Auckland dog owners take fight against off-leash ban to court

Source: Radio New Zealand Last year, the Puketāpapa Local Board voted to ban dogs from running free in part of Hillsborough’s Monte Cecilia Park. RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly The lawyers involved in a scrap between dog owners and the Auckland Council have been urged to settle their issues out of court. Last year, the Puketāpapa … Read more

Taranaki cyclist crashes off bike after loose dog bites her leg

Source: Radio New Zealand The cyclist was travelling at about 40km/h when the dog attacked. File photo. 123rf.com A Taranaki cyclist is on crutches with several “bone deep” puncture wounds after a roaming dog latched onto her leg. The attack sent the New Plymouth woman crashing off her bike while she was out on a … Read more

Canterbury Museum pleads for millions of dollars after another budget blow-out

Source: Radio New Zealand Canterbury Museum’s redevelopment had an original budget of $205 million, which has now been pushed out to almost $262 million. Supplied/Canterbury Museum Canterbury Museum is pleading for councils and central government to stump up an extra $64 million for its cost-plagued redevelopment following another budget blow-out. The project had an original … Read more

New Zealanders’ dismal savings balances revealed

Source: Radio New Zealand 123rf A third of New Zealanders have savings of less than $500, Westpac says, with Auckland and Northland lagging the rest of the country. Westpac has released new data that shows Canterbury and Otago are top of the savings stakes – in both regions 28 percent of Westpac customers are making … Read more

Update: second arrest in Hastings homicide

Source: New Zealand Police Please attribute to Acting Detective Senior Sergeant Darren Pritchard: Police investigating the murder of Flaxmere man Keith Pati on 16 February 2025, have made another arrest in relation to the incident. A search warrant was carried out today in Napier and a 35-year-old woman was arrested. She will appear in the … Read more

Waitaki council rejoins Southern Waters partnership

Source: Radio New Zealand Ratepayers are being warned of massive rates rises ahead, no matter what plan is implemented. RNZ Waitaki District Council is rejoining the Southern Waters partnership it ditched last year. The council has announced it will team up with Central Otago, Clutha and Gore district councils to deliver drinking water, wastewater and … Read more

Fatal Crash: SH2, Mangatāwhiri

Source: New Zealand Police Police can confirm one person has died following a serious crash on State Highway 2 near Mangatāwhiri. Emergency services were called to a crash involving a truck and car at around 11.10am. Sadly, the driver of the car died at the scene. The truck driver suffered moderate injuries and was transported … Read more

Farmers being cautious with profits

Source: Radio New Zealand 123rf While many farmers are riding a wave of strong farm-gate prices, the profits are only trickling into regional economies as they’re being cautious when it comes to spending. Waikato Chamber of Commerce chief executive Don Good said farmers are using their profits to service debt and pay for upgrades and … Read more

Bamboo: beloved backyard feature or Auckland’s quiet green invader?

Source: Auckland Council Bamboo has a reputation problem. To some Aucklanders it’s a design darling – sleek, fast-growing and perfect for privacy. To others, it’s the plant that ate the fence, cracked the driveway and popped up next door without permission. Originally from South America and Asia, bamboo is one of the most extraordinary plants … Read more

Te Ngāherehere o Kohukohunui / Hūnua Ranges pest control delivers outstanding gains for native wildlife

Source: Auckland Council Auckland’s Te Ngāherehere o Kohukohunui / Hūnua Ranges are thriving, with new monitoring results confirming a dramatic reduction in possum and rat numbers while delivering ideal conditions for native wildlife to flourish. Results from Auckland Council’s 2025 Hūnua aerial pest control operation, funded by the Natural Environment Targeted Rate, show possum numbers … Read more

A forest on the brink of recovery: Kawau Island poised for a pest-free comeback

Source: Auckland Council Te Kawau Tūmaro ō Tōi / Kawau Island’s forests are showing strong signs they can recover – when long-standing pressures from introduced mammalian pests are removed. A new baseline forest monitoring report, prepared ahead of a major pest eradication programme, paints a clear picture of both the damage done by browsing animals … Read more

Greenpeace – Seabed miners ‘trespassed’ from Taranaki waters, after Fast Track withdrawal

Source: Greenpeace Iwi representatives from Taranaki have delivered a ‘trespass’ notice to seabed miners in Sydney today, warning the company against pursuing any future plans to pillage the seabed in Aotearoa. Hand delivered by Rukutai Watene of Ngāti Ruanui, alongside Greenpeace Aotearoa, the notice was served peacefully at the headquarters of Manuka Resources – parent company … Read more

Environment – EPA approves biological control agent to combat invasive Chilean flame creeper

Source: Environmental Protection Authority The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has approved the release of a leaf-feeding beetle (Blaptea elguetai) as a biological control agent to combat Chilean flame creeper (Tropaeolum speciosum), an invasive weed in Aotearoa New Zealand. Chilean flame creeper is an invasive pest plant that spreads quickly and smothers native plants. It is now … Read more

