The Wire with Joel

It’s nearly been a month since The COVID-19 Public Health Response Act passed in Parliament. "Passed under urgency, the Act enables orders imposing the most profound peacetime restrictions ever made to the rights and personal freedoms of all New Zealanders."

This is a statement from the New Zealand Law Society, who released a press statement last Wednesday, recommending changes to amendments in the legislation, which need additional safeguarding. 

The Wire's Producer Louis Laws spoke with Jonathan Orpin-Dowell, a barrister & a member of the NZLS Law Reform Committee, who spoke on the Response Act, & the amendments the Law Society is recommending...

On the Wire today, Louis Laws speaks with Jonathan Orpin-Dowell from the New Zealand Law Society on safeguarding Emergency COVID-19 legislation.

Jemima has been investigating the commercialisation of social and political movements and culture in response to the Black Lives Matter Movement. She speaks to Dr Neal Curtis, a media professor at the University of Auckland, about effect of social media on political movements and social media activism.

Louis talks to Nick Beveridge from Forest and Bird about the cuts made to Auckland Council's funding for Environmental Services.

Sam talks to Meka Whaitiri about the governments intentions regarding to Oranga Tamariki and whether the values of Te Ao Māori ought to be better included in the Ministry's legislation.

Meka Whaitiri of Labour's Maori caucus speaks with Sam about why the government intends to honour the recommendations put forth in 1988's  landmark Puao Te-Ata-Tu report thirty two years later as we continue to see the same issues with child welfare services that we had then

In today’s catch up with Minister Little, Mary-Margaret asks about the meaning of “operational matters” and not being able to comment on them, and what he thinks of our modern national security regime in light of revelations that our Secret Service broke into the Czechoslovakian Embassy in the late 80s. 

We hear from the senior news editor of The Spectrum, the University of Buffalo’s a student magazine, about what it feels like to be on the ground as New York cautiously lifts some COVID-19 restrictions.

Zoe Kounadis joins us for Neighbourhood Watch once again and explains several significant cuts this week, including ones to childcare and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

Splore’s director John Minty discusses the return of the festival, opportunities for local music while our borders are closed, and cultural shifts we might see in terms of festivals after COVID-19.