Various criticisms have been levied at the level of infrastructure funding available in West Auckland, especially when compared to other areas in Tamaki Makaurau.
This comes after continuous issues with the western line train services, which are being consistently cancelled for repairs without a substantive bus system to replace it.
There’s also bee chat about delays in building a new complex in the North West of Auckland, which has been in talks for years but faced various delays.
To learn more about what the council is doing to curb these issues, Liam spoke to Shane Henderson, the councillor for the Waitakere Ward.
For city counselling this week Simon spoke with Waitākere Councillor Shane Henderson. Shane spoke in depth about the consultation process for the council's integrated transport plan, as well as about the submission process for the Auckland City Council Budget. Simon began by asking Shane what sort of feedback he has been receiving in the Waitākere area.
Last week two reports were released by the Office of the Ombudsman after the inspection of a Women’s prison in Christchurch and the Wellington Arohata prison.
The chief of the Ombudsman along with advocacy groups such as Amnesty International and Justspeak have come forward to criticise the treatment of prisoners and the cultural and leadership issues.
Poor treatment included, long lock up hours, lack of privacy in toilets and bathrooms and neglect in high security areas. Amnesty and Justspeak have also made a submission to the UN comittee against torture, to stop the use of spit hoods on young people.
Rawan spoke with Lisa Woods, from Amnesty international about the results of the recent reports and what needs to be done.
The government has announced it will be repealing the Three Waters programme, criticising the co-governance element, which would have given Māori with mana whenua to the area a 50 percent presence on strategic oversight boards. It also would have shifted management of drinking, waste and stormwater services into 10 large independent entities.
National, ACT and New Zealand First voted in favour of repealing the programme, while Labour, the Green Party and Te Pāti Māori were opposed.
Beth spoke to Counsellor for Waitakere, Shane Henderson, about the potential impacts of the government’s repeal on the Council, and how it will affect its planning of water infrastructure, particularly in light of climate change and the severe weather events we saw last year.
This week on Ready Steady Learn, Jonny chats to Phyllis Ohene-Agyei about her research into the
impacts of gestational diabetes (diabetes during pregnancy) on mothers and their babies. Her research focuses on a previously little-studied area – the link between expectant mums having diabetes and
developing mental health issues. Thanks to Te Waipapa Taumata Rau - The University of Auckland!
As part of its submission on a Local Government New Zealand issues paper exploring electoral reform, Auckland Council has expressed its support for a four-year electoral term.
In exploring local government reform, the LGNZ paper also looks at public understanding of local government, public awareness of candidates and policies, and voting methods for local elections, raising questions about who’s responsible for improving these areas and what the future of local government voting might look like.
For the first interview of 2025, producer Sofia spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about Council’s LGNZ submission as well as Council’s general plans for 2025.
Last week, Auckland Council presented a proposal to shift Kumeū’s town centre as an effort to address the area’s history of flooding.
Additionally, late last month public consultation opened on Council’s proposed bed night visitor levy. The levy would fill a budget gap of $7 million for major events in Tāmaki Makaurau.
For City Counselling this week, Sofia spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about both of these topics, beginning by asking her what current issues Kumeū is facing that informed the proposal to move its town centre.
Elle spoke to Amélie, Elisa and Maxence of Lyon-based electronic trio eat-girls about their latest single Off The. An expansion of their sound on their more experimental debut album Area Silenzio, which was crafted through a series of live performances. The single continues the band’s penchant for strong bass lines and synth-laden harmonies. A fun-fact, they add to the Sof and Elle list of dog songs with Canine.
Rosetta and Milly catch up with Adam Whatton, who is Principal Ranger for the Auckland marine district keen to chat. His role is all about engaging the community around Auckland, the Coromandel and the Hauraki Gulf islands with the new marine protections in the Hauraki Gulf. Whakarongo mai nei!
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