Author: Press Room

A book from one of the first Antarctic explorers has been repatriated to Scott’s Discovery hut — carried there by some young explorers.The journey was a chance for passionate New Zealanders, including cancer survivor Jake Bailey, to rediscover our past on the southern-most continent of Antarctica.Bailey told 1News: “I don’t know if it’s possible to entirely kind of comprehend what that was going to be like for us, until we were there.”It was a profoundly powerful experience,” he said.Bailey was one of eight young Kiwi and Australian explorers, between the age of 16 and 35, tackling icy seas in Antarctica…

It turns out that hiring a dedicated manager for Nelson’s forests is not so clear-cut.The city council first advertised for a forest systems manager in October 2024 but — five months later — the role is still empty.The role was born from the council’s decision to transition away from commercial forestry to create a well-managed continuous canopy amenity forest.The forest systems manager would take the lead in implementing the council’s new strategic direction and managing its 10,000-hectare forest estate.A LinkedIn advert for applications, which closed on October 11, offered pay of $129–$143,000 per annum and sought someone with experience in…

Finance Minister Nicola Willis will not say why New Zealand’s Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr has resigned after seven years of service. Willis announced today that Deputy Governor Christian Hawkesby would be Acting Governor until March 31. Reserve Bank Governors typically serve five-year terms. Orr was first appointed in 2018, and reappointed in March 2023. His second term was due to end in 2028. Willis said she was not going to “characterise the reasons” for his resignation, saying she had been “aware for the past few days that discussions have been occurring” between the Reserve Bank Board and Orr  about…

A new report paints a picture of the balance of power that gangs have over non-gang members in prisons and one staffer says they “run the jails”, but Corrections says it has control.A young prisoner arrives with a “nice, clean” face. Within weeks of entering a high-security unit, a gang symbol is tattooed on his cheek – likely fashioned using ink made of toothpaste and the soot of burning plastic utensils.This scene, described in a new report on gang influence inside the prison system, illustrates how the groups have transformed prison environments into a hierarchical structure — with their members…

Southern bin inspectors will be fitted with body cameras in a bid to combat abuse on the job.Last month, WasteNet began an inspection programme across Southland which aims to educate reckless recyclers ahead of a new ‘three-strikes’ system.But WasteNet contracts manager Mark Simpson told councillors on Tuesday there had been some incidents of verbal abuse.“The inspectors are getting set up with body cameras, so that we can obviously record these,” he said.Although there had been “a couple” of incidents, Simpson noted the response to the new programme had been positive on the whole.A report prepared for councillors showed 1777 bins…

US President Donald Trump’s tariff war is likely to be “pretty ugly” for New Zealanders’ KiwiSaver balances, providers are warning – but the impact may not last.Trump enacted tough tariffs on the US’s largest trading partners – China, Canada and Mexico – on Wednesday (NZT), sparking retaliatory tariffs from all three countries.That prompted sharemarkets to become volatile. As of Tuesday midday in the US, the S&P 500 had erased most of its gains since Trump’s reelection in November. The benchmark index on Tuesday plummeted below its 125-day moving average, signalling investors are skittish, according to CNN’s Fear and Greed Index.Rupert…

A Wellington rugby club has lost permission to sell alcohol after a member left the club’s bar, drove drunk, and killed a woman.The Wellington District Licensing Committee has declined the Johnsonville Rugby Football Club’s application to renew its liquor licence.Releasing its written decision on Tuesday, the committee said the club’s last day to sell alcohol was 4 June.Club member Jason Tuitama, 24, had a breath alcohol reading almost four times the legal limit when he hit 28-year-old Casidhe Maguire as she crossed the road in June 2023.He pleaded guilty to manslaughter.Maguire’s father Paul Maguire objected to the club renewing its…

For more than 50 years Spike Milligan’s deliciously pernicious Badjelly the Witch has been hugely popular in New Zealand.Originally a short, handwritten story Milligan wrote for his children, it was printed in 1973 and made into an audio version.It’s since become a Kiwi staple whether in book, radio play or theatre form, and was the most-licensed New Zealand play — believed to have more than 100 productions throughout the country.Mukpuddy Animation Studios hope to bring it to a new generation of fans, they have picked up the rights and have turned it into a 13-part series, streaming on TVNZ+ starring…

David Seymour says he’s been upfront about issues with the revamped school lunch programme and is solving them, and has shrugged off a call by a union for the Education Minister to take over overseeing the programme.He has also responded to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s remarks yesterday that parents who were unhappy with provided school lunches should “make a Marmite sandwich and put an apple in the bag”.His comment follows further complaints about the revamped scheme from schools, including an incident involving meals with plastic melted into the contents.”There was an incident the other day where they burnt some meals,…

Former Act leader and Labour minister Richard Prebble has resigned from the Waitangi Tribunal.He was appointed to the role in October 2024 by Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka.In a NZ Herald column on Wednesday, Prebble said the Waitangi Tribunal has turned the Treaty upside down.He said he had no interest in participating in the Tribunal while it turned the Treaty into a “socialist manifesto”.In a statement, Potaka said his focus was now on “moving swiftly to complete the appointment of a new member”.”The Waitangi Tribunal achieves its mahi thanks to the commitment of a diverse range of members providing extensive…