Author: Press Room

As the US presidential election nears closer, Brussels fears a Trump victory could leave Ukraine to fend for itself. ADVERTISEMENTTo say the European Union is anxiously awaiting the outcome of the United States presidential elections would be an understatement.The poll on the other side of the Atlantic has the potential to upend many, if not all, of the bloc’s policies, from trade flows and industrial subsidies to digital oversight and antitrust probes. But no other field triggers the same immediate fears as Russia’s war in Ukraine, where any disruption, even if small, could prove a game-changer on the battlefield.The profound…

By Alexa Cook of RNZ  The loss of 600 jobs in Timaru is hitting the local economy hard, with retailers seeing a big drop in sales and fearing more shops will close. Alliance’s Smithfield meat processing plant in Timaru confirmed its closure this month, leaving hundreds of people out of work during an already tough economic time. Glen Patterson leads the Timaru CBD Group and owns a jewellery store on the main street.  He told RNZ there has been an instant reaction to the news. “It’s definitely been a shock to the system. We were starting to come up on the…

A 17-year-old Kerikeri High School student is attempting to transform global aviation by working alongside world leading aeronautical engineers in his home town of Kerikeri. Braeden Leung will receive the Royal Aeronautical Society Award in Parliament this week. The teen first went knocking on the Kerikeri doors of US company Merlin Labs labs last year. Impressed by his drive, they gave him a job sweeping floors. Merlin is in the business of designing the world’s first non-human piloted plane and is funded by large venture capitalists, including Google. It has recently partnered with the US airforce. It set up a…

Joanne Tait paid Craig Reddin a $4000 deposit to refresh her bathroom. Over a year later not a tile has been touched – but will the Disputes Tribunal sort the matter out? Gill Higgins of Fair Go reports.Watch this story on our home for indepth, consumer and news stories, TVNZ+.Joanne Tait wanted a bathroom refresh. A simple enough project. But over a year later, her old avocado suite is still avocado, still falling apart and yet Tait is nearly $4000 out of pocket.Joanne Tait no longer wanted an avocado bathtub. (Source: Fair Go)The tradesman she hired to do the work…

Police are expecting to see some traffic disruption in Lower Hutt and Porirua today as officers monitor a gang-related funeral.The funeral is due to take place in Lower Hutt this morning, with a procession to Whenua Tapu Cemetery in Porirua.”Police have had a visible presence in Lower Hutt overnight and will monitor the funeral procession out to Whenua Tapu today,” Hutt Valley prevention manager inspector Shaun Lingard said.”Unlawful activity will not be tolerated and any unlawful behaviour will be investigated and followed up with enforcement action.”There is likely to be some traffic disruption in the late morning in Lower Hutt,…

The government is moving to streamline the building consent regime by swapping out some council inspections for a self-certification scheme. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk said the proposal was for building professionals with indemnity insurance working on low-risk projects. It would allow qualified trade professionals – including plumbers, drainlayers and builders – to sign-off on their work without needing council inspection. The changes were also expected to cover large homebuilding businesses that construct hundreds of near-identical homes a year. “The building consent system is intended to protect homeowners from defective building work by requiring work to be inspected and…

There have been no deaths on New Zealand roads over Labour Weekend, marking a new record for the period in recent years.The official holiday road toll period began at 4pm on Friday and ended at 6am this morning.Last year, a total of six people died on the roads over Labour Weekend.In 2022, five people died, while 2021 saw six deaths and 2020 saw eight deaths.The previous lowest death toll was in 2013, where one person died.During Labour Weekend this year, a “smorgasbord” of severe weather hit parts of the country.State Highway 6 was closed through the Buller Gorge due to…

The mayor of Masterton is warning someone will be killed unless authorities get tough on boy racers.Gary Caffell’s comments follow a meetup in Wairarapa over the weekend where a group allegedly threw fireworks, bottles, and rocks at police.The mayor told Breakfast this is the first time he is aware of this sort of behaviour happening “close to our backyard”, which has left the community “disappointed”.”Lives are at stake here. We’re not talking small fry stuff. We’re talking the fact that these are incidents that could be life and death.”We were lucky on this one on the weekend nobody got killed.…

Christchurch Airport has signed a multimillion-dollar contract to double its freight-handling capacity. It would substantially increase its freight aircraft parking area, known as the apron, meaning it could fit up to eight narrow-body aircraft, or four larger wide-body aircraft – a big jump from the current capacity of three aircraft. The airport has signed an agreement with Fulton Hogan to deliver the project, the completion of which is due at the end of 2025. It would not disclose the value of the project, citing commercial sensitivities, but said it was a “multimillion-dollar” investment. The airport said the expanded apron would…

An Auckland woman has been charged over an alleged hate-motivated assault which took place on Queen Street in September, after being arrested for a separate incident.Police said the 43-year-old was arrested Sunday for allegedly abusing and assaulting staff at a downtown Auckland store.However, her physical description, when it was relayed on police radio, matched that of an offender involved in a alleged hate motivated assault which took place on September 2. A team investigating the September incident made the connection, police said.Police had made “extensive” inquiries after the assault, including reviewing CCTV footage from the central city on the day…