The Wire w/ Castor: 12th January, 2026

This week on the Monday Wire...

For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party, News Editor Castor spoke to MP Laura McClure about New Zealand’s stance on the US kidnapping of Venezuelan president Maduro and the ACT party’s campaign plans for 2026. 

They also spoke to distinguished scholar at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, and honorary faculty member at the Department of Physics at the University of Auckland, Kevin Trenberth, about rising ocean temperatures and the potential ramifications. 

Producer Alex spoke to Professor Robert Patman, a senior lecturer in Political Science at the University of Otago, about Trump’s attacks and intervention in Venezuela, and what that means for the US’ place in South America and the world.

He also spoke with Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at the University of Auckland, Dr Ulrich Speidel, about the Managemyhealth data breach, what it means about the cybersecurity about these platforms, what leaked data means, and what should be done to protect New Zealanders’ personal data.