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.
Last week the government released the findings of the inquiry into abuse in care that was established in 2018. This inquiry was established to investigate abuse in faith and state-based care from 1950 to 1999. Māori, Pacific, and Disabled rangatahi were all overrepresented in this report.
Now people are asking what to expect next when there is evidence abuse in state care remains ongoing, and while the government has promised an official apology and redress scheme.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to the University of Auckland’s Stephen Winter about the report, how it compares to international standards, and what we can expect to come next as a result of the report.
Students in Bangladesh have been protesting against the reinstatement of the quota allocation for government jobs. These quota allocations are for relatives of veterans from the country’s war of independence from Pakistan.
The protests began when students at Dhaka University peacefully held placards and flags against the quota allocation but escalated after they were violently attacked by individuals associated with the ruling political party and police.
Since then 200 people have been killed and another 10,000 people detained.
The protests have now turned into students and other people protesting against the ongoing killings, arrests, attacks and disappearances.
Wire Host Caeden spoke to Fiasol Miah from the Bangladesh skilled migrants association of New Zealand about these protests.
Wire Host Caeden speaks to Labour’s Carmel Sepuloni about household and tobacco tax cuts and the lowering of child poverty reduction targets
They also speak to Fiasol Miah from the Bangladesh skilled migrants association of New Zealand about the ongoing protests in Bangladesh.
And they speak to the University of Auckland’s Stephen Winter about the results of the Abuse in Care inquiry.
For City Counselling today Producer Sofia speaks to Councillor Julie Fairey about managing construction disruption in Auckland's CBD
Tuesday Wire Host Castor speaks to executive director of the association of salaried medical specialists, Sarah Dalton, about staff shortages in Aotearoa’s health sector.
And News and Editorial Director Joel speaks to CEO and co-founder of Wable, a social networking platform built for neurodiverse people, Holly Fowler, and Love on the Spectrum star and ambassador of Wable, Michael Theo, about the app’s release in Aotearoa.
Wable, a social media networking app inspired by the television series ‘Love on the Spectrum,’ which has been designed specifically for neurodiverse individuals, is set to release in New Zealand in the coming days.
Joel spoke with CEO and Co-Founder of the app, Holly Fowler, and Love on the Spectrum star and ambassador for Wable, Michael Theo, about what sets this social media platform apart from others, and the importance of designing applications in mind for people who are neurodiverse.
The health system in Aotearoa has experienced issues of overcrowding and underfunding since before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. While the current government campaigned last year on increasing funding to the health sector, most of this funding went to Pharmac and providing new cancer drugs.
Despite staff shortages in the health sector, the government has continually criticised what they claim is an overspend and poor budgeting. The new health commissioner, Lester Levy, went as far to describe the system as ‘bloated’, with similar criticisms from Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in his descriptions of ‘fourteen layers of bureaucracy.’
Tuesday Wire host Castor spoke to the executive director of the association of salaried medical specialists, Sarah Dalton, about staffing issues in the health sector and how the government can address them.
The most recent figures from the Global slavery index estimated that there were 8,000 people in Aotearoa who were victims of some form of labour exploitation and who legally fit the definition of being modern day slaves.
In spite of this, there are alarming gaps in providing victims of exploitation and trafficking with the resources they need to get assistance from organisations such as police, medical agencies and helplines.
For this week’s Get Action! Oto spoke to Synteche Collins, acting director of the NGO End Child Prostitution and Trafficking, talking to us about a petition of the organisation calling for the New Zealand government to establish an official helpline for victims of exploitation and trafficking.
If you're interesed, you can sign the petition here:
The Child Poverty Action Group is calling for better monitoring of private rentals, as new research reveals the share of affordable rentals has decreased significantly over the last five years.
However the national trend saw a consistent share of private rental housing in Auckland and Christchurch compared to other regions, this in part is due to increased home projects in those regions.
The Child Poverty Action Group is advocating for the need to increase public housing builds in all regions, stating the government prioritises one and two bedroom housing over other rental housing. Sasha spoke to Greg Waite of the Child Poverty Action Group about the decrease of affordable rental shares.
For their regular catch-up, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March about resignation of the party’s key Pasifika members following the investigation of former MP Darleen Tana, as well as the changes to the government’s child poverty reduction targets.
He spoke to Hayden Eastmond-Mein, an organiser discussing a campaign of his calling for New Zealanders to donate their tax cuts to fund aid in Gaza
He spoke to Emmy Rākete from the University of Auckland to discuss how the abuse in care inquiry unveiled a care-to-prison pipeline for Māori Rangatahi.
And for this week’s Get Action! He spoke to Synteche Collins from End Child Prostitution and Trafficking, talking to us about a petition calling for a dedicated helpline for survivors of exploitation.
Sasha spoke to Greg Waite of the Child Poverty Action Group to discuss the decrease of affordable rental shares and the need to develop more public housing.
Earlier this week, a number of leaders în the Green party’s Pasifika Greens group announced their resignation. The now former MPs, namely: Marie Laufiso, Alofa Aiono, and Vasemaca (vah-seh-mah-tha) Tavola released issued a joint letter saying that they felt culturally disempowered by the party’s treatment of former MP Darleen Tana, who they say was treated too harshly during while under investigation for allegations of migrant worker exploitation at her husband’s business.
The resigning MPs also said that they were not properly convened with or reached out to by Green Party leaders following the passing of late-MP Fa’anānā Efeso Collins, a prominent Pasifika member of the Greens and representative of the Pasifika community of Tamaki Makaurau.
For their weekly catch up, Oto spoke to Green party MP Ricardo Menendez-March about the resignation and statements made by the Pasifika Greens members.
They also had a chat about the government’s changes to child poverty reduction targets and the Green Party's open call to the government on behalf of renters.
As a result of Israel’s war on Gaza, almost 2 million people in the Gaza strip are at risk of famine and disease and are in urgent need of food and medical aid, as a result of Israel’s mass destruction of civilian infrastructure.
This is on top of the 39,400 Palestinians who have been killed throughout the course of the conflict.
With the government set to implement it’s new tax cut policy today, a campaign was launched by organiser Hayden Eastmond-Mein calling for Kiwis to donate their tax cuts for to aid organisations in Gaza, aptly named “Give your tax cut to Gaza”.
Hayden came down to the station earlier today to tell us about the campaign and how Kiwis can donate their tax cuts.
If you're interested, you can donate to the campaign here:
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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