Author: Press Room

The Department of Conservation says it is “disappointed” in the theft of a significant macrocarpa bench, the second such incident in as many weeks. In a post online, the Department of Conservation said the substantial macrocarpa bench had been stolen from the Oparara Valley – a 14km point-to-point trail in the Kahurangi National Park on the West Coast. “The seat was installed a couple of years ago as part of work to improve the visitor infrastructure in the Oparara,” it said. “We are keen to see it returned, or any reports of where it might be.” The stolen macrocarpa bench.…

The European Commission today proposed a new raft of “simplifications” of environmental legislation that will lower standards and monitoring of industrial emissions and water protection – a move that reflects the sheer pressure the Commission has come under on many fronts. The EU’s executive claims that the measures are a response to the concerns of businesses and public administrators, who have complained that excessive red tape is hampering their ability to compete. The upshot is that at least 25% of environmental administrative requirements for private sector companies are expected to be axed by 2029. Under the EU’s so-called “environmental omnibus”,…

The Minister for Disability Issues is seeking advice on the Supreme Court’s decision that two parents who care full-time for their disabled children are employees of the government and should received the same benefits and protections.Louise Upston asked the Disability Support Sevices, a government unit that was responsible for supporting disabled people and their whānau, to consider the ruling “carefully”.The decision was released on Tuesday, in favour of recognising both Christine Fleming and Peter Humphreys, who care full-time for their disabled son and daughter, as ministry employees.For carers not to be recognised as employees meant they weren’t entitled to things…

One-liners from under pressure politicians, some frank conservationists and one of our most successful athletes are in the running for Massey University’s Quote of the Year.After a round of public nominations, the top 10 quotes had been chosen by a panel of communications experts and voting was now underway.The 2025 list was dominated by politicians from across the political spectrum including Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s infamous “make a Marmite sandwich and put an apple in a bag”, comment.”If you are unhappy with it, for God’s sake, go make a Marmite sandwich and put an apple in a bag just like…

New Zealand Food Safety has found no food safety risks with the government’s school lunch provider after an investigation into mouldy lunches found at a Christchurch school.Rotten meals were served to some students at Haeata Community Campus last Monday.NZ Food Safety said the most plausible explanation is that lunches meant to be served the week before were accidentally mixed with last Monday’s meals.Investigators found it was unlikely that the School Lunch Collective had delivered old meals.The school has maintained the mouldy lunches were not the result of a mix-up at their end.The food safety watchdog has made a number of…

The US wants to help Europe save its identity. Speaking on Euronews’ flagship morning show Europe Today, US Ambassador to the European Union Andrew Puzder defended a controversial national security document in which the Trump administration called on the EU to change course or face a civilisational demise. In Europe, the document was met with surprise and criticism. Ambassador Puzder defended the US position, stating that the document seeks to restore Europe’s “greatness” and should not be understood as an attack, but rather as a set of recommendations aimed at strengthening Europe. “The section on Europe is titled ‘A Proposal…

Convicted murderer Mark Lundy is expanding his social contacts, but isn’t able to have his own social media accounts.He was otherwise fully compliant with conditions imposed on his release from prison when parole was granted earlier this year, according to a monitoring report released today by the Parole Board.The board had relaxed some of the conditions imposed on Lundy, taking away the night-time curfew he was subjected to as well as the order preventing him speaking to media.The then-66-year-old was released from Tongariro Prison in May, having been granted parole following a hearing the previous month.Lundy has always maintained his…

A new app that allows users to access government information and services from their phones – and will, eventually, hold digital driver licences – has been released today.Digitising Government and Public Service Minister Judith Collins said the govt.nz app was a secure and easy way for people to access what they needed, and was “an important milestone in our work to ensure we have a digital public service that is customer-focused, efficient, and future-ready”.It would allow users to access trusted information and services from across government, customise the user experience for what was most relevant, and receive emergency warnings from…

Fears have resurfaced over violence on public transport in the wake of a horrific fatal bus stabbing earlier this week – even as transit operators insist services are safe, with Auckland officials pointing to millions of incident-free journeys.A 59-year-old man died, and a 51-year-old man was seriously injured after being stabbed in what police described as unprovoked and random attacks as the route 76 bus travelled from Glen Innes towards Ōrākei on Monday night.But more than 1.7 million journeys passed without incident on the city’s public transport network last week, Auckland Transport group manager of metro services Stacey van der…

By Susan Edmonds of RNZ People shopping from IKEA are having to wait for their orders – but one marketing expert says it probably won’t stop them going back for more. The home furnishings giant opened its first New Zealand shop in Auckland last week, with online deliveries around the country. A spokesperson said it had been “bowled over” by the response from New Zealanders. “The sales and orders secured over the first few days have surpassed our expectations, but as a result our fulfilment operations are taking longer than anticipated to meet these orders. “As a brand new team,…