The Wire with Caeden

The guilty verdict for Dr Tony Hanne, who was prescribing drugs for ADHD without going through the full official process, is drawing attention to difficulties in getting diagnoses and crucial medication for New Zealanders with the disorder.

To get a sense of what these obstacles look like and how they’re posing such a problem that an expert in the field found himself undercutting the system to get people medication that they need, Casper spoke to Darrin Bull, chairperson of ADHD New Zealand.

The Melbourne Cup is held on the 1st of November every year. It’s a major annual horseracing event which attracts global attention. However, the Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses believes that the event is unethical and is staging a protest along Auckland’s waterfront this afternoon, where many venues will be screening the race.

Casper spoke to Aya Oba from the Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses, to discuss the protest and the group's views on what they call an exploitative and abusive industry.

The National party is drawing attention to declining pass rates for NCEA students taking literacy and numeracy tests, with only sixty-four percent passing for reading skills, fifty-six percent in numeracy tests and only thirty-four for writing.

For their weekly catch-up Casper discussed this issue with National party MP Shane Reti, as well as the possibility of reform to alcohol laws that the government has recently signalled.

Public consultation on New Zealand’s Aerospace Strategy and Space Policy Review will close today, the 31st of October. The consultation documents highlight the need to engage with Māori on New Zealand’s space activities and engagements, though some commentators argue that the consultation has been too rushed for Māori to have meaningful input. 

Joe spoke to Dr Pauline Harris, an Associate Professor at Te Putahi a Toi: School of Maori Knowledge, Massey University, on this matter.