Author: Press Room

A landslip in Auckland’s west coast settlement of Muriwai has residents reliving the devastating landslides of two years ago.Muriwai was hit badly during the 2023 Auckland Anniversary floods and Cyclone Gabrielle, with large slips making some areas unliveable.The community was struck by another slip at the weekend on Motutara Rd.Fire and Emergency evacuated properties in the immediate area after Saturday’s slip as a precaution.No one was injured, but the slip restricted the roads into town to one lane, and one resident says it has stirred bad memories.Longtime Muriwai resident Delwyn Shepherd told RNZ that the storms kept the community on…

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By&nbspOman Al Yahyai&nbspwith&nbspAP Published on 14/07/2025 – 17:59 GMT+2ADVERTISEMENTA 40-year-old German doctor went on trial in Berlin on Monday accused of murdering 15 palliative care patients under his supervision. Prosecutors allege the physician, identified only as Johannes M in accordance with German privacy laws, acted with “premeditated malice and other base motives.”The accused, formerly employed by a private end-of-life care service, is said to have administered a fatal combination of anaesthetic and muscle relaxant to patients between September 2021 and July 2024, without their knowledge or consent. Most of the victims, aged between 25 and 94, died in their homes. Prosecutors…

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Vital Ltd shareholders weighing up a takeover offer by Christchurch communications company Tait International have until August 8 to opt into a share buy-out at the “low end” of an independent valuation. Tait intends to buy all Vital’s shares for a premium of 45 cents in cash per share and all the unlisted employee share options for 13c per option. In a NZX update on Friday morning, just over 28% of shareholders with the listed company had accepted the share offer. This follows Vital’s board recommending shareholders and option holders accept the takeover offer made on June 19, despite the…

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The New Zealand Defence Force has deployed 700 personnel across land, sea, air, space and cyberspace for Exercise Talisman Sabre, a massive multinational training operation now underway across eastern and northern Australia.This year’s iteration, the largest in its history, sees 19 nations represented including the US, UK, Japan and New Zealand in a show of military coordination and “collective deterrence” amid growing regional insecurity.“New Zealand is part of this practice-for-war exercise,” said Lieutenant Colonel Caleb Berry, speaking from the live-fire demonstration zone in Queensland.“It’s a key demonstration of the coalition of the willing. We’re showing we can work together and…

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Wellington mayoral candidate Ray Chung says he regrets writing an email with third-hand claims about incumbent Mayor Tory Whanau, but believes the email’s release was an attempt to discredit him and his campaign.Chung sent an email, seen by RNZ, to three fellow councillors in early 2023 recounting a story he’d been told by his neighbour about the neighbour’s son allegedly having a sexual encounter with the mayor.The email surfaced last week. Whanau rejected the contents of the email and said it was false and contained a “malicious and sexist” rumour.In a video statement on social media Chung said the email…

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A person has died after a concrete truck hit a house in Auckland’s Remuera this morning.Emergency services were called to a property on Rangitoto Avenue just after 9am on Monday.WorkSafe confirmed the death of a worker in a statement to 1News.”WorkSafe extends its sympathy to the whānau, friends, and colleagues of the worker who died after an incident in Remuera, Auckland this morning,” a spokesperson said.”Initial information indicates the incident was construction related, but our investigators will be at the scene today to gather evidence and understand the circumstances.”Damage to the side of the house in Auckland’s Remuera. (Source: 1News)St…

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ADVERTISEMENTUS President Donald Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a “productive” meeting on Monday, the Ukrainian leader said, as anticipation grew over a major announcement Trump said he would make on Monday. Kellogg and Zelenskyy discussed what the US and Ukraine could “practically do”, including “strengthening Ukraine’s air defence, joint production, and procurement of defence weapons in collaboration with Europe,” as Ukraine continues to defend itself from Russia’s all-out war, now in its fourth year.The meeting comes after Trump teased a “major statement” on Russia on Sunday night ahead of a…

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Whanganui’s average rates increase of 2.2% for the year ahead is the lowest in the country.Mayor Andrew Tripe says the low figure is the envy of the country and the payoff in a sustained drive to adjust how the council operates.”[It] didn’t happen by accident – it’s the result of a deliberate strategy to keep costs under control,” Tripe said.”Many of the savings are structural and will flow through to future years. We expect there will be opportunities to reduce the 2026/27 rates increase as well.”In a survey by Local Democracy Reporting on average rates for 2025/26 throughout the country,…

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Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is back from his holiday and is updating media after Cabinet met earlier today.Recent developments include:Labour on Sunday confirmed MP Peeni Henare will contest the by-election for the Tāmaki Makaurau seat, competing against Oriini Kaipara, who was named as Te Pāti Māori’s candidate on Friday. Erica Stanford, both Minister of Education and of Immigration, unveiled an ambitious plan to double the economic contribution of New Zealand’s international education sector to $7.2 billion by 2034, up from $3.6 billion last year.A group of industry bodies and independent energy retailers launched a campaign calling for an overhaul of…

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Published on 14/07/2025 – 12:13 GMT+2•Updated 12:21ADVERTISEMENTA major shake-up in how the EU manages farming subsidies appears to be underway with the European Commission planning to unify delivery of its two largest budget items—cohesion funds and agricultural subsidies—under a single channel, according to a leaked draft of the EU’s next long-term budget seen by Euronews.Crucially, the proposal would eliminate the CAP’s “second pillar”, which currently funds rural development programmes. These programmes support agro-environmental initiatives, farm investments, and the development of rural communities.“The new framework guarantees coherence by integrating the CAP interventions from the current two-funds structure under one single umbrella.…

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