Nine To Noon for Tuesday 19 February 2019

 

 

09:05 Public watchdog toughens stance on detention of the vulnerable

The Ombudsman is upping his scrutiny of vulnerable people in secure care, following recent shocking cases of people with intellectual disabilities in confinement. Late last year, in what was a major expansion of its work and breath of mandate, the regulator announced it would strengthen its monitoring of aged care facilities by including private aged care facilities - as well as detainees in court cells. Now as it begins to shape this new function it has announced it will investigate the Ministry of Health 's oversight of facilities for intellectually disabled people with high and complex needs. The Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier has an update on the progress to date and explains why the focus of his work is shifting from individual complaints to broader investigations of serious issues

09:20 Bye, bye birdie: Native seabird numbers in decline

It's a tough time to be a seabird in New Zealand, with 35% of our 92 resident indigenous species in decline. Climate change, the fishing industry and even cruise ships are all taking a toll on seabird numbers. DOC's principal science adviser on biodiversity, marine species and threats, Graeme Taylor, takes us through what's being done to mitigate the threats. 

09:45 MoveOn US protests over wall, & Oscar pressure

From the US, Washington bureau chief of The Guardian, David Smith talks to Kathryn about the progressive group MoveOn, which has organised hundreds of protests on Monday against the Donald Trump's declaration of a national emergency so he can pursue funding for a wall on the US-Mexico border. Also the controversy surrounding this weekend's Oscars.

10:05 Celebrating Pacific & Māori fashion designers, artists and performers

Artists, Feeonaa Wall and Ani O'Neill talk about the collective of Pacific and Māori fashion designers, artists and performers whose work in Auckland gave rise to a new urban style in the 1990's. A retrospective exhibition, Pacific Sisters: He Toa Tāera | Fashion Activists opens at the Auckland Art Gallery this Saturday. It showcases three decades of the collective's costumes and performances. 

10:35 Book review - Nobody's Looking at You: Essays by Janet Malcolm

Hannah August reviews Nobody's Looking at You: Essays by Janet Malcolm, which is published by Text.

"A hodge-podge of interviews, political commentary, and literary criticism - a few gems but overall an oddly incoherent collection that feels a bit out of touch with the present moment.”

10:45 The Reading

These Two Hands by Renee  Episode 7 of 10

11:05 Taxing online companies & China trade relations

Business commentator Rod Oram talks to Kathryn about our trade relations with China, the government's plans to completely revamp polytechs and industry training providers and also plans to tax online companies such as Google and Facebook on their revenues not their profits

11:30 Stand by me, a history of women's refuge in Waikato

Ruahine "Roni" Albert has been at the forefront of supporting abused women and children for three decades, at the largest refuge in the country.  Roni Albert is a co-founder and CEO of Waikato Women's Refuge. What began in a one bedroom flat in Hamiton has evolved to a respected NGO with a purpose-built, marae-style safe house, and wrap-around care services. The story of Te Whakaruruhau Waikato Women's refuge,  is being comprehensively told in the book Stand By Me.

11:45  Eroding Journalism

Media commentator Gavin Ellis speaks to Kathryn about examples of the erosion of journalism. These include the Cairncross Report in the UK highlighting the need for intervention, more redundancies and closures in NZ  and media companies becoming soft targets for takeover by malign influences

Gavin Ellis is a media commentator and former editor of the New Zealand Herald.  He can be contacted on gavin.ellis@xtra.co.nz