Nine To Noon for Monday 22 April 2024

09:05 Owners of earthquake-prone buildings given more time to strengthen them

Owners of earthquake-prone buildings will now have a four year extension on the requirement to strengthen or demolish. In a widely anticipated move, last week the government also announced it would bring forward a review of earthquake legislation, to begin immediately. In the meantime building owners now have until 2027 to get their buildings to scratch. Minister for Building and Construction Chris Penk speaks with Kathryn Ryan.

09:25 Portable toilets will soon no longer cut it for freedom campers

Incoming rules for freedom campers have left rental companies feeling confused. From December 2024, rental vehicles can no longer be classed as 'self-contained' if they have a portable toilet. They will need to be fixed with built-in plumbing for that certification. The Rental Vehicle Association of New Zealand says 5000 rental vehicles will need to be refitted by then and soon after, some 120-thousand private vehicles. It has written to Tourism Minister Matt Doocey warning meeting this requirement will be a real "curly one" - especially given private rentals have an extra six months to make the change. Mad Campers managing director Andy Haslett speaks with Kathryn Ryan.

09:30 Sue Novell on why we should eat our weeds and flowers

Out with the lawn and in with the food. That's the model Dunedin gardener Sue Novell has used to convert her suburban home's lawns and shrubs to fruit trees and garden beds. She's also advocating we eat more flowers and weeds - choosing the edibles of the former and letting the latter grow so long as they don't obstruct other plants. Sue will be giving multiple talks this month as part of the Wild Dunedin Festival of Nature. 

09:45 Europe correspondent Seamus Kearney

Seamus discusses the fire in Copenhagen, Denmark which saw the iconic spire of the 400-year-old former stock exchange building topple. Ukraine is celebrating after the US House of Representatives approved more than US$61b of military assistance - now subject to Senate and Presidential approval. And a tourism boom on the Spanish Canary Islands is causing controversy, with thousands turning out for a protest calling for visitor numbers to be restricted.

10:05 Hidden Japan: The astonishing places you shouldn't visit

Growing up in an American Navy family, Alex Kerr lived in many places including Italy, Hawaii and Washington DC. But it was Kameoka in Japan, that he came to call home, and where a lifelong fascination with Japan began. He majored in Japanese studies at Yale University and later returned to Japan to live there full time. Alex Kerr is a writer, and has been an art dealer, house restorer and translator.  In his latest book Hidden Japan,  Alex Kerr takes readers outside of the hotspots of Tokyo and Kyoto to some of Japan's lesser known areas, and discusses the dilemma that tourism presents.

10:35 Loving My Lying, Dying, Cheating Husband by Kerstin Pilz 

Cynthia Morahan reviews Loving My Lying, Dying, Cheating Husband by Kerstin Pilz published by Affirm Press     

10:45 Around the motu: David Hill in North Canterbury

Rangiora High School's building project includes a return to single-cell classrooms. David explains why a Hurunui farmer is frustrated with erosion on the road to his farm and the access issues it is causing. The $10 billion Canterbury Regional Land Transport Plan has been approved by the region's Mayors and the iconic Cheviot cricket ground set for a facelift.

Local Democracy Reporter David Hill is with North Canterbury News, based in Rangiora

11:05 Political commentators Dale Husband and Liam Hehir

As public service job losses top 3000, there is debate over how frontline workers will be affected - with Children's Minister Karen Chhour saying their services will be improved. The opposition says they will be compromised.

With the Government's Budget quickly approaching, Finance Minister Nicola Willis remains determined to deliver tax cuts - even if they're from borrowed money. Opponents to the AUKUS pillar two have been vocal - including former PM Helen Clark a former Australian foreign minister. 

Dale Husband is a long time broadcaster and Radio Waatea presenter hosting a Maori focused current affairs programme.

Liam Hehir is a Palmerston North lawyer, political commentator and a National Party member.

11:30 The Muriwai Deli: From food trucks to permanent fixture

The Muriwai Deli is a permanent fixture in the West Auckland community, but it wasn't always that way. The popular café in the 100-year-old Muriwai Lodge started off with a couple of food trucks getting together. Cameron Steel and his twin brother Boyd launched Double Parked in 2018, condensing a decade of cooking and eating their way around Europe into a changing blackboard menu. Down the road, their brother Bryce Steel was working with Damian Watson, on Double Shot, a 'coffee and pud' truck with a similar seasonal focus. Cam Steel joins Kathryn Ryan to discuss how they made it through Covid lockdowns and the Auckland floods.

11:45 Urban Issue with Bill McKay: The history of kitchen design

Bill McKay discusses the history of the classic layout of a kitchen, and its connections to pre-Nazi Germany. And the famous 'kitchen triangle' which many people still insist is fundamental to a good kitchen layout.

Bill McKay is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland.