Two people missing as boat sinks in Bay of Islands

Source: Radio New Zealand FlightRadar24 A boat has sunk off the coast of the Bay of Islands, just north of Waitangi, and two people are missing. A spokesperson for Coastguard said a third person on board made their own way to shore. Volunteers from Bay of Islands Coastguard have been at the scene since 7am … Read more

Former National MP Chris Finlayson calls for ‘war’ on NZ First

Source: Radio New Zealand Chris Finlayson. RNZ / Mihingarangi Forbes A former high-ranking National Cabinet minister has doubts the coalition will last until the election, urging his former party to “extricate themselves from this grisly coalition and declare war on New Zealand First”. And Chris Finlayson has doubts the coalition, made up of National, NZ … Read more

Jeff Buckley doco humanises the man beyond the tortured myth

Source: Radio New Zealand “Proof that God exists,” enthused one review of Grace, the 1994 debut record from prodigious singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley, which David Bowie once called “the best album ever made”. Despite the rave reception to what is now widely regarded as a classic, Grace underperformed on the US charts. Sony and Columbia Records … Read more

NRL: NZ Warriors v Parramatta Eels – what you need to know

Source: Radio New Zealand Five-eighths Ronald Volkman and Chanel Harris-Tavita will face off, when Parramatta Eels host NZ Warriors. RNZ/Photosport NRL: NZ Warriors v Parramatta Eels 7.30pm Saturday, 2 May CommBank Stadium, Sydney Live blog updates on RNZ With a bye week looming near on the horizon, the NZ Warriors must beware the ‘banana skin’ … Read more

Super Rugby Pacific preview: David Havili’s 150th, Auckland rivalry loses spice

Source: Radio New Zealand The Hurricanes will host the Crusaders in the capital on Friday night. Photosport With Super Rugby Pacific competition energised by the success of ‘Super Round’, we head towards the business end of the season. The Hurricanes continue to set the pace and face a true test of their title credentials, when … Read more

Property prices rise – but for how long?

Source: Radio New Zealand 123rf Property values lifted slightly in April, says data firm Cotality, but any strength in the market will likely be challenged in the coming months. According to Cotality’s data, the national median value of $809,101 was 0.1 percent up in the month and 0.6 higher than in January, but still 16.8 … Read more

Build-to-rent apartments on the rise, as massive new complex opens in Auckland

Source: Radio New Zealand A massive new complex of 297 apartments is the latest build-to-rent development to be completed in Auckland. RNZ / Felix Walton A massive new complex of 297 apartments is the latest build-to-rent development to be completed in Auckland, and one of the country’s largest. Economists say the model is taking off … Read more

Sheep farmer Sophie Hurley breathing new life into vintage Hunterville motel

Source: Radio New Zealand Sophie Hurley’s taking her business Honest Wolf on a journey across the road, after buying the town’s vintage motel. RNZ/Carol Stiles A Turakina Valley farmer hopes to turn Hunterville into the shopfront of the North Island wool industry. Sophie Hurley says there’s plenty of life in the 1970s motel on the … Read more

‘As damaging as the Treaty Principles Bill’: Proposed changes to Treaty clauses revealed

Source: Radio New Zealand Te Herenga Waka law lecturer Dr Luke Fitzmaurice-Brown. Supplied Documents filed with the Waitangi Tribunal have revealed the proposed changes which would set government obligations to the Treaty to no higher standard than to simply “take into account” across nine Acts. Senior Lecturer in Law at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University … Read more

NRL: Storm reveal health concern for head coach Craig Bellamy

Source: Radio New Zealand Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy has his temperature checked, during the Covid-19 era. CREDIT: Photosport. PHOTOSPORT NRL club the Melbourne Storm have revealed head coach Craig Bellamy has been diagnosed with a form of neurodegenerative disorder. In a statement on its website, the Storm said Bellamy had been undergoing a series … Read more

Flood damage ‘real kick in the guts’ for rural Hawke’s Bay community

Source: Radio New Zealand A rural community in Central Hawke’s Bay is reeling, after flooding wiped out fencing, culverts, winter crops, roads and even animals. About 240 millimetres of rain fell in the area of Omakere and Kairakau in just 30 hours from early morning on Tuesday, 21 April, which locals say was worse than … Read more

Early morning house fire in Christchurch

Source: Radio New Zealand About eight firefighters put out the blaze. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Firefighters were called to a house on fire in Christchurch on Friday morning. Fire and Emergency said one person who reported the fire at about 4.20am was inside the one-storey home when it started, but they got out safely. About … Read more

