Source: New Zealand Police (National News)
Police are now in a position to release the name of the person who died after a car collided with a shared cycle in Martinborough on 13 February.
She was 48-year-old Alison Robyn Korny, from Cheshire, England.
Our thoughts remain with her friends and family at this incredibly difficult time.
Enquiries into the circumstances of the crash remain ongoing.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre
Source: Media Outreach
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 3 March 2025 – Chubb Limited (NYSE: CB) today announced agreements to acquire the insurance businesses of Liberty Mutual in Thailand and Vietnam. The terms were not disclosed.
The two companies — LMG Insurance in Thailand and Liberty Insurance in Vietnam —offer a range of consumer and commercial P&C products, including Automotive, Accident & Health and Non-Motor insurance such as fire/property and industrial all-risk. This portfolio is coupled with complementary distribution through 56 branches, 2,600 brokers and agents, and 26 finance partners. The combined operations produced approximately $275 million in net premiums written in 2024.
The transactions are expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2025 (Thailand) and late 2025 / early 2026 (Vietnam) and are subject to required regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Hashtag: #Chubb
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.
Source: New Zealand Police (District News)
Please attribute to Acting Counties Manukau District Commander, Inspector Jared Pirret:
A man has been charged following a serious crash that left a member of the public injured near Pōkeno on Saturday.
The crash occurred at about 3pm on State Highway 2, when the fleeing driver attempted to avoid road spikes that had been laid across the road and swerved directly into the path of the oncoming car.
The driver of that car initially suffered critical injuries, and now remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition.
The fleeing driver also suffered injuries and was transported to hospital.
The 42-year-old man appeared in Auckland District Court today charged with dangerous driving causing injury and driving while disqualified.
We would like to acknowledge the impact this incident had on those involved.
We are providing support to everyone affected and there are now several investigations underway, including a critical incident investigation and a policy, practice, and procedure investigation.
As is standard procedure, the Independent Police Conduct Authority has also been notified.
ENDS.
Holly McKay/NZ Police
Source: New Zealand Police (District News)
Police have arrested four people following an aggravated robbery in Ōrākei this morning.
Just before 9am, a group of offenders entered a dairy on Kepa Road.
Detective Senior Sergeant Martin Friend, of Auckland City Crime Squad, says the group ran into the store armed with a machete and two hammers making threats towards the attendant working.
“The attendant was chased out of the store,” he says.
“These offenders have taken the store’s cash register as well as other products from the store.
“Following this, the group fled in a stolen vehicle.”
Police were conducting enquiries in the nearby area, when suspicious activity reports were made by local residents.
“A group of offenders were seen abandoning a vehicle and stealing a small van, and this detail was relayed to Police.”
The van was later sighted in the Panmure area, when it fled from staff from an address.
Police did not pursue the vehicle, but the Police Eagle helicopter had deployed and took over monitoring the van.
“It was observed by Eagle travelling at speed south towards Weymouth,” Detective Senior Sergeant Friend says.
“Eagle has observed the van drop off various occupants at different locations around the area.
“Ground staff have since located all of those occupants, who are young people.
“The driver eventually stopped the van in the Clendon Park and was arrested by Police.”
Detective Senior Sergeant Friend says Police have since recovered the cash register and some items stolen this morning.
Those arrested this morning were aged between 12 and 17. Charges are still to be confirmed.
ENDS.
Jarred Williamson/NZ Police
Source: Auckland Council
Imagine it’s 2030. The St James Theatre has opened its doors again.
You’ve just seen Six60 play on the newly restored stage inside the amphitheatre, or heard Sol3Mio soar at great heights through the harmonies of the Pearl Fishers opera duet.
And you step out into the street.
There are plants and trees lining both sides of Queen Street – mature and lush-green. Footpaths are generously wide and the Waihorotiu path has become a gentle lane of riders who give priority to pedestrians. Shoppers have right of way.
You’re thinking about which travel option you’ll choose to get home. And there are many.
