Source: Radio New Zealand

Auckland has welcomed the first passengers transiting on what has been dubbed the “world’s longest direct flight”.

A new China Eastern Airlines service from Shanghai to Buenos Aires landed in Auckland just after 6pm on Thursday.

The route departs from Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport and is scheduled to take roughly 25 and a half hours before reaching Ezeiza International Airport in the Argentine capital.

The return journey runs even longer, at about 29 hours. Both directions include a two-hour stopover in Auckland.

A welcome ceremony was held at the arrival gate at Auckland Airport following the flight’s touchdown, with attendees including Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Louise Upston, Minister of Immigration and Education Erica Stanford, Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown, Chinese Ambassador to New Zealand Wang Xiaolong, Auckland Airport chief executive Carrie Hurihanganui, and China Eastern Airlines chief executive Gao Fei.

Upston said increased air connectivity was vital for New Zealand’s future economic growth.

“We are very firmly focused on growing tourism beyond 2019 levels and China Eastern’s Southern Link marks a new milestone for New Zealand as a tourism and trade gateway,” Upston said.

Stanford said Chinese passengers transiting through New Zealand could now use a NZeTA without applying for a separate transit visa, a policy she said played a critical role in strengthening New Zealand’s economic future.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown also welcomed the easing of visa settings for Chinese visitors. He said the new service would deliver economic benefits to both Auckland and the wider country.

“It’s a link between two big economies, via our small economy, and we will gain from it,” Brown said.

The new China Eastern service was also well received by passengers.

Yi Zhu, a Shanghai resident visiting South America for the first time, said he enjoyed the long-haul flight and appreciated the opportunity to take a break in Auckland.

“I think two hours is not too long, and we can have some rest,” he said. “It’s good because we can prepare good for the next trip.”

He added that being able to transit through New Zealand without needing a separate visa was convenient for Chinese travellers and made the journey more appealing.

Emilio del Campo, who had been living in China for six months, was also on the flight home.

He said it was the farthest route he could take to return to his country, and he was delighted by the experience.

According to Auckland Airport’s statistics, travel between New Zealand and South America reached about 94,000 passengers last year, roughly two-thirds of pre-pandemic levels.

Air trade between New Zealand and South America totalled $129 million in the year to October 2025, up 11 percent from the previous year.

Auckland Airport chief executive Carrie Hurihanganui said the new service was expected to attract high-value visitors from both China and Argentina while giving New Zealanders a more competitive travel option to South America.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Kmart has cancelled the recall notices that were in force for three of its coloured sand products caught in the asbestos contamination scare.

MBIE said it had been informed the Blue, Green and Pink Magic Sand products were no longer being recalled.

“As in the case of the products recalled voluntarily by companies and suppliers, the decision to cancel a recall is also the supplier’s decision,” the ministry said.

MBIE said tests commissioned by Kmart confirmed no asbestos in the three sand products.

It was now urging buyers who bought the formerly recalled products to make contact with Kmart for remedial costs.

“If you’ve incurred losses (e.g. in clean-up costs etc), you might be able to obtain damages from the supplier under the Consumer Guarantees Act,” MBIE said.

“This will be for consumers to discuss directly with the suppliers.”

Recalls for other Kmart products, the 14-piece Sandcastle Building Set and the Make Your Own Unicorn Sand Ornaments are still in force.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

For more than 30 years, residents on Auckland’s Franklin Road have decked out their properties with Christmas decorations for the rest of the city to enjoy.

Despite prevalent rumours and conspiracy theories that the popular street-wide display is “funded by the electricity companies” or “organised by the council”, Roscoe Thorby – the man who started it all – says no household is forced to participate and it’s a “gift for the people from Franklin Road”.

What started as a bit of fun between neighbours slowly spread up (and down) the street – and now more than 80 percent of the households between Ponsonby Road and Wellington Street take part.

“The idea that it is individual households that make a decision to fund the lights and in many cases, pay for their installation, seems a little alien to some,” says Franklin Lights coordinator Eric Wilson.

“The cost of the electricity itself is relatively minor in comparison, especially with LED lights.”

There are now even displays appearing down the lower end of Franklin Road, as well as some houses in neighbouring Wood and Arthur streets.

“It’s not about how much you spend or the effort you put in,” Thorby says. “Just taking part is the culture of it.”

• Have you seen an impressive Christmas display? Share your pics with us iwitness@rnz.co.nz

Wilson, who has lived on the street for 13 years and took over from Thorby last year, credits Thorby’s enthusiam with growing the event to where it is today.

