Author: Press Room
Te Pāti Māori have confirmed former broadcaster Oriini Kaipara will stand as its candidate for the Tāmaki Makaurau by-election.In a statement, the party said Kaipara had “dedicated decades amplifying the stories of Māori communities, holding prime ministers to account and chairing nationally televised Māori electorate debates”. She was selected at a behind-closed-doors hui at Hoani Waititi Marae on Thursday evening, RNZ reports. “Oriini brings a lifetime of leadership and advocacy, both in media and in the community. Her voice is exactly what Tāmaki needs to honour the memory of Takutai Moana and to ensure Māori voices are heard loud and…
ADVERTISEMENTChurches, memorials, libraries: Russia has damaged or destroyed more than 500 cultural sites in Ukraine, including 150 religious sites, in more than three years of its war, according to UNESCO.These include the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa and the Popov Manor House in the town of Vasylivka in the Zaporizhzhia region.A “deliberate”, “coordinated,” and “strategic” strategy on the part of Moscow, says the European Union’s Culture Commissioner.”Our enemies, the Russian aggressors, know that a nation is more than just a territory. A nation is its people, its histories, its traditions, its values, its culture,” Commissioner Glenn Micallef told Euronews.”That’s why we…
A person has died and two others were injured in a single-vehicle crash in Kaitaia early this morning.Emergency services were called to the crash on Allen Bell Drive shortly after 2am.”Sadly, the passenger of the vehicle died at the scene,” a police spokesperson said. Two others were transported to hospital with moderate to serious injuries.”Police are providing support to the next of kin.”The serious crash unit have completed a scene examination and inquiries into the cause of the crash were ongoing.
A magnitude 3.6 earthquake has rattled the wider Wellington region this morning.Geonet said the earthquake struck 10km southeast of Lower Hutt at 8.47am at a depth of 12km.The shaking, reportedly felt as far north as Levin, was classified as light.It was reported by close to 4000 people on the GeoNet site as of 9.15am.
ADVERTISEMENTGovernment funding for humanitarian aid could contract between 34% and 45% by the end of the year compared to 2023, according to research by the Activity Learning Network for Accountability and Performance (ALNAP).In early 2025, United States President Donald Trump cut 80% of contracts administered by the US Agency for International Development, in line with his America-first approach, which is hostile to overseas spending. On their end, faced with the rising military threat of Russia, European nations have been diverting aid to defence and rearmament budgets. Despite 2025 marking a turning point, ALNAP reports that record cuts to aid began in…
Two people have been injured after a car crashed into a Hamilton home, injuring one person, before neighbours allegedly assaulted the driver.Police were called to the incident on Marshall St in Fairfield at about 8.30pm.”Police were notified of a car colliding with a house, causing one occupant of the house to receive critical injuries,” a spokesperson said.There was an altercation following the crash between the driver and surrounding neighbours, they added.”The driver of the vehicle received critical injuries during the assault and was transported to hospital, where they remain in a serious condition.”Police said it was working to establish the…
Published on 11/07/2025 – 14:58 GMT+2•Updated 15:14ADVERTISEMENTAfter nearly two weeks of high alert and a complete lockdown of Bulgaria’s Shumen Plateau Nature Park, the active search for a suspected black panther has come to an end without any trace of the predator, according to domestic media. The search, which began on 19 June, was prompted by a widely circulated video and paw prints that initially led to fears that a dangerous wild feline was roaming free. However, zoologists from the National Museum of Natural History have since raised doubts. For one, Dr Stoyan Lazarov believes that the paw print likely belonged to…
Wellington mayoral candidate Ray Chung says, in hindsight, sending an email containing third-hand claims about a sexual encounter with mayor Tory Whanau might not have been the best idea.Chung sent an email, seen by RNZ, to three fellow councillors in early 2023 recounting a story he had been told about Whanau by his neighbour about the neighbour’s son.Whanau has declined to be interviewed, but in a statement said the claims were a “malicious and sexist rumour”.”What’s deeply concerning is that some of the individuals spreading these harmful falsehoods are now standing for election,” she said.”Ray Chung has circulated a malicious…
A body believed to be that of a missing diver has been found at west Auckland’s Whatipū Beach. Emergency services were called to Whatipū Beach in west Auckland early yesterday morning following a report a diver was missing. In an update today, police said the body found near Paratutae Island was likely to be the missing diver.Formal identification has yet to take place”Police have informed the person’s family, who are being provided with support at this incredibly difficult time,” a police spokesperson said. The police national dive squad, search and rescue and maritime teams were involved with this morning’s efforts.
An Auckland man has been jailed for distributing and possessing child exploitation material.Mark Wayne Price was sentenced to 30 months in prison in the Papakura District Court on July 10 after facing a total of 41 charges following an investigation by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA).It marked the 44-year-old’s second conviction for such offences. In March 2015, Price was sentenced to nine months of home detention for possessing and distributing objectionable publications.During the latest investigation, investigators from the DIA digital child exploitation team found 15,983 images and videos of child exploitation across multiple devices.It said forensic analysis of the…