Author: Press Room

Foreign Minister Winston Peters says New Zealand isn’t getting the “reciprocal reaction we expect” from Kiribati as the two nations’ relationship hits rock bottom.1News revealed yesterday that New Zealand’s entire aid programme to Kiribati was put on hold while it’s reviewed because of a lack of “open dialogue” from the small country.The move came after Kiribati President Taneti Maamau pulled out of a pre-arranged meeting with Foreign Minister Winston Peters last week, just days before it was set to happen. Peters had repeatedly tried to meet with Maamau, who is also Kiribati’s Foreign Minister.Speaking about the decision to hold aid,…

A group of Wairoa retirees are gearing up for a legal battle, saying their landlord has breached a Tenancy Tribunal order against rental increases.Already financially stretched by living off their pensions, the retirees fear that any unreasonable increase to their current rent will leave them without the means to survive.The group received a letter before Christmas advising them their rent would increase from $360 to $415, starting on January 27 this year.The retirees were adamant that the rent hikes were unreasonable and planned to go to court to prove it. The group have had two years of legal battles against…

Pascal Lamy, the former chief of staff to European Commission President Jacques Delors and former two-term head of the World Trade Organization, told Euronews how the EU should deal with Donald Trump if the American president follows up on threats to impose tariffs. ADVERTISEMENTUS President Donald Trump should realise that the EU is a big market and could retaliate in a tariff war, harming US exporters, Pascal Lamy told Euronews’ Shona Murray in an exclusive interview Radio Schuman features today.The former European Commissioner for Trade and twice Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), downplayed the importance of Trump’s “show”…

The Prime Minister has hinted National will campaign on asset sales next year, saying an election win in 2026 would be the mandate he needed to push ahead with asset sales next term.Christopher Luxon has ruled out selling off state houses but says he is open to having a wider conversation with voters at the next election and pursuing other asset sales next term.He told reporters on Tuesday morning an election result would be an acceptable mandate, and he does not see a referendum on the issue being required.Asked if he planned to campaign on it next year, Luxon said…

One person has died following a crash on State Highway 1 in Wellsford, north of Auckland, this morning.Police said the crash occurred around 8.20am and involved a truck and another vehicle.“The serious crash unit is examining the scene and diversions remain in place.”Police anticipate the road will open early afternoon.“Police continue to advise motorists to allow additional time to reach their destinations.”

Japanese technology shares fell on Tuesday as a global market rout sparked by the emergence of a low-cost Chinese artificial intelligence model entered day two, with investors questioning the sky-high valuation and dominance of AI bellwethers. Shares of Nvidia, the poster child of the AI boom in recent years, dragged US stocks lower, sinking 17% on Monday and wiping $593 billion from the chipmaker’s market value, a record one-day loss for any company. It all stemmed from a free AI assistant launched by Chinese startup DeepSeek last week that the firm said uses less data at a fraction of the cost of services available currently,…

A second person has appeared in court in relation to a firearms incident at a Middlemore Hospital car park on January 4.Police said a firearm was allegedly “fired from a vehicle” in the incident. No-one was injured. A 23-year-old man appeared in Manukau District Court over the weekend, and will reappear today.Detective inspector Shaun Vickers said the Counties Manukau offender prevention team executed a search warrant late last week.He has been charged with committing a dangerous act with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and commission of an offence with a firearm.A 34-year-old man was previously arrested and faces charges…

Conservationists say efforts to reintroduce a rare forest songbird in Auckland have “exceeded all expectations” after at least 55 hihi chicks hatched in a regional park this summer.The chicks are the first to hatch in Auckland’s Shakespear Regional Park’s Open Sanctuary following a major translocation project last year.Forty adult hihi were moved to the park from predator-free nearby Tiritiri Matangi Island by Auckland Council, Shakespear Open Sanctuary Society and Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust in June.“The success of this project will give hihi the boost it needs to flourish again, and Aucklanders an opportunity to experience these little treasures in their…

A specialist police team are conducting a search of the Hutt River today in relation to a man who has been missing for more than two months.Thomas Basire, 28, was last seen near the Ewen Bridge on Railway Ave, walking on the stop bank towards Petone on November 24 last year.Police previously said he frequented the Lower Hutt CBD and had been reported to stay around the War Memorial Library.Detective Senior Sergeant Martin Todd said Basire is of slim build, around 180cm tall and was wearing a red long-sleeved sweatshirt, black trousers and black sneakers at the time of his…

A car fire in Mount Maunganui caused by a tablet left on a blanket and exposed to direct sunlight has prompted a warning from Fire and Emergency about using and storing devices with lithium-ion batteries safely. In a post to social media today, Fire and Emergency New Zealand said a crew from Mount Maunganui were called to a car fire earlier this month. It said the cause of the fire was a device left in the parked car and exposed to direct sunlight.”The iPad was sitting on a blanket, which caught alight when the battery exploded, starting a fire inside…