Nine To Noon for Thursday 27 February 2025

09:05 Te Pūkenga continues as polytechs focus on survival  

Where are polytechs at, after courses and staff cuts, and with Te Pūkenga still to be unwound? The Government has been set on dismantling the mega institute and re-establishing viable, standalone polytechs since 2023. Vocational Education Minister Penny Simmonds now says she expects the mega institute to stay in operation until the end of next year, as it supports polytechnics moving to autonomous operations. She expects about 10 to be able to standalone and is introducing legislation to dismantle Te Pukenga that also opens the door to the less viable operations being put under a federation model. Those could also be merged, shut down, or sold off. Individual polytechs are cutting back courses and staff. Te Pūkenga chief executive Gus Gilmore says he expects the organisation to reach surplus this year, and student numbers are up.

09:20 Brakes come on the big power companies

The big four electricity generator- retailers will not be allowed to give preferential price contracts to their retail arms under proposed new rules. The Commerce Commission and Electricity Authority's Competition Task Force has just announced the proposals which it says will improve competition and give new players and investors confidence to enter the market.Contact, Genesis, Meridian and Mercury - will have to make products available to all industry participants on the same terms as when trading internally.  Chair of the Electricity Authority Anna Kominik says they will also have to provide greater transparency about the prices and volumes they give to their retail businesses

09:30 Sir Ian Taylor on why he's sharing his pension

Businessman and entrepreneur  Sir Ian Taylor is fronting a new campaign to convince one per cent of pensioners to donate part or all of their NZ Super to a range of charities to benefit children. Share My Super was founded by Liz Grieve five years ago  - she donated $10 million to cover the operating costs of the charity. Sir Ian acknowledges there are many struggling super annuitants who cannot afford to donate, but believes one per cent - around 7000 people - could give all or some - and potentially raise up to $200 million dollars to help children.

09:45 UK: Sir Keir goes to Washington with pledge to hike defence spending

UK correspondent Lara Spirit joins Kathryn to preview Sir Keir Starmer's visit to the US, which has been bolstered by the government's announcement it would boost military spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027. That prompted questions from Conservatives over whether any of it would go on the multi-billion pound Chagos deal, and concerns from aid agencies about cuts to aid spending to pay for it. Meanwhile seven organisations have been barred from government contracts for their role in the deadly Grenfell Tower fire as all 58 recommendations from an official inquiry are adopted.

Lara Spirit is a reporter for The Times Red Box, where she covers politics from Westminster

10:05 Government to introduce legislation on switching parliamentary term from three years to four

The Government is introducing legislation that will allow a four-year parliamentary term subject to a referendum. The change was part of National's coalition agreement with Act. Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says the standard term will stay three years, but there will be an ability to extend to a maximum of four years. He says any change would be subject to a binding referendum. Our Political Editor, Jo Moir, has been speaking to the Justice Minister.

10:05 The couple who travel and perform together - and help others theatre do it sustainably

For many people working with a spouse might be relationship-ending - but Hannah Smith and Ralph McCubbin-Howell have built a successful theatre company that not only create works together, but take their two young children touring with them as well. Their company is Trick of the Light and won five awards for its very first show The Engine Room which premiered at Wellington BATS Theatre in 2011. Since then they've lived and worked in the UK, performing at the Edinburgh Fringe festival and touring their various shows at festivals in Australia, the US, Canada - and of course, New Zealand. They aim to make work that is playful and inventive - and their latest is Suitcase Show, described as a "masterclass in miniature stagecraft" with puppetry, shadow-play and animation. They're about to tour it nationwide - beginning this week in Hamilton, before heading to the Auckland Arts Festival. Hannah and Ralph join Kathryn to explain what the show's about - as well as how they've managed to tour with two kids under-five - and why they were inspired to write a Green Guide to Touring, to help others in the arts industry reduce their carbon footprint.

10:30  New modelling shows impact of economy on road toll

A growing or shrinking economy has the closest correlation to the number of deaths on the road, according to data. Transport expert Dr Urie Bezuidenhout says politicians and police are quick to celebrate a so-called success of a safety campaign or other policy - but the data doesn't support a direct link to a lower road toll. And as police ramp up enforcement action under direction of the Government, Dr Bezuidenhout has also crunched some numbers that show the correlation to fewer deaths will be minimal. It comes as the Government looks to lift speed limits in various parts of the country, and incentive road police to issue more tickets in order to unlock their departmental funding. Urie Bezuidenhout is a transport planner and traffic engineer with consultancy firm DaVinci and a professor at Auckland University.

10:35 Book review: Source Code by Bill Gates 

Quentin Johnson reviews Source Code by Bill Gates published by Penguin Random House 

10:45 Around the motu : Kelly Makiha in Rotorua

There has been a twist in the Nia Glassie murder case, container homes are costing $630,000 to build, Red Stag wins the Trolley Grand Prix, and a jury findings Hasting logger Nathan Moscrip not guilty of friend's manslaughter.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist with the Rotorua Daily Post.

11:05 Tech: How generative AI works with copyright law

Professor Alex Sims looks at how generative AI models create images and whether generated images infringe copyright. Also are generated images covered by copyright themselves? Alex looks at how New Zealand's copyright law stacks up against similar jurisdictions.

Alex Sims is a Professor in the Department of Commercial Law at the University of Auckland Business School and an expert on blockchain technology, copyright law and consumer law.

11:25 After school activities - how much is too much?

Term one of the school year is in full swing and with it the after school activities. Sport, music, dance, learning another language - there are plenty of options. But how much is too much? And how can parents judge that? Maggie Dent is known as the 'Queen of Commonsense Parenting'. She's a former high school teacher, counsellor, mother of four sons, grandmother of seven, author of numerous books and the host of the ABC podcast Parental as Anything. Maggie says the right mix takes into account the child's temperament, age, and time of year. And she says if the activity is being driven by the parent, the benefits disappear. Send us your questions for Maggie to 2101 on text or email ninetonoon@rnz.co.nz

11:45 Screentime: Silo s2, Severance s2, Back in Action

Film and television correspondent Perlina Lau looks at the second season of Apple's dystopian drama Silo, the second season of Prime Video's dystopian work drama Severance and the palate cleanser that is Netflix's Back in Action - which sees actress Cameron Diaz step out of her self-enforced retirement.