Che Wilson apologises to Sikh community after controversial haka

Source: Radio New Zealand Former Te Pāti Māori president, Che Wilson. Supplied / Aukaha The Council of Sikh Affairs says it was pleasantly surprised by an apology from former Te Pāti Māori president Che Wilson for his involvement in a controversial haka. The haka was performed at the Tainui Regional Kapa Haka competition earlier this … Read more

Proposed gold mine will ruin Otago’s reputation for world’s best pinot noir – vineyard owner

Source: Radio New Zealand The seven-person fast-track panel, headed by Matthew Muir KC (centre). RNZ / Katie Todd An Otago vineyard-owner says a proposed gold mine in the Dunstan Hills could ruin the region’s reputation for the best pinot noir in the world, inflicting “terminal damage” on his business. Appearing before a fast-track panel considering … Read more

Worst March month for liquidations in 11 years

Source: Radio New Zealand Construction remained the leading industry for company liquidations. RNZ / Nate McKinnon More companies went into liquidation in March 2026 than in any other March since 2015, new data shows. Centrix’s latest update showed 3023 liquidations in the year to March. In the month, there were 286 company liquidations and 308 … Read more

Master Plumbers welcomes new lead-free tapware rules for the public health benefits

Source: Master Plumbers Gasfitters and Drainlayers New Zealanders can now have greater confidence that the tapware they buy is ‘lead-free’. From the end of today ( 1 May 2026), all new tapware installed in Kiwi homes must contain no more than 0.25% lead-legally defined as ‘lead-free’. The previous limit was 4.5%. Master Plumbers Chief Executive Greg Wallace … Read more

Edgy, raw: New Zealand musicians captured live in pictures

Source: Radio New Zealand Albert Street by Ezra Ruka taken on 23 January 2026 at Festival One, Hartford Farm, Karapiro. Shot for Festival OneEzra Ruka/FromThePit Coast Arcade November 2025 at Last Place, Hamilton.Brad Miller/FromThePit Delaney Davidson March 2025 at Q Theatre, Auckland.Dave Simpson/FromThePit Dragon August 2025 at The Biggest Pub Gig In The World, Spark … Read more

Teen killed in Whangārei’s Abbey Caves had concerns about trip, grieving mother says

Source: Radio New Zealand Brother Jordan and parents Alicia Toki and Andre Petera with a photo of Karnin “Tino” Petera outside the Whangārei courthouse. RNZ / Peter de Graaf A grieving Northland mother has told a Coroner’s inquest she hopes no other family has to suffer the pain of losing a child on a school … Read more

National insists coalition is stable, even as cracks begin to show

Source: Radio New Zealand RNZ / Composite image Analysis – National MPs say the coalition is stable, even as they criticise Foreign Minister Winston Peters for releasing emails without notifying the prime minister. It is the latest in a series of fractures between the coalition parties that have been slowly expanding into cracks. The question … Read more

Cancer Society calls on politicians for fully-funded cervical screening ahead of election

Source: Radio New Zealand Cervical cancer survivor Jen Jewell. RNZ / Kate Green Cervical cancer survivor Jen Jewell says she is one of the lucky ones – at least, if you can call anyone diagnosed with cancer “lucky”. Speaking to a packed room at Parliament on Thursday morning, at the launch of the Cancer Society’s … Read more

Union wants one employment agreement for polytechs despite dissolution of national institute

Source: Radio New Zealand Te Pūkenga only opened a new NorthTec campus at Ngāwhā, near Kaikohe, in 2023, but it’s now scaling back courses across the region as part of a de-merger. Peter de Graaf The Tertiary Education Union (TEU) is trying to retain a single collective agreement for all polytechnics despite the dissolution of … Read more

Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford to ask government for Mt Maunganui restoration funding

Source: Radio New Zealand Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford says he is going in to bat for his local community to get support from the central government on the repair and restoration of Mauao – which he says is iconic for all of New … Read more

State Highway 3 closure forces Taranaki patients into grueling post-op road trips

Source: Radio New Zealand State Highway 3. Supplied/NZTA Taranaki patients requiring surgery at Waikato Hospital have been facing gruelling road trips home due to the closure of State Highway 3. A massive slip closed the Awakino Gorge on SH3 on 18 April. It was scheduled to reopen on Saturday 2 May to single-lane escorted traffic. … Read more

Sanya Asian Beach Games Conclude, Showcasing China’s Openness and Asian Unity On and Off the Field

Source: Media Outreach SANYA, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 30 April 2026 – The ninth day of competition marked the conclusion of the sixth Asian Beach Games in Sanya, bringing the multi-sport event to a close. Gathering over 1,600 athletes from 45 countries and regions across Asia, the Games not only delivered high-level competition … Read more