“Why do we continue to do it? Very simply, it’s seeing the joy it brings to children and families.”

One of Wilson’s most memorable displays was a light sculpture of Rodin’s ‘The Thinker’. He also fondly remembers a few years ago where one house simply had the words ‘Ditto’ in lights and an arrow pointing to the house next door.

In 2023, council officers began patrolling the road and moving on street vendors who weren’t meant to be there, after residents complained about hawkers selling food, inflatable toys and light-up accessories, and who refused to leave when asked.

Patrols will continue this year, with organisers keen to preserve the community spirit by keeping those trying to use it for profit away. Organisers want to keep the event free for families to enjoy because “times are tough”, Thorby says.

The lights stay on from 7pm to 10pm every night until Christmas Eve.

RNZ will be livestreaming from 9pm Thursday as we walk Franklin Rd with Eric Wilson and Rosco Thorby, to bring you the lights – and meet some of the residents and revellers taking part.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

For more than 30 years, residents on Auckland’s Franklin Road have decked out their properties with Christmas decorations for the rest of the city to enjoy.

Despite prevalent rumours and conspiracy theories that the popular street-wide display is “funded by the electricity companies” or “organised by the council”, Roscoe Thorby – the man who started it all – says no household is forced to participate and it’s a “gift for the people from Franklin Road”.

What started as a bit of fun between neighbours slowly spread up (and down) the street – and now more than 80 percent of the households between Ponsonby Road and Wellington Street take part.

“The idea that it is individual households that make a decision to fund the lights and in many cases, pay for their installation, seems a little alien to some,” says Franklin Lights coordinator Eric Wilson.

“The cost of the electricity itself is relatively minor in comparison, especially with LED lights.”

There are now even displays appearing down the lower end of Franklin Road, as well as some houses in neighbouring Wood and Arthur streets.

“It’s not about how much you spend or the effort you put in,” Thorby says. “Just taking part is the culture of it.”

• Have you seen an impressive Christmas display? Share your pics with us iwitness@rnz.co.nz

Wilson, who has lived on the street for 13 years and took over from Thorby last year, credits Thorby’s enthusiam with growing the event to where it is today.

“Why do we continue to do it? Very simply, it’s seeing the joy it brings to children and families.”

One of Wilson’s most memorable displays was a light sculpture of Rodin’s ‘The Thinker’. He also fondly remembers a few years ago where one house simply had the words ‘Ditto’ in lights and an arrow pointing to the house next door.

In 2023, council officers began patrolling the road and moving on street vendors who weren’t meant to be there, after residents complained about hawkers selling food, inflatable toys and light-up accessories, and who refused to leave when asked.

Patrols will continue this year, with organisers keen to preserve the community spirit by keeping those trying to use it for profit away. Organisers want to keep the event free for families to enjoy because “times are tough”, Thorby says.

The lights stay on from 7pm to 10pm every night until Christmas Eve.

RNZ will be livestreaming from 9pm Thursday as we walk Franklin Rd with Eric Wilson and Rosco Thorby, to bring you the lights – and meet some of the residents and revellers taking part.

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 food safety regulator says it’s seen CCTV footage from a Christchurch school, which shows that mouldy lunches were served to students because of a mix up that can’t be blamed on the company providing the meals.

Haeata Community Campus principal Peggy Burrows says the footage shows the school was not at fault, as it shows the same number of boxes being delivered and taken away on Monday, but Food Safety officials say they have seen the footage and disagree.

Officials and the school remain at odds over how mouldy meals came to be served to children alongside fresh ones on Monday.

The regulator is part of the Ministry for Primary Industries and the Ministry’s director-general Ray Smith said an investigation into the meals was ongoing.

He said it had moved quickly in order to address public concerns over food safety, with evidence so far showing the problem had occurred at the school, not at the provider, Compass Group NZ.

“[Our] view is that there’s been a problem at the school with distribution of these things, and we can work with them to help that. Remember, these lunches went to 15 other schools. There’s parents too with children that are receiving these lunches. People need to know that these lunches are safe to eat, and we think that they are.”

Principal confident school is not to blame

The school’s principal Peggy Burrows said there’s no way the mix-up had occurred at the school, as the provider was contracted to prepare, deliver and pick up any leftover school lunches.

Large boxes, known as Cambros, which each hold around 40 meals, are used to keep lunches hot and transport them to schools, with the rubbish then taken away in them.

