The Wire with Castor

Last week, the Green Party's bill to protect overdose emergency callers from legal risks received cross-party support, passing its first reading, keeping it on track to potentially become law. Minor infractions, such as minor possession and paraphernalia, would be overlooked when calling for emergency services to obtain help for someone overdosing. 

And an Official Information Request by the Herald into Winston Peter’s Foreign Minister’s office revealed disagreements between the NZ First Leader and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon over the Coalition government's stance on the war with Iran, with the prime minister pushing for greater support for the United States bombings.

So for our weekly catchup w/ the Green Party, Host Manny spoke with MP Ricardo Menéndez March about the Green Party’s overdose emergency callers bill and the revelations over the US war with Iran.

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science this week, our expert, Dr Cushla McGoverin, speaks with us about AI spotting Pancreatic Cancer, Foetal surgery, and Yellowstone.

For our weekly catchup with the National Party, I spoke with Ryan Hamilton about the emails between Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon released last week, what they mean for growing tensions and instability within the coalition, and proposed changes to Treaty Obligations that would see the Te Tiriti only need to be ‘taken into account’.

For Green World today, Producer Liam spoke with Max Harvey from the University of Otago, who lead a recent research study about the habitat usage of the Hector’s dolphin, about the research that they carried out on dolphin populations in Southland, what they discovered and what it tells us about how we can better look after this dolphin species. 

Liam also spoke to Professor Sally Gaw from the University of Canterbury, about the government’s new rules to reduce the amount of lead in drinking water pipes, what this means for New Zealand and why it was not done sooner. 

And Producer Flo spoke to Doctor Lucy Goodman, researcher at the University of Auckland’s School of Optometry and Vision Science about her study into accessible eye health and potential government funding of eye care.

Health Minister Simeon Brown last week indicated that he’d like to crack down on the recreational use of Nitrous Oxide, commonly referred to as NOS or Nangs. 

Brown says nitrous oxide is “becoming a serious public health concern”. However, when compared to other recreational drugs in Aotearoa, it seems that the risk factor is relatively low. In addition, nitrous oxide is used for medicinal purposes fairly frequently, meaning its health risks in standard doses are well documented. 

To discuss the effects and risks involved with Nitrous Oxide, and how the government could develop a more holistic response, News Director Castor spoke to Postdoctoral fellow at the University of Otago, Christchurch, Jai Whelan.

Green Party MP Kahurangi Carter has put forward a bill to parliament that would remove any chance for prosecution of someone who needs medical assistance for a drug overdose.

The bill has passed through its first reading, with support from the Greens, Labour, ACT, and Te Pāti Māori. It is now set to go to select committee for consultation.

To discuss why the bill has come about and what kind of impacts it could have on drug safety in Aotearoa, News Director Castor spoke to executive director of the NZ Drug Foundation, Sarah Helm.