Nine To Noon

09:05 New Zealand pauses funding to Cook Islands

Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced New Zealand will pause funding to the Cook Islands, following a deal signed between the Cook Islands signed with China. It comes on the eve of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's meeting with Chinese President Xi. In a statement, Mr Peters says funding for the Cook Islands will not resume until the island nation "take concrete steps to repair the relationship and restore trust". RNZ Pacific's Caleb Fotheringham discusses the development with Kathryn.

09:20 Providers say it's time to rethink alternate education 

The founder of one of the country's longest-running alternative education organisations, is urging a re-think on how the sector is viewed, and the students that come through its doors. Over the past fifteen years, approximately 23,000 young people have gone through alternative education (AE) programmes. These are programmes that sit outside mainstream schools, aim to provide young people with a quality education and to support them into education, training, or work. Lloyd Martin, who founded provider Praxis in the 1990s recently completed research into the experiences and perceptions of young people in AE. He says the programmes, which run off of a fraction of the funding that mainstream schools get, are a lifeline. Meanwhile, on Auckland's North Shore, Cameron Fisher is running a pilot programme for pupils too young for AE programmes. He explains why it's working. 

09:35 Farmers, vets say product approval too slow

Farmers' representatives are worried that plans to speed up access to new agri-chemicals won't be fast enough to compete on the world stage. Those concerns over pace of reform are shared by vets wanting to use new medicines. The Ministers for the Environment and Food Safety have set targets to reduce the queues to approve new agricultural and horticultural products and veterinary medicines. Regulation Minister David Seymour says the changes will speed up the application process. Kathryn discusses the change with David Birkett, Federated Farmers arable industry spokesperson and Kevin Bryant, CEO of the Veterinary Association.

09:45 UK weighs Iran response, grooming gang U-turn, heatwave

UK correspondent Matt Dathan joins Kathryn to talk about where the UK stands in the Iran-Israel conflict and how it may respond if the US decides to get involved. The Prime Minister has made a U-turn on a national inquiry into grooming gangs that's rocked up to 50 towns in the UK. More than 2200 people arrived in Britain this week on small boats, as a French law allowing the interception of boats up to 300m from the coast is due to take effect. And parts of the UK hit 29 degrees this week.

10:05 Equine therapy: Anna Baigent's rehabilitation journey 

 After surviving a traumatic brain injury as a teenager, Anna Baigent and her mum Maria turned to horses as a source of healing. What began as personal therapy and recovery has grown into AnnaRehab: an equine therapy centre based in rural Miranda - in Thames - that's quietly transforming lives of local tamariki. Anna - now in her twenties and living with permanent brain injury works with local kids who are struggling with anxiety, trauma and behavioural challenges. To do this she retrains retired racehorses to become therapy animals, which gives them a second lease of life. Anna and Maria speak with Kathryn from their farm in Miranda. 

10:30 Political editor Jo Moir on Cook Islands funding latest

It's emerged this morning that New Zealand is pausing its funding to the Cook Islands in the wake of a controversial deal signed between China and the Cook Islands. Speaking to reporters in the last hour, the Foreign Minister Winston Peters said the 2001 Joint Centenary Declaration between the two nations required them to consult regularly on security and defence and this had not been lived up to. He said "We have made it very clear in our response to statements that were being made which we do not think laid out the facts and truth behind this matter, of what New Zealand's position is, on behalf of the Cook Islands people who we have responsibilities to, and above all to the New Zealand taxpayers to whom we are answerable." The news has broken  on the eve of Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his current visit to China. But it's become clear the Cook Island's government has known about this for several weeks For latest we're joined by RNZ's political editor, Jo Moir.

10:35 Breakthrough for diagnosing Parkinson's disease 

Brain scientists have made a breakthrough that could help diagnose Parkinson's disease and multiple system atrophy - also referred to as MSA - much earlier. The two diseases are often mistaken for one another in the early stages, which can lead to MSA patients being given the Parkinson's drug, which not only fails to help, but can worsen symptoms in some cases. But researchers at the University of Auckland's Centre for Brain Research - Dr Victor Dieriks and Dr James Wiseman - alongside University of Sydney Professor Glenda Halliday have discovered distinct differences in a brain tissue protein - that lets them tell the difference between the two diseases. The protein clumps differently in the brains of people with Parkinson's and MSA, and the levels in MSA are far higher. Their discovery could pave the way for a simple, non-invasive test, such as a nasal swab, blood test, or urine sample, to reliably tell the two conditions apart. Dr Victor Dieriks and Dr James Wiseman discuss.

10:40 Book review: The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest by Aubrey Hartman 

Roger Christensen of Little Unity Books Auckland reviews The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest by Aubrey Hartman published by Walker Books

10:45 Around the motu: Diane McCarthy in Whakatāne

Tourism operators are at war with the Whakatāne council over tourism funding cuts, Kawerau District Council are discussing changes in gambling policies after the reveal of Te Whatu Ora's figures, residents are asking for improvements to the Keepa Road cycle path and walkway, and Whakatāne residents are not rushing to sign a petition to Parliament for a second bridge.

Diane McCarthy is an Eastern Bay of Plenty Local Democracy Reporter with the Whakatāne Beacon 

11:05 Tech: One NZ, latest cybercrime numbers, Australia toughens ransomware rules

Tech correspondent Tony Grasso details Tuesday's One NZ outage and how it was handled - does it indicate a vulnerability that could be exploited? The National Cyber Security Centre has reported an increase in financial losses for the first three months of the year - the second-highest quarterly loss ever recorded. And Australia has moved to introduce mandatory reporting of ransomware attacks - should New Zealand do the same?

Tony Grasso is Principal Consultant at cybersecurity firm TitaniumDefence. He worked at GCHQ in the UK and is a former Intelligence Officer in New Zealand.

11:25 Parenting: How to talk to children about death 

Whether it is a close family member someone they don't personally know like a famous person who has died, children experience death and parents will be asked about it. But what is the right thing to say, especially at a time when a parent is often going through their own grief? Benjamin Jensen is a grief counsellor at Skylight Trust - an organisation that helps families dealing with grief. 

11:45 Screentime: Materialists, DocEdge film fest, The Gilded Age

Film and television reviewer James Croot joins Kathryn to talk about director Celine Song's latest film, Materialists, which is a US romance set among the backdrop of New York's luxury-driven dating culture and features the classic love triangle. James will also look at the third season of The Gilded Age and what's on offer at this year's Doc Edge Film Fest.

James Croot is film and television reviewer for Stuff