Health – GP pharmacist led support strengthens patient care and clinical confidence

Source: ProCare In four months’ time, essential funding that is helping improve patient outcomes and freeing up GP time is set to end, despite outstanding results. ProCare has been supporting practices to integrate pharmacists, emergency care paramedics, physiotherapists, and care-coordinators into practices, through the Comprehensive Primary and Community Care Team (CPCT) initiative. Grey Lynn Family … Read more

Ukrainian children endure four years of war – longer than World War II – ChildFund NZ

Source: ChildFund New Zealand Tomorrow will mark four years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. “That’s longer than the duration of their war against the Nazis,” says Josie Pagani, CEO of ChildFund New Zealand. “Charities like ChildFund have remained working in the country and the region since the start, through our local partners. We could not … Read more

Events – Swim with sharks in new live family theatre experience at Auckland Museum

Source: Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum Swimming with Sharks is coming to Tāmaki Paenga Hira Auckland War Memorial Museum for a limited season across March and the April school holidays. Created in collaboration with internationally renowned puppet theatre company Erth, Swimming with Sharks is an immersive live theatre experience that allows visitors to … Read more

‘We can’t keep telling people just to stay away from the beach’ – Wellington mayor

Source: Radio New Zealand A rāhui is in place on the southern coast from Ōwhiro Bay to Breaker Bay, which covers anything the water touches or can touch with the high or low tides. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone The Wellington mayor says the current blanket direction for people to stay off all south coast beaches … Read more

Two measles cases detected, linked to overseas travel

Source: Radio New Zealand AFP / Science Photo Library Two new cases of measles have been detected and both have been linked to international travel. Health New Zealand said locations of interest include Auckland International Airport and Waitākere Hospital’s emergency department. Health officials are attempting to contact people on flight SQ281 from Singapore. Medical Officer … Read more

Arataki Project Fast-tracked in Hawke’s Bay

Source: New Zealand Government A new residential development is set to deliver more homes and an economic boost for Hawke’s Bay following the Fast-track approval of the Arataki subdivision in Havelock North says Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop.  CDL Land NZ Limited lodged its application in July 2025 to provide up to 200 new homes across … Read more

New Pharmac proposal for melanoma patients

Source: New Zealand Government Associate Health Minister David Seymour and Health Minister Simeon Brown welcome Pharmac’s proposal to widen access to two medicines for people with stage 3B to stage 4 melanoma. “Improving access to cancer medication in New Zealand is important to cancer patients, and their families. That’s why it has been a focus … Read more

Report on under-pressure Waikato wetland delivers clear message

Source: NZ Department of Conservation Date:  24 February 2026 The wetland spans 7,000 hectares of swamps, fens and peat bogs and is one of New Zealand’s seven sites recognised globally for its ecological significance under the international Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. Under the Convention, Ramsar Sites must be continually monitored. New Zealand is required to notify … Read more

Feathered freeloader turns island shed into a nursery

Source: Auckland Council A Kawau Island resident recently discovered they had an unexpected, feathered houseguest and he wasn’t paying rent. Tucked into the corner of a humble garden shed, a determined North Island brown kiwi had dragged together an eclectic collection of plastic, paper and whatever else he could shuffle into place to fashion a … Read more

Three critical safety failures that led to worker losing fingers

Source: Worksafe New Zealand 24 February 2026 A worker’s life-changing injuries at a commercial bakery have exposed fundamental safety failures that WorkSafe says are far too common across New Zealand workplaces. The worker’s hand was pulled into machine rollers at French Bakery in Christchurch in April 2023. His index finger was amputated, thumb partially amputated, … Read more

Terror threat level to New Zealand assessed as ‘possible’ after language overhaul

Source: Radio New Zealand NZSIS Director General Andrew Hampton. VNP/Louis Collins The terror threat level to New Zealand has not changed – but the language used to describe it has. Following a review by the Combined Threat Assessment Group (an inter-agency group led by the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service), the threat level has been … Read more

Science, Maths and English resources rolling into classrooms

Source: New Zealand Government The Government is rolling out new Maths, English, and Science resources and initiatives, helping raise student achievement and sparking discovery in primary classrooms with brand-new science kits, Education Minister Erica Stanford announced. “We’re committed to helping young people who are behind to accelerate and to ensuring they have the foundations to … Read more

Pharmac proposes to widen access to two medicines for people with melanoma

Source: PHARMAC Pharmac is proposing to widen access to two medicines used to treat melanoma, giving people another funded immunotherapy option that can help lower the chance of the cancer coming back. The proposal would allow people with stage 3B to stage 4 melanoma, that can be removed with surgery, to receive nivolumab in combination … Read more

Patient data changed as major NZ health app MediMap hacked

Source: Radio New Zealand An apparent hack of medication platform MediMap has led to some alive patients being marked as deceased, and others labelled as ‘Charlie Kirk’. SCREENSHOT A digital medical records data company has been taken offline after some patient records were modified. MediMap is used by some health providers in aged care, disability, … Read more