Burrows said CCTV footage shows there were no meals left at the campus over the weekend, and the school does not keep spare boxes onsite, despite investigators saying so.

But she is unable to share the images despite wanting to, due an agreement with Programmed Facility Management, who look after the campus. Its policy does not allow unauthorised viewing of CCTV footage and says staff are not permitted to take screenshots, or they may face disciplinary action.

Burrows said Compass Group holds a contract to safely prepare meals, deliver them and pick up any leftovers, and the school’s responsible for distributing the meals to students.

She said each day, a Compass driver arrived in a van and delivered the Cambro boxes to the cafe where lunch staff went through them to take out the special meals (halal, vegetarian etc) and put them into one Cambro box then deliver them to students. The boxes were then all returned to the cafe, before being collected by the driver.

“You can see in our video footage, the driver is bending over on the table. He’s got a sheet in front of him and he’s ticking off everything. He puts all of those Cambros back onto his trolley and then he takes them out of the building. If he had a concern that something was missing, would he not then have alerted the school so that we could have assisted him to go and find it so he could take it off site?”

Burrows said the issue of a missing box on Thursday was not brought to her attention that day.

“Our pushback would be, if there is an error with something being left behind and we dispute that but if there was, under their contract they need to resolve that with us immediately and they did not.”

She said any leftover Cambro boxes were collected by the Programmed Facility Management staff who do an interior and exterior sweep of the facility, twice a day and taken to the designated rubbish area.

“There’s no way you could confuse a Cambro with one that would have fresh food in it because it’s put in the area of the cafe where the cleaners and caretakers put rubbish ready for disposal.”

Government officials face questions about school lunch saga

During the Ministry for Primary Industry’s annual review before the select committee on Thursday, Green MP Steve Abel told officials it was appalling that school children were being fed mouldy mincemeat as part of a government school lunch programme.

Food Safety deputy director-general Vince Arbuckle said investigators had visited Haeata Community Campus and Compass in Christchurch this week to work out what had happened.

He said it would have taken several days at the right temperature for the meals to get to the state they were seen in on Monday.

He said the school was served the same menu last Thursday and again on Monday. There was no school on Friday as it was a teacher only day.

On Tuesday, investigators watched the CCTV footage and recorded what they saw.

“We are confident in the numbers, we saw eight boxes coming into the school and nine boxes leaving on the Monday.

“What we also became aware of is that the school retains several other boxes for various purposes and we think that’s probably what’s happened and caused the confusion.”

Of the 300 meals delivered to the school, between 10 to 20 meals were affected.

The lunches had been delivered to 15 other schools in Christchurch on Monday.

“Only one school had this experience and only one part of the school had this experience, the canteen, which all adds up to suggest that somehow in the canteen some meals remained in a box got intermingled with incoming meals on the Monday and innocently served out.”

Arbuckle said in terms of food safety risk, mould was “hugely unpleasant, but unlikely to be poisonous” but if there was bacteria present, that would be a different matter.

Food Safety had retained a number of the meals and would be testing them.

Arbuckle said investigators were still working through the temperature issue, to see if it was possible the meals delivered on Thursday, would still have been lukewarm on Monday.

“Possibly yes, possibly not.”

He said the lunch provider and the school had a shared responsibility to manage the distribution of the lunches and the collection and disposal of any uneaten lunches.

“Compass doesn’t control what the school does and how the school distributes the lunches, each school does that subtly differently depending on their resources and their number of students.”

He said there were lessons to learn from this, with findings and recommendations to come of the investigation.

“One of them may well be that we encourage education to work with schools to get better processes, to make sure that there is an absolute correlation between what goes in and what goes out and more certainty around how those meals are looked after during the course of time.”

Investigation into cause of mouldy meals ongoing

MPI director-general Ray Smith said while the investigation into the meals at Haeata had not been completed, officials felt it was important to clarify their preliminary findings given there had been public commentary around the risks posed by the meals.

“We would not have issued an interim view on it had the thing not been in the public domain in the manner it was that alarmed parents, no question about it. So we had to quickly either tell parents there’s a problem with Compass and deal with Compass or suggest there’s an issue at the school.”

He said they had not been approached by the school after the mouldy meals were discovered, but learnt about it after receiving media enquiries.

“If a school’s worried or finds something, let us know and then we can get in there straight away and try and help sort it out.”

The Healthy School Lunches Programme feeds 75,000 kids a day, five days a week across over 400 schools. Smith said in the year to date it had received 86 complaints, which had resulted in 49 investigations.

Smith said Compass were a global business doing its “level best” to provide healthy lunches.

“We’ve worked really hard with them to lift their game. What we have seen in the last term is a significant drop off in complaints and issues. I think we’ve got about seven in this term, year to date.”

Smith said the organisation would continue to have an open mind as it worked through the investigation.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A man who robbed a sports bar tried to claim it couldn’t have been him because he was busy doing his laundry at the time.

But Hone Daniels was on electronically-monitored bail at the time, so the ankle bracelet he was wearing placed him at the scene.

Daniels tried to counter that by saying he was at the nearby laundromat but his alibi efforts have been described as “ingenious but ineffectual”.

A judge, sentencing Daniels after a jury found him guilty of the Hamilton robbery, has even labelled it as “entertaining”.

“Of course, that was rejected by the jury, and equally, I found it more entertaining than anything that type of defence was being run,” Judge Tini Clark told him in the Hamilton District Court yesterday.

“As I say, ingenious, but ineffectual.”

Daniels was the only one of the three involved to be convicted of the aggravated robbery.

‘A very well planned robbery’

The court heard that on the evening of December 14, 2022, three people, including Daniels, entered The Riv Sports Bar through a back entrance.

One was carrying a pistol, which was used to force the female staff member to open the bar’s safe.

At the time, the bar was open, and there were patrons inside.

The staff member was held at gunpoint until she gathered a large sum of money, around $10,000, the judge said.

“From my recollection, this was a very well planned event and it’s important that I point that out because in essence, there was no ability to connect, forensically, the individuals, so successful was their disguise.”

That disguise included masks and gloves.

However, Daniels was on electronically-monitored bail at the time, and while he had an “ingenious” defence, the jury didn’t fall for it.

Daniels, through his counsel, told the jury that he was travelling in a different vehicle but just happened to be in the bar’s car park at the time of the robbery as he and a friend had been at the nearby laundromat.

It was also a coincidence that after the robbery, the same vehicle travelled to a Sapphire Pl property.

Judge Clark said she had “no difficulty” accepting the jury’s guilty verdict on a charge of aggravated robbery.

‘He wants to turn his life around’

While pointing out there was minimal violence used in the robbery, defence counsel, Melissa James, said she wasn’t trying to minimise her client’s actions.

However, Judge Clark was quick to point out that there “didn’t need to be a huge amount of direct violence because they had a gun”.

As for discounts, James pushed for 10 to 15% for her client’s background, including the death of his mother at a young age.

It was from then, she said, that Daniels’ life began changing and he began “getting closer to those who have an anti-social mindset”.

He joined a gang when he was about 19 and then began “making regular appearances in court and incarceration”.

But Judge Clark noted that at least up until his mother died, his upbringing seemed “pretty standard”.

Even then, he went on to get a sports and fitness certificate before gaining work.

James submitted that Daniels no longer wanted to keep coming to court, and had recently completed a rehabilitative course while on remand.

“Nothing has really slowed down his offending behaviour over the years,” the judge said.

She found that between being found guilty in February and Daniels’ sentencing, he had not made any marked changes.

“He has been off the rails for most of his adult life, so why would I have faith at this juncture that there is some significant change that I can recognise?

“Looking at his previous [history] … it’s mostly about dishonesty and taking things that don’t belong to him. Nothing has really changed.”

‘This has upended the victim’s life’

Judge Clark noted the armed robbery was now Daniels’ most serious conviction.

“Mr Daniels does need to take responsibility for the way that he has chosen to live his life,” she said.

As for the victim, the judge noted the incident had “both a short-term and long-term effect on her”.

She quit her job at the bar as she no longer felt safe.

“That really upended her life,” the judge said.

Judge Clark took a starting point of six years and six months, and after applying discounts for Daniels’ upbringing and rehabilitative efforts, she jailed him for five years and 10 months.

This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

[authro:rnz_online]

Police are warning of increasing scammer activity online ahead of the festive season.

Dunedin’s Investigation Support Unit was seeing more people falling victim to scams and other fraud, particularly on Facebook Marketplace, police said.

Southern District Service Delivery Manager Senior Sergeant Blair Dalton said the golden rule with Facebook Marketplace was: “if a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.”

There were several other more specific ways to avoid scams and stay safe on the platform.

