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.
Recently, the Ministry of Social Development changed its eligibility for those trying to access Emergency Housing.
On top of having tougher eligibility, the policy also means that those caught breaking the rules of their Emergency Housing needs will have a stand-down period of 13 weeks for a housing grant.
Kick Back, a youth development organisation, has condemned the government’s move, and is calling for the government to reassess the criteria, due to how the new criteria will significantly displace young people requiring access to Emergency Housing.
Joel spoke to youth worker and co-founder of the organisation, Aaron Hendry, about the shift of eligibility, and what this will mean for vulnerable young people
The Paris 2024 Olympics games, which are set to end, have aimed to be the “greenest games in history,” implementing a lot of measures to attempt to decrease their carbon footprint.
Despite clear aims to be more environmentally-friendly, the games are predicted to emit 1.5 billion tons of carbon, similar to the amount Fiji emits annually.
Alongside this, only two sporting bodies that make up the New Zealand Olympic Committee have developed their own sustainability strategies.
Joel spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, Chris McMillan, about the Olympics, and team New Zealand’s aims to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis, and whether this is enough.
Last week, the newspaper, The Herald, showcased an advertisement by right-wing lobby group, Hobson’s Pledge, on the front of their August 7 issue.
The advertisement calls to “restore the foreshore and seabed to public ownership,” insinuating that Māori own pretty much all coastal areas in Aotearoa.
NZME, who owns The Herald’s choice to include the advertisement has faced significant backlash, notably by Te Pāti Māori, and Kawea Te Rongo - The Māori Journalists Association.
Joel spoke to Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Claire Charters (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāpuhi, Tūwharetoa, Tainui) about the advertisement and the backlash it has received.
For their weekly catchup, Wire Host and News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to the ACT Party's Simon Court, about calls from the New Zealand police association for ACT MP, Nicole McKee, to step down from her responsibilities in the firearms reform.
Also for our week catchup, they speak to Te Pāti Māori's Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, around local council's voting on the future of Māori wards in their constituencies, the Ngāpuhi hīkoi over the government's plans to reverse section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act, and Te Pāti Māori's calls to boycott the newspaper, The Herald.
They spoke to Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Claire Charters, around the controversial decision to include an advertisement by right-wing lobby group, Hobson's Pledge, in The Herald.
The also spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, Chris McMillan, about whether the Olympics, as well as team New Zealand, are doing enough to lower their carbon footprint.
Finally, they spoke to youth worker and co-founder of Kick Back, Aaron Hendry, about the Ministry of Social Development changing their eligability for Emergency Housing, and what this means for vulnerable youth.
Wire host Caeden speaks to Labour’s Shanan Halbert about Labour’s new policy to sanction Israel and the Ngāpuhi led protests against 7AA repeal this week.
State of the States makes a return! They speak to Andre Fa’aoso from the Yale Daily News about the newly announced Harris/Walz ticket this election campaign.
And they speak to Dr Kevin Trenberth from the University of Auckland on the record levels of carbon in our atmosphere.
Producer Sofia speaks to Councillor Shane Henderson about rates in Auckland and Council investing $47 million in parks and community facilities over the next three years.
She also speaks to Senior Campaigner at Amnesty International Aotearoa, David Vega, about a recent report from Aotearoa Justice Watch.
Earlier this week, Aotearoa Justice Watch released a report detailing numerous testimonies of abuse, discrimination and alleged violations of human rights within New Zealand’s criminal justice system.
Of the 62 submissions made between June 2022 and March 2024, 36 testimonies related to prisons, 20 to policing and 6 to both policing and prisons.
Aotearoa Justice Watch is made up of People Against Prisons Aotearoa, Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, JustSpeak and the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties.
Producer Sofia spoke to Senior Campaigner at Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, David Vega, about the report and identifying areas for improvement in our criminal justice system.
For their regular catch-up, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March about the government’s decision to dismiss 8 of the recommendations made into the Christchurch terrorist attack inquiry, the impact of Oranga Tamariki cuts on frontline services and the open letter to the Green Party of Germany.
He spoke to Dr Neal Curtis from the University of Auckland to discuss the recent riots in the UK and the rise of the far right.
And he spoke to Associate Professor Carrie Leonetti to discuss the family violence act reforms and coercive control.
