Author: Press Room

Three major French unions launched a nationwide day of strikes and demonstrations on Tuesday to protest government austerity policies, wage stagnation and looming cuts to public services. But despite weeks of preparation, mobilisation remained weak with turnout being far less than the large rallies seen earlier this autumn. The CGT, FSU and Solidaires called for the action as the National Assembly debates the 2026 Social Security budget, which union leaders describe as carrying “numerous and serious regressions” for workers, pensioners and the public sector. What is driving the anger? At the heart of Tuesday’s mobilisation are demands for wage increases,…

A New Zealand fur seal pup caused a stir when it waddled into a pub in Richmond on Sunday night.Sprig + Fern The Meadows co-owner Bella Evans said staff were setting up Christmas decorations and serving customers just after 5pm when the seal came in.”First of all, I just thought it was a dog or something, because we’re a dog-friendly pub as well, and I had to do a double take, and I was thinking, ‘oh my gosh, there’s a seal’.”A fur seal pup in the Sprig + Fern The Meadows (Source: A fur seal pup in the Sprig +…

Two employees of failed wine venture Winely say the firm was more about ideas than the reality of running a business and there was management talk of making staff members millionaires and becoming bigger than Google. Winely, a Dunedin-founded wine fermentation tracking company, was put into liquidation last month with total liabilities of more than $2.2 million. It was founded by Jacob Manning and Abbe Hyde and incorporated in 2018 to develop and manufacture technology to provide real-time fermentation analysis to the wine industry. Henry Greenslade said he worked for the company for 16 months and communication was not a…

A coroner has found the death of a driver who crashed into a school bus could have been prevented had he not driven while tired.Scania Rangi Te Whare, 27, had driven from his home in Te Kuiti on October 31 2022, leaving about 7.30pm to start his night shift at BidFood in Hamilton.He typically worked night shifts from 9pm to 7am.The coroner noted Te Whare would sometimes sleep in his car or at a friend’s house rather than driving home.As he drove home about 7.30am the next day, Te Whare crossed the centre line of the road and hit a…

A post on Facebook has sparked confusion — and disbelief — after claiming that German cities have built “sleek robotic mailboxes” where residents can dispatch lost items, such as wallets and keys, that the machines will then return to their original owners. “Once dropped inside, the mailbox scans the contents using internal cameras and AI-trained object recognition systems,” the post says. “The system then cross-checks the item with local address databases and initiates an automated return,” it continues. “Items are packed in tamper-sealed envelopes and rerouted through existing postal networks — often reaching the owner within 48 hours.” Multiple users…

New Zealand fans will get another chance to see British folk-rock band Mumford & Sons live with the group set to return to Auckland in 2026.The Grammy-award winning band will play at Spark Arena on May 2, 2026, supported by Folk Bitch Trio.It will be their first performance in New Zealand since 2019. The band rose to prominence in the early 2010s with songs like Little Lion Man and I Will Wait.The dates have been announced prior to the release of the band’s sixth studio album Prizefighter, which features artists such as Hozier, Gracie Abrams, Chris Stapleton, and Gigi Perez.Tickets…

Published on 02/12/2025 – 18:29 GMT+1 •Updated 18:45 The detention of Federica Mogherini as part of an investigation into suspected fraud by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has sent shockwaves in Brussels and Rome. Mogherini is well-known in diplomatic circles, highly connected and has served in top political roles including the Italian foreign ministry under Matteo Renzi and as High Representative of the European Union. She currently serves as Rector of the College of Europe, an institution dedicated to European studies seen as platform to access EU jobs. Early years: from communist youth to social democrat minister Mogherini, born in…

The recent Supreme Court decision regarding Uber drivers is not surprising when all the facts are considered. However, how the scheme actually operates will surprise many. The decision is likely to have significant ramifications. The Parliament Education and Workforce Select Committee is considering the Employment Relations Amendment Bill, which includes a gateway test to determine whether workers are contractors or employees. This test is widely viewed as a response to the previous Uber decisions. The Supreme Court’s decision will only serve to better inform the legislation which is designed to give certainty and flexibility to both employers and employees. The…

The woman at the centre of the Jevon McSkimming scandal says her ordeal became an “ongoing nightmare”, as she speaks out for the first time. Known only as Ms Z, the woman broke her silence to further detail her allegations against McSkimming, stating a relationship began when she was a 21-year-old student, and he was a 42-year-old superintendent who met her through a sports club in 2016.According to the interview, published in the New Zealand Herald, she alleges McSkimming would spend hours alone with her.”I wasn’t interested in him, or hoping for a relationship or anything like that. Looking back,…

The European Central Bank has declined to provide emergency liquidity to the reparations loan for Ukraine, warning that doing so would breach the European Union’s founding treaties and undermine the bank’s much-prized independence. The news, first reported by the FT, represents a new setback to the bold plan of using seized Russian assets to support the country it has invaded and destroyed. “Such a proposal is not under consideration as it would likely violate EU treaty law prohibiting monetary financing,” a spokesperson for the ECB said in a statement. The reparations loan is one of the three options presented by…