Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Joel Armstrong, Castor Chacko, Oto Sequeira, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
As of the 1st of July 2025, the Healthy Homes standards have kicked in. This requires all rental properties to meet the regulations, designed to improve renters’ health, by preventing damp, mouldy and cold conditions.
Now that the final deadline has passed, landlords who fail to comply with the standards could face fines of up to $7200. The only problem is who might be regulating them…
To break down what this means for renters, landlords and the wider housing sector, Producer Max spoke to Bill McKay, from the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland.
Wegovy, also known as Ozempic when marketed in lower doses, is a weight-loss drug that is already making headlines globally, and now as of the 1st of July, it’s available for prescription in Aotearoa.
Given that New Zealand is currently ranked 31st in the world for obesity rates, according to The World Obesity Federation, some experts believe Wegovy could have a major impact on obesity levels nationwide. Especially if it were to become publicly funded.
To talk about why the drug isn’t publicly funded at the moment, and what kind of impact Wegovy could have on obesity in Aotearoa, Producer Max spoke with Boyd Swinburn, Professor of Population, Nutrition and Global Health at the University of Auckland.
Recently, the Water Services Authority published their Taumata Arowai report analysing the state of drinking water safety.
The report found that seven registered water supplies exceeded levels of nitrate contamination, carrying possible risks of increased risk of preterm birth and other health conditions for a number of rural communities in the North Island.
Oto spoke with Greenpeace Aotearoa’s Freshwater Spokesperson - Will Applebe who says that the contamination of water supplies, largely caused by industrial agricultural output, is linked to the government’s removal of freshwater protections and their planned changes to the Resource Management Act.
A study was recently conducted by Motu Economic and Public Policy Research comparing outcomes for children living in public housing with their peers living in privately owned homes.
The study found that children aged between 0-9 who lived in public housing faced a number of disadvantages, exhibiting higher levels of behavioural difficulties in early childhood.
Oto spoke to Dr Jaimie Monk, a research fellow at Motu, about the study and the links between public housing and children’s wellbeing
For our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Oto spoke with MP Ricardo Menendez-March about The government pulling out of the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, the government’s plan to electronically monitor asylum seekers and Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith's sentencing reforms.
He spoke to Will Applebe from Greenpeace Aotearoa about a new study uncovering high levels of nitrate contamination in rural freshwater bodies.
And he spoke to Dr Jaimie Monk, a research fellow at Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, about a study she conducted uncovering the links between public housing stability and child wellbeing.
Max spoke with Bill McKay to talk about the Healthy Homes standards being introduced
And he also spoke to Boyd Swinburn, to talk about the Weight-loss drug Wegovy being available for prescription in New Zealand.
Recently, new NIWA-led research has shown that Aotearoa’s native forest’s are absorbing substantially more carbon dioxide than previously thought.
This has raised concerns that the government is not doing enough to regulate pests that are harming native forest carbon sinks.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, spoke to the Northland Regional Manager for Forest and Bird, Dean Baigent-Mercer, about this, and what the government is doing regarding these concerns.
A majority of Youth MPs across the political spectrum are calling for the current voting age to be decreased for local and general elections, allowing 16-and-17-year-olds the right to vote.
These Youth MPs have also signed an open-letter calling for the voting age to be lowered.
This follows the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that the current voting age of 18 discriminates against 16-and-17-year-olds, with the decision made on the grounds listed in the Human Rights ACT 1993.
A bill to allow 16-to-17-year-olds to vote in local elections had previously passed its first reading in August 2023, but was axed by the government last year.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, spoke to Make It 16 member and Youth MP for Ilam, Sam Allan, about lowering the voting age, and what it means to have young voices represented in local and general elections.
*This caption has been edited to clarify that not all political parties had Youth MPs who had signed the open letter. NZ First Youth MPs did not sign the letter.
For Dear Science this week, our expert, Professor Allan Blackman, chats about the importance of uranium 235, thanks to MOTAT.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Tuesday Wire Host Castor asks about New Zealand’s exit from the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance, and new systems in place for ADHD diagnosis.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to Make It 16 member, and Youth MP for Ilam, Sam Allan, about a majority of Youth MPs backing calls to lower the voting age in both local and general elections.
