The Wire with Sara

Extreme weather events such as the recent Tasman floods, are becoming more common in New Zealand. With that, the risk of severe flooding is only increasing.

The question is: how prepared is Aotearoa for the next severe flood and what action is needed to prepare for it? 

Producer Max spoke to Dr. Iresh Jayawardena, a lecturer in Urban Planning at the University of Auckland, to talk about New Zealand’s lack of awareness when it comes to floods and why short term planning has left many areas vulnerable to severe weather.

Last week, The Green party issued a statement calling on the government to drop the Regulatory Standards Bill after the bill went through hearings at the select committee, with only 19 out of the total 208 submissions heard supporting the Bill.

This week, the government confirmed their plan to re-establish 10 polytechnics that had been merged into Te Pūkenga under the previous labour government as part of the government’s plan to gradually disestablish the wider institution.

And the Greens recently announced that they wouldn’t be standing any candidates of their own in the Tāmaki Makaurau by-elections, which are happening in September this year.

For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, News and Editorial Director, Joel, spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March to get the party’s take on all of these issues.

Earlier this month, UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese, submitted a report to the UN Human Rights Council entitled ‘From Economy of Occupation to Economy of Genocide’.

The report names companies who have financially supported or sustained Israel’s ongoing war and genocide against Palestinians, and highlights pathways to accountability that “transcend legal and diplomatic rhetoric”.

She calls on civil society to respond to the actions of Israel in light of the limited power of the United Nations to effectively end the violence. 

The United States has since imposed sanctions on Albanese, calling for her removal for allegations they say are “false and offensive”.

Exploring more in depth the potential impact of this Economy of Genocide report, as well as the obligation and power of the United Nations as a whole, and the New Zealand government to respond to the situation, Producer Sara spoke with University of Otago Professor for Politics & International Relations Robert Patman, as well as Amnesty International Aotearoa community manager Margaret Taylor.

Patman has published two pieces recently, criticising the New Zealand government’s failure to adequately respond to the US’ role in particular in the violence in Gaza.

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science, our expert, Professor Allan Blackman, chatted with us about lightning created by peeling tape, links between talc and cancer, and a new form of Nitrogen. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about the government’s health contributions in light of recent strikes.

They also spoke to Emeritus Professor Tim Hazledine about David Seymour’s plans to address the supermarket duopoly in Aotearoa. 

On the topic of the recent Economy of Genocide report released by UN Special rapporteur Francesca Albanese, producer Sara spoke with both University of Otago’s Professor of International Relations Robert Patman, as well as Amnesty International Aotearoa’s Margaret Taylor.