The Wire with Joel

For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Deputy Leader Carmel Sepuloni about Green MP Tamatha Paul’s comments about the police and Finance Minister Nicola Willis’ recent announcement on the supermarket duopoly. 

For International Desk, they spoke to Dr Yvonne Breitwieser-Faria from Curtin University in Perth about the arrest of former Philippines President, Rodrigo Duterte, by the International Criminal Court.

For City Counselling, Producer Sara spoke to Auckland Councillor Shane Henderson about Auckland Transport’s decision to increase parking rates by 50 cents per hour in lots across Auckland, as well as the latest development in Auckland’s ‘stadium saga’, in which councillors have voted to support the Eden Park 2.1 project.

She also spoke with Unite Union’s Co-President Xavier Walsh about their call to action for the government, after the minimum wage was only increased by 35 cents this week, the lowest increase in more than a decade.

Former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has been arrested by the International Criminal Court and will be tried in the Hague for crimes against humanity.

This comes as the ICC faces criticism for other, more controversial current arrest warrants, including those against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Wire Host Caeden spoke to Dr Yvonne Breitwieser-Faria from Curtin University in Perth about Duterte’s arrest and broader issues facing the ICC.

New research, which has been commissioned by the Helen Clark Foundation shows that many are expressing concern for social cohesion in the country.

Tuesday Wire Host, Castor, spoke to the Movement Building and Advocacy Director for Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, Lisa Woods, about this research, and why people may be concerned for social cohesion in New Zealand.

Last week the Green Party’s Tamatha Paul made comments about police presence in Wellington, particularly how increased police activity made some feel unsafe. She also noted some discriminatory and harmful behaviour from police officers towards Wellington’s homeless population. These comments, presented at a panel hosted by the University of Canterbury’s Greens and Peace Action Ōtautahi, were Paul restating feedback she had received from her constituents in Wellington central. 

The response to Tamatha Paul’s comments was extremely critical from all sides of the political spectrum, involving feedback such as “insane” from prime minister Christopher Luxon, “unwise” and “stupid” from Labour leader Chris Hipkins, and “just weird” from ACT leader David Seymour. The comments and their responses lead to a series of articles across all major New Zealand news networks. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Tom Rutherford about the substance of Tamatha Paul’s comments and whether the seemingly disproportionate reaction is appropriate.