Source: Radio New Zealand

A Far North charity is revisiting a world record it smashed 10 years ago with another attempt to turn a town bald.

On 20 November 2015, a total of 462 people had their heads shaved during a Bald Angels Charitable Trust fundraising event in Kerikeri.

The feat was later recognised by Guinness World Records as the greatest number of heads shaved in one hour.

So many people went bald at once – everyone from former MP Kelvin Davis and Rugby Sevens legend Eric Rush to police officers and schoolchildren – visitors to Kerikeri in the following weeks wondered if some strange illness was sweeping the town.

Bald Angels founder Therese Wickbom said that record would be remembered with another mass head shave this weekend.

Money raised would help fill kai boxes the charity planned to give to 400 families this Christmas, and buy presents for up to 1600 children.

If more money was raised than needed, any leftover funds would go to other projects helping vulnerable tamariki (children) thrive, she said.

Wickbom did not expect to set a new record, with about 50 people signed up so far.

“But we hold the record now, and no one’s beaten it. No one’s going to beat that,” she said.

What she did hope to replicate from the 2015 event was the atmosphere.

“The thing that everyone remembers about that day 10 years ago was the sheer number of people and the wairua or the goodness in the room. It was palpable and it was so unifying,” she said.

“We’d love to recreate that again, and I don’t think we need 3000 people there to do that. I think we could do it with 100 or so people.”

Among those sacrificing their locks on Saturday, will be Forest and Bird’s Northland conservation advocate Dean Baigent-Mercer.

It would be a big change for Baigent-Mercer, who had been growing his dreadlocks for 20 years and was once described as “David Attenborough with dreads and attitude”.

Baigent-Mercer said he was taking part because even the most basic needs of many young Northlanders were not being met.

He hoped the money raised would help children who in later life would have to deal with difficult problems such as climate change and forest collapse.

“We need to look after the next generation so they can deal with the stuff they end up inheriting,” he said.

Wickbom said this weekend’s Shave 4 Kids Anniversary Challenge aimed to raise at least $40,000, with $24,000 already in the bag.

The 2015 head-shave raised $62,000 but Wickbom said times were tougher now.

The event would take place from 2-5pm on Saturday, 22 November, at the Turner Centre on Cobham Road, after the Kerikeri Half Marathon.

Entry was free, Wickbom said.

“But we would like people to koha, because this is about raising funds for vulnerable children.”

Anyone who wanted to take part in the mass head shave could register on the website or on the day.

Wickbom said the 2015 world record head shave was not only a great unifying event, it also left a visible mark on the town with almost 500 people losing their hair in the space of an hour.

Puzzled patrons at restaurant she owned at the time would approach her in a whisper and ask what was going on in Kerikeri, she said.

The Bald Angels’ kai boxes and Christmas gifts will be distributed to families selected by the charity’s partner agencies.

Those agencies included iwi social services, health providers, schools, Hospice, Plunket, Women’s Refuge and police.

The Bald Angels’ first mass head shave in 2012 raised $45,000 for children in the care of Hospice Mid Northland.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A Canterbury landlord sanctioned for failing to clean up and fix a boarding house would rather cop a fine than pay for maintenance costs, a neighbour says.

Murray Lawrence Hill, who had been warned multiple times that his property was not up to standard, has been ordered to pay $33,000, remove industrial rubbish and repair holes in the roof and walls of a boarding house in Lyttelton.

The Tenancy Tribunal took action against Hill, who had a long history of complaints, for failing to ensure his property was compliant.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team (TCIT) received a complaint from a member of the public in December 2023, who said the boarding house was in a serious state of disrepair, with rubbish rotting on the property.

Alongside the rubbish removal and hole repairs, Hill was required to install glass planes in windows that were boarded up, install mechanical ventilation in the bathrooms and clean the kitchen and bathrooms to an acceptable standard.

The tenants were described as vulnerable and afraid to complain, for fear of being evicted.

David Wilcox lived opposite the Cressy Terrace property and said Hill had converted it into a halfway home for paroled prisoners following the earthquakes.

Wilcox said the landlord was the type of person who considered property maintenance as an unnecessary business expense.

“It’s a waste of money to him,” he said.

“I mean, his tenants can’t complain. So he just takes the money and banks it and forgets about this kind of stuff.

“He’s just not the kind of guy that really wants to do the right thing. He just wants to bank his money.”

Wilcox said a $33,000 fine would be of little consequence to Hill, who he understood to have an extensive property portfolio.

“He’s probably a multi-millionaire, so it’s not going to really harm him.

“I think they need to have, not just the fine, but they need to have people come in and supervise, make sure it gets done, because he won’t do it.”

Although Wilcox agreed Hill was more “slumlord” than landlord, he said the boarding house was better for tenants who had no alternatives.

“Would we rather have them in here under some kind of control and management, or would you rather just have them in a tent somewhere in the central city.

“So I think anybody with that choice, they’d rather be here.”

A woman who lived on Cressy Terrace told RNZ it was good the tenants had somewhere to live, but objected to the conditions they were subjected to.

When RNZ phoned Hill for comment, he swore at the reporter before asserting “at least they’re in a house”.

“They’re warm, they’ve got water, they’ve got hot water, they’ve got showers, they’ve got somewhere to cook. They’re not sleeping under a bridge, or shop doorways.”

He then ended the call.

TCIT national manager Brett Wilson said Hill had previously been issued warnings for the property.

“Despite receiving multiple warnings over a number of years, he failed to take meaningful steps to address these concerns until 2024/2025. His prolonged inaction over a four-year period demonstrates a deliberate and intentional disregard for his obligations.”

His failure to maintain the property to the required standard despite multiple warnings, had a direct and harmful impact on his tenants.

Wilson said landlords were running a business and if they wanted to operate a boarding house they must comply with their obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act.

He said Hill was an experienced landlord who had regular interactions with Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team, Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Christchurch City Council, and was aware of his obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The mother of the three children who died following a fire in the Manawatu town of Sanson has spoken out for the first time.

August, Hugo and Goldie died last weekend, in what police are treating as a murder-suicide.

Their father, Dean Field, also died.

In a statement issued this morning, Chelsey Field said her children were her world and she doesn’t want their deaths to be the most defining factor of their lives.

“My babies were my absolute world. I have been a stay-at-home Mum since I had Hugo in 2020. Before that, I was an early childhood teacher and August came to work with me every day, and I am so glad I got this time with my darlings.

“I enjoyed so much quality time with them; trips to gymnastics, music groups, playgroups and play dates with friends. We had so much fun together and many holidays away. I will forever cherish all these special memories.”

She says she will cherish the special memories she had with her children.

Her dog also died in the blaze and the ashes of her stillborn daughter, Iris, were lost with the destruction of her house.

More to come

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Specialists say the health postcode lottery is rampant when it comes to trauma care.

The South Island was bearing the brunt of a funding shortfall, according to a New Zealand Medical Journal editorial released on Friday.

Health NZ and the minister of health rejected the claims, and said South Island trauma patients were receiving “timely, quality care with strong outcomes”.

But the authors, senior staff from Christchurch Hospital – one of the busiest emergency departments in Australasia – said the trauma team faced “considerable operational challenges” thanks to underfunding, staffing gaps and data collection issues amid increased admissions.