Sasha spoke to associate professor Avril Bell about the impact of the government’s policies towards Māori since coming into power.
He also spoke to Kelly Burrowes from the University of Auckland to discuss her findings on a potential vape epidemic in Aotearoa.
Following the 2019 terrorist attacks on a number of Mosques in Christchurch that left 51 worshippers killed, A Royal Commission of Inquiry was launched to measure agencies responses to the attack, steps needed to prevent further attacks in the future and ways to safeguard marginalised communities in Aotearoa.
The initial inquiry was released on the 8th of December in 2020 and made 44 recommendations based on its findings.
However, the government recently announced it had concluded its response to the inquiry and that it would dismiss 8 of its recommendations, particularly ones related to firearm law amendments and crackdowns on hate speech.
For their weekly catch up, Oto spoke to Green Party MP Ricardo Menendez-March about the party’s take on the decision to dismiss 8 of the recommendations of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch terrorist attacks.
They also spoke about the impact of funding cuts to Oranga Tamariki on frontline services, as well as the open letter to the Green party of Germany.
On the 29th of July this year, three children were killed in a mass stabbing incident in the town of Southport in the United Kingdom. Following the killings, riots broke out across the United Kingdom, after the attacker was falsely identified as a Muslim refugee on social media platforms such as Facebook and X, formerly twitter.
The riots have been lead by members of Far-Right British organisations such as the English Defence League, who have targeted Mosques, Muslim owned businesses and members of the Muslim community.
Oto spoke to Dr Neal Curtis, a professor of media and political theory in the Faculty of Arts at the University of Auckland, to discuss the cause of the UK riots and the rise of the British far right.
The Green party recently made renewed calls to the government to sanction Israel for its illegal occupation of Palestine following the seizure of the Madleen, a vessel that aimed to deliver food and medical aid to Gaza.
The vessel, which was en route to Gaza, was intercepted in the Mediterranean by the Israeli Defence Forces before being rerouted to Israel with all those on board, among whom was Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Immigration Minister Erica Stanford recently announced the Parent Boost Visa, part of the government’s self-described commitment to supporting parents living overseas to visit and stay with their families here in Aotearoa.
And, over in the United States, 2000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines have been deployed to Los Angeles in response to protests opposing the city’s recent immigration raids.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about all of these issues
Currently, 19 out of 38 OECD countries use incineration as a form of waste management.
With the process leading to a range of negative impacts, such as air pollution, Co2 emissions and respiratory illnesses, Aotearoa has luckily remained incinerator free.
However, calls have been made by some activists to strengthen New Zealand’s legislation to ensure that incineration facilities are not opened up in Aotearoa.
For this week’s Get Action! Oto spoke to Sue Coutts from Zero Waste Network New Zealand to discuss a petition calling on the government to keep New Zealand Incinerator-free.
If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here:
These past few weeks in politics have seen various issues that we spoke about in our weekly catchup with the National Party.
First up, at the Aotearoa Music Awards, National MP Chris Bishop was heard making disdainful remarks such as “what a load of crap” during a performance by singer Stan Walker.
Second, Te Pāti Māori co-leaders Debbie Ngārewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi were recently suspended from parliament for 21 days for their haka protesting the Treaty Principles Bill. The penalty is far harsher than any previous penalty for an MP, raising questions about whether it is justified or sets a dangerous precedent.
Finally, the government recently announced a new visa for parents of migrants, allowing them to come to New Zealand for a longer period of time than traditional visitors without having to acquire residency.
Wire host Castor asked about each of these issues in our weekly catchup with National’s Tom Rutherford, starting with Chris Bishop’s comments at the AMAs.
The recommended suspension for Te Pāti Māori MPs, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Rawiri Waititi, and Hana Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, over the MP’s haka in Parliament during the first reading of the Treaty Principles Bill last year.
Co-leaders Ngarewa-Packer and Waititi will be suspended from the House for 21-days, with Maipi-Clarke facing a seven day suspension. This is Parliament's harshest sanctions in the country’s history. Prior to this, the longest suspension an MP had faced in Parliament was three days.
The debate had previously been delayed so that the MPs could participate in the Budget debate — however, both co-leaders were not present at the debate.