“A good first step when looking to purchase something on Marketplace is to check when the seller’s Facebook profile was created,” Dalton said.

“If it’s very recent, there is a higher risk that they have just created this account for a one-off fake item.”

Another thing to check for was whether the person’s profile name and bank number matched, he said.

“We’re seeing a lot of scammers claiming their bank account name is different because it belongs to their partner or family member – that’s a huge red flag.

“When you’re selling, never trust a screenshot anyone sends you showing that payment has been made.

“Quite frankly, it’s best for all parties to agree to pay, or be paid, for items in cash and in-person.”

Ideally, that meeting would happen in a public place with live CCTV, Dalton said.

He also recommend people took their due diligence, especially with more expensive items

“If you’re buying a car on Marketplace, check Carjam.co.nz to see if it’s stolen or if there’s money owed on it.”

Bank scams

Beyond Facebook Marketplace schemes, the Investigation Support Unit was also seeing a rise in text messages, phone calls, and emails being sent from scammers pretending to be from people’s banks.

“Key things to remember are that a bank will never contact you asking for your login information.

Banks also never asked people to withdraw cash, or to take their card anywhere for collection, Dalton said.

“If you’re suspicious, reach out to your bank immediately and report what has happened.”

Suspicious activity could also be reported to police on their 105 line.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A brand of snack balls is being pulled off shelves after plastic was found inside some of them.

New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS) said specific batches of Tom & Luke’s Low Carb Snacka Balls had been recalled due to the possible presence of hard plastic.

It said Chocolate Coated Cookies & Cream, Raspberry, and Hazelnut flavours had been affected.

NZFS deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle said the products, which are sold in retail outlets and supermarkets, shouldn’t be eaten.

“You can return them to the place of purchase for a refund. If that’s not possible, throw it out.

“As is our usual practice, NZFS will work with Smartfoods Ltd to understand how the contamination occurred and prevent its recurrence,” he said.

Arbuckle said Smartfoods Ltd was doing the responsible thing after customers had flagged small bits of plastic in their snack balls.

He said the source of the plastic appeared to be dried imported dates.

While unpleasant to bite down on, Arbuckle said those who had consumed the snack balls shouldn’t be too worried.

“What we’ve seen is very small pieces. If someone has eaten it and inadvertently consumed a piece they’re so small they’d pass through in the ordinary course of events.”

NZFS confirmed the products had been removed from shelves and that they’d also been exported to Australia.

It advised anyone who had eaten the products and were worried about their health to contact their health professional, or call Healthline on 0800 611 116 for free advice.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

State Highway 35 between Omaio and Pariokara is closed both ways following a two-vehicle crash.

Police were called to the scene around 5:50pm on Thursday.

Three people received serious injuries and are receiving medical attention.

The Serious Crash Unit was notified.

Motorists were advised that there would be delays to their journey.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

As a gun fired seven anniversary shots at Linton Military Camp near Palmerston North, Mihiteria King held a special framed black and white photograph.

The young man in his crisp, pressed army uniform is her father Hemi Kingi, and he’d just landed in Japan, on his way to fight the Korean War with the 16th Field Regiment.

On Thursday, that regiment marked its 75th anniversary.

Set up to join international forces in that Cold War battle, it’s since served around the world, and veterans from many of modern history’s turbulent times, and their families, marked its birthday at Linton.

Kingi fought the Korean War from 1952 to 1954, a period King and her son Scott Douglas are delving into.

King said she was born in 1960 and was adopted out, reconnecting with her birth whānau three decades later.

“[Kingi] passed in 1963, so a lot of that knowledge disappeared when he disappeared and a lot of the whānau started to pass away quite a wee while ago, so all of the people who would have known more couldn’t tell us the information,” King’s son Scott Douglas said.

“It’s kind of like this journey of finding out more information as we go along to the different reunions and services.”

The Auckland pair have travelled to South Korea – Douglas recently returned – and that’s led to some emotional conversations, such as one King had on a train.

“This gentleman stopped and turned around and said, ‘I heard you talking and I believe your fathers or grandfathers were fighting in the war.’

“He said, ‘I just want to thank you.’ He said, ‘I’m a professor here at the University of Seoul and I wouldn’t be able to have done that without your father’s contribution’.”

None of the regiment’s Korean veterans were well enough to attend today, but some who served in Vietnam made it, including Patrick Nolan, from Feilding, and his mate Allan Cameron, from Waihi.