Injury is the leading cause of death in New Zealand for those under the age of 44, with major trauma the second most common reason for hospitalisation. The South Island’s rates of traumatic incidents are higher than the national average,

However, trauma care had historically been viewed as the “poor cousin” of healthcare, and suffered from inadequate resourcing and attention, surgeon Dr Chris Wakeman said.

In August, Auditor General John Ryan tabled a report which showed elective services in the health system were often “not equitable or timely”, with the same level of clinical need qualifying for treatment in some districts, but not others.

“As a result, a person’s ability to access treatment is, to a significant extent, determined by where they live,” the report noted.

Wakeman said there was no question the same applied to traumatic injury care, and had done for some time.

“It does feel frustrating that we’ve published for more than 10 years about inequity between the two islands.”

Christchurch Hospital took patients from across New Zealand, but the ACC model for funding emergency departments was based on census population data, he said.

“We take neurosurgical patients from Dunedin, we take spinal patients from Taupō south – if you’re north of Taupō you go to Middlemore, if you’re south you come to Christchurch, we also take all the transfers from Nelson, Grey, Timaru.

“It does seem unjust that we can’t employ the amount of staff [we need] … we’ve had to close because we have no junior doctors to run the service.”

A study of almost 800 patients earlier this year showed the hospital’s specialist trauma admitting service failed to improve patient outcomes due to staffing gaps, limited operating hours and underfunding.

The service, established in January 2022, was “launched without adequate funding, resulting in significant staffing shortfalls, including limited trauma surgeon involvement (fewer than four hours per week), no dedicated house officer and restricted operational hours (Monday to Friday only),” according to the University of Otago research, co-authored by Wakeman.

The team had the worst nurse-to-patient ratio in the country and no funding for administration or data management support.

Combined with “the alarming lack of medical resourcing”, the service was under “critical strain”.

The authors also advocated for a more uniform approach to benchmarking, and noted that while many North Island hospitals had gone or were going through the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons’ Trauma Care Verification Program, no South Island hospitals had done so.

“If Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora is serious about ending the postcode lottery, then Christchurch should be expected to meet the same standards as Waikato.”

While Christchurch Hospital “would currently fail”, it would still provide “valuable, unbiased identification of service gaps and help guide the allocation of resources”, he said.

“If we go through a tick box and look at what we need, we would fail, but it would highlight the issue and put in black and white exactly what we need to do and what we need to aim for, and repeat verification would hopefully prove we’ve achieved our goals of improving trauma care in the South Island.”

Asked if the levels of underfunding was making the emergency department unsafe, Wakeman said he liked to think staff did a good job, “working hard and compensating”.

“But it makes it harder, and burnout is higher over the whole hospital,” he said.

At the start of the year, Health NZ urged people to avoid Christchurch Hospital’s emergency department unless it was “life threatening”.

On its social media page, the hospital said its emergency department was “extremely busy” with “large numbers of people coming in for care”, and asked people with non-life-threatening emergencies to go elsewhere “to reduce the pressure”.

Health NZ Te Wai Pounamu deputy chief executive Martin Keogh later said it was due to increased demand caused by surgical cases, and was “definitely not a staffing issue”.

The following month, RNZ revealed the hospital’s internal staff planning system showed the hospital had 120 fewer nurses than recommended, with the emergency department short 25 nurses.

But Health NZ spokesperson Hamish Brown said current resourcing levels “continue to meet demand”.

“Trauma patients who present to Christchurch Hospital are receiving the care they need, when they need it, and with good outcomes.

“The trauma team is focused on trauma admissions and is only one part of a wider multi-disciplinary team of highly trained and experienced clinicians who regularly provide care to trauma patients,” Brown said.

Minister of Health Simeon Brown said South Island trauma patients continued to receive timely, quality care with strong outcomes at Christchurch Hospital.

“To further strengthen trauma care across the South Island, Health New Zealand has reinstated its regional trauma network, working closely with the Trauma National Clinical Network to deliver a consistent, nationally standardised approach,” he said.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A convoy of recreational fishers are planning to drive from across Auckland’s Harbour Bridge on Saturday morning, protesting aspects of the Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Act and other proposed fishing reforms.

The One Ocean protest began with a post Ben Chissell made on his NZ fishing community Facebook page in October. The Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Act had just been passed, and frustrated with aspects of it, Chissell called for a demonstration. The idea was met with widespread support, meaning he then had to organise one.

“None of the four of us that are organising this have even been to a protest before. So yeah, it’s a bit of a unique way to jump into your first one,” he said.

Meetings with police and Auckland Transport followed and a route was agreed to, heading from Albany on Auckland’s North Shore, across the harbour bridge, and on to Mission Bay.

“We’ve got people coming from Kaitaia, Ahipara, Tauranga, Whitianga, Waikato, all over the show. We’ve got guys putting their boats on trailers, getting on the ferry from Waiki and Great Barrier and coming over. So it’s going to be a lot bigger than I guess even when we initially hoped.”

Even New Zealand’s best known recreational fisher Matt Watson was backing the protest with an online message of support. Fisheries Minister Shane Jones was less enthusiatic, telling First Up he’s unsure who the organisers of the One Ocean Protest are, but he thinks they’re unhappy with the Hauraki Gulf Marine Protection Act.

“My message to the recreational fishing industry is that their leadership, in particular LegaSea, was originally involved in the establishment of these marine restricted areas, which is impeding recreational fisheries in the Hauraki Gulf. So it’s a bit late for them to cry now, given their own leaders signed up to this policy some years ago.”

LegaSea is a recreational fishing lobby group. Chisell said the One Ocean Protest was a seperate enitity.

One of the issues Chissell and One Ocean were protesting was the decision to allow some commercial fishing in two of the 12 high protection areas in the Hauraki gulf.

Tiff Bock of Seafood NZ said that would have minimal impact on the fishery as it’s limited to 5 ringnetters targetting kahawai and mullet over the winter months.

“It really is small scale. They go to a little bay and they set a net that is less than a metre deep and they circle it around the fish and then they pull it back in by hand. So we’re not talking big areas here.”

Chissell’s position was that if the Hauraki Gulf was so badly depleted that areas needed to be shut off, then no-one should fish them.

“The issue is not the size. The issue is the precedent that they can potentially set for these kind of things going forward, and with what they have done in the past and the promises that have been broken, there is no trust.”

The protestors were also concerned by a Fisheries New Zealand proposal last month to allow marlin bycatch to be sold commercially.

At present, commercial fishers couldn’t target marlin, and any that were accidentally caught must be returned to the water dead or alive.

Tiff Bock said that needed to change.

“It’s really common sense to say, we have cameras, we can verify that they’re only bringing back the ones that they’ve caught that are already dead. Why waste it?”

But recreational fishers were wary. Chissell cites the example of broadbill swordfish. He said when bycatch was approved for sale in 1991, the rate of accidental capture drastically increased.

Broadbill was eventually added to the quota management sytem allowing it to be caught commercially.

“At its peak in the early 2000s, there was 900 tons a year of swordfish being taken from New Zealand waters. This will happen with marlin if they are allowed to add any kind of commercial value to it.”

Jones was due to meet a group of recreational fishers on Sunday to discuss the issue.

“There’s a lot of old wives’ tales being thrown around,” he said. “There’s no intention to introduce marlin into the quota management system.”

Chissell said the protest was not against commercial fishing.

