Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Castor Chacko, Alex Fox, Emmanuel Orange, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
Yesterday, the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand, delivered a petition, which was signed by more than 16,000 citizens. The petition calls on the government to stop the Police’s hasty withdrawal from mental health callouts, until an alternative service is up and running.
Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand, Shaun Robinson, has said that “The Police are a critical safety net for people in distress needing urgent access to mental health support”, and that the government removing the support of the police without an alternative in place is comparable to removing the engine of a car while it is running. Robinson believes that both situations are “dangerous, and likely to lead to an accident”.
To talk about the dangers of this development, Producer Max spoke with Shaun Robinson
The government’s recent changes to laws on gender pay equity have received backlash from unions– particularly the Public Service Association.
Producer Faith spoke to the union’s kaihautu Janice Panoho about these changes, how they affect Maori and Pacifica women, and what steps need to be taken moving forward
Military confrontation between India and Pakistan has many regional and international actors concerned about stability in the region. While a ceasefire agreement has been reached, conditions are still uncertain, especially given indications that India doesn’t see it as a ceasefire.
Wire host Castor spoke to Director of Global Studies at the University of Auckland, Chris Ogden, about the ceasefire both now and moving into the future.
Producer Faith spoke with public health researcher and professor from the University of Otago Janet Hoek about the benefits of Labour's health spokesperson Dr. Ayesha Verrall's new bill.
For our weekly catchup with Te Pāti Māori’s Takutai Kemp, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to her about changes to prisoners’ voting eligibility, the party calling for more funding for Whakaata Māori in Budget 2025, and ECE recommendations.
For our weekly catch up with the ACT Party, Producer Evie spoke to Simon Court about David Seymour’s proposal to reduce the size of cabinet, an ACT Members Bill aimed at removing mandatory climate-related disclosures for banks, as well as last week's unprecedented senior doctor strikes.
Joel spoke to Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere, an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Auckland, about animal product imports to New Zealand, as a petition to Parliament to ensure imports are coming from country’s with animal welfare standards on par with ours.
Joel also spoke to Robert Patman, a Professor of International Relations at the University of Otago, about his article on the Conversation, discussing his concerns over the Trump Administration's proposed peace deal regarding Russia’s war on Ukraine, and how New Zealand should proceed with supporting Ukraine.
And Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins us in studio to discuss young people developing their political views through social media.
For Dear Science this week, our expert, Doctor Cushla McGoverin, chats with us about a new twist on the famous marshmallow experiment, a new snake antivenom, and new steps towards lithium batteries.
In our weekly catch-up with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about social media restrictions for young people and NZ First’s recent gender bill.
They also spoke to Director of Global Studies at the University of Auckland, Chris Ogden, about the India/Pakistan ceasefire and stability in the region.
Producer Faith spoke to public health researcher, Professor Janet Hoek, from the University of Otago about Labour MP Dr. Ayesha Verrall’s tobacco transparency bill
She also spoke to the Public Service Association union’s kaihautu, Janice Panoho, about how the coalition government’s recent law changes will affect Maori and Pacifica women in particular
For our weekly catchup with Te Pāti Māori’s Takutai Kemp, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to her about the Pay Equity Amendment Bill being passed, as well as the draft framework for relationship and sexuality education, or RSE.
For our weekly catch up with the ACT Party, Producer Evie, speaks to Simon Court about the government passing the pay equity amendment bill under urgency, as well a National members bill proposing a social media ban for under 16’s.
Joel spoke to Anna Curzon, the co-chair of B416; an organisation pushing to ban under 16 year olds from social media, in light of National MP Catherine Wedd’s members bill.
Joel also spoke to Dr Alex Beattie, a lecturer in Media and Communications at the Victoria University of Wellington, about his concerns with Wedd’s members bill, and what other ways we should regulate social media for young people as opposed to an outright ban.
Evie speaks to Theology Researcher at University of Otago Dr Greg Marcar about the selection of the new pope, Leo XIV.
And Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins us in studio for our last chat!
The Catholic Church has a new leader — Pope Leo XIV — elected after just two days of conclave in what many are calling a quick and unified decision. He follows Pope Francis, whose time as pope was known for major reforms and a focus on social issues. Now, people are asking: will Leo continue that legacy, or take the Church in a new direction?
Some describe Leo XIV as a moderate, but we are yet to see what issues he will choose to act on.
Producer Evie spoke to Dr Greg Marcar, a theology researcher at the University of Otago, about what we can expect from Pope Leo’s time in charge, and what it means that he’s the first American pope in history.
They also looked at why the conclave happened so quickly this time, and whether a new pope could bring changes not just for Catholics, but for the wider world.
Recently, National MP, Catherine Wedd, has launched a members bill, that has been supported by the wider party, to ban under-16-year-olds from social media. Since, Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, has announced that Education Minister, Erica Stanford, will be “exploring options” that would be brought to Cabinet.
As such, Stanford’s education portfolio will be amended to ensure she can commission advice and direct officials to mitigate the harms of social media on under-16-year-olds.
Luxon says that he has received an "overwhelmingly positive response from mums and dads," regarding these moves. At the end of last year, in light of Australia passing a similar bill, a 1News Verian poll showed 68% were in support of New Zealand passing a similar bill, 22% were opposed, and 10% were undecided.
These moves come alongside the launch of B416, a group pushing to ban social media access to under-16-year-olds.
News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the co-chair of B416, Anna Curzon, about why she supports this outright ban.
Despite a lot of support, what has been proposed has also received a lot of criticism.
Many are concerned about how effective this bill, if passed into law, would be.
