ella Cullen, the Director of Wellbeing System Leadership at Te Hiringa Mahara, the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, about recent data on the state of youth mental wellbeing in Aotearoa
She also speaks to Professor Michael Baker from the University of Otago about forming a global pandemic agreement and New Zealand’s current COVID response system.
And she speaks to the Chair of the Coalition for the Safety of Women and Children, Leonie Morris, about the government introducing a bill to make stalking illegal in Aotearoa.
For this week’s Get Action! producer Oto speaks to a student from Massey University about a petition of hers calling for the university to divest it’s investments from the State of Israel.
He also speaks to Rachel Mackintosh from E Tu Union to discuss the nationwide rallies for care and support workers this week.
Care and Support workers, many of whom are working disability and elderly care, will be rallying across the Motu to call on the Government to fund a pay equity settlement for the sector.
Oto to Rachel Mackintosh from E Tu Union, representing care and support workers and organising the rally with PSA and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation, to talk about the upcoming rallies and the demands of workers in the sector.
The government is reviewing Treaty of Waitangi references across 28 pieces of legislation, with concerns that stronger obligations could be reduced to simply “taking into account” Treaty principles.
At the same time, New Zealand has signed a new Free Trade Agreement with India, while incidents of anti-Indian graffiti and political comments about Indian communities have raised concerns about rising anti-Indian sentiment in Aotearoa.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Producer Pranuja spoke with Shanan Halbert about proposed changes to Te Tiriti, the NZ–India Free Trade Agreement, and rising anti-Indian sentiment in New Zealand.
Last week, the Green Party released a statement highlighting the recently released Dental For All report, which they say confirms that New Zealand can afford a free, universal public dental service.
And the recently signed Free Trade Agreement between India and New Zealand is being touted as a pivotal moment, garnering support from both Labour and National parties, however, NZFirst MP and coalition minister for Oceans and Fisheries, Shane Jones, expressed his opposition to the agreement with derogatory comments against potential indian immigrants that have drawn the ire of other parliamentary parties.
So for our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, I spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the Green Party’s Dental policy and their stance on the Free trade agreement with India.
Since its inception in 2008, the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (or ETS) has been, according to the government, its primary tool to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and tackle the climate crisis. As part of the scheme, the government sets a price for carbon units, which companies must pay to offset their emissions. The Climate Change Commission has recently highlighted that the scheme was not stable and susceptible to changes in the market, and did not have sufficient carbon units to last until 2030, requiring urgent reform.
For Green World, Wire producer Liam spoke with Scott Burnett, the Regional Conservation Manager for the top of the South Island and Forest and Bird’s climate spokesperson about why Forest and Bird has called the system broken, what impact this has on Aotearoa and what reforms should be implemented.
Last week, NZ First MP and Government Minister Shane Jones was criticised over using derogatory language towards Indian Immigrants. These comments were condemned by the National Party and Christopher Luxon, who labelled NZ First’s belief system as ‘anti-immigrant’, and saidd Jones was ‘scaremongering’.
That was not the extent of criticism between NZ First and National, however, with tensions between the two sparking after NZ First Leader Winston Peters calling out Luxon for not giving coalition partners prior notice of his confidence vote during a national party caucus meeting last week. In turn, these comments have been dismissed, and Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Luxon accused NZ First and Peters of putting Labour Governments, like Arderns, into power. Despite all of this, however, Peters has insisted the coalition is as stable as a ‘three-legged stool’.
Last week also saw the Treasury announce that they would revisit their forecasts for the economy ahead of the impending government budget. The Government also announced some changes to the way Infrastructure is run by the government, giving more power to the Independent Infrastructure Commission, increasing their oversight and changing the way that Ministers receive advice and information.
This week, Host Alex spoke with National MP Ryan Hamilton about these developments, beginning with Shane Jones’ comments.
The Prime Minister has survived the recent confidence vote, but questions remain about the stability of Christopher Luxon’s leadership and what that means for the government going forward. At the same time, inflation has come in higher than expected, rising 3.1 percent annually and 0.9 percent in the March quarter, adding to ongoing concerns about the cost of living. And in Wellington, severe flash flooding has once again raised questions about whether our cities are prepared for increasingly extreme weather.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Producer Pranuja spoke to Shanan Halbert about all of these issues.
Despite a tenuous ceasefire, the fuel crisis - resulting from the US and Israel bombing of Iran, and subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz - drags on. Prices have remained high, hitting low-income households hard, and while fuel stocks in or on-the-way to the country sit comfortably above a month’s cover, approaches to conserving fuel remain front-of-mind for many.
One strategy that New Zealanders have been urged to adopt is switching to public transport, which would put fewer cars on the road. However, access is often dependent on location and affordability.
Over the past few years, the Ministry of Education has reviewed numerous rural school bus routes, cancelling some, cutting off students from ready access to their education.
For this week’s Get Action, producer Theo spoke to Alicia Hall from Parents for Climate Aotearoa, on their petition to restore rural school bus routes and make public transport free for children, and students under 25.
If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here.
Last week, the Green Party leaders, Marama Davidson and Chloe Swarbrick, hosted their state of the planet address, where they launched their call to electrify the nation.
On top of that, events this week have led the party to criticise the government. The first critique, instigated by the floods that swept the nation, hitting the Coromandel and causing a state of emergency in the Wellington Region, led the Greens to question the government's decreased funding of flood responses as harsh weather increases.
The second critique came with a cabinet paper this week that shows the government is planning on moving ahead with reforms to legislation that will see references to the Treaty of Waitangi and Te Tiriti o Waitangi redefined, in what the government sez is about ‘standardisation’ but what the Green Party sees as dishonouring Te Tiriti.
So for our weekly catch-up with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March, we discuss their criticisms of the government but start with a discussion of their electrification policy.
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