Saturday Morning

7.11 The end of the Treaty Principles bill?

The death knell was sounded for the Treaty Principles Bill at its second - and final - reading this week.

All parties except ACT voted against the bill, with 11 votes in favour and 112 against.

The bill, which sought to redefine the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi sparked a nationwide hikoi and resulted in approximately 300 thousand public submissions being sent to the select committee.

90 percent of which were opposed, eight percent supported the bill and two percent were unsure.

But that is by no means the end of it - according to the bills architect, ACT leader David Seymour.

Newsroom's political editor Laura Walters talks to Susie Ferguson.

 

7.20 Tariff showdown: US vs China

World markets were shaken this week with the on again - off again tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.

This week he announced a 90 day pause on tariffs for 75 countries. 

But cited China's "lack of respect" for the reason he increased tariffs on goods from China to 145 percent.

Beijing, in turn has put a 125 percent tariff on goods from America. 

It is a showdown - with no clear way forward.

Mihi spoke to the Guardian's Senior China Analyst Amy Hawkins - to characterise China's response to Trumps tariffs.

7.31 Defence spending boost: How far will it go?

This week's government boost to defence spending over the next four years coincides with rising global tensions. 

But it comes after decades of struggle with limited funding for New Zealand's Defence Force. 

The boost, $12 billion, $9b of which is new spending, sounds like a lot of money - especially as we face funding challenges in many areas, such as housing, health, and education.  

But how far will the money go, and how does it compare to other key public investments? 

With all the answers, RNZ Explainer Editor Katie Kenny joins Susie in the Wellington studio.

7.37 Changing up the Emissions Trading Scheme

This week the Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton called for a big shake up of the Emissions Trading Scheme.

The ETS as it is known - is supposed to be one-way big polluters can off-set their carbon emissions.

They do this by buying 'credits' based on tree planting, forestry blocks - that sequester the carbon.

But Upton said at the release of his report into the scheme this week - that it was mostly a 'tree planting scheme' that did little to cut planet-heating gases.

On the line for us now is Blair Jamieson, (Ngāpuhi and Te Rarawa) who runs a company called Tāmata Hauhā.

It won the supreme prize last year at the Te Mana Atatū Māori Business awards for its work helping landowners, particularly Māori, get into the ETS scheme. 

7.45 The positives of AI according to the PSA

We're used to hearing how bad AI can be but there's no doubt there are many positives to it. 

One place you might not expect to see trumpeting those positives is the PSA - New Zealand's largest trade union which represents about 95,000 workers in Aotearoa.

But on Monday it is launching a booklet listing 10 benefits AI will bring its workers.

And one of the contributors to it is Dr Karaitiana Taiuru, (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungugu and Ngāti Toa) - he's a leading technology ethicist specialising in Māori rights with AI.

7.53 Picking your own dahlias

This one for the flower lovers - it's your last chance to get your dahlias.

Vanessa Robinson is a dahlia devotee, who's taken her love of the flower to the next level, she runs a pick your own dahlia farm on her property in Selwyn.

What started as a passion project has turned into a farm with over 800 Dahlias, and plans to expand.

8.10 Harlan Coben: reading for empathy

Known for his suspense thrillers, Harlan Coben is a #1 Sunday Times bestselling author with more than eighty million books in print worldwide, including the multi-award-winning Myron Bolitar series.

Coben is also the creator and executive producer of many television shows, adapted from his novels, including Netflix's The Innocent, Gone for Good, and Fool Me Once.   

His latest book Nobody's Fool is the long awaited follow up to the Netflix smash hit and Sunday Times bestseller Fool Me Once.  

8.35 Father Flavie: standing up to Duterte

In a shocking and swift turn of events, last month former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the International Criminal Court over alleged crimes against humanity during his brutal war on drugs. 

He is the first Asian former head of state to be indicted by the ICC - and the first suspect to be flown to the Hague in three years.

Duterte rose to presidency in 2016, campaigning on ridding the country of drugs by killing those who used them.

Under his direction, there was a wave of extrajudicial killings with the official death toll standing at about 6,000, although rights groups argue the real number of victims is much higher.

Former drug addict turned Catholic priest Father Flaviano Villanueva has long been an outspoken critic of Duterte.

Known as Father Flavie, he runs the AJ Kalinga Foundation, which focuses on providing dignified and holistic care for those struggling with substance abuse. 

