The Wire with Caeden

This week on the Wednesday Wire, the show kicks off with Christina having her regular segment Dear Science with AUT Professor Allan Blackman. They talk about a chemical emitted by babies that can affect our behaviour; explore how a spacecraft can deflect an asteroid, and investigate a brand new particle accelerator that can help us better understand atoms.  

After that, Zazi speaks with AUT Associate Professor Leon Benade, discussing the shift many schools have made from traditional learning spaces to more open-plan classroom spaces. 

Then Christina talks to the New Zealand CEO of the Prostate Cancer Foundation, Peter Dickens, on the upcoming Pedal4Prostate fundraiser.

And finally, Zazi has her regular talk with ACT's Brooke van Velden, where they talk about the subject of minimum wage increases and the new Workplace Vaccination Tool announced yesterday. 

This week Zazi and Brooke talk about the subject of minimum wage increases and the new Workplace Vaccination Tool.

First off, the two talk about minimum wage increases. Zazi asks Brooke why ACT believes a moratorium should be put on minimum wages, if Brooke has sympathy for minimum wage workers, and whether she thinks businesses would stop failing if a moratoriuman were to be put in place. 

Then, Zazi speaks to Brooke about the new Workplace Vaccination Tool announced yesterday. Brooke shares if she thinks this will be a good guideline, if she thinks the Government have done a good job with guidance and advice, as well as if ACT are more on the side of blanket vaccine mandates or on the side of mandating vaccines for specific businesses and workplaces. 

This week new Smokefree 2025 law will take effect. The law aims to protect children under the age of 18 by banning smoking and vaping inside cars either moving or parked. This latest move is part of the government’s commitment to ensuring that by 2025 fewer than 5% of New Zealanders will be smokers or what is more commonly known as Aotearoa's Smokefree 2025 goal. 

News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston speaks to ASH New Zealand Director Deborah Hart about the new law. They discuss the how the law came to be, why the inclusion of vaping in the ban is confusing, and whether the Smokefree 2025 goal is realistic. 

ASH NZ is the leading independent smokefree campaign organisation in New Zealand whose work in supporting policy makers and leading a social campaign aims to reach the Smokefree 2025 goal. 

Today on the Tuesday Wire, Emily Bell discusses Aotearoa moving to the new traffic light system on December 2nd at 11:59pm with University of Canterbury professor and Covid-19 modeller Michael Plank. 

Jemima Huston speaks to Deborah Hart from ASH New Zealand about the new Smokefree 2025 laws being put in place this week to protect children from smoking inside cars. 

Tuva’a Clifton catches up with the latest news from Waiheke Island's Pūtiki Bay and the building of the Kennedy Point marina. 

Emily interviews the Executive Head of the New Zealand Drug Foundation Sarah Helm about the increase of homelessness and anti-social behaviour in the Auckland CBD and what can be done to improve it.

Finally, this month is Movember! Jemima talks to Robert Dunne, the Country Manager for Movember New Zealand, about the charity and how it works to support and fundraise for men's health.