The Wire with Manny

A number of experts have raised concerns recently regarding the “way too friendly” relationship between alcohol industry lobbyists and policy makers responsible for alcohol restrictions and laws in New Zealand.

While we have had an alcohol harm-reduction levy in place for over forty years, some experts including University of Auckland School of Population Health Professor Peter Adams, believe that this levy isn’t as positive as it seems.

As alcohol lobbyists have been granted input and influence in the development of alcohol policies, Adams says that the levy is actually a smokescreen that allows the industry to profit from alcohol consumption without tangibly addressing its harms to the population.

On Monday, Producer Sam spoke with Professor Peter Adams about this topic. 

Once a beacon of democratic progress, Georgia is at risk of sliding into authoritarianism, particularly due to Russian influence. 

Six opposition leaders face criminal charges, and the major opposition parties have been banned, while “Georgia Dream”, the political party in power, faces allegations of corruption and voter fraud.

However, the party faces increasing opposition within Georgia, including mass protests over their pro-Russia laws. 

82% of Georgians feel their country is in crisis, with 78% directly citing the Georgian Dream political party as the cause. 

Wire Host Caeden spoke to Natasha Lindstaedt, Professor in the Department of Government at the University of Essex, about Georgia’s anti-democratic crackdowns and public response.

The government has announced that Te Pūkenga is set to return to ‘regional governance,’ re-establishing 10 polytechnics that were merged under the previous Labour-led government.

In 2020 under the previous Labour-led government, 16 polytechnics and nine industry training organisations were merged into the mega-institute Te Pūkenga, as a “head office”. Despite this, the polytechnics were allowed to maintain their unique images and continue operating.

Vocational Education Minister, Penny Simmonds, announced the move, to establish a vocational education system that is “locally led, regionally responsible, and future-focused”.

The move has faced backlash. The Tertiary Education Union’s national secretary, Sandra Grey, says the move would be a disaster for regional education and that the sector is being treated as a “political football”.

For our weekly catchup with the Labour Party, News and Editorial Director Joel spoke with MP Shanon Halbert, about this move from the government.

They also discussed Te Pāti Māori members expressing concerns over Labour’s choice of running MP Peeni Henare in the upcoming Tāmaki Makaurau by-election.

Te Pāti Māori media liaison, Kiri Tamihere-Waititi, says a vote for Henare would be “wasted,” as Henare already has a seat in Parliament. She has called for people to vote for Te Pāti Māori’s candidate, Oriini Kaipara, so that there would be two Tāmaki Makaurau-based Māori MPs in Parliament.

But first, they discussed vocational education.

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.