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.
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.
As electronics continue to become a more and more accepted part of everyday life, so does the need to dispose of them when they cease to function as intended. This leads to a lot of electronics being disposed of incorrectly, along with all manner of other rubbish.
While that may seem harmless on the surface, this can lead to combustion of rubbish trucks, which can be filled with all kinds of waste that can range from harmless biodegradable banana skins to highly explosive aerosol cans and very flammable lithium ion batteries.
When disposing of electronic waste, it is recommended to consult with the Auckland Council website for a full list of approved e-waste disposal locations.
Producer Sam spoke to Saeid Baroutian, Professor of Chemical & Materials Engineering at the University of Auckland at the University of Auckland about an experiment they carried out in conjunction with Auckland Council about the dangers posed by electrical fires in rubbish trucks.
Recently new legislation, The Game Animal (Herds of Special Interest) Amendment Bill, has passed its first reading in parliament which would allow deer and tahr into our New Zealand’s national parks after being reclassified as special herds.
Aoetearoa does not have any indigenous mammals, and its ecosystems are not developed for their sudden introduction into national parks. This has lead to pests such as possums and rats doing untold damage to our natural ecosystems and biodiversity.
This bill has been criticised as dangerous to our environment and native animals.
Producer Sam spoke to the Regional Conservation Manager at Forest and Bird, Nicky Snoyink, about the potential dangers of such legislation.
From tomorrow onwards, the Healthy Homes Standards will come into effect.
The guidelines require landlords to meet minimum standards of heating, insulation, ventilation, among other things; a law that was signed into effect in 2019.
Despite this, many are concerned that landlords can ‘self-confirm’ they meet these standards without external scrutiny.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the Medical Director of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation, Bob Hancox about these guidelines, and how the organisation are feeling about the standards heading into tomorrow.
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.
On Saturday, Destiny Church held a protest in the Auckland CBD under the slogan “no immigration without assimilation”, denouncing non-Christian religions and other groups in Aotearoa.
The demonstration, which Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki described as a “lawful, peaceful protest”, involved the destruction and burning of flags including the Palestinian flag and the Rainbow Pride flag.
Leaders from a collection of ethnic community groups have called for the toughening of hate speech laws in response to the intolerance displayed at this protest action, which political figures like Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour and Police Minister Mark Mitchell condemned as “unkiwi”, and “vile rhetoric and behaviour”.
Seeking to dive deeper into the issue of extremism and hostility towards diverse cultures in New Zealand, I spoke with far right and alt-right extremism expert Byron Clark about the protest and the existence of these groups in Aotearoa.
Producer Sara began the interview by asking Clark to explain the kind of ideologies that were on display at the protest.
NZ First MP Shane Jones recently announced that he’d be drafting a member's bill to force Ngāpuhi into a single commercial settlement.
Under the proposal, hapū would be prevented from negotiating separate commercial redresses, and any reference to hapū sovereignty would be removed from the settlement terms.
Professor of Māori studies at the University of Auckland, Margaret Mutu, said that, while the bill’s announcement wasn’t uncharacteristic of the Crown or Shane Jones’s approach to treaty settlements, attempts to force Ngāpuhi into a single settlement claim would be met with fierce opposition, by Ngāpuhi, northland hapū and Iwi all across the Motu.
In light of recent tensions between Israel and Iran, as well as the involvement of global superpower the United States, academics have raised concerns about nuclear proliferation and its consequences in the Middle East as well as on a global stage.
As the need for nuclear deterrence is critical, the latest exchange of attacks between involved parties risks escalating conflict in the region and presents an urgent challenge for diplomatic relationships to diffuse the situation.
Producer Sara spoke to University of Auckland International and Political Relations doctoral student Tom Wilkinson about this topic, including the risk of nuclear proliferation in the region.
She began by asking him to explain the recent events between Israel and Iran in the broader context of global militarisation and history of nuclear armament.
A reported 131,000 submissions were made on the Regulatory Standards Bill.
The Bill, proposed by the ACT party, includes a set of principles outlining “responsible regulation.” Notably, it does not include any mention of either version of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Last weekend, hundreds of Destiny Church members marched on Queen Street in a rally that they called “in defence of faith, flag, and family.”
And the Labour Party has criticised the framing of a poll question by the Taxpayers Union/Curia on whether or not Cook Islanders should retain automatic New Zealand citizenship.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden asked Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about all of these topics.
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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