Author: Press Room
Nearly a million people living in Aotearoa New Zealand identify as Māori and that number is likely to pass the million mark by 2033, according to Stats NZ’s latest estimated figures.As of June 2025, around 932,000 people identified as Māori – or 18% of the country’s population. Sean Broughton, Stats NZ’s population and housing spokesperson said that’s expected to rise to 20% by 2048.“Our Māori ethnic population is growing at a faster rate than Aotearoa New Zealand’s population overall, mainly because of higher-than-average birth rates combined with a younger age structure.”Between 2012 and 2025, Māori births averaged about 17,000 a…
1News can reveal that the Government’s target to deliver 500 new police officers has been moved out to September of next year.The coalition initially committed to delivering the 500 new officers in two years, with the deadline for that being next week.However, it has now conceded it won’t meet the target.Today’s admission is the fourth time the target has been moved, with the dial moving from “early 2026” to May 2026, to August 2026 – and now September.A briefing from Treasury to Finance Minister Nicola Willis said: “Police has been reluctant to specify a specific month when it expects the…
The Northern Territory Police Force is back in New Zealand, interviewing experienced officers and promoting six-figure packages with housing support.New Zealand Police say the Australian campaigns here have “become more aggressive”.Northern Territory Police have been interviewing candidates in multiple centres this month.NZ Police’s cheeky new ad to lure Kiwi officers back to NZ – Watch on TVNZ+So far, NZ Police confirmed to 1News it has received more than 670 vetting requests from Australian jurisdictions over the past two years. At least 212 officers resigned to take up jobs across the Tasman, while 16 have recently contacted police about returning home.Police…
Passengers from a Virgin Australia flight to Brisbane are stuck in Christchurch overnight after an “engineering issue” forced the aircraft to be diverted on Monday night.Flight VA116 from Queenstown to Brisbane circled at least three times over Fiordland before landing in the Garden City around 7pm on Monday, according to Flightradar24.A flight from Queenstown to Brisbane had to be diverted to Christchurch on Monday night. (Source: Flightradar24) (Source: Supplied)The diversion was due to an “engineering issue and landed safely”, a spokesperson for the Queensland-based airline confirmed to 1News.The spokesperson said, as the airline did not typically operate in Christchurch, the…
Fears over asbestos-contaminated sand have led to the closure of at least eight schools today after a list of recalled products grew over the weekend. The recall expanded on Saturday after multiple products sold at Kmart were added to a list of brands where asbestos had been detected in testing. A Ministry of Education spokesperson said approximately 150 school and 90 early learning services had contacted officials over the issue as of 2pm Sunday. WorkSafe inspectors were also visiting 150 customers today to assess the scope of problems, prioritising “sensitive purchasers such as hospitals, libraries and youth clubs”.Multiple schools in…
US President Donald Trump has raised the idea of a 50-year mortgage term to help first-home buyers — but would it work for New Zealanders trying to buy houses, too?Media reported that Trump wants the US Government to back a 50-year mortgage option that would help address concerns about housing affordability.Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte reportedly said it was “a complete game changer” for home-buyers.But is it actually a solution?Is a 50-year mortgage the solution for first home buyers? (Source: istock.com)Ed McKnight, economist at property investment firm Opes Partners, said it could be an expensive one over the…
Britain’s Royal Mint is celebrating Freddie Mercury with a new coin design that marks 40 years since his show-stealing Live Aid concert performance.The coin features an image of the Queen frontman, head thrown back and holding the microphone stand mid-performance. A musical stave that runs around the edge of the coin represents his four-octave vocal range.The first coin was struck by Mercury’s sister Kashmira Bulsara at the Royal Mint in Wales last week.”As Freddie died young, he didn’t get the chance of being awarded a royal medal for his talents in the music world. So, to have a royal coin…
MetService is forecasting a warm week with humid nights ahead, while a front moving toward the country is expected to bring heavy gales and strong winds. Higher than average temperatures were recorded in the North Island overnight, with Tauranga hitting 18C at 6am, and Whangārei and Kaitāia both recording 16C. MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane said it would be “a warm week with humid nights ahead”. “Overnight temperatures reach into the mid and high teens, and daytime temperatures reach well into the 20s,” she said. However — people across the country were urged to make the most of today’s sunshine as…
Air New Zealand says it has been made aware by E tū union that staff have voted to take industrial action. “We are aware that cabin crew represented by E tū union have voted to take industrial action,” Air New Zealand’s chief executive officer Nikhil Ravishankar said in a statement. “However, no formal notice of a strike has been received.” He said negotiations were scheduled to continue with the union later this week to “progress efforts to reach a fair and sustainable agreement that recognises the important work our crew do”. E Tū union spokesperson Michael Wood told RNZ’s Midday…
Long waits for resource consents are still frustrating goldminers on the West Coast, the Regional Council has heard.The council resolved six months ago to set up a working group with the industry and work on a set of standard consent conditions that would simplify and speed up the application process.But the issue popped up yet again as an unresolved action point on the to-do list of the Environmental Management Committee meeting in Greymouth last week.Chair Chris Coll noted the project had been on the books since early May.And Councillor Allan Birchfield- a veteran goldminer himself – said he’d like to…