Nine To Noon

09:05 "A growing crisis in welfare support" - Citizen's Advice Bureau report

A Citizens Advice Bureau report based on more than 10 thousand  requests for assistance has revealed what it calls "a growing crisis in welfare support." The just released report says people from all walks of life, and all ages and ethnicities, are struggling to meet basic living costs and  access the support they are legally entitled to. It says policy changes such as  benefit sanctions, tighter emergency housing criteria and cuts to community  services have all exacerbated hardship. The CAB is calling for a range of improvements including prioritising food, housing and utility security and reviewing compliance penalties. Kathryn is joined by Louise May, the National Policy Advisor for the Citizen's Advice Bureau 

09:20 Work underway on predator free fence at Farewell Spit

A volunteer conservation trust has begun building a predator proof fence across the base of Farewell Spit. The Healthpost Nature Trust has started on what will be a 4 km fence, protecting special fauna and flora living on the country's largest spit. The community initiative has been planned for years - and a Pledgeme campaign is underway to raise money to finish the job. Kathryn speaks with Peter Butler, chair of the Healthpost Nature Trust and the Trust Patron, Kim Hill.

09:30 Spartacus: The benefits of bringing the Roman Republic to Auckland

Rome wasn't built in a day, but for over a year the Roman Republic was temporarily constructed in a South Auckland film studio. Spartacus: House of Ashur has just hit screens in New Zealand and around the world, and is receiving rave reviews. The series resurrects a character, Ashur, from the previous Spartacus series, and puts him in an alternate timeline in which he wasn't killed on Mount Vesuvius. Like the previous series, Spartacus: House of Ashur was filmed in New Zealand  - Wiri's X3 studios - at 11,725m it's one of the biggest creative spaces in the country. At its peak it employed 490 full-time crew and 399 casual crew, with Kiwis making up 60 percent of the ensemble cast.  So what does it take to pull a production like this together and why film in New Zealand? Spartacus: House of Ashur  executive producer Rick Jacobson joins Kathryn. Spartacus: House of Ashur is streaming on the Three Now app.

09:45 UK: Rayner returns, Customs Union, Starmer hosts Zelensky

UK correspondent Harry Taylor joins Kathryn to talk about the return of former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, making her strongest comments since resigning in September for underpaying tax on a house purchase. This comes amid a backdrop of challenges to Sir Keir Starmer’s tenure. The UK appears to be moving closer to a Customs Union with the EU, and has been hosting meetings with the leaders of Ukraine, France and Germany. Meanwhile allegations of racism from his schoolboy days continue to dog Nigel Farage.

Harry Taylor is a parliamentary reporter at the Press Association

10:05 Trevor Sherwin on world-leading eye research 

Over two decades, Auckland University's ophthalmology team has grown from one or two lecturers to a thriving department with several professors now producing world-leading research. One of them is Professor Trevor Sherwin, who has been leading a group of PhD researchers working on developing an eye drop that could potentially repair the cornea. It has now been spun off into a startup company now looking to begin clinical trials next year. The university's ophthalmology department, which is also home to the National Eye Bank, is also working on other innovations around the use of stem cells to regenerate the eye. Trevor talks to Kathryn about the latest in their work to fix some of the most common conditions people get with their eyes.

10:30 How to shop for safe children's toys this Christmas 

Plunket is warning online and second-hand toys pose an increasing risk to children, and is urging parents to be on alert, particularly when shopping for Christmas gifts. Each year around 1200 children aged three and under are injured by toys. Earlier this year an importer was hit with a $140,000 fine after selling small toy cars that young children could choke on - hundreds of which remain unaccounted for despite a recall notice. The seller imported the toys in a single order through a Chinese export agent in 2019. Product safety standard regulations - designed to keep babies and toddlers safe - apply to anyone including those selling second-hand toys on internet platforms such as Trade Me and Facebook marketplace. Clinical Lead nurse for Plunket is Keli Livingston Filipo.

10:35 Book review: A Woman's Eye, Her Art by Drusilla Modjeska

Melanie O’Loughlin of Lamplight Books reviews A Woman's Eye, Her Art by Drusilla Modjeska, published by Penguin Books NZ.

10:45 Around the motu: Robin Martin in Taranaki  

Robin discusses the planned emptying of  Lake Rotomanu to work out how bad an investation of golden clams is, a funding boost for cafe that  is used by rough sleepers,  the ongoing row over cycleway barriers and a crazy batch of dog names.

Robin is RNZ's Taranaki reporter

11:05 Tech: Qantas breach, CoPhish Microsoft exploit, Aust threat report

Cybersecurity expert Tony Grasso looks at the incident that compromised Qantas customer data - including names, emails and frequent flyer details. He explains what a "CoPhish" attack is, and how it's being used to exploit new Microsoft cloud services. And Australia's annual cyber threat report has been released - more than 42,000 phone calls were made to the country's cyber security hotline. What were the main incidents being reported?

Cybersecurity expert Tony Grasso is Chief Information Security officer at COGENT. He worked at GCHQ in the UK and is a former Intelligence Officer in New Zealand.

11:25 How to set boundaries for teens over the summer break

School's out - so what now for the kids? Let them run wild? Give them as much screentime as they like? And what happens in those older teenage years, when the kids might be keen to head away with friends for New Years? Joining Kathryn is Kristin Ward, a coach and presenter with Parenting Place. She's also a registered social worker and has three kids.

11:45 Screentime: Rental Family, The Housemaid, Eternity

Film and television reviewer James Croot joins Kathryn to talk about Eternity, which stars Elizabeth Olsen as a woman who must choose between two men with whom to spend the afterlife. Rental Family (cinemas Boxing Day) stars Brendan Fraser as an American actor based in Japan who begins working for a rental family agency. The Housemaid (cinemas Boxing Day)  is a psychological thriller starring Sydney Sweeney as a troubled young woman who becomes a live-in maid for a wealthy family. He'll also touch on Sentimental Value which is out early next year and new George Clooney movie Jay Kelly.