Ombudsman publishes findings on Ministry of Education sensitive claims scheme

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Source: Office of the Ombudsman The Ombudsman has found that parts of the Ministry of Education’s scheme to assess sensitive claims are unreasonable for people who were abused or neglected in some state schools. John Allen’s findings follow a complaint by Cooper Legal in 2023. Mr Allen acknowledges the enormity and complexity of the task faced … Read more

Northland News – Free BusLink travel for ages 5-24 during Youth Week

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Source: Northland Regional Council Northland Regional Council’s BusLink services are pleased to announce increased support for Youth Week, running from 18-23 May 2026. To mark Youth Week 2026, BusLink will extend its usual free travel offer, with free bus services available to all young people aged 5-24 across the entire BusLink network for the week. All … Read more

Politics – A new political party has formed to combat New Zealand’s ongoing complicity in crimes against the people of Palestine

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Source: PFFRS Party (Palestine Free From the River to the Sea Party) A political party named “Palestine Free From the River to the Sea” has been formed to contest the upcoming general election. The party explicitly supports a single democratic state with equal rights for all from the river to the sea in the historic … Read more

West Auckland foodbank demand at highest ever levels

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Source: Radio New Zealand A West Auckland foodbank is giving out more than 200 food parcels a month. File picture. RNZ / Simon Rogers A West Auckland foodbank says demand for its services has reached its highest-ever levels. Waitakere Community Outreach foodbank coordinator Victor Davies, who has been running food banks for 26 years, told … Read more

Research – Shock survey result – one in four public service workers thinking of leaving NZ – PSA

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Source: PSA Govt attacks on workers taking toll Key findings from PSA survey: – 27% of public service workers are thinking of leaving NZ for better pay – Nearly half (49%) of workers under 25 are considering leaving – rising to 44% for those aged 25-34 – Health sector and public service department workers most likely to be looking … Read more

NGOs – Every day life in Gaza – new ChildFund film

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Source: ChildFund New Zealand A new short film that follows families living in Gaza, and supported by New Zealand donations, has won a prestigious film award in Italy. ‘Everyday in Gaza’ was filmed in the Gaza Strip in spring 2025, and tells the story of families determined to keep things as normal as possible in one … Read more

New survey: privacy concerns are no longer niche worries

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Source: Privacy Commissioner 11 May 2026, 09:00 Issues like AI decision-making, facial recognition, and children’s digital lives are now firmly mainstream concerns, rather than niche ones, according to the latest privacy survey.  “The increasing use of technology is leading more New Zealanders to ask questions about the amount of personal information being collected about them, … Read more

2026 annual survey on privacy

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Source: Privacy Commissioner 11 May 2026, 09:00 Read the 2026 survey, ‘Research on Privacy Concerns and use of personal information‘ (opens to PDF, 2.4MB). Issues like AI decision-making, facial recognition, and children’s digital lives are now firmly mainstream concerns rather than niche ones, according to the latest privacy survey.  The increasing use of technology is … Read more

Using Hawke’s Bay’s rivers to unlock the mysteries of marine carbon storage

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Source: Radio New Zealand Marine biogeochemist Cliff Law is leading Earth Sciences New Zealand’s five-year research project into naturally-occurring marine carbon dioxide removal. ESNZ / Karl Safi Major research to test whether lowering the ocean’s acidity could help to fight climate change will get underway in Hawke’s Bay on Tuesday. Over the next three weeks, … Read more

Netball: Defending champion Tactix go level top with tight win over Stars

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Source: Radio New Zealand (L-R) Assistant coach Te Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit, Laura Balmer and Ash Barnett celebrate victory over the Stars. Photosport It’s a South Island one-two at the midway point of netball’s ANZ Premiership after the Tactix held out the Stars 52-50 in the closest finish of the season after five rounds. The defending … Read more

Fees-free university scheme ‘didn’t achieve any goals’, Christopher Luxon says

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Source: Radio New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. (File photo) RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The fees-free university scheme did not achieve any of its goals, the Prime Minister says, and it is better to direct funding elsewhere. The scheme had given university students their final year of study free, but Winston Peters [ last week … Read more

Tim Price surges to second at Badminton Horse Trials

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Source: Radio New Zealand Tim Price clears a cross country fence, riding Falco. Photosport New Zealand three-day eventer Tim Price has recorded his best result at the Badminton Horse Trials, finishing second riding Falco. Price and Falco climbed through the field at the famed five-star event, having found themselves 10th after dressage phase and fifth … Read more

