Nine To Noon

Kim Pittar from Muirs Bookshop in Gisborne reviews All The Broken Places by John Boyne, published by Penguin Random House NZ.

Businessman and entrepreneur Ian McCrae founded Orion Health three decades ago, but after 30 years at the helm he's appointed a new CEO - his son in law Brad Porter. Ian McCrae remains an Executive Director at Orion. He talks to Kathryn about the growth of his family business and says it's almost impossible now for Kiwi health software vendors to get started in New Zealand and get their first sales here.

The Russian President has suffered another humiliating defeat in Ukraine, just a day after he was condemned by the West for escalating the war by declaring the annexation of four eastern Ukrainian regions. There are fears about what the annexations could mean in terms of Vladimir Putin's use of military options, given he now claims he's defending Russian territory. Ukraine has vowed to continue recapturing land seized by Russia. Also, Europe contemplates the likelihood of a far-right PM in Italy and in Denmark, there's royal intrigue as Danish Queen strips her grandchildren of titles.

The National Foundation for Deaf and Hard of Hearing has been running a programme in some High Schools aimed at identifying students' undetected hearing loss. In the last survey, of 15 High Schools, there were alarming results. One in five young people had abnormal screening results and more than 30 percent complained of ringing in their ears, or tinnitus which can lead to hearing loss in the future. Foundation Chief Executive Natasha Gallardo is calling for a government funded nationwide adolescent hearing screening programme. Newborns are screened, then 4 year olds have a before-school check, but she says there is nothing else during the school years to pick up potential hearing loss.

Cotton buds, drink stirrers and PVC food trays are among a raft of products that have been banned under new waste rules; the first of three key phases to ban throw-away plastic and polystyrene packaging. So what does it mean for recycling? Kathryn is joined by Ministry for the Environment's Director, Waste and Resource Efficiency Shaun Lewis and Wellington City Council's Solid Waste Manager Stefan Borowy.

Comedians Te Radar and James Elliott with some of the lighter stories of the week, including how M&M's got their name.

Sam looks at the renewed push to support womens sport in this country, whether referees should put down the whistle and pick up a microphone, the Kiwi connection in the NRL Grand Final and why everyone's getting upset about playing to the letter of the law - it's just not cricket, or is it?

From construction of a multi-purpose bridge over the Ganges to restoring the power grid in Afghanistan, New Zealander Shanny Campbell has worked on some major global infrastructure projects. As a specialist in international development she's worked in 26 different countries over the past 26 years. She is currently the Asian Development Bank's country lead in Tajikistan where the Ukrainian conflict is taking an unexpected toll. Shanny speaks to Kathryn from the Tajik capital of Dushanbe about what's happening in the region, how her career began and where her work has taken her.

Louise O'Brien reviews Abominations by Lionel Shriver, published by HarperCollins Publishers.

Hong Kong calls time on zero-Covid, ending quarantine measures but hopes are still dim that China will follow suit. In Cambodia, more than four decades after the Khmer Rouge was ousted, the 91-year-old former prime minister of Pol Pot's genocidal regime has lost an appeal in what will likely be the final case heard by the UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia. And in Japan the state funeral of former Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe this week drew many world leaders and Japan's imperial family, but the proceedings were somewhat overshadowed by protesters who marched on Japan's parliament.