Author: Press Room

Whangārei’s fluoridation rebellion is intensifying with the Director-General of Health threatening to potentially pull rank and turn on the switch to add fluoride to the city’s drinking water if the council continues its defiance.This comes as ratepayers face the prospect of almost $5 million in potential extra Whangārei District Council (WDC) costs after councillors voted in December against adding fluoridation to the water.In a strongly-worded letter to WDC Mayor Vince Cocurullo and chief executive Simon Weston, Director-General of Health Dr Diana Sarfati told the council it was an offence under the Health Act 1956 for a local authority to contravene…

Undersea earthquakes this week have prompted the evacuation of more than 10,000 residents and workers. ADVERTISEMENTWith seismic activity in in full swing, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Santorini on Friday, as the Aegean island imposed more precautionary measures in case of a major earthquake.During his visit, Mitsotakis inspected emergency preparedness facilities and announced a €3m funding package for constructing an emergency evacuation route in the southern part of the island.“We are preparing for the worst while hoping for the best. That’s what a serious and organised state must do,” Mitsotakis said during a meeting with local officials.The heightened seismic…

Ahead of Germany’s federal elections, fake news and AI-generated propaganda is multiplying online. ADVERTISEMENTAs German federal elections draw closer, TikTok videos allegedly showing hundreds of thousands of people marching for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) have gone viral. German media outlet Correctiv revealed the videos had been manipulated — as a Euroverify investigation can confirm. The videos — posted by a range of AfD supporters’ accounts — consist of footage of crowds accompanied by captions claiming that they represent hundreds of thousands of people gathering for the far-right party.A simple TikTok search with keywords like “pro-AfD” and “protest” returns…

Key pointsHealth NZ CEO’s resignation won’t fix problems at Te Whatu Ora — unionsDoctors say underfunding and political interference to blameLabour says Margie Apa’s leadership was “undermined”.Health NZ has launched a global search for a new chief executive with the sudden resignation today of founding CEO Fepulea’i Margie Apa.However, frontline health workers are sceptical that installing new leadership will make any difference to a system grappling with workforce shortages, spiralling deficits and industrial unrest – as well as suffering patients struggling to get help.Apa’s $900,000 a year contract was due to finish in June, so her departure was not unexpected,…

Kendrick Lamar aims to infuse his Los Angeles hip-hop flavour into New Orleans while staying true to his storytelling roots during Monday’s Super Bowl halftime performance.”Being in the now and being just locked-in to how I feel and the energy I have now, that’s the LA energy for me,” he said Friday at a press conference hosted by Apple Music. “That’s something I wanted to carry over to New Orleans and for the world to see. This is me. This is Kendrick Lamar, 37 years old, and I still feel like I’m elevating, I’m still on a journey.”The rap megastar…

The Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown says New Zealand is asking for too much oversight over its deal with China, which is expected to be penned in Beijing next week.Brown told RNZ Pacific the Cook Islands-New Zealand relationship was reciprocal.”They certainly did not consult with us when they signed their comprehensive partnership agreement [with China] and we would not expect them to consult with us,” he said.”There is no need for New Zealand to sit in the room with us while we are going through our comprehensive agreement with China.”We have advised them on the matter, but as far…

A Wellington woman’s ticked off all 11 of New Zealand’s Great Walks – in 11 days straight.The feat of endurance took Bridget Johnson along 550 kilometres of trail and on a 150km paddle.One of the Great Walks – the Hump Ridge Track in Fiordland National Park – was added to the list just last year.”There were little moments every day that just sort of made me go, ‘Oh my God, I’m getting to do this. I’m so lucky to get this opportunity’,” she told 1News.Johnson trained for 25 hours a week in preparation.”The training was huge and — in many…

Tens of thousands of hectares of Gisborne’s forestry and farming land will need to be planted with vegetation to remedy the region’s “wicked problem” of vulnerable and eroding land.Gisborne has been hit with 16 extreme weather events since 2017, with woody debris and slash consistently clogging the region’s waterways.In the past 20 months, tens of millions of dollars have been spent on funding for woody debris clean-up.During an open district council workshop on “resilient land use” last Thursday, councillors discussed a report detailing its operations and what it had been doing since Cyclone Gabrielle in February, 2023.Mayor Rehette Stoltz said…

The number of migrants arriving Cyprus has fallen massively over the past three years after tough measures from the government. ADVERTISEMENTA Syrian man has been jailed for three years by a Cyprus court for causing the death by negligence of a 3-year-old girl who died of dehydration aboard an overloaded migrant boat. The Famagusta criminal court ruled that the 48-year-old captain had failed to ensure the safety of the 60 Syrian migrants in January last year during a journey on the small wooden craft, which carried no navigational aids or appropriate communications equipment.The captain had told the passengers at some…

Donald Tusk has once again criticised the Pact on Migration and Asylum and doubled down on his refusal to comply with the legislation. ADVERTISEMENTPoland will not implement the Pact on Migration and Asylum, the all-encompassing reform the European Union has introduced to collectively manage the irregular arrival of asylum seekers, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Friday, speaking right next to the main proponent of the legislative overhaul, Ursula von der Leyen.The Pact, which is legally binding for all 27 member states, is expected to enter into force in 2026, although some countries are keen to activate certain elements before…