Record-breaking $161,000 bull worth every cent, owner says

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Source: Radio New Zealand The hammer fell at $161,000 for Tangihau U418 at last year’s East Coast bull sales setting a national price record. supplied The buyer of a record-breaking bull says it’s delivering strong returns nearly a year after a landmark purchase. Last June Wairarapa farmer Keith Higgins paid $161,000 for an Angus bull … Read more

Mother’s Day can be painful for some, psychologist says

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Source: Radio New Zealand Auckland psychologist David Stebbing said there were a number of resources available for those in need of support. Unsplash / Brooke Cagle An Auckland psychologist says holidays like Mother’s Day can be painful reminders of loss. While many will be celebrating Mother’s Day, other’s will be mourning those mums who are … Read more

White Ferns lose tense ODI opener to England by one wicket

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Source: Radio New Zealand White Ferns bowler Rosemary Mair. Photosport The White Ferns let victory slip through their grasp in a tense one-wicket loss to England in Durham to kick-start their three-match ODI series. The hosts crawled to 211 for nine in the 49th over, surviving a key dropped chance late in the chase and … Read more

Wellington Phoenix women win hearts and minds while achieving club first

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Source: Radio New Zealand The Phoenix celebrate. Marty Melville / www.photosport.nz The Wellington Phoenix women made history on Sunday when they won a place in the club’s first A-league grand-final; they also won the hearts and minds of a legion of new fans. In front of record home crowd, the Phoenix women won the second … Read more

Christchurch Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to be expanded

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Source: Radio New Zealand When Rebecca Fitzgerald’s twin boys were born three months premature she endured a heart-breaking separation from her tiny babies. Her son Louie needed treatment at Christchurch Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) but there was no room for Ollie, who had to be treated in Dunedin, where they were born. Fitzgerald … Read more

FENZ turns down request to help US urban search and rescue teams

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Source: Radio New Zealand Emails seen by RNZ showed FENZ turned down the US State Department in March. RNZ/Marika Khabazi Fire and Emergency has turned down a request to help one of the United States’ top two urban search and rescue teams. The USA-02 team in Los Angeles county wanted a specific expert to mentor … Read more

Buses refusing to take child not acceptable, Children’s Commissioner says

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Source: Radio New Zealand The Children’s Commissioner says it’s not right what happened to the student. Duoya Lu The Children’s Commissioner says it is unacceptable a young student was denied boarding buses to school after she mistakenly left her wallet at home. The schoolgirl’s plight was highlighted last week by the girl’s grandmother who said … Read more

How OECD’s tax change could give you more money in KiwiSaver

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Source: Radio New Zealand RNZ / REECE BAKER A 25-year-old earning an average income could end up about $90,000 better off over the course of their working life if reforms suggested by the OECD for the retirement savings system were implemented. But not everyone is convinced it’s the right way forward. The OECD’s latest economic … Read more

First-ever stone skimming national championship to take place this month

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Source: Radio New Zealand File photo. The stone skimming competition will take place at Lake Hāwea. Harrison Fitts / Pexels New Zealand’s best stone skimmers will have the chance to show off their talents on the shores of Wānaka’s Lake Hāwea on Saturday. Organiser of the Aotearoa Stone Skimming Championship, Richie Laming, told First Up … Read more

How to ask for a pay rise

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Source: Radio New Zealand Asking for more money can feel daunting — two in three workers told recruitment website SEEK they don’t feel confident doing it. Yet fewer than half of New Zealanders are happy with their current salary, and more than 45 percent say they’ve never asked for a raise, according to SEEK’s survey … Read more

Ten hours of mahi a week – can you handle off-grid life?

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Source: Radio New Zealand When the owner of a Mākara lifestyle block just 30 minutes from Wellington’s CBD, moved there in 2009, everyone doubted he could live off the land.  “When we arrived to the place, people told me ‘you cannot grow vegetables in Wellington and fruits’,” owner Eran Benn says.   But Benn made something … Read more

Letter reveals ex-Police Commissioner’s concerns over investigation into McSkimming

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Source: Radio New Zealand Former Police Commissioner Andrew Coster. RNZ / REECE BAKER Former Police Commissioner Andrew Coster told the chair of the police watchdog that a woman who was accusing Jevon McSkimming of sexual offending had “effectively acknowledged her desire to ruin his career”. In the letter, obtained by RNZ, Coster said the disgraced … Read more

Friend tried to save rafting companion trapped in water

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Source: Radio New Zealand The Mohaka River in Hawke’s Bay. 123RF Volunteer fire-fighter Alex Scarrow died days before Christmas rafting the Mohaka River with friends A Coroner says it was misadventure and has put forward recommendations for a new safety code for recreational rafting They were told the rafting trip turned fatal because a knife … Read more