Author: Press Room

Heavy rain and severe gales are set to impact much of the country from today, with the potential for some warnings to be upgraded to red, MetService says. Yesterday several warnings and watches were issued across the country for late Monday into Tuesday, saying the rain could cause rivers to rise quickly, along with surface flooding, slips, and dangerous driving conditions.MetService meteorologist Heather Keats told Breakfast “very large, long, active fronts” were going to hit the country later tonight. “So we’ve got really strong northeasterly start a little later today, in places like Northland and Auckland can expect gusts of…

A police investigation is underway after a critically injured man, found on the side of State Highway 33, died shortly after being brought to Rotorua Hospital over the weekend.Police were notified at 7.10pm on Saturday that a 20-year-old man had been brought to Rotorua Hospital by four other men who had found him critically injured on State Highway 33.The man died a short time later.The morning’s headlines in 90 seconds, including wintry blast on the way, Gloriavale leader in court, and Liam Lawson picks up points. (Source: Breakfast)Detective Inspector Lindsay Pilbrow said police were working to establish the circumstances leading…

The government plans to ban surcharges on card payments in-store, saving shoppers from being stung with surprise fees when paying with contactless technology. Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Scott Simpson announced the change on Monday afternoon, 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.” Legislation is expected to be introduced to Parliament by the end of the year, with the ban to kick into effect no later than May…

George Lucas finally came to the stage at Comic-Con to an ovation from thousands, some holding light sabers in the air, with soaring Star Wars music filling the room.The 81-year-old, appearing for the first time at San Diego’s pop cultural extravaganza, looked decidedly earthbound in his jeans and flannel shirt, and a bit embarrassed by the attention. The quiet, thoughtful discussion that followed about the art museum he’s building stood in contrast to the sci-fi and superhero bombast that came from Comic-Con’s huge Hall H in the previous three days of the convention.He’s quietly passionate, though, about the Lucas Museum…

The Prime Minister says the public still has plenty of time to get enrolled to vote despite scrapping same-day enrolment for elections.Last week, the Government announced legislation to overhaul electoral laws it said had become “unsustainable”.The Government agreed to close enrolment before advance voting begins, with people needing to enrol or update their details by midnight on the Sunday before advance voting starts on the Monday morning — in other words, 13 days before election day.The legislation sets a requirement of 12 days of advance voting at each election, and the changes would mean special vote processing could get underway…

Health New Zealand’s boss for the South Island Martin Keogh is to step down.The announcement comes as he was set to lead a team which would oversee changes at Nelson Hospital following a scathing review released last week.In an email to staff this morning, the deputy chief executive for Te Waipounamu said he had chosen not to extend his 12-month contract which was due to end in September.”It was a tough call to make, but the right one for me and my family.” Keogh is from Australia and said his family was still there.He ended the email: “Thank you for…

Wellington-born Faith Ward has become the first New Zealander to join the world-famous Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders team. The well-known NFL cheer squad based in Texas gained international attention last year after featuring in a Netflix docuseries which showed the process of picking “America’s Sweethearts” for the 2024 football season.This year, Faith Ward has been announced as one of just six first-time dancers, or “rookies” who beat out hundreds of other applicants, went through weeks of training, and brutal team cuts to be named on the final 36-strong squad. “I am super excited to be representing New Zealand, super proud,” the…

What does it take to repair a state highway? Local Democracy Reporter Max Frethey toured the damage on SH60/Tākaka Hill to find out.”Three things wreck roads,” said Rob Service, the New Zealand Transport Agency’s system manager for the Top of the South.”Water, water, water… Water’s our archenemy.”Tasman has suffered a lot of water over the last month, with half of the district’s annual rainfall occurring over just a two-week period, flooding communities and leaving the ground sodden.The region has left its state of emergency and is now in recovery mode, leaving NZTA with three sites that need repair on SH60…

Auckland’s motorway on-ramp signals play an important role in managing traffic and improving safety, but some motorists seem to treat the red light as optional.Ramp signals, installed on the city’s motorway network in the late 2000s, aim to manage the rate at which vehicles move down the on-ramp and onto the motorway.With 91 ramp signals across the Southern, Southwestern, Northern and Northwestern motorways, Auckland has the largest system of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere.Since their introduction, NZTA says travel speeds have improved by 12%, merging-related crashes have reduced, and throughput onto the motorway has increased by 18%.NZTA said it…

New Zealanders were told to “survive till ’25” for the economy to pick up – but now one major bank economist says it’s probably going to be 2026 before any real improvement happens.Kiwibank’s latest Annual Regional Note shows small improvements across the country, but weak scores overall.The national average score has lifted from three out of 10 to four.Southland and Otago top the table at five. Otago was boosted by a recovery in international tourism and improvement in employment.Northland, Taranaki and Gisborne went backwards. Taranaki had the biggest fall in employment of anywhere in the country, at 8%. Northland reported…