Nine To Noon for Wednesday 25 June 2025

09:05 Concerns over future of disability transport fund 

Disability advocates are worried that funding for subsidised transport will be cut without notice - fearing the situation could be the same as the shock cuts to disability support service funding in March 2024. The Total Mobility programme is co-funded by central and local government, with up to 75 percent of each fare subsidised, meaning the user only pays a quarter of the total fare. For some disabled people, the subsidised cost is the difference between being able to leave the house, or not. But the scheme is increasingly costing the government. Ministry of Transport figures show the cost from now until 2027 is expected to increase 72 percent from the previous three-year period, to $52 million, while the number of users has increased 40 percent over the last five years. The Total Mobility scheme has been under review since 2023, but had its terms of reference changed last year and remains under review. The Minister of Transport Chris Bishop says the intent is for Ministers to get  final advice from the review this year,  and that decisions about public engagement will be made in due course. Nick Ruane is a disability advocate and a Total Mobility user. 

09:20 Mapping every tree in New Zealand

Every tree in Aotearoa New Zealand's forests is about to be tracked - from space. A New Zealand data science company has just been award a million dollars form the Ministry of Business, Innovation  and Employment's Catalyst Fund to bring next generation forest mapping here.The data company, Dragonfly, will be teaming up with NASA to use space borne technology to create detailed 3d maps of this nation's forests. Kathryn talks to Dragonfly's I Director of Data Science Dr Finlay Thompson.

09:35 Otago scientist explores phage therapy 

Phage therapy has been hailed as the next line of defence against the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. The therapy works by using viruses to kill and selectively target bacteria. It is not approved for use in NZ, and is seen as a controversial treatment. But as concerns about antibiotic resistance grow - The World Health Organisation has called antimicrobial resistance one of the top global public health threats - phage therapy is increasingly becoming of interest to scientists and the general public. Dr Leah Smith is a research fellow in the University of Otago's department of microbiology and immunology and has been researching how phages can be evolved.

09:45 Australia: Iran bombing reax, YouTube exempt from social media ban

Australia correspondent Chris Niesche looks at how Australia responded to the US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities and questions over whether its Pine Gap communications facility was used in any way. The eSafety commissioner has called for YouTube to be included in the ban on under-16s accessing social media, due to come into effect in December. And a new study of marine sediment off WA's Montebello Islands has found plutonium levels up to 4,500 higher than the rest of the coast. The site was used in the 1950s by Britain for its nuclear tests.

 

10:05 New campaign targets young men's problem gambling

Sign-up bonuses, deposit matches and "free" bets .... are just some of the tactics sports betting companies are using to lure young men into gambling , something the Problem Gambling Foundation is becoming increasingly concerned about. The Foundation has just  launched 'Are You Being Played?' which is a new campaign that highlights how gambling is becoming increasingly embedded in sport, with young men targeted and exposed to betting promotions more than ever before. The campaign unpacks ten key tactics  -backed by research-   that betting companies use to engage young men and keep them betting. Andree Froude is Advocacy and Public Health director at the Problem Gambling Foundation. 

10:15 Tim Wigmore's definitive guide to test cricket

Tim Wigmore's new book Test Cricket: A History tells the story of the game's evolution since its inception in the 1870s. It includes interviews with some of cricket's most significant figures, including Sachin Tendulkar, Pat Cummins, Michael Holding, Ian Chappell and Dale Steyn. By a cover stroke of luck, Tim has just spent five days at Headingly cricket ground, in Leeds, where England have made the second highest run chase in their history to beat India five wickets - the match ending in the last few hours. Tim speaks to Kathryn from Central London.

10:35 Book review: Base Notes: The Scents of a Life by Adelle Stripe 

Kiran Dass reviews Base Notes: The Scents of a Life by Adelle Stripe published by Orion     

10:45 Around the motu: Tess Brunton in Dunedin

A Dunedin mother and son lived in a cold, dark and wet Kāinga Ora house for nearly a week after a hot water cylinder burst, trans Tasman flights to Dunedin have returned, and the government is providing $15 million for a solar farm on Stewart Island with the hope of reducing steep power prices.

RNZ reporter in Dunedin covering Otago and Southland.

11:05 Music with Ian Chapman: The Dunedin Beat goes on

Otepoti Dunedin has always been a highly fertile hub for musical creativity and 2025 is proving to be no exception. Today Ian Chapman features brand new music from four acts including two relatively recently formed bands who sit far apart stylistically with their respective Alt Country and Psych Rock affiliations, Shaky Hollows and OMMU, respectively, as well as new offerings from long-established and much loved singer song-writers Jay Clarkson and Matthew Bannister.

11:20 Are you ready for a disaster?

When it comes to natural disasters, New Zealand's unfortunately well-placed. Due to our location on the Australian and Pacific tectonic plates, we're prone to earthquakes and at risk of volcanic eruptions and tsunami. Throw in climate change, and more cyclones, flooding and landslides are in the mix. Then there's the increasing risk of man-made disasters - remember the 2017 fuel pipeline rupture in Northland? What about last year's CrowdStrike internet outage? Stephen Barnett has turned his mind to what to do about it and - borrowing Scouts founder Robert Baden-Powell manta of "be prepared" - written a guide. His bright yellow book is called Prepare (and Survive!) The New Zealand Guide to getting yourself through emergency events and he joins Kathryn with his biggest tips.

11:45 Personal finance: Date night budgeting 

 Money commentator David Boyle - General Manager KiwiSaver from Fisher Funds - joins Kathryn to talk about the challenges that couples can face in managing their finances and talking about money. He reckons a great way to tackle it is to have a budgeting date night!  What does that involve?

David Boyle is the General Manager of Kiwisaver for Fisher Funds and was previously with Mint Asset Management and the Commission for Financial Capability. This discussion is of a general nature and does not constitute financial advice.