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Julie Cullen a masters researcher from the school of Opthalmology visits the bFM studio to chat children's screen use and some ofthe identified risks and harms.

Thanks to The University of Auckland

This week on Dear Science, Dr Cushla McGoverin chatted with us about rifleman making new sounds, Antarctic ice melts, and new developments in quantum computing. 

Fit cookies and a little jarring

The Auckland regional fuel tax ended on 30 June that has been active since 2018, with the purported aim to ease cost of living pressures.

The generated tax revenue was used for road safety initiatives and public transport infrastructure projects including the eastern busway, new electric trains for the City Rail Link and redevelopment of the downtown ferry terminal.

Without a fuel tax, the infrastructure funding will come from rates which are unlikely to increase to recoup the loss of tax revenue.

I spoke to Senior lecturer in Urban Planning Dr Timothy Welch about the short and long term impact of the removal of fuel tax.

Tuesday with a visit from Julie Cullen a Masters researcher from the school of Ophthalmology, to chat about children and screen time. 

On the night of the 21st of June, the Aratere Interislander ferry was grounded due to a steering issue. The interislander currently operates as an informal part of State Highway One, and as such is crucial to freight deliveries in the South Island.

The previous Labour government had planned investments in a further two ferries and terminals, which were cancelled under the current government, with finance minister Nicola Willis calling the proposal a search for “Ferraris” instead of using the trusty “Toyota Corolla”, in this case the grounded Aratere. The government was met with criticism for this decision, and has been called on to provide an alternative during their term. 

The government also recently increased the alcohol levy for the first time since 2009. The alcohol levy funds measures to reduce alcohol related harm, and as of the changes will sit at $16.6 million.

An independent review recommended that the fund be increased to $37 million, with a minimum increase to $21.5 Million to account for inflation. For context, this would translate to a 1.1 cent increase to an average can of beer and an 8 cent increase to the average bottle of wine. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Hamish Campbell about the future of the interislander ferry and increases to the alcohol levy.

For the Tuesday Wire this week...

For Dear Science this week, we chatted with Doctor Cushla McGoverin about rifleman making new noises, Antarctic ice melting, and news in quantum computing.

For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire host Castor spoke to MP Hamish Campbell about the future of the Interislander ferry following the crash of the Aratere and the recently increased alcohol levy.

And producer Elle spoke to Senior Lecturer of Urban Planning Dr Timothy Welch about the long term planning implications of the axed regional fuel tax.

Hosted by PHILLIEE, featuring the Sound of Sydney courtesy of our man Carlos Avilés.

~ Universal Harmony ~

Oozing a grateful ora, massaging the creative mind.