“At the end of the day, I know they want what we want as well. They want the same thing. No one wants to completely strip the ocean of every single fish. We all just have different opinions on how we do that, different values.”

But he’s determined to ensure recreational fishers’ voices were heard in fisheries management, even if it meant more protests.

“Everybody needs to have valuable input and be listened to.That’s the main thing. Because if you don’t, the next one we do is going to be bigger, and then if that doesn’t work, the next one we do is going to be even bigger to the point it starts getting international recognition. We’ll do it if we have to. It’s tiring, but I’ll do it.”

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

US President Donald Trump no longer has beef with some Kiwi exports, but others are still stuck paying a high price – and an economist warns it’s anyone’s guess how long the relief will last

A surprise backflip on tariffs from Washington delivered a rare win for New Zealand’s primary sector – but there are concerns that the removal could be reversed at any time.

New Zealand economist Brad Olsen doesn’t have high hopes it will lead to the permanent end of the tariff saga.

“I really don’t think this is the case,” the Infometrics principal economist tells The Detail.

“I’d love it. I’d love us to go back to, you know, a position where tariffs weren’t normal and expected, but in all of my conversations with those overseas, it’s a pretty constant view that tariffs are here to stay, in some way, shape, or form.

“You’d hope that maybe over time they get less intense, but there is a real focus domestically in the US, as the world’s largest economy, that they are still feeling the hit – or feeling a perceived hit – from challenges overseas in terms of import levels and wanting to do a lot more domestically.

“That means that any future administration will find it tough to unwind that full level of tariffs because immediately everyone is going to [pillory] them and say, ‘well, you are looking after other countries and you are not looking out for number one in the US’.”

The tariffs, part of Trump’s “America First” agenda, were introduced in April at 10 percent, then raised to 15 percent in August.

But less than a week ago, with relatively little fanfare, Trump announced that the tariffs on products representing around 25 percent of our exports to the US and worth about $2.2 billion annually, would be removed, effective immediately.

Put simply, America needs cheaper food, and New Zealand has it.

“It seems very much a political decision based around the cost-of-living challenges that US consumers have been facing,” Olsen says.

“You have a number of products that have been increasing [in cost], sometimes because of the tariffs, sometimes not, but being exacerbated often by those tariff costs.”

Potential wide-ranging benefits

The tariff removal is a win for New Zealand, but Trump’s famously changeable policies have meant the celebrations have been muted.

“Everyone is really chuffed by it,” Kate Acland, the chairperson of Beef and Lamb New Zealand and the New Zealand Meat Board, tells The Detail.

“It has come out of the blue, and like the tariffs came on out of the blue – well, overnight – this is something that has happened very suddenly as well. So, a bit of uncertainty about all these swings backwards and forth. But everyone is really happy. We are taking it. It’s a really positive time in the red meat sector.”

She says the tariffs haven’t been a cheap exercise for the red meat industry, which is a crucial source of our country’s economic growth, supporting rural communities and boosting our export performance.

“Since the tariffs came on in April, there’s been an additional tariff cost of $122 million, and at the 15 percent rate, we were forecasting it would be around a $300 million cost, so that’s really significant, given that previously we were on a tariff of 0.3 percent.”

The benefits of the tariff removal could extend well beyond farmland, orchard gates, and woolsheds. Rural communities that rely on the meat and horticulture sectors could see new investment, job stability, and a boost in confidence, and all before Christmas.

“This is great news for farmers and for the whole red meat industry,” says Acland.

While the unexpected tariff removal has injected fresh energy into the sector, there are some “losers” in both New Zealand and America.

“In general, US consumers are still going to get hit by tariffs because they haven’t all gone away,” Olsen says.

“The likes of the president maybe lose out, ever so slightly, because he’s had to change his view a little bit more but realistically probably not a lot of people are focussing too much attention on that because that focus on the cost of living is so intense.

“Here in New Zealand, it really is an overall win … but the losers in a sense are those who didn’t get the relief, they haven’t seen those changes in tariffs, and they are still having to protest their case.”

He says we are starting to see “parallels here in New Zealand where those pressures on some important goods are in focus”.

“The last couple of months, we have spent a lot of time in New Zealand talking about butter. Mince has now become the new butter. We are talking a lot more about that as a commodity now [that it’s 23 dollars for a kilo].

“That’s not a tariff-direct impact, but the president has, of course, been able to say ‘look, I’m making a difference there and taking off some pressure’. Of course, he added it in the first place.

“But from a consumer point of view, you are getting a bit of relief. From an exporter point of view here in New Zealand, you’ve got some more opportunity and room to manoeuvre and a better competitive environment with other exporters.”

Check out how to listen to and follow The Detail here.

You can also stay up-to-date by liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

• 1145 reports submitted with 1247 “issues” identified
• Dose issues most common (25.93 percent), followed by quantities, missing details and inappropriate medications
• 26 percent of problems “high risk of harm” to patients
• Pharmacists spent 347 hours in total resolving problems
• Mean resolution time just under 19 minutes

More than one in four prescription errors picked up by pharmacists had a potentially serious risk of harm to patients, an audit has found.

In total, 68 pharmacies in Manawatū and Bay of Plenty took part in the week-long Script Audit – the first exploration of electronic scripts in New Zealand – using a purpose-built reporting app.

Midland Community Pharmacy Group chief executive Pete Chandler – who co-ordinated the audit and built the app for it using AI – said a major driver for the initiative was the tragic death of a two-month old baby in Manawatū earlier this year.

This came on top of long-standing concerns among pharmacists about system-wide clinical risk, he said.

“That was a wake up call for pharmacists around the country to the fact that if they miss something on the script, the consequences can be tragic.”

In Bellamere Duncan’s case it was an error at the pharmacy – but pharmacists say in most cases, they are the ones picking up problems.

During the week-long audit, pharmacists reported 1257 problems in prescriptions sent by GPs, specialists, midwives, dentists and other prescribers.

The most common related to inaccurate drug doses, followed by wrong quantities, missing details or patients prescribed “inappropriate” drugs, which could interfere with other medicines they were taking, for instance.

Most disturbingly, 26 percent of mistakes had a high risk of patient harm, if the pharmacist had not intervened.

The estimated rate of “interventions” varied widely between individual pharmacies, ranging from problems found in fewer than 1 percent of scripts to some identifying problems with 11.25 percent of total prescriptions sent to them.

The report noted the pharmacies with the highest intervention rates were known to the leadership teams of Bay of Plenty Community Pharmacy Group and MidCentral Community Pharmacy Group as “highly competent and thorough in clinical checking”, which suggested it could reflect more robust identification.

“Pharmacists have become the default safeguard against electronic deficiencies and other prescribing issues, yet this safeguard is neither resourced nor acknowledged in current funding or workforce planning. This is happening at a time when pharmacists should be contributing far

more to reducing hospital and primary care pressures.”

Chandler said whenever there was a problem with a script, pharmacists had to contact the prescriber involved and sort it out – and that could take minutes, hours or even days.

“You can see the minutes ticking away into hours while the pharmacist is waiting for a response.”

This could involve trying to track down a junior doctor who had now finished a hospital shift, or getting through to a busy GP.

“Some things are just irritating rather than being unsafe. So if your barcode won’t scan, it’s a pain and it wastes time. If a patient’s details don’t come through on a script, it needs chasing up.

