Author: Press Room

A new 1News poll has revealed that 26% of Kiwis feel safer under the coalition’s law and order policies, while 56% report no change in their sense of security.However 13% are reporting feeling less safe under the Government’s policies. For the 1News Verian poll, people were asked: “Do you feel more or less safe as a result of the Government’s law and order policies, or do they make no difference?”Responding to the same question in June, 19% said they felt more safe, while 58% said the policies made no difference and 18% reported feeling less safe under the Government’s policies.Speaking…

Christchurch Casino is facing court action after accusations it breached anti-money-laundering and terrorism financing rules. The Department of Internal Affairs announced on Tuesday civil proceedings had been filed in the High Court against Christchurch Casinos Ltd for “alleged non-compliance with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (CFT) (Act)”. “DIA alleges that Christchurch Casinos Limited failed to meet its compliance obligations under the Act, which are needed to uphold the integrity of New Zealand’s financial system. “These include the obligations to establish, implement and maintain a robust AML/CFT compliance programme, to conduct enhanced customer due diligence and terminate…

Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden has announced plans to reintroduce pay deductions for partial strikes.A partial strike is where the employee is still doing some form of their work. Employers have been banned from reducing the workers’ pay since the previous Labour-led government removed that power in 2018.ACT’s van Velden said she recognised the entitlement of employees to strike, but the disruption caused “should not continue without consequence”.”Restoring employers’ ability to make pay deductions for partial strikes could help incentivise both parties to return to the bargaining table and reach agreement sooner, while also minimising community impacts.”Her proposed changes…

Mobile blood drives are preparing to hit holiday hotspots this summer – typically a time when donations slow down.The New Zealand Blood Service said 24,000 appointments need to be filled before Christmas to ensure it can meet demand.One recent drive – which took place at the Waihī Memorial Hall – is one of 140 which will be set up across the country between now and the end of January.NZ Blood Service donor relations team leader Rachel Bowman said it requires “around 5000 donations per week right across the country to keep up with the demand”.She said the summer months are…

The Commerce Commission has this morning announced it will file criminal charges against Woolworths NZ, Pak’nSave Silverdale, and Pak’nSave Mill Street — alleging inaccurate pricing and misleading specials. Commerce Commission Deputy Chair Anne Callinan said, in a statement, supermarkets have “long been on notice about the importance of accurate and clear pricing and specials” and said the Commission was not satisfied with “continuing issues we’re seeing across the industry”. “Pricing accuracy is a consumer right and an expectation of a competitive market. The major supermarkets are large, well-resourced businesses that should invest the time and effort to get pricing and…

Jacques Audiard’s audacious musical Emilia Pérez — about a Mexican drug lord who undergoes gender affirming surgery — led nominations to the 82nd Golden Globes, scoring 10 nods to lead it over other contenders such as the musical smash Wicked, the papal thriller Conclave and the postwar epic The Brutalist.The embattled Globes, which are no longer presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, are still in comeback mode after years of scandal and organisational upheaval. Zendaya, Timothée Chalamet, Angelina Jolie, Daniel Craig, Denzel Washington, Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Glen Powell and Selena Gomez all scored nominations.The young Donald Trump drama…

Four people have died after a two-car crash near Rotorua last night.Emergency services were alerted to the crash on State Highway 5 near Whakarewarewa at about 7.50pm yesterday.The collision involved two cars carrying seven people, a police spokesperson said this morning.”Police can now advise that four people have died,” the spokesperson said.”Three people died at the scene of the crash, one died in hospital after having been transported in a critical condition.”Two people remain in hospital, one in a critical condition and one in a serious condition.”Investigations into the circumstances of the crash were ongoing, the spokesperson added.A Hato Hone…

Air New Zealand is facing another two to three years of disruption waiting for new aircraft and maintenance, its chief executive says.It was “terrible” to contemplate but, for some time, Greg Foran had suspected this would be the case, he told RNZ’s Checkpoint.The disruption is also ready costing the airline as much as $150 million annually.It has been a turbulent year for Air New Zealand with the national carrier dealing with ongoing engine maintenance issues, a backlash over prices, cuts to some regional routes and falling profits.Chief executive Greg Foran says the airline can still be the best in the…

The agreement reached by the European Commission contains new provisions which seek to respond to the opponents of the agreement. But the process that must follow the political agreement reached on Friday is far from a done deal for the European executive. ADVERTISEMENTJust three days after the announcement of the conclusion of the Mercosur agreement, farmers’ tractors were already making themselves heard, Monday, outside the building of the Council of the European Union, where the 27 European ministers for agriculture were gathering.Organised by the farmers European lobby, COPA-COGECA, and Belgian farmer unions, the demonstration denounced the unfair competition that European…

By Susan Edmunds of RNZ Your bank might have stopped offering an ATM in your neighbourhood – but there’s a good chance it has been replaced by a private provider. As the number of bank-run ATMs shrinks – hundreds have closed around the country in recent years – they have been replaced in many areas by those from providers such as Next or Allpoint. Reserve Bank data shows that in 2011 there were 2489 bank-owned ATMs, but that had dropped to 1440 last year. But while most banks no longer charge a fee for withdrawing cash at another bank’s ATMs,…