Nine To Noon for Monday 20 October 2025

09:05 Lawyers seek urgent action over data-storage risks 

Lawyers have written to the Prime Minister saying the country's reliance on cloud computing and storage will result in catastrophic and unrecoverable risks of harm. The Law Association's Technology Committee says cyber and data breaches are not a matter of if, but when, and is urging parliament to make a number of changes in an attempt to mitigate this risk. The letter - sent earlier this month - explains that over reliance on concentrated cloud and digital infrastructures creates centralised vulnerabilities with far-reaching cascading consequences when targeted by cyber-attacks.  Businesses cannot function without cloud services, yet face effectively uninsurable and unrecoverable risks arising from providers' platforms and systems. It is asking the Government undertake a select committee inquiry, and has made a number of suggestions that could be implemented. These include amendments to the Fair Trading Act, a compensation scheme for those affected, and giving the National Cyber Security Centre greater powers. The head of the Technology Committee is Lloyd Gallagher. Kathryn also speaks with Paul Seiler, chief executive of cloud computing firm Catalyst Cloud.

09:20 Call for miscarriages to be recorded in official data    

One third of women in New Zealand are estimated to have experienced at least one miscarriage and the chance of losing a baby increases with age. But a charity supporting those who miscarry says these natural, but for many devastating events, are not getting recorded in a way that would provide national data. There are 20 Maternal Clinical Indicators that record details such as a birth is by cesarean section. But Miscarriage Matters says the lack of national records over miscarriage means it isn't possible to spot patterns or  gain understanding of possible causes. Kathryn speaks to the chairperson of Miscarriage Matters Aleisha Black.

 For health emergencies, contact Whakarongorau (Healthline) on 0800 745 477. If you wish to speak with someone about what you are going through 1737 is a national, free text/phone line for mental health support 

09:35 Engineer calls for greater use of wastewater heat

A Christchurch engineer says councils and the Government are not making the most of wastewater heat as a cheap and readily available energy source. A 2023 KPMG report done for the UK's largest wastewater company, Thames Water, found there was enough heat in wastewater to cover heating and hot water for 1 million homes - 20 per cent of London's total domestic demand. It works by using a heat exchanger to capture the warmth that builds up in wastewater pipes from homes and buildings, transferring it back through a heat pump to warm water or heat a home.. A wastewater heat recycling system catches the heat from wastewater pipes and recycles it with heatpumps for large buildings like hospitals, schools and swimming pools. Nick Meeten, through his Applied Energy company, says modelling shows captured wastewater heat could cover 30-per cent of a home's energy needs. 

09:45 Foreign correspondent Seamus Kearney in Europe 

Precious gems stolen in daylight robbery at Louvre museum in Paris, Former French president Sarkozy to start five-year jail sentence, Could Putin be arrested if he enters Hungary to meet Trump? And Portuguese parliament approves ban on face veils.

10:05 What is pain and how does it work?

One in five adult New Zealanders have lived with chronic pain at various levels, with women, Māori and those living in areas of high deprivation at higher risk, according to the most recent New Zealand Health Survey. Professor Lorimer Moseley is professor of clinical neuroscience and chair in physiotherapy at the University of South Australia. His investigations into human pain stemmed from a comment made by his neurology professor one day, that the worst injuries are often the least painful. So he set out to study both short-term and chronic, long-term pain, with many of the treatments he devised considered best practice internationally. Professor Lorimer Moseley joins Kathryn to talk about the world of pain.

10:30 Airbrushed visa photos causing Immigration NZ headaches

Immigration New Zealand is dealing with a growing problem with people applying for visas, with photographs that have been filtered and airbrushed. The department last week was forced to take to social media reminding people that photos must show your true face - not your "enchanted, AI-edited, or fairy godmother-filtered" version. The department receives and assesses about one million applications a year. Richard Owen is Risk and Border general manager at Immigration New Zealand.

10:35 Book review: The Vanishing Place by Zoë Rankin

Holly Walker reviews The Vanishing Place by Zoë Rankin, published by Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand.

10:45 Around the motu: Torika Tokalau Stuff's Local Democracy  report for Auckland

Torika reports on the new faces on the Auckland council, the latest on the fortnightly rubbish collections, the woman who stepped in to protect a teenager being attacked and almost half of Auckland's special votes thrown out.

11:05 Political commentators Ben Thomas and Andrew Kirton 

Ben Thomas is a former National government press secretary, a columnist and a director of public affairs firm Capital.

Andrew Kirton was a speech writer to former Prime Minister Helen Clark, the Labour Party general secretary, and was the party's campaign manager for the 2017 general election. After working with Christopher Luxon at Air New Zealand, he returned to the Beehive in 2023 as chief of staff to Prime Minister Chris Hipkins. He is now director at corporate affairs firm Richmond Bartley and is married to a current Labour MP.

11:30 How to become an epic fruit grower at home

Kath Irvine and Jason Ross know a thing or two about growing their own fruit. Kath is an organic gardener who has been teaching food growing for 25 years and Jason runs an Otago nursery and specialises in heritage fruit trees and edible landscape design. The duo have written a new book, Homegrown Fruit: A Practical Guide, which is a comprehensive, fruit growing manual which brimming with advice to help readers on their own growing journey. Kath and Jason speak to Kathryn Ryan. Text 2101 with any questions. 

11:45 Off the beaten track with Kennedy Warne

Kennedy reflects on the 50th anniversary of the Waitangi Tribunal with a focus on the documentary Karanga Rā. The documentary consists mostly of interviews about the tribunal's work.