Smashton and Big J are joined by Ben and Tom from Holiday Records to debut Hot off the press - a new segment to discuss Holidays new initiative Drops: A collaboration between Holiday and Local Artists pressing limited edition vinyl of digital releases
The Carrington Hospital, also known as Building One, was built in 1867 and stands as a monument to Victorian era healthcare in New Zealand. Until 2018, this category 1 heritage building was part of Unitec’s Mt Albert Campus, but was sold to the government as part of the Carrington Residential Development - Te Kukūnga Waka. The goal was to build 4,000 new homes in collaboration with Ockham Residential and various iwi. However, concerns have been raised by locals about the degrading state of Building One as well as whether local infrastructure will be able to cope with intensification.
I spoke to a range of individuals who want to see the building preserved, and attended some of their protests. This Carrington Building One movement is also active on Facebook and Instagram.
Among the people I spoke to were Chris Casey, Chair of the Cachet Foundation, Helen White, MP for Mt Albert, Gareth Hughes, operator of the Waterview Coffee Project, Allan Matson, President of the Civic Trust as well as a high school student from Mt Albert.
I also reached out to the owner’s Ockham Residential and Marutūāhu, as well as Auckland Council and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, for comment.
Last week, New Zealand was included in a list of countries the US threatened with new tariffs of 12.5%, alleging that they imported goods produced through forced labour. While the government has rejected these accusations, Trade Minister Todd McClay said that, due to the volatility of the Trump Administration, these threats were not a surprise. At the same time, New Zealand has boosted its defence spending, while comments made by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth labelled NZ and other countries as ‘freeloading’ allies due to their low spending, bringing the relationship between the US and NZ under increasing scrutiny.
Last week also saw Local Government Minister Simon Watts reveal changes to local government committees that would strip unelected members of said committees of a deciding vote on changes, in a move to curb what the government says is ‘undemocratic’ policy, which has been met with criticism.
This week, Host Alex spoke with National MP Ryan Hamilton about these topics, starting with the US Tariffs.
Jenna is back, and chatting a super important book with Milly this Rāhina! Whakarongo mai nei, listen back for her review of bFM alumni Noelle McCarthy'sStakes.
Charlie is back up in the studio chatting kawhe! This week, Milly and Charlie delve into the plunger way of brewing it, and they were chuffed with the results. Tune in throughout the week for your chance to win a bag of the Colombian Popayan!
Defence Minister Chris Penk recently tabled New Zealand’s nuclear free stance for debate, when he suggested it could be a topic New Zealand should look into. In an interview with Newstalk ZB’s Heather du Plessis-Allan, however, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon denied that the country’s stance would change any time soon.
While du Plessis-Allan asked about the military applications of nuclear technology, she also mentioned the potential benefits of nuclear energy. It’s an important question, especially as New Zealanders see rising energy prices and seek to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.
To discuss the benefits of nuclear energy and how it compares to our current energy infrastructure in New Zealand, News Director Castor spoke to Associate Professor at the University of Auckland and co-director at the Geothermal Institute, Sadiq Zarrouk.
Two weeks ago saw the government announcing its budget for 2026, which saw major cuts across the public sector alongside new spending announcements for health, defence, and numerous other sectors.
The health sector particularly has been under significant pressure over recent years, with healthcare workers consistently calling for more support due to overcrowding and underfunding. While the government committed $6 billion dollars to health earlier in its term, the problem has yet to significantly improve.
The government has also committed to increasing defence spending, with accusations floating around that New Zealand has been a “freeloader”, dependent on military support from our allies in the US and Australia. The new commitment will see New Zealand’s defence funding expected to rise to 2% of GDP by 2028.
This budget also saw cuts to the fees free programme, which subsidised tertiary course fees during students’ final year of study. The government says this programme was too expensive, and did not deliver enough value for money.
Lastly, ACT’s Laura McClure alongside three other MPs from multiple political parties was banned from entering China following a visit to Taiwan.
For this week’s catchup with the ACT Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Laura McClure about each of these issues, beginning with discussions over her recent ban from entering China.
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