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.
The High Court has ruled in favour of Auckland Transport in a case brought against the council managed organisation by All Aboard Aotearoa.
The case was over Auckland Transport’s Regional Land Transport Plan or RLTP which would lead to a 6% increase in transport emissions in Auckland.
Casper spoke to Zoe Brentnall from All Aboard Aotearoa about the case and what the RLTP says about the council's commitment to combatting climate change.
Today saw Casper host his final Friday Wire before the Second Semester Schedule Shakeup™ sees him take over the Tuesday Wire and Liam take on hosting duties from next Friday onwards! On todays show.
Casper had a chat with All Aboard Aotearoa about the recent High Court ruling on their case with Auckland Transport alongside City Counsellor Pippa Coom.
Liam had a chat with Michael Plank from the University of Canterbury about recent government changes making masks and RAT tests free.
They also spoke with Anita Rosentreter about First Unions court case against Uber.
Casper also had a chat with someone from the Real Estate Institute about housing market data and what all of the numbers mean.
And finally Liam chatted to Christchurch City Councillor James McLellan about Te Kaha, the city's new stadium, being given the go ahead.
Earlier this week, Nasa unveiled a series of images taken from the James Webb Space Telescope. Launched on Christmas Day last year, the telescope is the largest optical telescope in space, and its greatly improved infrared resolution and sensitivity allows it to view objects too old, distant, or faint for the Hubble Space Telescope.
To get the reaction of astronomers and scientists to these images, Emilia spoke to Professor Richard Easther from the Department of Physics at the University of Auckland
Aneeka is covering for Emilia this week! On the Thursday Wire this week:
Tuva’a speaks to Labour Party’s Andrew Little about the five eyes countries linked to the attempted purchase of Pegasus spyware.
Emilia speaks to Claire Breen from the University of Waikato Law School about the concerns surrounding the Oranga Tamariki Oversight Bill.
She also speaks to Professor Richard Easther from the Department of Physics at Auckland Uni about the James Webb Space Telescope after the first images were released from it yesterday
And on Green Desk this week, Frances talks to Robyn Haygh, CEO of Trees That Count about their native tree planting initiative.
The Pacific Leaders Forum is currently covering multiple issues, and many rifts in diplomacy have already shaken the event. Stella spoke to Geoffrey Miller, a geopolitical analyst at The Democracy Project, about the main points.
Harry Tam has worked with marginalised communities, particularly gangs, in New Zealand for 40 years. Last week, Alex and Harry discussed the social determinants of these groups.
Welcome back to another Wednesday Wire, with Stella.
Aneeka talks to Cameron Adams on Eurovision.
This week, Alex speaks to Harry Tam about the social determinants of gangs.
Alex has his weekly catch-up with the ACT party, today speaking with David Seymour.
Stella talks to Dr Niki Harré, an environmental psychologist from the University of Auckland, about changing attitudes to living on land greatly affected by climate change.
Finally, Stella speaks to Geoffrey Miller, a geopolitical analyst from The Democracy Project, about the Pacific Island Forum Leaders Meeting 2022.
On the eve of the pacific forum conference in Suva, the Micronesian island nation of Kiribati announced that it will be pulling out of the inter-governmental organisation.
This led to the current members entering into a crisis mode to get them to re-join the pact.
Jack Horsnell spoke to Professor Robert Patman from the University of Otago about the effects of this decision.
These past few weeks in politics have seen various issues that we spoke about in our weekly catchup with the National Party.
First up, at the Aotearoa Music Awards, National MP Chris Bishop was heard making disdainful remarks such as “what a load of crap” during a performance by singer Stan Walker.
Second, Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Debbie Ngārewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi were recently suspended from parliament for 21 days for their haka protesting the Treaty Principles Bill. The penalty is far harsher than any previous penalty for an MP, raising questions about whether it is justified or sets a dangerous precedent.
Finally, the government recently announced a new visa for parents of migrants, allowing them to come to New Zealand for a longer period of time than traditional visitors without having to acquire residency.
Wire host Castor asked about each of these issues in our weekly catchup with National’s Tom Rutherford, starting with Chris Bishop’s comments at the AMAs.
The recommended suspension for Te Pāti Māori MPs, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Rawiri Waititi, and Hana Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, over the MP’s haka in Parliament during the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill last year.
Co-leaders Ngarewa-Packer and Waititi will be suspended from the House for 21-days, with Maipi-Clarke facing a seven day suspension. This is Parliament's harshest sanctions in the country’s history. Prior to this, the longest suspension an MP had faced in Parliament was three days.
The debate had previously been delayed so that the MPs could participate in the Budget debate — however, both co-leaders were not present at the debate.
During the debate MP Tākuta Ferris said that the debate was not about the haka, but at the heart, it was the House continuing to ignore Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori sovereignty, and that the “racism” in the House is hardly being hidden.