During the debate MP Tākuta Ferris said that the debate was not about the haka, but at the heart, it was the House continuing to ignore Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Māori sovereignty, and that the “racism” in the House is hardly being hidden.
For our weekly catch-up, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to Te Pāti Māori’s Takutai Kemp about the suspension, and what’s next for the party.
They also discussed NZ First Party Leader Winston Peters’ comments regarding Waititi’s moko, referring to the MPs moko kanohi as “scribbles”. He was asked to apologise by the Speaker, which he did.
But first, they discussed the suspension of the MPs.
As per coalition agreements, ACT Party Leader, David Seymour, has been sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister, taking over from NZ First Leader, Winston Peters.
For our weekly catch up, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the ACT Party’s Simon Court about Seymour’s new position, and what this means for the party.
They also discussed accusations Seymour made regarding submissions to the Regulatory Standards Bill.
In an interview with Guyon Espiner, Seymour claimed that 99.5% of the submissions against the Regulatory Standards Bill were driven by ‘bots’ and were ‘fake’ submissions.
Seymour later clarified to RNZ that by bots, he was meaning “online campaigns” creating “non-representative samples” that do not represent the public’s opinion.
The Ministry of Regulations received roughly 23,000 submissions on the bill. Of the submissions. Of the submissions, 0.33% were fully or partially supporting the bill, with 88% being against the bill.
Finally, they discussed the recommended suspension of Te Pāti Māori MPs’ Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Rawiri Waititi, and Hana Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke standing.
But they, we discussed David Seymour as Deputy Prime Minister.
Auckland Transport are seeking community feedback on a proposal for a new T3 transit lane on Mount Smart Road to relieve congestion during peak times heading towards the Royal Oak roundabout.
Between better public transport systems, a ‘time of use’ charge, and different ways of managing Auckland traffic, Producer Sara asks Councillor Julie Fairey about how Auckland Council hopes to reduce peak-time congestion as the city’s population grows.
She also talk to Julie Fairey about the recent allocation of funds to community-led projects through Ngā Hapori Momoho. This year, the grant which aims to “improve financial security, improve health outcomes, and grow community and intercultural connection” has approved funding for eleven community groups, six of which are either Māori organisations or delivering ‘strong Māori outcomes’.
Sara begins with questions about Auckland central congestion.
*unfortunately the audio quality on Julie's end is poor
Last week the government announced a series of changes to 16 national direction instruments under the Resource Management Act that would change the way councils implement local plans and rules.
Minister Responsible for RMA Reform, Chris Bishop, described the changes as removing ‘unnecessary regulations’ for primary industries and investment, with the main changes being: removing freshwater management regulations for councils, removing regulations for the construction of mines and quarries and removing restrictions on non-intensive grazing of beef, cattle and deer in wetlands.
In that same week, Associate Education Minister, David Seymour made a series of changes to the pay parity scheme impacting primary school teachers, where education centres would not need to factor additional and higher qualifications when working out teacher’s starting salaries.
And, just recently, Workplace Relations and Safety minister Brooke van Velden recently announced that she’d be making a series of changes to WorkSafe in order to shift regulators priorities from enforcement to advice.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March to get the party’s take on all of these issues.
The Budget for 2025 came out two weeks ago, with news for the nation on how funds will be allocated over the coming year. The budget held big news for defence spending, $12 billion over the next four years, including $9 billion of new spending.
The funding is planned to go towards various technologies and equipment for different branches of the military, including replacements for two Air Force Boeing 757 planes and new helicopters to be operated from Navy ships. Defence Minister Judith Collins also announced plans to acquire new killer drones with increased lethality, raising some human rights concerns.
In our weekly catchup with National’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about the defence spending announcements, concerns over killer drones, and if this money is best spent on more military equipment.
From 9th June, the United Nations Ocean Conference is being held in France, which is co-hosting the event with Costa Rica.
More than 50 world leaders are expected to attend, with 1500 delegates from almost 200 countries.
The conference follows the world’s first deep-sea mining application for the international seabed, which was submitted to the United States government as opposed to the United Nations regulator.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to Juressa Lee (Te Rarawa, Ngāpuhi, Rarotonga), seabed mining campaigner at Greenpeace, about the conference.
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