Nine To Noon

09:05 Big changes foreshadowed for social service funding

The head of the Social Investment Agency - on the big changes ahead for funding of social services provided by NGOs for some of the most vulnerable. Yesterday the Minister for Social Investment Nicola Willis announced a new $190 million Social Investment Fund designed to transform the way the social services are delivered to vulnerable New Zealanders. She says it is starting small, but over time,  more of the government's 7 billion dollars of contacts with NGOs would come under the auspices of the agency. The announcement came on the same day as a scathing report by the Auditor General found that Oranga Tamariki didn't look at the impacton children and families when it made abrupt cuts to social service contracts last year. Andrew Coster, former Police Commissioner, is the Chief Executive of the Social Investment Agency and will oversee the new fund.

09:20 Andrew Little's return to the political fray

The race for the Wellington mayoralty took a turn last month, when former Labour party leader and Cabinet Minister, Andrew Little came out of political retirement and threw his hat in the ring. This was quickly followed by current Green mayor Tory Whanau announcing she would not stand again, saying his candidacy had changed the game and she didn't want a "Green vs. Labour narrative to distract from what's important for our city". Mr Little has since garnered support from some prominent National party supporters - including former National Cabinet Minister Chris Finlayson and National aligned current Wellington councillor Nicola Young. He is to launch his official campaign tomorrow. So what tipped him towards a political come back, and what are his priorities for the job? Mr Little is up against Graham Bloxham, Ray Chung, Rob Goulden, Kelvin Hastie, and Karl Tiefenbacher. Click here for a backgrounder on them.

09:30 Road rules: an unlikely subject for a musical

In 2012, a change to New Zealand's road rules caused a frenzy among some drivers who worried our roads would turn to chaos. As it turned out, the intersection turning rule reversal went down relatively smoothly. Thirteen years later, it has become the topic of an eccentric musical which is currently showing at Wellington's Circa Theatre. GIVE WAY! stars an idealistic young Ministry of Transport worker who leads the charge for the new rule and is met with a flurry of anti-change protestors. Producer Dave Armstrong and lead actor Jackson Burling speak to Kathryn.
 

09:45 Asia correspondent  Ed White

Ed White discusses India-Pakistan relations, the ongoing Chinese response to Donald Trump's trade war, and a forthcoming TV series depicting what a Chinese invasion of Taiwan might look like. 

Ed White is a correspondent with the Financial Times based in Shanghai

10:05 How new weight loss drugs work - and their downsides

Dr. David A. Kessler is a former Commissioner of the American Food and Drug Administration. He's written extensively on the food industry's role in engineering addictive foods, which contributes to the obesity epidemic globally. Dr Kessler has also struggled with yo-yo'ing weight and his new book "Diet, Drugs And Dopamine" looks at the the new class of weight loss drugs. This class of drugs, called GLP-1 which increase feelings of satisfaction or fullness after eating, and help to quiet what he callls "food noise". Dr Kessler says the drugs represent a genuine breakthrough- but he says they also come with downsides, and no progress will be made until we understand the addictive nature of certain foods.

10:35 Book review: Universality by Natasha Brown

Jack McConnell from Unity Books Auckland reviews Universality by Natasha Brown published by Faber

10:45 Around the motu: Jonathan Leask in Ashburton

Lake users want a review of the process that resulted in Lake Hood being closed, an intersection that had at least three crashes in three weeks has had a safety upgrade, and New Zealand's largest water rehab project secures expansion consent.

Jonathan Leask is a Local Democracy Reporter in Mid Canterbury from the Ashburton Guardian.

11:05 New music with Grant Smithies 

Anglo-French pop auteurs Stereolab release their first album of new material in 15 years next week. We’ll hear two key tracks from that today, followed by a raw demo from NZ/ Scottish collab Celery Pines and some superb Ethiopian/ Australian dancehall from Olana Janfa.

11:30 Sports commentator Sam Ackerman

Golfing majors, A-League playoffs, big decisions - it’s another busy time for New Zealand’s sporting codes. Sam Ackerman joins us to look at the leading talking points and what’s on over the weekend.

11:45 The week that was 

Our comedians Pinky Agnew and Elisabeth Easther look back on some of the funnier stories of the week just gone, including the Cannes Film Festival saying it will no longer tolerate nudity on the red carpet.