/news/rss 九一星空无限 Get the latest news from 九一星空无限talk ZB. From breaking news to the debate and opinion, we bring NZ the news from around the world as it happens.   Wed, 15 Oct 2025 17:57:07 Z en /news/politics/jim-bolger-new-zealand-s-35th-prime-minister-dies-aged-90/ /news/politics/jim-bolger-new-zealand-s-35th-prime-minister-dies-aged-90/ Former Prime Minister Jim Bolger has died aged 90. His family said he died peacefully yesterday, surrounded by his nine children, 18 grandchildren and wife Joan. “Over the period of his illness, Jim and the family have greatly appreciated the support and companionship of so many friends near and far,” a statement from his family read. “Joan and family would also like to thank the renal team and all the wonderful staff at Wellington Regional Hospital and Wellington Free Ambulance for their care of Jim over recent months.The Bolger family advises that Jim Bolger has passed away at the age of 90. Jim died peacefully on 15 October, surrounded by his nine children, 18 grandchildren, and his wife, Joan. Throughout his illness, Jim and the family have greatly appreciated the support and companionship of so many friends near and far. Joan and family would also like to thank the renal team and all the wonderful staff at Wellington Regional Hospital and Wellington Free Ambulance for their care of Jim over recent months. Jim was much loved and will be deeply missed. He had been undergoing dialysis since kidney failure last year, and celebrated his 90th birthday in May with his wife Joan, their nine children and a large gathering of friends and neighbours. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Bolger was a “towering figure in New Zealand’s political life – a leader of conviction, a reformer of consequence, and a servant of the people whose legacy has shaped our nation in profound and lasting ways".“Jim was much loved and will be deeply missed.” He had been undergoing dialysis since kidney failure last year, and celebrated his 90th birthday in May with a large gathering of family, friends and neighbours. Former Prime Minister Jim Bolger and his wife Joan had nine children together. Photo / Norrie Montgomery Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Bolger was a “towering figure in New Zealand’s political life – a leader of conviction, a reformer of consequence, and a servant of the people whose legacy has shaped our nation in profound and lasting ways". “To those who worked alongside him, he was a principled and formidable colleague. To his political opponents, he was a worthy adversary who never allowed disagreement to become personal. “And to New Zealand, he was a leader who believed in the strength of our democracy, the promise of fairness, and the dignity of service. “On behalf of the Government and people of New Zealand, I extend our deepest condolences to Mr Bolger’s wife Joan, his children and grandchildren, and all those who knew and loved him. “Jim Bolger served with integrity and purpose. He leaves behind a legacy that will be studied, debated, and respected for generations.” NZ First leader Winston Peters said Bolger was a “proud, proud New Zealander who served his country as Prime Minister during a difficult period of serious transition in our politics”. Peters and Bolger led New Zealand’s first MMP Government from 1996 onwards, a coalition between NZ First and National. “As the leader of Mr Bolger’s coalition partner, I can attest he was a man of his word. He did what he said he would do - and we ran our Coalition Government with integrity, focus and a fidelity to New Zealanders who had delivered a majority to our two political parties. “Mr Bolger should be remembered warmly as a New Zealander who devoted his life to our great country.” James Brendan Bolger was born in Ōpunake, Taranaki, in 1935 - the son of Irish immigrants. He left Ōpunake High School at just 15 to work on the family farm, later farming with Joan in Rahotu and Te Kūiti before entering politics. In 1990, Bolger led the National Party to a landslide victory - the largest in its history - to become the country’s 35th Prime Minister for seven years until 1997. He oversaw the first of many Treaty of Waitangi settlements, later saying his Irish ancestry had helped him to engage emotionally with Māori. During his second term in office, Bolger presided over ele... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 17:15:28 Z /news/politics/potential-for-131-million-of-asset-sales-with-te-p%C5%ABkenga-de-merger-concerns-raised-over-going-for-growth-impacts/ /news/politics/potential-for-131-million-of-asset-sales-with-te-p%C5%ABkenga-de-merger-concerns-raised-over-going-for-growth-impacts/ De-merging Te Pūkenga may negatively affect the Government’s bid to boost economic growth, with asset sales on the cards, according to Treasury officials. Polytechnics are going back to a regional governance model from the start of next year following the disestablishment of the merged Te Pūkenga model. A Treasury report, from 10 June this year, states changes to both provider-based and work-based learning over the transition will be “disruptive” despite transitional mitigations in place. Officials warned learners who are most at risk - like those with low prior achievement, or located in regions with fewer education alternatives - are more likely to be impacted by the changes, with potential impacts on JobSeeker numbers. “This could have a negative impact on the Developing Talent pillar of Going for Growth, which outlines ensuring learners can access relevant training and reducing your job seeker numbers as priorities,” the document states. Minister for Vocational Education Penny Simmonds said any decisions to potentially sell “under-utilised or un-utilised physical assets” will be up to the Polytechnic Council. “There is no Government-led programme of asset sales,” Simmonds assured. On the going for growth aspect of the advice, the minister promised the reforms will deliver real skills, jobs, and value for learners, employers and the future of New Zealand. Green Party tertiary education spokesman Francisco Hernandez told 九一星空无限talk ZB polytechs would still require ongoing support. He said significant change had caused “fatigue” in the sector which people were “sick and tired” of. Hernandez said advice showed the merger could make the financial situation the same, if not worse. “It’s just really baffling they are continuing with these reforms. “We’ve seen advice that this might actually increase the amount of people that will go onto the Jobseeker benefit.” Simmonds said while Treasury and the Tertiary Education Commission rightly identified fiscal risks, the solution would be to complete reform properly, rather than delay it. “The new regional polytechnic model, supported by Industry Skills Boards, will reduce long-term risk by ensuring that training is better aligned with employer demand, more financially sustainable, and regionally driven.” A report from the Tertiary Education Commission, addressed to Simmonds as at July last year, noted a “high financial risk, but also the destabilisation of the vocational education system” if the merger wasn’t properly planned. The document stated the establishment of independent entities would require recapitalisation “which will need to be funded by Te Pūkenga, the Crown and asset sales”. Officials pointed to several sources of funding, which included asset sales. The commission stated Te Pūkenga initially assessed about $131 million “can be realised through land and building asset sales” that are surplus to delivery needs across the former Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics network through to 2031. It said this was a high-level estimate and more detailed work would be undertaken. The commission said it would take some time to generate cash from such sales, so specific institutions may need additional funds before the process could be completed. “It does, however, provide another avenue to support recapitalisation over the medium-term.” An aide-memoire from November last year again reiterated concerns about financial viability. Officials from the commission wrote for most institutions “it is a relatively high-risk pathway back to financial viability”. On the specific concerns about finances, Simmonds said the Government acknowledged there have been, and still are in some cases, financial pressures within polytechs. She said these reflected structural issues that were “worsened” by the centralised Te Pūkenga model which is being done away with. “That’s why over the past 18 months TEC has put in financial advisors to ensure each polytechnic has a pathway to sustainability. I... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 16:00:05 Z /news/national/james-arthur-holder-murder-trial-emotional-111-call-played-to-christchurch-jury/ /news/national/james-arthur-holder-murder-trial-emotional-111-call-played-to-christchurch-jury/ A woman burst into tears as a 111 operator told her to move towards David Bridgwater’s body and put him on his back as he lay dying in the street. The call was played back to the woman today in court, where James Arthur Holder, 55, stands trial before a jury in the High Court at Christchurch. He’s charged with Bridgwater’s murder on January 4, 2024. The woman, whose name is suppressed, was visibly emotional in court as she was heard telling the operator that a man had been run over. As she was told by the operator to move closer to Bridgwater, she could be heard sobbing and crying with increased intensity. The operator told her to lay Bridgwater flat on his back and remove anything from under his head. “Oh my God, oh my God, oh no, help me,” she could be heard saying. A male voice could then be heard in the background saying an ambulance had arrived. David Bridgwater was found dead outside his car on Carisbrooke St, Aranui in Christchurch. The woman had been with Bridgwater that night after the pair met following the Juicy Festival in QEII Park. The court earlier heard the party continued into the early hours when they went to the Aranui address where Holder lived with his partner, Leanne Crighton. It ended when the 38-year-old was found outside their Carisbrooke St address, lying beside his car, which was still running. He had been shot by Holder and died at the scene. Holder doesn’t deny shooting him but claims it was in self-defence. The court saw security camera footage from their property of people yelling and scrambling, while cars arrived and left as people assisted Bridgwater. Crown prosecutor Kerry White asked the woman to identify herself in the footage, opening a gate as Holder left the property in his car. She could be heard saying, “I think he is run over”. Holder’s partner could be heard saying “Go, go”, as he drove off. The jury was earlier told Crighton had been convicted this month of attempting to pervert the course of justice. The summary of facts said she was present at the time of the shooting and had returned to the property, and asked the woman to help her remove the CCTV camera. The woman attempted to remove the Arlo CCTV camera, situated on the soffit of the house. Crighton held a plastic storage box steady while the woman stood on it and tried to take the camera down. The attempt only resulted in the angle of the camera being moved, and the camera remained affixed to the house. White asked the woman why she tried to remove the camera. The woman said she understood cameras contained SD cards and she wanted to keep the footage safe. Crighton admitted to cancelling her Arlo subscription and deleting the Arlo application from her cellphone in an attempt to destroy the video evidence on the day after Bridgwater’s death. On January 6, two days after Bridgwater’s death, police executed a search warrant at the property and located an Arlo camera in a barrel containing burned items in the back garden. On January 24, Crighton was arrested in relation to her attempts to interfere with the footage. Police arrested Holder and charged him with murder on February 2. The murder trial is being heard by Justice Lisa Preston and is set down for five weeks. Al Williams is an Open Justice reporter for the New Zealand Herald, based in Christchurch. He has worked in daily and community titles in New Zealand and overseas for the past 16 years. Most recently, he was editor of the Hauraki-Coromandel Post, based in Whangamatā. He was previously deputy editor of the Cook Islands 九一星空无限. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 08:07:16 Z /news/national/south-auckland-fight-confronting-video-shows-manukau-teen-brawl/ /news/national/south-auckland-fight-confronting-video-shows-manukau-teen-brawl/ A large group of young people swarmed a South Auckland street during a violent brawl this evening, with one person kicked in the head as they lay on the pavement. Footage of the fight was posted to Facebook and shows the moment the brawl kicked off. About 15 teenagers were seen gathered in Osterley Way, Manukau, many dressed in what appeared to be school uniform. The video, which appeared to be filmed from a high-rise building, showed the group running, pushing, shoving and throwing punches at each other. At one point in the video, one person appeared to be kicked in the head as they lay on the ground. A woman rushed in to help by shielding their body, while two others attempted to stomp on the young person. The anonymous poster of the video captioned the post: “Hero’s [sic] live among us. Auckland Lady steps in to save young boy.” “Whoever that lady is Thankyou!! A parent’s nightmare having their kid beaten,” another commented. Police said they received a number of calls reporting a large group of young people fighting on Osterley Way. Police say they received a number of calls about youngsters fighting in Manukau on Wednesday. Photo / Facebook Police were made aware of the incident at 5.20pm. They said officers were able to disperse and move on some of the group but did not locate a specific victim. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 08:00:18 Z /news/national/parole-board-apology-texting-truckie-sarah-schmidt-who-killed-caleb-baker-released-before-eligible-date/ /news/national/parole-board-apology-texting-truckie-sarah-schmidt-who-killed-caleb-baker-released-before-eligible-date/ The Parole Board has apologised “unreservedly” to Caleb Baker’s family after it set free the texting truckie who killed the young motorist before she was eligible for release. The 22-year-old’s family told 九一星空无限 the mistake has caused them more pain and shattered what little trust they still had in the system. Truck driver Sarah Hope Schmidt served nine months of a jail term of two years and four months after causing the fatal crash on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway last year. Another driver was injured and hospitalised after the crash, in which Schmidt ran into a stationary queue of vehicles because she had been distracted by using her phone while driving. Schmidt later pleaded guilty to two charges of dangerous driving - one each of causing death and injury. She was released on parole on July 15 this year after appearing “visibly upset” and remorseful before the Parole Board on July 1, her first appearance. But Parole Board Chair Jan-Marie Doogue said today that it had now been identified that Schmidt was not eligible for release on parole until two weeks later - July 29. The board was “in error” in granting her release on July 15. Justice Doogue said Schmidt would not be recalled to prison to serve the two weeks. “She has not breached her release conditions and is not considered to be an undue risk to the community,” she said. Caleb Baker of Napier died in the motor vehicle accident on the Hawke's Bay Expressway in February 2024. Photo / Supplied Justice Doogue said the board wanted to publicly acknowledge and take accountability for what had happened. “It is particularly mindful of the additional distress this news will cause the family of Caleb Baker, and to the other driver injured in the crash, and apologises unreservedly to them,” she said. “All board members have been reminded of the importance of ensuring they are aware of an offender’s parole eligibility date and their decisions are consistent with that date.” Baker’s uncle, Shane Taurima, said last week that his family was “devastated” by Schmidt’s release after serving less than one-third of her sentence. “Nine months for taking a life is impossible to comprehend.” Today, Taurima said that Justice Doogue had contacted Baker’s mother, Janice Stevens, this morning to advise her of the error and offer the apology. “Janice was extremely distressed and unable to speak when told this,” he said. “The whānau are deeply distraught and upset that such a serious mistake could occur. “While the Board has acknowledged the error and apologised, this has caused further pain and disbelief for our whānau,” Taurima said. He said that while family members appreciated the board had taken responsibility, the mistake had “shattered what little trust we had left in the system”. “Families like ours deserve better - greater care, respect, and accountability from those making decisions that affect victims so deeply. “Our focus remains on Caleb, honouring his memory and continuing to speak up so that no other whānau has to endure this kind of hurt.” 44 minutes on the phone Schmidt spent 44 minutes using her phone during a two-hour run between Dannevirke and Napier Port in the early morning of February 9, 2024. After starting on her return journey down the Hawke’s Bay Expressway, she was still using her phone when she ploughed her 30-tonne Volvo truck into the back of Baker’s Toyota Hilux, which was at the rear of the stationary queue. In the 16 seconds before the collision, a dashboard camera captured Schmidt looking at her phone on 10 separate occasions, for between half a second and two seconds at a time. She looked down at her phone four times in the final six seconds. Schmidt was still using her phone two seconds before the crash, when she was travelling at 86km/h. Although she then applied the brakes, it was too late, and she was moving at 76km/h when her truck, laden with a shipping container, ran into the back of Baker’s ute. A view of the crash scene taken from behind Sarah Schm... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 03:21:26 Z /news/national/auckland-prison-unit-housing-mosque-shooter-has-colourful-400-000-makeover-with-fresh-paint-job/ /news/national/auckland-prison-unit-housing-mosque-shooter-has-colourful-400-000-makeover-with-fresh-paint-job/ The Department of Corrections spent more than $400,000 on a makeover – complete with a fresh paint job and colourful designs – of the prison unit housing New Zealand’s most notorious criminals, including mosque terrorist Brenton Tarrant. The costly renovation at the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (Peru) inside Auckland Prison – also known as Paremoremo – was carried out over the past couple of months to address reports which classed it as “oppressive” and “inhuman”. Peru was established in 2019, four months after the March 15 terror attack. At the end of 2024, it housed 13 of the country’s most violent and dangerous inmates, including Tarrant, who murdered 51 worshippers and injured 40 others at the Al Noor and Linwood mosques in Christchurch. The Herald revealed last month that maintenance work was being carried out in the 18-cell unit to address feedback from the Ombudsman and Office of the Inspectorate reports, and “create an environment that’s less stark and therefore more conducive to rehabilitating prisoners and better for our staff”. The work included repainting the unit’s visiting booths, entrance foyer, day rooms, yards and cells for the first time since it was built in 2018. Each of the 18 cells adjoining individual yards were painted with the same abstract landscape design. Photo / Department of Corrections Images shared by Corrections show inmates’ cells painted green and a wall in their adjoining individual yards with a colourful “geometric design” painted on a wall in the yard, where they are allowed to exercise for three to six hours daily. Now, figures released to the Herald under the Official Information Act (OIA) have revealed the total cost of the project was $407,307 – a sum Corrections say was funded from within its existing baselines as part of Budget 2025. Among this, $260,964 was spent on what was described as “painting preparations” – including chemical washing to remove old paint, graffiti and dirt – and repainting the unit. Corrections said the unit painting included two day rooms, two large exercise yards, the unit’s entrance foyer area and hallways, the visiting areas, 17 standard cells and their adjoining exercise yards, one accessibility cell with adjoining yard, and two dry cells. Inmates' cells have been painted green in a bid to lift their "oppressive" surroundings. Photo / Department of Corrections The remaining $146,343 was spent on placing “geometric designs” on the walls of two large exercise yards, two day rooms, the visitor areas, the unit’s entrance foyer and hallway areas, and the cell yards. The Department of Corrections’ commissioner of custodial services, Leigh Marsh, said they were required to use specialist paint that is resistant to graffiti and vandalism “given the nature of those we manage in prison”. “While the upfront cost of this paint can be higher in the short term, it can help reduce long-term costs.” The Herald understands Corrections hired a commercial painting company to carry out the project – as it required working at heights. “This maintenance work in Peru also required scaffolding to meet health and safety requirements. The work has also had to be done in stages and outside of usual hours to ensure the safety of those undertaking the work. All of these factors impact the cost of maintenance in this unit,” Marsh said. Images from inside the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (Peru) in Auckland Prison during a 2023 inspection. Photo / Office of the Inspectorate Marsh said the condition of prison environments can impact inmates’ willingness to take part in rehabilitation, and the levels of tension and aggression towards frontline staff and other prisoners. “Creating brighter spaces within prisons, especially in areas frequently used by staff, visitors, and prisoners, is common and something Corrections has done in prisons for many years. “Work like this can often be carried out by prisoners to keep them engaged in constructive activities and help their rehabilitat... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 03:15:16 Z /news/national/what-a-joker-first-kiwi-chick-of-the-season-hatches-in-napier-kiwi-creche/ /news/national/what-a-joker-first-kiwi-chick-of-the-season-hatches-in-napier-kiwi-creche/ Napier’s first kiwi chick of the season has hatched after arriving at the city’s Kiwi Creche from Kaweka Forest Park. The chick, named Joker, was brought to the creche on October 1 by Save Our Kaweka Kiwi volunteers after they discovered an egg already in the process of hatching during a planned nest check. The name continues a family theme, linked to its sire Ridler. Joker was only minutes away from hatching when it arrived at Napier Kiwi Creche. Photo / Save the Kiwi Husbandry manager Bev Wilkinson said it’s rare to receive an egg so close to hatching. “We would normally be expecting an egg or a chick, very seldom do we receive one in the last stages of hatching,” she said. Joker weighed 228g this week but is expected to lose some weight while absorbing its yolk. The chick will remain at the creche until it reaches 1kg, when it will be returned to the Kaweka Forest. “This is a safe weight for it to be released as it has more chance of fighting off predators. This will take approximately 3.5 months to reach the target weight,” Wilkinson says. Joker will stay at the creche until reaching one kilogram, then return to Kaweka Forest. Photo / Save the Kiwi While at the creche, Joker will be fed a mix of artificial and wild foods, weighed weekly, and given full health checks, she said. “We will take stool samples regularly to monitor for parasites, and the chick will be dosed accordingly. It will go into quarantine two weeks before release ... Feathers will be taken from Joker to determine its gender, [and] it will be microchipped.” Since opening in 2020, the Napier Kiwi Creche has released 251 kiwi into the Eastern District and can rear up to 58 chicks each season. “The Napier creche is vital in the recovery of Eastern Brown Kiwi. Eastern Brown Kiwi recovery is being managed through large-scale predator control, Operation Nest egg and habitat protection,” Wilkinson said. A Save the Kiwi spokeswoman said the hatching comes as Save the Kiwi Week gets under way. The organisation is currently fundraising for 10 new trail cameras to monitor kiwi behaviour and translocations across the country. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 02:52:24 Z /news/national/bucklands-beach-fire-victims-named-as-father-and-son-jung-sup-lee-36-and-ha-il-lee-11-in-homicide-probe/ /news/national/bucklands-beach-fire-victims-named-as-father-and-son-jung-sup-lee-36-and-ha-il-lee-11-in-homicide-probe/ Police have revealed the names of the young boy and his father killed in a “deliberately lit” house fire. Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Va’aelua said police investigating the fatal fire at Bucklands Beach on October 2 can now confirm the details of those who died. They were Jung Sup Lee, 36, and Ha-il Lee, 11. Earlier, police revealed they believe the fire was “deliberately lit” and it is being treated as a homicide investigation. An accelerant was used in the fire, and it was a substance that was foreign to the property. At 2.30am, emergency services responded to the house fire that broke out on Murvale Drive. Today, police confirmed it is being treated as a double homicide and are calling for the public’s assistance in identifying those responsible for the fire. Any resident of Bucklands Beach, Howick, Sunnyhills, Mellons Bay, Botany Downs or Highland Park who has CCTV footage between the hours of 10pm on Wednesday October 1 and 5am on Thursday, October 2, is urged to get in touch with police. Police are also seeking any dash cam or GoPro footage from the same areas and times. “We want to reiterate that no detail is too small, or irrelevant,” Va’aelua said. Firefighters extinguished a blaze at a home on Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach. Photo / NZH Last week, Va’aelua told the media there were no persons of interest. He said one of the survivors of the blaze was the mother who escaped through the home’s main door. Her surviving son had to force his way out. A fifth person, who was a boarder at the house, did not suffer any injuries. ‘Delightful’ 11-year-old killed in fire Ha-il Lee was remembered as a “delightful” Bucklands Beach Intermediate student. Earlier, deputy principal Will Roper called the boy a credit to his family. The boy’s older brother, who is understood to have survived the fire, was a former pupil at the school, Roper told Stuff. “Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with their family, friends and all those affected at this very difficult time.” A fundraiser was launched for the grieving wife and son who survived the fire. A post on the Givealittle page, which was set up by a friend of the family, said the mother is facing the “unimaginable” and is now left to navigate living expenses. Thick plumes of smoke and orange flames pour out of the Bucklands Beach home on Murvale Drive. The property was severely damaged; windows were shattered and debris strewn about the blackened house. Neighbours recounted waking to the roar of fire and “mini explosions” as the blaze quickly gripped the home. Thick plumes of smoke and large orange flames could be seen as firefighters battled the fire for several hours. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 02:44:00 Z /news/national/netsafe-warns-sextortion-now-widespread-as-one-in-five-kiwis-report-being-affected/ /news/national/netsafe-warns-sextortion-now-widespread-as-one-in-five-kiwis-report-being-affected/ Acts of sextortion have permeated so deeply into our digital world that one in five New Zealanders have now been impacted in some way by the cybercrime, research from Netsafe has found. The nationwide survey, which looked at a nationally representative sample of 1000 adults with key demographics also studied, found 8% of Kiwis have experienced sextortion either directly and 13% have experienced it through someone they knew. Sextortion, or sexual extortion, is when someone threatens to leak sexually explicit material of a person as a means of coercion. Those aged 18-24 reported the highest incidence rate, with 40% saying they or someone they know had experienced sextortion. Māori (38%) and rainbow communities (32%) were also disproportionately affected. Thirty-five % of victims reported a moderate to severe effect on their mental health, with 73% of people familiar with victims describing its impact as significant. “Sextortion is a serious online harm and not a fringe problem,” Netsafe chief executive Brent Carey said. Brent Carey, chief executive of Netsafe, said sextortion is a "serious online harm and not a fringe problem" in New Zealand. Photo / Dean Purcell “New Zealanders need to know sextortion is not their fault. These are predators using technology as a weapon, and the only way to fight them is together.” The findings, which suggest hundreds of thousands of Kiwis have been affected, highlight a “hidden epidemic” with far-reaching impacts on privacy, personal safety and mental health. “Tragically, overseas cases have shown how sextortion can drive young people to despair, and New Zealand is not immune,” Carey said. “Our research confirms the same pattern.” Carey said victims may be tricked or pressured into sharing explicit material, while in other cases, the content may be digitally faked. Police plan to use the data to strengthen their response to sextortion crimes in New Zealand. Professional perpetrators often come from organised crime groups and will manipulate their victims into sharing sensitive content that can later be leveraged against them. “This survey did not include under 18 year olds, and when we look at the reports of harm we receive at Netsafe, we find teenagers are also targeted through sextortion,” Carey said. About 80% of cases reported by victims involved threats to share explicit content. Half the perpetrators demanded money, while a fifth sought further sexual favours. About 24% had their content leaked anyway without consent. Despite the damning figures, most victims avoid seeking help out of shame or a fear of inaction, with less than half of those who alert authorities satisfied with its handling. Data released by Netsafe in May showed sextortion threats were up a “frightening” 68% in the first three months of this year. The new research “stresses that reducing harm requires strong community engagement, education, and early prevention”, Carey said. Police said they recognised the real-world consequences of sextortion, and planned to use the research to further their understanding of its place in New Zealand. “Police encourage all victims of sextortion to seek help and report these criminal acts,” said Greg Dalziel, Detective Senior Sergeant in the police’s Cybercrime Unit. Eighty % of survey respondents also supported an awareness campaign to educate the public on how to identify, report, prevent and legally challenge sextortion in their lives. Tom Rose is an Auckland-based journalist who covers breaking news, specialising in lifestyle, entertainment and travel. He joined the Herald in 2023. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 02:37:50 Z /news/world/italian-prime-minister-giorgia-meloni-says-she-would-kill-someone-if-she-had-to-quit-smoking/ /news/world/italian-prime-minister-giorgia-meloni-says-she-would-kill-someone-if-she-had-to-quit-smoking/ Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has joked that quitting cigarettes would make her outright murderous. As she attended the Gaza peace summit in Egypt, Meloni was captured sharing a lighter moment with other world leaders. “You look great. But I have to make you stop smoking,” a translator for Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan can be heard telling her. While Meloni seemingly acknowledged it was a bad habit, she joked there might be violent consequences if she gave up cigarettes. “I know, I know,” she said, before quipping, “I don’t want to kill someone”. The 48-year-old previously admitted she had started smoking again after successfully quitting 13 years ago, il Giornale reports. In “La versione di Girogia”, Meloni wrote that the habit had helped her connect with other world leaders, specifically naming Tunisian President Kais Saied as a fellow smoker. The subject itself seemed to have that effect, with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer sharing a laugh over the Turkish leader’s plea. Amused, Macron himself remarked quitting is “impossible”. Erdogan’s mention of Meloni’s looks was only the second comment about her appearance during the summit. Italy’s first female Prime Minister was also the subject of high praise from US President Donald Trump, CNN reports. “I’m not normally allowed to say it because usually it’s the end of your political career if you say it”, Trump told the summit on October 13, “she’s a beautiful young woman!” The infamously outspoken politician continued to laud Meloni’s beauty as she stood behind him. “Now if you use the word beautiful in the United States about a woman, that’s the end of your political career, but I’ll take my chances!” The pair have fostered a good relationship thanks to their shared political views, with Trump previously describing her as a “fantastic woman”. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 02:06:34 Z /news/national/aydan-hamilton-police-seek-information-on-missing-man-and-grey-mazda-ute/ /news/national/aydan-hamilton-police-seek-information-on-missing-man-and-grey-mazda-ute/ Police have renewed a call for sightings of a grey Mazda ute after a man went missing eight weeks ago. Aydan, 39, was last seen in Chartwell, Hamilton on August 17 and was believed to be driving his 2016 grey Mazda ute, registration QYA209. Detective Sergeant Jonathan Carter said Aydan’s family and police were hoping for someone to come forward with information about the ute. “Have you seen a grey ute anywhere? Perhaps you’ve noticed it hasn’t moved. “If you’ve noticed a grey Mazda ute somewhere across the region, we would like to hear from you,” Carter said. Last month, Carter said Aydan may have parked up in a rural or bush area. He appealed to those in the wider Waikato/Bay of Plenty region for any sightings of him or his vehicle. “Maybe you’ve gone hunting and seen a vehicle parked up and not thought much of it, and then returned another time and it’s still there. Aydan was last seen in Hamilton on August 17. Photo / NZ Police “We’re looking for anything out of the ordinary like that. If you have any information, contact police via 105, either over the phone or online, referencing file number 250819/5160. You can also get in touch anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111 or www.crimestoppers-nz.org Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:44:33 Z /news/national/gisborne-teen-accused-of-threatening-to-kill-mp-appears-in-court/ /news/national/gisborne-teen-accused-of-threatening-to-kill-mp-appears-in-court/ A Gisborne teen accused of threatening to kill a Member of Parliament made his first appearance in the Gisborne District Court today. The man, aged 19, has interim name suppression until at least another appearance set for October 23. He has a number of bail conditions which include not to associate with the alleged victim, whose name was also suppressed, and not to threaten violence to person or property. The charging documents said that earlier this year the accused threatened to kill the alleged victim. The charge carries a maximum term of seven years in prison. The man is also charged under the Harmful Digital Communications Act. During the same period, he is alleged to have posted Instagram messages with the intent to cause harm and which allegedly caused serious emotional distress. This carries a maximum penalty of two years’ jail and a maximum fine of $50,000. Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:38:09 Z /news/national/iconic-cardrona-hotel-sold-to-group-of-new-zealand-investors/ /news/national/iconic-cardrona-hotel-sold-to-group-of-new-zealand-investors/ One of the country’s most photographed pubs – and a fixture of the Central Otago landscape – has new owners. A group of New Zealand investors, led by Wānaka-based businessman Warren Barclay, have bought the 162-year-old pub that was listed for sale in July. Barclay is the owner of Experience Group, which runs hospitality for big sports events. He says the group is committed to preserving the Cardrona’s Hotel’s heritage, while exploring ways to improve its boutique accommodation, dining and events. Cade Thornton, who has owned the pub with his partner Alexis and James and Fleur Jenneson since 2013, said the decision to sell had been indescribably difficult. The group decided it was time to step back and focus on their young families, he said. “It’s just such a friendly, happy place. It’s a great environment to work and to be the custodian, the captain of that, is tremendously rewarding, and to see the place change in our time. It’s defined my life, really.” The hotel on the Crown Range Rd between Wānaka and Queenstown included a restaurant, year-round beer garden, and 17 ensuite hotel rooms sleeping up to 44 guests. Its facade dated back to a now-vanished gold rush town that thrived in the 1860s, when Cardrona was a bustling settlement supporting thousands of Otago gold rush miners. Cade Thornton said it employed 40 to 50 staff, and the hotel was often fully booked. “The business is in really good stead. I’ve got some very long-term senior staff who love the pub and their jobs and their roles, and they want to see it through with the new owner,” he said. He said the hotel attracted people from all walks of life. “We’ll have guests arriving by helicopter, all dressed up for a nice meal, and then the local farmers will come in, leaving their gumboots by the door. I don’t think there’s any other place quite like it in New Zealand.” Thornton had said he hoped the next owner would have a “real passion” for the pub. “Fifty % of buying it would be that you’d have to love it. You couldn’t just look at it as a business opportunity. You’d have to be passionate about the business, the pub, its history, its potential,” he said. -By RNZ Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:19:35 Z /news/world/a-man-disappeared-while-running-for-office-he-might-still-win/ /news/world/a-man-disappeared-while-running-for-office-he-might-still-win/ Petros Krommidas went missing last spring near the shore in Long Beach, New York. Police found a towel among his belongings on the beach, but no sign of the 29-year-old Ivy League graduate who was running for local office in Nassau County as a Democrat. His family believes he may have gone for a swim while training for a triathlon. More than five months later, and after a gruelling search by police and divers, Krommidas has not been found and is presumed dead. Despite that, voters could still elect him as legislator for the county’s 4th District in next month’s election – with the encouragement of his family and local Democrats. If Krommidas wins, it could trigger a special election. The candidacy of a man who has been missing for months has sparked a heartbreaking and morbid debate in this section of Long Island. “It is extremely painful for Petros’ family, it’s unfair to the voters and it’s making a political mockery of a young man’s passion to make the world a better place,” said Joe Scianablo, a Democrat running for Town of Hempstead supervisor and a friend of Krommidas, in an emailed statement today. Initially, the local Democratic Party made efforts to remove Krommidas from the ballot, filing a motion in September to replace him with another candidate. When two voters filed a lawsuit attempting to stop them, Democrats accused their rivals of trying to keep him there for political advantage. “Nassau Republicans forcing our missing friend to stay on the ballot is frankly ghoulish,” Nassau County Young Democrats wrote in a Facebook post. A local judge sided with the voters, saying that Krommidas must remain on the ballot because he has not been declared legally dead. “A ‘missing person’ status does not qualify as a vacancy,” Judge Gary Knobel ruled, noting that a person must be missing for three years before they can be legally declared deceased. Because Krommidas already had been selected as the party’s nominee, he was required by law to be the candidate. The judge’s ruling prompted local Democrats to change tack. “If the Republican Party won’t do the moral thing and remove him from the ballot, then we’ll win it for him,” Nassau County Young Democrats wrote in a social media post on Monday, as the local party mobilised to campaign for him. In a statement shared with local media, the chairman of Nassau County Republican Committee, Joseph Cairo, noted that the local GOP did not file the lawsuit and said he was praying for the family. “It is my sincere intention and desire that the Republican Party and its candidates will show the highest level of sensitivity during these challenging times for the Krommidas family,” Cairo said. His family and local Democrats encourage people to vote for him, which could potentially trigger a special election. Photo / @MarioNawfal via X The Nassau County Republican Committee did not immediately respond to a request for comment today. The judge’s ruling noted that a similar scenario had played out in 1972, when Democrat Nicholas Begich went missing in a light aircraft while he was running for election to the US House in Alaska. Despite the fact that he could not be located, Begich was re-elected to Alaska’s sole seat in the US House weeks later. When he was declared dead in December, a special election was held and another candidate took office. Krommidas’ family could not immediately be reached for comment but have encouraged voters to honour his legacy by electing him on November 4. In a Facebook post last week, Krommidas’ sister Eleni-Lemonia Krommidas said there had been “confusion and emotion” surrounding her brother’s disappearance and the upcoming election. “Regardless of what’s happening, his name remains on the ballot,” she wrote as she asked others to vote for Krommidas. “His heart would have brought light and positive change to this community,” she said. “That’s what I’m voting for – honouring the beautiful person he was and the values he lived and led by.” Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:16:37 Z /news/world/instagram-tightens-teen-safety-rules-filters-adult-posts-after-california-law/ /news/world/instagram-tightens-teen-safety-rules-filters-adult-posts-after-california-law/ Instagram said its teen accounts for users aged 13 to 17 will now only see content that would get a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association, a day after California passed a law requiring social media companies to warn users of “profound” health risks. In addition to an existing automated system that scans content for age-inappropriateness, the app will now serve up surveys to parents asking them to review particular posts and report whether they feel it is okay for teens, Instagram said in a blog post today. The updates will also block teen accounts from seeing posts from people who regularly share what the app considers to be adult content. Teens whose caregivers set up parental controls and opt for even more limited content settings will no longer be able to see comments on posts or leave one of their own. California Governor Gavin 九一星空无限om signed a law yesterday requiring that social media companies show users aged under 18 warning labels declaring that their apps – such as Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat – come with “a profound risk of harm” to their mental health. In the past, Meta has announced new teen safety features such as its “take a break” reminder just days before its executives have been scheduled to testify before Congress about the app’s impact on young people. Last year, Instagram unveiled teen accounts a day before a key House committee was scheduled to weigh amendments to the Kids Online Safety Act, which would have created a new obligation for companies to mitigate potential harms to children. The measure passed in the Senate but stalled in the House. The new features are the latest in a steady drip of teen safety tweaks the app has rolled out as parents, researchers, and lawmakers urge its parent company, Meta, to stop serving dangerous or inappropriate content to young people. The new system will filter even more content depicting violence, substance use, and dangerous stunts from teenagers’ feeds, the company said. “Our responsibility is to maximise positive experiences and minimise negative experiences,” Instagram chief executive Adam Mosseri said on the Today show, discussing the tension between keeping teenagers engaged on the app and shielding them from harmful content and experiences. Advocates for children’s online safety, however, urged parents to remain sceptical. “We don’t know if [the updates] will actually work and create an environment that is safe for kids,” said Sarah Gardner, chief executive of tech advocacy organisation Heat Initiative. Based on a user’s self-reported age as well as age-detection technology that examines a user’s in-app behaviour, Instagram says it automatically puts people between age 13 and 17 into teen accounts with the accompanying guardrails. Parents can use Meta’s parental controls to link their accounts with their teen’s and opt for settings that are more or less restrictive. With parental permission, 16- and 17-year-olds can opt out of some teen account restrictions. Instagram, originally an app for sharing photos with friends, has increasingly shown content from non-friends as it competes with TikTok, YouTube and Twitch for teenagers’ time. Along the way, it has come under fire for showing young people content promoting suicide and self-harm. Beginning with a “sensitive content” filter in 2021, Instagram has introduced a series of features it says are designed to limit potentially harmful posts and protect teens from bullying and predation. Last year, it launched “teen accounts” that come with automatic restrictions on recommended content as well as friend requests and direct messages. A report earlier this year from Gen Z-led tech advocacy organisation Design It For Us showed that even when using teen accounts, users were shown posts depicting sex acts and promoting disordered eating. When my colleague Geoffrey Fowler tested it in May, he found the app repeatedly recommended posts about binge drinking, drug paraphernalia, and nicotine products to a... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 01:06:59 Z /news/politics/labour-s-willie-jackson-believes-te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-split-inevitable-if-issues-not-sorted-soon/ /news/politics/labour-s-willie-jackson-believes-te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-split-inevitable-if-issues-not-sorted-soon/ Willie Jackson believes a split within Te Pāti Māori is “inevitable” if internal conflicts aren’t addressed shortly, but he says it’s too early to discount any future collaboration with Labour. He’s pushing for a meeting with Te Pāti Māori by the end of November in the hopes of getting “some indications on where we’re heading next year” before the election, acknowledging questions of whether the party would be a stable partner for Labour. But Jackson said Labour would not be “forced into a position to make a decision with regards to any future relationships with them”. “That internal stuff has to play out. I think it’s still got some way to go, but it’s getting close to terminal, I would say.” The senior Labour MP has been overseas on a parliamentary trip to Barbados over the past week as trouble within Te Pāti Māori boiled over. He was monitoring it from afar and has spoken with his good friend and Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere in recent days. Now back at Parliament, Jackson told the Herald it was “sad” to see the private issues come out, particularly relating to MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, whom he knew well. “She’s been a good MP. We don’t get any joy in watching them killing each other off,” he said on Wednesday. “From a purely kaupapa sense, I’d like to see them fix it. But if they don’t get together soon, you’d just about think it was all over in terms of a future for her and Te Pāti Māori, which I find sad.” Labour MP Willie Jackson said the situation was "sad". Photo / Mark Mitchell Te Pāti Māori late on Monday night released a batch of documents making several serious allegations against Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and her high-profile son and activist, Eru Kapa-Kingi. They included allegations of overspending by the MP’s office and her son threatening violence at Parliament. That followed Eru Kapa-Kingi, a spokesman for the Toitū te Tiriti campaign group, earlier this month attempting to distance the movement from Te Pāti Māori and accusing it of dictatorship-like leadership. His comments came after his mother was demoted as the party’s whip. Eru Kapa-Kingi is yet to respond directly to the allegations, but posted on social media this morning saying he didn’t “regret a single thing” or intend to “throw stones at anyone”, but instead to “speak truth and stand on kaupapa”. His mother also hasn’t fully addressed the claims but acknowledged to the Herald there was an “incident” that went through the “usual processes” at Parliament. She didn’t respond to the Herald’s phone call on Wednesday. Jackson observed that if the internal issues weren’t fixed “quickly”, it could lead to a split within the party, especially if both sides kept having a crack at each other. “I think it’s inevitable that there will be a split there. I think that’s sad for them. I look at it from a kaupapa Māori perspective,” the MP said. “I think it looks inevitable that, unless they can bring it together really quickly, in the next week or so, ... that relationship looks just about over, which I think is very sad for them.” Jackson acknowledged that Tamihere was a friend of his, but said whatever some people say, he had “won six seats for them”. Asked for his thoughts on Te Pāti Māori’s email outlining the allegations, Jackson said, “Let’s be clear, Eru came out and decided to go after the leadership. “I’m not surprised that the leadership, and that’s [Tamihere, Kiri Tamihere, Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer] ... that they would respond. “I think a few people are surprised that they’ve responded so harshly, and obviously it was going to get into the media, but that’s their style.” People in Mariameno Kapa-Kingi’s seat of Te Tai Tokerau “are thinking that it’s probably just about terminal unless they can patch it up,” Jackson claimed. He said there was also “a section who are not happy with the leadership”. There have been reports that Te Tai Tonga electorate branch wanted a vote of no confidence in Tamihere and the executive leadership.... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 00:54:33 Z /news/world/d-angelo-rb-visionary-and-godfather-of-neo-soul-dies-at-51/ /news/world/d-angelo-rb-visionary-and-godfather-of-neo-soul-dies-at-51/ D’Angelo, the visionary singer and musician who blended R&B and soul in landmark albums such as Brown Sugar and Voodoo, mesmerising critics and audiences even as he disappeared from public view for years at a time, died on October 14. He was 51. His family announced the death in a statement, saying he had “a prolonged and courageous battle with cancer”. They did not say where he died. Beginning with his debut album, 1995’s Brown Sugar, D’Angelo helped pave the way for a new era in R&B, nodding to an old-school soul sound while incorporating notes of funk, hip-hop and jazz. Alongside musicians such as Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill, Maxwell and Jill Scott, he became a defining artist of neo-soul, a genre that was named by his own manager, Kedar Massenburg. Despite releasing only three studio albums, D’Angelo was hailed as one of the greatest R&B singers and musical talents of his generation. A versatile musician who could toggle between guitar, drums and keyboards, he sang in a sultry, breathy style that could burst into euphoric heights. He drew early comparisons to Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, Sly Stone and Prince, who also displayed a musical obsessiveness and played multiple instruments on his albums. “D’Angelo bears no resemblance to the dozens of sound-alike crooners who populate ‘Quiet Storm’ radio formats; his falsetto yelps, note-bending purrs and stop-and-go phrasing mark him as a one-of-a-kind singer,” Washington Post music critic Geoffrey Himes wrote in 1995. With the success of Brown Sugar, other musicians came into the singer’s fold. The drummer and producer Questlove, who became a collaborator, told Vice in 2014 that before hearing D’Angelo, “I had lost faith in modern R&B”. “Not since Prince had any black singer floored me musically the way D’Angelo did,” he added. “There were plenty of great singers, but their music was mundane. From his keyboard patches to his sloppy, human-like drum programming, I felt like I had a kindred spirit.” D’Angelo spent years working on his sophomore album, 2000’s Voodoo, an eclectic record that was influenced by the birth of his first child; the sounds of gospel, Latin, blues and hip-hop; and bootlegs of James Brown and Sly and the Family Stone. The album was born out of thousands of hours of musical experimentation at Electric Lady Studios in New York, where the singer collaborated with a free-flowing collective – the Soulquarians – that included Questlove, Badu, Q-Tip and J Dilla. D’Angelo was born Michael Eugene Archer in Richmond, Virginia, in 1974. Photo / Getty Images “It is an album of loose, long, dirty grooves, finger snaps, falsetto serenades, gruff mumbles and bottom-dwelling bass,” the music journalist Toure wrote in Rolling Stone. “It is soul music for the age of hip-hop.” Voodoo topped the Billboard album chart and earned D’Angelo two Grammy Awards. It also turned the singer into a reluctant sex symbol: the music video for one of the record’s standout tracks, the sultry“Untitled (How Does It Feel), featured a shirtless, muscular D’Angelo singing into the camera, and was heavily featured on MTV. “Sometimes, you know, I feel uncomfortable,” he told Toure in 2000. “To be onstage and tryin’ to do your music and people goin’, ‘Take it off! Take it off!’ Cause I’m not no stripper. I’m up there doin’ somethin’ I strongly believe in.” After the album’s release, D’Angelo receded from public view for more than a decade. He was arrested for cocaine and marijuana possession, as well as for disorderly conduct, and later spoke candidly about his struggles with addiction and rehabilitation stints. A mug shot during that time became tabloid fodder for his stark physical transformation from his “Untitled” days. But he found his way back to music. After years of silence, racial justice protests and high-profile killings of black men by police pushed him to release Black Messiah in 2014. The album featured some of his most politically explicit material – “All we wanted... Wed, 15 Oct 2025 00:35:13 Z /news/crime/grey-lynn-shooting-kayden-stanaway-pleads-guilty-to-murder-of-maxwel-dee-repia/ /news/crime/grey-lynn-shooting-kayden-stanaway-pleads-guilty-to-murder-of-maxwel-dee-repia/ An Auckland teenager who shot four other young men last year at the apex of a prolonged feud that started over a girl has admitted guilt just weeks ahead of his scheduled murder trial.  Newly released court documents state the family of defendant Kayden Stanaway had been terrorised in the months leading up to the September 2024 shootings. But Stanaway also lashed out, threatening at one point to kidnap the father of 18-year-old Maxwel-Dee Repia, who would die just hours later.  Stanaway, now 20, returned to the High Court at Auckland this morning for the arraignment on one count of murder and three counts of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily injury.  The quadruple shooting has now been deemed to have been in self-defence, although so excessive as to be illegal, according to the agreed summary of facts for his case.  Stanaway fatally shot Repia and seriously injured Repia’s mates outside the defendant’s family home in Grey Lynn on the evening of September 5 last year, hours after Repia and others threw rocks at the house, smashing a window.  “The feud between the complainant group and Mr Stanaway began in early 2024 when Mr Stanaway began a relationship with the ex-girlfriend of a friend of the complainant group,” court documents state.  Kayden Stanaway appears in Auckland District Court in September 2024 for his first appearance following the fatal shooting of Maxwel-Dee Repia in Grey Lynn. Photo / Michael Craig  It ended with what appeared to be four carefully aimed shots.  “Mr Stanaway adopted a standing firing stance by resting his elbows on the roof of the Mazda vehicle and taking aim with the firearm at Mr Repia’s group across the road,” according to the agreed facts.  History of animosity  Stanaway and Repia appeared to have made permanent enemies of each other sometime in early 2024, when Repia attempted to punch the defendant through a car window, the agreed facts state. The two teens squared off on that occasion but didn’t end up fighting.  The next documented confrontation happened in late February that year, when a 13-year-old friend of the defendant was allegedly beaten up and robbed by Repia and his associates. Stanaway and his associates retaliated by doing the same to one of Repia’s friends.  Stanaway claimed to authorities that on St Patrick’s Day that year, Repia and some others showed up at his home, initially threatening to shoot his 13-year-old sister. When Stanaway and his father confronted the group, armed with a hammer and a crowbar, Stanaway claimed that Repia again escalated the situation.  Maxwel-Dee Repia was fatally shot in Grey Lynn, Auckland, in September 2024. Photo / Supplied  “Mr Stanaway’s account is that Mr Repia pulled out the apparent firearm and pointed it at Mr Rama-Manga’s head, pulling the trigger,” court documents state. “The gun made a clicking sound but no bullets were released.”  Police, however, were never called.  Two weeks later, the defendant claimed, Repia and his associates showed up at the home around 1am “armed with a crowbar and ready for a fight”. They allegedly smashed windows to the house and to Stanaway’s car, tagging it with spray paint.  “Mr Repia and others attempted to enter the house through the front door; however, Mr Stanaway, his father and his cousin were able to hold the door closed and prevent their entry,” court documents state.  Police were later called to report the damage. A short time later, a fragile truce between the two groups was reached.  But animosity reignited four-and-a-half months later, in mid-August, when Repia and his associates allegedly forced their way into Stanaway’s family home and confronted his father and 17-year-old sister. Stanaway was not home, but the group demanded the keys to his new motorbike, the agreed facts state.  The intruders were holding bottles as weapons, Stanaway’s father would later recount. As they... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 22:27:31 Z /news/politics/eru-kapa-kingi-allegations-activist-doesn-t-regret-a-single-thing-on-te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-feud/ /news/politics/eru-kapa-kingi-allegations-activist-doesn-t-regret-a-single-thing-on-te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-feud/ The high-profile activist accused of threatening staff at Parliament last year says he doesn’t “regret a single thing” over his public feud with Te Pāti Māori.  Eru Kapa-Kingi’s comments follow the party emailing documents to all its members on Monday evening that accused him of making “threats of physical violence” and “inappropriate and vulgar” remarks to parliamentary staffers at a Budget Day protest in 2024.  Some of the comments Eru Kapa-Kingi is alleged to have made include: “You aren’t s***”, “Get f***ed” and “I will f***ing knock you out”.  Te Pāti Māori’s release of the documents was another inflection point in an ongoing dispute between Eru, who as spokesman for the Toitū te Tiriti movement was a central figure at Parliament for the May 2024 protest. Eru is the son of Te Pāti Māori MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, who was demoted and replaced as party whip last month. Eru previously worked in her office.  Toitū te Tiriti spokesman Eru Kapa-Kingi has yet to respond to the claims. Photo / Denise Piper  Eru broke with the party and earlier this month publicly accused it of having a dictatorial leadership style. He has not directly responded to the allegations in the documents released by Te Pāti Māori, first reported by the Herald yesterday.  In a new post on social media on Wednesday morning, Eru referenced reports of others in the party being frustrated with the leadership.  “These are the silenced voices, almost all wahine, I stood up for. I knew I would get dragged through the mud for it, but I don’t regret a single thing.”  