Author: Press Room

Dunedin police are appealing for information from the public following the sudden death of a cyclist on the Otago Peninsula yesterday.Police were notified of a cyclist found dead on Portobello Rd at around 3.30pm on Sunday.”The cyclist was wearing black and grey bike shorts, a blue t-shirt with a bright yellow ‘EUROBIKE’ logo on the back with a black long sleeve polypropylene underneath,” a spokesperson said, adding they were using an orange helmet and a silver road bike with blue front forks.”Police would like to speak to anyone who may have seen the cyclist in the Portobello and Taiaroa Head…

Te Arikinui Kuini Ngawai hono i te po is about to make her first major appearance since her father’s death as thousands make their way south to attend tomorrow’s final hui ā-motu.”It comes, of course, with a tinge of sadness in the reality that her father’s not here, but she’s committed to fulfilling his vision,” Kiingitanga spokesperson Ngira Simmonds said.The gathering at Tuahiwi Marae, located north of Christchurch, is part of a national movement the late King Tuheitia spearheaded earlier this year to unite Māori amidst a wave of controversial Government policies.As per tikanga, she is not expected to speak…

A fire crew will be monitoring a 35-hectare scrub fire burning in swampland in North Waikato overnight.A Fire and Emergency New Zealand services were alerted to the blaze off Island Block Rd near Meremere around 1.15pm this afternoon.Four fire trucks, five tankers and three helicopters were called to the scene, but have since been stood down, incident commander Shane Bromley said.The fire is not contained but is burning slowly through swampland.Bromley said three houses were earlier being protected by fire trucks as a precaution but “are no longer threatened”.”A crew will monitor the situation overnight, and we will resume our…

Outsourcing the management of migration is not the direction to go, according to the liberal MEP from Sweden. ADVERTISEMENTThe current migration debate is largely dominated by EU countries seeking to delegate migration management outside European territory, making borders increasingly impenetrable for asylum seekers and intensifying the return of migrants to their countries of origin. However, some countries, such as Spain or Belgium, have also opposed the idea of outsourcing irregular migration and building migrant centres in non-EU countries. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a news conference after the European Council summit last week that he rejected Italy’s model of processing asylum claims…

Auckland mayor Wayne Brown has extended his congratulations to Team NZ on their successful America’s Cup defence, but emphasised the decision on whether Tāmaki Makaurau would host the next regatta lies solely with the team’s chief executive.Team NZ successfully defended the Auld Mug in Barcelona this morning, making the Kiwis the first syndicate to win the America’s Cup three times consecutively.Brown said it was “a bit premature” to discuss whether Auckland would host the Cup and that Grant Dalton would be the one to decide.”It’s not a decision for Council… though it would have been helpful to have had a…

New figures show that European countries spend only a pittance on their justice systems compared to their investment in the rest of the public sector. ADVERTISEMENTLike with all public sector spending, justice budgets across Europe have had to face significant economic hardship in recent years caused by global factors such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The financial crunch has exacerbated court backlogs and staff shortages in many countries.New statistics from the Council of Europe’s European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), which also included Morocco and Israel and was based on information from 2022,…

Cash and careers are being used to entice young West Coasters to stay in the region.Usually, once they finish secondary school, many look for opportunities elsewhere, regional economic development agency Development West Coast said.In 2021, as part of the development of the regional economic strategy, workshops were held with rangatahi to better understand their perspectives.Of the 22 young Coasters taking part, 90% said they didn’t see a future for themselves on the West Coast and expected to live elsewhere in 30 years.Development West Coast chief executive Heath Milne said there was an urgent need to address youth retention and improve…

The growing number of medicinal cannabis clinics in New Zealand could risk putting profit before patient care, researchers say.The majority of products offered to patients in Aotearoa have also veered from CBD oil towards THC-heavy, flower-based products.New laws passed in 2019, and enacted in 2020, allowed for better access to medicinal cannabis so it could be more easily prescribed and products could be grown and made in New Zealand.Massey University research has found that access has improved and prices have come down since then.About 160,000 scripts are written a year and the average quarterly supply has increased by 14 times.However,…

A young Kaitia child has died after being found in the Awanui River this afternoon.The child was reported missing from their Kaitaia home about 3.40pm. A search involving whānau and emergency services began immediately.Searchers located the child shortly before 5pm.”Despite the best efforts of rescuers, the child passed away,” police said in a statement.”This is an absolutely tragic outcome and support is being provided to whānau.”Police would like to thank everyone who assisted in the search.rnz.co.nz

Jeremy Clarkson has revealed he had to undergo a heart procedure after doctors told him he was maybe “days away” from becoming seriously ill due to a blockage of his coronary arteries.In a column for the Sunday Times, the 64-year-old wrote that he had to be taken to hospital before he had a stent fitted to open up a blocked artery.Symptoms began with a “sudden deterioration” in his health following a holiday on an island in the Indian Ocean, the column read.The former Top Gear host described having to “take a moment to make sure my limbs were working properly”…