Author: Press Room

By Giles Dexter of RNZ  The Green Party is pledging to revoke consents for any coal, hardrock gold or seabed mining projects, including two in Otago, granted under the fast-track regime if it forms part of a government at next year’s election. “Today, we are putting the seabed mining, hardrock gold mining and coal mining industries – and their investors – on notice. Your fast-track consents are not safe and they are not secure,” co-leader Marama Davidson said. The Greens have been warning they would revoke consents as far back as December 2024, when the initial fast-track bill passed its third…

Friends are rallying around a mother who lost three children in a devastating house fire in Sanson, Manawatū. The blaze broke out around 2.30pm on Saturday, prompting a significant emergency services response.Police have confirmed four fatalities from the Manawatū home – three children and a man. In a GiveALittle page set up yesterday evening, friends of the family paid tribute to the grieving mother. “Our dear friend has suffered the sudden, unbearable loss of her three beloved children, her angels … They were the light and love of her life, and her entire world has been shattered,” they wrote. The…

Six weeks after a father and son died in a house fire, the family have spoken for the first time about what happened that night, revealing the heroic actions of a father who died trying to save his youngest son and the devastating impact their deaths have had. RNZ national crime correspondent Sam Sherwood reports.Yea Seul Park was at home in Jakarta when she received a message from her younger sister who lived in Auckland with her husband Jung Sup Lee, and their two sons, a 13-year-old and 11-year-old Ha-il.”There was a fire in the house last night,” the message…

A move by ACC to use artificial intelligence to help decide which long-term claimants should go back to work is being called “shocking”. It comes as the state insurer is under instruction from its minister to reduce the long-term claims pool. There are about 25,000 long-term claimants that have been receiving compensation for a year or more – the most there had ever been. ACC earlier this year commissioned advice to work out how it could remove existing clients and prevent new ones from entering the pool. In the year to June 2025, a record 8000 long-term claimants were taken off its books…

Police have charged a 57-year-old woman with murder following the death of a man in Kaitāia yesterday.Emergency services were called to reports of assault at an Okahu Road property at around 12.35pm yesterday.A man found was found with critical injuries, and despite receiving medial attention, died at the scene. The woman, who was arrested at a separate property, will appear in Kaitāia District Court today, Acting Detective Inspector Tania Jellyman said.“Police are not seeking anyone else in relation to this matter,” Jellyman said. “A scene examination is continuing and a post mortem examination will be carried out in the coming…

A new, non-stop seasonal route has been announced between Queenstown and Brisbane by Air New Zealand. In a statement today,  the national carrier said this would make it easier for Kiwis to swap snow for sand and enjoy some sunshine in the Australian state of Queensland. The service begins on June 22 next year with 1 flight from Queenstown on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 9.05am taking 3 hours and 50 minutes, and from Brisbane at 11.55am (3 hours, 35 minutes) until October 23.  The service would offer more than 17,000 seats, “providing a convenient link between the Southern Alps and…

New Zealanders are losing six-figure sums to scammers pretending to offer anything from jobs to cryptocurrency investments and technology support.Financial Services Complaints Ltd, an external dispute resolution service for the financial services sector, said it recently investigated a complaint from a retiree who lost $250,000 to a company falsely claiming to offer cryptocurrency trading services.He thought he was signing up to an online platform for trading crypto and transferred money from his bank account to a money transfer service.When the victim thought he was confirming regulatory declarations, he was actually authorising transfers to a financial service provider in the Middle…

Award-winning alternative rock band Deftones have announced they’ll play a one-off show in Auckland next year. The band announced today they would play at Auckland’s Spark Arena on May 13.Deftones was formed by a group of friends in Sacramento, California in 1988, and have since sold more than 10 million records and garnered 10 billion-plus streams globally.Chino Moreno, Stephen Carpenter, Abe Cunningham, and Frank Delgado have since gone on to win multiple awards over the past three decades, including Grammys for Best Metal Performance in 2001 and Best Remixed Recording in 2022.Described as having “one of alternative rocks most dedicated…

A woman who made sex allegations against former top cop Jevon McSkimming was treated in a “confronting, appalling, shocking, and disgusting” way by authorities, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says.Speaking to Breakfast, the PM agreed with a characterisation by Police Commissioner Richard Chambers that there was a cover-up in the caseIt follows the release of an Independent Police Conduct Authority report into how police handled complaints against former acting deputy commissioner McSkimming.”Yeah, I do,” Luxon said when asked if he agreed with Chambers’ characterisation of the case as a cover-up. “This is a big hit to integrity and trust for the…

By Susan Edmunds of RNZ United States President Donald Trump has raised the idea of a 50-year mortgage term to help first-home buyers – but would it work for New Zealanders trying to buy houses too? Media reported that Trump wants the government to back a 50-year mortgage option that would help address concerns about housing affordability. Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte reportedly said it was “a complete game changer” for home-buyers. But is it actually a solution? Ed McKnight, economist at property investment firm Opes Partners, said it could be an expensive one over the long term,…