Teaming up with forensic pathologist Dr Raquel Fortun, they collected evidence of the extrajudicial killings.

He speaks to Mihi about the long journey for justice that came at a cost for those who spoke out against Duterte.

9.05 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Dream Count

After a ten-year hiatus, activist and award-winning author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has released a new novel.

The Nigerian writer has multiple works of fiction and non-fiction to her name, including Americanah, We Should All Be Feminists and Half of a Yellow Sun. 

Dream Count came about after the death of Chimamanda's mother.  Set across America and Nigeria, it tells of four women linked by friendship, reckoning with their shared loves, regrets and desires.

9.35 Ken Ludwig: adapting a legend and why Shakespeare is essential

A surprise phone call lead award-winning playwright, the most performed of his generation, Ken Ludwig into the world of murder mysteries, becoming the chosen playwright for the Agatha Christie estate.

Ken Ludwig has had six shows performed on Broadway and eight in London's West End, and many of his works are a standard part of the American repertoire. His 35 plays and musicals have been performed in over 30 countries in more than 20 languages and are produced throughout the United States every night of the year.

His 1989 comedy Lend Me a Tenor scored three Tony Awards and was produced on Broadway and in London by Andrew Lloyd Webber. He's also a big Shakespeare fan. His book How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare was a bestseller.  

Later this month, Ken's version of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express will be performed by the Auckland Theatre Company.

10.05 Creating comedy out of cancer

When Dr Jo Prendergast was diagnosed with breast cancer, she decided the best thing to do was to write a 80,000 word manuscript about her experience, and create a comedy show out of it.

She's an award-winning Kiwi comedian, after starting stand-up comedy in 2017 at the age of 48, as well as a psychiatrist and author of her teenage mental health book for parents 'When Life Sucks'.

Dr Jo's bringing her new hit comedy, Cancer and Cartwheels, to the New Zealand International Comedy Festival next month, where she laughs her way through menopause, healthcare inequality, toxic positivity and much, much more. Some of the proceeds from ticket sales will also be going to the Cancer Society.

She joins Mihi to talk about her new show and her experience of surviving breast cancer.

10.33 Adolescence: the manosphere explained

Adolescence is the TV series that everyone can't stop talking about. It's been out for a month and still holds Netflix's #1 spot.

It follows a British family as their world turns upside down when 13-year-old Jamie is arrested for murdering a schoolmate: the charges against their son force them to confront every parent's worst nightmare.

The show sent shock waves around the world, starting conversations around the rise of Andrew Tate style misogyny, and kicking off debates about smartphone use by children with the idea of banning them for under-16s growing in popularity amongst parents.

Kate Lindsay is a culture reporter whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, and GQ. She also the co-hosts the Slate podcast ICYMI podcast and writes the internet culture newsletter Embedded.

11.05 Endometriosis: closing the gender pain gap

An Auckland-based gynaecologist is calling for an improvement in the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis in NZ.

It's estimated 120,000 women have the painful and debilitating condition in New Zealand, that's roughly 1 in 10 - though Australia estimates the figure be be closer to 1 in 7.

Auckland-based gynaecologist and advanced laparoscopic surgeon Dr Michael Wynn-Williams says we're standing still in comparison to Australia  where the shift is to a holistic approach for prevention or early detection and management

Susie talks to Dr Wynn-Williams and University of Adelaide-based gynaecologist and fertility specialist Professor Louise Hull, who is beginning to use AI to identify endometriosis on ultrasounds.

11.30 Identity Dance Company

Thousands of performers, from more than forty countries have descended on Auckland - to compete in the inaugural World Dance Crew Championship over the next six days.

A run of regional qualifiers last year has separated - the good from the best dance crews - and they're all hoping to take their shot at the prize pool of 100-thousand US dollars.

Local crew, Identity Dance Company has been practising hard for the championship.  Co-directors Josh Cesan and Cody Wescombe join Mihi in the Auckland studio.

11.45 Compost and winter planting with Hannah Zwartz

It's the time of year to start thinking about a big garden clean up, building a compost heap and looking ahead to winter planting.

Our gardening expert Hannah Zwartz has over 30 years' experience gardening professionally, including looking after the herb and succulent gardens at Wellington Botanic Garden and running community market gardens in the Hutt Valley.  She takes listener questions.