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.
National MP, Greg Flemming, is pushing for cross-party support for anti-trafficking legislation to expand on his members’ bill.
This comes as recent court documents and child welfare agencies have shown cases of adoptive parents with criminal histories abusing children who have been adopted from overseas.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to a board member of ECPAT Child Alert; an organisation aimed at ending child sexual exploitation, Rebecca Kingi, about current anti-trafficking legislation in Aotearoa and what these proposed changes aim to do.
Recently, NZ First Leader, and Deputy Prime Minister, Winston Peters, has proposed a members bill that would ensure the terms “woman” and “man” are interpreted alongside one’s sex assigned at birth, as opposed to gender identity.
Peters sez he is aiming for this bill to replace a self-identification law that allows citizens to change their sex on their birth certificate.
This bill has seen a multitude of criticism, over concerns this bill is aligning with similar moves overseas, such as in the UK and US, as well as how the bill would be enforced.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to a member from Queer Endurance / Defiance, Leliel Trethowen, about Winston Peter’s member’s bill, how this will impact Aotearoa’s transgender community, and their planned rally on Parliament grounds against this proposed bill.
For our weekly catch up with the ACT Party, Producer Evie speaks to MP Simon Court about the government’s proposed changes to Early Childhood Education (or ECE) regulations, NZ First’s proposed gender bill and ACC’s ethnic outcomes target.
Evie speaks to early childhood representative on the NZ Educational Institute National (NZEI) Executive Zane McCarthy about the proposed changes to ECE, and why they spark cause for concern.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel speaks to Queer Endurance / Defiance member, Leliel Trethowen, about Winston Peter’s proposed gender bill.
Joel speaks to a board member of ECPAT Child Alert; an organisation aimed at ending child sexual exploitation Rebecca Kingi, about National MP, Greg Flemming, calling for cross-party support for anti-trafficking legislation.
And Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins us in studio to discuss changes in the way AI is being used.
The government's proposed changes to ECE regulation have sparked concern among many early childhood educators.
The New Zealand Education Institute or NZEI says called it a backwards step. Adding it will result in qualified teacher requirements watered down, safety criteria withdrawn, and quality teaching standards removed from centres’ licensing requirements.
NZEI says “ECE centres' profit margins are the winners here. Tamariki and teachers are the losers.”
Producer Evie spoke to early childhood educator and early childhood representative on the NZEI National Executive Zane McCarthy about why the proposed changes are such cause for concern.
Four climate activists were arrested and seventy protesters were trespassed after blockading operations at Bathurst Resources’ Stockton coal mine for more than sixty hours.
The protest targeted the Australian-owned mine which is planning an expansion of activities approved through the government’s new fast-tracked consent process.
While Resources Minister Shane Jones has justified the coal expansion as important for domestic energy needs and economic growth, activists assert that the government is wrongly “doubling-down” on fossil fuels when they should be scaling up renewable energy.
Producer Sara spoke with Adam Currie, a climate activist from 350 Aotearoa and one of those who was arrested for disrupting operations at the coal mine this week.
She started the interview by asking what the main goal of the protest was
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni about the recent cross-party delegation to the Pacific, New Zealand First’s new trans-exclusionary members' bill and Winston Peters’ threat to cut RNZ’s funding.
For International Desk, they spoke to Jane Fae, director at TransActual UK, about the UK Supreme Court decision that excludes trans women from the legal definition of a “woman.”
For City Counselling, Wire Producer Sara spoke with Auckland Councillor Julie Fairey about the intense weather of the Easter weekend, as well as latest developments in Auckland’s public transport system.
She also spoke with climate activist Adam Currie from this week’s protest at the Stockton mine which is seeking a fast-track approval for activity expansion.
A cross-party delegation of MPs recently visited Tonga, Hawai’i and Vanuatu as part of a Pacific trip organised by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters.
Earlier this week, New Zealand First proposed new legislation that would exclude trans communities from the definition of “woman” and “man” in law.
Winston Peters defended the bill on RNZ’s Morning Report, where he called interviewer Corin Dann a “disgrace” for raising the criticism against the bill that was brought forward by opposition parties.
During this interview, Peters threatened to cut RNZ’s government funding.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about all of these topics.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez-March, Oto speak to him about Simeon Brown’s Health Infrastructure Plan, the downgrading of climate change in the new Defence Capability Plan and the recently announced extension of military assistance to Ukraine.
He spoke to Amanda Larsson - Senior Campaign manager for Greenpeace Aotearoa, about Greenpeace’s investigation into meat processing corporation JBS and their role in the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest.
And he spoke to Sue Coutts, an advocate for the Zero Waste Network about their take on the government’s proposal to update the waste minimisation act.
Max spoke to the Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa co-chair, John Minto, about the PSNA appeal to New Zealand Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, in which they requested that New Zealand initiate the call for an internationally enforced “no-fly” zone over Gaza.
Greenpeace recently conducted an investigation into the meat processing corporation, JBS, which concluded that the company had failed to meet its deforestation-free commitment.
The Brazilian multinational is the largest meat processing enterprise in the world and largely operates in the Amazon Rainforest, where they have been accused of contributing to illegal deforestation, mistreating their livestock and even spreading zoonotic diseases.
In 2020, JBS announced their plan for zero deforestation by this year, which included a monitoring system for their suppliers. However, the Greenpeace investigation found that the company had made little progress on their commitment and was continuing to contribute to the Amazon’s deforestation.
Oto spoke to Amanda Larsson - Senior Campaign manager for Greenpeace Aotearoa, about their investigation into JBS and how they plan to hold them accountable for their deforestation of the Amazon rainforest.
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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