Author: Press Room
He’s a champion for wellbeing in business and former semifinalist in the New Zealander of the Year. Business editor Sally Rae talks to former professional rugby player Craig Hudson about why he has got involved with Dunedin-based startup Givenwell. When illness prematurely ended Craig Hudson’s professional rugby career at 23, it signalled the beginning of his wellness journey. Quite a few twists and turns later and Mr Hudson recently joined Dunedin-based startup Givenwell as chief customer officer to help scale its impact in workplace wellbeing. Meeting Givenwell’s founder Jonny Mirkin last year was a pivotal moment; Mr Mirkin’s passion for wellbeing was…
A boatie has been convicted and fined after his vessel capsized and rolled while trying to cross the Raglan bar in poor conditions, trapping himself and his wife under the boat.Jaswant Chand, who owned the boat, had attempted to cross a sandspit at the southern end of the Raglan bar to go fishing with his wife and son aboard. Conditions were described as being “hazardous” on the day of the incident.The boat capsized, trapping Chand and his wife underneath. He managed to push his wife free before he became trapped himself, needing to be rescued by surf lifesavers. The vessel…
ADVERTISEMENT Beijing’s relationship with Moscow will be at the forefront of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) summit in China this weekend. As Russian strikes continue to rain down on Ukraine and European calls for further sanctions on the Kremlin grow, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin will attend the event in the Chinese city of Tianjin with around 20 other world leaders. The meeting will include representatives from the 10 European and Asian member states of the SCO, a body which styles itself as an alternative to the US-led world order. It comprises China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan…
An Auckland man has been jailed for more than two years after admitting to possessing and sharing videos and images depicting the sexual abuse of children as young as 18 months.Warning: This article includes details that may be distressing to some readers.An investigation into 38-year-old Karl Dallison was launched by the Department of Internal Affairs’ digital child exploitation team when he became a person of interest in an international law enforcement agency operation. Several addresses linked to Dallison were searched, leading to the seizure of several electronic devices containing 6263 images of sexual exploitation, including the abuse of children. Some…
Published on 29/08/2025 – 17:17 GMT+2 ADVERTISEMENT There is “broad support” among member states to extend the EU’s mission to train Ukrainian soldiers to sites in the war-torn country following a ceasefire, Kaja Kallas said on Friday. The EU’s high representative told reporters after a meeting of the bloc’s defence ministers in Copenhagen, Denmark, that she “welcome(s)” this broad support to extend the mandate of the EU Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine). Some 80,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in various sites across Europe by EU armed forces since it was launched in November 2022. Changing…
Popular Wellington brew bar Fortune Favours has announced it will be closing its doors at the end of this week after eight years in business. In a post to social media last night, its owners said the Leeds Street pub would permanently close on Sunday, August 31.They said the closure was caused by the cost-of-living crisis, which had “proven too difficult for us to navigate”. A popular Wellington bar’s closure is another victim of the prevailing economic headwinds. (Source: 1News)”We’re 20% down on last year, which was already 25% down on the year before. “This is not sustainable.”The brew bar’s…
Employers opting to stop contributing to their staff’s KiwiSaver accounts when they turn 65 may be costing them thousands of dollars.Westpac is calling for employers to continue to make contributions to employees who are over 65 and wants the Government to consider making it compulsory.At present, employers can usually stop the contributions once someone reaches 65. Government contributions also stop when the person becomes eligible for NZ Super.Nigel Jackson, chief executive of BT Funds Management, Westpac’s KiwiSaver provider, said continuing contributions could make a meaningful difference to a person’s retirement savings.”Over the past three years, 54% of our KiwiSaver customers…
The number of couples getting married or entering into civil unions dropped in 2024, according to Stats NZ, continuing a downward trend in those tying the knot. In 2024, a total of 18,033 couples living in New Zealand got married or entered into a civil union — a 4% drop from 2023, when there were 18,744.The figures released today were also 14% lower than the 1990s, which had an average of 20,950 marriages per year. Stats NZ population estimates, projections, and coverage spokesperson Rebekah Hennessey said the rates of marriage had fallen from one generation to the next. She said…
The government has signed off on a plan to ease alcohol restrictions, pledging fewer hurdles for bars and bottle stores, as first revealed by RNZ earlier this month.The proposed changes to the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act would make it harder for people to block liquor licences and simpler for ministers to declare one-off special trading hours for pubs or clubs screening major sport or cultural events.Speaking at Auckland’s Lula Inn on Thursday morning, Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee said the shake-up was “careful and considered”, and designed to remove pointless or unhelpful barriers.”It’s not about getting pissed,” she…
By Carolina Cardoso & Damaso Jaivenois Published on 29/08/2025 – 13:37 GMT+2 ADVERTISEMENT Dangerously hight traffic noise levels are putting nearly 112 million people at risk of serious long-term health issues, according to the latest European Environment Agency (EEA) report. Road traffic is the main source of noise pollution, affecting about 92 million people across the EU. By comparison, railway noise affects 18 million people, and air traffic impacts about 2.6 million. France has the highest number of people exposed to transport noise above the EU’s safety limit, with 24 million affected. Nearly 90% of this is caused by road traffic. At night,…