And Joel speaks to the Northland Regional Manager for Forest and Bird, Dean Baigent-Mercer, about a recently conducted NIWA-led study that shows Aotearoa’s native forests are absorbing substantially more carbon dioxide than previously thought.
Recently, Meta, the company that owns Facebook, has won a copyright case against 13 authors over the unlicensed use of their work to train Meta’s Llama AI models.
The case, referred to as Kadrey v. Meta, resulting in US District Court judge Vince Chhabria, ruling that Meta did not violate copyright law.
As this case is a first of it’s kind as AI becomes more prominent across the globe, this has raised the question of the grey area between copyright infringements and the use of AI.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to Joshua Yuvaraj, a Senior Law Lecturer at the University of Auckland, about this case, and what this ruling means for the future copyright claims not only internationally, but also here in Aotearoa as well.
There will be no catch up with Te Pāti Māori, and for the immediate future, due to the tragic passing of our spokesperson, Takutai Kemp, last week. Our thoughts go out to her whānau, friends, loved ones, and Te Pāti Māori as a whole.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, speaks to him about the passing of Takutai Kemp, and the Regulatory Standards Bill, specifically about David Seymour’s posts criticising individuals opposing the bill for suffering from "Regulatory Standards Derangement Syndrome".
Joel speaks to Joshua Yuvaraj, a Senior Law Lecturer at the University of Auckland, about Meta’s copyright win over 13 authors, over using the authors work to train their Llama AI models, and what this case means heading forward regarding AI and copyright infringements.
Producer Sam speaks to Saeid Baroutian, a Professor in the Department of Chemical & Materials Engineering at the University of Auckland, about a world-first study looking into electrical fires in rubbish trucks caused by improperly disposed ion-lithium batteries.
Joel speaks to the Medical Director of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation, Bob Hancox, about the Healthy Homes Standards coming into effect tomorrow, and the organisation’s concerns regarding landlord’s ability to self-certify that their homes meet these guidelines.
And Sam speaks to the Regional Conservation Manager at Forest & Bird, Nicky Snoyink, about a bill in Parliament that would allow pests such as deer and tahr into our national parks.
This month, a number of council body reforms have come into effect in the Auckland Council, fulfilling Mayor Wayne Brown’s promise to address issues and implement community feedback into the council’s format.
The three new divisions in the Auckland Council to improve organisation include the Auckland Urban Development Office, the Property Department, and an Economic Development Office, each of which are intended to make decision making more effective and accessible to the public.
As well, with the persisting cold temperatures and rainy weather hitting Auckland this Winter, I wanted to discuss the topic of homelessness in Auckland’s city centre, and to what extent the council is working to support those rough sleeping in the CBD
Public hearings as part of phase two of the Royal Commission into COVID-19 took place in Auckland this week.
The second phase of the inquiry has a stronger focus on lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and the impact of the Covid-19 response on business and the economy.
And yesterday, an independent reference group set up by the Ministry of Environment shared their recommendations for climate adaptation legislation.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Arena Williams about both of these topics.
Recently, a study was conducted by researchers at the University of Southampton which uncovered a shift in the circulation of the Southern Ocean.
The study showed that the shift would draw up more salt water from the deep ocean, subsequently accelerating the loss of ice in the Antarctic and leading to an increase of sea levels and global heating.
The week before, the government allowed the terrorist designation given to the far-right ‘Proud Boys’ group to expire, effectively decriminalising the act of funding or openly supporting the group here in Aotearoa.
And, just yesterday Finance Minister Nicola Willis confirmed a number of changes to Family Boost which she said would help families with the cost of living.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, News and Editorial Director Joel spoke with MP Ricardo Menendez March to get the party’s take on all of these issues.
The Southerner was a passenger express train in the South Island running between Christchurch and Invercargill from 1970 to 2002.
The train was eventually closed due a decline in passenger numbers and subsidies, although it was briefly revived in May this year for four days as part of a tourist experience.
Recently, a group of campaigners from Save our Trains launched a petition calling on the government to restore the Southerner train route as a more accessible form of travel for South Islanders.
Wednesday Wire Host Oto spoke with Dave Macpherson from Save Our Train - Southern, to discuss his petition and why the Southerner should be restored.
Hearings on the regulatory standards bill are currently underway, with around 23,000 total submissions both written and oral. Early analysis of the submissions estimated 88% percent are in opposition, while only 0.3% are in support.
