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.
Tuva’a speaks to Labour Party’s Andrew Little about the state of the health workforce.
Joe speaks to Dougal Sutherland a Clinical Psychologist from Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington about the importance of workplaces to have well-being plans. Joe also speaks to Professor Brett Gartrell, a Professor in Wildlife Health at Massey University about traces of lead being found in Wellington kākā nestlings.
David speaks to Hon Damien O’Connor about Foot and Mouth Disease
And for this weeks Green Desk, Frances spoke with Megan Williams, a sustainability advocate from the TIA, about the Sustainability Tourism Commitment.
Biosecurity New Zealand is implementing tougher border control protections to stop foot and mouth disease from entering the country and infecting our bovine population.
David spoke to the Minister of Agriculture, Hon Damien O'Connor on the matter.
Aneeka chats with our European correspondent Cameron Adams about heat waves, Ukraine, and Russia on this week's Eurovision.
Alex speaks to ACT Party deputy leader Brooke van Velden about the rise in construction costs and ACT’s call for a short term monetary policy remit to address inflation.
Emilia speaks to Jo Cribb from MindTheGap about data released yesterday that showed a major pay gap between Pasifika and non-Pasifika
And Emilia also speaks to Green Party’s Chlöe Swarbrick about student poverty.
Aotearoa’s Uni students are spending over half of their income on rent, are regularly not able to afford basic necessities, and skip class because transport to campus is too expensive.
The People's Inquiry into Student Wellbeing was released on Monday, and gave us a stark look at the dire conditions students are in while navigating their degrees.
The Green Party is calling upon the government to lift student incomes and put rent controls in place to reverse the normalisation of student poverty in Aotearoa as we creep further into a cost of living crisis.
Emilia Sullivan spoke to Chlöe Swarbrick, the Green Party’s Tertiary Education Spokesperson about the issue.
Research released yesterday showed that there is a big pay gap between Pasifika and non-Pasifika in New Zealand, and most of it can’t be explained even after accounting for things like differences in occupation and educational achievement.
The research, conducted by AUT and published by the Human Rights Commission was the first time the pay gap had been looked at closely in terms of ethnicity, and the findings were dismal.
For every dollar a Pākehā man earns, a Pākehā woman earns 89c; a Pasifika man 81c; and a Pasifika woman earns 75c, according to non-profit organisation MindtheGap.
Emilia Sullivan spoke with MindTheGap founder Jo Cribb about this concerning new data.
Here is Mindthegap's petition to the government to mandate pay gap reporting: https://our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/close-the-gender-and-ethnic-pay-gaps-make-pay-gap-reporting-mandatory-for-businesses-in-new-zealand
A University of Otago study has linked acute alcohol use to over a quarter of New Zealand suicide deaths.
It also found that suicides involving alcohol were proportionately higher among younger people and Māori and Pasifika.
Emily spoke to the study’s lead author Dr. Rose Crossin from the University of Otago about its core findings and their implications for national suicide prevention efforts.
On this week’s regular segment in collaboration with OurActionStation, we’re discussing digital exclusion in the public sector, and the shift to online forms of communication that is leaving some of our population behind.
Andrew Hubbard, Deputy Chief Executive of The Citizens Advice Bureau, spoke with Trishil Dahya about their petition, and their push to gain governmental support for those feeling excluded from reaching out for help using online means.
The 25-cent Fuel Tax Excise has been extended another 6 months, to January 2023. The Fuel Tax Excise had been set by the Labour Government as fuel prices steadily increased months ago.
The cut in petrol excise duty, the equivalent reduction in road user charges and the half price public transport fares were due to end next month before this extension.
Petrol prices increased 32% in the year to the June 2022 quarter, the largest annual increase since 1985.
Finance Minister Grant Robertson extended the measures, saying "We are doing this because we want Kiwis to have some certainty for the rest of the year in the face of volatile fuel prices and ongoing cost of living pressure," he said.
Inflation rates have also been released, rising to 7.3% and is now at a 32-year high.
Producer Trishil Dahya spoke to Economics Professor Tim Hazeldean from the University of Auckland, on the matter, and his proposals to mediate inflation.
New Zealand, Australia and many countries are experiencing a further Omicron wave driven by the latest BA.4/BA.5 subvariants. Our response to this threat is remarkably laissez-faire compared with past approaches, as society has pivoted more to “living with the virus”. But in both New Zealand and Australia, there’s a real risk current policy settings will be insufficient to prevent health services being overwhelmed – and more will need to be done in coming weeks.
Joe spoke to Professor Michael Baker from the Department of Public Health at the University of Otago, Wellington, on the matter.
From Dec 27 to Jan 18, all train lines across Tāmaki will be shutting down for summer maintenance, a closure which is expected to be the last of its kind ahead of the opening of the City Rail Link.
The current measles outbreak in Tāmaki is being continually monitored, with exposure sites being updated daily on info.health.nz. The public are encouraged to track whether they’ve been in possible contact with the virus, and get up to date on any vaccinations to limit possibilities of transmission.
Auckland Council are supporting arts initiatives across the summer months, with Music in the Park kicking off in early January, and Movies in the Park following in February.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about these topics, and also asked for comment following the attack by two gunmen at Bondi Beach earlier this week.
Yesterday, the latest six-monthly survey of housing support providers under the National Homelessness Data Project, or NHDP, showed that homelessness in Auckland has more than doubled in the year to September. The report also found that 14 of the 21 agencies interviewed reported an increase in homelessness.
As well as this, Australia’s ban on social media for children under 16 has taken effect. And according to an interim report into social media harm, a social media ban for children in New Zealand is worth exploring further.
And last week the Government announced the replacement of the Resource Management Act, or RMA. The coalition said its replacement will slash red tape and supercharge growth.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Max spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about the Government’s new RMA reforms and a potential social media ban in New Zealand.
But first they discussed the latest report on Auckland homelessness.
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.
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.
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.
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
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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