Author: Press Room

The Government’s trial of clamping and seizing cars vehicles from people with overdue court fines will be made permanent and quadrupled in scope after it recovered more than $225,000 and impounded 115 vehicles in three months.Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith, who launched the initiative in July, confirmed the expansion, saying the number of handheld licence plate scanners used by bailiffs will increase from 10 to at least 39.”We promised to find new and effective ways to force people to pay their court fines. The threat of clamping and vehicle seizures has proved a great success. Victims are our priority and we’re…

Fauono Ken Laban has been elected Mayor of Lower Hutt, making history as New Zealand’s first Pasifika mayor.Fauono secured 8704 votes, comfortably ahead of Brady Dyer on 6974, Karen Morgan on 5529, and Prabha Ravi on 3608.His victory marks a historic milestone for Pacific representation in local government. A long-time broadcaster, sports commentator, and former councillor, Fauono has been a visible advocate for inclusion, youth opportunity, and safer communities across the Wellington region. He is also the only Pasifika mayoral candidate to have been successfully elected in this year’s local elections.The long-time broadcaster secured 8704 votes in the Lower Hutt…

With three more young New Zealanders adding to the meningitis death toll in the past five weeks, the Meningitis Foundation is sounding alarm bells once again.They want free vaccinations for our most vulnerable, all adolescents and young adults, regardless of whether they are in close living situations.Todd Hodder’s son Dion died from meningitis at just 16 years old. He’d had a cold before going to camp, but when asked if he wanted to see a doctor, he declined, saying it was just a virus.Todd Hodder’s son Dion died from meningitis at just 16 years old. (Source: 1News)Tragically, the next time…

Trevor Maxwell will become New Zealand’s outright longest-serving councillor after a pre-election plea for “one more term” became reality for the man known affectionately as “Uncle Trevor”.Progress results in Rotorua’s local elections have Maxwell retaining his seat on the Māori ward, which will also stay, something that delighted the former deputy mayor.Maxwell has been an elected councillor for 48 years, putting him level with Doug Truman, who served on Grey District Council from 1968 to 2016, for the national record.But his re-election, once confirmed, will take him to 51 years and an outright lead.Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting outside his…

More retirees could be out on the street unless there’s urgent Government intervention, according to the Retirement Commissioner.Jane Wrightson is backing a petition organised by the Christchurch Methodist Mission that is calling for action to address the housing crisis facing older people.”There’s some levers Government can pull. One is getting a long-term housing plan that doesn’t get tipped out every time there’s a new government,” Wrightson said.The Housing and Urban Development Ministry estimated that more than 5000 people are currently living on the street, in a garage or a vehicle, with a quarter aged over 65.Research shows that by 2048,…

Oscar winning actor Diane Keaton, who died at 79, was known for her performances and style that helped shaped some of the most indelible films of all time, including The Godfather, Annie Hall, Father of the Bride and Something’s Gotta Give.She was beloved by fans and fellow actors, many of whom paid tribute Saturday after news of Keaton’s death broke. They included co-stars such as Bette Midler, Mandy Moore and Steve Martin, who shared an excerpt of an interview with Keaton and Martin Short that he said “sums up our delightful relationship with Diane”. Here is a roundup of some…

New Zealanders have had their say in the 2025 local elections, with results beginning to paint a picture of how voters want their communities led for the next three years.Voting to fill more than 1500 positions on 78 city, district, and regional councils across New Zealand closed at midday on Saturday, with results based on progress counts being released throughout the afternoon. Final results for closer races would be confirmed next week.Local Government NZ said more than 1 million votes had been counted in this year’s local elections, representing a voter turnout of 31.61%.More than half of the councils voting…

Hundreds of thousands of New Zealand computers could become more vulnerable to cyberattacks next week as Microsoft ends free support for Windows 10, a consumer advocate has warned.From October 14, the tech giant will stop providing security updates and technical support for Windows 10 – ten years after its release. Consumer NZ estimates 30% of New Zealand computers still run the operating system, meaning a significant number of users could be more exposed to malware and hacking attempts.Microsoft has urged consumers to upgrade to Windows 11, but many older PCs don’t meet the strict hardware requirements to run the new…

Wayne Brown will continue as Auckland’s mayor, with progress results showing a substantial election victory.With about 80-90% of Auckland’s votes counted by the afternoon of election day, Brown was about 90,000 votes ahead of Kerrin Leoni, who had received just over 56,000 votes.The mayor spoke to media at Karanga Plaza Harbour Pool, which he calls ‘Brownie’s Pool’, shortly after results were published on Saturday afternoon.Glad to be done campaigning, he was ready for his victory lap.”It’s been like being in the dentist’s chair for six weeks,” Brown said. “I didn’t enjoy it, I don’t enjoy campaigning.”Brown earlier confirmed this would…

Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger is grateful to be re-elected for a second term and wants to keep the city’s momentum going.Progress results on Saturday show Mauger has won the mayoralty with 54,644 votes, a majority of almost 20,000.His nearest rival, third-term councillor Sara Templeton, received 34,726 votes.As progress results stand, Mauger will be joined at the council table by two new councillors and 14 returning councillors.Mauger was celebrating the result on Saturday.Christchurch mayor Phil Mauger wants to keep up a focus on reducing the city’s debt. Photo: RNZ/ Anna Sargant (Source: rnz.co.nz)”I was always pretty confident that I’d get there,…