Author: Press Room

New Zealand’s infrastructure crisis isn’t about spending too little money — it’s about poorly spending the money it does have, an infrastructure head says.The Infrastructure Commission has found the country ranks in the top 10% of OECD countries for infrastructure spending but in the bottom 10% for getting bang for buck.Speaking on Q+A, chief executive Geoff Cooper said the country was actually the largest infrastructure spender among advanced nations between 2010 and 2020, but had worse results because of poor planning and asset management.”This is probably a surprise. A lot of people think we don’t spend enough in New Zealand…

Five people have been injured, one critically, after a two-vehicle crash in Hawke’s Bay this morning.Police were called to the scene near the intersection of Mill and Richmond Rds at around 9.30am earlier today.A St John spokesperson told 1News it took five injured people to Hawke’s Bay Hospital. “Our crews assessed and treated five patients — one in a critical condition, two in a serious condition, and two in a moderate condition.”St John responded with three ambulances and a rapid response unit.Fire and Emergency NZ worked to extricate two people from the crashed vehicles.Sections of both roads were closed and…

ADVERTISEMENT Pope Leo XIV on Sunday urged more than a million young Catholics who gathered in Rome for the Youth Jubilee to “spread your enthusiasm and the witness of your faith” when they return to their more than 150 home countries. His comments were made to hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who were attending the closing Mass of the Jubilee at Tor Vergata in the southern suburbs of Rome. It was one of the most important events of the holy year originally initiated by the late Pope Francis. It marks Pope Leo’s first big encounter with the next generation of…

After more than a year without a pedestrian bridge, the Panmure Basin has a fresh new look and is open to the community.Locals gathered at dawn on July 19 to celebrate the opening of Te Kōpua o Hiku, a striking new walking and cycling connection that links both sides of the lagoon through art, culture, and consideration for the environment.The 60-metre bridge replaced the original Jubilee Bridge, which was closed in July 2023 after engineers deemed it unsafe. The long-awaited replacement will restore a vital route for walking and cycling around the basin and introduces interactive public art that is…

ADVERTISEMENT “In your opinion, should Donald Tusk resign and cease to serve as Prime Minister of the government?” asked a United Surveys poll for Polish news site Wirtualna Polska. 48.6% of respondents answered that Tusk should resign, while 43.8% said that he should remain in office. 7.6% were undecided or refused to take a position. The respondents were also strongly divided by party lines. Supporters of the ruling coalition, which includes Civic Platform, the Left, the Polish People’s Party and Poland 2050, support Tusk. 85% of them are against the Prime Minister’s resignation. However, 80% of voters supporting conservative opposition…

A man has been taken into custody after a man was critically injured in what was believed to be a shooting incident in Lower Hutt this morning.Emergency services were called to Hanson Grove at about 9am to reports of a gun being fired.Detective Inspector Haley Ryan said a dark-coloured vehicle was seen leaving the scene “at speed” immediately following the incident.”Extensive area inquiries were carried out, however the vehicle has not yet been located.”Ryan said in an update this afternoon that police had executed “a number of search warrants” in the area and would continue to have a visible presence.”The…

ADVERTISEMENT Ukrainian drone attacks sparked major fires at an oil depot near Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi, just as Russian missile strikes destroyed homes and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine’s southern city of Mykolaiv, officials from both sides said on Sunday. Sochi’s mayor, Andrei Proshunin, said that the debris also hit a nearby garage, adding that there were no casualties, while videos widely shared on Telegram appeared to show huge pillars of smoke billowing above the oil depot. “Fortunately, there were no casualties this time. The situation is completely under control,” Mayor of Sochi, Andrei Proshunin, said. “The entire city…

A Northland man has claimed a $200,000 Lotto Strike prize more than eight months on from the draw after he discovered a forgotten ticket tucked away in his glovebox when he was cleaning his car last week.The winning ticket, purchased at Pak’nSave Kaitaia, had gone unclaimed since November. Lotto NZ was preparing to escalate efforts to locate the winner when he came forward.Head of corporate communications Will Hine said the winner claiming his prize was “perfect timing”.”We were days away from reaching out to the winner’s bank, like we did recently with an unclaimed $500,000 prize in Auckland.”We much prefer…

A Wellington tech activist is helping NGOs and individuals move their data off US servers and into data centres in Iceland and Switzerland, citing fears the Trump administration could exploit digital infrastructure.Julian Oliver, from the cybersecurity firm Nīkau, has been moving data into secure data centres in countries known for their robust data-protection laws. “This fresh anxiety is not without some basis. Vast swathes of civilian data are already being handed over to the Trump administration to exploit,” he told Q+A. His consultancy didn’t comment on who exactly it was helping onto secure platforms.“Our clients used to be environmental defenders…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says he is “very concerned” about the admission of abuse from Gloriavale’s leader but would not be drawn on potential Government oversight of the West Coast commune.Howard Temple, 85, earlier denied 24 charges, including several of sexual offending against girls and young women at the West Coast commune over 20 years.However on Wednesday, Temple pleaded guilty to an amended set of charges, including five of indecent assault, five of doing an indecent act, and two common assault charges.A further 12 charges were dropped.He was remanded on bail until August 11, when a sentencing date would be…