Nine To Noon

There are an estimated 2500 refugees in Nelson - mostly from Nepal, Myanmar and Colombia. Local dentist Dr Jacob Linn realised that many of the refugees he was treating at the local hospital dental department had little understanding of what was going on, due to language and cultural barriers. So he set about fixing it. He speaks with Kathryn Ryan.

Process units at Marsden Point have now been shut down, marking an end to the refining operation at the plant. From tomorrow Refining NZ becomes Channel Infrastructure and the 60-year-old refinery becomes an import-only terminal for already-refined products - something critics say may have an impact on our fuel security. Energy Minister Megan Woods told Nine to Noon two weeks ago her advice was that it would not change the fundamentals of how we get fuel here - crude or refined - nor would it impact energy security. The refinery transition will though, prompt big changes to our fuel reserves - and Simon Terry from the Sustainability Council says it could see the need for a massive new investment in storage capacity. He tells Kathryn Ryan that's something that's likely to end up being passed on to motorists.

Doctors are warning new oral antiviral drugs, which have been dubbed a "game changer" when treating covid in vulnerable patients, will not be available to all who want them. The Government has secured 60,000 doses each of Molnupiravir, manufactured by Merck Sharp & Dohme, and Paxlovid, made by Pfizer. The first shipment of Paxlovid has arrived in the country and will be rolled out next week, but Molnupiravir is still undergoing Medsafe approval and isn't expected to arrive until sometime between April and June. Some District Health Boards are struggling to deal with the wave of Omicron cases, and the number of deaths have increased - could this treatment have come too late? And, are 120,000 doses enough to help those who need it the most? Dr Bryan Betty, Medical Director of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners and Pharmac's Chief Executive Sarah Fitt join Kathryn to discuss.

Changes to vaccination mandates and who is covered by them will kick in next week, but what impact might that have on private employers considering their own vaccination policies? And as the omicron wave subsides, what will that mean for employees working from home. Can they be forced back into the office? The legal commentator today is Helen Pryde of Duncan Cotterill.

Farmer Christine Hilton is quick to turn her hand to anything. She's built a log cabin on her land in Twizel, and although new farming she's made sure her Geraldine farm stands out from others. She talks to Kathryn about the rigours and challenges of farming, running an events business on the land, and how her cabin offers respite.

Transmission Gully has officially opened today, after missing five deadlines in the last two years. A ribbon-cutting ceremony has just been held for the 27-kilometre stretch of highway from Wellington through Kapiti. Our reporter Jake McKee is one of the first to take a drive along Transmission Gully. He tells Kathryn how he found it.

Harry Broad reviews Letters to You by Jazz Thornton, published by Penguin Random House NZ.

Over the centuries, the most common causes of death have changed dramatically. What are we most often dying from now and how could that change in the future? Biochemistry professor Andrew Doig put four decades of research into his new book This Mortal Coil: A History of Death.

Australia correspondent Bernard Keane looks at what was announced in yesterday's federal Budget, from a temporary cut in the amount of fuel excise collected to a number of cash payments. But Bernard says there was little support in the budget for climate change, even as parts of east Australia are facing yet more flooding - just weeks after the last devastating deluge.

A shake-up is coming to the way Auckland collects and charges for its waste services. At the moment it's different in the Super City depending on where you live: residents in Manukau and Auckland City are charged through their rates, residents elsewhere buy bags or bin tags and pay-as-they-throw. The Council, as part of its waste minimisation plan, wants to standardise its collection services and fees, and has just closed its submissions on the process this week. To discuss the changes, Kathryn is joined by Parul Sood, GM for waste solutions at Auckland Council, and Dr Jeff Seadon, an expert in waste minimisation AUT's School of Future Environments, who fears what's planned will have the opposite effect to what's intended and encourage people to throw more, more often.