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 announced its proposals for updating the Waste Minimisation Act and the Litter Act today. The proposals would combine these two Acts into one, extend producer responsibility and permit local government to use its share of the waste disposal levy on a wider range of activities unrelated to waste.
Labour party MP, Rachel Brooking, criticised the proposal for failing to include any mention of establishing a circular economy. However, Sue Coutts, an advocate for Zero Waste Network Aotearoa says that the proposal is a step in the right direction.
Greenpeace recently conducted an investigation into the meat processing corporation, JBS, which concluded that the company had failed to meet its deforestation-free commitment.
The Brazilian multinational is the largest meat processing enterprise in the world and largely operates in the Amazon Rainforest, where they have been accused of contributing to illegal deforestation, mistreating their livestock and even spreading zoonotic diseases.
In 2020, JBS announced their plan for zero deforestation by this year, which included a monitoring system for their suppliers. However, the Greenpeace investigation found that the company had made little progress on their commitment and was continuing to contribute to the Amazon’s deforestation.
Oto spoke to Amanda Larsson - Senior Campaign manager for Greenpeace Aotearoa, about their investigation into JBS and how they plan to hold them accountable for their deforestation of the Amazon rainforest.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez-March, Oto speak to him about Simeon Brown’s Health Infrastructure Plan, the downgrading of climate change in the new Defence Capability Plan and the recently announced extension of military assistance to Ukraine.
He spoke to Amanda Larsson - Senior Campaign manager for Greenpeace Aotearoa, about Greenpeace’s investigation into meat processing corporation JBS and their role in the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest.
And he spoke to Sue Coutts, an advocate for the Zero Waste Network about their take on the government’s proposal to update the waste minimisation act.
Max spoke to the Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa co-chair, John Minto, about the PSNA appeal to New Zealand Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, in which they requested that New Zealand initiate the call for an internationally enforced “no-fly” zone over Gaza.
On the 22nd of April 2025, the Palestinian Solidarity Network Aotearoa, or PSNA, wrote to the New Zealand Foreign Minister, Winston Peters, requesting that New Zealand initiate the call for an internationally enforced "no-fly" zone over Gaza.
PSNA Co-Chair, John Minto, said that it would be "a small but practical step to blunt Israel's continuing genocidal attacks on Palestinians".
Producer Max spoke with John Minto, to talk about the appeal to Foreign Minister Winston Peters, New Zealand's commitment to the region, as well as the impact it would have if New Zealand were to take action.
A recent study of 156,000 has shown that New Zealanders should be aware of the differences between Australian work culture, before considering crossing the ditch.
The study has found that Australia pales in comparison to New Zealand regarding a workplace being fair regardless of race, age, and sexual orientation, with only 51% of those saying they consider their workplace as a psychologically and emotionally healthy environment to work in.
This comes as there has been a surge in New Zealanders leaving to Australia, with Stats NZ findings from 2023 showing a net migration loss of 44,500.
News and Editorial Director, Joel, spoke to the general manager of Great Place to Work New Zealand & Australia; a global human resources research and certification organisation, Rebecca Moulynox, about these findings, and what New Zealanders should consider before working in Australia.
Yesterday, at the age of 88, Pope Francis passed away from stroke and heart failure. As head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis was also known for being outspoken on various rights issues, including around immigration, refugees, climate change, and the occupation of Palestine.
The next pope is expected to be decided over the coming weeks, with multiple people seen as frontrunners for the position.
To discuss the life, accomplishments, and death of Pope Francis, Wire host Castor spoke to senior lecturer of theological and religious studies, Dr. Nick Thompson.
For Dear Science our expert Professor Allan Blackman chatted with us about dimethyl sulphide found on the exoplanet k2-18b, plants farming nickel, and turning rain into electricity.
In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about reserve bank budget cuts and new classroom developments in Auckland.