“There are a range of issues that can happen, but this is time that we really need to use for something else.”

Invisible work of pharmacists not funded

A smaller survey of 20 pharmacists by the Pharmaceutical Society earlier this year found 45 percent were making up to five clinical interventions every day and 6 percent were making up to 40.

North Shore pharmacist Michael Hammond, president of the Pharmaceutical Society, said problems with scripts were annoying for everyone involved, including the patient having to wait for it to be sorted out.

“There are supply chain issues as well, so we’re having to have conversations with patients about why something is out of stock and then go to the prescriber and explain they need an alternative, or they can only dispense one month’s supply.

“So there’s a lot of unseen activity by pharmacists that needs to be recognised and funded appropriately.”

While electronic prescribing had fixed the historic problem of illegible handwriting, this audit revealed that technology had spawned a new set of problems.

The report on the audit found training, knowledge of drug changes and the inherent complexity of patient care remained contributing factors.

“However, the scale and pattern of findings indicate that IT system flaws do appear to be responsible for a substantial proportion of script issues increasing the workload and risk for both pharmacists and prescribers.”

Pete Chandler said it was frustrating for everyone involved.

“Often what the GP thinks they’ve asked for is not what the pharmacist sees. And pharmacists are obsessively diligent in their work, they’re very careful people, so they will do what it takes to sort it out.”

GPs also frustrated

The College of General Practitioners medical director, Dr Prabani Wood, said none of the software systems available were completely fit-for-purpose.

“There aren’t really those fail-safe mechanisms in our electronic health systems that stop you from making a crazy error by multiplying the number of tablets you’re asking for by a factor of 10 or 100. That still doesn’t happen.”

While Health NZ was working towards a shared digital health record, it was almost impossible for busy GPs to keep up with which medicines were currently funded by Pharmac or subject to supply problems, she said.

“I did a prescription last week for a person with ADHD and they are on a number of different medications and different doses, a couple of which were available at their normal pharmacy and one that isn’t. So it gets quite tricky.

“The system is not in place to help things run more smoothly. For me, I think having easier communication between general practice and pharmacy would help.”

The report itself concluded that many of the problems reported could be significantly reduced with co-ordinated action and “a willingness to address root causes rather than relying on workarounds”.

Promising micro-improvements were already emerging, including a dedicated text-only line for pharmacy prescription enquiries at one GP practice.

However, systemic improvement would require some national level, some regional level and some local level (i.e. local pharmacy and general practice) quality improvement, including working with IT providers to improve their systems.

“This small snapshot validates the significant concerns pharmacists across Aotearoa have been signalling for years – that script issues are increasing, clinical risk is rising and the system is not responding to make at the pace required.

“Doing nothing is no longer a defensible option.”

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Warning: This story contains content some may find disturbing.

Convicted killer Nathan Boulter was investigated four years ago over an allegation he raped a 15-year-old girl when he was 14.

He was spoken to while serving time in Otago prison where he denied any wrongdoing, and said the sex between the two was not rape and that the woman was his girlfriend at the time.

Police said after reviewing all the available evidence, the matter did not reach the threshold to prosecute under the Solicitor-General Prosecution Guidelines.

Boulter – who had a long history of stalking and assaulting ex-partners – pleaded guilty last week to murdering a woman in Parklands, Christchurch, on 23 July.

The woman had been in a brief relationship with Boulter. After she ended it, he harassed, stalked and threatened her, making nearly 600 calls in two weeks, before hiding outside her home, then stabbing her 55 times with a hunting knife, as she arrived home with her children.

It can now be revealed a woman went to police in 2021 with allegations that she had been raped and physically assaulted by Boulter while they were at Aparima College in Riverton in 2003.

A police report form detailing the allegations, seen by RNZ, said police investigated two allegations of historical sexual assault and one allegation of physical assault made by the woman.

Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

The report said Boulter had “numerous convictions” and referred to his “violent offending” making national headlines.

In April 2021, the woman, then aged 32, went to the Hamilton Central Police Station with her partner to report a sexual assault.

During a preliminary interview she alleged she had been raped by Boulter on two occasions and was physically assaulted by him on one occasion.

The alleged attacks occurred over a one-two week period when she was 15 and he was 14.

“[The woman] stated that she had seen something in the media where Boulter’s adult offending was reported on and this has triggered an emotional response from her,” the police report said.

“She thought it was best to now report what happened to her as a young person as the offending had caused ongoing psychological damage.”

The report also said that when talking about the sexual assaults the woman’s position was “she only went along with it as she was fearful, felt coerced and was subject to Boulter’s control and pressure”.

The woman was formally interviewed by police a week later where she detailed the three incidents.

She described feeling “fearful, scared, and terrified” during the first incident.

A week later she alleged Boulter raped her again one night in her home.

“[She] described being in shock and panicking.

“She talked about being 15yrs, underage and not wanting to get into trouble.”

She said Boulter was “laughing, smiling, and smirking”.

“Before leaving, Boulter threatened to kill [the woman’s] father if she said anything.”

The third incident, an allegation of assault with a weapon, occurred when the pair ran away together days later.

The woman told police they spent about two days hitchhiking together, using her money to fund the trip.

While on the main street in Balclutha the pair had an argument and Boulter allegedly presented a knife and pressed it against the woman’s neck. She said she ran off and sought help at the Balclutha Pub where two women helped her.

The woman told police that she “went off the rails” in the years that followed.

Boulter was interviewed by Detective Jason Bishop from the Waikato Child Protection Team at Otago Prison on 24 June, 2021.

Boulter was formally cautioned and provided with legal advice. After speaking to a duty lawyer he declined to provide a statement.

“In response to the allegations Boulter denied any wrongdoing. He informed Detective Jason Bishop that [the woman] was his girlfriend during the period in question.

“Boulter stated that the sex that occurred between the two was not rape and commented on it being his first sexual encounter.”

The police report said that “notably” the woman had earlier described Boulter as being the first person she had sex with.

“She also commented on him being a popular classmate, appreciating him showing interest in her on occasion and talking about school camp where there was some positive interaction involving leg touching.”

The author of the report said it was their “personal belief that the requisite evidence is not present” to meet the Solicitor-General’s prosecution guidelines.

“In my opinion the required minimum standard for a prosecution is not attained and to do so would risk a possible miscarriage of justice.”

In relation to public interest, the author said there was “no doubt” the matter was serious enough that public interest could require a prosecution, but identified several matters to consider. This included where a prosecution was likely to have a “detrimental impact” on the physical or mental health of the victim, and where the defendant was a youth at the time of the alleged offending.

It was recommended the matter should be filed.

The woman told RNZ going to police in 2021 was “one of the hardest things I’ve ever done”.

She was “devastated”, when police told her they would not be laying charges.

“I felt misheard and abandoned. I lost faith in the justice system’s ability to protect victims and prevent repeated harm.”

The woman was referred to mental health services in June 2003 by the principal of Apirima College and a counsellor.

The counsellor’s referral, seen by RNZ, said the woman had been going through a “difficult experience as a result of a break-up with a year 10 boy in her class with whom she had a sexual relationship”.

“It is my impression that [the woman] has been subject to severe emotional and physical pressure from this youth in order to obtain sexual favours since the break-up.”

The woman was “fearful” of the possibility of Boulter returning to school following an extended suspension.

The counsellor noted that the woman’s father told them that he had spoken to the police.

