Nine To Noon for Thursday 6 November 2025

09:05 Govt de-links ETS from Paris

The carbon price has fallen since the government this week announced it would de-link the Emissions Trading Scheme from its Paris climate pledges. Critics say it is yet more watering down of the country's climate change effort. On Tuesday night it announced it would amend the Climate Change Response Act - removing the requirement for the emissions trading scheme to accord with Paris Agreement commitments. The price of carbon units dropped immediately by 20 per cent, then came back a bit, to being down 10 per cent. A higher carbon price incentivises behaviour change by emitters, to reduce their emissions. A leading carbon trader says the loosening of the link between the ETS,  and international commitments, enables short political or economic considerations to outweigh longer term climate commitments. The Government says the changes will reduce costs to government and business, and do not lower ambitions for emissions reductions. Dr Christina Hood, an international climate and carbon pricing expert, speaks to Kathryn.

09:20 Otago survey finds healthcare failing long covid patients 

Long Covid patients report being gaslit about their illness, and feel increasingly let down by the health system. New research by Otago University, which for the first time investigated access to care by those with Long Covid,  has found lack of support, unmet need, and inequity of care were common themes. It details a number of recommendations for Government including greater investment in primary care, better training for the health workforce, and the creation of a public awareness campaign. Long Covid is the persistence of symptoms beyond 12 weeks following acute Covid 19 infection. It is estimated to affect one in ten people and can be extremely debilitating. The research involved interviews with 18 people - two of whom were so fatigued a verbal interview could not be completed - and they had to provide written answers. Kathryn speaks to lead researcher for the project Dr Sarah Rhodes.  

09:40 Chch physicist's examination turns NZ X-ray history on its head

Curiosity about an object mounted on his wall at work has led a Christchurch-based medical physicist to uncover new evidence that challenges New Zealand's x-ray history. It had always been thought the first X-ray taken in New Zealand was by Dr William Hosking in 1896, using a device named after a German physicist with the discovery of the X-ray a year earlier. But Christchurch Hospital medical physicist Steven Muir has found teacher Augustus Hamilton - who later became University of Otago registrar - actually took the first X-ray earlier in 1896. Steven didn't stop there,  he's also found the oldest surviving X-ray in New Zealand - which was of a frog. Even more remarkable... he found the frog! He joins Kathryn to explain.

09:45 UK: More prisoners escape, Chancellor pours fuel on tax fire

UK correspondent Harriet Line joins Kathryn to discuss the major manhunt underway for two prisoners mistakenly released from detention just weeks after a convicted asylum seeker was released by accident. Chancellor Rachel Reeves' speech yesterday was supposed to dampen speculation about tax increases, but it's had the opposite effect. And junior doctors have reacted to an offer of more money in attempt to avert strike action.

Harriet Line is Deputy Political Editor of the Daily Mail

10:05  Science, Medicine and Magic - historian Alison Bashford on hand reading

Peering at the lines of the hand in order to predict the future, or reveal more about a person's character, is an ancient practice that has ebbed and flowed throughout history. And while palmistry is now more of an entertainment - it's also been inextrictably intertwined with medicine.That path from chiromancy - or hand reading - in late medieval times, to modern genetics, has been charted by historian Alison Bashford. She reveals how signs on the hand - its shape, lines, marks, and patterns - have been elaborately decoded over the centuries. Her fascination with chiromancy was sparked when she came across a handprint of a gorilla that had died in  London Zoo in the 1930's  among papers held in a London library.  Alison Bashford is a Laureate Professor of History at the  University of New South Wales and her book -  Decoding the Hand - explores the boundaries between science, mythology, magic and medicine.

Decoding The Hand: A History of Science, Medicine, and Magic  is published by The University of Chicago Press

10:30 Top chef excited by Michelin guide expanding to NZ

Undercover restaurant critics from the Michelin guide are in the country tasting and rating some of the country's best restaurants. For the first time in 125 years the Michelin guide will include restaurants from Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown - in a New Zealand edition to be released next year. The Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston says the guide is estimated to bring up to 36,000 more international visitors to the country. Auckland based chef Peter Gordon has had restaurants in London, Auckland, New York, Istanbul and Wellington. He tells Kathryn it's an exciting development.

10:35 Book review: Case Studies: A story of plant travel by Felicity Jones and Mark Smith

Lynda Hallinan reviews Case Studies: A story of plant travel, published by Massey University Press.

10:45 Around the motu: James Pocock in Gisborne

James talks about the first Māori woman deputy mayor with moko kauae, as East Coast artist who lost his roof while inside his home, multimillion-dollar Gisborne site investigated by council for possible waste facilities and Gisborne Girls' High principal Jan Kumar to retire after 38 years in education.

James Pocock is the Gisborne Herald Editor

11:05 Tech: Microsoft's Azure outage, hackers choosing to wipe data than ransom

Cybersecurity expert Tony Grasso looks at what was behind Microsoft's Azure outage that impacted businesses around the world. Wiper attacks are on the rise in New Zealand - these are malware attacks designed to permanently delete data rather than steal it. Australian Clinical Labs has lumped a AU$5.8m penalty for a breach that exposed over 223,000 sensitive health records, and Optus is also facing a big civil penalty proceeding for allegedly not adequately managing cybersecurity risks ahead of its 2022 breach.

Cybersecurity expert Tony Grasso is Chief Information Security officer at COGENT. He worked at GCHQ in the UK and is a former Intelligence Officer in New Zealand.

11:25 "No one will play with me" - teaching kids about friendship

In parenting today - how to coach children on how to make good friendships. It's a tough moment for any parent if a child comes home from school or kindy and says "no one will play with me". So what are the ways grown ups can help children learn the basic skills of friendship? Spoiler alert: show them how its done in your own relationships. Parenting coach and educator Nathan Wallis joins Kathryn.

11:45 Screentime: Bugonia, It: Welcome to Derry, Down Cemetery Road

Film and TV reviewer James Croot joins Kathryn to talk about Bugonia (cinemas), a black comedy about two men who kidnap a powerful CEO, played by Emma Stone, believing she's an alien who wants to destroy Earth. It: Welcome to Derry (Neon) is a horror TV series based on Stephen King's 1986 novel, Down Cemetery Road (Apple TV) is an eight-part TV series based on Slow Horses creator Mick Herron's 2003 novel and Ballad of a Small Player (Netflix) is a psychological thriller starring Colin Farrell. 

James Croot is film and TV reviewer for Stuff.