Author: Press Room

Santa is back at shopping centres across New Zealand and families are lining up for that classic festive snap.From Auckland’s busiest malls to local favourites in Wellington, Christchurch and further afield, the man in red is now spreading his Christmas cheer across Aotearoa.Santas have been part of the festive season for decades, with the first appearances dating back to the mid-20th century when department stores like Smith & Caughey’s and Ballantynes introduced Santa grottos to bring the magic of Christmas in-store.Smith & Caughey’s in Auckland is no more, and the malls and shopping centres have taken over. Auckland’s biggest festive…

British playwright Tom Stoppard, a playful, probing dramatist who won an Academy Award for the screenplay for 1998’s “Shakespeare In Love,” has died. He was 88.In a statement, United Agents said Stoppard died “peacefully” at his home in Dorset in southern England, surrounded by his family.“He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language,” they said. ”“It was an honour to work with Tom and to know him.”The Czech-born Stoppard was often hailed as the greatest British playwright of…

Now that the four-year Tom Phillips saga has concluded, scholar Anna Marie Brennan asks whether agencies acted with the necessary urgency and coordination to protect the children involved. Thursday’s announcement of a public inquiry into the handling of the Tom Phillips case was inevitable. When children go missing for years, the public has a right to understand whether the agencies responsible acted with the necessary urgency and coordination.Yet the inquiry goes beyond one family’s tragedy. It touches on the integrity of New Zealand’s child protection system and its compliance with international law.When Phillips disappeared with his three children from Marokopa,…

A coroner is again warning fishers to wear a lifejacket and not fish alone, after a man died when he was swept away at Omaha Beach in north Auckland.Younchang Ko, 67, was fishing at his favourite spot, the estuary on Omaha Beach, on March 9, 2024 when he disappeared into the water.He was found floating in the water some time later but couldn’t be revived.A report by Auckland Coroner Erin Woolley released on Saturday detailed the circumstances of Ko’s death, but couldn’t conclusively determine the cause.”In accordance with the wishes of Younchang’s family, a lesser, rather than a full, post-mortem…

One person has died, and two have been injured after a vehicle left the road and plunged into the Wairoa River this morning.Emergency services were called at around 4.10am on Saturday after a report of a vehicle leaving the road and entering the river near the intersection of Carroll St and River Pde.”One person has now been located deceased in the water outside of the vehicle,” a police spokesperson said.”While there is not believed to be anyone else outstanding, the Police National Dive Squad will attend to inspect the vehicle.”St John responded with one ambulance and one helicopter.Two people were…

From bad grammar, to the death of possums and concerns that a dad who doesn’t cook has been stereo-typed, some members of the public don’t shy away from complaining about the ads they see on their screens.As KFC pulls its controversial cyberhack ad, we look back at some of the more bizarre complaints about advertising down the years.’Appalling’ and ‘offensive’ commercials prompt passionate complaints – Watch on TVNZ+KFC’s advertisement featuring a masked Colonel-Sanders-style “hacker” prompted 65 complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), making it one of the one of the most complained about of the year.It was accused of…

One person has been seriously injured in a crash involving a truck and a motor home in Picton this morning.Emergency services were called to Dublin Street at around 7.45am. St John responded with one ambulance, one first response unit and one helicopter.”Our crews assessed and treated one patient who was airlifted to Nelson Hospital in a serious condition.”The road has been closed and diversions will be in place. “Motorists, please avoid the area.”

New Zealand travellers are experiencing major disruptions this morning after a global software issue forced airlines worldwide to halt flights operated by Airbus A320 aircraft.The country’s two major airlines, Air New Zealand and Jetstar, have grounded some planes while they work to resolve the issue.In a statement, Airbus said analysis of a recent event involving the A320 family had revealed that “intense solar radiation may corrupt data critical to the functioning of flight controls”.The issue contributed to a sudden drop in altitude of a JetBlue plane last month. “Airbus has consequently identified a significant number of A320 Family aircraft currently…

Both the doctors and dentists’ union and Health New Zealand say their focus is to get back to the bargaining table to hash out a pay deal.In September, the health agency alleged the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) had breached the obligations of good faith.It asked the Employment Relations Authority [ERA] to step in to settle a collective agreement, which it has decided not to.The authority’s report on the matter, which was released on Friday afternoon, said the bar for it to step in was high.”There are no findings of breaches of good faith which were sufficiently serious and…

Labour Party faithful are upbeat as they rally in Auckland’s viaduct, roughly one year out from the next election.The mood has been energetic off the back of recent polling that has Labour tracking ahead of National on almost all issues, including the cost of living.Already in campaign mode, Labour leader Chris Hipkins took a swipe at Te Pāti Māori in his opening remarks to the membership on Friday.”I recently saw a whakataukī quoted in the media with reference to a different political party in New Zealand.”He tōtara wāhi rua he kai nā te ahi – a tōtara that is split…