The Wire with Manny

On Monday, Labour Leader Chris Hipkins gave his State of the Nation speech at the Auckland Business Chamber.

And the Government has announced it will give the Police new powers to issue 24-hour ‘move-on’ orders in town centres across the country.

For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Shanan Halbert about both of these topics.

This year, The Twinning Project debuted its pilot programme in Aoteaora. The global initiative offers incarcerated persons the opportunity to upskill by obtaining football coaching qualifications over the course of six weeks.

The near-end-of-term certification is paired with supported rehabilitative pathways to involvement in community and sport, including employment opportunities upon release. 

The first cohort of 16 inmates graduated in Tāmaki Makurau last week, delivered in partnership with local organisations Auckland FC and Kohuora Auckland South Corrections Facility.

Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Hilton Freund, Global CEO of The Twinning Project, who was in Aotearoa to visit the first round of graduates last week.

She started by asking him to tell us a bit about the project, which began in the UK in 2018.

Homeless, rough sleepers and beggars have often been used as a shorthand by some for decline in the city centre. For some, it’s evidence of the state's increasing failure to provide support people at vulnerable points in their lives; for others, the continued presence of rough sleepers being permitted is a sign of a lack of social rules. This week the government seems to have firmly fallen in with the latter. 

They are set to implement legislation that would empower police to implement ‘move on’ orders, which, if issued, would require you to vacate public areas or face up to $2,000 in fines or 3 months in prison.

The move has garnered huge criticism with many viewing the move alongside the governments cuts to emergency housing and support services leaving people with no where to go other than prison.

Another move that has flown a little under the radar has been the amalgamation of the Ministry for the Environment, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development and the local government functions of the Department of Internal Affairs into a single ministry. This amalgamation has alarmed critics who are concerned that the government's track record on climate and environmental policy spells ill for this new agency. 

For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wire Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the amalgamation of key ministries into a mega ministry but began by talking about the expansion of police powers with move-on orders.

Two brutal attacks across the motu have returned public attention to the issue of dog maulings that stubbornly refuses to be resolved. Since 2020, we’ve seen a 20% increase in injuries to people from dogs, coming to nearly THIRTY THOUSAND dog-related injuries reported per year (half of which are bites), and these are the numbers collected without mandatory reporting in Aotearoa.

In the wake of these dog attacks, which saw one woman in Northland lose her life and a father and son in Christchurch severely injured, many people are looking for the government to act to address this issue that frequently flies under that radar until tragedies like this strike. 

But how to respond, and what changes should be focused on, remain open questions.

To get his opinion on how we should approach the issue, Wire Host Manny spoke with Associate Professor at Auckland Law School Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere on the issue of animal control legislative reform.