Author: Press Room

Dozens of cars have come off worse for wear after driving through roadworks on a busy Napier thoroughfare.The damage included paint chips, windscreen chips and tyres covered in stones from loose chips at roadworks.Napier City Council said there was an issue with the chip sealing of Meeanee Rd on Sunday. “When the issue was identified all sealing works stopped and the team began sweeping and tidying the road,” the spokesperson said.“We now have staff inspecting the roads affected and will continue to tidy up any loose chip.”One person wrote on social media their car had eight chips in the windscreen…

By Anan Zaki of RNZ One of the country’s biggest home builders is warning about cost pressures, as suppliers lift prices amid a challenging sales picture for building companies. Generation Homes said the sector faced price increases for numerous products, such as cladding, insulation, plasterboard and lining and flooring, with increases ranging from 3 to 7 percent – costs that would likely be passed on to home buyers. Well-known products with price rises included Pink Batts insulation, which was up 4 percent, while James Hardie cladding was another signalling higher prices. GIB plasterboard prices have also increased by 3.9 percent…

The money owed by the controversial Du Val Property Group has grown from $238m to $306m according to a new report.The troubled Auckland property group comprised of 70 companies and entities, needs further extensive forensic investigating after its estimated debt grew to $306.3m, statutory managers PwC said.The accountancy firm took over the running of Du Val in August after it was put under statutory management by Cabinet.A PwC Statutory Managers’ First Report released in September showed Du Val was estimated to owe about $238m to creditors and investors.But six months later a a second report released Friday put that figure…

Last night’s Good Sort has spent nearly 50 years working in the New Zealand prison system, with the past few decades being spent among the facilities’ gardens.Bill Bean, 77, believes working the soil is an important part of rehabilitation.Bean became a prison officer in 1979 after retiring from 12 years in the Navy, working his way up to divisional officer and eventually horticulture instructor.”Our thing is to employ them, keep them busy and, at the end of the day, learning.”None of the vegetables grown are kept, with Pāremoremo Prison supplying hundreds of kilos to foodbanks weekly.One prisoner says the gardening…

Three high schools have been blocked from fielding ‘year 14’ rowers at this week’s Maadi Regatta as officials enforce strict new eligibility rules for the event.The New Zealand secondary schools rowing championships, which gets under way at Lake Karāpiro on Monday, is operating under new regulations in 2025 after schools overwhelmingly voted in favour changes earlier this year.Under the new rules, students returning for a sixth year of high school are ineligible to compete in the Maadi Regatta.The ban was voted through after a group of principals from across the country banded together and called for a special general meeting…

A man was hospitalised with serious injuries after being stabbed during an altercation involving two groups in Auckland’s Mt Eden yesterday. A police spokesperson said earlier that emergency services were called to a report of several people fighting on Dominion Rd, near Lambeth Rd, shortly after 6.30pm.In an update, Auckland City CIB Detective Senior Sergeant Martin Friend said police have established that a group of people had got off a bus on Dominion Rd and got into a disagreement on the roadside. “The second group had been travelling in a vehicle and stopped to intervene when a fight broke out…

During colonial rule, Denmark enforced assimilation policies, unofficially banning the Inuit language, forced sterilisations and removing children from their families to be placed in Danish homes. Policies which left Greenlanders bitter. ADVERTISEMENTAviaja Rakel Sanimuinaq is an Inuit Greenlander, a shaman, and a spiritual healer. She wears traditional Inuit facial tattoos and helps others reconnect with their ancestors to heal generational trauma.“Growing up, it was natural for me to speak about the connection with the spirits,” Sanimuinaq recalls. “But my mom told me never to talk about it because it was dangerous. I never understood why, because I hadn’t experienced the…

In what could be the ultimate Christmas present for Aucklanders, IKEA is hoping its new Sylvia Park store will be open in time to get your holiday gift shopping done there. Construction of New Zealand’s first Swedish-born homeware store and eatery is well under way, and while there was not yet a firm date for its opening, IKEA was planning to cut the ribbon in time for the holiday season. And it is expected to have a distinctly Kiwi flavour as well, with potentially even a garage as part of its home showroom. Karen Pflug, chief sustainability officer for IKEA’s…

Locals say that Whakapapa village — a once bustling recreation hub on the flanks of Mt Ruapehu — has lost its mojo following the closure of Chateau Tongariro two years ago. The building located near Mount Ruapehu was shut indefinitely in February 2023 due to its high earthquake risk, and the building still required extensive seismic strengthening. The 96-year-old hotel employed between 70 and 100 people, which sustained businesses around it including the Whakapapa tavern and a cafeteria. A row of utility buildings behind the Chateau, many of which housed hotel workers, remain empty and in disrepair.Ruapehu district mayor Weston…

NZ First leader Winston Peters has announced his party’s plan to declare a “war on woke” during his State of the Nation speech which took aim at diversity, equity and inclusion policies — and the former Labour Government.The speech was delivered at the James Hay Theatre in Christchurch where protesters also gathered outside with several causes: from each side of the greyhound racing ban, as well as those who were pro-Palestine and pro-Israel.Peters called protesters “left-wing fascists” and “communist, fascist and anti-democratic losers”.In all, around 10 people were removed from the event.In his speech, Peters called to “make New Zealand…