As mentioned previously, Australia passed a similar bill last year, which is set to go into effect at the end of this year. However, there are still hurdles in the way before the implementation of this policy in December, such as what tech will be used to ensure under-16-year-olds aren’t on social media, and whether social media platforms themselves will comply.
Here in New Zealand, what is currently being proposed has seen relatively mixed opinions. NZ First supports the move, however, ACT does not. The ACT Party previously called the member's bill hastily drafted, simplistic, and unworkable, and has instead called for a “public inquiry” before the select committee.
Joel also spoke to Dr Alex Beattie, a lecturer in Media and Communications at the Victoria University of Wellington about what has been proposed, and his concerns regarding the bill.
Last week, fuel stocks in the country went down by three or four days across each fuel type. The government recognised this as not enough to change to phase two in the national fuel plan, drawing some concerned comments from the political opposition around the state of our stocks, and when the government plans to actually move up phases.
Following a week that saw both Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon comment on the state of the Strait of Hormuz, and the way the United States has handled the ongoing conflict, Willis also travelled to the US to meet with White House advisors.
This week, Host Alex spoke with National MP Ryan Hamilton about these fuel crisis developments, and what the government’s approach going forward may look like.
To start our discussion, however, we spoke briefly about the confidence in Christopher Luxon’s Leadership.
Earlier this week, Councillor Julie Fairey moved a resolution to investigate Auckland Council’s involvement with companies that are complicit in Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territory.
And this week, Auckland Council launched an AI virtual assistant to report issues such as graffiti, roaming dogs, and noise complaints.
For City Counselling, Wire Host Caeden spoke with Councillor Julie Fairey about both of these topics.
Last Friday, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown announced the signing of a new ‘City Deal’.
The deal will see closer partnership between the central government and Auckland Council, coordinating planning in areas such as infrastructure and transportation.
The deal will see a long-term partnership between the government and council, with regular meetings and cooperation on strategies for innovation and transportation, with reviews of sporting venues such as Eden Park and the Auckland Tennis Centre.
However, the deal has been critiqued by some as being a collection of promises without any new funding.
So for our weekly catch-up with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March, he and producer Theo discussed the signing of the Auckland City Deal, and how the Green Party would work with Auckland Council on issues such as transportation and infrastructure.
Last week, the Ministry for the Environment together with Stats New Zealand released Our Freshwater 2026, a major report on the state of Aotearoa’s freshwater systems based on decades of data. The report highlights both long-term improvement and deterioration of waterways nationwide, with particular focus on groundwater sources and the impacts of agricultural land use and the climate crisis on water quality.
I spoke to Troy Baisden, co-president of the New Zealand Association of Scientists and Adjunct Professor at Victoria University of Wellington, about what the findings of this report mean and also about the strengths and limitations of freshwater reporting.
Last week, the Government and Auckland Council agreed on the ‘Auckland City Deal’, which seeks to enhance co-ordination between the two bodies to enable better investment in the city to get the most out of what Mayor Wayne Brown has called the ‘Engine’ of the economy. This will see better communication between the mayor and prime minister, co-operation on certain legislation, and funding.
The weekend also saw Cyclone Vaianu hit the country, with parts of the country facing damage and flooding. The government now has the job of responding to the damage, and deciding what needs to change, looking forward to future cyclones.
This week, Host Alex spoke with National Party MP Ryan Hamilton about each of these topics.
Over the past week, the conflict in Iran has seen consistent U-turns as the United States continues to change its strategy in the war. On Wednesday morning, US President Donald Trump threatened Iran, saying "a civilisation will die tonight", just hours before agreeing to a two-week ceasefire with Tehran.
This ceasefire is now in doubt, however, as Israel has escalated its bombing campaign in Lebanon, killing hundreds since it was signed, and Trump announced this morning that the US will block the Strait of Hormuz after failed peace talks with Iran in Pakistan.
Amidst all of this, New Zealand's Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the day of Trump's threats and wouldn't condemn the comments. Some New Zealanders are concerned by the country's limp response to these illegal threats and actions against Iran.
Also this month, the Act Party has continued to call for the abolition of the Broadcasting Standards Authority, after it was announced that a complaint about online site The Platform and its host, Sean Plunkett, would be looked at by the authority.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party's Simon Court, producer Thomas asked him about the ceasefire in Iran, the US blocking the Strait of Hormuz and the Broadcasting Standards Authority.
A record number of Aucklanders are using public transport amidst rising fuel costs. The average number of users is up 10% from the same time last year.
And yesterday, Watercare lifted its boil water notice for the suburbs of Hillsborough, Mt Roskill, Royal Oak, and Three Kings after 2 days under the notice.
The notice was due to a detection of bacteria on Monday, which a Watercare investigation found was caused by a single water quality monitoring tap.
For City Counselling this week, The Wire Host Caeden spoke to Councillor Shane Henderson about these topics.
Over the past few weeks, the government has been hesitant to call out the US and Israel for their role in the recent conflict in Iran. While Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has called for all parties to comply with international law, he refrained from explicitly addressing either aggressor. Only in the past week has Luxon offered any criticism, calling Trump’s Iran policy “unhelpful” and Finance Minister Nicola Willis “alarmed” at Trump’s comments around destruction of civilisation in Iran. Labour has criticised the government for its lack of a hard stance.
Also this past week has seen funding for the Tukituki water security project secured, which could see flooding for significant amounts of conservation land in the Hawke’s Bay. The project could also see acceleration under the Fast Track Approvals bill, which Labour has also criticised since its inception.
Lastly, Auckland Council has repeatedly called for additional support for public transport amidst the fuel crisis. Despite these calls, the government has yet to deliver.
To discuss each of these topics and what the Labour party could bring to the table, News Director Castor spoke to Labour MP Shanan Halbert.
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