Notes seen by RNZ said she was referred following concerns about her mood, self-esteem and PTSD after “an abusive relationship” with Boulter.

“Nathan has consistently been emotionally + physically abusive including slapping her around, pushing her to the ground at school, frequently stating he would kill himself if she did not comply to his demands.

“[The woman] has also been under pressure to give sex when she would otherwise wouldn’t have.”

The notes from the intake nurse also said Boulter had threatened to kill her, at which point her father contacted police and a protection order was put in place.

The woman said police were notified of her allegations in 2003. However, a privacy act request she made did not find any record of any complaints at the time.

The woman told RNZ Boulter was “controlling, possessive, and violent”.

“I was terrified of him, but I felt trapped because no one seemed to take it seriously.”

She said she heard about Boulter being charged with murder from friends in Riverton.

“My heart sank,” she recalled.

“My reaction was one of grief, disbelief, and anger. It brought everything back. I was heartbroken for the victim and her family in Christchurch and it confirmed my fears that the warning signs were there all along, but no one intervened when they could have.”

She wants to see Boulter “locked up indefinitely”.

“I want people to understand that these patterns of harm don’t happen in isolation. When victims are dismissed or disbelieved, it allows offenders to escalate.

“I hope sharing this encourages better accountability, for schools, police, and communities to act decisively when young people report harm. Because if someone had acted 20 years ago, this story could have had a very different ending.”

Case ‘did not reach the threshold’

Waikato district manager of criminal investigations Detective Inspector Daryl Smith told RNZ police immediately began an investigation in 2021 when the woman came forward.

The investigation included interviewing both parties involved.

“Upon reviewing all the available evidence, the matter did not reach the threshold to prosecute under the Solicitor-General Prosecution Guidelines.”

At this stage, police had no intention to review the matter, Smith said.

“However if any further information comes to light then police will of course assess this and action any appropriate follow up as required.”

Where to get help:

Sexual violence

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Fire and Emergency (FENZ) is calling on the professional firefighters union to call off strike action planned for Friday.

Paid firefighters will walk off the job for an hour at midday as the two parties continue to negotiate a new collective agreement.

Areas affected by the strike are Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington, Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin and Invercargill.

On Tuesday next week, the case was set to be before the Employment Relations Authority for an urgent facilitation meeting.

FENZ Deputy National Commander Megan Stiffler said striking was unwarranted given its meeting to discuss the case at the ERA and that they were continuing pay talks in good faith.

Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) national committee member David Phillips said it’d be prepared to call off the strike if the employer was willing to get around the table with meaningful solutions.

Phillips said that included problems with staffing and equipment.

“Whilst we have met with Fire and Emergency this week in bargaining, being on the bargaining team myself I can tell you it was disappointing … not surprising but disappointing.”

FENZ was offering a 5.1 percent pay increase over three years.

Stiffler said both were far apart in their offers at a meeting this week and that she was disapppointed the strike would go ahead.

Faulty brakes cause late response to Ōtara house fire

The firefighters union said a crew was seven minutes later to a house fire than it should have been because of a faulty handbrake on a truck.

It said the delay getting to the fire in the Auckland suburb of Ōtara on Wednesday morning could have been deadly if people had still been inside the home.

The union said the trip from the station to the scene should have taken just a minute, but instead it took eight because the handbrake on the truck jammed.

Phillips said it was a nightmare situation trying to get the vehicle moving while a house was going up in flames.

He said they were lucky no one was in the home at the time.

“As you can imagine if you are stuck in that house fire and you are waiting eight minutes instead of two minutes that is a long period of time and potentially a fatal period of time.”

He said it was the latest problem in an extensive list of fleet failures that the union had highlighted.

Fire and Emergency said it was hypocritical for the union to criticise an eight minute response when it was compromising public safety with a one hour strike at midday today.

Deputy National Commander Megan Stiffler said the fire broke out at 12.04 in the morning and when the Ōtara crew couldn’t respond because of the brake problem, a crew was sent from Papatoetoe and arrived at 12.12. A second crew from Ōtara arrived at 12.15.

She said fire trucks were large, complicated machines and sometimes they broke down despite regular servicing.

“We acknowledge we have an ageing fleet and that is why we have a fleet replacement programme underway.

“We’ve replaced 317 trucks since Fire and Emergency New Zealand was established in 2017.

“We have 78 more trucks on order, and plan to spend approximately $20m a year for the next five years to continue to replace our older appliances,” she said.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealanders are buying home tests for pregnancy, herpes, chlamydia and more that may be no more accurate than flipping a coin.

The tests, which give on-the-spot results, are called invitro devices used at point of care – and include RATS (rapid antigen tests) and urine pregnancy kits.

They had surged in popularity since the Covid pandemic but a paper in the New Zealand Medical Journal Friday said they were largely unregulated.

Last year, over-the-counter RAT tests for chlamydia, gonorrhoea and herpes-2 were “vigourously advertised and sold” in New Zealand.

But, they had not been verified, and overseas evidence on similar kits showed they performed poorly, the paper said.

In 2021, a pregnancy test was withdrawn for showing a high rate of false positives. In 2016, one that had been used professionally gave too many false negatives or inconclusive results.

One of the report authors, pathologist Samarina Musaad, said having inaccurate or inconsistent tests could have serious impacts.

For example, a false negative pregnancy test may mean some people could not make informed choices about their care – or they might have a procedure or medication that was not safe for pregnancy.

A false positive could be very disappointing – or cause a lot of anxiety – depending on people’s situations, she said.

A cabinet paper to former Health Minister Shane Reti last year said there were “low performance devices” available online and from major retailers but there was no public information about the volume being sold.

One test had a false negative rate of between 37 and 88 percent, the cabinet paper said.

“Given many STIs are asymptomatic even while the person is infectious, a false negative result may lead to a person and their sexual partners being falsely reassured that they do not have an infection and may affect their sexual behaviours in a way that increases the risk of transmission,” it said.

Musaad said the examples showed better regulation was needed.

“There are huge concerns from many clinicians that these tests are little more than the flip of a coin,” she said.

Many tests were easily available online at sites like Amazon and Ali Express.

On one hand, it was good for consumers to have choice but they also needed to be able to make an informed decision, Musaad said.

Under the current rules, anyone could bring anything into the country and use it, she said.

Sub-standard tests had sometimes also made their way into health clinics and found to be inaccurate when tested in labs, she said.

At the moment, Pharmac could fund tests for use even when they had not been approved as safe and reliable by Medsafe – something that needed to change, Musaad said.

Regulations minister David Seymour said Medsafe could not approve every product available, particulary if they were from international sellers.

But, Pharmac had its own procedures for assessing which tests would be funded, including expert advice about their suitability, he said.

People should make safe decisions when buying the tests, he said.

“For example, purchasing [point of care tests] from pharmacies is much safer than purchasing them online, because Medsafe can recall unsafe or ineffective products and remove them from shelves,” he said.

There was work underway into an approval process for the tests before they came into the country, he said.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Police Assistant Commissioner Sam Hoyle was the senior staffer who visited Jevon McSkimming along with former Deputy Police Commissioner Tania Kura while he faced charges of possessing child sexual exploitation and bestiality material.

McSkimming pleaded guilty earlier this month.

The former deputy commissioner was arrested on 27 June.