The bill has been pushed by Minister for Regulation and ACT Party leader David Seymour, who says it should support the government to reduce regulation and ensure the protection of individual rights and private property. The bill has been criticised for not including clauses around Te Tiriti o Waitangi or environmental protections. It has also been criticised for potentially undemocratic elements, placing large amounts of control in the hands of the unelected Ministry for Regulation.
In our weekly catch-up with the National party, Wire host Castor asked Tom Rutherford about the regulatory standards bill in light of the select committee hearings and new criticisms.
Recently, the government has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Mayors of Auckland, Otago, and Western Bay of Plenty Councils over the government’s expectations of City and Regional Deals. These deals aim to tighten the partnership between central and local governments.
For our weekly catchup with the ACT Party, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, speaks to MP Cameron Luxton about what to expect heading forward regarding the relationship between local, regional, and central government.
They also discussed last week's Youth Parliament.
Youth Parliament provides the opportunity for 143 rangatahi aged 16-to-24 as Youth MPs, representing MPs across the political spectrum, and Youth Press Gallery members, to understand the country’s political processes, understand how government works, and replicate the Parliamentary process.
Youth MPs had previously accused event organisers of ‘censoring’ their speeches. This follows the MPs being asked to remove elements of their speeches that were critical of government policies, such as the Treaty Principles Bill and pay equity.
However, The Ministry of Youth Development has come out saying the way they communicated their wishes with Youth MPs could have been clearer and more concise. The general manager of the Ministry, John Robertson, says reviewing speeches and suggesting changes was a part of the process, but these recommendations are not enforced.
They also spoke to Luxton about these accusations, and whether they are tantamount to censorship.
Finally, they discussed calls by over half of the Youth MPs represented in this year's Youth Parliament, from across the political spectrum, renewing calls for the voting age to be lowered, to allow 16-to-17-year-olds the right to vote.
5 ACT Youth MPs, including the Youth MP representing Cameron Luxton, Fletcher Brown, had signed a letter calling for the voting age to be reduced.
This follows the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling that found the current voting age is unjustified age discrimination and goes against the Human Rights Act 1993.
They also discussed these renewed calls to lower the voting age.
As the youth parliament is set to take place this week, a number of youth MPs have spoken out claiming they have been asked to change or remove elements of their speeches which criticise certain political figures or current topics like environmental action, pay equity and the treaty principles bill.
Youth Organisation Gen Z Aotearoa founder Nate Wilbourne was asked to edit parts of his speech calling out Ministers Shane Jones, Tama Potaka and Penny Simmonds on their role in environmental destruction.
He said “When your voices are edited to remove criticism, when ministers are shielded from being named, when we're told that our lived experiences are too political, that is not neutrality – that is protection of the status quo.”
As well this week, on July 1st a number of changes came into effect including the government’s Kiwisaver contributions and eligibility, the rate in payments for sole parents and through ACC, Healthy Homes standards, and procedures for receiving the job seeker benefit.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Producer Sara asked Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about both of these topics
Following Israel and the US’ large-scale attacks on Iran, and Israel’s continued war on Gaza, this has raised the question on the future of international order.
News and Editorial Director Joel spoke to the Executive Director of the Britain Palestine Project, Dr Brian Brivati, about this turning point in international order, and what we should expect heading forward.
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones has suggested to the local government forum that regional councils may be abolished, stating that
"After the upcoming changes to the Resource Management Act, I doubt that there's going to be a compelling case for regional government to continue to exist.“
Regional councils across Aotearoa are responsible for matters relating to natural resource management, flood control, and biosecurity.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said effectiveness between different councils is varied, and that councils generate too much bureaucracy and are “too focussed on vanity projects”.
As well, in order to make the most of local and central investment into Auckland’s growing city, the government is asking Auckland Council to increase the housing development allowance around key Central Rail Link stations in the lead up to the project’s completion.
Seeking to amend the resource management act, the government hopes to increase housing height and density around Mount Albert and Baldwin Avenue stations, allowing upzoning of ten stories around these areas, in addition to allowing upzoning of fifteen stories around Maungawhau, Morningside and Kingsland.
Producer Sara spoke with Councillor Julie Fairey about both of these topics, starting with the proposal to scrap regional councils.
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