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.
This is the first of a fortnightly segment with the Auckland University Students' Association where Jemima speaks to Education Vice President George Barton. This week they discuss what role AUSA plays at the University, what George's role entails and what student culture is like at the University of Auckland.
A taxation bill was passed last week, eliminating the unnecessary secondary tax for workers with more than one job. This bill will come into effect on the 1st of April. Louis speaks with Terry Baucher, tax consultant & columnist, talking about the new legislation.
Headscarf for Harmony is on today, this is a gentle invitation for the general public to wear a headscarf in support of the Muslim community. While there has been some criticism of it, it has been noted by the organisers as a way to support Muslim women who want to wear a hijab but don’t feel safe to in New Zealand. One of the organisers of the event, Thaya Ashman joins Laura to discuss what inspired this event.
Olivia Holdsworth chats with University of Otago professor of peace studies Kevin Clements on gun control laws and history.
Grace Watson speaks with Sean Robinson, the chief executive Mental Health Foundation after their announcement that extremism cannot be categorised as a mental illness.
Harry Willis talks to 95bFM european correspondent Justin Wong from Paris on Brexit developments.
Harry Willis speaks with artist Aries Katki on the Persian New year Nowruz, and on minority treatment and racism in New Zealand.
Maddison Matthews speak with Ikhlaq Kashkari, the president of the NZ Muslim Association on the reopening of four Auckland mosques tomorrow evening.
Media coverage of the Christchurch terror attacks has seen some speculation around the gunman's mental health. Chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation, Shaun Robinson, speaks to Grace about how mental health and extremism are not connected. They also discuss how equating mental health with extremism and terrorism effects those with mental health issues in New Zealand.
In the wake of the Christchurch terror attack, New Zealand is looking to make rapid changes to its gun laws. Today we take a look at how our laws currently stand and how gun laws are only one aspect to preventing an atrocity like this happening again. Olivia Holdsworth spoke to Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Otago Kevin Clement and began by asking about historical pushes for gun law reform and why these suggestions were never ratified.
Harry sat down for a chat with artist Areez Katki about the Persian new year Nowruz, the history and tradtitions of the celebration and the countries that fall under the once Persian Empire. They then talk discrimination of minorities in New Zealand following the Christchurch terror attacks
Harry chats to European correspondant Justin Wong from Paris on this week's developments on the extension of Article 50 Brexit and European Leader's reaction to the Christchurch terror attack.
Sherry Zhang talks to Haya Khan, president of the South Asia Law students Assocation, on a temporary prayer space set up at Auckland university campus. Haya explains the importance of Jumu’ah or friday prayers for people who are unfamiliar with Islam. Sherry started by asking if Haya had anything she wanted to say about the Christshurch terrorist attacks and the past days, or how she’s feeling.
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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