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.
Today's show starts off with a conversation with ACT’s Brooke van Velden about the government’s announcement that they are gathering information on tax intake.
Alex then speaks with Andrew King, president of the NZPIF about how the property “slow down” might affect the rental market and what the NZPIF suggests to ease the rental crisis.
Stella follows, chatting with Heather Lewis, National Leader of Mathematics Interventions about why we are comparatively bad at maths as a country
Alex then sits down with Ellen Rykers of Forest and Bird about korora conservation in New Zealand, with a specific focus on the Hauraki Gulf.
After that, Stella speaks with Amnesty International's campaign director Lisa Woods about Immigration New Zealand ceasing to imprison people seeking asylum.
Finally, Frances chats with Cameron Mulgan on Eurovision, where they discuss War in Ukraine, Mayday protests in Europe, the European cost of living crisis and the revamp of the Large Hadron Collider.
This week on Dear Science, Christina and Marcus discussed how climate change can cause disease outbreaks in animals, the detection of evidence of a sound tunnel, and the mysterious persistence of CFCs in the atmosphere despite them being banned.
Christina also spoke to co-founder of Mind the Gap Jo Cribb about the gender pay gap, and the push to enact better pay equity legislation.
Trishil spoke to Madeline Newman, Chief Executive of NZ AI Forum about artificial intelligence as the future of mitigating climate change and declining biodiversity.
Trishil also spoke to Letitia Harding from the New Zealand Asthma Foundation about the overrepresentation of Maori and Pasifika groups with asthma, and how this gap can be alleviated.
OurActionStation brings you a new petition to condemn violence by Israeli's towards Palestinian worshippers and their holy sites. Charlie spoke to Ahmed Saadeh and Rand Hazou from the Palestine Aotearoa Coordinating Committee speak on what Palestinian's in Israel have been going through, and what New Zealand can do to help.
The gender pay gap: it’s a contentious issue that's been hotly debated, and at times, completely denied. However, many of us don't necessarily know the specifics. On the Wire, Christina spoke to co-founder of Mind the Gap Jo Cribb about the pay gap, and the push to enact better pay equity legislation.
Eletrical energy has been harnesed in cars, and now New Zealand wants it in their ferries too. Michael Eaglen, CEO of EV Maritime, speaks with Charlie about the current state of ferry fuels, EV Maritime's project with the government to bring in some eletric ferries the Auckland, and what the future of electric ferries could look like.
The segment in collaboration with OurActionStation is back today, with Ahmed Saadeh and Rand Hazou from the Palestine Aotearoa Coordinating Committee discuss the situation in Israel and their petition to condemn the violence.
Holly Walker, Deputy Executive Director of the Helen Clark Foundation, speaks about their new report based around perinatal mental health concerns.
The Bank of Mum and Dad increases its 'loans' for their children's property purchases. Gemma Rasmussen, Head of Communications and Campaigns at Consumer NZ, spoke on the issue.
EV Maritime are pushing for electrical ferries, and are making progress. We see what CEO of EV Maritime, Michael Eaglen, has to say.
Perinatal depression is proving to be a high risk concern in Aotearoa. A new study done into the issue by Holly Walker, Deputy Executive Director of the Helen Clark Foundation, shows that suicide is the leading cause of death for pregnant women and new mums. Charlie spoke with he about the issue, and what can be done to support these women.
The Bank of Mum and Dad is an international concept that means parents are paying out for their children to purchase property. With the housing market seemingly in a constant crisis in Aotearoa, Gemma Rasmussen, Head of Communications and Campaign manager at Consumer NZ, discusses how this concept is affecting New Zealander's.
Caspers back on the Friday Wire! Today on the show:
As part of his regular city counselling segment, I talked to City Councillor Shane Henderson, as well as Character Coalition chairperson Sally Hughes and the University of Auckland’s Bill McKay all on the topic of housing intensification and the council’s proposed changes to zoning rules.
Liam spoke to Steve Abel from Greenpeace about their petition to remove nitrates from drinking water.
He also had a chat with Richard Espley from Plant and Food Research to chat about their research on the genome sequence of bilberries.
Greenpeace Aotearoa has recently released their petition for the government to limit the amount of nitrates in drinking water to one milligram.
At the moment the legal limit of synthetic nitrogen fertiliser is 11.3mg, which Greenpeace says is a major issue that has caused several illnesses and deaths.
The organisation has stated that water is a human right, and that the government must stand up for the health of our communities.
To learn more, Liam spoke to Steve Abel from Greenpeace about the petition and how Aotearoa got to this point.
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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