Nine To Noon for Thursday 4 April 2024

 

 

09:05 As free bus fares are scrapped, what's the likely impact on school attendance? 

Principals say scrapping public transport subsidies will only add to school absenteeism, just as the government gears up to tackle it. From May 1, kids up and down the country will have to pay more to use buses and trains. For two years 5 to 12-year-olds travelled for free as part of the Community Connect public transport package, while half price fares were applied for those up to 24 years. The government opted not to continue the funding and most local government transport bodies are passing the cost on to commuters. Principals say that'll squeeze family budgets more, and impact on attendance. Kathryn speaks to Richard Harrison, Auckland Transport's growth and optimisation manager, Northcote Intermediate principal Phil Muir and Principals' Federation president Leanne Otene.

09:30 Wao's Monique Kelly on helping others walk a greener path

Monique Kelly trained as a lawyer, working with the UN International Labour Organisation on social and employment policy and standards. She's managed to merge her expertise into sustainability, as an area of interest. She's the founder of Wao, a Wanaka-based charitable trust that aims to help communities and organisations shift to a sustainable future, and she was a finalist in the 2022 Sustainable Business Awards. Monique co-founded Revology 10 years ago, a concept store focused on circular design, and she's director of New Zealand Functional Foods which makes plant-based drinks at a low-carbon facility. And she'll be speaking at Wanaka's Festival of Colour this weekend. You can find details here. 

09:45 UK: Labour soars in new poll, politicians target of 'spear-phishing' attack

UK correspondent Harriet Line looks at a new poll which puts Labour on course to win 400 seats at the general election and the Tories on track for just 155. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says Israel's conduct in its war with Hamas is becoming 'increasingly intolerable' after three British aid workers were killed in an airstrike. And a UK Minister is the 12th person at Westminster targeted in a WhatsApp 'spear-phishing' scandal. 

Harriet Line is Deputy Political Editor of the Daily Mail.

10:05 Nobel Prize-winning biologist Venki Ramakrishnan on ageing and dying

How to live longer has become the hobby horse of the tech billionaires who've put billions into research on ways to delay ageing. And the explosion of interest in the topic of ageing, and why we die, has caught the attention of Nobel Prize-winning molecular biologist Sir Venki Ramakrishnan. He's better known for his work informing the ribosome - a part within cells where proteins are made - and for which he won his Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2009. He was also the president of the Royal Society - the oldest scientific academy in the world - between 2015 and 2020. But his recent focus has been to review the science of how and why we age and die - with his new book out earlier this year Why We Die: The New Science of Ageing and the Quest for Immortality. 

10:35 Book review: Māori Made Easy Pocket Guide by Scotty Morrison 

Paul Diamond reviews Māori Made Easy Pocket Guide by Scotty Morrison published by Penguin Random House NZ

10:45 Around the motu : Tim Brown in Christchurch

RNZ's reporter in Christchurch Tim Brown discusses the latest revelations about Gloriavale, the controversy around SailGP and Hector's dolphins, and the intersection of the economy and environment; and the financial struggles of the Arts Centre.

11:05 Tech: Mediaworks hack, cyber-crime rescue, recycled malware

Tony Grasso is Principal Consultant at cybersecurity firm TitaniumDefence. He worked at GCHQ in the UK and is a former Intelligence Officer in New Zealand.

11:25 Play wild: Rachel Clare on activities to get the kids outdoors

Many parents will know the struggle of getting children off devices. But Rachel Clare has some great ideas. She's the author of Play Wild: Nature Craft Projects for Tamariki. It's a how-to guide for getting kids into nature and encouraging their creativity. As Rachel points out in the book, you don't have to have your own garden to be able to do them - nature is everywhere, and so are the materials.

11:45 Screentime: Manhunt, Mr Bates vs The Post Office, Late Night with the Devil

Film and TV reviewer Chris Schulz joins Kathryn to talk about Manhunt (AppleTV) about the aftermath of the first American presidential assassination. Mr Bates vs The Post Office (TVNZ+) is about one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British history and Late Night with the Devil (cinemas) traces the ill-fated taping of a live Halloween special in 1977.