For our weekly catch-up, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to Te Pāti Māori’s Takutai Kemp about the suspension, and what’s next for the party.
They also discussed NZ First Party Leader Winston Peters’ comments regarding Waititi’s moko, referring to the MPs moko kanohi as “scribbles”. He was asked to apologise by the Speaker, which he did.
But first, they discussed the suspension of the MPs.
As per coalition agreements, ACT Party Leader, David Seymour, has been sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister, taking over from NZ First Leader, Winston Peters.
For our weekly catch up, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the ACT Party’s Simon Court about Seymour’s new position, and what this means for the party.
They also discussed accusations Seymour made regarding submissions to the Regulatory Standards Bill.
In an interview with Guyon Espiner, Seymour claimed that 99.5% of the submissions against the Regulatory Standards Bill were driven by ‘bots’ and were ‘fake’ submissions.
Seymour later clarified to RNZ that by bots, he was meaning “online campaigns” creating “non-representative samples” that do not represent the public’s opinion.
The Ministry of Regulations received roughly 23,000 submissions on the bill. Of the submissions. Of the submissions, 0.33% were fully or partially supporting the bill, with 88% being against the bill.
Finally, they discussed the recommended suspension of Te Pāti Māori MPs’ Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Rawiri Waititi, and Hana Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke standing.
But they, we discussed David Seymour as Deputy Prime Minister.
Auckland Transport are seeking community feedback on a proposal for a new T3 transit lane on Mount Smart Road to relieve congestion during peak times heading towards the Royal Oak roundabout.
Between better public transport systems, a ‘time of use’ charge, and different ways of managing Auckland traffic, Producer Sara asks Councillor Julie Fairey about how Auckland Council hopes to reduce peak-time congestion as the city’s population grows.
She also talk to Julie Fairey about the recent allocation of funds to community-led projects through Ngā Hapori Momoho. This year, the grant which aims to “improve financial security, improve health outcomes, and grow community and intercultural connection” has approved funding for eleven community groups, six of which are either Māori organisations or delivering ‘strong Māori outcomes’.
Sara begins with questions about Auckland central congestion.
*unfortunately the audio quality on Julie's end is poor
Last week the government announced a series of changes to 16 national direction instruments under the Resource Management Act that would change the way councils implement local plans and rules.
Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, described the changes as removing ‘unnecessary regulations’ for primary industries and investment, with the main changes being: removing freshwater management regulations for councils, removing regulations for the construction of mines and quarries and removing restrictions on non-intensive grazing of beef, cattle and deer in wetlands.
In that same week, Associate Education Minister, David Seymour made a series of changes to the pay parity scheme impacting primary school teachers, where education centres would not need to factor additional and higher qualifications when working out teacher’s starting salaries.
And, just recently, Workplace Relations and Safety minister Brooke van Velden recently announced that she’d be making a series of changes to WorkSafe in order to shift regulators priorities from enforcement to advice.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March to get the party’s take on all of these issues.
The Budget for 2025 came out two weeks ago, with news for the nation on how funds will be allocated over the coming year. The budget held big news for defence spending, $12 billion over the next four years, including $9 billion of new spending.
The funding is planned to go towards various technologies and equipment for different branches of the military, including replacements for two Air Force Boeing 757 planes and new helicopters to be operated from Navy ships. Defence Minister Judith Collins also announced plans to acquire new killer drones with increased lethality, raising some human rights concerns.
In our weekly catchup with National’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about the defence spending announcements, concerns over killer drones, and if this money is best spent on more military equipment.
After years of discussion, Auckland Council’s Planning and Policy Committee have approved zoning changes for the city centre, which will see taller buildings and increased development capacity within the Central Business District.
Plan Change 78 sought to increase density and will see double height limits for most of the city centre, up to twenty storeys, unlimited building height for a small section, and the removal of limitations on floor plans to attract investment into a wider variety of building types.
With notification of this decision made tomorrow, the changes are expected to be included in the Auckland Unitary Plan to become operative in June this year.
As well, consultation is currently open in relation to the Western Springs speedway, of which Auckland Council voted in favour of last year based on financial underperformance.
The decision to keep the speedway, develop a new stadium or explore new opportunities for the space has been a hot topic in public debate, with figures like former All Black Sir Bryan Williams, Rich lister Anna Mowbray and her husband, former All Black Ali Williams chiming into the discussion.
Producer Sara spoke with Councillor Shane Henderson this week about both of these topics, starting with the future of development in Auckland’s central city.
From 9th June, the United Nations Ocean Conference is being held in France, which is co-hosting the event with Costa Rica.
More than 50 world leaders are expected to attend, with 1500 delegates from almost 200 countries.
The conference follows the world’s first deep-sea mining application for the international seabed, which was submitted to the United States government as opposed to the United Nations regulator.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to Juressa Lee (Te Rarawa, Ngāpuhi, Rarotonga), seabed mining campaigner at Greenpeace, about the conference.
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