Author: Press Room

A staff member for Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has resigned over allegations his office calls “serious” and “concerning”.A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s office said it was first made aware of allegations when contacted by a journalist at 4pm on June 3.According to reports by Stuff, Michael Forbes had been acting as the Prime Minister’s deputy chief press secretary and had allegedly recorded audio without consent of sessions with Wellington sex workers.It was also alleged the press secretary had images of women exercising at a gym, shopping, and taken through a window while getting dressed.The Prime Minister’s spokesperson did not…

Two major banks have cut interest rates in recent days but economists say it’s not clear how much further retail home loan rates have to move.ANZ on Tuesday cut its 18-month fixed rate special by 10 basis points to 4.89%. The six-month rate dropped by 20 to 5.29%.Then on Wednesday morning, ASB cut a range of its fixed home loan rates by up to 20 basis points.It was the bank’s seventh fixed rate mortgage drop of 2025.Its six-month rate drops by 14 basis points to 5.45%, its one-year by four basis points to 4.95%, its 18-month rate by 10 basis…

The identity of a creepy-crawly found in a West Auckland high school student’s roast chicken lunch last month has been revealed.An investigation was launched in late May after what appeared to be a dead larva was found in a Government-supplied school lunch.NZ Food Safety confirms it is looking into a complaint about the School Lunch Collective meal. (Source: 1News)New Zealand Food Safety deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle said laboratory testing results revealed the larva was of a potato tuber moth, a pest which affects potatoes around the world. Adult potato tuber moths laid eggs on leaves and potatoes, and their larvae then…

Police are seeking the public’s help locating a woman missing in Hamilton for the last five days.Wairata, 62, was last seen in the Grey and Clyde street areas on Friday, May 30.”Police and Wairata’s family are concerned for her wellbeing and would like her to return home safely,” Waikato Police said today on Facebook.Anyone who believed they had seen Wairata or had information was asked to contact police.

Three people have been injured – one seriously – after a bus carrying 17 passengers crashed in Southland this afternoon.Police said emergency services were called to the scene at Mossburn Five Rivers Rd, near Diack Rd, at 3.45pm.The road was closed while recovery crews worked to remove the bus.”Some passengers have sustained minor to moderate injuries.”In a statement, a St John spokesperson told 1News it responded to the crash with three ambulances, one rapid response vehicle, one PRIME responder, and one helicopter.Seventeen people were assessed at the scene.Three people – one in a serious condition and two others with moderate…

Marty McFly grabbed a guitar in Back to the Future and rocked out with the band at a 1950s high school dance, helping him narrowly avoid blinking out of existence before time-travelling back to the 1980s.The guitar, in real life, wasn’t as lucky.Filmmakers went looking for the instrument while making the movie’s 1989 sequel, but even now it’s nowhere to be found. Four decades after the blockbuster film debuted, the guitar’s creator has launched a search for the iconic Cherry Red Gibson ES-345.Gibson, which is based in Nashville, is asking the public for help tracking it down as the movie…

They usually have their differences – but some of New Zealand’s minor political parties have shared a similar sentiment after a gain in the latest 1News Varian poll.Both National and Labour slid in the poll, released last night. New Zealand First, on the other hand, moved to its strongest position in eight years to 8%.While New Zealand First leader Winston Peters gave his usual response – “we’ve never believed in the polls in this country” – he was happy to talk about the support for his party.“What we’re focused on is packing the halls out around the countryside of New…

A trial of live facial recognition technology in supermarkets has been determined successful, although not without concerns.Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster said in a statement released this morning that the trial run by Foodstuffs North Island complied with the Privacy Act. However, he warned improvements would be needed before it could be used permanently or expanded to more stores. The commissioner launched an inquiry to understand the privacy impact of facial recognition technology, check its compliance with the Privacy Act to look at whether it was effectivel for reducing serious retail crime compared to less privacy-intrusive options. The trial, which ran from across…

Contractors have offered a sneak-peak at two of the main features of Te Ara o Te Ata — the Mt Messenger Bypass on State Highway 3 in Taranaki.A huge road-heading machine is excavating a 235m-long tunnel under the highest point of the maunga and construction of a 125m-long bridge toward the southern end of the project is underway.The six-kilometre $360 million bypass aims to deliver a safer more resilient route north out of Taranaki, avoiding an existing steep and windy stretch of highway which includes a narrow tunnel.Waka Kotahi project manager Caleb Perry said the tunnel, which was 65m below…

KiwiSaver members could be significantly better off if New Zealand adopted a taxation model similar to Australia’s, an economist says.Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub ran some numbers modelling a system similar to Australia’s, where contributions and returns are taxed at 15%.In New Zealand, full tax is paid on income contributed to KiwiSaver, and returns in PIE schemes taxed at an investor’s prescribed investor rate up to 28%.Eaqub said an “average” KiwiSaver investor starting now could end up $60,000 better off in nominal terms at retirement on a model similar to Australia’s. If tax was not paid on contributions or returns,…