Author: Press Room

A migrant worker has died after falling from a height while using a scissor lift at work in late December.Jun Jiang, 37, had been put on life support by doctors after surgery following a fall at Auckland company SD Aluminium on December 28.His life support was switched off at 5pm on Tuesday, with Jiang passing away at Auckland City Hospital three hours later.Jiang came to New Zealand from Jiangsu, China, on an accredited employer work visa in late 2022.His wife, Jia Fan, later joined her husband on a partner visa with their 8-year-old daughter.On December 28, Fan received a telephone…

A council has removed tree branches allowing a rope swing to be hung over at a popular summer cool-off waterfall in Hawke’s Bay because swinging into the pool below has been deemed too risky.Miriam Wilkinson and her family visit Maraetotara Falls three to four times a week during summer.“The kids love it. It’s a beautiful spot and they love swinging from the rope into the water below,” Wilkinson said.However, the family was astounded to discover a couple of weeks before Christmas that some branches of the large tree hanging over the water, along with a rope swing used to dive…

The centre-right Austrian People’s Party is currently negotiating with the far-right Freedom Party to establish a coalition government in Austria. ADVERTISEMENTWhat implications would Herbert Kickl’s rise to Austria’s chancellorship, as the leader of the Eurosceptic, anti-immigration, and pro-Russian Freedom Party, have for Brussels and the European Union?Today Radio Schuman answers this question with centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) MEP Reinhold Lopatka.After the resignation of Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer and the collapse of centrist coalition talks, President Alexander Van der Bellen has tasked Herbert Kickl, leader of the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), with forming a new government. The FPÖ, which won…

Charges are being considered for a motorist who allegedly drove through a cordoned-off crash scene in Waikato this morning on State Highway 1.Police said the crash occurred at about 5.30am at Piarere between Horahora and Paparamu roads.Five people were injured, including two critically and three seriously. The highway was then closed by the Serious Crash Unit for a scene examination.At 9.30am, as police were still working at the scene, a car transporter and trailer wwas allegedly driven around workers at two cordons and then through the crash scene.Police said an officer was “forced to jump out of the way” as…

Inland Revenue (IR) promised it would use the $29 million in additional funding it was given in the Budget to target taxpayers who had not met their obligations.Data shows — so far — it is delivering ahead of its goals in many areas.It outlines its performance against a number of key indicators.In terms of revenue and recovered or disallowed expenditure due to IR interventions, it is targeting an extra $63 million in revenue at a minimum for the current tax year, to a total $1.038 billion.In the September quarter, it reported $397.4 million, well ahead of the target range up…

Before a quiet Christchurch man seemingly vanished from his St Albans home a note was left on his front door with only the word “farm” scrawled across it.Stewart Willis, 63, left all of his belongings inside his rented house – a unit tucked between others – on Colombo St, on or about July 24, 2023, police said.There had been no sign of him since, leaving those in the neighbourhood to wonder whether he left to start a new life or if his body was lying somewhere undiscovered.When Willis first disappeared, police said they had concerns for his welfare but, more…

NIWA has released its Annual Climate Summary for 2024, providing an insight into last year’s weather, including the sunniest, wettest and warmest places in New Zealand.Here’s a look at some of the key findings.Temperatures(Source: 1News)2024 was the 10th warmest since records began – not as hot as 2023, but still a warm year. The nationwide average temperature was 13.25C, 0.51C above the 1991-2020 annual average.Temperatures were above average for much of Northland, northern Waikato, Bay of Plenty, coastal Hawke’s Bay, southern Taranaki, Whanganui, eastern and southern Wairarapa, Tasman, inland northern Canterbury, Banks Peninsula, and eastern Otago.  They were near average…

New Zealand’s most popular baby names for 2024 have been revealed today.For girls, the top name given to newborns in 2024 was Isla, with 190 babies sharing the name. It marks the third time in five years Isla has topped the list for girls. Also in the top 10 list for girls were Amelia, Charlotte, Lily, Isabella, Olivia, Hazel, Harper, Mia, and Mila. For boys, the top name was Noah for the second consecutive year, and the fourth year in a row the name was in the top two.Oliver, Leo, George, Jack, Luca, Theodore, Elijah, Theo, and Arthur rounded out…

It’s “likely” anyone unable to submit their feedback on the Treaty Principles Bill by Tuesday will get another chance to do so, the chair of Parliament’s justice committee James Meager says.Pressure was mounting to extend the deadline for public submissions, after technical problems with Parliament’s website prevented many people from giving feedback.RNZ has confirmed the justice select committee will meet at 9am Thursday to make a decision on late submissions.”Likely anybody who was unable to make a submission yesterday due to website issues will have the opportunity to do so but I can’t pre-empt the Committee’s decisions,” Meager said.Technical problems…

There has been a whale stranding at Farewell Spit in Golden Bay, with a refloating attempt to be made this afternoon. According to the Department of Conservation, 10 pilot whales stranded last night.Eight were found alive this morning.”We aim to refloat the surviving eight at high tide on Wednesday afternoon,” DOC Takaka Operations Manager Ross Trotter said. “We have plenty of volunteers to help keep the whales cool so do not need people to come and help at this stage. Conditions are cool with some rain which is good for the stranded whales.”The whales are showing signs of having been…