Nine To Noon for Tuesday 28 February 2023

 

 

09:05 Gisborne flooding: "It looks like a tornado has come through"

Flooding in Gisborne has seen homes evacuated in parts of the city which don't usually flood. Police have gone door to door in ten streets in the Mangapapa suburb north east of the city. Fifteen houses have been evacuated after torrential rain caused torrents of water to course out of streams and creeks. An orange heavy rain warning is in place for Gisborne until 1pm. Mangapapa resident Kory Moorcock tried to evacuate from his Shelley Road home but couldn't get far because a bridge was flooded. Kathryn also speaks with Gisborne District Council Chief Executive and Civil Defence spokesperson Nadine Thatcher-Swann.

09:20 Acute mental health units 'languish on periphery': study

14,000 New Zealanders are treated in acute mental health units each year, but new research finds they languish on the periphery of hospital grounds, which could impact both mental and physical recovery. The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Otago, analysed the locations of all 22 acute mental health units in the country, of which 20 were on hospital sites.  They found the units were on the outskirts of hospitals and compared with medical wards, much further away from the main entrances, the cafes, and other services, such as the radiology and emergency departments.  They are also a long way from community services, such as shops, parks and public transport. Report co-author associate professor Ruth Cunningham tells Kathryn it's the worst of both worlds for mental health patients, as they are neither community based, nor really part of the hospital.

9:30 Foreign spying 'wake up call' for Australia

Australia's intelligence chief says the country is being spied on at an "unprecedented" level by foreign agents.
Head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Mike Burgess says government officials, bank workers, doctors, police and journalists were all being targeted for espionage and foreign interference than at any time in the country's history. Kathryn talks to ANU Professor of International Security John Blaxland about the level of spying in the country and whether New Zealand should be concerned.

09:45 US correspondent Ximena Bustillo: the politics of disaster 

It has been over three weeks since a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which led to massive environmental and health detriments to its residents. President Biden has not yet made a trip to the town of nearly 4,000. But former president Donald Trump, and 2024 presidential hopeful, has and he took no shortage of opportunities to accuse the sitting president of lack of care for rural America. The latest NPR poll shows American voters lean in favour of raising the debt ceiling, but are divided on how to pay down the national debt.

Ximena Bustillo is an NPR politics reporter based in Washington.

 

 

10:05 75-year-old blood cancer survivor & cyclist Andy Sninsky

15 years ago Andy Sninsky was diagnosed with the incurable blood cancer Multiple Myeloma. Now aged 75, he's been cycling around the world for years raising money for research and New Zealand  is his latest challenge. His is a remarkable story of going against the odds. Myeloma is the second most common blood cancer in NZ and there are currently 3000 Kiwis living with it . Myeloma attacks the body in a variety of ways, but for Andy it affected his blood and bones - he was told he'd have three to four years to live. In total he's been through 15 bouts of radiation, eight months of chemotherapy, and a stem cell transplant. He's also got a bunch of Austrian Cistercian monks who praying for him! Andy speaks with Kathryn from Blenheim, at the start of his South Island adventure. He is raising money for the Malaghan Institute, which is making plans for a Phase 2 clinical trials of CAR-T cell Therapy for B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2023.

10:35 Book review: I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai

Anne Else reviews I Have Some Questions For You by Rebecca Makkai, published by Hachette   

10:45 Around the motu: Mike Tweed in Whanganui

Whanganui has hosted the NZ Masters Games with more than 4000 registrations for 60 sports, including some overseas participants. Mike talks to Kathryn about some of the highlights. National has announced its Whanganui candidate for this year's election, Carl Bates and Labour's Steph Lewis is running again. And the Whanganui District Council is setting up a temporary site on Taupo Quay for people who are homeless in an effort to move them on from freedom camping sites. Ratepayers will fund between $170,000 and $376,000 for the operation over the next 12 to 24 months. 

Mike Tweed is a Multimedia Journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle 
 

11:05 Business commentator Pattrick Smellie

Pattrick talks to Kathryn about what he describes as the smoke, mirrors and delay of National's three waters policy. Also Trade Window's big fail in an attempt to raise $20million, and what lies ahead for the Kiwi start-up. Could it be a takeover target?

Pattrick Smellie is the editor and co-founder of BusinessDesk and has reported on the New Zealand economy and business since 1983.
 

 

11:30  From crime to care: A history of abortion in New Zealand

As the US gets to grips with the massive implications of the overturn of Roe v Wade last year, how has abortion legislation in New Zealand changed over the years? It's the subject of a new book from Dr Felicity Goodyear -Smith, called From Crime to Care: The History of Abortion in Aotearoa New Zealand. She's a former certifying consultant from 1981 until 2020,  when abortion was decriminalised in New Zealand. The book begins with a look at abortion in pre-colonial times, through the late 19th century when so-called "baby farmers" were a solution to unwanted babies, to the liberalisation of sexual attitudes and behaviour in the 50s and 60s. But it's the events of the 1970s that are the book's particular focus: the setting up of the first abortion clinic in 1974 and how that went down with a strong anti-abortion movement at the time. Dr Goodyear-Smith says although New Zealand's abortion law has gone from being a criminal to a health concern, the US decision shows how it liberal laws can be undone - and that New Zealand must ensure its reforms endure.

 

11:45 Sports-chat with Steve Holloway

Steve chats to Kathryn about the action-packed weekend of sport, the Super Rugby Pacific competition kicking off, the Crusaders  beaten at home by the Chiefs, and the Blues big win over the Highlanders. Also an update on the cricket, with Kane Williamson now NZ's highest ever run scorer.

Steve is Premium sports editor at NZME and also co-host of a podcast called Between Two Beers. He is also a former NZ national league footballer.

Music played in this show

Track Cherry Blossom Girl
Artist: Air
Played: 9:45am