Author: Press Room
The country’s air traffic controller says its chief executive misspoke, but did not mislead the public, when he pointed to another company after a major outage.A glitch last month on services between New Zealand and Australia left five planes circling above Wellington and four others unable to take off.At the time, Airways said it was caused by flight data not transferring from one system to another.Chief executive James Young said in an interview on Morning Report that Airways was in talks with an external software provider about the fault.Airways now says the agency itself maintained the software and had full…
North Otago farmer Jane Smith takes her seat around the board table of fertiliser co-operative Ravensdown at its annual meeting in Christchurch today. The new South Island director replaces six-year veteran Nicky Hyslop, a South Canterbury farmer who co-runs The Levels, a 227ha property halfway between Timaru and Pleasant Point. Another candidate, Rebecca Keoghan, from the West Coast, was unsuccessful in the election after voting closed at midday on Tuesday. Chairman Bruce Wills said the election had generated strong interest, more than 25% of the co-op’s South Island shareholders voting, representing nearly 39% of shares held by that group. “With…
Police are seeking information about a group of dirtbikers accused of damaging fences and native trees, endangering the public and scaring farm animals. Porirua police are looking for the group of five who regularly ride dirt bikes from Waitangirua or Cannons Creek, across iwi land, into Belmont Park and then Belmont Farm.Police said the group has been responsible for causing damage to multiple fences and newly planted native trees.Dirtbike tracks near Belmont Park. (Source: Supplied)They were also putting families using the park, road users and workers at risk, and terrifying livestock, including sheep that are currently lambing.The public is asked…
Police say a fire, which broke out at a Whangārei property during the early hours of this morning while five people slept inside, is being treated as suspicious. Emergency services were called to Raumanga Valley Road in Raumanga at around 6.20am. Detective Senior Sergeant Shane Pilmer said that at this stage, it appeared a couch on the front deck had been deliberately set alight. Five people were asleep at the time of the fire and managed to evacuate safely. “It’s fortunate that no one has lost their life, and a homicide investigation is not being commenced,” Pilmer said. The property…
Published on 24/09/2025 – 17:24 GMT+2 •Updated 17:27 ADVERTISEMENT The European Commission has dismissed a call from 42 civil society organisations for it to stop financing the so-called Libyan Coast Guards whose agents are deployed on the country’s coast to prevent migrants’ boats from setting sail. Some 42 European civil society organizations have written an open letter to EU Commissioners for Home Affairs Magnus Brunner, and for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Šuica, asking for the executive to stop the funding. The letter argues that EU funding has “enabled and legitimised abuses”, pointing out that the Commission has been found guilty of maladministration…
Auckland Airport has unveiled its largest airfield expansion since the airport’s construction more than 50 years ago, adding space equivalent to 23 rugby fields to its apron, taxiway, and runway network.The new northern apron expansion included six aircraft stands – five fully-serviced with jet fuel and electricity connections and one unserviced – all able to accommodate both widebody and narrowbody jets.It provided parking for up to 11 aircraft and was designed to ease pressure during peak periods by allowing planes with longer layovers to move off terminal gates.While the stands were not currently linked to the international terminal via airbridges,…
Thirty-five chambers of commerce have banded together — alongside industry and business associations — to urge the Government to drop the proposed ban on PayWave transaction surcharges.In a open letter to Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Scott Simpson, the group said the plan was a “misguided intervention” that risked harming consumers and businesses alike.Simpson announced the ban in July, declaring: “That pesky note or sticker on the payment machine will become a thing of the past.””Shoppers will no longer be penalised for their choice of payment method, whether that’s tapping, swiping or using their phone’s digital wallet,” Simpson said.Legislation was…
By Euronews Published on 24/09/2025 – 13:46 GMT+2 ADVERTISEMENT An old video of a march in Warsaw to mark Poland’s independence day has resurfaced online, with social media users falsely claiming that it depicts mass protests in Paris against the French government. One post, for example, says that 250,000 French people took to the streets against the government’s cuts to healthcare spending and public holidays. Before being ousted in a no-confidence vote, France’s (now former) Prime Minister François Bayrou had planned a raft of budget cuts, including the removal of two public holidays, to try to slash France’s €3 trillion debt.…
An Auckland woman who ran a business supplying workers to harvest fruit and vegetables for growers was sentenced to home detention for close to $1.5 million in tax evasion.Haitelenisia Kaumaevae appeared for sentencing in the Pukekohe District Court on September 23 after pleading guilty to four representative charges of tax evasion for aiding and abetting the company M&H Kaumavae Ltd.Based on returns filed by defence counsel in November last year, Kaumavae evaded $1,487,359 in GST, PAYE, and income tax.Inland Revenue (IR) said the case was a “wilful example” of repeated fraud, depriving the wider public of a substantial sum of…
ADVERTISEMENT The European Commission is working on a new proposal to impose tariffs on the Russian oil that still enters the single market via Hungary and Slovakia amid mounting pressure from Donald Trump to cut off all energy ties with Moscow for good. The extra duties are meant to increase material costs for both nations and, therefore, stimulate the urgency to find alternative suppliers. “We will in due course present what we have on mind with this,” Olof Gill, the Commission’s deputy spokesperson, said on Wednesday, noting the initiative will be separate from the 19th package of sanctions currently on…