Author: Press Room

Controversially, the production was mostly shot in New Zealand with non-Hawaiian crews. Duncan Caillard asks why. Jason Momoa’s historical epic Chief of War, which launched on Friday on Apple TV+, is a triumph of Hawaiians telling their own stories – despite the fact their film and TV production industry now struggles to be viable.The series stars Momoa (Aquaman, Game of Thrones) as Kaʻaina, an ali’i (chief) who fights for – and later rises against – King Kamehameha I during the bloody reunification of Hawaii.The 45-year-old actor has spent a lot of time in New Zealand in recent years, working on…

New Zealand has been hit with a higher tariff rate than Australia on exports to the US – but economists say the situation could have been worse.It was revealed today that New Zealand exports would have a 15% tariff applied, up from 10% announced earlier.Australia remains at 10%.Brad Olsen, chief executive at Infometrics, said that was a clear challenge for New Zealand.”There is now a wedge between us and Australia.”There were other parts of the world that previously had a higher tariff rate that were now on the same level as New Zealand, such as Europe.”Wine, for example, under the…

Ecogas — a joint venture between Central Otago’s Pioneer Energy Group and Ecostock Ltd — has received global recognition, winning AD Hero of the Year at the 2025 Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Industry Awards in the United Kingdom. The awards, held during the World Biogas Summit and Expo in Birmingham, recognised global excellence in the anaerobic digestion and biogas sector. More than 400 people attended the event hosted by the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) and the World Biogas Association. Pioneer Energy ventured into the waste-to-energy sector through a partnership with Ecostock Ltd to form Ecogas. In 2022, the…

Published on 01/08/2025 – 17:49 GMT+2 ADVERTISEMENT More than 1,000 weapons have been surrendered under a UK government amnesty aimed at tackling the country’s worsening knife crime crisis as a ban on ninja swords comes into force, the Home Office said on Friday. The month-long campaign, which ran throughout July, encouraged individuals, particularly young people, to hand in weapons anonymously at designated amnesty bins and mobile collection vans.  According to media reports, the initiative follows a string of high-profile knife attacks and is part of a broader government crackdown on the sale and possession of bladed weapons. One of the…

If you ask an Aucklander about Sky World Indoor Entertainment, once known as the Metro Centre, chances are they’ll have a story to tell about getting lost inside the labyrinth-like interior, loitering outside Burger King or celebrating a birthday at the long-gone Planet Hollywood.But over the last decade the Queen St building has slowly decayed with numerous businesses shutting up shop and foot-traffic dropping dramatically.In 2017, RNZ reported the building remained open without a warrant of fitness for more than a year despite a “high risk” to public safety.Auckland Council confirmed the building does now have a valid warrant of…

New Zealand is set to face a 15% tariff on exports to the US as President Donald Trump confirmed his reciprocal rates. It comes as Trump signed an executive order that would have new tariffs on a wide swath of US trading partners to go into effect in seven days — the next step in his trade agenda that will test the global economy and alliances.The order was issued shortly after 7pm (local time). It came after a flurry of tariff-related activity in recent days, as the White House announced agreements with various nations and blocs ahead of Trump’s self-imposed…

“Disheartening and shameful” is how some nursing students are describing the latest job offer numbers for this year’s mid-year cohort.For this year’s mid-year cohort, 45% have been offered hospital roles under the Advanced Choice of Employment (ACE) programme – which matches new nursing graduates with hospital roles – down from 55% last year.Advocates say NZ is effectively training nurses for Australia, calling on the government to strengthen policy, to set a number of nurse graduates that should be hired each year and create a clear career pathway to help keep the homegrown workforce.1News spoke to several nursing students this week…

Six Mongrel Mob members have been convicted after an internal gang feud spilled out into Southland streets with serious assaults and a kidnapping.A detailed investigation by Southland police delved into a series of violent offending that began in late January 2022.Inspector Mike Bowman said this first incident spurred further offences in the form of drive-by shootings, and violent assaults which left people with critical injuries.Among the incidents were a drive-by shooting in Centre St, Invercargill in January 2022; attacks in February and in April last year, resulting in seriously injured people being dropped off at Gore Hospital; and a drive-by…

Whanganui District Library has scrapped fines for late returns, wiping more than $17,000 debt in a bid to make the library more accessible.Council libraries manager Pete Gray said ditching overdue fees would break down barriers to library use.”An overdue fine might not seem like much, but it adds up and it impacts most heavily on those least able to bear it. It can be the difference between someone using the library or staying away,” Gray said.”We want everyone in Whanganui to feel like the library is their place.”In a report to the Whanganui District Council’s operations and performance committee on…

Police are investigating after a three-month-old Masterton girl was taken to hospital last week with critical injuries, now believed to be “non-accidental”.On Thursday, July 24, the baby girl was taken to Wairarapa Hospital, before being transferred to Wellington Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit. She has since been transferred to Auckland’s Starship Hospital, where she remains in a critical condition.Police were called the following day around 2.50pm.An investigation has since been launched to establish how the baby has sustained her injuries, Detective Inspector Haley Ryan said.“We are working closely with Oranga Tamariki and Te Whatu Ora. From the enquiries to date, we…