Author: Press Room

ADVERTISEMENTSpain will invest an additional €10.4 billion in defence to meet NATO’s 2% target by 2025, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez officially announced after Tuesday’s ministerial meeting in Madrid.The centre-left leader emphasised that Spain remains a “pacifist” country and said the new investments are intended as a deterrent to “those who might think of attacking Europe”.Less than a fifth of the plan’s funds will be allocated to the “purchase of arms in the traditional sense of the word”, the Socialist leader added.Under the proposed defence and security plan, 35% of the new investments will go toward improving the working conditions of…

An expert is unable to say for certain whether the car at the centre of the Mike Zhao-Beckenridge case really held the 11-year-old boy or whether the scene was staged, due to evidence being “severely contaminated”.A coronial hearing is underway in Christchurch to determine whether Mike was murdered or involved in a staged disappearance.Police believe he was inside his stepfather John Beckenridge’s car in March 2015 when it drove over a cliff in the Catlins and plummeted 70 metres to the ocean below.Their theory is that Breckenridge intentionally drove the pair to their deaths in a murder-suicide, possibly out of…

ADVERTISEMENTThe European Union will not decouple from the Chinese economy as a condition for reaching a trade deal with Donald Trump’s administration, the European Commission said on Tuesday amid reports that the White House has asked countries to do exactly that.Although the US has not officially confirmed the demand, Trump has sounded amenable to making nations choose between Washington and Beijing in order to win permanent concessions from his sweeping tariffs, which have shocked allies and adversaries alike.”Maybe in a certain way,” Trump told Fox News when asked whether Latin America should decouple from China. “Maybe, yeah, maybe they should…

More financial support is being made available for farmers in parts of the country affected by dry conditions, the Government announced today.Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston said rural assistance payments were being made available from next Monday for 27 districts across the North Island and upper South Island.”We want to help eligible farmers whose income has been severely affected by drought-stricken conditions.”We know farmers in these regions have been significantly impacted by low rainfall over recent months, and we want people to be able to access support when they need it.”Payments were equivalent to the current rate of…

Police have urged safer driving after four people were killed in crashes across the North Island over the Easter long weekend.The official Easter holiday road toll period was from 4pm on Thursday to 6am this morning.Inspector Peter McKennie of the National Road Policing Centre said four road deaths over the Easter was a “relatively low number”, but the reality was “any death on the road is one too many”.”Our hearts go out to the loved ones of those who died. Their lives will never be the same again,” he said in a media release.”Police will continue to work hard to…

A coronial court will this week hear new evidence about the disappearance of an 11-year-old Southland boy more than a decade ago. Mike Zhao-Beckenridge went missing in March 2015 after he was picked up from his Invercargill school by his stepfather, helicopter pilot John Beckenridge, in breach of a court order.A week later, Beckenridge’s car went off a nearly 90m cliff in Southland. But when the car was recovered, there were no signs of bodies inside.Ten years later, there are still conflicting theories about what happened. Police believe the case was a murder-suicide, but Mike’s mother Fiona Lu argues her…

A person has died following a crash in Rangiora, Canterbury, this morning.Police said it was notified around 7am of a single-vehicle crash on Charles Upham Dr.“Despite efforts by emergency services, one person died at the scene.”The road has since reopened after a scene examination took place.“While inquiries into the crash are ongoing, initial indications suggest this is a suspected medical event and the death will be referred to the coroner.”

ADVERTISEMENTThe outcome of the war in Ukraine is also being played out in space. The American Starlink satellite network is currently essential to the Ukrainian military, providing connectivity for forces on the ground. But the unpredictable nature of its owner, billionaire Elon Musk, is worrying Kyiv and the European Union.”Elon Musk is in fact the guardian of Ukraine’s connectivity on the battlefield. And that’s a strategic vulnerability,” warns Arthur De Liedekerke, Senior Director of European Affairs for Rasmussen Global.However, MEP Christophe Grudler, part of the Renew Europe parliamentary group, insists that the EU has alternatives capable of competing with the…

The coroner’s inquest into Oliva Podmore’s sudden death resumed in Christchurch today with a forensic psychologist saying the Olympic cyclist suffered “trauma” before she died.Dr Erik Monasterio spoke of the emotional distress Podmore experienced following the release of the Heron Report in 2018. The report was commissioned after an incident before the Rio Olympics where Podmore uncovered an inappropriate athlete-coach relationship at a training camp in Bordeaux.Monasterio said Podmore’s role as a whistleblower was a key factor. “We know that people who are whistleblowers carry a considerable burden of distress, psychological and psychiatric problems thereafter,” he said.“What has become clearer…

Police have appealed to “critical witnesses” as part of the investigation into the homicide of a man who was fatally assaulted in Auckland’s St Johns over the weekend.Emergency services were called to a bus stop on St Johns Rd shortly before 10pm on Saturday, following reports a person had been attacked by at least two offenders.The victim was transported to hospital in a critical condition with “serious head injuries”, where he later died.Former colleagues have named Kyle Whorrall, 33, as the victim of a fatal assault at a bus stop in Auckland’s St Johns. (Source: Facebook)Former colleagues have named him…