Author: Press Room

The chairman of a southern regional council says he is surprised by the number of available vacancies following a recent restructure.Environment Southland disestablished 51 roles and created 56 new ones in a shake-up which impacted almost a quarter of staff this year.When the proposal went live in February, a source told Local Democracy Reporting there were “lots of tears”.It has now been revealed 48 roles were yet to be filled, with the council indicating there was no rush for some.Council chairman Nicol Horrell said he was under the impression the figure was in the 20s, but didn’t think the vacancies…

ADVERTISEMENTTen young inventors have been awarded for developing technologies that advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, with top honours awarded for innovations in rare earth recycling, food preservation, and carbon capture.At a ceremony held in Reykjavík, Iceland, the European Patent Office (EPO) announced the winners of the 2025 Young Inventors Prize special prizes.This year’s selected inventors, called “Tomorrow Shapers,” were selected from more than 450 international applicants, all of whom were aged 30 and under.While ten inventors or teams received recognition from the EPO for their technologies, three received special awards — World Builders, Community Healers, and Nature Guardians —…

Kiwi holidaymakers are fond of packing exotic mementoes from their overseas trips — according to new figures revealed by the Department of Conservation.Last year, border officials confiscated 1685 pieces of coral, 1268 shells, 1034 packs of crocodile jerky and 2377 other items from endangered species.This week, the department revealed the figures with a reminder for travellers to check the rules if they planned to return to New Zealand with keepsakes from overseas, particularly the Pacific Islands, Hawai’i, or Queensland.The conservation department is the New Zealand management authority for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.The convention “monitors and controls…

Key pointsReview into scheme’s introduction finds worries about safety, and costs savings are less than thoughtUnion says underfunding means combined roles won’t workHealth NZ says the move has met its objectives.Combining the roles of cleaners and security guards into one job at two rural Waikato hospitals has left staff worried about their own safety and that of patients.And the scheme’s cost savings haven’t been as much as predicted.These are among findings in a report obtained by RNZ about the introduction of the scheme – which Health New Zealand calls integrated cleaning, attendant and security services – at Te Kuiti and…

Published on 23/06/2025 – 11:30 GMT+2•Updated 11:36ADVERTISEMENTRussian drone and missile attacks on Ukraine overnight killed at least 10 people, with seven deaths reported in the capital Kyiv, local officials said on Monday. Ukraine’s air force said Russia fired 352 drones and decoys overnight, as well as 11 ballistic missiles and five cruise missiles. The air force said it intercepted or jammed 339 drones and 15 missiles before they could reach their targets. Drones and missiles hit residential areas, hospitals and sports infrastructure in several districts across Kyiv in the early hours of Monday, emergency services said. The most severe damage was…

A woman with an intellectual disability living in supported accommodation lay dead for more than two days before staff found her, an investigation by the Health and Disability Commission has found.In a just-released decision, Deputy Health and Disability Commissioner Rose Wall said Spectrum Care Limited breached the woman’s rights by failing to ensure she was taking her anti-epilepsy medication or carry out adequate checks on her well-being.A post-mortem examination found the woman in her 30s, who died in early 2021, had not been taking her medication as prescribed.The report noted the woman (Ms A), who had suffered a traumatic brain…

Golf NZ says converting half of a prominent Auckland golf course into a stormwater reservoir would be a missed opportunity.Auckland Council was in the early stages of comparing two plans to incorporate a flood catchment into the Takapuna Golf Course, including its proposal to convert half of the course into a flood catchment and recreational area.The council’s proposal was to use the land to capture about 550,000 litres of water during a storm, reducing the flood risk to 10 hectares of homes, nearby schools and North Shore Hospital.Council was working with Takapuna Golf Club to assess the feasibility of an…

ADVERTISEMENTSupport for increasing national defence spending appears widespread in Europe although most seem to think that becoming independent from the US when it comes to security and defence before the end of the decade is impossible, a major new survey has found.Most of the more than 16,400 respondents polled across 12 European countries by the European Council of Foreign Relations (ECFR) stated that they are in favour of their countries upping their national defence spending with clear majorities in Poland, Denmark, the UK, Estonia, and Portugal.Pluralities in Romania (50%), Spain (46%), France (45%), Hungary (45%), Germany (47%), and Switzerland (40%)…

The people have spoken — and the NZ Transport Agency has listened— with the speed limit through Rakaia to remain at 50km/h along State Highway 1.Rakaia Community Association chairperson Neil Pluck said it’s a win for the community.“And a victory for common sense around New Zealand as we weren’t the only victor on the day.”Rakaia was one of 16 sites nationwide where the speed limits were reviewed after a community outcry.The Government had planned to automatically reverse the road to its previous higher speed limit of 70km/h.Rakaia’s speed dropped to 50km/h in 2024 after a two-decade campaign by the community.After…

Nearly 200 applications have been received for the so-called ‘golden visa’ since changes were made to liberalise access. The government made changes in April to make it easier for wealthy foreigners to gain New Zealand residency through investment. Since then, Immigration New Zealand has received 189 applications for the visa. Economic growth minister Nicola Willis said that was significantly more than the 116 appliciations received over more than two and a half years under the previous settings. “Investor migrants are clearly attracted to New Zealand’s growing reputation as a safe, pro-business, high-potential economy. In a world where countries compete for dollars and…