Author: Press Room

The Children’s Commissioner is calling for the urgent closure of Gloriavale Christian School, saying she has zero confidence that students are safe.School leaders must next week show the Ministry of Education that they are fixing problems identified in a July Education Review Office (ERO) report or it will consider cancelling the private school’s registration.The deadline loomed at a time of leadership change at the West Coast Christian community, with Howard Temple resigning as Overseeing Shepherd following his conviction for sexual offending.The ERO report found the school had not met three of eight registration criteria and was not a physically and…

All three coalition parties are criticising Labour’s former ministers for refusing to appear at a public Covid-19 hearing, saying they’re trying to avoid scrutiny.The second phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Covid-19 Pandemic was secured in coalition agreements between all three governing parties.The chair, Grant Illingworth KC, on Wednesday confirmed a week-long public hearing with decision makers would not go ahead because former ministers had refused to participate.They include former prime minister Jacinda Ardern, current Labour leader Chris Hipkins, who was at times the health and Covid-19 response minister, former finance minister Grant Robertson and former health…

MTF is attributing an increase in business lending to its local, human-led finance model. About 30%-35% of MTF’s lending is now to businesses and chief executive Chris Lamers believes there is potential for that figure to hit 40%-50%. The amount of business lending had been increasing over the last few years and Mr Lamers said there were several drivers for that. The world of finance was feeling more complex to people; there was such volatility in interest rates, people were having to understand more about the likes of the Official Cash Rate and how loans worked. They had a lot…

An Auckland man was kicking himself after seeing his regular Lotto numbers in a winning draw — only to be delighted to hear his wife had used those numbers to buy a winning ticket. The couple in Auckland’s north, who wished to remain anonymous, were regular Lotto players, but didn’t always buy a ticket. Their winning chance was a close call indeed.On the night of the Wednesday, August 6 draw, the woman decided to buy a ticket online after getting a reminder about the jackpot — without mentioning it to her husband. When buying tickets, the couple usually switched between…

Otago’s housing market is warming up in the winter chill as median prices rise 11% to reach $730,000. The region is second-highest in the country for a price increase over July sales compared with a year ago — shaded by Nelson’s 15.7% gain from $657,000 to $760,000. Only a year ago, the middle mark for Otago sales was $657,000 in a residential market led by first-home buyers. The only region in the South Island to reach negative territory was the West Coast, dropping 14% to $345,000. Otherwise, Canterbury median prices were up 4.2% to just over $677,000, Marlborough 8.6% to…

Police are speaking in Christchurch this afternoon following a fatal shooting in Bryndwyr. Earlier this morning, Canterbury District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said a woman died and a man was critically injured during a police shooting at a residential address on Clyde Rd. Cordons remain in place around the property, with a large police presence in the area.Watch the update on the livestream above.

Auckland mayoral candidate Kerrin Leoni wants to cap council rates rises to at or below inflation after 2027/28 as the contest for the city’s top job begins to heat up. If elected, the left-leaning Whau ward councillor also promised she would slash consultant spending by 40% and to only agree to selling “strategic assets” after a 75% majority vote in council or public referendum — following the council’s sale of its shares in Auckland Airport.Leoni is the main frontrunner expected to challenge incumbent mayor Wayne Brown in next month’s local elections, with a notably smaller candidate field than in 2022.”The…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he stands by his “lost the plot” comment about Benjamin Netanyahu after an Israeli minister hit out at him earlier today on social media.Speaking to reporters, Luxon said he expressed a “personal view”, which reflected “immense frustration from the global community”.”They’re entitled to their view and we’re entitled to ours. What we are in alignment on is Hamas is a terrorist organisation,” he said.”But what I’m talking about is the humanitarian catastrophe and suffering that we’re seeing in Gaza. “We need Israel to heed the global community’s calls, which have been consistent over the period…

ADVERTISEMENT Europe saw the second-highest number of tropical nights on record in 2024 due to climate change, according to the EU’s Copernicus service (C3S). A tropical night is defined as a night when the temperature does not drop below 20C.   Over the past few decades, the number of tropical nights in Europe has been rising. The rate of warming is more than double the global average over the last 30 years.    The southeast of Europe was particularly affected, with some areas of southern Greece experiencing up to 55 more tropical nights than average.   Much of Italy saw up…

A woman has died and a man was critically injured in a police shooting in Christchurch overnight.In an update shortly after midday, Canterbury District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said the man was now in a stable, but critical, condition in hospital and police did not believe his injuries to be life-threatening. Hill said police were called to a residential address in Clyde Road, Bryndwr about 11pm, after receiving a report of a man armed with a knife, threatening to hurt himself and his partner.He said based on this information, officers made the “tactical decision” to arm themselves as they approached…