Nine To Noon for Tuesday 23 January 2024

09:05 What's top of mind for Health Minister Dr Shane Reti as Te Whatu Ora navigates 2024

In Opposition, Dr Shane Reti said the-then government had ignored a crisis in health. Now he is the new minister in charge of that system. The problems have been well documented : over-run emergency departments, shortages in most medical disciplines, thousands of nurses registering to work in Australia, meanwhile two thirds of GPs are intending to retire within the next decade. And thousands of people are waiting for more than a year for planned medical treatment they've been approved for. Against this backdrop, the new government has confirmed plans to scrap the newly-formed Maori Health Authority, and the previous government's smokefree legislation. Dr Reti practised family medicine and dermatology in Whangarei for 16 years, and also served three terms on the board of the Northland DHB, before becoming an MP in 2014. 

09:25 Kumara in the Kaipara rebounds after Cyclone Gabrielle decimation

 It's almost a year since kumara crops, which were ready to be harvested in the Kaipara District in Northland were pretty much wiped out by two major weather events. The growing fields were already sodden from three months of heavy rain, then the Auckland Anniversary day floods hit, followed just over a week later by Cyclone Gabrielle. For growers it was a trifecta of misery, or as Kaipara Kumara Managing Director Anthony Blundell ironically describes it - the perfect storm.  So how are things looking now for this year's harvest?.

09:45 USA correspondent Ron Elving

Republican candidate Nikki Haley is getting one last shot at Donald Trump after Ron DeSantis suspended his presidential campaign. It is now a one-on-one race for the nomination, down from 14 hopefuls at the height of the race. Ron also discusses the United States' economic outlook, which he says is continuing to improve, despite headwinds of war and political unrest.

Ron Elving is Senior Editor and Correspondent on the Washington Desk for NPR News.

10:05 Grammy award winner Arooj Aftab

Grammy-award winning singer, composer and producer Arooj Aftab will be in New Zealand in March. The American-Pakistani singer is known for her combination of classical sounds with jazz, folk and trance. In 2021 Arooj shot to prominence when she won the Grammy for Best Global Music Performance for her rendition of "Mohabbat" in 2021. She moved to the US aged 19, leaving her birthplace of Lahore in Pakistan, though she also spent early years growing up in Saudi Arabia. Arooj Aftab will perform at WOMAD in New Plymouth and at the Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts in Wellington. 

10:35 Book review: Three of the best from 2023 - The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, The New Life by Tom Crewe, and The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman    

Ralph McAllister reviews three of his favourite books from last year: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, published by Pan Macmillan; The New Life by Tom Crewe,  published by Penguin Books; and The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman, published by Penguin Books

10:45 Around the motu: Logan Savory in Southland

The Invercargill City Council will hold its first meeting of the year today led by Acting Mayor Tom Campbell who has stepped in following the city's Mayor Nobby Clark suffering minor heart attack after Christmas. Logan says the most important task will be overseeing the council's long-term plan. And it has just been announced Invercargill's Rugby Park will host its biggest ever women's rugby game - with Super Rugby Aupiki kicking off in March.

Southland Tribune editor Logan Savory is based in Invercargill.

11:05 Business commentator Rebecca Stevenson

The Commerce Commission has opened an investigation into Woolworths, Foodstuffs North Island and Foodstuffs South Island, following an allegation of Fair Trading Act breaches. Consumer NZ lodged a complaint in August, claiming the supermarket giants were engaging in misleading pricing, charging more than advertised, and holding misleading specials. Also, Rebecca looks at a warning from a leading fund manager that no one is safe from mergers and acquisitions in 2024.

Rebecca Stevenson is a senior journalist at BusinessDesk

11:30 Holidayzzzzz: Getting kids back into a good sleep routine

Getting a good night sleep can be tough on a sticky summer night. It can be even harder for young kids - and their parents! - whose sleep schedules have been put out of whack by holiday adventures and longer daylight hours. Should parents be concerned if their children aren't getting enough shut-eye? And as the end of the holidays approach and a return to school looms what are some of the ways to get back into a good sleep routine? Professor Sarah Blunden is a clinical psychologist and Head of Paediatric Sleep Research at Central Queensland University in Australia.

11:45 Sports-chat with Glen Larmer

Glen Larmer looks at the stories which gripped the sporting world over the summer holidays, and also what is coming up in 2024.

 

Playlist:

Track: Suroor
Artist: Arooj Aftab
Time played: 10:25am

Track: I've Got a Woman
Artist: Ray Charles
Time played: 10:40am

Track: Delilah
Artist: Florence and The Machine 
Time played: 10:55am