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers earlier confirmed to RNZ Kura and another member of the “wider senior leadership team” visited McSkimming while he faced the charges.

RNZ can now reveal the other staffer was Sam Hoyle who is the Assistant Commissioner chief capability and infrastructure officer.

RNZ understands Kura asked Hoyle to visit McSkimming with her. It’s understood the purpose of the visit was to do a welfare check on McSkimming.

Hoyle was not mentioned in the IPCA’s report released last week.

RNZ asked police if Hoyle had any comment.

Chambers earlier told RNZ he became aware Kura visited McSkimming in July.

“When I found out about that from concerned colleagues, I asked Tania Kura for an explanation and I expressed my disappointment in her,” Chambers said.

“To me it showed a total lack of judgement and very bad decision making. It was inappropriate for an executive member and a statutory deputy commissioner.”

Asked what Kura’s response was, Chambers said “she seemed surprised that I saw it as a problem”.

Chambers said it was for Kura to say why she visited McSkimming.

“However, it was my view there was no reasonable explanation.”

Asked whether it led to Kura’s retirement, Chambers said that was not discussed.

“A short time later, Ms Kura did announce she was retiring from NZ Police.”

RNZ approached Kura for comment on why she visited McSkimming, and whether it had anything to do with her retirement.

RNZ also asked her if she had any response to the IPCA’s report.

She replied, “sorry … not at this point. However for balance you could check how many other people have done the same”.

In response, Chambers said he was aware another member of the “wider senior leadership team” visited McSkimming along with Kura.

“I did speak to that person and expressed my disappointment at the decision making and lack of judgement.

“Mr McSkimming also had regular contact with a member of my leadership team appointed by me as a welfare point of contact, as is the usual process with Police.

“That was in an official capacity and was appropriate. That person did not visit his home and did not meet with him in person after charges had been laid.”

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Two people have been killed and another seriously injured after a crash between a car and a truck north of Timaru on Thursday evening.

Emergency Services were called to the scene on State Highway One near the intersection of Brosnan Road at about 5.10pm.

Police said two people died at the scene while a third was airlifted to hospital in a serious condition.

Officers are investigating the scene and the road is expected to stay closed until later on Thursday night.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Indigenous peoples are leaving the world’s largest indigenous education conference (WIPCE) feeling inspired, uplifted and strengthened.

Over the week thousands of indigenous educators descended on Aotea Centre, Tāmaki Makaurau, for the World Indigenous Peoples’ Conference on Education 2025 (WIPCE).

Alongside keynote speakers and hundreds of presentations, discussions over the week-long hui have centred on kotahitanga (unity), shared strategy, and the reaffirmation of Indigenous sovereignty.

Miriam Zmiewski-Angelova (Choctaw, Cherokee descendant, Black) travelled from traditional Duwamish territory in Seattle.

Her mahi (work) with Hummingbird Indigenous Family Services brought her to WIPCE as a kaikōrero (speaker).

She told RNZ this week’s experience in Aotearoa has been “life changing,” especially sharing memories and learnings with her tamariki (children).

“We need to do more to make sure that there’s representation of indigenous folks, especially in the places that the education systems are happening in.”

She said it’s an experience “that we don’t have enough of.”

“Many times we’re at these conferences, and we’re desperately trying to find each other. I would love for a conference like this to be every year.”

Barbara Dude (Tlingit) and Margaret Katzeek (Central Council Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska) travelled to Aotearoa from Juneau, Alaska.

They told RNZ they are leaving the conference feeling incredibly inspired.

“It feels like we’re in the right place at the right time, and we needed to hear all these messages,” Dude said.

“Auckland is a big city, and so, I really didn’t know what to expect, but the people and hosts are just amazing.

“To be immersed in the singing and the dancing and rituals, the ceremony has been so uplifting.”

Katzeek said they hope to take back home with them the teachings and words from their ancestors, and other indigenous nations.

“The value of belonging has been really prevalent and that’s something that we really care about – making sure that our kids feel like they belong – so taking that energy back home is really important.”

Lee Breaker (Siksika Nation, Canada) is what he calls a ‘knowledge keeper’ of his peoples First Nations reserve.

This was his first visit to Aotearoa, and he said a big takeaway was experiencing a taste of te ao Māori.

“The Māori people are beautiful,” he said.

“I am learning about the culture of the Māori people right now. And right now, I believe it’s similar to what we do… especially the spiritual side.”

In their culture, they have the traditional practice of powwow – a gathering of Native American and First Nations peoples that involves dancing, singing, and celebration to honour and maintain tikanga, or traditions.

“What we do is a passion. It’s something that I can’t explain.

“We put our heart into our ceremonies back at home. And I see that [Māori] put a lot of heart into their ceremonies here too, learning to sing the songs and learning to understand the dance.”

Kereama Wright (Te Arawa) is a senior member of Ngāti Whakaue – the winning haka rōpū of Te Matatini 2025.

They were set to perform at Te Ao Pūtahi – a free festival taking place alongside the conference in Aotea Square.

He told RNZ kaupapa like WIPCE is hugely important, as it brings indigenous people from across the world together.

“We might be experiencing unprecedented attacks on our culture and on our language and on our lands, but we are better together. We are stronger together,” he said.

This year Wright has been to around six different countries, and he said that as a result of Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke’s viral haka in response to the Treaty Principles Bill, people identify him as Māori wherever he goes.

“That’s why I think it’s important that we come together as indigenous people, so that we can share the trauma, so that we can share the success stories, so that we can share models of education and models of political discourse that might be beneficial to other indigenous cultures.”

He said it’s also important to come together as one to give each other some “awhiawhi, hugs and kisses.”

Te Tai Tokerau leader Hone Harawira told RNZ, the importance of language revitalisation remained a core focus of the week-long hui.

“The language is the portal to your independence,” he said.

“Without an understanding of the reo, you can’t truly understand rangatiratanga, you can’t truly understand those principles which make us the special people that we are.

“You can learn about them in an academic way, but if you follow the reo, you can hold on to its principles.”

He encourages whānau to not “just chase around the edges,” and instead have the courage to challenge themselves to be a bit better every day, so that our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren can see role models that they can feel comfortable aspiring to.”

“Charge into the reo, build your next generation so that those who do take over have something that we just struggled to have.”

The next WIPCE will take place in Hawai’i in 2028.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The equivalent of 4.8 million rubber car tyres have been collected in the first year of a recycle scheme.

Tyrewise is governed by a charitable trust and funded by the fee that is charged on the sale of all new regulated tyres in Aotearoa.

There are now 86 public collection points around the motu.

Tyrewise said a year into the scheme illegal dumping of tyres has been slashed, along with the number of tyres going to landfill.

Adele Rose, the CEO of 3R Group that manages the Tyrewise Scheme, told Checkpoint the number of tyres recycled had continued to steadily tick up, today reaching close to five million.

Currently, around half of the recycled tyres remain within the country.

“About half of them go to Golden Bay for use as an alternative to coal and their cement production.”

While rubber being burnt is not usually seen as a sustainable method, Rose said a unique process is used at Golden Bay to ensure it is clean.

“It’s actually a really unique method of combustion. It’s called hot disc and it actually literally as it sounds, it’s two very hot discs that heat up the tyres.

“There’s also clinker that’s formed as a result of the tyres being combusted and that clinker goes in as an add mixture into the production of cement and that’s what enables Golden Base cement to produce their low carbon cement product.”