He acknowledged some people would be feeling “confused, disappointed, even let down”.  “I suffered through those same emotions for years because I was a die hard TPM supporter, but then I saw things unfold on the inside. I tried multiple ways internally to fix the problems, and kept coming up short.”  Eru said he didn’t intend to “throw stones at anyone” but instead to “speak truth and stand on kaupapa”.  “Even through all of this, I am feeling so loved.”He finished by saying, “let’s fix our whare so we can roll this blardy government.”  Te Pāti Māori’s late-night email to all members  The allegations against the activist and former staffer were contained in a series of documents Te Pāti Māori emailed its members about 10pm Monday in what the party claims is a response to calls for transparency after it faced accusations of a dictatorial leadership style by Eru Kapa-Kingi. (In separate documents sent by Te Pāti Māori to members, officials raised concerns that Mariameno Kapa-Kingi was in danger of overspending her office’s budget by up to $133,000).  One of the documents included in the email from Te Pāti Māori to members was titled “Te Pāti Māori fact sheet – Eru Kapa-Kingi allegations” and details the creation of Toitū te Tiriti, how Eru Kapa-Kingi was established as spokesman and took on the role of party vice-president before resigning on March 25, citing in a resignation letter attached to the email he wanted to “focus on my own little whānau” and “protect the mana and tapu of the Toitū movement”.  The “fact sheet” referenced Eru Kapa-Kingi’s public claims “alleging Te Pāti Māori was led by a dictatorship, bullying and toxic”.  The document mentions Eru Kapa-Kingi’s contract with Parliamentary Service as a party staffer, which Te Pāti Māori alleged was “terminated for serious misconduct” before he returned working under a company, Tautoru Ltd, which the party claimed was a “way of circumventing Parliamentary Services termination”.  The document refers to a written account from a Parliamentary Service staffer about an alleged incident on “Budget day”, understood to be May 30, 2024, when Budget 24 was released.  Eru Kapa-Kingi, the Parliamentary staffer’s written account alleges, was abusive and made “threats of physical violence”.  The identity of the person who wrote the account is redacted in the... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 20:54:41 Z /news/national/truck-collides-with-freight-train-near-waikanae-railway-station-on-k%C4%81piti-coast-roads-closed/ /news/national/truck-collides-with-freight-train-near-waikanae-railway-station-on-k%C4%81piti-coast-roads-closed/ A truck driver has escaped uninjured after a collision with a freight train at a level crossing on the Kāpiti Coast this morning.  Roads are closed near Waikanae Railway Station after police were notified of an accident at 6.20am.  “Fortunately both the truck and train drivers are uninjured,” said a police spokesperson.  Images sent to the Herald show significant damage to the front of the truck, which was transporting a dump truck on its tray.  The freight train had come to a stop on the tracks.  Police said both the truck and train drivers are uninjured despite the large wreck. Photo / Darrin Bull  Police, Fire and Emergency New Zealand and Hato Hone St John vehicles could be seen blocking the road.  Motorists have been advised to follow the directions of emergency service staff at the scene.  Nearby resident Darrin Bull, who lives approximately 200m from the level crossing, told the Herald he didn’t see the accident but “certainly heard it”.  “I was outside. I heard the train horn and it didn’t stop. It was big and long and at the same time the brakes.  “You kind of thought, ‘this was interesting’, and then an almighty bang. The brakes and the horn kept going and then there was silence.”  A nearby resident said he heard the train's horn and brakes before an 'almighty bang', and then silence. Photo / Darrin Bull  Bull said there was a “whole stack of sirens” after the incident at dawn.  He visited the scene shortly after and said the train had travelled several hundred metres after the accident before coming to a stop.  “It’s just a mess, you can see the smashed up cab.”  Bull said he was surprised nobody had been injured in the crash.  “It’s a big truck. I would have thought the train driver might have been injured.”  He said quite a few roads around the scene had been closed and that there would be significant disruptions for “about a third of Waikanae”, who live on the other side of the train line.  KiwiRail said the Elizabeth St level crossing was “fully protected” with barrier arms, lights and bells. Photo / Darrin Bull  “That’s the only way out. There’s no way for them to get to work. There’s a school on that side, so if your kids are on this side of the train track they can’t get to school.  “It’s been a local community issue for some time, whenever something goes wrong with the signals or anything, about a third of Waikanae gets blocked off.”  A KiwiRail spokesperson told the Herald the Elizabeth St level crossing was “fully protected” with barrier arms, lights and bells.  “Emergency services are on site, and any further information on the incident should come from the police,” they said.  “It is causing some disruption, with Wellington commuter services terminating at Paraparaumu, and has also impacted the Capital Connection from Palmerston North, which is being bus replaced from Otaki.”  Tue, 14 Oct 2025 19:28:19 Z /news/national/mpi-investigating-report-of-mouldy-butter-sold-at-new-world-whangapar%C4%81oa/ /news/national/mpi-investigating-report-of-mouldy-butter-sold-at-new-world-whangapar%C4%81oa/ The Ministry of Primary Industries is investigating a report that mouldy butter has been sold at an Auckland supermarket.  A shopper bought a 500g block of Pams butter from New World Whangaparāoa last week. The packaging showed it was packed on July 1 and was “best before” January 1 next year.  “I opened it and there was mould all over it,” the shopper told the Herald.  She bought the butter late last week and complained in the hope that “other people or kids don’t get sick”.  Vincent Arbuckle, the deputy director-general of New Zealand Food Safety, an authority within the Ministry of Primary Industries, confirmed they had received a complaint.  “We are looking into the complaint to establish the facts,” Arbuckle said.  A customer complains she bought mouldy butter from New World Whangaparāoa in Auckland. Photo / Supplied  The Ministry of Primary Industries is looking into the complaint. Photo / Supplied  “As always, if there is a food safety risk to support a recall, this would be undertaken to protect consumers.  “Our advice to people who see unintended mould in any product, such as this, is to avoid eating it and contact the manufacturer or retailer.”  A spokesman for Foodstuffs, which owns Pams, admitted the problem.  “Recently, we’ve identified some quality issues with a few batches of Pams butter.”  Foodstuffs and Pams will be withdrawing the affected batches while it looks into the matter because “we only want to provide the highest quality butter”.  “We want to reassure customers it’s a quality issue and not a food safety issue.”  Foodstuffs and Pams also addressed ongoing rumours about a supposed change of recipe for their butter.  “There has been no change to the ingredients in Pams butter. It continues to be made in New Zealand using just cream and salt, with no added water.”  And the company also said it was natural for variability between butter batches.  “While we aim for consistency, being a natural product there is occasionally variability between batches. If anyone isn’t entirely happy with their butter, they can bring it back to the shop and we’ll swap it for another block.”  Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers business, breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.  Tue, 14 Oct 2025 18:22:27 Z /news/national/parole-board-says-wrong-way-auckland-motorway-driver-kingi-karanga-must-stay-in-prison-for-at-least-12-more-months/ /news/national/parole-board-says-wrong-way-auckland-motorway-driver-kingi-karanga-must-stay-in-prison-for-at-least-12-more-months/ A man who drove at speed the wrong way down Auckland motorways, then pointed a pistol at his ex while on parole, is considered an “undue risk” and must remain in prison.  Kingi Johnson Karanga is serving a number of cumulative jail terms, which add up to nine years and nine months, for offending since 2017.  Now, he will remain behind bars for at least another 12 months after the Parole Board considered his case recently.  It noted Karanga had failed a drug test in the past year, was being assessed for rehabilitation and that another Parole Board hearing in six months would be “too soon”.  Karanga’s most recent sentence, for armed burglary, was imposed in July and added 18 months on to jail terms he was already serving.  The latest offence related to an incident in which he pointed a gun at his ex-partner through her open bedroom window.  He left her house after the woman’s toddler son told him he was being “naughty” and to “go away”.  At the time of that offending, Karanga was on parole from prison, where he was sent after a day of mayhem in 2017, during which he drove at speed against the flow of traffic on two Auckland motorways.  The judge at his sentencing in 2018 said he was “literally holding my breath for other motorists” as he watched footage of Karanga’s driving taken from the police Eagle helicopter.  A man later identified as Kingi Karanga drives the wrong way along an Auckland motorway, against the flow of traffic, in October 2017.  The judge said Karanga’s “appalling” driving could easily have resulted in a fatal crash.  Karanga drove against Auckland motorway traffic on three occasions on the same afternoon in October 2017, trying to evade police and their Eagle helicopter as they tracked the stolen vehicle he was in.  Drove on three spiked tyres  On the last occasion, he continued to drive at speed on three deflated tyres after they had been punctured by road spikes.  Karanga, now 33, came to a stop and was arrested only when the ute he was driving hit two cars that had stopped in traffic.  He also caused another accident after punching a motorist while trying to hijack his car, prompting the dazed man to drive off and accelerate into a lamppost, leaving him with head injuries.  After the highway havoc, Karanga pleaded guilty to “endangering transport”, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison and is aimed at people who dangerously target transport facilities, including vehicles, ships, aircraft and navigation equipment.  The Crown also laid reckless driving charges as an alternative to endangering transport – a much less serious charge with a maximum penalty of three months in prison or a fine not exceeding $4500.  In the end, however, it was the three counts of “endangering transport” that stuck – one for each instance of driving the wrong way on the motorways.  The late Judge Ron Ronayne jailed Karanga for six years and nine months – a sentence that also took into account other offences, including attempting to unlawfully take a motor vehicle, assault with intent to rob, reckless and dangerous driving, failing to stop, resisting police, and burglary.  Later, Karanga received more jail time for an aggravated robbery.  Kingi Karanga was tracked by the police Eagle helicopter for his "appalling" driving in 2017 and again after offending in 2023. Photo / Supplied  Karanga was released on parole in March 2023.  The following November, he went to his partner’s house soon after their relationship ended, forced her bedroom window open and pointed a pistol at her while still standing outside.  He began grilling the woman about the father of her child, accusing her of resuming the relationship and demanding to see messages on her phone.  Toddler told him to go away  He appeared to have second thoughts after the woman’s toddler told him to go away.  Karanga... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 18:08:01 Z /news/national/air-new-zealand-flight-to-taup%C5%8D-forced-to-turn-back-for-engineering-inspections/ /news/national/air-new-zealand-flight-to-taup%C5%8D-forced-to-turn-back-for-engineering-inspections/ An Air New Zealand flight headed to Taupō was diverted back to Auckland after the pilot was alerted to potential engineering concerns. According to Flightradar24, the aircraft almost made the entire journey to Taupō before circling back. Flight NZ5095 departed from Auckland at 4.55pm and landed back in the city at 5.35pm. The flight usually takes about 50 minutes. Air New Zealand chief operating officer Alex Marren told the Herald that NZ5095 returned to Auckland this evening for engineering inspections after pilots noted a system indication during the flight. The aircraft was undergoing an inspection with the engineering team and customers were being reaccommodated on the next alternative service. “We want to thank our customers for their patience as we work to get them safely to their destination,” Marren said. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 07:51:12 Z /news/national/foxton-baby-death-man-arrested-charged-with-murder-of-6-month-old/ /news/national/foxton-baby-death-man-arrested-charged-with-murder-of-6-month-old/ A man has been charged with murder in relation to the death of a 6-month-old baby in the North Island town of Foxton. Emergency services were called to a property on Seabury Ave on June 29 after a baby was found with critical injuries. The child was airlifted to Starship children’s hospital in Auckland but died on July 5. Horowhenua Mayor Bernie Wanden previously described the news as “very sad and tragic”. Police arrested a 25-year-old man in Tauranga today. He is due to appear in the Tauranga District Court on Wednesday charged with murder. In a statement, police said they would continue to support the baby’s family through this “incredibly distressing time”. “Police have undertaken a thorough and diligent investigation and we are pleased to put someone before the courts to be held to account for this tragic death.” Tue, 14 Oct 2025 07:41:55 Z /news/national/young-man-accused-of-sexually-violating-female-friend-as-teens-hung-out/ /news/national/young-man-accused-of-sexually-violating-female-friend-as-teens-hung-out/ A teenage girl’s self-harming led to disclosures of an alleged sexual assault by a teen boy she’d become friends with. The teen, who is now a young man, is on trial in the Tauranga District Court, charged with sexual violation and an alternative charge of sexual conduct with a young person. The then-15-year-old girl and the 16-year-old boy, who has name suppression, were in the same friend group and had been hanging out regularly. The Crown said on the evening of the alleged assault the group were gathered at the boy’s house, where they were instructed by his dad to keep the door open as they retreated to a bedroom. The five sat on a single mattress, leaning up against the wall, listening to music and chatting. A trial is under way in the Tauranga District Court, where a young man denies sexually violating a female friend as a teenager. The court heard one boy fell asleep early in the evening and the girl said at some point her best friend and the best friend’s boyfriend left the room. It was at that point the teen began to kiss her. Under cross-examination, she attempted to explain how she responded in terms of whether she kissed him back, saying “I did, but I didn’t”. Under re-examination, she explained she had kissed back briefly at first but then stopped. When asked about what happened next, she said she was clear: he had unbuttoned her jeans and used his hand to violate her. She said he also took her hand and used it on himself. The girl said she said no, but under cross-examination clarified this was in the form of a “whisper”. She also said she mumbled, “I don’t want this”. She claims the teen told her “it’s okay” and continued the violation. She said she became “frozen” and told the court she “didn’t know what to do” and had her legs “glued shut”, but he continued. The court heard she was 15 at the time and had never done “anything like that before”. She said she may have been expecting a kiss but nothing more and was aware the teen was older than her. She said the alleged violation happened when the lights were off, and in the 15 or so minutes before she got a text from her mum to say she’d arrived to pick her and her friend up. The court heard she’d felt the phone vibrate under her leg as the alleged violation was happening and pulled her hand away to retrieve it. She saw the message, stood up, buttoned up her jeans and told her friend they needed to leave. She couldn’t be sure if her friend had been in the room the whole time, as “it was dark”. She said it was all a “blur” when the alleged sexual contact was happening, and she was focused on what was happening, not on the rest of the room. However, she recalled her friend had been in the room when she said it was time to go and the friend saw her buttoning up her jeans. However, the friend told the teen’s lawyer, in her evidence, that she couldn’t remember seeing the girl buttoning up her pants. She said she never left the girl’s side in the evening and never saw anything other than kissing between the girl and the teen. However, she did say there were times during the night when she was kissing her own boyfriend, not looking at the other two. The teen claims nothing other than kissing happened and denies they were ever left alone in the room. The friend confirmed that some weeks later the girl told her about the alleged violation, but she didn’t see it happen at the time. The teen’s lawyer, Rachael Adams, said in her opening statement all that happened was a teenage hook-up – some making out and cuddling. “What we used to call pashing,” she said. When the teen had become the subject of “ugly allegations and gossip”, the girl had “buyer’s remorse”, was “embarrassed” and had shifted from wishing she hadn’t done it to saying she didn’t choose to do it. The girl made a formal complaint more than a year after the alleged events of the night. A ‘range of red flags’, says Crown In the Crown opening, prosecutor Laura Clay said the girl’s mother would give evidence... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 07:35:36 Z /news/auckland/influencers-worst-auckland-train-ride-at-defends-delays-for-once-in-a-generation-upgrade-works/ /news/auckland/influencers-worst-auckland-train-ride-at-defends-delays-for-once-in-a-generation-upgrade-works/ Auckland Transport has set the record straight after an influencer couple described their public transport journey from Auckland Airport to Waitematā (Britomart) Station as the “worst” they’ve encountered while travelling. Sagar and Ami, self-described “fulltime budget travellers”, recently returned to New Zealand to film content for their Instagram. They are currently traversing the country in a van, documenting their experiences with their 17,000 followers. In a video posted on September 22, the couple said that after spending 15 months away in more than two dozen countries, they “didn’t think anything could surprise” them. “But Auckland trains? Oh, they delivered.” Sagar and Ami paid $10 for a one-way trip, which they claimed took one hour “on a good day” and had a top speed of 5km/h. They alleged “random cancellations” and “no warnings” were a “bonus feature” and said the drive time was only 24 minutes – less than half that of the public transport journey. “If you’ve ever survived Auckland public transport ... respect. You deserve a medal,” they wrote. “We’ve travelled to 26 countries ... But this is the worst public transport.” The video continues to gain traction, garnering more than 563,000 views and nearly 12,000 likes while attracting hundreds of comments from Kiwis. Most agreed with the influencers’ assertions, citing under-investment in the network and a lack of options for commuters. Stacey van der Putten, Auckland Transport’s director of public transport and active modes, told the Herald there were delays through September and October because of rail infrastructure maintenance and upgrades. Auckland Transport says the rail network faced disruptions through September and October because of maintenance and upgrade projects. Photo / Jason Oxenham Although these were completed last week, they caused “minor disruptions to the network when Sagar and Ami were travelling”. “These works were communicated weeks in advance by KiwiRail and AT [Auckland Transport], with comprehensive customer information included on the AT website and in the AT Mobile App.” The couple’s journey took place in the “middle of a once-in-a-generation upgrade as AT, KiwiRail and City Rail Link [CRL] crews work around the clock to get the network ready for CRL opening in 2026, which will provide a better, faster service bringing Auckland in line with other international cities″, van der Putten said. Because of the disruptions, Sagar and Ami had to take the Southern line to its current terminus at Waitematā from Homai Station, near Manurewa. “This train trip would normally take about 45 minutes, but during the September/October school holidays, passengers needed to transfer to a rail replacement bus for stations south of Puhinui Station,” van der Putten said. AT’s records showed trains were travelling along the Southern line at regular speeds, “averaging up to 65km/h between stops”, disproving the couple’s claims that the top speed was 5km/h. Meanwhile, the cancellations shown on their phone were for a separate train line to theirs – the Onehunga line – and were “due to a track infrastructure issue that KiwiRail crews worked to promptly fix”, Van der Putten added. “They also unfortunately missed an opportunity to save money by using a credit card, debit card or AT Hop card at the station gates, which would have brought their adult fares down from $10 to $7.65.” All four lines – Southern, Eastern, Western and Onehunga – are scheduled for partial closures this weekend, with the network fully closed over Labour Weekend for further works. The CRL is expected to open in 2026, although an exact date is yet to be confirmed. Tom Rose is an Auckland-based journalist who covers breaking news, specialising in lifestyle, entertainment and travel. He joined the Herald in 2023. