Nine To Noon for Wednesday 17 August 2022

 

09:05 Emergency operation in full swing on West Coast as rain pours down

The rain is pouring down on the West Coast and at the top of the South - with real fears about what's to come. A state of emergency is in place on the West Coast with 'red' severe weather warnings for Buller and Westland. Further north, emergency operations are gearing up at the top of the South Island, with orange level warnings in place in the Tasman, Marlborough and Nelson regions. In Golden Bay,  rivers reached alarm levels early this morning - an emergency operation centre has opened as the region prepares for expected flooding and road closures. The heaviest rain so far has been at Franz Josef where a close watch is being kept on the Waiho River. Westland Civil Defence Controller Andy Thompson tells Kathryn rivers are already swollen and fears of serious flooding are mounting. 

09:15 New agency goes into bat for consumers over their power bills

Last week's cold snap had many around the country reaching to turn up the heat - putting pressure on the national grid and household power bills. Those higher bills are of great interest to the Consumer Advocacy Council - born out of a recommendation from the Electricity Price Review, which looked into how the market was working for residential consumers. Deborah Hart is chair of the Council - which has recently held its first board meeting. She joins Kathryn to talk about what the Council will be focused on. 

09:20 Neurodiversity - unlocking the causes and dispelling the myths

We are all wired differently. Dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADHD and autism spectrum disorder are all variations that can exist in our brains. Researchers are trying to gain a better understanding of the causes of neurodiversity through looking at genetic and environmental factors along with new scanning techniques which allow them to watch the brain at work. Professor Karen Waldie from Auckland University's School of Psychology and Centre for Brain Research is one of those leading the charge. She speaks to Kathryn about what we are learning about neurodiversity and what the education system can do to better support neurodiverse kids in the classroom.

09:45 Australia: Fallout continues over Scott Morrison's mystery ministries

Australia correspondent Annika Smethurst joins Kathryn to talk about the bombshell revelation that former Prime Minister Scott Morrison had himself sworn in as Minister on a number of portfolios - without the knowledge of the Ministers themselves. There's now mounting pressure on him to resign as an MP.  Victoria has become the first state to start treaty negotiations with indigenous Australians...and concern the country is in the grip of a "civic crisis" as people pull out of volunteering.

10:05  Australian author Jessie Cole on her new book that explores desire 

Desire : A Reckoning is Jessie Cole's deeply personal second memoir. She examines her own experiences of longing, seeking answers on how and why women desire, and how external forces, and upbringing, affect our personal relationships. Her previous memoir Staying was about her surviving the suicide of loved ones, and finding a place to heal. She also writes about how climate change and natural disaster are woven throughout her life.

10:30 Heavy rain hits Golden Bay, fears for high tide

A Red MetService warning is in place for Buller and Westland, and a State of Emergency has been declared in Westland. Further north, orange level warnings are in place for the Tasman, Marlborough and Nelson regions. Flooding in Golden Bay is leaving some residents stranded, as roads become impassable, and there is concern for river levels once high tide arrives this afternoon. Collingwood has had 100mm of rain in the last 5 hours, with up to 30mm per hour. Kathryn hears more about the flooding in Golden Bay from Wayne Langford, a farmer in Takaka. 

10:35 Book review: Diana, William and Harry, by James Patterso​n

Gina Rogers reviews Diana, William and Harry by James Patterson, published by Penguin Random House NZ

10:45 The Reading

Part eight of Carl Nixon's The Tally Stick.

11:05 Music: Louis Baker, Donny Hathaway, Vieux Farka Toure & Khrungbin

RNZ's Music 101 host Charlotte Ryan shares details of the Wellington Jazz festival line up that's just been announced this morning, and plays a track from Vieux Farka Toure, the Malian guitarist and singer who's teamed up with Texas trio Khrungbin in a fusion of dub, blues and West African grooves. 

11:20 Hundertwasser's 30 year love affair with Aoteroa

Friedensreich Hundertwasser was an artist, architect, environmentalist and intellectual, born in Vienna but for whom New Zealand was home for 30 years. He is best known for the unique public toilets in Kawakawa, and now the Hundertwasser Art Centre in Whangarei - opened 22 years after his death. Hundertwasser called New Zealand "the promised land" and his deams began early, when his mother would tell him stories as they hid from the Nazis in Second World War Vienna. A new book on Hundertwasser's life and work has just been released - written by Austrian artist, historian and curator Andreas Hirsh. The book was initiated by the Hundertwasser Foundation in Vienna in collaboration with the Hundertwasser Art Centre in Whangarei and Oratia Books.

11:45  Law: How the consent defence is used in child sex offence cases

In the legal slot today we look at how consent can be used as a defence by someone accused of serious sexual offending against a child. In a recent case in Auckland, a man was found guilty of the rape of a 12-year-old he had claimed pursued him for sex. It's something victims' advocacy groups believe need to be changed. To explain how the law works, Kathryn is joined by Paulette Benton-Greig, who's a senior lecturer in law at AUT and has worked in the areas of domestic and sexual violence.

 

Music played in this show

Track: Nights over Egypt
Artist: The Jones Girls 
Time Played: 09:26