Author: Press Room

By Jemima Huston of RNZ The debate is growing about whether the Reserve Bank should make a jumbo sized cut to the official cash rate next month. Financial markets are pricing in a 20 percent chance of a 75 basis point cut in November, and there are suggestions it may be necessary with the next meeting not taking place until February next year. BNZ’s head of research Stephen Toplis said it is not out of the realm of possibility, a 50 basis point cut is far more likely. He said there have only been three times the central bank has…

A close friend of the man who died in a boating accident on Sunday said his relatives were in shock.A boat with seven people on board capsized on Auckland’s Manukau Bar.Sudesh Kumar said the man who died was 52-year-old Māngere East resident Parama Siwam Sami, know as Bimal.Kumar said Sami came to New Zealand from Lautoka in Fiji 20 years ago, and leaves behind a wife and four children in their 20s (three daughters and one son).He said the tight-knit family was grieving the loss of a kind, good-hearted man.”Bimal is one of my close brothers. He’s also my wife’s…

A man charged with manslaughter after the death of a man who was allegedly assaulted on Wellington’s Courtenay Place can now be named.Siale Siale, 29, appeared in the Wellington District Court on Monday morning after the death of Luke Smith two weeks ago.Smith, 21, was rushed to hospital in the early hours of October 6 and died when his life support was removed.Supporters of Luke Smith gathered outside the court.Luke Smith died after an assault in Welllington on the weekend. (Source: Give A Little )Police said at the time the assault happened about 3.15am outside the old Reading Cinema building.Siale…

Former Green Party MP Golriz Ghahraman’s second bid to avoid convictions for shoplifting has failed. In March this year, Ghahraman pleaded guilty to four counts of shoplifting. The charges related to three incidents in Auckland and one in Wellington late last year.The items taken were worth about $8900 in total.In June, the ex-MP’s application to be discharged without conviction was denied by Auckland District Court Judge June Jelaš. Ghahraman was fined $1600 and ordered to pay court costs.Then, earlier this month, Ghahraman appealed the District Court’s decision to decline her application.But today, High Court Justice Geoffrey Venning denied that appeal.Annabel…

A homicide investigation has been launched after a man’s body was found in a Levin park last week.Police were notified at around 5.40pm on Thursday after the man’s body was found in a building at Muaūpoko Park, near Lake Horowhenua.The death was originally treated as suspicious and following a postmortem and scene examination which were completed yesterday, police have launched a homicide investigation.”Members of the deceased’s family and Muaūpoko iwi were present at the conclusion of the scene examination, where a karakia was performed,” Detective Senior Sergeant David Thompson said.A rāhui has been placed on the Lake Domain by Muaūpoko,…

Eastern parts of the country can expect to see temperatures hit the mid-twenties later this week, MetService says.MetService meteorologist Dom Barry said thanks to warmer air, many places across the east of the country will see higher than average maximum and minimum temperatures. This week’s expected temperatures (Source: Supplied)”For the easternmost places like Christchurch, Oamaru, Napier and Hastings, maximums in the mid-twenties can be expected,” Barry said. On Wednesday afternoon, the temperature in Christchurch is expected to reach 26C, while in the north Napier is likely to see 24C. The temperature in Napier on Thursday is expected to reach 26C,…

An Auckland hazardous substances business and its owner will forfeit $4 million under the Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Act (CPRA) to settle a case taken by police in the wake of an explosion that killed a young contract worker in 2015. Jamey Bowring, 24, was working as a contractor at Salters Cartage Limited (SCL) in Wiri when he was killed after a tank exploded. A WorkSafe statement from 2017 said Bowring was welding and grinding on top of the 96,000 litre capacity tank when it blew up, “throwing Mr Bowring 130 metres into a nearby car yard and killing him”.As part…

A record nearly 400,000 people are on some form of benefit – almost the same proportion of the population as after the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) – and there’s a warning that number will increase before it falls again.The data was released as part of the Ministry of Social Development’s update for September.It showed the proportion of the working age population receiving a main benefit lifted to 12%, or 391,224 people, up 0.6 per centage points from September 2023.Just over 6% of the population, or 204,765, were on JobSeeker support.That compares to 12.4% of the population on a benefit after…

The EU executive has largely rejected new findings from the European Court of Auditors over its new streamlined spending approach, sparking a dust-up as it plans wider reforms to the bloc’s €1.2 trillion budget. ADVERTISEMENTThe EU’s budget is at increasing risk of duplicating payouts, as it shifts to a system that rewards reforms rather than reimbursing costs, the European Court of Auditors said in a report published on Monday.It’s the latest broadside from the Luxembourg-based Court in a battle for the future of Brussels’ spending pot, which is worth €1.2 trillion over seven years and due to be rejigged starting…

The Otago Regional Council could receive a nearly $60 million cash injection from Port Otago over the next three years. Port Otago will present its statement of corporate intent (SCI) for the next three financial years, to June 30, 2027, at an Otago Regional Council meeting tomorrow. The company is wholly owned by the council and operates across four sites including Dunedin Bulk Port, Dunedin Depot, Fiordland and Port Chalmers — the primary South Island port for cruise ships. The meeting’s agenda said the port had “substantially revised” its SCI format in line with a move to integrated reporting and…