Author: Press Room

The deaths of five people in a boat capsize off the Kaikōura coast was caused by exposure to petrol fumes while they were trapped under the hull, a coroner has found.The Nature Photography Society of New Zealand members were two hours into a bird-watching excursion when the boat was hit by a whale and capsized in September 2022. The skipper and five other passengers survived.On Wednesday, coroner Alexandra Cunninghame publicly released findings into the deaths of Catherine Margaret Haddock, 65 and Susan Jane Cade, 63 of Lower Hutt, Diana Ruby Stewart, 68, Peter Charles Hockley, 76 and Maureen Pierre, 75…

The country’s newest retailer has opened its doors in Dunedin this week. The Outlet is in the old Torpedo7 store in Andersons Bay Rd which closed last month. Auckland-based Tahua Group Ltd, which owns Torpedo7 along with the likes of Burger King, Hannah’s Shoes, Number One Shoes and Starbucks in New Zealand, converted 10 existing stores into an “off-price retail concept”. Categories include apparel, footwear, adventure and outdoor gear, home and living, toys, health and beauty and gifts.

High-profile broadcaster Paul Henry has been revealed as the host of the New Zealand version of hit TV quiz show The Chase.Henry’s return to TVNZ was announced on Breakfast – the show he last worked for at the network before leaving in 2010.In The Chase New Zealand he will play the quizmaster role made famous by Bradley Walsh in the British version of the show.Across four primetime specials, Henry will guide Kiwi contestants through the ultimate battle of brains as they face off against the Chasers in a high-stakes test of knowledge and nerve.Henry told Breakfast it was “weird” to…

A group of Havelock North residents are considering legal action in a last-ditch bid to prevent a crematorium being built in the middle of the village.Lawyers say the only avenue open to them is to get the 2024 resource consents, issued by Hawke’s Bay Regional Council and the Hastings District Council, overturned.Hastings District Council says the application to include a crematorium at the existing Terry Longley and Sons funeral home in Cooper Street, over the road from the New World supermarket, was carefully assessed.Resource consent required an air discharge consent from HBRC, and a land use consent from HDC.A Hastings…

ADVERTISEMENTBelgium has found itself in the midst of a scandal after it was revealed that a Danish sperm donor with a pathogenic gene mutation conceived 52 children with 37 different Belgian women between 2007 and 2018.The gene mutation, known as TP53, confers a significantly increased risk of cancer.Belgium has the so-called “six-women rule”, setting the legal limit of six families per donor. However, this was rarely implemented in practice because donations are made anonymously.As a result, fertility centres were unaware if they had each used the same donor multiple times. The Belgian government has decided to change the existing law…

A 42-year-old man is facing at least 18 charges after an alleged theft spree on Auckland’s North Shore that included taking a defibrillator. Waitematā East Police said businesses and commuters had been the target of the man’s spree.Among the items allegedly taken was a “defibrillator worth thousands of dollars from one Takapuna business”, Area Commander Inspector Stefan Sagar said. The man also allegedly stole scooters from park and rides at Constellation and Sunnynook stations. Police arrested the man near Takapuna late last week after staff pieced together the series of burglaries and shoplifting, Sagar said. “Thanks to this collation, the man…

ADVERTISEMENTMeloni first received Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico who arrived at the prime minister’s residence, the Chigi Palace, at around 4pm.According to a statement released by the Slovak government, the two leaders discussed the development of bilateral relations and the possibility of further cooperation in the field of energy.”I really appreciate the pragmatic approach of your Prime Minister. I really like your pragmatic way of dealing with issues,” Fico told reporters following the meeting.”We focused on the war in Ukraine. The President of the Council was very interested in my position, since Slovakia is a neighbouring country, of course,” he…

Pacific Edge has raised $16 million in new equity in a placement of new ordinary shares — $1m more than it sought — after accepting over-subscriptions. On Friday, the cancer diagnostics company announced a $20m capital raise, saying it was about ensuring it had the cash reserves to capitalise on recent clinical and commercial milestones, grow in non-Medicare channels in the United States and regain Medicare coverage of its tests. It comprised a placement of $15m of new ordinary shares offered to selected investors and an offer of $5m of new shares to retail investors, by way of a share-purchase…

A teenager is facing several driving offences, including intentional damage, after he allegedly tore up a rugby club’s fields in Auckland’s northwest over the weekend.The 19-year-old also had his newly-purchased vehicle impounded.Kumeū Rugby Club president Glenn Wheeler said in a statement to Facebook on Saturday morning that “some degenerates” had caused major damage to parts of the club’s two fields.”It’s heartbreaking for our Kumeū Rugby Club & the community to have this kind of stuff going on.”Drone footage provided to 1News shows the extent of the damage, with tyre tracks spanning two fields.Police received reports of the damage on Saturday…

Published on 03/06/2025 – 12:42 GMT+2ADVERTISEMENTRussia attacked the Ukrainian city of Sumy on Tuesday, killing at least three people and injuring 20, according to Ukraine’s emergency service.According to the preliminary investigation results, Russia struck the city with long-range multiple-launch rocket systems.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at least one of the missiles failed to detonate, piercing the wall of a nine-story residential apartment building.“The Russians launched a savage strike on Sumy – directly targeting the city and its ordinary streets with rocket artillery. It was a fully deliberate attack on civilians”, Zelenskyy said in a statement.Sumy region military administration reported that a…