Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Castor Chacko, Alex Fox, Emmanuel Orange, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
The government recently announced increases to visa application fees across several groups, in some cases more than doubling the cost to applicants. These changes are due to increase revenue for Immigration NZ, and are said to make the organisation 100% self-sufficient.
On the 12th of August, the New Zealand Police Association released an open letter to the government calling out their exclusion from discussions around firearms legislation reform. The letter spoke to the necessity of existing legislation, and criticised the involvement of former and present gun lobbyists in the process, including the minister in charge Nicole McKee. According to the ACT party website, McKee was formerly the spokesperson for The Council of Licensed Firearms Owners, a gun lobbyist group.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Katie Nimon, Wire host Castor asked about the changes to visa application fees and the involvement of police and gun lobbyists in firearms legislation reform.
Recently, the Ministry of Social Development changed its eligibility for those trying to access Emergency Housing.
On top of having tougher eligibility, the policy also means that those caught breaking the rules of their Emergency Housing needs will have a stand-down period of 13 weeks for a housing grant.
Kick Back, a youth development organisation, has condemned the government’s move, and is calling for the government to reassess the criteria, due to how the new criteria will significantly displace young people requiring access to Emergency Housing.
Joel spoke to youth worker and co-founder of the organisation, Aaron Hendry, about the shift of eligibility, and what this will mean for vulnerable young people
The Paris 2024 Olympics games, which are set to end, have aimed to be the “greenest games in history,” implementing a lot of measures to attempt to decrease their carbon footprint.
Despite clear aims to be more environmentally-friendly, the games are predicted to emit 1.5 billion tons of carbon, similar to the amount Fiji emits annually.
Alongside this, only two sporting bodies that make up the New Zealand Olympic Committee have developed their own sustainability strategies.
Joel spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, Chris McMillan, about the Olympics, and team New Zealand’s aims to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis, and whether this is enough.
Last week, the newspaper, The Herald, showcased an advertisement by right-wing lobby group, Hobson’s Pledge, on the front of their August 7 issue.
The advertisement calls to “restore the foreshore and seabed to public ownership,” insinuating that Māori own pretty much all coastal areas in Aotearoa.
NZME, who owns The Herald’s choice to include the advertisement has faced significant backlash, notably by Te Pāti Māori, and Kawea Te Rongo - The Māori Journalists Association.
Joel spoke to Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Claire Charters (Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāpuhi, Tūwharetoa, Tainui) about the advertisement and the backlash it has received.
For their weekly catchup, Wire Host and News and Editorial Director, Joel, speaks to the ACT Party's Simon Court, about calls from the New Zealand police association for ACT MP, Nicole McKee, to step down from her responsibilities in the firearms reform.
Also for our week catchup, they speak to Te Pāti Māori's Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, around local council's voting on the future of Māori wards in their constituencies, the Ngāpuhi hīkoi over the government's plans to reverse section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act, and Te Pāti Māori's calls to boycott the newspaper, The Herald.
They spoke to Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Claire Charters, around the controversial decision to include an advertisement by right-wing lobby group, Hobson's Pledge, in The Herald.
The also spoke to Professional Teaching Fellow in Social Sciences at the University of Auckland, Chris McMillan, about whether the Olympics, as well as team New Zealand, are doing enough to lower their carbon footprint.
Finally, they spoke to youth worker and co-founder of Kick Back, Aaron Hendry, about the Ministry of Social Development changing their eligability for Emergency Housing, and what this means for vulnerable youth.
Wire host Caeden speaks to Labour’s Shanan Halbert about Labour’s new policy to sanction Israel and the Ngāpuhi led protests against 7AA repeal this week.
State of the States makes a return! They speak to Andre Fa’aoso from the Yale Daily News about the newly announced Harris/Walz ticket this election campaign.
And they speak to Dr Kevin Trenberth from the University of Auckland on the record levels of carbon in our atmosphere.
Producer Sofia speaks to Councillor Shane Henderson about rates in Auckland and Council investing $47 million in parks and community facilities over the next three years.
She also speaks to Senior Campaigner at Amnesty International Aotearoa, David Vega, about a recent report from Aotearoa Justice Watch.
Earlier this week, Aotearoa Justice Watch released a report detailing numerous testimonies of abuse, discrimination and alleged violations of human rights within New Zealand’s criminal justice system.
Of the 62 submissions made between June 2022 and March 2024, 36 testimonies related to prisons, 20 to policing and 6 to both policing and prisons.
Aotearoa Justice Watch is made up of People Against Prisons Aotearoa, Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, JustSpeak and the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties.
Producer Sofia spoke to Senior Campaigner at Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand, David Vega, about the report and identifying areas for improvement in our criminal justice system.
Following the 2019 terrorist attacks on a number of Mosques in Christchurch that left 51 worshippers killed, A Royal Commission of Inquiry was launched to measure agencies responses to the attack, steps needed to prevent further attacks in the future and ways to safeguard marginalised communities in Aotearoa.
The initial inquiry was released on the 8th of December in 2020 and made 44 recommendations based on its findings.
However, the government recently announced it had concluded its response to the inquiry and that it would dismiss 8 of its recommendations, particularly ones related to firearm law amendments and crackdowns on hate speech.
For their weekly catch up, Oto spoke to Green Party MP Ricardo Menendez-March about the party’s take on the decision to dismiss 8 of the recommendations of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Christchurch terrorist attacks.
They also spoke about the impact of funding cuts to Oranga Tamariki on frontline services, as well as the open letter to the Green party of Germany.
For their regular catch-up, Oto spoke to the Green Party’s Ricardo Menéndez March about the government’s decision to dismiss 8 of the recommendations made into the Christchurch terrorist attack inquiry, the impact of Oranga Tamariki cuts on frontline services and the open letter to the Green Party of Germany.
