Back in December, Kiwi Rail announced that same-day passenger services crossing New Zealand such as the Auckland to Wellington Northern Explorer Line and the Picton to Christchurch Coastal Pacific.
Communities around the country have come together to form the Save Our Trains Campaign to push for the continuation of cross-island train lines.
The movement has already seen some success, with KiwiRail reaching out to its supporters with surveys about the Northern Explorer. Liam Hansen chatted with spokesperson Paul Callister about the movement and what’s coming next.
James Tapp talked to Trusts' Arena CEO Mark Gosling about the future of the events' industry.
Justin spoke to Labour's Phil Twyford about the party's policy on rail.
On their weekly chat, Justin and Justice Minister Andrew Little talked about the Pike River mine, rent freezes, a Chinese database containg the contact information more than 700 prominent New Zealanders, and a Labour pledge to give government contracters the living wage.
Justin also chatted with Zoe on Neighbourhood Watch about a campaign to make the aboriginal flag free for public use, a lawsuit against the Victoria government over the legality of the Melbourne curfew, and a failed rocket launch in South Australia.
On their weekly chat, Justin spoke to Health and security agencies Minister Andrew Little about COVID-19 vaccines, euthanasia, and expanding security agencies' powers.
Justin then discussed with Transport Minister Michael Wood about the Auckland Light Rail project.
Neighbourhood Watch reports on the federal Cabinet reshuffle, more sexual misconduct allegations in Parliament, and changes to the JobSeeker benefit.
Justin spoke to Employers and Manufacturers Association's Alan McDonald and Auckland Action Against Poverty's Brooke Stanley Pao about the minimum wage increases today.
On their weekly chat, Justin and Health and Treaty Negotiations Minister Andrew Little talked about overseas nurse recruitement, home isolation, and revisiting past treaty settlements.
Neighbourhood Watch reports on an Australian of the Year being told not to badmouth the Prime Minister, and the passing of a controversial bill.
Justin also spoke to Paul Callister of Save Our Trains about their campaign for intercity rail.
Joe talked to Victoria McArthur from Mates in Construction about construction worker mental health.
He also chatted with Allergy NZ's Mark Dixon about a new free EpiPen campaign.
Today on the Monday Wire, amongst a few tunes, we bring you:
A new fortnightly segment begins in collaboration with OurActionStation. Every fornight Charlie will speak about a new interviewee about their campaign. this week, she spoke to Patrick Rooney about the Save Our Trains Campaign that wants for done for New Zealand's intercity rail network.
Sam speaks to Dr Richard Stein, The Chair of Crohn’s & Colitis NZ, about IBD medication and how New Zealand isn't putting enough funding into the medication, despite other countries doing so.
Dr Matt Rayner is also with us today, speaking with Charlie about the upcoming T-Rex exhibit that the Auckland War Memorial Museum will be hosting.
E whai ake nei, coming up on the Friday Wire, Liam had a chat with Christina Ammunson from Te Taura Whiri i te reo Māori about the goal of having one million basic speakers of Te Reo in Aotearoa by 2040.
Casper continued his chats with mayoral Candidates, today, he spoke to Gary Brown.
Liam also spoke to Shane Henderson about the City Rail Link and the 2022 Mayoral Conservation awards for City Counselling.
David Liwei Shi had a chat with Green Party MP Teanau Tuiono about how a lack of mask mandates put vulnerable communities at risk.
And finally, Liam spoke with Felicia Low from the University of Auckland about perinatal mental distress.
This week on the show Stella speaks to geopolitical analyst from The Democracy Project, Geoffrey Miller, about Aotearoa’s formal response to Russia’s annexation of Ukraine. We’ve got our regular segment with Andrew Little brought to us by Tuva’a. Stella speaks to Annie West, a doctoral candidate at the University of Auckland about her research on Kākāpō gut microbiomes. Stella also speaks to Cate Macinnis-Ng about her co authorship of a new study showing that termites may play a pivotal role in climate change. Finally, News & Editorial Director Jessica Hopkins speaks to Auckland Transport Metro Services Manager Derek Koper about filling bus driver shortages in preparation for Auckland's rail network rebuild.
Happy Tuesday! On today's Wire with Christina and Casper. Allan Blackman joined the team live on air to talk Black Plague, mozzies and the DART mission for Dear Science.
Casper spoke to Dr Shane Reti from the National Party for their weekly segment about their proposed social investment fund. He also had a kōrero with Rosemary Penwarden from Restore Passenger Rail about their campaign and recent protest activity on Wellington highways.
Christina spoke to Dr Stephen Noakes, a senior politics lecturer from the University of Auckland, about the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th National Congress and Xi Jinping's continued grasp on power. She also reported on Rishi Sunak, who is set to become UK's next Prime Minister in the wake of Liz Truss' resignation last week.