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.
Earlier this week, world-leading general medical journal ‘The Lancet’ published a series of papers warning about the ‘overmedicalisation’ of menopause and have emphasised the importance of a fresh and conscious approach in how we support wāhine as they age. The research emphasises the importance of “going beyond medical treatments, to empower women using high-quality information on symptoms and treatments, empathic clinical care and workplace adjustments as required.”
Producer Jasmine speaks with the general manager of Women’s Health Action, Isis McKay, to further discuss what changing the conversation around menopause in Aotearoa looks like.
Much of our infrastructure and architecture has been constructed by able-bodied people, with little regard for those with different mobility needs.
Accessibility for differently abled people is usually a secondary consideration, with wheelchair ramps and similar accessibility measures sometimes being crudely installed at the back of buildings as a quickfire measure to comply with building accessibility requirements, leaving those with different mobility needs often feeling like second class citizens
Producer Oto spoke to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design, the idea that buildings and infrastructure should be constructed in a way that is accessible to people of ALL mobility needs and capabilities.
On the 4th of March 2024, the National Government presented their updated Land Transport plan.
To pay for new roading infrastructure, the Government announced a $50 price increase on registration costs, as well as a 12-cent increase in excise fuel tax beginning in 2027.
Nicholas asked Green Party Co-Leader James Shaw about his party’s position on the plan and their response to the Government’s reasoning behind building new roads.
Nicholas also spoke about the implications of a reversal of a ban on oil and gas exploration. A reversal that the Green Party has been firmly in opposition to.
It’s been a week since the government went ahead with its decision to dismantle Te Aka Whai Ora, the Maori health authority, reversing the 2022 initiative by the labour government to improve health services and outcomes for Maori.
The move has been widely criticised across the country, with many calling the move a step-back in progress towards improving Maori health, and indigenous rights as a whole.
Producer Oto spoke to Clive Aspin, a public health researcher and associate professor at Victoria University of Wellington, to discuss the dissolution of Te Aka Whai Ora, from the perspective of a health professional and what the move means for Maori Health outcomes.
The Citizens Advice Bureau is a nationwide, but locally based, community organisation that aims to provide advice on a range of topics.
The Citizens Advice Bureau is mainly comprised of volunteers, and next week from the 11th to the 17th of March they will be holding their awareness week.
Nicholas spoke to Vani Kapoor and Cat Finai about the work that the bureau does as well as their upcoming awareness
Around this time last year, the government banned TikTok on devices with access to the parliamentary network following in the footsteps of countries like Canada and the UK.
This time, parliament is considering a ban on popular Chinese messaging app WeChat.
Sofia spoke to Associate Professor of Commercial Law at Auckland University Gehan Gunasekara about cyber security risks and why it seems to only concern Chinese-owned apps.
Nicholas speaks to Green Party Co-leader James Shaw about the Government’s transport plan and the reversal of the ban on oil and gas exploration.
Oto speaks to Clive Aspin, a public health researcher and associate professor at Victoria University of Wellington, to discuss the dissolution of the Maori Health Authority from the perspective of a health professional.
Sofia speaks to Associate Professor at Auckland University Gehan Gunasekara about the proposal to ban MPs from using the Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat.
Oto also speaks to Bill McKay, a senior lecturer of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about universal design and its role in creating accessibility in modern buildings.
Finally, Nicholas speaks to Vani Kapoor and Cat Finai from the Citizens Advice Bureau about their upcoming awareness week.
In our weekly interview with National’s James Meager, Wire host Castor began with last week’s announcement of the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora.
Te Aka Whai Ora, or the Māori Health Authority, was established to address several Māori health issues, including overrepresentation in the health system and underrepresentation in the workforce. Castor asked James about why it was disestablished and the replacements that the National party might offer.
Castor and James also talked about the smokefree legislation repeal, which was also introduced in the last few weeks. The repeal has been met with backlash from opposition parties and public protests, with many arguing it follows arguments from within the tobacco industry. The two discussed the repeal and these possible links, as well as National’s continual commitment to Smokefree 2025.
BCITO, or the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation, is calling for more Pasifika learners to start apprenticeships due to low qualification rates in the industry. The organisation is aiming to increase these rates through offering apprenticeships, and therefore create new opportunities further down the line.
Wire host Castor spoke to BCITO director Greg Durkin about the campaign and the benefits it offers to Pasifika tradies.
MethaneSAT, a global initiative to track and reduce methane emissions, is launching today.
Although primarily funded by the US Environmental Defence Fund, the satellite is the first government funded space mission in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The US side of the project will focus on measuring and identifying methane leaks from oil and gas production, while scientists in New Zealand will use the satellite to study global emissions from agriculture.
Producer, Sofia Roger Williams, spoke to Spacecraft Mission Operations Director at Te Pūnaha Ātea, the Space Institute at the University of Auckland, Chris Jackson, about the launch, New Zealand’s role, and how the data gathered can help us make global and local recommendations to reduce methane emissions.
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.
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.
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.
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
With the rise of fast fashion outlets like Shein and Temu alongside the wider mainstream options available that contribute substantial amounts of clothing waste to landfill, experts are calling for an urgent response on a governance, business, and individual level.
Wire Host Sara spoke to Mindful Fashion Chief Executive Jacinta Fitzgerald about the problem, and the industry response to sustainability, as well as University of Auckland Marketing Professor Mike Lee about the importance of ethical consumption.for individuals.
First, is the interview with Fitzgerald, where she begins by talking about the organisation Mindful Fashion.
Following this, Sara spoke to Marketing Professor Mike Lee about the research he has undertaken around consumerism.
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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