Fake guns, real consequences

Source: New Zealand Police Police are disappointed in a group’s actions after toy guns were brandished at members of the public at a night market last night. At around 10.40pm, Police received a report of youths pointing a firearm at a bus driver at Botany Town Centre. With the group believed to be in possession … Read more

Hospitality sector in support of alcohol restriction changes

Source: Radio New Zealand Lake Taupō 123rf The owner of a sailing club in Taupō says eased alcohol restrictions on public holidays will make the rules more straightforward. Legislation to ease alcohol restrictions over Easter, Anzac Day, and Christmas passed its third and final reading at Parliament on Wednesday. The bill amends the Sale and … Read more

Tsunami siren testing at Ōrewa on Sunday 5 April

Source: Auckland Council The bi-annual test of the two tsunami sirens at Ōrewa will take place on the last day of daylight saving on Sunday 5 April, 2026, at midday. Adam Maggs, General Manager of Auckland Emergency Management reassures Ōrewa locals that the siren sound they’ll hear on 5 April is a test and no … Read more

9,000 students faced unsafe drinking water at school last year

Source: Green Party The Green Party has released data showing 9000 students across more than 70 schools and pre-schools faced unsafe drinking water in 2025, with water breaching safe Drinking Water Standards at some point during the year.  “No child should face a health risk from the water coming out of a drinking fountain at their school. The data paints a troubling picture of the state of … Read more

Watch live: NZ, Cook Islands sign defence and security declaration

Source: Radio New Zealand New Zealand will resume about $29.8 million in annual funding to the Cook Islands as the two countries sign a defence and security declaration. Signed by New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, the declaration comes more than a year after Brown formally signed a … Read more

Watch live: Peters attends signing ceremony with Cook Islands PM

Source: Radio New Zealand The livestream is due to start around 8.15am NZT Foreign Minister Winston Peters is attending a signing ceremony with Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown. Peters’ one-day trip to Rarotonga is expected to mark friendlier relations between the two countries after an informal meeting in Auckland last month. Brown has been … Read more

Concern vaping study will drive people back to cigarettes

Source: Radio New Zealand A teenager vaping an e-cigarette. 123RF While vapes may cause cancer – as a recent Australian review of evidence concluded – they remain a far less dangerous vice than traditional cigarettes, a local anti-smoking lobby group says. Researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) looked at eight years of … Read more

Thousands of KiwiSaver members choose to cut contribution rates

Source: Radio New Zealand The KiwiSaver contribution rate lifted to 3.5 percent this week. RNZ / Quin Tauetau Just under 5700 people have had their KiwiSaver contribution rates reduced, meaning they will not be paying the new default rate of 3.5 percent. For pay processed on or after April 1, the default contribution rate has … Read more

NZ, allies express ‘deep concern’ about Israeli bill expanding death penalty for Palestinians

Source: Radio New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters. RNZ / Mark Papalii New Zealand has joined Australia, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom in expressing “deep concern” about an Israeli bill expanding the death penalty for Palestinians. Winston Peters posted on social media on Wednesday night, indicating New Zealand had joined the other nations, … Read more

Armed man allegedly sent manifesto to schools, govt promising to become NZ’s ‘most deadly mass shooter’

Source: Radio New Zealand An armed man sent a manifesto to schools, the police and the government promising to “kill everyone” (file photo). RNZ An armed man sent a manifesto to schools, the police and the government promising to “kill everyone” and become the country’s “most deadly mass shooter”, police allege. The man – who … Read more

Navy officer acquitted at court martial faced earlier complaint of unwanted touching

Source: Radio New Zealand Bronwyn Heslop RNZ / Lucy Xia A former Navy ship commander faced an earlier complaint of unwanted touching before she was acquitted at a court martial of inviting a junior officer to kiss her on the cheek. Bronwyn Heslop was the commander of HMNZS Canterbury when she was alleged to have … Read more

Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital finds home on Wellington’s Cuba Street

Source: Radio New Zealand Wellington’s new Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital has found a home in a building on upper Cuba Street. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Wellington’s new Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital has found a home in a building on upper Cuba Street in the central city. The Dorothy Spotswood Charity Hospital, for which the fit-out … Read more

Government corrects figure after call-out for overstating school attendance improvements

Source: Radio New Zealand (File photo) RNZ The government has corrected a figure after being called out for overstating improvements in school attendance. A member of the public complained to RNZ that two National Party advertisements claimed 150,000 more children attended school regularly in term four last year than at the same time in 2022. … Read more

