Author: Press Room

Pioneering Dunedin-founded business Oritain is expanding its scientific network through the phased acquisition of three leading European laboratories. The company, which uses forensic science to determine product provenance, invested in Agroisolab in Germany in 2023 and Advanced Isotopic Analysis (AiA) in France and Imprint Analytics in Austria this year. Co-founder and chief scientist Prof Russell Frew said Oritain had recently started the integration process for all three laboratories. While the purchase prices were not available, Prof Frew confirmed staff at the three laboratories had been retained. Oritain’s founding facility and centre of excellence for forensic origin verification, Isotrace, in Dunedin,…

A former senior leader at police is on leave from his job at the Civil Aviation Authority following the police watchdog’s scathing report into how police handled allegations of sexual offending by former Deputy Commissioner Jevon McSkimming.RNZ earlier revealed the identities of some of the senior leaders referred to in the IPCA’s 135-page report.Among them is Chris de Wattignar, referred to in the IPCA’s report as Deputy Commissioner PLC, now works as the Upper North head of aviation security at the Civil Aviation Authority.Asked for comment on Wednesday, a CAA spokesperson said the matters discussed in the IPCA’s report “relate…

A new Eurocities Pulse survey has found that climate threats are intensifying faster than the European local capacity to adapt. Europe is the fastest-warming continent in the world, with extreme climate events predicted to get worse, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA). Heatwaves, floods, and droughts are the top three most pressing urban climate risks. More than 75% of Europeans live in urban centres, putting them on the front line of the fight against climate change. The Eurocities survey analysed 54 cities across 17 European countries, including Portugal, Italy, Germany, Spain, and France. 80% of the cities surveyed say…

The Regulatory Standards Bill has passed with the backing of the coalition parties.National and New Zealand First agreed to pass the bill into law as part of their coalition agreements with ACT.The bill has faced fierce pushback from the public, with more than 98% of public submissions opposed.The legislation sets down principles for lawmaking which would not be enforceable in court but – if a piece of law would breach them – politicians would need to explain. It also sets up a Regulatory Standards Board which would assess current laws for their adherence to the principles.Its critics say the principles…

The “Seaview stench” could stage an unwelcome sequel over the Hutt following an operational maintenance error at a wastewater treatment plant.Wellington Water said the mistake occurred during work at the Seaview Wastewater Treatment Plant undertaken by its contractor, Veolia.While the error had been fixed, the community is being warned to the “strong possibility of increased odour”, Wellington Water chief executive Pat Dougherty said.”The mistake has been corrected, however the biological process at the plant has become unbalanced,” he said.”The biological process treats wastewater and, when it is healthy and balanced, the risk of related odour is very low. However, when…

The European Union must find new levers of growth in a changing world where competition and geopolitics dominate, Eurogroup boss Paschal Donohoe told Euronews. Donohoe, who leads the group of euro area finance ministers, said the European economy now requires a combination of internal market reform and diversified external ties. Caught between Trump’s tariffs and escalating tensions with China, Europe is looking for ways to boost its powerful single market and multiply its trading partners. “The responsibility for European growth lies, first and foremost, here in Europe,” he said in Euronews’ interview series 12 Minutes With. “That means making the…

Reduced services, delayed infrastructure repairs and sports grounds with outdated facilities were just a few of the possible negatives New Zealand ratepayers could face under a proposed system to cap local authority rates rises, a meeting of local authority leaders has been told.A New South Wales mayor warned New Zealand local authority leaders about the risks of a rates cap system at a meeting in Wellington on Thursday.Sue Heins, mayor of the Northern Beaches Council in New South Wales, spoke at a Local Government New Zealand meeting, attended by mayors and councillors from across New Zealand.Northern Beaches Council and other…

They are purveyors of some of the world’s most sought-after culinary delicacies, but Mahurangi’s oyster farmers have been reduced to eating beans on toast most days, their hair going grey, and their nerves shot.Last month, the farmers were hit with a livelihood-ruining sewage overflow after a power surge at a new wastewater treatment plant in Warkworth.The overflow of 1200 cubic metres prevented farmers from collecting oysters for 28 days.On Wednesday, a $1 million compensation deal was struck, but the 10 farmers say $100,000 each is only a drop in the sewage-polluted ocean compared to what they’ve lost.Jim Aitken from Mahurangi…

A homicide investigation has been launched after the death of a woman in Hastings last month.Emergency services were called to an address on Kotuku St in Camberley on October 29, where a woman was found dead.Inspector Martin James today said police investigating the 37-year-old’s death are now treating the case as a homicide. “We continue to provide support to her family at this extremely difficult time,” he said. “A committed team of detectives has been assigned to the investigation, including additional staff from other districts.”James said police believed there were people in the community who had “vital information about this…

Your chances of winning Lotto potentially get better when it’s a must-win draw as Saturday night’s will be.But you might also end up sharing the winners with more players.Powerball rolled over on Wednesday, meaning tomorrow’s $55 million jackpot must end up in someone’s bank account. Under Lotto rules, when a jackpot gets to $50 million the next draw becomes a “must be won”.In those circumstances, if nobody gets all six Lotto numbers plus the Powerball number, the prize rolls down divisions until a winner or winners are found. That means the $55 million could be split between multiple people. Robert…