The Wire with Jessica

The fast track approvals bill is a planned piece of legislation that aims to cut through existing consent processes for several future works. These developments include bridges, roads, and drilling, which each could infringe on conservation or protected land.

The bill has been met with backlash from members of the public, who up until the 19th of April have been able to make submissions on the bill as it goes through the select committee process. Criticisms and protests against the bill have continued in recent weeks, with many claiming that it undermines democracy and allows members of parliament to circumvent conservation laws or expert advice. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s James Meager, Wire host Castor asked him about the Fast Track Approvals Bill: whether his opinions have changed since the last time I interviewed him, how this bill affects New Zealand’s democracy, and the overall theme of urgency we’ve been seeing with the current government.

Last week, the High Court overturned a summons by the Waitangi Tribunal to Minister for Children Karen Chhour regarding the government's plans to repeal section 7AA of the Oranga Tamariki Act.

Section 7AA requires Oranga Tamariki by law to improve outcomes for tamariki Māori in state care and adhere to the principles of Te Tiriti.

For their weekly interview, News and Editorial Director, Jessica Hopkins, asked ACT MP Simon Court about why Chhour has refused to present evidence to the tribunal.

They also discussed comments made in ACT's recent Free Press newsletter, which claimed Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has “styled himself as an elite, advertising his credentials as a former corporate CEO” and described Winston Peters as having more time at the centre of Government than any other current politician and that he "becomes much more erudite once elected".

In the later half of 2023, the University of Auckland announced rent increases of more than 8% at their halls of residence. The University justified this as a necessary measure, caused by the impacts of inflation

However, students bearing the full brunt of the rent increase said the University’s decision to increase rent and subsequent explanation were unacceptable, pointing out that inflation rates only increased by 5.6%, and that the increases would make the cost of living unaffordable for a large number of students living at the halls of residence. 

This prompted a number of students to form a “Students for Fair Rent”, a group advocating for rental rates at the University of Auckland to be made more affordable by matching rental rates to inflation rates and the average cost of housing in Central Auckland. 

In August last year, Students for Fair Rent organised a petition on change.org that received 1500 signatures, urging the University of Auckland to lower the cost of living which the University of Auckland reportedly ignored.

Last week, on the 19th of April, Students for Fair Rent held a rally on Campus calling for a rent strike as a last resort protest against the cost of living at the halls and the University’s dismissal. 

95bFM News Reporters, Shane and Oto, went down to the rally and spoke to Matthew Lee, the founder of Students for Fair Rent, as well as Green Party Co-Leader Chloe Swarbrick, to discuss call for a rent strike.

Last week, the Independent Police Conduct Authority released its summary of police’s handling of Farzana Yaqubi’s complaints of a man stalking her, eight weeks before she was murdered in December 2022 by the same man. 

The report found a litany of police failures in its handling, including that  its assessment matrix did not consider all lines of inquiry.

New Zealand is one of the few countries that does not treat stalking as a crime.

As a result of the IPCA’s report and Yaqubi’s death, many have called for this to change. 

Producer Sofia Roger Williams spoke to Associate Professor at the University of Auckland Faculty of Law, Carrie Leonetti, about current laws for stalking in Aotearoa, the importance of criminalising it, and what that could look like.