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 03:37:19 Z /news/world/australian-doctors-warn-of-excessive-medical-weed-prescriptions/ /news/world/australian-doctors-warn-of-excessive-medical-weed-prescriptions/ Australia’s medical cannabis industry is “excessively” prescribing weed with little oversight and needs urgent regulation, the country’s top doctors’ association and pharmacists warned today. Legalised for medical use in 2016, Australians are estimated to have spent up to US$500 million ($874m) on licit pot last year, according to a think-tank. Today, the Australian Medical Association (AMA) and the Pharmacy Guild of Australia said the industry was too often issuing prescriptions without “proper clinical oversight”. “Urgent action is needed to ensure medicinal cannabis is prescribed, dispensed and regulated in the same manner as other registered drugs of dependence,” AMA president Danielle McMullen said. While acknowledging evidence suggesting medical cannabis can help treat epilepsy, chemotherapy-induced nausea, or multiple sclerosis, the association warned the system was being “exploited”. “There is little, or no evidence base for many of the conditions for which it is being prescribed, such as anxiety, insomnia, or depression,” McMullen said. In its submission to an Australian Government inquiry into the industry, the AMA called for “comprehensive reform” of the way medical cannabis was bought and sold. Members working in emergency departments were calling for more resources to deal with growing numbers of patients with cases related to excessive intake of cannabis, including psychosis, the association said. “Alarmingly, doctors are seeing medicinal cannabis use in people who have pre-existing psychotic conditions.” The AMA warned that telehealth models – in which patients can be issued prescriptions online without an in-person doctor visit – were being “exploited as commercial pathways for unapproved products”. This year, newspaper the Age revealed that one doctor working for medical cannabis giant Montu had issued 72,000 prescriptions to 10,000 patients in just two years. In some instances, the newspaper reported, consultations with patients were scheduled to last no longer than 10 minutes. The global medical cannabis market is expected to grow to over US$65 billion by 2030, according to consulting firm Grand View Research. -Agence France-Presse Tue, 14 Oct 2025 03:01:46 Z /news/business/windows-10-qa-how-can-i-get-security-updates-for-another-year-for-free/ /news/business/windows-10-qa-how-can-i-get-security-updates-for-another-year-for-free/ Microsoft is today officially pulling the plug on Windows 10 - its 10-year-old operating system that still runs hundreds of thousands of computers in New Zealand, and hundreds of millions around the world. The tech giant will no longer provide security updates for the software, meaning it will become more exposed to hackers over time. Microsoft says software first released in 2015 just can’t be endlessly tweaked around the edges to keep up with modern security threats, many of which simply didn’t exist 10 years ago. At some point, you have to upgrade to a fundamentally redesigned system. Is this really the end? Nope. There’s essentially been a stay of execution. On the heels of lobbying by groups like Consumer NZ, Microsoft created an Extended Security Updates program (known as ESU) that will keep updating Windows 10 PCs until October 13, 2026. And you can enrol in the extended upgrade programme for free - if you’re using Windows 10 for personal use. Go to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update then click “Enrol now”. All you have to do is choose the option to back up your PC’s settings to a OneDrive account (Microsoft’s cloud or online storage). You’re not backing up your whole computer, just a few lines of settings, so a basic free OneDrive account is fine. You also have the option to redeem Microsoft rewards points - which you’ll likely have accumulated if you’re an Xbox player - but simply backing up should be fine for most people. Microsoft has instructions here. What if I’m using Windows 10 for business? Then you’ve got to pay $50.40 (per computer) to join the extended update program. Can I just fib and say my work PC is for home? No. Not if Microsoft detects it has Active Directory Services or Entra ID enabled, indicating it’s on a business network. But I still want to get off the creaky Windows 10 at some point, right? What will it cost to upgrade my computer to Windows 11? Nothing. Microsoft is offering free upgrades. What’s the catch? Your computer has to have enough horsepower to run Windows 11. There’s probably a better chance than you’d think, going by some coverage. Windows 11 - released four years ago - has relatively modest hardware requirements, such as 4GB of RAM. Microsoft has a free app that will tell you if your PC can handle Windows 11. Download it here. What if my PC’s not powerful enough to run Windows 11 - or it will, but it’s just too sluggish with my 4GB of RAM and other bare-minimum specs? You have to buy a new computer. Can’t I just install a free operating system like Linux to run my PC instead? My mate knows how. Not if you want to use all the apps you’re using today, in the same way. For most people, it’s not a viable option. Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 02:49:50 Z /news/national/more-than-1500-bay-of-plenty-secondary-teachers-striking-over-pay-dispute/ /news/national/more-than-1500-bay-of-plenty-secondary-teachers-striking-over-pay-dispute/ Senior and area school teachers are the latest to take strike action, with more than 1500 in the Bay of Plenty set to walk off the job over their pay dispute with the Government. This includes 800 in the western Bay of Plenty and about 450 in Rotorua. A business leader says the strikes could hit local companies, and another says small- and medium-sized operators may have limited sympathy for public servants seeking pay rises in a tight economy. About 21,000 Post-Primary Teachers Association (PPTA) members voted last week to take partial rolling strikes, affecting different year groups on separate days this week, among other action. They will join nurses, midwives, other healthcare workers, and primary teachers in a nationwide mega-strike on October 23, with more than 8000 Bay of Plenty workers walking off the job that day. Bay of Plenty regional PPTA chairwoman Kim Wilson said its members taught from Years 7 to 13 in state and state-integrated schools, including area schools. It had about 450 members in the wider Rotorua area and 250 around the Eastern Bay of Plenty. Rotorua members would be picketing from 7.30am to 8am on Wednesday, outside Lakes High School and on the corner of Malfroy and Old Taupō Rds. Western Bay of Plenty regional PPTA chairwoman Julie Secker said there were 800 PPTA members from Katikati to Te Puke. Members would picket outside Otumoetai College at 8am on Thursday, with more being planned. PPTA Te Wehengarua president Chris Abercrombie said members “strongly endorsed” strike action. Negotiations between the PPTA and the Government began in August, and teachers voted to strike over a proposed pay increase of 1% every year for three years. Abercrombie told RNZ the latest offer of a 2.5% pay increase after settlement and 2% a year later was “worse” and could mean no further pay rises for up to 24 months. Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche, who is negotiating with the teachers, urged the union to return to the bargaining table. Public Service Commissioner Sir Brian Roche. Photo / 九一星空无限 Roche is also bargaining with the primary school teacher unions. Roche told RNZ he believed the offer for teachers was “fair and fiscally responsible”. Associate Education Minister David Seymour defended the pay offer, saying the teachers’ pay had increased by 14% over the past few years and 60% of teachers earned more than $100,000. Also striking this week are NZ Professional Firefighter Union members, including 50 in Tauranga and 70 in Rotorua who will walk off the job for an hour on Friday. Union president Joanne Watson said support staff, communication staff, health and safety and risk reduction officers, and trainers would join firefighters on strike.Tauranga Senior Firefighter Steven Opie (left) and Senior Station Officer Curtis van Heyden, along with other career firefighters, are taking industrial action for better pay, staffing, and operational resources. Photo / Sandra Conchie While the union was not striking on October 23, off-duty members would support the mass strike. Tauranga Business Chamber chief executive Matt Cowley said there could be public support for critical public services to be optimally resourced. “However, requests for public servant pay rises are unlikely to get much support from local small and medium business owners, as many have seen their take-home pay drop to cover their business’s rising costs and slow revenue in this tight economy.” Rotorua Business Chamber president Paul Ingram said these strikes had the potential to “negatively impact” Rotorua businesses faced with significant challenges due to the current economic climate. “For example, team members of local businesses will likely need to take unplanned leave to provide care for children who would otherwise be in school.” He said it was important to find a balance between financial constraints and the “well-being and equity for all workers.” Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 02:30:53 Z /news/auckland/auckland-s-yum-cha-restaurants-running-out-of-steam/ /news/auckland/auckland-s-yum-cha-restaurants-running-out-of-steam/ By Duoya Lu of RNZ Several established Chinese restaurants in Auckland renowned for serving authentic Cantonese dim sum have gone into liquidation in recent months. Some of the Chinese eateries still standing say they are struggling to stay in business. Yum cha, a Cantonese dining tradition that pairs tea consumption with small, shared dishes known as dim sum, has long been a hallmark of Chinese restaurants nationwide. Now, however, the long-standing tradition is under strain. Sluggish consumer spending, rising operational costs and changing dining habits have forced some operators to shut their doors. Imperial Palace Restaurant, which opened in Mt Wellington in 2009, was placed into liquidation on June 4. Dragonboat Restaurant was placed into liquidation in July. Photo / RNZ, Yiting Lin One month later, Dragonboat Restaurant in central Auckland was also placed in liquidation after operating for 31 years. By the end of August, renowned yum cha operator Sun World Seafood Restaurant in Newmarket had met the same fate. According to the liquidators’ report, the restaurant suffered a severe cashflow deficit during the Covid-19 pandemic and had been unable to recover financially. Despite efforts to stabilise operations, the business continued to be affected by the broader economic downturn and sustained increases in key operating costs. Ocean Yu found it hard to close Star Cafe Seafood Restaurant. Photo / RNZ, Yiting Lin Ocean Yu, director of popular Cantonese outlet Star Cafe Seafood Restaurant, said he had made the painful decision to close his restaurant on the North Shore on September 30 after six years of business. Yu said the end of the lease and a sharp decline in customers from 2023 were key reasons behind the closure. He said customers had begun dining out less frequently and become more selective about where they spent their money. “Now people only go out for special occasions, like birthdays or wedding anniversaries,” Yu said. “Most of the time, household spending has tightened significantly.” Yu said an increasingly competitive market had also contributed to the closure of many Chinese eateries specialising in yum cha. “There’s been a wave of Chinese restaurants opening on Auckland’s North Shore,” he said. “There used to be just four or five yum cha places here – now there are nearly 10. However, the customer base is limited.” Star Cafe Seafood Restaurant closed its doors in September. Photo / RNZ, Yiting Lin He said shifting migrant demographics posed another challenge. Most of his customers were typically older than 35 years old, mainly families and senior diners, he said. However, that core audience had slowly shrunk as younger migrants arrived, he said. “Yum cha restaurants will still be around,” he said. “But the shift in customer age could lead to fewer of them,” he said. “Older diners used to go for yum cha every week, but the younger generation doesn’t see it that way. “I’ve noticed the trend. That’s why I have decided not to invest any more money in it.” Yu said while he planned to open a new Chinese restaurant, he ruled out starting another yum cha establishment. Slashing prices Zhuolun He, owner of Golden Rooster Chinese Restaurant in Auckland’s Rosedale, is originally from China’s Guangdong province and has a deep connection to his hometown cuisine, one of the main reasons he continues to serve Cantonese dim sum to his customers. “Yum cha is more than just a meal – it’s a tradition and part of daily life,” he said. “Many seniors, community groups and families like to come in the morning for dim sum and tea, forming a regular crowd. “When the economy is good, I see these regulars almost every day. We would chat and catch up. … That’s how social bonds are built.” Although his customers still enjoyed the food, he noticed a significant drop in foot traffic this year. “Two years ago, most of my customers were middle-income professionals - they’re all gone now,” he said. “Some returned a few months ago... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 02:22:37 Z /news/national/pak-nsave-rolleston-south-island-s-biggest-supermarket-opens-its-doors/ /news/national/pak-nsave-rolleston-south-island-s-biggest-supermarket-opens-its-doors/ Rolleston has a new local landmark today, with the South Island’s largest supermarket officially opening its doors. At 8100sq m and representing a $40 million-plus investment, Pak’nSave Rolleston brings both scale and substance to New Zealand’s fastest-growing district. About 270 people have joined the store’s team, making it one of the largest single employers in Selwyn, two months before the original schedule. From the moment the doors opened this morning, customers were welcomed with bustling aisles, a bakery churning out its first loaves and speciality donuts, butchers serving fresh cuts and hot food ready to go. Foodstuffs South Island chief executive Mary Devine said the opening marks the beginning of a new chapter for Selwyn. “This is more than a supermarket – it’s a community hub built to last for generations. The scale, resilience and sustainable design mean Rolleston is well-served today, and well-prepared for tomorrow,” she said. Pak'nSave Rolleston officially opened its doors today. The IL3-standard design, rooftop solar and back-up generator capability gives greater assurance it can keep operating during and after major events – a first for Selwyn supermarkets. The store is owned and operated by Phill and Sarah Blackburn, who are experienced grocers with a reputation for putting their community first. The Blackburns have over 24 years of grocery experience under their belts, having previously owned and operated Pak’nSave Riccarton, New World Ilam, New World Balclutha and managing New World Wānaka. “We’re incredibly proud to welcome our community and customers through the doors today,” Phill Blackburn said. “Our team has worked tirelessly to get ready and it’s fantastic to finally see all the planning come to fruition.” Sarah Blackburn added: “What excites us most is being part of Rolleston’s and Selwyn’s story. This is a fast-growing, vibrant community and we want people to walk through our doors and feel like this is their supermarket – built for them by a co-operative that invests in and cares for communities and with locals on the team.” Alongside their engagement with local schools and aligning with the E Tū Tāngata programme, the Blackburns have been connecting with the community through the Selwyn District Council, police and iwi, all part of their commitment to being a strong partner from day one. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 01:48:38 Z /news/auckland/new-lynn-bus-interchange-reopens-after-crash-investigation-begins/ /news/auckland/new-lynn-bus-interchange-reopens-after-crash-investigation-begins/ An investigation is under way and a section of a West Auckland station remains closed after a bus crash that left the vehicle smoking. Auckland Transport said all bus stops at the New Lynn bus interchange had reopened at 5am after the bus involved in the incident was removed. “The immediate section of the interchange that was damaged remains closed while our teams assess the damage and investigate repair options,” AT said. “Bus services that stop at New Lynn Station are running normally and we have asked bus drivers to take extra care while driving in the area.” AT is investigating the cause of the crash and is working with the bus company while it conducts an internal review. The bus crashed into the station about 4.30pm yesterday and smoke appeared to be coming from the battery compartment. NZ Herald Morning 九一星空无限 Update | World leaders sign Gaza peace deal and KiwiSaver's cost savingsThe bus smashed into a glass veranda that covered a waiting area and damaged a glass wall. Smoke was seen coming from the battery compartment of the electric bus after crashed. Photo / Supplied “I had thought it was actually a big bin fallen from a crane or something,” a witness told the Herald, “it was that loud. She hit it real hard but all the passengers walked off.” One person was injured in the incident and treated at the scene. Photo / Michael Sprague The witness also described it as “the loudest bang ever heard”. Images showed the bus at near right angles to the road, blocking it for other vehicles and with its nose pressed against the building. Parts of the bus’ bodywork came off in the crash and left the electric battery compartment on the roof exposed. Bus routes were detoured at the time and caused significant delays to services travelling to and from New Lynn. AT also said it worked with emergency services to make the area safe. Hato Hone St John said they responded to the incident, treating one person in a minor condition at the scene. Police said they were investigating and have been approached for further comment. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 01:17:11 Z /news/national/coroner-finds-sub-optimal-record-keeping-before-post-op-death-of-gisborne-woman/ /news/national/coroner-finds-sub-optimal-record-keeping-before-post-op-death-of-gisborne-woman/ Doctors performing surgery on a high-risk patient in Gisborne were not aware of health information that could have made the woman an unsuitable candidate for the operation. Janet Roberta Milner died, aged 50, at Waikato Hospital on July 18, 2021, days after she had undergone bariatric surgery in the form of a laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy stomach removal at Chelsea Private Hospital in Gisborne. Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy is keyhole surgery where the bulk of the stomach is removed, leaving a slender “sleeve” of stomach in place. It makes a person feel full with only a small amount of food by physically restricting the amount the person can eat at any one time. Coroner Bruce Hesketh, in his findings released today, said Milner was “not an appropriate candidate for bariatric surgery” in view of her significant comorbidities, extremely high BMI (body mass index), mixed cardiac disease and having a mechanical heart valve that was incorrectly identified to both the surgeon and anaesthetist. “Had they known, I am satisfied that a different post-operative care plan would have been arranged.” Private surgery sought Milner had moved back from Christchurch to her birthplace of Gisborne in 2018. She consulted with her GP, Dr Mark Devcich of Waikohu Health Centre, in December 2020 about laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy surgery. Devcich recorded that she fell just outside of the criteria for being accepted for the surgery in the public health system. Milner weighed 167kg at the time of her death. Her BMI was recorded as 60kg/sq m. Obesity is defined as a BMI above 30. Severe or extreme obesity is any BMI over 40. She decided to have the surgery privately and made an appointment with Peter Stiven, a general, laparoscopic and upper GI Surgeon and endoscopist in Gisborne, after consulting with John Fleischl, a general, laparoscopic and bariatric surgeon in Hastings. A letter from Fleischl, a referral letter from Dr Devcich and Milner herself in her consultation with Stiven all incorrectly stated her mechanical heart valve was an aortic valve. “I am satisfied the weakness in the chain of these events was Dr Devcich not reviewing his notes properly and Ms Milner providing Mr Fleischl the incorrect description of her heart valve,” Coroner Hesketh wrote. “Despite the lack of fixed rules around referrals, this case is a reminder of the importance of any medical professional reviewing the past medical history of a patient to ensure a full medical history is recorded.” Coroner Hesketh said the knowledge of the type of valve would have had “direct bearing” upon the post-operative care to be administered. He also said a cardiologist had reviewed Milner in 2018, in Christchurch, before she returned to Gisborne. “Dr Devcich should have reviewed his patient notes properly and referred to that cardiac report in his referral to Mr Stiven so that he and Dr Hirling [the anaesthetist] would be aware of all the risk factors (Dr Devcich accepts this adverse comment). “Given the plan Mr Stiven had in terms of Ms Milner’s surgery and recovery and now being aware of the true extent of her past medical history, I am not satisfied Janet Milner was an appropriate candidate for the surgery on 14 July 2021 in terms of that plan. “That is not a criticism of either Mr Stiven or Dr Hirling, they did not know Ms Milner was supporting a Mitral valve.” Lack of record-keeping ‘unacceptable practice’ Milner had her surgery at Chelsea Hospital in Gisborne on July 14, 2021 and no issues were apparent the day after. The coroner was satisfied Chelsea Hospital staff were all experienced in laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy surgery and care. Chelsea Hospital had been offering the surgery for over four years at that time and usually completed 12-14 procedures a year. By the late afternoon of July 16, however, Milner’s heart rate became erratic and she experienced low oxygen levels. “By 9pm, Ms Milner was complaining of a heaviness in her chest and was coughing up mucous,”... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 01:09:08 Z /news/national/hooded-teenager-who-stormed-field-punched-player-in-schoolboy-rugby-game-at-gisborne-referred-to-youth-services/ /news/national/hooded-teenager-who-stormed-field-punched-player-in-schoolboy-rugby-game-at-gisborne-referred-to-youth-services/ Police have identified a hooded teenager who was videoed storming the field during a schoolboy rugby game and punching a teenage player in the head. Footage of the May 30 attack, during the first half of a Super 8 Rugby First XV game between Napier Boys’ High School and Gisborne Boys’ High School, went viral on social media. It’s understood the assailant was visiting Gisborne from Wellington when the assault took place and was not connected to the local school. Police launched an investigation into the incident but weeks later were yet to speak to the offender. However, in a statement to the Herald last month, a spokesman said a young person had now been interviewed in relation to the assault and the matter referred to the Youth Services team. “Police are not looking for anyone else in relation to this matter.” A hooded man stormed the field during an altercation in a school rugby match and punched a player from Napier Boys' High School. Photo / Whakaata Māori Pressed for further details about the young person, police confirmed he was a teenage male, but declined to provide further information given his age. Gisborne Boys’ High School principal Tom Cairns said the teenager was not a member of the school community, had never been enrolled at the school “and is unknown to us”. “My understanding is that this person does not even live in Gisborne or our region.” Play was disrupted when a high tackle sparked an on-field stoush at the Gisborne ground. A hooded man (on the right) makes his way on to the field from the sideline before striking a Napier player. Photo / Whakaata Māori A broadcast of the game shows a Napier Boys’ player lying injured on the field after the tackle. One of his teammates then pushes the Gisborne player responsible for the tackle, and other Napier teammates join in. The hooded teen then runs along the sidelines and appears to swing at the Napier Boys’ player involved in the initial altercation. Gisborne Boys’ High earlier told the Herald the assailant had been identified and his name passed to police on the day of the attack. In a statement the following day, a police spokeswoman said police were making inquiries, which included locating and speaking to those involved. “This behaviour is not acceptable and we will be doing all we can to hold those responsible accountable.” Cairns attended the match along with All Blacks coach Scott Robertson. “Just after halftime, there was a high tackle event and a bit of push and shove.” Cairns said no punches were thrown by either team. “Then a person has entered from the side of the field and he has punched one of the Napier players. “That person was removed by the associate principal. Then a member of the public has dragged that person away. “He was unknown to school staff. He’s not a member or old boy of the school. He has nothing to do with our school community.” Cairns said Gisborne eventually won the match 13-7, but the event was “marred” by the incident. “Certainly, we don’t condone or tolerate that sort of violence. It’s pretty disgusting that someone would do that.” Napier Boys’ High School principal Simon Coe declined to comment. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 01:02:09 Z /news/business/aramex-and-gosweetspot-settle-cartel-conduct-proceedings-with-comcom/ /news/business/aramex-and-gosweetspot-settle-cartel-conduct-proceedings-with-comcom/ Two of New Zealand’s largest courier services have reached a settlement with the Commerce Commission for engaging in cartel conduct. Aramex New Zealand and Sweetspot Group Limited, which operates GoSweetSpot, agreed to resolve the separate proceedings with the commission following civil action in the High Court. The two companies now await a penalty hearing. The commission does not allege that Aramex and GoSweetSpot entered into an agreement with each other. Instead, Aramex has admitted to entering into and giving effect to a contractual arrangement that allocated customers and fixed prices between itself and another competitor in the courier services market. Separately, GoSweetSpot has admitted to entering into and giving effect to contractual arrangements that allocated customers between itself and another competitor in the courier services market. Both of the contracts were negotiated in the context of reseller/carrier arrangements, the commission said. Aramex provides courier transportation services to customers, while GoSweetSpot is a reseller, which “brokers” the provision of courier transportation services to customers. Both resellers and carriers can compete for the same customers. Cartel conduct is illegal under the Commerce Act 1986. A cartel is where two or more businesses agree not to compete with each other. Cartel conduct can include price fixing, sharing markets, rigging bids or restricting output of goods and services. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:57:46 Z /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-email-to-members-alleges-eru-kapa-kingi-threatened-parliament-staff-at-protest/ /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-email-to-members-alleges-eru-kapa-kingi-threatened-parliament-staff-at-protest/ Documents released by Te Pāti Māori accuse high-profile activist and son of one its MPs of making “threats of physical violence” and “inappropriate and vulgar” remarks to Parliamentary staffers. Some of the comments Eru Kapa-Kingi is alleged to have made include: “You aren’t shit”, “Get f” and “I will f* knock you out”. Eru Kapa-Kingi, the son of Te Pāti Māori MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, has not responded to multiple requests to comment about the allegations against him but posted on social media this morning: “The life of a whistleblower. I am not responding to any media. Will put out a statement in response soon.” The allegations were contained in a series of documents Te Pāti Māori emailed its members about 10pm Monday in what the party claims is a response to calls for transparency after it faced accusations of a dictatorial leadership style by Eru Kapa-Kingi. (In separate documents sent by Te Pāti Māori to members officials raised concerns that Mariameno Kapa-Kingi was in danger of overspending her office’s budget by up to $133,000). Eru Kapa-Kingi, spokesperson for Toitū te Tiriti. Photo / Alex Cairns. Eru Kapa-Kingi, as spokesperson for the Toitū te Tiriti movement, was a central figure at Parliament for the May 2024 protest, which was sparked by the Government policies relating to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, co-governance, and the repeal of smokefree legislation. One of the documents included in last night’s email from Te Pāti Māori to members was titled “Te Pāti Māori fact sheet - Eru Kapa-Kingi allegations” and details the creation of Toitū te Tiriti, how Eru Kapa-Kingi was established as spokesperson and took on the role as party vice-president before resigning on March 25, citing in a resignation letter attached to the email he wanted to “focus on my own little whānau” and “protect the mana and tapu of the Toitū movement”. The “fact sheet” referenced Eru Kapa-Kingi’s public claims “alleging Te Pāti Māori was led by a dictatorship, bullying and toxic”. The document mentions Eru Kapa-Kingi’s contract with Parliamentary Service as a party staffer, which Te Pāti Māori alleged was “terminated for serious misconduct” before he returned working under a company, Tautoru Ltd, which the party claimed was a “way of circumventing Parliamentary Services termination”. The document refer to a written account from a Parliamentary Service staffer about an alleged incident on “Budget day”, understood to be May 30, 2024 when Budget 24 was released. Eru Kapa-Kingi, the Parliamentary staffer’s written account alleges, was abusive and made “threats of physical violence”. The identity of person who wrote the account is redacted in the Te Pāti Māori email to members. Toitū te Tiriti spokesperson Eru Kapa-Kingi has yet to respond to the claims. Photo / Denise Piper The Parliamentary staffer alleged Eru Kapa-Kingi used include vulgar language and made references to race. Some of the alleged comments include: “You aren’t shit”, “Get f” and “I will f* knock you out”. “The language he used had a very aggressive tone and came across with a lot of hatred and intimidation,” the Parliamentary Service staff member alleged in their account. “With the combination of the abuse, language and racism displayed by Eru, I firmly believed that he was going to go through with his threats of physical violence towards either myself or [redacted].” The staffer also claimed Eru Kapa-Kingi said to security staff, “Do you know who I am?”, “Do you know who my family is?”, and “You are going to be so embarrassed and f when you find out”. “Words such as this I believe were used to try and intimidate [redacted] and myself, hoping that we would back down from the situation, let him get away with what he had done and not take things further,” the Parliamentary staffer said in the document released by Te Pāti Māori. The staffer called for Eru Kapa-Kingi to be “dismissed from his current employment” and is “denied the ability to reapply for a ‘fami... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:47:49 Z /news/national/waikato-towns-cut-off-emergency-centre-set-up-in-ruapehu-as-swollen-rivers-threaten-homes/ /news/national/waikato-towns-cut-off-emergency-centre-set-up-in-ruapehu-as-swollen-rivers-threaten-homes/ An emergency centre has been set up and homes are under threat from rising rivers with residents starting to self-evacuate as the rain continues to drench western and central districts of the North Island. Footage has emerged of trucks winding through the treacherous Awakino Gorge navigating large slips and flooding, as Auckland now sits under a heavy rain watch. Roads are flooded and heavy rain has triggered slips across Waikato highways, with motorists trapped and communities cut off. The Ruapehu District Council says rain is falling at rates not anticipated and the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) has been activated, with at least one family self-evacuating due to rising rivers. Homes in the township of Ōhura are under threat due to the Mangaroa Stream, which is continuing to rise. Police say they’re aware of some vehicles “unable to move” after “significant weather” has made State Highway 3 in the Awakino Gorge impassable at places. The road will be closed until late this afternoon. Many settlements, including Awakino, Māhoenui, Matiere and Ōhura, are cut off. State Highways 30, 31, 43 and 4 are also closed after huge slips, along with many smaller roads, with some at risk of washing away entirely. Homes under threat, family evacuates in Ruapehu Ruapehu Civil Defence Controller Clive Manley said there are reports homes are under threat near the Mangaroa Stream in Ōhura and at least one family has had to self-evacuate The Ōhura River is also close to breaching its banks, with a family in Maitere, a town that sits near the river, being forced to self-evacaute. Manley said the council’s Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) has been partically activated, with rain falling at levels not anticipated. Ōhura and Mangapapa Rds are both closed, with road closure signs in place at SH4 and the base of the Ōkahukura Saddle. A “major” slip is preventing any travel north of Taumarunui, Manley said, and the Ōhura, Maitere and Tokorima townships in northern Ruapehu are currently isolated from slips and flooding across local access roads. Manley said the Minister for Emergency Management and Recovery Mark Mitchell has also been in contact with Ruapehu Civil Defence Controller Clive and offered any necessary support. “People are asked to continue to avoid any unnecessary travel as the weather system passes through.” Hohotaka Rd is beginning to slip away and could completely wash out. Flooding is reported on Taupō Rd, and there are slips on Kawautahi Rd, Ōkahukura Saddle and Marsack Rd. NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) said there are “no suitable detours” for many of the closures, including vital connecting routes SH31 and SH3, and motorists should delay their journey or expect long delays. Mid-morning, a convoy of trucks trapped between slips on SH3 was able to file slowly through a significant landslide across the road. Many cordons blocking motorists have been continuously extended throughout the morning as more slips come down and heavy rain falls. Photos from Waikawau in North Taranaki, just north of the Awakino Gorge, show paddocks and rural roads completely overwhelmed with brown flood water. Rural roads have turned to rivers in Waikawau. Photo / Sonia Maxwell Police urged motorists across the Waikato District to take care in the “significant weather conditions” and limit themselves to essential travel only. “Reducing speed, using headlights and windscreen wipers, and watching your visibility will also ensure a safe trip.” Multiple slips have been reported across the Waikato District. Photo / Waitomo District Council MetService has upgraded its warnings for Waitomo, and Waikato south of Raglan and Cambridge. The orange warning came into force at 7am and is expected to last until midday. NZTA said SH3 is now closed and police are urging motorists to not to travel through the gorge. No detour is available. An Awakino local told the Herald the river was extremely high, reaching high tide levels while at low tide. Rivers are st... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:42:36 Z /news/world/economics-nobel-laureate-says-ai-s-amazing-possibilities-need-firm-rules/ /news/world/economics-nobel-laureate-says-ai-s-amazing-possibilities-need-firm-rules/ A winner of this year’s Nobel prize in economics warned today that artificial intelligence offers “amazing possibilities” but should be regulated because of its job-destroying potential. The remarks from Canadian Peter Howitt, professor emeritus at Brown University in the United States, came amid growing concerns about how AI will impact society and the labour market. California Governor Gavin 九一星空无限om today signed a first-of-its-kind law regulating interactions with AI chatbots, rejecting a push from the White House to leave the technology unchecked. Howitt was one of three economists honoured today by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for work on how technology drives and affects growth. His research with fellow winner Philippe Aghion of France focused on the theory of “creative destruction” in which a new and better product enters the market, and the companies selling the older products lose out. Howitt told a news conference that it remains to be seen who will be the leader in AI, and “we don’t know what the creative destruction effects are going to be”. Brown University Professor Emeritus of Economics Peter Howitt. Photo / Ashley McCabe, AFP “It’s obviously a fantastic technology that has amazing possibilities. “And it also obviously has an amazing potential for destroying other jobs or replacing highly skilled labour. “And all I can say is that this is a conflict. It’s going to have to be regulated,” he said. “Private incentives in an unregulated market are not really going to resolve this conflict in a way that’s best for society, and we don’t know what’s going to come from it.” Howitt, 79, said it was a “big moment in human history” and likened it to past periods of technological innovation, including the telecoms boom of the 1990s, and the dawns of electricity and steam power. He said those innovations all demonstrated how technology can enhance and not just replace labour. “How we’re going to do it this time? I wish I had specific answers, but I don’t,” he added. The third economist to be honoured today, American-Israeli Joel Mokyr, was more sanguine about the impact of AI on the labour market. “Machines don’t replace us. They move us to more interesting, more challenging work,” Mokyr, 79, told a news conference live streamed from Northwestern University in the suburbs of Chicago. “Technological change not only replaces people, it creates new tasks.” American-Israeli scientist Joel Mokyr. Photo / Northwestern University in Illinois, AFP Mokyr won his Nobel for his work on identifying the “prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress”. He said his main concern about the labour market of the future was not “technological unemployment” but labour scarcity as the population ages and fewer people enter the workforce. Howitt said that when he and Aghion first wrote their seminal 1992 paper on creative destruction it took five years to get it published, but his collaborator knew they were on to something special. “Right from the beginning, from our very first research, I remember back in 1987, Philippe saying we’re going to get a Nobel Prize for this. I said, ‘Sure, sure, sure,’” Howitt recalled. “He said, ‘Our time will come. Our time will come,’ okay, and now it’s come. Amazing.” - Agence France-Presse Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:25:33 Z /news/business/reserve-bank-to-ease-mortgage-lending-restrictions-from-december/ /news/business/reserve-bank-to-ease-mortgage-lending-restrictions-from-december/ The Reserve Bank is to relax restrictions on lending by banks making it easier for low deposit borrowers. From December, commercial banks will be allowed to do up to 25% of new lending to owner-occupiers with a deposit of less than 20%. That’s up from the current speed limit of 20%. At the same time, banks will be allowed to do up to 10% of lending to investors with deposits or equity of less than 30%, up from the 5% current limit. Reserve Bank acting assistant governor of financial stability Angus McGregor said that over the past year the bank had reviewed its approach to setting loan to value ratio (LVR) restrictions. “We concluded that the introduction of debt-to-income [DTI] restrictions last year means LVR settings can be less restrictive on average. This includes looser default settings that we expect will be in place most of the time, except for when risks are particularly elevated.” DTI restrictions help to underpin borrower resilience by acting as a guardrail for risky lending, helping contain the severity and consequences of housing market corrections. McGregor confirmed DTI settings would remain unchanged as they are set to limit high-risk lending in housing upswings and periods of low interest rates, without the need for adjustment. “Now is an appropriate time to move to the new default settings. House prices are within our range of sustainable estimates. Growth in mortgage lending remains moderate and the share of high-risk lending is low.” The Reserve Bank will consult with banks on changes to their Conditions of Registration over the next two weeks. Government welcomes change Finance Minister Nicola Willis welcomed the news, and said that home ownership is part of the Kiwi dream. “Relaxing the restrictions on the amounts banks can lend will make it easier for Kiwis to get a foot on the property ladder. “Presently, only 20% of the new loans banks are allowed to make to owner-occupiers can go to buyers who have deposits of less than 20% of the value of their properties. The Reserve Bank is proposing to increase that limit of new lending to 25%. That will make more funding available to first-home buyers.” Willis said she looked forward to hearing the outcome of the Reserve Bank’s consultation with the commercial banks. Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for the Herald, covering small business, retail and tourism. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:21:00 Z /news/business/air-new-zealand-and-air-chathams-team-up-with-new-interlining-deal-to-offer-single-ticketing-service/ /news/business/air-new-zealand-and-air-chathams-team-up-with-new-interlining-deal-to-offer-single-ticketing-service/ A new deal will soon allow Air New Zealand and Air Chathams customers to book a single ticket for flights on both airlines. Starting with journeys between Whakatāne and Auckland, the interlining arrangement will kick in this December. Air New Zealand said checked baggage would be transferred through to the customer’s final destination, making for a smoother travel experience. An Air New Zealand Q300 (de Havilland Canada Dash) and Air Chathams Saab 340A arrived at the airport this morning to celebrate the agreement. Guests included Whakatāne’s mayor-elect Nándor Tánczos, mana whenua and airline representatives. The flag carrier’s incoming chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar welcomed the partnership. “For example, someone travelling from Whakatāne to Kerikeri can now book a single journey, connecting on to an Air New Zealand service,” Ravishankar said today. “By working together, we’re making it easier for customers in more parts of the country to stay connected.” Air Chathams chief executive Duane Emeny said the partnership would deliver more choice and reach for regional customers and provide a platform to promote Whakatāne. “This partnership is an important first step and we see real potential to build on it with further regional connections in the future and continue to help unlock opportunities for growth, employment and mobility across the country,” Emeny said. “These connections are vital for local economies, by ensuring access to tourism, business, education and healthcare,” Associate Minister of Transport James Meager said. Air New Zealand's next chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar said someone travelling from Whakatāne to Kerikeri could now book a single journey. Some regional airlines have been under pressure lately. Earlier this year, Air Chathams indicated it might have to discontinue its Whakatāne route. Last month, Meager and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced concessionary loans of up to $30 million from the Regional Infrastructure Fund for small airlines. And under the new Aviation Action Plan, the Government has been urged to support vulnerable regional routes by using the regional infrastructure fund to enable interlining arrangements between regional airlines, Air New Zealand and others. Whakatāne District Council chief executive Steven Perdia said the council has long advocated for something similar to an interline arrangement. “The partnership is great news for Whakatāne and the wider eastern Bay of Plenty and it’s good to see Air New Zealand and Air Chathams work together in support of regional New Zealand,” Perdia said. Under the agreement, Air New Zealand will initially sell Air Chathams’ Whakatāne-Auckland services as part of connecting journeys. An example of that might be Whakatāne to Auckland to Queenstown, or Dunedin to Auckland to Whakatāne. Air New Zealand said more regional connections will be considered at a later stage. John Weekes is a business journalist covering aviation and courts. He has previously covered consumer affairs, crime, politics and courts. Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:15:24 Z /news/world/madagascar-s-cornered-leader-ignores-calls-to-resign-after-spiralling-unrest/ /news/world/madagascar-s-cornered-leader-ignores-calls-to-resign-after-spiralling-unrest/ Madagascar’s embattled President Andry Rajoelina said today that he was sheltering in a “safe place” following an attempt on his life, ignoring calls to resign after spiralling unrest that has forced him into hiding. The twice-delayed speech marked his first public address since a mutinous Army unit backed anti-government protests and followed reports that the 51-year-old leader had fled the country. “Since September 25, there have been attempts on my life and coup attempts. A group of military personnel and politicians planned to assassinate me,” he said in a live address on Facebook. “I was forced to find a safe place to protect my life,” he said, without revealing his location. The protests, led by mostly young demonstrators, erupted over chronic power and water cuts in the impoverished Indian Ocean country, but developed into a broader anti-government movement calling for Rajoelina to resign. Rajoelina, a former mayor of the capital, Antananarivo, called for the constitution to be respected, ignoring calls to step down. “I am on a mission to find solutions,” he said. Rajoelina first came to power in 2009 following a coup sparked by an uprising that ousted former President Marc Ravalomanana. Radio France Internationale said Rajoelina left Madagascar on a French military plane at the weekend, but French officials did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for confirmation. French President Emmanuel Macron, who expressed “great concern” over the island’s crisis, also refused to confirm this. Rajoelina has not appeared in public since last Thursday NZT and his address, set for state television and radio, was twice delayed as armed forces attempted to seize the state broadcaster. Defying orders Earlier in the day, mutinous soldiers and security forces who pledged support to the demonstrators at the weekend joined jubilant crowds in front of Antananarivo city hall, in a rally that had an air of celebration amid expectations Rajoelina would step down. Among the crowds in the morning rally were soldiers from the army Capsat unit, which played a major role in the 2009 coup. At the weekend, the unit declared it would “refuse orders to shoot” on demonstrations, some of which have been met with harsh security force action. Also present were officers from the gendarmerie paramilitary police force, accused of using heavy-handed tactics during the protests. They admitted in a video statement to “faults and excesses” in their response. The United Nations has said at least 22 people were killed in the first days of the protests, some by security forces and others in violence sparked by criminal gangs and looters. Rajoelina has disputed the toll, saying last week there were “12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals”. As pressure mounted on Rajoelina, he pardoned eight individuals in a decree issued yesterday, including French-Malagasy dual national Paul Maillot Rafanoharana, who was sentenced in 2021 to 20 years in prison for an attempted coup in Madagascar. ‘Apologise and resign’ Amid rumours that Rajoelina had fled, his Government said at the weekend that he remained in Madagascar and was managing national affairs. Before his speech, protesters said they expected him to step down. “We hope that he will apologise and genuinely announce his resignation,” law student Finaritra Manitra Andrianamelasoa, 24, told AFP at the city hall gathering, where a large flag of the Gen Z movement that led the protests was on display. “We already expect him to offer his apologies to all Malagasy citizens, as we have had many casualties, relatives, who have been injured during the protests,” said 19-year-old Steven Rasolonjanahary. To try to defuse the protests, the President last month sacked his entire Government. Meeting one of the demands of the protesters, the Senate announced the dismissal of its president, Richard Ravalomanana, a former general of the gendarmerie. Madagascar has had a turbulent political hist... Tue, 14 Oct 2025 00:11:35 Z /news/auckland/fire-at-papatoetoe-home-treated-as-suspicious/ /news/auckland/fire-at-papatoetoe-home-treated-as-suspicious/ Police are treating a fire at a South Auckland property as suspicious and are pleading with the community for information. A police spokesperson said they were called to the vacant property on Picton St, Papatoetoe, at 1.17am. “At this stage, police are treating the fire as suspicious and a scene examination is due to be carried out later today. “There are no reports of injury.” The spokesperson said police wanted to speak with any witnesses or anyone who may know something about the blaze. They urged those with information to update police online now at police.govt.nz/use-105 or call 105, quoting job number P064116384. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111. Fire and Emergency has been approached for comment. Mon, 13 Oct 2025 23:34:25 Z /news/politics/acc-apologises-after-whistleblower-complaint-leads-to-ombudsman-investigation-exposes-costs-from-senior-boss-farewell-event/ /news/politics/acc-apologises-after-whistleblower-complaint-leads-to-ombudsman-investigation-exposes-costs-from-senior-boss-farewell-event/ The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) has apologised after a whistleblower complaint led a top watchdog to find it had “unreasonably” excluded the costs of a senior executive’s farewell celebration from its response to Official Information Act (OIA) requests.  The Wellington farewell cost around $17,287, including domestic travel and catering, but this wasn’t disclosed when journalists requested a list of events it had held costing above $10,000. Instead, ACC said it hadn’t identified any events in the scope of that request.  But after a whistleblower alleged to the Ombudsman that senior ACC management “had manipulated data” to bring the event cost below the $10,000 threshold, an investigation was launched.  ACC considered some of the costs associated should be excluded as staff members had other work reasons to be in Wellington, beyond the farewell. This brought the cost down to about $7500, meaning it was below the threshold requested.  In a ruling issued today, the Chief Ombudsman found ACC “has acted unreasonably in its management of its response to the OIA requests” as it had “failed to demonstrate” that much of the farewell costs could be attributed to “other work” and that those expenses would have occurred regardless of the farewell happening.  ACC on Monday directly apologised to the journalists who made the requests, acknowledging the Ombudsman’s view that its decision was “unreasonable and wrong”.  “I apologise for ACC’s failure to disclose information that we should have,” a letter from chief executive Megan Main says.  “We recognise that we should have handled the approach to your request differently and accept the decision we made to exclude those costs from the scope of the request and response was unreasonable.”  It said it had taken “significant steps” to strengthen its record-keeping processes and improve transparency, as well as revising its travel policy so that travel “to be undertaken solely for the purpose of attending farewell events or other staff celebrations” is not allowed.  ACC head Megan Main has apologised for the OIA responses. Photo / Mark Mitchell  The requests were made in August 2023 off the back of revelations the Ministry of Pacific Peoples had spent nearly $40,000 on farewelling its former chief executive. Journalists wanted to know about other agencies’ expenditure on events costing above $10,000, including any hosted by ACC.  According to a report from the Ombudsman, ACC initially identified the farewell event for outgoing deputy chief executive, chief Māori and equity officer Michelle Murray, cost “in the region of $18,000” and was therefore within the scope of the OIA requests.  However, in the process of gathering information and drafting a response to the requests, staff considered whether to exclude employee costs – such as on travel and accommodation – if they had attended the event but had travelled to Wellington for what was described as “other work”.  Internal correspondence within ACC said this “other work” included “transition planning, board and engagement planning and learning”.  One staff member said they advised another it depended on whether the “core purpose” of their travel was to attend the event, “i.e. would they have been traveling to Wellington had the farewell event not occurred?”  “If the answer is yes, their travel and accommodation is out of scope. If the answer is no, then the core purpose of that travel/accommodation is the farewell, and it should be included,” the employee’s advice is reported as.  The Ombudsman, John Allen, said it initially appeared ACC would disclose the cost, estimated at around $18,000, with a caveat explaining that 11 staff travelled to Wellington “to attend the farewell but were also there on other business”.  To evidence the “other work”, ACC provided the Ombudsman with meeting invitations showing some, but not all, of the 11 travelling... Mon, 13 Oct 2025 23:08:39 Z /news/sport/all-blacks-lock-patrick-tuipulotu-ruled-out-of-northern-tour-due-to-shoulder-injury/ /news/sport/all-blacks-lock-patrick-tuipulotu-ruled-out-of-northern-tour-due-to-shoulder-injury/ Patrick Tuipulotu will miss the All Blacks’ northern tour as he is set to undergo surgery to repair a shoulder injury.  The test veteran was part of the 36-man squad named yesterday but this morning was replaced by Blues teammate Sam Darry.  It’s a strange situation for the 32-year-old to have been named in the team one day, then withdrawn the next. An All Blacks representative told the Herald it was due to the results of Tuipulotu’s medical assessment coming back after the squad had been named.  Tuipulotu had been playing with a shoulder niggle sustained while playing for the Blues. It was said to have settled early in the All Blacks’ season, but would flare up on occasion. However, the injury got to the point of needing a medical assessment to determine the best way to address the pain. It was determined that surgery would be needed, which would sideline the lock for six months.  It then became a case of timing. Missing the upcoming Grand Slam tour means he will be able to return during the Super Rugby Pacific season and build into next year’s All Blacks campaign. Had he gone ahead with the tour and had surgery afterwards, he risked missing the entire Super season.  The representative said Tuipulotu, All Blacks coaches and Blues coaches were all part of the decision-making process as to when the best time for surgery would be.  It’s a second injury blow of the season for Tuipulotu, who first suffered a facial fracture during the opening Rugby Championship victory in Cordoba. That ruled him out of the defeat to Argentina the following week, along with the two tests against the Springboks.  He returned to the squad for the Bledisloe Cup tests, coming off the bench in both tests.  Tuipulotu, along with Beauden Barrett, were the only two players in the All Blacks squad who started in the 2016 defeat to Ireland in Chicago.  His withdrawal from the tour provides an opportunity for Darry, who has been strong for Canterbury in the NPC this season after a shoulder injury of his own saw him miss the entire Super season.  The 25-year-old made six appearances for the All Blacks in Scott Robertson’s maiden season as coach but had yet to crack the squad in 2025. He was expected to be named in the All Blacks XV squad named today, which will also head to Europe for three fixtures in November.  Mon, 13 Oct 2025 22:37:25 Z /news/crime/judge-gives-teen-kidnapper-huge-discount-saying-17-year-olds-don-t-deserve-to-be-in-jail/ /news/crime/judge-gives-teen-kidnapper-huge-discount-saying-17-year-olds-don-t-deserve-to-be-in-jail/ A driver lost on Christmas Eve thought he’d found help when a stranger stopped to check on him but the roadside encounter escalated into a violent kidnapping where he was beaten and forced to buy pies for his attackers. During the ordeal, the victim was scared he would be shot if he didn’t comply and was dragged out of the car at one stage and beaten. Now, one of the people involved, Kava Peihopa, 17, has been sentenced in the Whangārei District Court on one charge each of kidnapping, aggravated robbery and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle. The teen avoided a jail term after the judge gave him an “enormous” discount, saying 17-year-olds did not belong in prison unless it was “absolutely imperative”. The Christmas Eve kidnapping On December 24 last year, the victim was travelling north when his phone went flat, leaving him lost. While parked on the roadside and trying to figure out his next move, Peihopa approached and asked the victim if he was okay. He said he was and Peihopa left. Shortly after, another man arrived and allegedly demanded to search the victim’s vehicle, which he refused. In response, the man told the victim he was not leaving and allegedly blocked a nearby bridge with a vehicle. Peihopa then returned in his car with two others, all armed with steel bars. Police allege the man smashed the driver’s window before the victim was dragged out of the car and beaten, leaving him so dazed that he struggled to stand. Peihopa took the victim’s phone while one of the other people in the group allegedly demanded his PIN, which the victim gave. They forced the victim into Peihopa’s car and drove around Whangārei, demanding to know where he lived and worked. The victim told police it looked like one of the men had a gun but he was not sure. “He was scared if he didn’t do as you say so in four seconds, he’d be shot,” Judge Gus Andrēe Wiltens said. The group returned to the original location and got into the victim’s car with the victim. They continued to drive around the city and made him buy alcohol, pies and cigarettes from a liquor store and service station. The judge gave Peihopa a significant discount off his sentence. Photo / 九一星空无限 CCTV captured Peihopa with the victim inside the stores while the others waited in the car. The victim was eventually released in Raumanga and drove straight to a petrol station to call police. Peihopa’s lawyer, Jarrod Griffin, fought for a sentence of home detention, noting his client is only 17, with no criminal record and has completed several rehabilitation programmes since the offending. “I am urging your honour to consider home detention for this young man in consideration of the crushing effect of a sentence of imprisonment and what that would mean for this young man,” Griffin told the court. “It would be a real shame if the outcome was a custodial one.” Crown lawyer Ina Stewart acknowledged Peihopa’s age and lesser role but argued he wasn’t merely “along for the ride”. “He’s been involved in the physical violence,” she said. Judge Andree Wiltens agreed imprisonment would be crushing and applied a significant discount to the starting point of five years and three months. “I’m giving you a discount of 62 and a half per cent, which is enormous,” the judge said. “The Government of the day say I shouldn’t do that – they passed legislation to make sure judges can’t do that unless it’s manifestly unjust. “And in this situation, and bearing in mind your circumstances, I would say that is the case. Seventeen-year-olds don’t deserve to be in jail really, unless it’s absolutely imperative and it’s not in your case.” Peihopa was sentenced to 12 months of home detention followed by 12 months of intensive release conditions. “The first 12 months is punitive and the next 12 months is designed to try and help you to make sure there’s no repetition of this. I hope you take that.” Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She i... Mon, 13 Oct 2025 21:09:07 Z /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-s-mariameno-kapa-kingi-allegedly-warned-of-133k-office-overspend-urged-to-take-action-so-staff-paid-party-emails-claims-about-mp-and-her-son-to-members/ /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-s-mariameno-kapa-kingi-allegedly-warned-of-133k-office-overspend-urged-to-take-action-so-staff-paid-party-emails-claims-about-mp-and-her-son-to-members/ Officials raised concerns that Te Pāti Māori Mariameno Kapa-Kingi was in danger of overspending her office’s budget by up to $133,000 and recommended “urgent action” to ensure her staff were paid.  The Parliamentary Service’s August 1 letter to Kapa-Kingi was included in a raft of documents sent by Te Pāti Māori to its members on Monday night making allegations against its own MP and her high-profile activist son, Eru.  Eru Kapa-Kingi has previously worked for Mariameno Kapa-Kingi’s office.  Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said the budget issue has since been resolved but the release of the email from Te Pāti Māori is the latest in rifts that has emerged between Eru Kapa-Kingi, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and the party.  The airing of the allegations against the pair appears to be prompted by Eru’s recent allegations against the party of a dictatorial leadership style and the demotion of Mariameno as the party’s whip.  Te Pāti Māori MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and son Eru (inset). Image - Mark Mitchell  Among the documents sent to members by Te Pāti Māori appears to be a confidential Parliamentary Service report alleging an incident on Budget Day 2024.  Asked about the allegations in the document, Parliamentary Service acting chief executive Amy Brier said in a statement: “Parliamentary Service does not comment on individual employment matters.”  The Herald has urgently sought a response from Eru Kapa-Kingi to the allegations against him.  Eru Kapa-Kingi, spokesperson for Toitū te Tiriti, and son of Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. Photo / Alex Cairns  Separate to the allegations about Budget Day 2024, one of the documents released by Te Pāti Māori was a letter addressed to Mariameno, which the party claims was sent from Parliamentary Service on August 1 this year.  In it, Parliamentary Service raised concerns that her office was heading towards a $133,000 overspend of her budget and recommended “urgent action” to ensure staff were paid.  The Parliamentary Services letter told the MP that “you now have $4986 for the remainder of the term. Urgent action is required to at least cover your staff costs (about $25,000 monthly).”  The letter said any overspend would need to be covered by Kapa-Kingi personally.  “We are at a point where we need to start taking actions immediately to manage the large overspend.”  The letter lists a range of recommendations including specifically cutting engagement with contractor Eru Kapa-Kingi/Tautoru. It asks whether a July invoice is expected, and “if so, why are we still engaging with Eru?”The letter also recommended:  Bringing forward a 10% portion – or $50,000 – of the MP’s year three budget to cover staff costs to about mid-September;  Reduce casual staff hours to zero;  Stop all travel for staff and reduce all staff pcard limits to $1;  Consider re-structuring staff.  “If we don’t have a satisfactory resolution, this issue will be taken to the Speaker.”  Two days later, Party President John Tamihere appears to have emailed Mariameno regarding the “urgent requirement to resolve significant financial over expenditure out of your Office.”  This letter references “issues and frustration voiced by Parliamentary Services in endeavouring to meet with you” which had now “been escalated, as is protocol” to the Party’s leadership.  “A threat has been made that this matter will be escalated to the Speaker, once that occurs, you open up your Office conduct to full Parliamentary scrutiny.”  Tamihere states there were “only three options” available to the MP which included paying the $130,000 shortfall from personal or external sources; meeting the overspend by reducing staff numbers and “applying external resources as a mixed solution; or by “drastically reducing all kaimahi as recommended by Parliamentary services.”  The Party president said if the matter could not be resolved in... Mon, 13 Oct 2025 20:29:32 Z /news/national/weather-awakino-gorge-slips-flooding-trap-motorists-as-heavy-rain-closes-sh3/ /news/national/weather-awakino-gorge-slips-flooding-trap-motorists-as-heavy-rain-closes-sh3/ Motorists are trapped along State Highway 3 in the Awakino Gorge this morning after flooding and multiple slips closed the road. Police say they’re aware of some vehicles that are “unable to move” after “significant weather” has made the Waikato highway impassable at places. The road is now closed between Mokau and Piopio and is expected to stay closed until this afternoon. At least two settlements, Awakino and Māhoenui are effectively cut off. MetService has upgraded its warnings for Waitomo, and Waikato south of Raglan and Cambridge. The orange warning came into force at 7am and was expected to last until midday. The New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) said SH3 is now closed and police are urging motorists to not to travel through the gorge. No detour is available. An Awakino local told the Herald the river was extremely high, reaching high tide levels while at low tide. Mokau School principal Maryann Symonds said she had been able to contact all the students affected by the slips and flooding. She said some would not be able to make it to school today, but the school was remaining open to those who could. Symonds said she had confirmed all families were “safe and sound”. A worker at a Mokau cafe said there were “barely any cars” and thunderstorms were continuing to lash the area. “It’s a really terrible day, the weather is awful.” An Orange Heavy Rain Warning has been added for Waitomo, and Waikato south of Raglan and Cambridge until noon today.There has already been some decent rain for this area early this morning. Expect 40 to 60 mm of rain, on top of what has already fallen. Peak rates of 15 to 20… pic.twitter.com/eVCiWxTvfm— MetService (@MetService) October 13, 2025 She said it was not uncommon for the gorge to close in severe weather, but the lack of confirmation on when it might reopen was “concerning.” NZTA spokesperson Blair Cunningham said crews were onsite clearing the road “as safely and efficiently as possible”. MetService meteorologist Juliana Bergdolt said at around 1am, a thunderstorm slammed the Awakino Gorge with 16.5mm of rain in just an hour. According to NZTA, the road was closed at 1.47am. SH3 MOKAU TO PIOPIO- SLIPS - 6AMDue to multiple slips, the road is CLOSED between Mokau and Piopio. The road will remain CLOSED for several hours while crews clear the area. The next update is expected late this afternoon. ^SG pic.twitter.com/HnkTMpHRFV— NZ Transport Agency - Waikato & Bay of Plenty (@nztawbop) October 13, 2025 Bergdolt said the weather station “got into some trouble” soon after, possibly caused by the wild weather. A heavy rain warning for the eastern ranges of Bay of Plenty began at 1am today and expires at 6pm. A heavy rain warning for Tongariro National Park is set to expire at 10am. Between 90 and 120mm of rain is forecast to fall across the affected areas, with peak rates of 20mm/h. MetService has also forecast a moderate thunderstorm risk for Hawke’s Bay this afternoon. Severe Weather Update!🔔🟠🟡Heavy Rain Watches and Warnings have been updated. 🌧🟠Tongariro National Park has been upgraded to a warning.🌧🟠A heavy rain warning has been issued for the eastern ranges of Bay of Plenty, valid for tomorrow.🌧🟡A heavy rain watch has been… pic.twitter.com/pmdSiF3ENY— MetService (@MetService) October 12, 2025 Wet weather to persist across North Island Meanwhile, MetService forecaster Alannah Burrows told the Herald the wet weather would continue across the North Island today. “There will be some fronts pushing up north eastwards and they’re going to continue to cross the North Island,” she said. “For a lot of areas, we’re seeing rain with heavy outbreaks at times.” Burrows said the rain would begin to clear from the southeast in the second half of today. “Rain with heavy outbreaks is expected to ease for places like Auckland late afternoon and early evening to showers,” she said. In the South Island, the unsettled condit... Mon, 13 Oct 2025 18:22:39 Z /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-emails-members-with-serious-allegations-against-eru-kapa-kingi-and-his-mother-mp-mariameno-kapa-kingi/ /news/politics/te-p%C4%81ti-m%C4%81ori-emails-members-with-serious-allegations-against-eru-kapa-kingi-and-his-mother-mp-mariameno-kapa-kingi/ Te Pāti Māori has emailed its members a series of documents making serious allegations against one of their own MPs and her son.  The email, sent to members shortly before 10pm, said documentation had been prepared “in direct response” to recent claims made by Eru Kapa-Kingi, son of MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi.  Among the documents appears to be a confidential Parliamentary Service report alleging an incident on Budget Day 2024.  Asked about the allegations in the document, Parliamentary Service acting chief executive Amy Brier said in a statement: “Parliamentary Service does not comment on individual employment matters.”  The party also went into details regarding the demotion of Mariameno Kapa-Kingi as the party’s whip.  The Herald has sought a response to the specific allegations from both Eru Kapa-King and Mariameno Kapa-Kingi.  Mariameno Kapa-Kingi said she would get back to the Herald in the morning, saying “if you want a proper and reasonable conversation, which you will get from me, it just won’t be tonight”.  The MP said she did not want to get into a bigger conversation about the email sent out by her party as it was late at night and “I just need to get my head on ... and just be clear of the things that I think are worth responding to or not responding to.”  MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi.  Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer told the Herald she had learned of the parliamentary report on Friday and the party’s national council, which featured members of each electorate, had met on Sunday and agreed the documents would be shared with the wider membership.  “It had advanced too much that the membership demanded transparency.”  “This isn’t about crucifying anybody, these are the facts that our team have been able to get out.  “I have a lot of aroha for Eru and I don’t like how this has transpired but I also have a lot of aroha and commitment to the party.”  Responding to Ngarewa-Packer saying she had only been made aware of the allegations on Friday, Kapa-Kingi said: “Well you know we’re all up for integrity ... so if that’s her response, then that’s hers to live with.”  Asked if it was possible Ngarewa-Packer would have been aware of the alleged incident before Friday, Kapa-Kingi said: “I mean they’re the leaders.”  Eru Kapa-Kingi, spokesman for Toitū te Tiriti. Photo / Alex Cairns  Eru Kapa-Kingi was the party’s former vice-president and a 2023 list candidate.  Mariameno Kapa-Kingi was recently removed from the role as party whip, with Ngarewa-Packer taking up the position.  The reason for the demotion was unclear, with Mariameno Kapa-Kingi saying she had been enjoying her work.  In the aftermath Eru Kapa-Kingi announced the Toitū Te Tiriti protest movement - responsible for last year’s immense hīkoi to Parliament - would distance itself from Te Pāti Māori.  He claimed the party’s leadership had “effectively a dictatorship model” and condemned an alleged “ego-driven narrative” within the party that it had ownership over the Māori electorates.  Ngarewa-Packer and fellow Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi refused to address allegations of a dictatorial leadership style at a media stand-up held after the party’s much-anticipated “reset”, instead walking out.  Mon, 13 Oct 2025 18:12:54 Z /news/politics/revealed-how-much-will-the-govt-save-with-the-kiwisaver-changes/ /news/politics/revealed-how-much-will-the-govt-save-with-the-kiwisaver-changes/ Changes to the KiwiSaver scheme are expected to save the Crown a total of $2.467 billion over a four-year period. Major changes to the savings scheme were announced in this year's Budget - including slashing the Government’s contribution from 50 to 25 cents for every dollar contributed, cutting the maximum payment to $260.72. In addition, those who earn more than $180,000 a year are automatically exempt from receiving a Government contribution, in changes that came into force on July 1. Contributions are now available to those aged 16 and 17. Treasury has confirmed the total savings are forecast from the 2024/25 financial year, to the 2028/29 financial year. A spokesman for Minister of Finance Nicola Willis said the forecast $2.467 billion savings over that period relates to the change to the Government contribution only. The spokesman pointed out while there is a saving from reducing the Government’s contribution, it’s important to note employer and employee contributions will increase. “The overall impact of that is expected to be higher savings for everyday KiwiSaver investors‚” Willis’ office said. “The Government also extended the KiwiSaver annual government contribution (and employer matching) to 16 and 17-year-olds in the workforce, encouraging a life-long savings habit to secure Kiwi futures.” On April 1, 2026, the default KiwiSaver contribution rate is set to increase from 3% to 3.5%, for individuals and employers - before rising to 4% from April 1, 2028. The savings marked in Budget 2025 were prioritised towards economic growth initiatives like Investment Boost, health expenditure including Dunedin and Nelson Hospitals, education support, law and order, and social services. At the time the KiwiSaver changes were announced, Willis described the scheme as helping to bolster the next generation, and allowing young people today to eventually retire with more savings and financial security. “An increased contribution rate will also grow the funds available to young people for a first home deposit. Kiwis are able to withdraw from their KiwiSaver to purchase a first home, and larger fund balances can only help,” Willis added at the release of Budget 2025. Labour criticised the move on Budget Day accusing the Government of "raiding” retirement savings. Recently-released Treasury documents confirm ministers received advice on getting rid of the Government’s annual contribution around KiwiSaver. Officials noted removing it would have a “a negative impact on KiwiSaver balances,” in their advice on the Budget. KiwiSaver continues to be a hot political topic, as New Zealand First has signalled its intention to campaign on compulsory contributions to rise to 10%, to be off-set with tax cuts. It made the announcement at the party’s conference in Palmerston North in September. Mon, 13 Oct 2025 16:00:27 Z /news/wellington/local-elections-2025-biggest-wins-and-closest-calls-as-special-votes-loom/ /news/wellington/local-elections-2025-biggest-wins-and-closest-calls-as-special-votes-loom/ The results from Saturday’s local body elections are in, with two races where mayors waltzed into office with more than seven times the votes of their closest rival, while another is holding a nail-biting lead of only four votes. The Herald has analysed the most resounding wins, and the closest calls, from the published preliminary and progress first past the post results. Final results are expected to be published by Friday. Special votes are yet to be counted, meaning that for a number of races, dramatic changes could still be in store. On the numbers alone, Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown can claim the strongest majority in the country, with about 90,000 votes more than the second-placed candidate, Kerrin Leoni. His result reflects the super city’s more than 270,000 residents who voted this election. By calculating the ratio between the successful candidates result and their runner-up, it is the Hauraki District’s Toby Adams who won by the greatest ratio of votes in the country. Adams, who is now heading into his third term leading the Hauraki District, received 4694 votes, while second-placed Roman Jackson only secured 622, giving Adams 7.5 votes for every vote cast for Jackson. Asked about his convincing win, Adams responded with a celebratory “woohoo”, saying he was not aware he had won with such a margin. Mayor Toby Adams shows off an environmental initiative: new orange recycling bins, a clean, cut-up carton, ready for the bin, and the finished low-carbon, upcycled building product from saveBoard. “Hauraki always punches well above its weight,” he said. “It’s quite pleasing, quite humbling”. Adams said he was confident he would win, but did not expect such a result, noting incumbent mayors have the advantage of having the profile to effectively campaign throughout their term. In the Grey District, Tania Gibson received 7.2 votes for every vote cast for her rival, the Money Free Party New Zealand’s Richard Osmaston. Osmaston ran for mayor in five districts, losing each race. The closest race, both by numbers alone and ratio of votes, was for the Westland District Council leadership, with Hokitika businesswoman Jacquie Grant named mayor-elect on a tight four-vote lead over the incumbent, Helen Lash. Jacquie Grant is the Westland District Mayor-elect but is ahead by only four votes. But Grant is not celebrating yet, saying in a post on Facebook “the election is not a done deal”. She said until special votes are counted on Thursday, “it is a waiting game”. At 82 years old, a victory would make Grant the country’s oldest mayor and the second transgender mayor after the late Georgina Beyer. Among those provisionally elected with the closest numbers is Whakatāne District Mayor-elect Nándor Tánczos, who was ahead of the incumbent, Victor Luca, by only 96 votes. Nándor Tánczos. Luca was first announced the winner on progress results, but he’s been overtaken by Tánczos on the new numbers. The former Green Party MP, who gained attention for being the first Rastafarian MP and skateboarding to work at Parliament, said on social media that while there are still 500 special votes to count, he does not expect the result to change. Chris Knox is a scientist turned data-journalist who investigates the stories behind the numbers, and creates interactives for Herald readers to explore them. Ethan Manera is a Wellington-based journalist covering Wellington issues, local politics and business in the capital. He can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz. Mon, 13 Oct 2025 08:02:46 Z