Afternoons for Monday 1 October 2018

Short Story Club

This Thursday we discuss After Birth by Sarah Laing. Email your thoughts about it to jesse@rnz.co.nz

The prize for the writer of the best email is Prize is The Fall of Light also by Sarah Laing. 

1:10 First song: Otium

Whangarei band Otium are our first song performers today.

The band released their first self-titled EP last year and are about to kick off an 8-stop tour of the North Island. The 5-piece band in our Auckland studio to give us a taste of their sound.

1:15 Trans-Tasman tax collection

Information sharing between Australia and New Zealand allows for tax to be pursued when people cross over the ditch.

In 2017 the IRD collected $1.7 million in student loan repayments but only $10,000 in unpaid tax. This imbalance was revealed by an Official Information Request by tax analyst Terry Baucher. He joins Jesse to discuss IRD's collection approach. 

1:25​ Film subsidy payoff? 

The New Zealand Government's relationship with its film industry has involved subsidies and tax breaks since the late 1990s. Economic Development Minister David Parker said earlier this year that he would look at capping or limiting the subsidies.

He's now saying the Government accepts that subsidies are needed to support the industry and the benefit to the country is worth it. Journalist Gordon Campbell has had his eye on film funding in New Zealand since The Frighteners and says the situation isn't black or white. 

1:40 Great album

2:10 Television Critic Briar Wyatt

Briar reviews Maniac (Netflix), The Good Place (Netflix), and Anika Moa Unleashed (TVNZ on demand) 

2.15 Moss Patterson: The whakapapa of Manukau

The public is getting the chance to see an incredible performance put together by an award winning dance choreographer, Moss Patterson, who's been working with students to explore the whakapapa of Auckland's Manukau region. 

The show is ONE: The Earth Rises, and includes the modern incarnation of Manukau to include Māori, Polynesian and Chinese narratives.  

To tell us more about this and his other show, Pango, due to tour around the country shortly, we're joined by the talented passionate Māori advocate Moss Patterson. 

2.25: Fijian Elections

A Fijian election has been announced for November the 14th. RNZ Pacific Senior Journalist Sally Round was at that 2014 election and joins Jesse to talk about what might be in store. 

2:30 Expert feature: Paddy McHugh on the Camel  

Time for this week's expert feature and today we're talking about one of the most enduring and valuable animals humans have ever had the pleasure to cross paths with...the Camel!

Paddy McHugh arranges live animal exports in Townsville in Australia. He tells us about the ancestry of the mammal, when man and camel came together, and what they have been used for over the years.

3:10 Unlocking technology with termites    

Termites get a bad rap thanks to their unfortunate appetite for things like wood, books and even bank notes. But their unique ability to turn timber into energy and build towering mounds like insect skyscrapers might  help develop new bio-fuel technology or unlock construction secrets.

Journalist  Lisa Margonelli says termites may be hard to love but they are easy to admire. She shows us why in her new book, Underbug: An Obsessive Tale of Termites and Technology. 

3:35 Voices

3:45 The Pre-Panel Story of the Day and One Quick Question

4:05 The Panel with Chris Wikaira and Nadine Higgins