She said there is rigourous air quality testing to ensure that it is a clean burning method.

The remainder of the recycled tyres are then shipped offshore.

“Then there is about 20,000 tonnes which are exported offshore to verified markets… for a whole range of things like rubber for matting and various other products like that.”

Rose hopes that the number of tyres being recycled onshore would increase over the coming years.

“The scheme has only been going for a year and you can’t magically produce the domestic market within one year,” she said.

“That volume will be reducing as our market in New Zealand can utilise the rubber.”

The trust is currently focusing on using the recycled tyres for rubber roading.

“That will take about 18,000 tonnes of tyre crumb so you can see there’s a really awesome balance there, where we can stimulate your own market, we can reduce the amount that’s been exported.”

Rose said construction is another key area they hope to use the recycled rubber in.

“Anything you can imagine that has rubber in it, like engineered materials, building materials, paved materials.”

Tyrewise is aiming to have 80 percent of tyres transformed into products that can stay in New Zealand by 2028.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A Canterbury landlord, who had been warned multiple times that his property was not up to standard, has been ordered to pay $33,000, remove industrial rubbish and repair holes in the roof and walls of a boarding house in Lyttelton.

The Tenancy Tribunal took action against landlord Murray Lawrence Hill, who has a long history of complaints, for failing to ensure his property was compliant.

Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team national manager Brett Willson said Hill had previously been issued warnings for the property.

“Despite receiving multiple warnings over a number of years, he failed to take meaningful steps to address these concerns until 2024/2025. His prolonged inaction over a four-year period demonstrates a deliberate and intentional disregard for his obligations.”

His failure to maintain the property to the required standard despite multiple warnings, had a direct and harmful impact on his tenants.

Wilson said landlords are running a business and if they want to operate a boarding house they must comply with their obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act.

Alongside the rubbish removal and hole repairs, he was required to install glass planes in windows that were boarded up, install mechanical ventilation in the bathrooms and clean the kitchen and bathrooms to an acceptable standard.

It is the first time the Tenancy Tribunal has ordered a landlord to pay pecuniary penalties and Wilson said the amount reflected the seriousness of the intentional and ongoing nature of the breaches.

Wilson said where possible, the team works with landlords to achieve compliance and allow tenants to remain in their homes, but where a landlord is not willing to engage, then it would take further action up to and including an application to the Tenancy Tribunal.

He said Hill was an experienced landlord who had regular interactions with Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team, Fire and Emergency New Zealand and the Christchurch City Council, and was aware of his obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act.

The investigations team received a complaint from a member of the public in December 2023, who said the boarding house was in a serious state of disrepair, with rubbish rotting on the property.

The tenants were described as vulnerable and afraid to complain, for fear of being evicted.

Investigators visited the house and raised the issue with the Tenancy Tribunal, as two prior warnings had not resulted in any action.

At a case conference in March this year, Hill said he had completed some of the work required, but he failed to provide evidence of it.

At a subsequent site visit, investigators found some work had been done but there was still industrial rubbish outside the house that needed to be removed, part of the ceiling in the hallway was leaking and rotting, the stairway wall was in need of repair and parts of the guttering were broken and leaking in several areas. A smoke alarm was also missing outside one bedroom.

The Tenancy Tribunal found Hill failed to ensure the property was in a reasonable state of cleanliness and repair, failed to comply with the healthy homes standards for ventilation, draught stopping and moisture ingress and drainage, and failed to comply with smoke alarm regulations.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Foodstuffs South Island has been fined $39,000 for selling recalled hummus.

The dip was recalled in 2023 over the possible presence of salmonella.

Foodstuffs South Island was sentenced in the Christchurch District Court, after selling 39 units of the recalled hummus to consumers.

The deputy director-general for NZ Food Safety, Vincent Arbuckle, said the hummus should have been removed from shelves, and there was a significant failure in the company’s recall system.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Criminal investigations have begun into three police staff in relation to “misuse and inappropriate content”, RNZ can reveal.

RNZ earlier revealed several police staff were under investigation, including an officer who has been stood down after inappropriate material was found on a police-issued device.

It follows an audit of staff internet usage sparked by the resignation of former Deputy Police Commissioner Jevon McSkimming who recently pleaded guilty to possessing objectionable publications, including child sexual exploitation and bestiality over a four-year period.

Acting Deputy Police Commissioner Jill Rogers told RNZ on Thursday six out of 20 staff under investigation in relation to “misuse and inappropriate content” had been stood down.

“Those six are being investigated for serious matters, ranging from potentially accessing objectionable material, or accessing inappropriate material while also subject to separate misconduct matters.”

Some of the staff being investigated may have had legitimate purposes for accessing material, which police would verify through their inquiries.

“Criminal investigations are being conducted into three of the cases.”

Police were not able to disclose the ranks of those under investigation.

• Do you know more? Email sam.sherwood@rnz.co.nz

Rogers earlier told RNZ a “small number of users of concern” were under investigation.

RNZ asked for clarification but did not receive a response from police.

On Wednesday, Rogers said police continued to progress investigations into about 20 cases of misuse and inappropriate content as part of the ongoing audit of staff use of police devices.

“Employment processes are underway in some of these cases while others are still at the preliminary stages of investigation.

“We can assure the public appropriate action will be taken in every case and cannot rule out charges if the Solicitor General’s guidelines for prosecution are met.

“We are unable to comment further while these processes take their course.”

Rogers earlier confirmed to RNZ a police officer had been stood down from duty for “inappropriate content on a police device”.

“The officer is under employment investigation for serious misconduct, relating to inappropriate, but not objectionable, material on a police-issued device. The alleged misconduct was uncovered through following recent audits of staff internet usage.”

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers earlier told RNZ the misconduct being investigated was uncovered as a result of the new monitoring measures introduced following the Rapid Review of the settings for police devices, launched after McSkimming’s resignation.

“I sought that review because of my concern that such conduct was not being detected. This offers some reassurance that we now have the necessary tools to detect potentially inappropriate behaviour.”

Police Minister Mark Mitchell earlier told RNZ he had not been briefed on the allegations, but expected police to “take action on any matters that involve inappropriate behaviour”.

The investigation into McSkimming led to concerns that staff could bypass internal controls and “exploit vulnerabilities to access inappropriate content”.

The concerns prompted Chambers to order a “rapid review” of police’s information security (INFOSEC) controls to ensure police had sufficiently strong controls to prevent or detect the misuse of police technology and equipment for non-work-related purposes.

A summary of the review said the main risks were; weaknesses in technology configuration, lack of visibility over user activity and gaps in governance.

The report included key findings and recommendations in relation to each of the risks.

There was “inconsistent application” of internet access policies across different workgroups as well as a “lack of robust filtering mechanisms” to consistently prevent access to unauthorised websites.

The review also found there was “insufficient monitoring of internet usage to detect and respond to potential security threats and inappropriate usage”.

Other findings included unmanaged devices being used for operational activities and inadequate monitoring of user activity and network traffic.

There was an absence of centralised logging and analysis tools to detect anomalies and potential issues and “insufficient resources allocated to continuous monitoring and incident response”.

The review also said there was a lack of “clear governance structures and accountability” for INFOSEC controls, with “inconsistent enforcement” of security policies and procedures.

