The Wire with Caeden

Mental health has become an increasingly important issue over the past year as people around the world are forced into isolation due to Covid-19. Noah spoke to Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation, Shaun Robinson, about the importance of increasing funding to mental health, and the potential long-term impacts of the pandemic.

Earlier this month Matike Mai Aotearoa, the Independent Working Group on Constitutional Transformation, held a constitutional convention. The hui would build on the recommendations made by the group in their 2016 report as to how New Zealand’s constitution could be transformed to properly reflect Indigenous rights and perfect the partnership between tangata whenua and the Crown. 

News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston speaks to Professor and member of Matike Mai Aotearoa Margaret Mutu (Ngāti Kahu Te Rarawa, Ngāti Whātua) about the convention, what constitutional transformation is, how it can be achieved and what it looks like in practice. Professor Mutu explains why only transformation can give true recognition to the rangatiratanga of Māori as the tangata whenua of Aotearoa.

Auckland is in Level 3, the rest of Aotearoa is in Level 2 and the News Team is working remotely again! News and Editorial Director Jemima Huston hosts the Monday Wire while Zoë Larsen Cumming, Jessica Hopkins and Aneeka Moheed produce the show from the safety of their homes. 

Zoë speaks to Green Party co-leader James Shaw about the Covid-19 alert level changes, honouring Te Tiriti, prioritising Aotearoa’s Rainbow Community this parliamentary term and the crucial global climate talks in December.

Aneeka brings us an international report on the go ahead for the controversial Leeds-Bradford Airport expansion in the United Kingdom. 

Zoë talks to academic General Practitioner and Associate Professor Nikki Turner on the UK variant and what it means for our response to Covid-19 this time around. Turner is also the Director of the Immunisation Advisory Centre at the University of Auckland.

Jess wraps the show up with an interview with Dr Melinda Webber (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu) about the Atlantic Fellows for Social Equity programme and what this could mean for Māori communities.

The strain of COVID-19 which has been found in the Auckland community has been identified as the UK variant. To find out what this may mean for our imminent vaccination roll-outs and future community responses to covid 19, Zoë Larsen Cumming spoke to academic General Practitioner and Associate Professor Nikki Turner on the UK variant and what it means for our response to Covid-19 this time around.