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.
The Ministry of Social Development is not immune to job cuts seen in other public service departments, with MSD calling for voluntary redundancies after cost-saving efforts failed to meet Government targets. For our weekly catch-up with Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni Wire Host Caeden asks her about the impact of cuts at MSD, especially amongst other Government policies disadvantaging beneficiaries.
They also ask about the Samoan Citizenship Bill led by Teanau Tuiono, and the impact of losing independent media giants such as Newshub for democracy.
The recent release of the Ministry for Environment’s Our Land 2024 report has again reiterated the impacts of intensive farming and agriculture on freshwater ecosystems. Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Head of Campaigns and Greenpeace spokesperson Amanda Larsson about the stakes for freshwater protections under the current coalition government.
For our weekly catch-up with Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni Wire Host Caeden asks about job losses in media, cuts at MSD, and Teanau Tuiono’s restoring Samoan Citizenship members bill.
For City Counselling they speak to Cr Lotu Fuli about a proposal to merge the Ōtara-Papatoetoe and Māngere-Ōtāhuhu local boards and a new report on quality of living in Tāmaki Makaurau.
They also speak to AUT Lecturer Laumua Tunufa’i about the bill to repeal the 1982 bill which stripped Samoans of New Zealand Citizenship.
And they speak to Paul Thistoll from Countering Hate Speech Aotearoa, as well as Rainbow Spokesperson for the Human Rights Commission Prudence Walker about Hate Speech Law protections for LGBTQIA+ communities.
Today Jasmine speaks with lawyer Alexandra Allen-Franks about a landmark European climate action human rights lawsuit
And she speaks to Greenpeace Spokesperson Amanda Larsson about the dire state of Aotearoa’s freshwater protectionshat have you got for us today?
This week, the European Human Rights Court made a historic ruling on climate change, concluding that the Swiss government had violated the human rights of its citizens by failing to take sufficient action to combat climate change. The case was raised by the group, Klimaseniorinnen, a collective of more than 2000 Swiss women aged over 64, who claimed government inaction on climate put them at increased risk of dying during heatwaves, a vulnerability exacerbated by their age and gender demographics.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Alexander Allen-Franks, Co-Director of the NZ Centre for Human Rights Law, Policy and Practice on what this case means for accountability on climate action for vulnerable communities.
Humanity is currently going through a stage in its history known as the “AI Spring”, an ongoing period of advancement in the world of artificial intelligence, heavily impacting the technology we use on a daily basis.
As to be expected, there are numerous ethical concerns to be raised regarding the development of artificial intelligence. The use of AI in modern military conflicts has demonstrated the capabilities of this new technology to cause large-scale destruction to human lives. The Israeli Defence Force, for example, have been using AI in their weapon systems to acquire targets in their war on Gaza, contributing to one the highest rates of civilian casualties in any modern conflict.
Dr Thomas Gregory is a Senior lecturer in politics and international relations at the University of Auckland, with expertise in civilian casualties and contemporary conflict. Oto spoke with him to discuss how AI is being used on the battlefield, and how it has impacted civilian lives in modern conflicts.
New Zealand NGO Reemi, an organisation which works to alleviate period poverty, have received a UK humanitarian grant to supply reusable period underwear to Palestinians in Gaza.
News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, spoke to Reemi founder, Emily Au-Young, about what the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has meant for menstruators.
She started off the interview by asking Au-Young about what Reemi does.
The government has announced that the flu vaccine will no longer be free for children under 12 or Māori and Pacific people aged 55 to 64.
News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, spoke to Senior Lecturer in Bioethics at the University of Otago, Dr Elizabeth Fenton, who along with other health experts, says this is a missed opportunity for New Zealand's health system to improve outcomes and achieve health equity.
She started off our interview asking Fenton for her reaction to vaccine subsidies being removed for these groups.
Health Coalition Aotearoa have released a press release in which they claim that Associate Education Minister David Seymour is using outdated advice to justify cutting the school lunch program.
A treasury report released in 2023 has been used by the Associate Education Minister as evidence for looking into cutting Ka Ora Ka Ako funding.
However, Health Coalition Aotearoa believes more recent reports highlight the importance and positive benefits of the school lunch programs.
Nicholas spoke to Dr Kelly Garton of Health Coalition Aotearoa about Ka Ora Ka Ako.
A new study into dementia in New Zealand is seeking to fill gaps in our understanding of how dementia affects our communities.
The study will be the largest of its kind and will aim to talk to more than two thousand older people and their families.
The study will also seek to understand the prevalence of dementia across four ethnic communities Pakeha, Chinese, Indian and Fijian Indian, with parallel studies taking place in Maori and Pasifika communities.
Nicholas spoke to the lead researcher for the Indian and Fijian Indian parts of the study Professor Rita Krishnamurthi, I began by asking about what prompted the research .
In his speech at the UN General Assembly, Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters expressed New Zealand’s support for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Green Party have been vocal advocates for a ceasefire since the beginning of the conflict and have also been advocating for the granting of Visas for Palestinians with family in Aotearoa.
Nicholas spoke to Green Party MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the foreign Minister’s speech.
They also spoke about the consequences of job cuts in the public 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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