Nine To Noon for Tuesday 10 August 2021

 

 

 

09:05 Stark warning on global warming in latest IPCC report

Global warming is unfolding more quickly than feared and humanity is almost entirely to blame, according to the most comprehensive climate change survey ever published.  The latest report of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says every inhabited region on earth is likely to experience frequent extreme weather events involving heat, rain and drought as greenhouse gases continue to push temperatures up. The report finds even under a moderate emissions scenario, the global effects of climate change will worsen significantly over the coming years and decades.  But the IPCC authors say deep, rapid emissions cuts could spare the world from the most severe warming and associated harms. Kathryn speaks with one of the authors,  Michael Grose -  a climate projection scientist with the Australian government agency CSIRO - the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

09:20 Rest home care subsidy thresholds still unclear: lawyer

Three years after a landmark case over the impact of gifting on subsidies for long term residential care, a legal expert says the guidelines are still unclear and confusing. The 2018 case related to then 80 year old, Gwyneth Broadbent, who over a period of time sold the family home, and holiday home, into family trusts, within the allowable limit of $27 thousand a year.  By the time she needed to go into a care home in 2014 nearly $330 thousand worth of assets had been gifted.  But the Ministry of Social Development argued that the assets' value had increased over the years, thanks to the property boom, and therefore , Mrs Broadbent had deprived herself of an income, and should contribute to the cost of her care.  The Broadbents challenged and won at the High Court, but the ministry appealed the decision and a settlement was reached.So what are the current guidelines ? And what do people considering gifting money to their children need to know? Theresa Donnelly is Legal Services Manager for Perpetual Guardian.

09:45 USA correspondent Kelsey Snell

Kelsey joins Kathryn to look at the bipartisan infrastructure bill which cleared a major hurdle in the Senate at the weekend, the US$3.5 trillion budget blueprint proposed by Senate Democrats, the ongoing drama with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and plans by the US postal service to go...slower?

Kelsey Snell is a congressional correspondent for NPR, based in Washington DC.

10:05 Power cuts on coldest night: what's going on?

Transpower says power supply remains tight this morning, following last night's blackouts across the central North Island and Marlborough. The national grid operator says electricity demand touched an all-time high last night and asked lines companies to reduce their load. Thousands of people were without power for parts of the evening as companies responded to this request.Transpower has said it predicted the high demand but could not secure the supply from generators, and it will be asking questions as to why that was. Kathryn speaks with Graham Peters, Chief Executive of the Electricity Networks Association, which represents 27 local electricity distribution businesses throughout the country.

10:15 Singer songwriter and new Arts Laureate Maisey Rika

Whakatane based singer songwriter Maisey Rika has just added another award to the many she has already received. She's one of the country's newly awarded Arts Laureates receiving the Te Moana-nui-a-Kiwa Award at a function last week. Maisey Rika's first album appearance was as a soloist for her school choir - it was a collection of waiata in te reo Maori which went double platinum. Ten years later, she released her first EP, and there's been no turning back. She sings in Te reo Maori and English - songs about the physical environment, family and love. Maisey Rika and her younger brother JJ were raised by their mum, Honey,  in Whakatane, where they often went to watch her perform in her band, The Rika Sisters.

10:35 Book review: Coastwatcher by David Hill

Mary Wadsworth of Dorothy Butler Children's Bookshop in Auckland reviews Coastwatcher by David Hill, published by Penguin Random House NZ

10:45 Energy Minister demands answers after power outages

The Energy Minister Megan Woods wants answers from the national grid operator Transpower after thousands of households were left without power on the coldest night of the year. Transpower has apologised for the outages which it said were necessary as demand hit an all time high last night. Megan Woods has spoken with reporters at parliament. Kathryn speaks with RNZ's deputy political editor Craig McCulloch.

10:50 The Reading

Duet, part 12. Written by David Hill, read by Kip Chapman.

11:05 NZ's post-Covid re-entry plan - what does it mean for business?

Business commentator Pattrick Smellie joins Kathryn to look at the government's impending announcement this week about how New Zealand will open up to the world again. What decisions will need to be made about the balance between economic disadvantage vs the disadvantage of having a Covid outbreak? And the Commerce Commission has uncovered a lot of evidence about supermarkets' aggressive use of market power, but less notice has been paid to how restrictions on land use has created local monopoly provision.

Pattrick Smellie is the editor and co-founder of BusinessDesk and has reported on the New Zealand economy and business since 1983.

11:20 What really grinds your gears? Top five consumer complaints

Kathryn is joined by Gemma Rasmussen, head of communications and campaigns at Consumer NZ, for a look at the top five complaints that come their way - including a quirky, winter-specific complaint. Get in touch to share your experiences of consumer trouble by texting 2101 or emailing ninetonoon@rnz.co.nz.

11:45 Mediaworks culture review: What happens now to the 'boys' club'?

Media commentator Andrew Holden looks at the release last week of a report into the culture at Mediaworks and whether anything will change into its "boys' club". He'll also look at Hilary Barry being cleared by the Broadcasting Standards Authority over comments she made about vaccination.

Andrew Holden is a journalist for more than 30 years including five as Editor of The Press (in Christchurch) and four as Editor-in-Chief of The Age in Melbourne. 

Music played in this show

Title: Sweet Jane
Artist: Mott the Hoople
Broadcast time: 9:25am