They also spoke to Senior Lecturer in theological and religious studies, Dr. Nick Thompson from the University of Auckland about the passing of Pope Francis and its implications.
Producer Amani spoke with the Environmental Protection Authority’s Shaun Prescow about the manufacture of tattoo inks in New Zealand.
And News and Editorial Director Joel spoke to Great Place to Work New Zealand and Australia’s Rebecca Moulynox about a new study showing poorer working conditions in Australia compared to New Zealand.
The Environmental Protection Authority is gathering information on how tattoo inks are manufactured, distributed, and used in Aotearoa to determine whether existing regulations are appropriate and effective.
In 2020, the European Union restricted and banned several substances commonly found in tattoo inks due to the potential risk of adverse effects.
Although such effects are very rare, the Environmental Protection Authority Te Mana Rauhī Taiao wants to examine whether their regulations should better align with international standards.
Producer Amani spoke with Manager of Hazardous Substances Reassessments at the Environmental Protection Authority, Shaun Presow, to find out more on this.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to MP Shanan Halbert about Casey Costello’s Te Whatu Ora language directive, consultation opening on the new relationship and sexuality education draft framework, and the Treaty Principles Bill being voted down at second reading.
For International Desk, they spoke to Jean Lantz Reisz from the University of Southern California Law School about the removal of Kilmar Abrego García from the United States without due process.
Wire Producer Sara spoke to Councillor Shane Henderson for City Counselling about council amalgamation and the roles available in Auckland Council in this year’s local elections.
And she spoke to Dr Olivier Jutel from the University of Otago on the use of AI in political content, specifically ACT’s recent social media post.
Kāhui Ako is a government programme providing funding to teachers and schools identified by the government as having greater educational quality. Recent government leaks have revealed that the programme may be cut.
While the programme did provide funding for the education sector, its implementation was inconsistent.
To discuss the programme, why it's being cut, and what the government could do for education, Wire host Castor spoke to Deputy Dean in the Faculty of Arts and Education at the University of Auckland, Camilla Highfield.
Fuck-knuckles, cock, and piss, balls. These are words that you may be hearing much more, or much less, on 95bFM after the government announced earlier this month that it will be scrapping the Broadcasting Standards Authority (or, BSA).
The Authority has responsibility over the broadcast of radio and television, but has long called for regulatory changes to be made given the shift toward digital media. The issue reached prominence last year, when the BSA decided to hear a complaint about the digital media company, The Platform.
The move was met with severe criticisms from the government, with the ACT Party and NZ First in particular calling for the abolishing of the authority.
In its place, the government has proposed the Media Council - a voluntary body - will be involved in self-regulation of the media. However, this proposal has been widely criticised as lacking regulatory teeth.
Instead of scrapping the BSA, the Better Public Media Trust has proposed that the government strengthens it with the recommendations from the government’s ‘Safer Online Services' research project, which would see greater regulation of online and digital spaces.
So, for this week’s Get Action, producer Theo spoke with the Better Public Media Trust’s Myles Thomas, to discuss their petition to reinstate and strengthen the BSA.
If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here.
Two Green Party members' bills were drawn recently; the first would ban mining on conservation land. It comes at a time when parties in the government coalition seem to have their hearts set on turbo-charging the mining industry, with a key bill being put forward that would enable a range of new commercial activities on conservation land and potentially allow the sale of over 60% of the land.
The other green party bill aims to protect children leaving care in Oranga Tamariki from finding themselves without a place to live.
Finally, a landmark climate lawsuit against six major companies was stopped in its tracks by the government. The government says that it made the decision to prevent the suit to ensure businesses had legal clarity and certainty. However, it has now been revealed that the government and business lobbyests had been in contact, and knowledge of this contact may have been unduly withheld, prompting critics to raise the alarm that the government may be circumventing core democratic processes to satisfy business interests.
So for our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about their parties members bill, especially mining on conservation land, and what it means for the government to intervene in such as way with this case.
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.
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