Nine To Noon for Monday 13 December 2021

 

 

09:05 Rapid Antigen covid tests in pharmacies

Rapid Antigen Covid testing is being introduced into the community over the holiday period for unvaccinated and asymptomatic people who are traveling, either by road across the Auckland border, or by plane or ferry.  RATs will be available in participating pharmacies from Wednesday, for people who are required to show a negative test to travel.  Results show up in about 15 minutes, and tests cost $10-15.  Twenty-nine large business, including airports, energy producers, food manufacturers and retirement homes have been trialing RATs since October.  From Wednesday until the end of January eligible people can take a 'point of care' supervised  test, in front of a pharmacist.  DIY rapid antigen kits are in consideration for retail sale after this initial period  However, they're not as accurate as a PCR test - some results are false positives and have to be confirmed with a PCR test done at a testing centre and processed at a laboratory.  Kathryn Ryan speaks chief executive of the Pharmacy Guild  Andrew Gaudin and Juliet Elvy, deputy chair of the Medical Microbiologists network.

09:30 The story of NZ's rabbit plague

Farmers, growers and regional authorities in the South Island are reporting large numbers of rabbits this year. Responsiblity for pest control falls to property owners under bylaws, and if a regional authority deems a property is non-compliant, it can do the work and bill the property owner. In close to 80 recent inspections, the Otago Regional Council found 41-percent of sites non-compliant.The rabbit calicivirus was introduced to the country illegally in 1997, and for a time was successful in keeping rabbit numbers down, but never erradicated them. So what methods of control are currently being used? What is the latest research, and where is the line between public and private responsibility for control of the pests? Kathryn speaks with Dr Janine Duckworth, Wildlife Ecology and Management researcher with Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research and James Spence, Biosecurity Team Leader, for Environment Canterbury.

09:45 Europe correspondent Seamus Kearney - G7 warning to Putin

Amid growing alarm in Europe about the threat of an imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine, G7 foreign ministers have warned President Putin of 'massive consequences' in the event of any 'further military aggression'. The ministers, meeting in Liverpool in the UK, also warned that there would be a 'severe cost' to Russia if Ukraine was attacked.

And the new German Chancellor has hit the ground running after his recent swearing-in ceremony, promising a 'new start' for Germany after 16 years under Angela Merkel. Olaf Scholz's centre-left Social Democrats will rule alongside the Greens and the Free Democrats party.

10:05 The gaming industry's wahine Māori pioneer

Maru Nihoniho is the first Māori woman to run her own gaming company. She's the brains behind Metia Interactive, which creates educational, interactive games, with Māori stories and language at their heart. A pioneer of New Zealand's gaming industry, Maru first entered the industry in 2003, with the launch of her game Cube, for PlayStation Portable. Since then she's worked on countless projects, and picked up many accolades along the way, including being named as one of the World's Top 50 Women in Technology by Forbes magazine. But success was hard won over many years. She came to the industry with no real experience in developing a game, armed only with a vision and a lot of optimism.

10:35 Book review: How to End a Story: Diaries: 1995-1998 by Helen Garner

Holly Walker reviews How to End a Story: Diaries: 1995-1998 by Helen Garner, published by Text Publishing

10:45 The Reading

11:05 Political commentators Jones & Thomas - Auckland border to fall 

Neale Jones was Chief of Staff to Labour Leader Jacinda Ardern, and prior to that was Chief of Staff to Andrew Little. He is the director of Capital Government Relations.

Ben Thomas is a PR consultant and a former National Government press secretary.

 

11:30 Homemade foodie Christmas gifts

Food writer, Jenny Garing whips up some edible and quaffable treats to end up under the Christmas tree. You will find many recipes here, including tipsy cherries, almost sugar free chocolate bark, mint sugar shortbread and Christmas flavoured vodka.
 

 

11:45 Urban issues - housing density and public transport

Bill McKay looks at housing density and the need for decent public transport. He sums up changes after the Medium Density Residential Standards return from a parliamentary select committee - and three options for Auckland light rail recently released.

Bill McKay is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland.

Music played in this show

Track: Morning  
Artist: Beck 
Time Played: 10.40 

Track: Evergreen
Artist: Yebba 
Time Played: 11.26