The Wire with Joel

The government also announced increased visa application fees, some of them now more than double the previous cost. The government says this change will make Immigration NZ entirely self-sufficient, no longer at any cost to the taxpayer.

However, the projected gain from this fee increase is four times as much as Immigration NZ currently spends annually. While the increased funding is expected to be reinvested in improving services, the actual impact or allocation is currently unknown. 

Additionally, increased fees may deter potential applicants and increase costs to businesses looking to hire employees from overseas. The change may therefore reduce the number of overseas teachers and healthcare professionals, among other jobs. 

Wire host Castor spoke to CEO of immigration advisory group Aims and chair of the New Zealand Association of Migration and Investment, Arunima Dhingra, about the changes and their impact on immigration. 

The government recently announced increases to visa application fees across several groups, in some cases more than doubling the cost to applicants. These changes are due to increase revenue for Immigration NZ, and are said to make the organisation 100% self-sufficient. 

On the 12th of August, the New Zealand Police Association released an open letter to the government calling out their exclusion from discussions around firearms legislation reform. The letter spoke to the necessity of existing legislation, and criticised the involvement of former and present gun lobbyists in the process, including the minister in charge Nicole McKee. According to the ACT party website, McKee was formerly the spokesperson for The Council of Licensed Firearms Owners, a gun lobbyist group. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Katie Nimon, Wire host Castor asked about the changes to visa application fees and the involvement of police and gun lobbyists in firearms legislation reform. 

For their weekly catchup, Wire Host and News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to the ACT Party's Simon Court, about calls from the New Zealand police association for ACT MP, Nicole McKee, to step down from her responsibilities in the firearms reform.

Also for our week catchup, they speak to Te Pāti Māori's Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, around local council's voting on the future of Māori wards in their constituencies, the Ngāpuhi hīkoi over the government's plans to reverse section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act, and Te Pāti Māori's calls to boycott the newspaper, The Herald.

They spoke to Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Claire Charters, around the controversial decision to include an advertisement by right-wing lobby group, Hobson's Pledge, in The Herald.

The also spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, Chris McMillan, about whether the Olympics, as well as team New Zealand, are doing enough to lower their carbon footprint.

Finally, they spoke to youth worker and co-founder of Kick Back, Aaron Hendry, about the Ministry of Social Development changing their eligability for Emergency Housing, and what this means for vulnerable youth.

Recently, the Ministry of Social Development changed its eligibility for those trying to access Emergency Housing.

On top of having tougher eligibility, the policy also means that those caught breaking the rules of their Emergency Housing needs will have a stand-down period of 13 weeks for a housing grant.

Kick Back, a youth development organisation, has condemned the government’s move, and is calling for the government to reassess the criteria, due to how the new criteria will significantly displace young people requiring access to Emergency Housing.

Joel spoke to youth worker and co-founder of the organisation, Aaron Hendry, about the shift of eligibility, and what this will mean for vulnerable young people