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.
Grace Speaks to Leroy Beckett, Auckland director of Generation Zero, about their report on ways to make Auckland Transport more fair. They also discuss ways to encourage more Aucklanders to use public transport.
Grace speaks to Ellie Kraft, a member of Women in Urbanism and the Healthy Streets Alliance Auckland, about the creation of the Healthy Streets Alliance Auckland. They talk about how Auckland streets affect Aucklanders and the environment.
Rosabel Tan is the director of the Pantograph Punch, which is an online arts and culture journal. They focus specifically on showcasing emerging writers, and supporting writers who may not be heard in the mainstream, as well as giving those writers the opportunity to dig a little deeper with the space they are given to write. Recently the Pantograph Punch hosted a number of talks with the Auckland Arts Festival dealing with some political and social issues that are currently affecting Aotearoa. Lillian Hanly spoke with Rosabel to find out more but we started by talking about the importance of long form journalism.
Tuesday Wire host Oscar talks to Chief censor David Shanks about his decision to make the manifesto of Christchurch's white supremacist terrorist illegal to possess or share.
The full show podcast for The Tuesday WIre for the 26th of March, 2019. Featuring Dr Mels Barton, David Shanks, Adriana Christie and work from Producers Oscar, Lisa and Mitch.
On today's International Desk, Lisa returns with a quick press review on Cyclone Idai and the territorial disappearance of the Islamic State Caliphate. Then she looks into Thailand's general elections.
A report commissioned by the Human Rights Foundation has found the New Zealand SIS has been engaging in immoral and possibly illegal interviewing practices of muslims. Interviews are being disguised as informal chats, with serious allegations then put to the interviewee after they are made comfortable. This can have devastating effects on their relationship with their community and pressure them into revealing information. Lachlan spoke with Peter Hosking from the Human RIghts Foundation about the report.
The Independent Police Complaints Authority recently released its review on police chase procedure with little change being recommended. This is in spite of a number of death and injuries resulting from police chases last year. Children’s Commissioner Andrew Becroft has recommended police chase procedure change drastically, suggesting a 1 year trial where police stop chasing only if there is a reason not to. Lachlan spoke to Andrew about this.
This week on the Monday Wire, Jemima speaks to Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson about the government's response to the Christchurch terror attacks and the Schools Strike for Climate Action. Our regular segment Southern Cross is back with AUT Pacific Media Centre. Lachlan talks to the Children's Comissioner, Judge Andrew Becroft, about police chase proceedure. Peter Hosking from the Human Rights Foundation tells Lachlan about the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service's underhanded interview tactics. Finally, for a new fortnightly segment Jemima speaks to the Auckland University Student Association's Education Vice President, George Barton, about student representation and university culture.
Last week, the council’s Civil Defence and Emergency Management (CDEM) Committee said they would be seeking to implement a number of recommendations that improve emergency readiness for disabled populations.
Following a hui last year where community members were invited to bring forward issues relating to future planning for natural disasters, Sara was interested to hear about how the council is taking suggestions on board.
As well, Auckland Council has been considering proposals to mitigate flood risks around the Wairau catchment, including one which would see the reduction of the size of the Takapuna Golf Course, to convert the space into a flood catchment.
Producer Sara spoke to Auckland Councillor Shane Henderson on both of these topics, firstly by asking him to discuss the desired outcomes relating to emergency preparedness for disabled people, and the council’s first steps to implementation
Zohran Mamdani has all but won the Democratic Primary in New York City after key competitor Andrew Cuomo conceded the race.
Mamdani will now be the Democratic candidate for New York City mayor.
His campaign was built on cost-of-living, where Mamdani presented himself as an authentic, Democratic Socialist, grassroots campaign leader.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to 95bFM reporter and South Asia correspondent Sanat Singh about Momdani’s win, what this means for the communities he represents, and where to from here.
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.
Recently the Green Party commissioned independent legal advice to look into the government’s $200 million investment in new gas fields that was carried out last month and found out that the investment was in breach of the Agreement on Climate Change, Trade and Sustainability (ACCTS).
NZ First MP Shane Jones recently announced that he’d be drafting a member's bill to force Ngāpuhi into a single commercial settlement, which would prevent hapū from negotiating separate commercial redresses and remove any reference to hapū sovereignty from the settlement terms.
And the Green party recently issued a call to the New Zealand government to condemn the US strikes on Iranian Nuclear facilities, almost a week after Iran and Israel had both been trading missile strikes between each other.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke with MP Hūhana Lyndon to get the party’s take on all of these issues
Last week, Statistics Minister Shane Reti announced plans to scrap the nationwide census moving forward. The census is the largest statistical survey done in Aotearoa, and provides the bulk of population data used in research and decision-making. Reti says the census is “no longer financially viable” and will be replaced with a combination of smaller annual surveys and administrative data.
While the change looks good on paper, there are concerns around how the change in data collection could affect representation of marginalised and minority groups. Census data tends to be more protected from bias than administrative data and smaller surveys, meaning there are more opportunities for misrepresentation. Some statisticians are particularly concerned about the potential exclusion of marginalised rural communities.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked him about the census decision and its implications on marginalised and minority groups.
Associate Health Minister, David Seymour, has recently announced changes to Psilocybin and Melatonin availability.
Psilocybin, the compound found in magic mushrooms, will be available for certain patients suffering from poor mental health outcomes. Melatonin, which is used for insomnia and jetlag, is set to be available over the counter.
For our weekly catchup with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to him about this move, and the potential accessibility concerns with accessing these medications.
They also discussed taxpayers set to be funding newly-funded cancer medicines for private facilities.
Finally, they discuss opposition parties criticised Children’s Minister, Karen Chhour, over a lack of transparency regarding the effectiveness of boot camps for youth offenders, especially as boot camps have received a boost of $30 million, despite the pilot programme still being ongoing.
But first, they discussed Psilocybin and Melatonin.
Last Saturday, over 2,000 protests took place across all 50 American States against President Donald Trump.
The protests coincided with Trump’s birthday and the 250th anniversary of the US Army, and they served as a direct response to the military parade in Washington, DC.
The organisers of the protests say they aimed to reject “authoritarianism, billionaire-first politics, and the militarisation of our democracy.”
Wire Host Caeden spoke to Jeremy Pressman, Professor of Political Science at the University of Connecticut about the protests and the backlash towards them from the Trump administration.
Housing intensification is a key priority for Auckland Council as Auckland's population is forecast to reach 2.3 million by 2050.
But as planning for growth continues, some Auckland residents have expressed concern about the approval of developments in areas on flood plains or particularly prone to natural disasters.
With Kāinga Ora selling homes as ‘high risk investments’ in areas which were impacted by flooding in recent years, and 15 percent of all granted consents for new builds by Auckland Council being on floodplains, I spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about how the council is taking into account these issues for the coming years.
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