Nine To Noon for Wednesday 2 April 2025

09:05 Banking inquiry has lost its way, capital expert says

An expert in bank capital says a Parliamentary committee has lost focus on questioning the big banks about excess profits. Victoria University's Martien Lubberink says the committee has allowed the banks to turn the conversation to easing their capital requirements. The Reserve Bank appeared before the Finance and Expenditure committee's inquiry on Monday and said it will review the criteria, which were championed by former Governor Adrian Orr, who resigned suddenly last month, without explanation and with three years left on his term. The incoming rules would lead to the amount of capital banks had to hold in reserve to counter major shocks gradually increase between now and 2028. The big four Australian-owned banks, who have also appeared before the inquiry have been lobbying over the capital standards. Higher capital requirements force banks to use a higher level of their own equity in lending - limiting leverage. The banks, and others, have emphasised the impact of this on the cost of lending to businesses. Associate Professor Martien Lubberink worked for the central bank of the Netherlands and contributed to the development of new regulatory capital standards for banks worldwide and in Europe in different roles. 

09:20 How a simple kidney test could cut dialysis demand and donor wait lists

Kidney Health New Zealand says a simple, $12 test could prevent hundreds of people languishing on waitlists for a kidney donor. Last month Nine to Noon looked at the experience of Dunedin man Eric Trump who was born with one kidney that failed by the time he was 29. Thanks to a kidney donation from his aunt, he underwent a successful transplant and has gone on to live a normal life. But while kidneys are among the most common transplants here, there's a long waitlist - currently 500 people are waiting for a donor. That leaves dialysis wards around the country full - with many open around the clock to cope with demand. Kidney Health New Zealand says chronic kidney disease is becoming one of the fastest-growing causes of death. Well-managed kidney disease can mean avoiding a life on dialysis or transplant if caught early enough - with a $12 test. Kathryn speaks to Manawatu nephrologist Dr Curtis Walker, and Amelia King - who'll finally head home to Waimate later this week after two years on dialysis and her eventual kidney transplant.

09:30 Should charities volunteers who work with kids have background checks?

An advocate for tougher rules around who works with children is concerned there's no background checks required for charities volunteers. Earlier this month a former Destiny Church youth leader was sent to prison for six years for the sexual abuse of several young boys. Kiwa Hamiora-Te Hira pleaded guilty to a number of charges over a period of five years while he was involved in youth programmes. So what is the duty of care charities are expected to meet when their volunteers are interacting with kids? Safeguarding Children's Willow Duffy speaks with Kathryn.

09:45 Australia: Election date set - what do the polls say?

Australia correspondent Chris Niesche joins Kathryn to look at the looming federal election date of May 3 - with the latest polling, major policy planks and what the parties need to do to win.

10:05 Geraldine Brooks' exploration of grief and "unfurling"

When Pulitzer Prize winning Australian author Geraldine Brooks' husband Tony Horwitz died suddenly - she had no time to grieve - between supporting their two sons, organising the funeral, dealing with cancelled insurance and frozen credit cards. She and Tony met at Columbia University Journalism school in the early 80s, spent their early years together in conflict zones as foreign correspondents, before settling down to raise their boys on Martha's Vineyard.  It was only three years after his death,  that she acknowledged she was just pretending to be normal - and really wasn't ok. She retreated to a remote island off Tasmania to grieve. The result is her memoir, Memorial Days, which she says was her therapy and enabled her to find peace.

10:35 Book review: The Confidence Woman by Sophie Quick 

Laura Caygill reviews The Confidence Woman by Sophie Quick published by Allen & Unwin; a first novel satirising self-improvement and influencer culture through a con that goes pear shaped’.

10:45 Around the motu: Tom Hunt in Wellington

Tom updates Kathryn on the latest issues in Wellington including the controversy surrounding Wellington Water, the Crown observer's latest report, the council's proposed plan to charge commercial rates to short term rentals like Airbnb, and the upcoming local body elections.

Tom Hunt is a journalist with the Wellington paper The Post.

11:05 Music with Ian Chapman: When Bowie's Young Americans conquered the US

Fifty years ago David Bowie’s ninth studio album, Young Americans, hit number 3 on the NZ album chart while the title track reached number 1 on the singles chart. The soul/funk influenced Young Americans found Bowie abandoning the Ziggy Stardust glam rock sound and image that had launched him to widespread stardom around the world - but with the notable exception of the USA. In a remarkable reinvention he became the self-titled Plastic Soul Man and with Young Americans he finally convincingly conquered the USA. Today Ian Chapman examines Bowie's reinvention, highlighting collaborators critical to that remarkable feat. 

 Ian Chapman is an Honorary Senior Research Fellow in Music at the University of Otago. 

11:20 Jenny Pattrick's new novel imagines the survival of a small community post-tsunami

Amid a number of earthquakes over the past week - including the devastation in Myanmar - the release of best-selling novelist Jenny Pattrick's latest work seems particularly prescient. In Sea Change, she imagines the devastation wreaked on a small Kapiti Coast community by a tsunami generated from a devastating rupture in the Alpine fault. Like the characters in the book, the reader only knows a little of what's happened to the South Island. Instead, Jenny captures the challenges and triumphs in the community's struggle for survival  - and what happens when it's forced into managed retreat, eagerly pushed by a businessman with grand personal plans for the area. Jenny Pattrick has published 10 novels since her celebrated 2003 debut novel The Denniston Rose and joins Kathryn to talk about her break from historical to contemporary writing.

11:45 How to avoid strains and sprains in the workplace - tips from an Olympic weightlifter

"Don't use your back like a crane"...went the public health messaging in the 80s. It was aimed at making us all think about how we were lifting  - from the legs, not the back. Someone who's done more than his fair share of heavy lifting is Richie Patterson. He won gold at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, silver in Delhi in 2010. He also competed at the London and Rio Olympic Games. He now runs a company called Manual Handling, which goes into workplaces teaching people to avoid sprains and strains and shares his expertise.