He spoke to Dr Neal Curtis from the University of Auckland to discuss the recent riots in the UK and the rise of the far right.
And he spoke to Associate Professor Carrie Leonetti to discuss the family violence act reforms and coercive control.
Sasha spoke to associate professor Avril Bell about the impact of the government’s policies towards Māori since coming into power.
He also spoke to Kelly Burrowes from the University of Auckland to discuss her findings on a potential vape epidemic in Aotearoa.
Last week, the government announced that it would intensify AI usage in the public sector, in a move to further reduce spending in the sector. The government have defended this move, but concerns have been raised about the safety, regulation, and vulnerability of AI services.
Last week also saw the Legislation (Definitions of Woman and Man) Amendment Bill pass its first reading. The member’s bill would seek to, in New Zealand law, define genders, in a move that has been criticised by many as transphobic.
Last week also saw the change of government agencies’ names to give primacy to their English names, rather than te reo Māori first.
This week, Wire Host Alex spoke with National MP Ryan Hamilton about these topics.
Last week, NZ First MP Jenny Marcroft put forward a bill that would seek to define the terms “man” and “woman” in law. The bill has been supported by coalition parties through its first reading. Its primary supporters in parliament, ACT and NZ First, say the bill is about prioritising biology over ideology, or about maintaining common sense.
Its opponents, however, say the bill is unnecessary, and that the ideology pushed by its supporters does not align with evidence. Te Kāhui Tika Tangata, the human rights commission, says that the bill is “not necessary”, and “risks harm to communities who continue to experience discrimination on the basis of their gender identity”.
Disability Rights Commissioner and Rainbow rights spokesperson at the Human Rights Commission, Prudence Walker, sez the bill will not only “trample on the mana of trans and intersex people”, but it also “attempts to completely erase non-binary people”.
Despite the strong opposition, the government is pushing for the bill to be considered in select committee.
For our weekly catchup with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News Director Castor asked about the bill and why the government is bringing it about.
DISCLAIMER: this interview covers multiple anti-trans talking points, and briefly discusses sexual violence.
The Government is heading into Budget week with plans to cut the core public service, and RNZ reports public servants' fears that their jobs are once again on the line. At the same time, questions have been raised over MFAT being spared from cuts, and the Government has unveiled major changes to secondary education through its proposed NCEA replacement.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Producer Pranuja spoke with Shanan Halbert about public service cuts, Budget priorities, and what the education overhaul could mean for students and teachers.
A survey of Automobile Association members' views on time-of-use charging has been presented to the Auckland Council’s Transport and Infrastructure Delivery Committee.
The survey found that members were open to congestion charging if it worked, even if they thought it was unfair.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins gave a ‘State of Auckland’ speech last week, focusing on the need for cross-party collaboration on infrastructure projects.
Wire Host Caeden spoke with Councillor Shane Henderson about both of these topics.
This week has seen discussions on New Zealand Firsts announcement that if they win the election they plan to buy BNZ and nationalise it into kiwibank, a plan some estimate to cost $30,000,000,000 and has been completely ruled out by their coalition partner in the National Party. Despite this, it’s sparked conversations around how we should be engaging with our banking sector, the vast majority of it dominated by Australian owned banks.
And critics fear that National party changes to the accommodation supplement is going to hit poor working families at a time they’re already doing it rough, nullifying other support that they are offering the rest of the country more broadly, repeating a pattern of policies that hurt poorer communities worse than the rich.
So for our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March on what impact he thinks will come from restrictions to the accommodation supplement, particularly for the poor, they then discussed New Zealand Firsts policy to buy BNZ bank, and whether minor parties tend to over promise if they are constrained by the major parties who they will inevitably have to work with if they make into parliament.
Last week, National MP Catherine Wedd’s members bill for an Under-16s social media ban was paused. Instead, Education Minister Erica Stanford has pledged to, before this years election, bring a wider and more robust proposal for a ban in a larger bill.
Last week also saw Prime Minister Christopher Luxon make comments about the National Party’s stance on immigration, amidst criticised changes to compliance officer powers, and previous spats and comments over immigration policy between government coalition partners.
And with the budget expected next week, promises have begun to be made by the government for where funding can be expected, particularly within education.
Host Alex spoke with National MP Ryan Hamilton about these topics, starting with the Social Media ban.
Since 1986, the Ministry for the Environment has been the central policy advising entity in New Zealand for environmental issues. The government has recently proposed the Environment Amendment Bill, which seeks to disestablish the Ministry for the Environment, which would be amalgamated into a larger Ministry for Cities, Environment, Regions and Transport.
For Green World this week, Wire producer Liam spoke with Professor Nicolas Lewis, of the University of Auckland’s School of Environment, about these proposed changes, how they fit in with the government's current priorities around the environment, and the impact this may have on New Zealand in the short-term and long-term.
Recent weeks have seen the government adopting a series of policies targeted at immigration. Some of these policies are set to be introduced immediately, while others are proposals for the upcoming election. What all of these policies have in common is that they aim to respond to an idea that there is a subset of immigrants who are making society in New Zealand worse.
This is a narrative that we’ve seen dominate conversations about immigration overseas, particularly in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. It often leads to gross displays of racism, with mass riots and crackdowns on people who have done nothing wrong. With these recent policies and media attention towards the anti-immigrant rhetoric in Aotearoa this month, concerns have been raised over whether those overseas developments could be seen here.
For this week’s catchup with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News Director Castor planned to ask about both immigration and the move-on orders for rough sleepers, though we ran out of time to discuss both. They began by asking Simon about the government’s recent stance on immigration.
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