Nine To Noon for Tuesday 17 September 2024

09:05 Gisborne mayor wants to keep controls on forestry rules

The mayor of Gisborne wants reassurances her council will not lose its ability to apply strict rules to forestry on vulnerable land. The Government is proposing changes that would remove a council's ability to impose regulations on forestry under freshwater regulations and will instead set a national direction under forestry standards introduced last year. Under the rules started in November, councils could apply more stringent requirements on commercial foresters than the minimum standards set in the plan. These covered aspects such as slash management and replanting of forests. The Eastland Wood Council, which represents most of the forestry business in Tairāwhiti, has said the Gisborne District Council's consent rules have gone too far - and have vastly increased the cost of harvesting and afforestation. It says forestry's viability as a business is at risk, and it is a huge part of the local economy - making up 32 per cent of the exports coming out of the region. Gisborne mayor Rehette Stoltz says much of the forestry in her rohe is on steep and eroding land and she wants assurances the proposed changes won't impact her council's ability to set tight rules on what can be done on that land.  

09:30 Relief teacher rules relaxed: Who's invited to teach the kids?

 The government's plan to boost numbers of relief teachers to ease pressure on schools -  has been welcomed by some, but criticised by others.  Education Minister Erica Stanford says the Teaching Council rules will be loosened to allow previously registered teachers to receive a Limited Authority To Teach or LAT. LATs will also be available to those without a teaching qualification. An LAT enables those without a teaching qualification to teach in positions where there's need for specialist skills or skills are in short supply. Kathryn discusses the change with Brent Godfery, Principal of Pembroke School and chair of the North Otago Primary Principals Association and PPTA President Chris Abercrombie.

09:40 Mighty mānuka: New research into honey's gut health benefits

Mānuka honey's anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties have been studied for nearly three decades - it has some 2000 natural compounds compared with about 100 in your average clover honey. One of those compounds discovered by scientists at Comvita and research partners at the University of Auckland is Lepteridine, which has been trademarked. After a two year, $1.4m clinical trial - undertaken by the University of Otago and funded through the National Science Challenge - lepteridine mānuka honey was found to ease symptoms of dyspepsia - a common digestive condition. Their findings have seen them make the finals of this year's NutraIngredients-Asia Awards taking place this week in Thailand. Comvita's chief scientist Dr Jackie Evans talks to Kathryn about the research.

09:50 USA correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben

Danielle has the latest on the apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Florida. The suspect, Ryan Routh has appeared in court on gun charges. He was taken into custody after being spotted with a rifle hiding in the bushes at the former US president's golf course in Florida. Authorities are looking into his motivation, with his social media accounts suggesting he supported Donald Trump in 2016, but has criticised him since then, particularly on the topic of Ukraine. 

Danielle Kurtzleben is a political correspondent assigned to NPR's Washington Desk.

10:05 Lloyd Jones on telling parts of his life through poetry

Lloyd Jones is well known for his numerous novels including Mister Pip which won the Commonwealth Prize for Literature and was shortlisted for the Man Booker.The Book of Fame was the winner of the Tasmania Pacific Prize for Fiction;  while Hand Me Down World was shortlisted for the Berlin International Prize for Literature. He is a New Zealand Arts laureate and recipient of the Prime Minister's Prize for Literature. Now he's turned to poetry with The Empty Grandstand, in which he tells snippets of his life story:  from a breathtaking climb as a seven year old to the top of a very high grandstand with his father, to destroying class ukeleles in a music lesson, to travelling the world. Lloyd Jones joins Kathryn from Melbourne.

10:35 Book review: Paris In Ruins by Sebastian Smee 

Quentin Johnson reviews Paris In Ruins by Sebastian Smee published by Text Publishing

10:45 Around the motu: Che Baker in Southland

Ohai township looks to lose stunning mountain views, Che outlines the David versus Goliath battle going on deep in rural Southland. The Invercargill City Council is reporting a rise in physical and psychological harm exposure incidents on staff. And the Southland Charity Hospital is nearing completion, It has one more position to fill before opening its doors in October or November - five years after the death of its founder, cancer care advocate, Blair Vining.

Che Baker is the editor of the Southland Times

11:05 Business commentator Rebecca Stevenson

The NZ Super Fund has hit an all-time high and was valued at $76.6 billion for the year to June 30, an increase of $11.2b on the prior financial year. More than 30,000 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers - who produce Boeing's 737 MAX and other jets in Seattle, have taken strike action after overwhelmingly voting down a new contract. And still in the US, a National Labor Relations Board, Administrative Law Judge, has ordered Starbucks to reopen within a reasonable period of time at two locations that had hat closed after employees formed a union.

Rebecca Stevenson is a senior journalist at BusinessDesk.

11:30 Kiwi thriller writer Catherine Lea on the appeal of Northland Noir

First came Tartan Noir, then Outback Noir. Now author Catherine Lea is helping to fuel the rise of Northland Noir with her series of crime thrillers set at the top of the country. Catherine started out self-publishing on Amazon, with her first book The Candidate's Daughter. A move to the Far North has led to the creation of series that features Detective Inspector Nyree Bradshaw - a good cop struggling with her criminal son. The series' second book, Better Left Dead, has just been published by Bateman. It sees Nyree investigate the death of a hoarder, with links to a group of foster kids who are haunted by their past. Catherine appeared at the weekend's Upsurge Bay of Islands Arts Festival to talk about what makes Northland Noir so appealing with other authors based in the region. She shares her thoughts with Kathryn.

11:45 Sports correspondent Glen Larmer

In America's Cup action, American Magic and Alinghi stave off elimination at the regatta in Barcelona. Glen talks about the lessons Team New Zealand can take out of what’s happening out on the water in the Louis Vuitton Cup. He also talks rugby, both the All Blacks and Black Ferns, and cricket focusing on the Blackcaps buildup for the two test series against Sri Lanka.