Author: Press Room

Former Labour MP Stuart Nash has resigned from his job at recruitment agency Robert Walters, after a formal review was initiated by the company.It comes after Nash apologised for telling The Platform a woman is a “person with a p***y and a pair of t**s,” on Tuesday.Robert Walters confirmed a review was taking place after the company was made aware of his comments that were made in a “personal capacity”, a spokesperson said.”The remarks are deeply inappropriate and do not reflect our values or the standards of our business. We have initiated a formal review, and we will not be…

As a growing number of Central Hawke’s Bay residents desperately search for work, local man Bevan Thompson is helping them with everything from attaining a drivers licence, to boosting their confidence through korero and cuppas.Alexa Cook gained an insight into the mahi going on behind the scenes to get people off the benefit, as part of Pinch Point – an ongoing RNZ series about living with the cost of living.”I’ve had a couple of clients that stand there and say ‘Ohh man, I can’t get nothing’ and shed a couple of tears.”So we just sit there, have a cup of…

Dramatic audio highlights police closing in on fugitive Tom Phillips early on Monday morning, and the moment an officer reported shots had been fired. About 2.30am on Monday morning police received a call from a Piopio resident saying they believed they were witnessing a burglary in action at PGG Wrightson.The burglary involved two people on a quad bike dressed in farm clothing and wearing headlamps, which police believed was Phillips and one of his children. Police responded, eventually laying road spikes to the north on Te Anga Rd, near the intersection of Waipuna Rd. In the recording obtained by Stuff,…

By Susan Edmunds of RNZ The government was warned by officials that a card payment surcharge ban could push up prices and put pressure on small businesses. The government plans to ban surcharges on card payments for in-person payments. Legislation is expected to be introduced to Parliament by the end of the year, with the ban to kick into effect no later than May 2026. But advice released under the Official Information Act shows that Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) officials warned that there could be problems with the ban. They also recommended the ban be limited to only in-person…

When David Bowie died in 2016, he left a vast musical legacy – and a trove of unrealised projects.Tantalising details of those abandoned and unfinished ideas are revealed in Bowie’s archive, which opens to the public this week.The 90,000 items acquired from Bowie’s estate by London’s Victoria and Albert Museum include handwritten notes for a movie in which Major Tom, the fictional astronaut “sitting in a tin can, far above the world” in Bowie’s song Space Oddity, is sent to “a disgruntled America”.Curator Madeleine Haddon said the unmade film – titled Young Americans, as in Bowie’s 1975 album of the…

The Department of Conservation is appealing for information from the public after a decapitated dolphin was found on a beach north of Kaikōura.DOC Kaikōura marine reserves ranger Zac Penman said it is illegal to injure, kill, or take parts of a marine mammal. He said the “grisly act” was “completely unacceptable”.”The dolphin was found by a member of the public and reported to DOC on 24 August,” Penman said.The dusky dolphin was thought to have washed up naturally before someone took its head, he added.The Marine Mammals Protection Act states it is illegal to take any part of a marine…

Time to bring out the brolly – heavy rain and blustery winds are in store for the upper North Island ahead of the weekend.On Friday, a fast-moving rainband will cross the upper North Island, bringing a burst of heavy rain, with the risk of thunderstorms and strong winds gusting 80km/h, according to MetService.Heavy rain watches have been issued for Auckland and Coromandel Peninsula from midnight tonight to 9am tomorrow, and for Bay of Plenty ranges east of the Ōtara River from 3am to 6pm. A strong wind watch was in place for Northland from 2am to 9am tomorrow. “With the…

The Reserve Bank governor says the central bank faces a “test of trust and confidence” as an organisation. It comes after two messy departures involving its former governor Adrian Orr, and later board chair Neil Quigley, amid the fall-out from the Orr saga. In a speech to the Financial Services Council conference, Christian Hawkesby said the RBNZ had attracted unwanted attention during the year. He acknowledged it had been a “challenging period” for the central bank. Hawkesby was initially made acting governor after the departure of Orr, but was later made governor on a six-month basis, while a search for a long-term replacement…

The wife of former All Black and NZ Māori player, Tutekawa Wyllie, who is suffering from a brain disease caused by the game says it is hurtful that they have never heard from NZ Rugby, offering the organisation to “come and feed him off a teaspoon if they like”.Margaret Wyllie fought for years to get ACC to accept her husband had chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE, a progressive disease that develops after repeated head injuries like concussions.All Black 823, Tutekawa Wyllie, known as Tu, suffered numerous head knocks playing top level rugby during the 1970s and 80s.In 2022, ACC accepted…

The Court of Appeal has turned down a bid to quash Scott Watson’s convictions for the murders of Olivia Hope and Ben Smart.Watson’s lawyer, Kerry Cook said Watson was “very disappointed” with the decision.”He maintains that he is innocent. He has instructed us to prepare an application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court.”Watson – who has spent a quarter of a century in prison for the murders of Smart and Hope – had his case heard by the Court of Appeal last June.The Blenheim friends, aged 21 and 17, were last seen stepping off a water taxi onto…