Author: Press Room

A woman has been charged after she allegedly assaulted crew members on a flight from a New Zealand airport to Sydney earlier this week, Australian police say.The Western Australian woman, 44, allegedly became physically and verbally abusive towards airline staff on Monday night, according to Australian Federal Police (AFP).It came after the crew “spoke to her on several occasions about her alleged inappropriate, disruptive and antisocial behaviour,” authorities said.Airline staff asked for police “assistance to remove the woman from the aircraft” on its arrival into Sydney, before officers boarded the plane at the airport.”It is alleged the woman refused to…

ADVERTISEMENTGiven the fragility of today’s global landscape and the US administration’s wariness towards multilateral diplomacy, any forum bringing together world leaders offers a rare chance to make progress on key issues.The Pope’s funeral in Rome this coming Saturday will therefore provide many such moments.Among the expected attendees are top European figures, including Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, French president Emmanuel Macron, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.But as the first US president to attend a papal funeral since George W. Bush paid his respects to Pope John Paul II in 2005, all eyes will be on Donald Trump. The briefest…

A new survey suggests that while higher paychecks may be enticing for Kiwis looking to move to Australia, it may come at the cost of their workplace enjoyment. The survey, which queried over 156,000 Kiwi and Australian workers, claims that corporate culture across the Tasman can be “less accommodating”, particularly regarding race, gender, sexual orientation and job security.”New Zealand organisations rate higher than typical Australian ones on key measures like fairness and inclusivity,” the organisation, Great Place To Work, said. The survey found 55% of workers in Australia felt they were fairly paid, with just 51% saying their workplace was…

ADVERTISEMENTPope Francis’ first official trip, soon after he took the helm of the Catholic Church in 2013, set the tone for what was to come.He chose to visit the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa, one of the main entry points for migrants into Europe via the Mediterranean Sea. There, he condemned what he called the “globalisation of indifference,” in a stern message to the world.”We have become used to the suffering of others. It doesn’t affect us. It doesn’t interest us. It’s not our business,” the pontiff said.Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in 1936, he also came from a family of…

A man who claimed his cousin told him he helped John Beckenridge and his stepson disappear has retracted his allegation, in an astonishing twist in the Coroner’s Court.Oliver Watson’s allegation first emerged in 2023 when he was interviewed by police and signed a formal statement, claiming his cousin admitted in a phone call that he helped the missing man. Oliver’s cousin, Paul Watson, denied he ever said that.The claim was among testimony heard in a Christchurch court this morning. A coroner is trying to determine whether the case is a murder or a staged disappearance. Police shared a statement from…

NZ First leader Winston Peters has mounted a defence of his party’s proposal to define “woman” in law when questioned over its enforcement in a sometimes fiery interview with RNZ’s Morning Report.The party has proposed new legislation to ensure the term “woman” is interpreted as “an adult human biological female” and “man” as an “adult human biological male” across all laws.The member’s bill, submitted in the name of MP Jenny Marcroft, comes days after Britain’s highest court ruled that only biological – and not trans – women meet the definition of a woman under the UK’s laws.The bill is not…

ADVERTISEMENTCome 6 May, many EU officials in Brussels and European governments will breathe a sigh of relief.  This is the day the Berlin coalition partners have scheduled the election in the Bundestag of Friedrich Merz as next German chancellor. The leader of the Christian Democrats (CDU) will need a simple majority in the Lower House of Parliament where his group and the Social Democrats (SPD) have a majority of 28 seats.After the three-party coalition of Social Democratic chancellor Olaf Scholz, marked by unprecedented German inertia in the EU, some of Germany’s key partners like France, Poland and the Netherlands have…

The landlords of a Porirua home described as “not fit for human occupation” have been ordered to compensate their former tenants. The Cannons Creek house, occupied by tenants for 12 years, was described as leaky, with multiple holes and gaps in the walls, “significant” mould on the ceiling, rotting gutters, and windows that could not open or close. The conditions contributed to one child developing rheumatic fever. Poh-Khean Tan, trading as PK Property Services, signed an agreement with the two tenants in 2012 and managed the property until January 2024. Patikiriachchige Aruna Ranjana Perera, the sole director and shareholder of…

Celebrity chefs Manu Feildel and Colin Fassnidge are no strangers to long days and big personalities but their latest TV adventure takes things to an entirely new level: cramped quarters, campfires, and campervans. They spoke to Aziz Al Sa’afin about their next big project exploring the land of the long white cloud. The pair – known for their judging duties on Australian cooking competition show My Kitchen Rules – have traded in white tablecloths for winding roads in their new TVNZ series Off The Grid. It’s part road trip, part bromantic experiment, and part endurance test.“We said, you know, MKR…

One property investor says there is pain for some investors in the rental market as listings reach record numbers.Trade Me Property says the number of homes available for rent has reached a level not seen in more than 10 years.There were 41% more rental listings in March than in the same month last year, the highest number since 2014.”I think there’s quite a few contributing factors at the moment,” said Trade Me Property customer director Gavin Lloyd.”We’ve got a lot of new build properties that have come to market in certain parts of the country. That’s putting a lot more…