Render of Te Hā Noa, Victoria Street – under construction.
Will you stroll to your apartment a short distance away? Will you cross Queen Street to the Wellesley Street bus interchange and catch a bus – now smoothly funnelling people to all parts of the region?
Will you catch a train at Te Waihorotiu Station? The City Rail Link – Auckland’s new underground train system – has been operating for a few years and is already a hit with Aucklanders of all ages.
Will you grab an e-scooter and ride the Waihorotiu path to catch a ferry at the bottom of town, or hop on your bike parked on a rack outside the theatre and ride the cycleway now lining Te Hā Noa, Victoria Street? You’ll see beautiful artwork, mature trees on either side of the upgraded street and spacious streetside spaces for socialising.
Or will you meet friends after the show at one of the area’s vibrant hospitality lanes bustling with people, and drive home later? Or will a taxi meet you at a pick-up zone nearby, making the theatre experience accessible especially for the disabled and elderly.
If the St James Theatre had eyes, it would have witnessed a metamorphosis. It would have seen a burgeoning population and a transforming city centre since it first opened in 1928.
Back then, the theatre would have seen trams pulling up outside, an asphalted roadway, women daring to lift their hemlines, department stores leading a new retail trend, and the splendour of the Civic Theatre taking shape across the street, among many other stitches of an everchanging urban tapestry.
When the much-adored St James Theatre opens again, it will open to a city centre re-designed and responsive to changing times, a century after the theatre’s 1928 opening. There will be pedestrian-prioritised spaces, trees, rain gardens, public art, more visibility of te ao Māori narratives, and more transport options.
More information on the history of the St James Theatre is available via PDF [1.16 MB].
Theatregoers might even hear the singing of waiata in the underpass at nearby Myers Park, something they might not have been able to imagine a century ago. Read about Waimahara here and explore six other majestic icons in the central city here.
Pictures tell the story of our city centre’s transformation here.
Source: New Zealand Transport Agency
Regular users of State Highway 2 Remutaka Hill for 2025 need to be ready for a planned closure this Sunday.
The route will be closed for planned maintenance for one night between 9 pm and 4 am, on Sunday, 9 March.
Road crews will be carrying out drainage, culvert maintenance and other general maintenance work, and inspections.
Drivers of light vehicles can book an escorted crossing if they need to travel the route at night. The only alternative detours are via the Pahiatua Track or Saddle Road to the north – a much longer trip. This can be done on the NZTA website.
Bookings are essential. While every effort is made to accommodate drivers on the night, those who do not have a booking may be turned away.
Full closures mean maintenance works can be finished faster, and they are safer for road crews.
Traffic volumes are also lighter at night – while around 7,000 vehicles travel the route daily, fewer than 300 use it at night. It means night works affect fewer drivers and are far less disruptive than day works.
Three more sets of night closures are planned in April, May, and June. Road users, especially those who travel over the Remutaka Hill regularly, should make a note of the planned dates.
More information about planned maintenance closures for Remutaka Hill can be found on our website:
|
Nights closed |
Start 9pm |
Finish 4am |
|
1 |
9 March |
10 March |
|
5 |
6 April |
11 April |
|
1 |
18 May |
19 May |
|
1 |
15 June |
16 June |
Source: New Zealand Transport Agency
A critical piece of State Highway 6 infrastructure is about to be worked as part of the state highway summer maintenance season.
The Doctor Creek Bridge, between Belgrove and Kohatu is due to be resurfaced, weather permitting, later this month.
Contractors will be onsite at the bridge on the night of Wednesday, 19 March to complete asphalting work.
Because of there is limited road space, the bridge and the highway must be closed to traffic while this work is completed.
Resurfacing bridge decks cannot be completed effectively under stop/go traffic management. A full closure also allows the job to be completed much faster, meaning less over all disruption for road users.
A closure will be in place on State Highway 6 between Wai-iti Valley Road and North Road from 7 pm on Wednesday, 19, March until 6 am on Thursday, 20 March. However, access will be available for affected residents and emergency services.
