Nine To Noon for Tuesday 24 June 2025

09:05 Public Transport Fares Rising

 From next week, prices on public transport around the country are going up - as councils try to meet a directive from the Government to pay more of the cost of delivering the services. The Transport Agency has written to local councils , and transport authorities at the end of last year asking them to increase their private share, from tickets sales and advertising, rather than from rates or government funding. Each council has negotiated with NZTA and worked out a price increase before putting that to ratepayers. Fares will increase in Waikato, Taranaki, Wellington, Canterbury and Invercargill. Northland's bus fares are going up from the beginning of August. The BayBus service around Tauranga and Bay of Plenty increased prices in April, while the Otago Regional Council has agreed to raise prices but it hasn't set out when that will happen.In Canterbury the bus service has had a flat fee of $2 in a push to increase patronage, and the council pushed back on NZTA to keep prices moderate - they are going up to a flat fee of $3. 

09:20 What will new 'smart' implants mean for hearing loss patients?

 New Zealanders can now get access to what's being described as the first "smart" hearing implant system. The 'Nuclear Nexa' implant has been manufactured by global hearing device company Cochlear, and is the only cochlear implant with internal memory and upgradeable firmware. It means a user's personal settings can be stored on the implant itself, and the firmware can be upgraded when needed - rather than replaced. One in five Kiwis are living with some form of hearing loss, with early diagnosis touted by experts as the best way to slow the decline. To discuss the technology, I'm joined by Stu Sayers, President of the Asia Pacific and Latin America at Cochlear. Also joining, is  Michel Neeff, an ear, nose and throat surgeon and Clinical Director of the Northern Cochlear Implant Programme for Adults in Auckland.

09:40 MidEast conflict: Iran strikes US airbase in Qatar

Overnight Iran delivered the retaliation it promised for the US strikes on its uranium enrichment sites at the weekend. It launched missiles at a US airbase in Qatar, but caused no damage. Meanwhile Israel has been continuing to attack Iran, with the Israeli Defence Force saying it's conducted its "most extensive wave of strikes to date in Tehran. To discuss the response by Iran, Kathryn is joined by Shahram Akbarzadeh, a professor in Middle East and Central Asian politics based at Melbourne's Deakin University. He's also director of the Middle East Studies Forum.

09:50 USA correspondent David Smith

The latest from the US after the country attacked Iran's nuclear sites over the weekend. Meanwhile there are moves by House Democrats to constrain President Trump's military powers. Democrats are also working to understand how they can better appeal to men - and a timely book shows the contrast between a Yale-educated former Obama speechwriter and his truck-driving brother-in-law. 

10:05  Partnering to save some of New  Zealand's threatened species     

New Zealanders regularly report in surveys how much they enjoy the great outdoors. But as the Department of Conservation states on it's website - nature is in trouble. It says  more than 4000 native species are threatened or at risk of extinction - one of the highest proportions in the world. One of the organisations partnering with DOC to do something about this decline is the New Zealand Nature Fund. It has recently appointed a new chair to the Board of Trustees, Neil Mulholland - who previously led  the US National Park Foundation and oversaw a huge increase in donors. He joins Kathryn from Blenheim to discuss increasing support for the Fund's activities and the role of philanthropy in preserving New Zealand's biodiversity.

10:30 What makes a 'Strong Town' - Chuck Marohn 

Chuck Marohn calls himself "a recovering engineer." The Minnesotan civil engineer and urban planner founded the organisation Strong Towns to promote changes in the way cities are built. Critical of the post-war development pattern, which is based around the car and requires a lot of infrastructure to be built and maintained by the city, Marohn says there is a way to build  financially sustainable cities and towns that are safe and liveable. He is visiting New Zealand to present at the Infrastructure Commission's annual infrastructure symposium this week in Wellington.

10:35 Book review: Letters by Oliver Sacks

Sonja de Friez reviews Letters by Oliver Sacks published by Pan Macmillan

10:45 Around the motu: Mike Tweed in Whanganui

It has been a decade since the worst floods on record in Whanganui, the international commercial pilot academy is facing issues with it's fleet grounded since May, and the District Council has announced an average 2.2% rates increase for 2025/26 but there has been backlash on the distribution of funding from the environmental sector.

Mike Tweed is a Multimedia Journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle.

11:05 Business commentator Calida Stuart-Menteath

Halter completes what is considered one of the biggest Series D raises in New Zealand, and Calida discusses the risks to New Zealand of the Middle East conflict. Two chief financial officers leave NZX companies this week at Comvita and Ryman Healthcare. 

Calida Stuart-Menteath  is co-editor at the National Business Review 

11.25 Busting pet myths with Kat Littlewood  

Kat Littlewood, a veterinary specialist in animal welfare, talks with Kathryn about some of the typical pet care myths she hears about in the clinic. Text your questions for Kat to 2101 or email ninetonoon@rnz.co.nz. 

11:45 Sports-chat with Sam Ackerman 

The All Blacks are named with some interesting bolters and others who miss out because of injury. The Crusaders take out another Super Rugby championship. Elsewhere, the Steel complete a remarkable turnaround to beat the Pulse, but could the southerners sneak into ANZ Netball Premiership finals? The Warriors lose despite their opponents missing five players to the State of Origin.