The report called for “improved oversight and coordination among different workgroups”.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Warning: This story contains content some may find disturbing.

There are calls for a public awareness and education campaign about domestic violence, after fresh data has revealed its prevalence around the globe.

A new report from the World Health Organisation has found a quarter of women have been physically or sexually abused by a partner.

It shows there’s been no improvements in that statistic in the last two decades.

In Australia and New Zealand, 24.5 percent of women have been sexually or physically abused by a partner.

The head of Women’s Refuge, Ang Jury, is disappointed but not at all surprised.

“Until such time as men realise that they don’t own their women, nothing’s gonna change,” she said.

Jury said big societal shifts have been achieved before in Aotearoa, like attitudes towards smoking and drink driving.

But part of that shift was long-lasting, expensive public campaigns. She wants to see something similar – “long running, sustained action” – for domestic violence prevention.

“It would have to be a bipartisan thing, with the understanding that nothing is gonna change overnight.”

In the mid-2000s, the “It’s Not Okay” campaign advertisements beamed into living rooms across the country.

University of Auckland professor Janet Fanslow, who’s researched violence for nearly 40 years, said it was brilliant.

“At the beginning it was not only the national campaign around the messaging and building the understanding, but that campaign was actually backed with 150 community-based prevention projects. And then we let it drop.”

Fanslow advised the World Health Organisation on interpreting and analysing data for the report.

She said to force change in New Zealand, a similar nationwide campaign is needed, underpinned with well-resourced advocates educating people about things like power in relationships.

Fanslow said in some places overseas, those community programmes saw intimate partner violence drop by 50 percent in four years.

“It’s huge, and it’s fast,” she said.

“We often talk about it as an intergenerational problem, but I think what we actually mean is that we need intergenerational funding to implement it consistently across whole populations, long enough to get the change in behaviour that we would really like to see.”

Political reaction

Politicians on either side of the aisle agreed the statistics were horrific – and that a bipartisan approach was the way forward.

“Fully agree, and that’s why we have continued the previous government’s programme that they put in place,” said Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.

That’s called Te Aorerekura – a 25-year strategy to eliminate family and sexual violence, with a series of shorter-term action plans.

The minister for family and sexual violence prevention, Karen Chhour said the government’s second action plan has accomplished all its early milestones, like improving multi-agency responses, expanding access to safety programmes for survivors, and extending rehabilitation support for prisoners on remand.

“In recent years there has been an increase in reporting, meaning more people are aware these behaviours are unacceptable and are seeking help,” she said.

Chhour encouraged anyone experiencing family or sexual violence to seek help.

Labour’s family and sexual violence prevention spokesperson Helen White said there were emerging challenges to deal with.

“We have a really strong wind of misogyny coming through our social media, and it is really taking its toll on the way that young people think about their sexual relationships,” she said.

White believes change starts with young people.

“Education is absolutely key. We do need to make sure that this is cross-party, we should be able to cooperate on something like this. It’s huge.”

Family Violence

Sexual Violence

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Marlborough District Council are warning residents to be cautious of residual smoke after a Blenheim rubbish treatment plant blaze.

Fire crews were called to the Resource Recovery Centre in Wither Road at 2:50pm on Thursday.

Over two and a half hours later the council said the blaze was still burning, with it taking possibly three to four hours before it is put out completely.

All staff were evacuated and were safe.

The council said the cause of the fire was not yet known and a investigation team has been called.

The facility, and the dump shop will remain closed until further notice.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Concerned parents and teachers have been bagging up and delivering children’s play sand which could be contaminated with asbestos to designated council centres.

The products had been sold in both New Zealand and Australia and subject to multiple safety recalls.

At the Auckland Council asbestos lab in Auckland’s Grafton, Kedgley Intermediate learning and support coordinator Jane Goodill was shocked to learn they had the sand at her school.

She said she felt “horror” when she realised.

“We had some of the sand. I looked at the bar code and found it was a different bar code than the recalled ones but it was the same product, same colours, same seller, but different weight.”

To be perfectly safe, she said it was decided to get rid of it.

Adrian Blake, an Auckland father, said he and his wife were “pretty shocked” when they heard about the recall.

He said his children had played with the sand.

“I’m shocked that the product standard hasn’t been met. Surprised for a product that kids play with that it wasn’t checked more.”

Blake said he was pleased the council had come up with a solution for families unsure of what to do with the sand.

Auckland Council set up a drop-off site for the sand at the council asbestos lab on Kari St in Grafton.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Police say they believe two incidents – where one man died and another suffered serious injuries – in Waikanae on Wednesday are related.

Three men aged 20, 25 and 26 are facing charges of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm after a man was found critically injured in Kakariki Grove about 3.15pm.

At the time, Detective Inspector Jamie Woods said the man died at the scene despite medical attention.

On Thursday, Woods said police were treating the death as a homicide and further charges were “currently being considered”.

He said another man was found with serious injuries just over eight kilometres away in Hadleigh Court, Paraparaumu at about 4.25pm on Wednesday.

“We believe the incidents in Kakariki Grove and Hadleigh Court are related, and we are working to establish exactly what has occurred, and to identify and locate anyone else who may have been involved,” Woods said.

A neighbour of the Kakariki Grove address told RNZ they were outside on Wednesday afternoon when they heard loud voices and what “appeared to be a gunshot”.

“Then the screaming got louder and there was a second shot, I think.”

The person said the commotion was followed by the sound of cars “taking off down the street”.

They said neighbours were a little bit nervous and shaken up.

Woods appealed to members of the public who had information about either incident to get in touch.

“A large number of officers from across Wellington District have been deployed to assist in this investigation, and Waikanae residents can expect to see a continued police presence in the Kakariki Grove and Hadleigh Court areas as we continue our enquiries,” Woods said.

Another neighbour told RNZ armed police were stationed outside the property on Thursday morning.

“They’re the big guns, not the small ones.”

They said there were tents and plastic on the ground at the house and residents were signing in and out of the street cordon.

Residents were “battening down,” they said.

“It’s kinda freaky.”

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s been revealed Kmart NZ’s sold tens of thousands of pots of potentially asbestos-laced children’s play sand.

The retail giant has sold 67,000 units of coloured children’s sand across the four products. That number doesn’t include suspect products sold through different retailers.

The sand has been sold at Kmart for several years, with the pink magic sand sales dating back to 2015, according to the Product Safety website.

In a statement, Kmart apologised for the inconvenience caused by the recalled products. It said whenever there is any potential risk associated with a product, they act “swiftly and proactively”.

Kmart has withdrawn all sand-based toys from sale as a precaution.

It said the risk that any asbestos found is likely to be airborne or fine enough for inhalation is low.

The sand is part of a massive recall that’s expanded even further on Thursday.

The latest contaminated item added to the list is 380 gram pots of craft sand in 15 different colours.

Samples of the product, which are sold in dozens of cut price retailers and dollar stores, have tested positive for asbestos.

MBIE and other agencies are proactively testing samples from other similar products that are available in New Zealand.

Testing of other play sands in New Zealand is ongoing, MBIE said.

“MBIE and other agencies are proactively testing samples from other similar products identified available in the New Zealand market. We are expecting to receive the first further results later this week and will update our partners and New Zealanders as they are received,” an MBIE spokesperson said.

Some councils have set up drop-offs sites for the recalled products.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand