Author: Press Room

Businesses in central Auckland are calling for an inquiry into Auckland Council’s “incompetent” management of the City Rail Link project after a leaked document revealed it could face yet another delay.The document was mistakenly published as part of the agenda for Tuesday’s Audit and Risk Committee meeting.It was removed soon after, but not before its contents were published by the New Zealand Herald.It detailed the council’s lack of confidence in French contractor VINCI Grand Projects and calculated a 50% chance the CRL would miss its November 2025 completion date. The City Rail Link was originally set to open in 2021.Shobhana…

By Felix Walton of RNZ Tickets for some Air New Zealand flights could be more expensive next year, with the airline running fewer flights on some domestic routes. Authorities and businesses in Gisborne and Rotorua fear the changes, though temporary, could stunt their growth. Aviation Industry Association chief executive Simon Wallace attributed the need for cuts to the changing business landscape. “When it comes to business travel and certainly when it comes to business travel at a domestic level, we’ve got Zoom, we’ve got Teams,” he said. “I think of my own personal circumstances. I’m not travelling as much within…

The head of the Ministry for Primary Industries says bird flu has spread at a commercial egg farm in rural Otago.Yesterday, Biosecurity New Zealand deputy director-general Stuart Anderson said tests from the Mainland Poultry-managed farm in rural Otago had identified a high pathogenic subtype of avian influenza called H7N6. Strict controls were put in place at the property.Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) said it has suspended certification of live and raw poultry commodities for export to markets requiring freedom from the virus.A total of 80,000 chickens need to be culled, half the birds the farm in Hillgrove holds. (Source: 1News)”This…

French prime minister Michel Barnier will face a no-confidence vote today that could topple his government and bring more chaos to the EU. ADVERTISEMENTHow France’s political instability will hit Brussels is today’s topic for Radio Schuman, which talked with Euronews reporter Gregoire Lory.If a vote of no-confidence surrounding the budget succeeds, French Prime Minister Michel Barnier will be forced to step down, leaving a caretaker government in charge. This political turmoil further weakens President Emmanuel Macron, who may face pressure to resign or appoint a new Prime Minister. Meanwhile, despite gaining concessions on the budget, far-right leader Marine Le Pen…

Yes, there are a lot of flies around at the moment – but there are things you can do to tackle the issue.Jane McCarrison from pest control and garden products firm Kiwicare told Breakfast this morning: “There are absolutely heaps of flies this year.”The reason for it is that we’ve had the perfect conditions leading into summer … damp weather conditions and heaps of humidity. We’ve got this absolute breeding ground for flies and lots of other insects.”And in the next few months, New Zealand would be going through a hot, dry summer, she said.”That means that flies usually that…

Belgian court orders the state to pay damages to five mixed-race women who were removed from their mothers as children in colonial-era Congo. ADVERTISEMENTThe Belgian state has been found guilty of crimes against humanity for the kidnapping of five mixed-race women when they were children in Congo under Belgium’s colonial rule.The women, now in their 70s, were victims of “systematic kidnapping” by the state when they were removed from their mothers as young children due to their mixed-race origins and placed in Catholic orphanages, the Brussels Court of Appeal said on Monday.The court said the Belgian state had a “plan…

Warm weather is set to continue across much of the country this week – and possibly into next – continuing the hot start to summer.Joining Breakfast this morning, NIWA principal scientist Chris Brandolino said some areas could see temperatures in the early 30s, due to a warm airflow coming from Australia.Brandolino said the warmest areas will be on the east coast of both the North and South Island. He also mentioned Blenheim, Hawke’s Bay and Eastern Canterbury will be close to hitting 30-degree temperatures over the course of the week.“Even Auckland will be in the mid-20s, which may not sound…

Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked the veterans for their courage and said that the state must do everything it can to ensure disabled soldiers can live full lives after their injuries. ADVERTISEMENTRussian President Vladimir Putin met with veterans injured in the Ukraine conflict to mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities.”Everything will be fine,” Putin told soldiers undergoing rehabilitation in Moscow after sustaining injuries in the war in Ukraine.Putin visited the Centre for Innovative Technologies in Orthopaedics on Tuesday, where prosthetics are made and patients are treated. During his visit, he inspected the production of prostheses for both upper and…

Wherever you buy your Christmas tree this year, you might notice it is a little dearer than it was 12 months ago.In the main North Island centres, you could be looking at as much as $100 for a tidy, shaped, two-metre pine.But down south or in the regions, that same tree might cost just $40.So why the difference?Mitchell Campbell, co-owner of Fresh ‘n Bushy Christmas Trees in Wellington, said it was partly due to South Island sellers having the land to grow them on.”These aren’t the old days, when you would be using forestry thinnings or branches in your living…

Police have charged 27 motorists with being over the legal alcohol limit in a four-day operation targeting drink driving across the Central District.A further 95 infringement notices were served, police said, which included 24 for restraints, speed and distractions.With the Christmas period approaching, police ran nightly checkpoints across the region from November 27 to November 30.Police Central District road policing manager Phil Ward said 27 drivers were caught over the legal limit across the four days. “One vehicle was pink stickered, and nine vehicles were green stickered.” Green stickers signified a vehicle had compliance issues such as an expired Warrant…