A local road detour will be available via Wai-iti Valley Road to Stock Road, to Valley Road, onto North Road then back onto State Highway 6 near Kohatu Junction. The reverse for northbound road users.
This detour will add an extra 20 minutes to travel time. Drivers should plan their trips accordingly.
If weather or any unforeseen circumstances mean work cannot be completed on Wednesday night, the contingency night for this work is Thursday, 20 March.
More information:
Source: New Zealand Government
The Government is delivering on its commitment to fix New Zealand’s broken healthcare system by ensuring Kiwis get better access to healthcare.
Making it easier for New Zealanders to see a doctor or other health professional is a key priority under Health Minister Simeon Brown.
“We are already investing record funding into healthcare, but many New Zealanders are still finding it too hard to get an appointment with their GP, which is putting pressure on our emergency departments,” Mr Brown says.
“I am announcing today:
“We are taking action to ensure New Zealanders have increased access to more doctors and nurses and more choice of where they can access that healthcare.
“We know we will need more doctors. That’s why we are funding a new two-year primary care training programme for up to 100 extra overseas-trained doctors once they are registered to work in New Zealand.
“It makes no sense that overseas-trained doctors living in New Zealand are willing to work in primary care, but can’t, because there aren’t enough training opportunities.
“We are fixing this by building on a successful pilot in the Waikato and will support their transition into general practices that need them most.
“Under the plan, GP practices and other providers outside hospitals will also be paid an incentive to attract, recruit, and support up to 400 graduate registered nurses a year from this year.
“Just over $30 million has been allocated over five years for this initiative. Primary care providers, including general practice, will receive $20,000 per graduate nurse in rural areas, with those in our cities receiving $15,000.
“This helps attract essential healthcare staff where they’re desperately needed, particularly in rural areas.
“The Government will also invest in a new 24/7 digital healthcare service that will provide all New Zealanders with better access to video consultations with New Zealand-registered clinicians, such as GPs and nurse practitioners.
“This service will mean Kiwis can access primary healthcare from anywhere in New Zealand, 24 hours a day, seven days a week with the ability for GPs and nurses to also issue prescriptions or make referrals for lab tests.
“This is a practical solution which expands access to primary care for Kiwis and will provide an additional service to ensure New Zealanders have more access to timely and quality care.
“Today, I am also announcing that Health New Zealand will deliver a $285 million performance-based uplift in funding over three years for general practice from 1 July 2025.
“This is made possible due to the Government’s record $16.68 billion in health and is in addition to the capitation uplift general practice receives annually.
“It will incentivise GPs to offer enhanced access, including keeping their books open to new patients, achieving key Government health targets such as increased immunisation rates, or supporting family doctors to undertake minor planned care services, and see patients in a timely manner.
“We know this additional funding will make a real difference in delivering the best health outcomes for New Zealanders, with more detail to be confirmed.
“Our focus remains on strengthening services, reducing pressure on GPs, and ensuring Kiwis can access the care they need, when they need it.
“I look forward to making further announcements about improving access to primary care and how we will increase and retain doctors and nurses as part of this package,” Mr Brown says.
Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
PSNA is demanding the government condemn Israel’s cutting off of all humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Israel announced its latest humanitarian outrage against the Palestinian people of Gaza as it tries to withdraw from the ceasefire agreement it signed with Hamas in January.
“Israel is trying to weasel its way out of the agreement because it doesn’t want to negotiate stage two which requires it to withdraw its troops from Gaza” says PSNA Co National Chair John Minto.
“Israel signed the ceasefire agreement and it must be forced to follow it through.”
“Cutting off humanitarian aid is a blatant war crime and New Zealand must say so without equivocation”
“Our government has been complicit with Israeli war crimes for the past 16 months and has previously refused to condemn Israel’s use of humanitarian aid as a weapon of war”
“It’s time we got off our knees and stood up for international law and United Nations resolutions.”
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