The Wire with Castor

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science this week, our expert, Doctor Cushla McGoverin chats with us about the cleanliness of the International Space Station, colours on birds of paradise, and stretchable display materials, thanks to MOTAT!

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Tuesday Wire Host Castor asked about the new citizen’s arrest policy and its potential impacts across society.

News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to the Principal of Papakura High School, Simon Craggs, about the roughly 50 principals from low-income schools who have expressed concerns about the new NCEA tests.

Castor spoke to the Co-Chair of Health Coalition Aotearoa, Professor Lisa Te Morenga, about the government’s new school lunch program.

And Joel spoke to a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Auckland, Ritesh Shah, about the substantial cuts to USAID, and whether we should revise the models of international aid organisations.

Whakarongo mai!

This week on the Monday Wire...

For our weekly catch up with the ACT Party, Producer Evie spoke to Simon Court about government legislation for a four year parliamentary term, and the government giving further powers for citizen arrests.

News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, speaks to the Director of Advocacy at IHC New Zealand; an intellectual disability advocacy group, Tania Thomas, on the recently released Stats NZ figures showing a large number of individuals with a disability are needing better care in at least one aspect of their life.

Joel speaks to an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Auckland, Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere, on his doctoral research, calling for Aotearoa to adopt an animal welfare police unit.

And Global Innovator, Matt Hart, joins us in studio to discuss students starting university for the year

Whakarongo mai!

Recently, Stats NZ have released findings from the 2023 Household Disability Survey (HDS), collected during the 2023 Census, that found that 63% of those with a disability in Aotearoa have called for better care in at least one aspect of their lives, such as with better support, reasonable accommodation, home modifications and equipment, and medical care.

The HDS found that in New Zealand, roughly 10% of children have a disability, with this being 18% of adults, equating to roughly 851,000 people.

News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to the Director of Advocacy at IHC New Zealand; an intellectual disability advocacy group, Tania Thomas, about these recently released findings, specifically for those who have an intellectual disability.

This comes as the organisation is set to release a report using these findings in the coming months, highlighting the significant hardship faced by those with an intellectual disability; reinforcing the need for urgent policy to address these concerns.

Joel started off by asking her if these findings were surprising to her.

The government has announced an expansion of citizen arrest laws. These new laws would allow retailers to detain suspected shoplifters using “reasonable force.”

Wire Host Caeden spoke to Retail New Zealand Chief Executive Carolyn Young about the proposed law change and how it could put retail workers in danger.