Cotality says house prices might not rise this year, after all

Source: Radio New Zealand House prices might not rise this year after all, property data firm Cotality says. RNZ / Quin Tauetau House prices might not rise this year after all, property data firm Cotality says. It has released its latest data, which shows property values lifted 0.2 percent in March, after the same rise … Read more

Why retailers are hoping you don’t work from home

Source: Radio New Zealand RNZ Employers might be being encouraged to let people work from home if they are struggling with fuel costs, but not everyone hopes they heed the message. As fuel costs have risen in recent weeks, unions have called on organisations such as banks to be more flexible with staff wanting to … Read more

EV ‘fomo’ drives sales to their highest level in years amid fuel crisis, dealer says

Source: Radio New Zealand Salespeople were finding they had to “slow people down” in some cases, a dealer says. (File photo) Electric vehicle “fomo” (fear of missing out) has helped drive sales to their highest level in more than two years as the fuel crisis bites, an EV dealer says. Waka Kotahi data shows monthly … Read more

A ‘quiet’ Catholic revival? Christchurch says ‘yes’

Source: Radio New Zealand You might be wondering why someone with the name Helaman Hatcher is in a story about Catholicism. Helaman is a name from the Book of Mormon, a sacred text for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So, here’s the story: Hatcher, 21, was born into a Mormon family in … Read more

Contractors recall superhuman efforts to get stadium up to scratch after Christchurch quake

Source: Radio New Zealand [brightcove] https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6392317895112 After 14 years, the Crusaders are bidding adieu to their Addington home before packing their bags for Te Kaha. The team’s Super Rugby Pacific clash against the Fijian Drua on Good Friday marks their final game at Christchurch’s Apollo Projects Stadium. Home games will then be held at the … Read more

‘It’s not a diagnosis that you want’: Professor confronts inequities

Source: Radio New Zealand Jacquie Kidd (Ngāpuhi), a former nurse who has spent more than two decades researching Māori health inequities, is now facing her own terminal cancer diagnosis. The AUT professor of Māori health began experiencing symptoms in 2022 that she knew needed to be examined, but she was 58 – not the “magical … Read more

Tamihere court decision puts the case back at square one

Source: Radio New Zealand David Tamihere’s convictions for murdering Swedish tourists Heidi Paakkonen and Sven Urban Höglin have been quashed in a “remarkable decision” by the Supreme Court. NZ Herald / Jason Oxenham David Tamihere’s murder convictions have been quashed, after nearly four decades, re-opening wounds and calling into question whether justice has actually been … Read more

Government shuffles $122m of science funding to focus more on emerging technologies

Source: Radio New Zealand Science Minister Shane Reti. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The government is reallocating $122 million of existing spending on science, innovation and technology to focus more investment in emerging and advanced technologies, such as quantum technology, robotics and genomics. Science Minister Shane Reti said the policy change would help New Zealand take … Read more

Large sums lost in international money transfers

Source: Radio New Zealand A man in his 90s tried to transfer US$12,000 via an international money transfer service to his son’s overseas bank account, but one wrong number saw him lose it all. 3dart/123RF A financial services dispute service says it has dealt with two cases recently in which large sums of money have … Read more

Armed man sent manifesto to schools, government promising to become NZ’s ‘most deadly mass shooter’

Source: Radio New Zealand An armed man sent a manifesto to schools, the police and the government promising to “kill everyone” (file photo). RNZ An armed man sent a manifesto to schools, the police and the government promising to “kill everyone” and become the country’s “most deadly mass shooter”, police allege. The man – who … Read more

KiwiRail urged to implement automatic stops for trains that run red lights after near-miss

Source: Radio New Zealand A KiwiRail freight train (file photo). Katy Gosset/RNZ An investigation into a near miss after a train driver ran through multiple stop signals while using his mobile phone has exposed a nationwide issue, accident investigators say. A report released Thursday into the 2024 incident at Kereone, near Morrinsville, on the East … Read more

Easter weekend: What’s open, what’s not and when you have to pay a surcharge

Source: Radio New Zealand Some stores will be forced to close on certain days over Easter weekend. RNZ/Nick Monro It’s that time of year again – but before you unwrap the chocolate bunnies, be sure you’re aware of what Easter weekend holiday closures and shop hours will be. What will be open? Good Friday is … Read more