95bFM: The Wire

The Opportunity Party has been making headlines as it continues to edge closer in polls to the 5% mark that would see it enter the next New Zealand Parliament. 

Opportunity was founded back in 2016 by the economist Gareth Morgan as ‘The Opportunities Party’ or ‘TOP’. Since then, it’s undergone several leadership changes, with the current leader, Qiulae Wong, taking over towards the end of last year.

Under Wong’s leadership, the party has shifted to a singular ‘Opportunity’ Party and put forward ambitious policy proposals to meet challenges they say incumbent political parties have left unsolved. Opportunity has taken a centrist approach to possible governing arrangements, refusing to rule out working with either of the two major political parties of National and Labour.

So, for the first instalment of our biweekly catch up with the Opportunity Party, Producer Theo began by asking the Leader of the Opportunity Party, Qiulae Wong, to describe the party’s values and philosophy heading into this election.

They then discussed what Opportunity’s approach to crime and justice would be. With the ACT Party recently promising to expand the three strikes legislation to include burglaries, Producer Theo asked what Opportunity’s stance would be on three strikes legislation.

For our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the Greens newly released energy policies.

In the first instalment of our biweekly catchup with the Opportunity Party, Producer Theo spoke to leader Qiulae Wong on her party, and the issues of crime and justice.

Producer Jude spoke to the University of Auckland's associate professor of Law, Carrie Leonette, about the National Party’s promise to change consent laws.  

Then Theo spoke to Dr Ritesh Shah on the recent changes to our refugee system to include 

The National Party has promised that, if re-elected, it will introduce an affirmative consent law.

Meaning that consent will have to be given either through words or actions. Changing the definition to a confirmed ‘yes’ rather than the absence of a ‘no’. 

The principle of modernising consent laws received cross-party support, however, some experts say that the legal drafting aspect will be a bit challenging.

Furthermore, Labour Party’s Camilla Bellich has a member's bill about changing the definition of consent ready and drafted, which the National Party declined to back.

Many have questioned National’s reluctance to pass this bill and get it into parliament right now.

To learn more about the drafting challenges of an affirmative consent law, the legal consequences on victims and why the government has yet to pass the proposal. Producer Jude spoke to the University of Auckland Associate Professor of Law, Carrie Leonetti.

Over the weekend at New Zealand First’s annual convention, and campaign launch, party leader Winston Peters announced a new oil and gas exploration policy. The Party would invest a billion dollars in a national subsurface development survey to establish a single dataset for oil, gas, geothermal, and carbon dioxide storage sites.

In his announcement, Peters focused on the potential of New Zealand’s offshore oil and gas basins, claiming there was a 90 per cent chance of a major commercial discovery, and that New Zealand potentially held Norway-scale energy prospects.

Concerns have been raised about the policy, with environmental agencies such as Greenpeace criticising its potential climate impact, and other critics calling the investment a gamble based on New Zealand’s recent unsuccessful attempts at oil and gas exploration.

To discuss New Zealand First’s new policy, producer Thomas spoke to University of Auckland Professor Dr Basil Sharp.

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science this week, we chat with our experts, Professor Sebastian Leuzinger and Associate Professor Armagan Sabetian, about the statistical probabilities surrounding world cups and inhabitable planets

For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Host Alex spoke with MP Ryan Hamilton about the Police Association’s concerns with Move-on orders, and the government requiring Local Government to plan for climate adaptation.

Producer Thomas spoke with Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Auckland, Dr Basil Sharp, about NZ First's Oil and Gas Exploration policy and it's shortcomings.

And Producer Liam went to the Avondale Racecourse for the final race of the season, which many think might be the last race ever, and interviewed a range of people including a local historian, the president of the Avondale Racecourse Alliance and the President of the Avondale Jockey Club, to determine how people were feeling about this race, how significant the racecourse is to locals and racing enthusiasts and what the future might hold for it. 

Since the establishment of the Avondale Jockey Club in 1889, the Avondale Racecourse has been one of Auckland’s major thoroughbred racing tracks and central part of life in West Auckland, and currently also the site of numerous sports fields and the Avondale Sunday Market which sees thousands gather each week to buy fresh produce. 

Amid internal racing politics and with only a few races allocated by New Zealand racing to the jockey club for the 2025/2026 race season, the 15th July meeting was seen by many as not only the last race of the season but potentially the last race at Avondale. 

Many are concerned that if racing ends, the racecourse will be sold off to developers and Avondale will lose 35 hectares of community greenspace. The Avondale Racecourse Alliance is one group which seeks to see the land retained for the community and has produced a People's Plan outlining their proposals. 

I decided to spend a day at the races, and spoke to various local residents and racing enthusiasts to understand how people felt about this historic moment. I also spoke to local historian Lisa Truttman, the Avondale Racecourse Alliance President Jaclyn Bonnici and Avondale Jockey Club President Andrew Skinner, to try understand how significant this moment is for Avondale, what the future might look like for the racecourse. 

If you, or anyone you know, have any stories or connections to this place, feel free to contact historian Lisa Truttman, who is currently working on a book on the history of the Avondale Racecourse, at [email protected]. 

A New Zealand parliamentary inquiry has backed stronger regulation of social media, including a possible ban for users under 16.

Supporters argue a ban could protect young people from addictive platforms, harmful content and worsening mental health. But University of Auckland researchers say the evidence does not support blaming social media as the main cause of rising youth distress.

To discuss this, Producer Pranuja spoke with Dr Terryann Clark, the Cure Kids Professorial Chair in Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the University of Auckland.

Last week, the ACT Party announced that former broadcaster Paul Henry will be running as a candidate in this year’s election. Henry has been subject to some controversy in the past, with derogatory comments made towards multiple public figures during his time as a breakfast show host. 

Also last week, the Green Party announced a policy of default union membership, meaning that a person will be automatically signed up for the appropriate union when they start a new job. The ACT Party says this policy impedes on personal freedoms, though the Greens have reiterated that people can still leave unions. 

Lastly, the government’s ban on puberty blockers has been under scrutiny following a court case from the Professional Association for Transgender Health Aotearoa. The association has put forward multiple critiques, primarily that the ban appears to be based in ideology rather than medical evidence. 

For this week’s catch-up with the ACT Party’s Simon Court, News Director Castor asked about each of these issues, beginning with Paul Henry’s appointment as a candidate.

This week on the Monday Wire... 

For our weekly catchup with the ACT Party, News Director Castor spoke to MP Simon Court about newly announced ACT candidate Paul Henry, default union membership, and scrutiny over the ban on puberty blockers.

They also spoke to Children’s Commissioner Claire Achmad about problems with the proposed move-on orders bill and particularly how it can impact young people in Aotearoa. 

Wednesday Wire producer Theo spoke to University of Canterbury Associate Professor Tim Chambers about the impacts of nitrate levels on pre-term births. 

And Monday Wire producer spoke with Dr Terryann Clark, the Cure Kids Professorial Chair in Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the University of Auckland, about banning social media for under 16-year-olds in Aotearoa.

The government’s move-on orders policy has been under some scrutiny, with primary criticisms claiming that it does not adequately address the issue or that it unreasonably punishes the most disadvantaged groups in society. 

To discuss the specific impacts that the policy would have on Aotearoa’s young people, the impacts of homelessness more broadly, and how we can better manage the issue, News Director Castor spoke to Children’s Commissioner Claire Achmad.