95bFM: The Wire

The National Party, after months of deliberation, has announced its intention to look into a ban on social media for those under the age of 16. Despite disagreement from coalition partners, National is going forward with the policy, backed from across the aisle by Labour. 

Also this past week has seen National and Labour making mirrored announcements around pausing increases to the excise tax on fuel. The government has delayed its next increase to January 2028, while Labour has ruled out any in the next parliamentary term, if elected. 

Finally, almost 10,000 public sector workers are set to strike on Wednesday over poor staffing arrangements and low pay offers. They say job cuts have rendered some services unable to be delivered at their previous quality, and that pay offers fail to keep up with inflation. 

To discuss each of these issues News Director Castor spoke to ACT MP Simon Court, beginning with the social media ban.

The Government is pushing ahead with its Move-on Orders Bill, with select committee changes including raising the minimum age from 14 to 18 and narrowing the definition of begging to “unreasonable begging”.

But critics say the changes still leave the core problem untouched using policing and public-space rules to manage visible homelessness rather than addressing the reasons people are sleeping rough or begging in the first place.

Producer Pranuja spoke to University of Auckland urban planning senior lecturer Bill McKay about what the revised bill could mean for Auckland’s public spaces, and whether moving people on is being mistaken for solving the problem.

Legislation to cap council rates has passed its first reading through Parliament. 

And allegations of electoral fraud during last year's local election have emerged in Auckland for the second time, this time focused on voting papers being tampered with in the Manurewa Local Board.

For City Counselling this week, Wire Host Caeden caught up with Councillor Julie Fairey about these issues.

The government announced on September 1st that cervical screening will become free to all women from March 1st, 2027.

While there has been some dispute between National and Labour as to who the credit for this policy should be attributed to, it is a positive step towards making screening for one of the most preventable types of cancer for people with a cervix more accessible.

Producer Eloise spoke with Associate Professor Michelle Wise from the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences about the potential impact of this policy and what people should know about cervical cancer.

This week on the Wednesday Wire...

For our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the minister in charge on the social services collecting huge amounts of parliamentary financial privileges, whilst her reforms led to thousands off kiwis mistakenly losing support.

For our fortnightly catchup w/ the Opportunity Party, Producer Theo spoke to Party leader Qiulae Wong, on the changes affecting local governments, and Opportunity’s ‘Citizen’s Voice’ policy proposal.

Then Jude spoke to the University of Auckland Research Fellow, Dr Akshata Ankshen, about her research on ways to prevent cancers from spreading to the brain.

Finally, Theo spoke to Professor Antonia Lyons and Associate Professor Clive Aspin on their recently released report on whānau engagement during the coronial process following the suspected suicide of rangatahi Māori.

Local governments across Aotearoa New Zealand have faced a deluge of changes this year. Last month, the deadline was reached for councils to submit proposals on how leadership in their regions would amalgamate into unitary councils. Many bristled at the central government-driven change, with 17 councils refusing to submit proposals, leaving their amalgamations in the hands of the government.

More recently, Labour joined the National party in support of a rates cap of four percent per year, the legislation of which is currently progressing through Parliament. And just the weekend before last, the National party ruled out a bed levy - seemingly in contradiction to signed agreements with Auckland and Queenstown councils to consider its implementation.

With all these clashes between central and local government, Producer Theo and Qiulae Wong began their discussion on what Opportunity’s view is on the relationship between central and local government.

Then, they discussed Opportunity’s ‘Citizens Voice’ proposal, which would see direct democratic participation through citizens assemblies on gridlocked issues.

400 people get diagnosed with brain cancer and tumours annually in New Zealand. With only 10 to 30% of these patients making it 5 years after being diagnosed. 

However, oddly, most brain cancers don’t typically start in the brain; they start in other parts of the body. 

So, researchers have been trying to find ways to stop cancers in other parts of the body from spreading and reaching the brain.

Melanoma, lung and breast cancer are the focus of this research as they have the highest risk of spreading into the brain.

Statistically, around 90% of melanomas end up becoming brain cancers.

To learn more about how cancer spreads to the brain, the research aiming to stop it and how it works. Producer Jude spoke to University of Auckland Research Fellow, Dr Akshata Anchan.

Before we start, we’d just like to warn that this story mentions youth suicide.

Aotearoa New Zealand has one of the highest youth suicide rates in the OECD. For rangatahi Māori in particular, multiple overlapping determinants such as structural racism and discrimination have contributed to greater rates of psychological distress and suicide.

Coroners, and coronial services, play an important role in producing findings that deter our national suicide statistics and in making recommendations underpinning suicide prevention strategies.

However, the coronial process, following the suspected suicide of a loved one, can be difficult to navigate. For Māori whānau who have lost a rangatahi, there is frequently a lack of consideration given to their knowledge of their loved one. As a result, Māori knowledge is often excluded from the findings, recommendations, and comments that inform our national statistics and influence suicide prevention and postvention in Aotearoa New Zealand.

A recently released study on whānau voices during the coronial process for suspected rangatahi Māori suicide found that this coronial process could compound trauma for Māori whānau. Te Mamae me te Ngaukino nā to Whakamomori Rangatahi involved 14 whānau members who had lost a rangatahi to suicide, alongside 11 coroners who had worked on rangatahi suicide investigaitons.

To understand more about the challenges facing whānau, and what can be done to improve our coronial process, Producer Theo spoke to two members of the research team, Associate Professor Clive Aspin and Professor Antonia Lyons.

If this story has brought up anything for you, talking to someone you know or contacting formal support services can be helpful. 

You can free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason.

The Suicide Crisis Helpline can be reached on 0508 828 865 (or, 0508 TAUTOKO)

And Youthline can be called on 0800 376 633 or text for free on 234 (24/7)

Starting out in the 1990s by horticulture students from Unitec Mt Albert as an experiment in sustainable land management, the Sanctuary Mahi Whenua Gardens have established themselves as a haven for many rare plant and a model of urban gardening practices. 

When Unitec decided to sell much of its Carrington estate for housing development to the Crown, it was agreed that the gardens would be preserved. However, following a lengthy legal battle between the Crown and the gardens, the courts decided there was no requirement for the land to be saved from development, with the gardens being evicted from ther site on the 31st of July. 

Producer Liam spoke with Trevor Crosby, Treasurer for the Sanctuary Gardens, about the history and significance of this garden, the legal battles and efforts to protect it, and the future of the site and the garden community. 

You can also find the Sanctuary Gardens on Facebook (@SanctuaryCommunityOrganicGarden) and Instagram (@SanctuaryMahiWhenua). 

If you are interested in the fight to preserve Carrington Building One, feel free to listen to this 95bFM bCast by Wire Producer Liam. 

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science this week, we chat with our experts, Professor Sebastian Leuzinger and Dr Syrie Hermans about the Washington DC Reflection Pool and Plant Defenses.

For our Weekly Catchup with the National Party, Host Alex speaks with MP Ryan Hamilton about the Under-16 Social Media Ban, the Rates Cap, and National’s ruling out of a bed levy. 

For Green World, news director Castor talks to Professor James Renwick about the ACT Party’s proposal to scrap the Climate Change Commission. 

Producer Liam chats with the University of Auckland’s Dr Tim Welch about the proposed plans for a second Harbour Crossing in Auckland and why it is taking so long to come to a decision and start work on one of these projects. 

And Liam also chats with Trevor Crosby on the Sanctuary Mahi Whenua community gardens in Mt Albert, which have recently been forced to shut down to make room for housing development despite previous assurances they would be preserved.