The Wire with Joel

Everyone has heard of Bird of the Year, however, voting for the inaugural Bug of the Year competition opened this week.

New Zealand is home to over 20,000 species of insects and spiders and they make up an important part of our ecosystem.

The Entomological Society hopes this competition will create a new appreciation for our native insects.

David spoke to Christchurch Museum entomologist Morgane Merien about the competition and the importance of bugs to our ecosystem.

Protests in Iran began two months ago after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini who was detained by so-called morality police for allegedly breaking strict hijab rules.

This week a court in Iran has issued the first death sentence to a person arrested for taking part in the protests against the country's government which began two months ago.

Human rights groups have warned Iranian authorities may be planning mass executions. 

A University of Auckland PHD student who is from Iran is calling on Aotearoa, and its Universities to do more to condemn the human rights abuses in Iran. 

We started off our interview addressing allegations regarding a University of Auckland staff member, sharing their support of the Iranian regime online.

Liam makes an incredibly dramatic move for the summer and moves to The Thursday Wire! What a madman!

E whai ake nei, on the show today:

Liam speaks to Hanna Habibi about the mass arrest of protestors in Iran.

Tuva’a has his weekly catch-up with Labour’s Andrew Little.

Liam spoke to Andree Froude from the Problem Gambling Foundation about pokie machine regulations in Timaru.

News and Editorial Director Jessica Hopkins speaks to Philip Aldridge, the Chief Executive of Waihanga Ara Rau, the Workforce Development Council for Construction and Infrastructure, about making businesses and worksites safer for women in the trade industry. 

Liam also spoke to Fiona Petchy from the University of Waikato about Māori settlement dates.

And lastly they had a chat with Cameron Adams for Eurovision about the current state of the Ukraine war.

Russia's war on Ukraine has continued to intensify in recent weeks, as the Kremlin has recently launched the most missiles within a single week of the war so far. 

One of these strikes coincided with two stray missiles reaching part of Poland near the border of Ukraine, which led to the deaths of two people. 

It’s unconfirmed where these strikes came from, as European Correspondent Cameron Adams reports as a part of this weeks Eurovision segment. 

Him and Liam also chatted about the European Commission  calling for the incorporation of three new member states into 3 more member states to the Schengen area, and a new deal between France and England to control asylum seekers travelling across the English channel.