The pair met in training at Papakura and were then together in Vietnam, forming a decades-long friendship.

“The weather was good. The beer was cheap – 15 cents a can,” Nolan recalled.

Nolan – who also later served as a bodyguard to Queen Elizabeth II – joked he was looking forward to a free lunch and day away from his wife, while Cameron wanted to take a look at what the regiment was up to.

Thursday, the regiment finished running a gun 75km around the military camp to mark its birthday – a marathon 24-hour effort.

Regiment commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Brent Morris said it had a proud history, including deployments to Afghanistan, Bosnia and East Timor.

“Most recently we deployed offshore to support the Papua New Guinea defence force to reinvigorate their mortar capability.

“We also have a number of people deployed overseas in various missions, in places such as South Sudan; Syria, with the United Nations; and the Sinai Peninsula.”

But Korea is where it all started – the regiment created just a month earlier first fired its guns in the conflict on 29 January 1951.

“The regiment served proudly, with 4700 New Zealanders serving in the conflict, with 44 killed,” Morris said.

“The regiment fired 750,000 round during that conflict, the most of any Commonwealth regiment.”

Second Lieutenant Pearson Williams recounted its beginning at the ceremony.

“Twenty-four guns of the 16th Field Regiment we in position on the ice-encrusted paddy fields. The gunners stood by, stamping their feet and slapping their arms to keep warm against the freezing wind which blew, as it seemed, from the very heart of the Arctic Circle,” he said.

“Fire orders echoed out of the tannoy system and the gunners leapt into action.”

Veteran Roger Newth, 86, was briefly posted with the regiment during his long military career.

As well as being its birthday, 4 December had further resonance for the regiment’s patron saint, he said.

“Today is St Barbara’s Day, who is the patron saint of workers with explosives, miners, gunners and ladies of the night.”

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A young person has been arrested for a number of recent incidents across Christchurch, including an aggravated robbery earlier this week that left a store worker seriously injured.

The 17-year-old was located on Thursday afternoon in New Brighton and is set to appear before the Youth Court on a number of charges, including burglary, aggravated robbery, and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Christchurch District Commander Superintendent Tony Hill said police are working on an increase in recent youth offending incidents.

“We continue to work at pace to identify other parties involved in this and other recent youth offending, and hold those parties to account,” he said.

“Police’s operation announced earlier today will enhance our capabilities and resources as we work to tackle this recent increase in offending.”

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Paid firefighters will continue with strike action and not withdraw their notices as Fire and Emergency is urging them to.

The Employment Relations Authority is referring the warring sides to facilitated bargaining.

FENZ is welcoming the decision and said the union is calling on the Professional Firefighters Union to withdraw strike action, the next of which is for an hour on Friday.

But the union says it will not be doing that.

“It’s a bit rich actually, them asking for that,” NZPFU national secretary Wattie Watson said.

“It’s not going to happen, FENZ needs to get around the table and make some progress with us and we will do so,” she said.

The union said there was nothing to stop FENZ from going into talks or agreeing to dates for them outside the ERA process.

“In fact, it’s probably something that the ERA would expect, that we would do our damnedest at getting around the table and negotiating,” Watson said.

“FENZ is just sitting back on its hands saying, well, now it’s with the Authority.”

Fire and Emergency said the talks over pay and conditions had gone on for more than 16 months.

“Attending independent facilitation with the Authority is the next logical step in coming to an agreement and we will participate in good faith with the NZPFU,” deputy national commander Megan Stiffler said.

“We hope the facilitation process introduces some realism to the discussions.”

FENZ said its latest pay offer was “a fair and sustainable” increase.

The offer amounts to a 6.2 percent average increase over three years which it said is in line with other public sector agreements.

As it called for the union to withdraw its strikes, FENZ said there was no good reason for continuing to put the community at risk.

The union said it was FENZ putting the community at risk with its resourcing and fire trucks and equipment that kept breaking down.

“If firefighters can’t get to the fire or the incident quick enough, then their ability to protect and rescue and to douse a fire is compromised considerably,” Watson said.

“So FENZ every day, every day rolls that dice on community safety, which should not be occurring.”

Watson said facilitated bargaining is “not the magic wand” FENZ thought it was.

The facilitator, at most, can put forward recommendations, she said.

“Either party can reject or accept those recommendations and it would take both parties to accept them in order for them to result in a settlement.”

Last month 60 firefighters marched from their Pitt Street central Auckland fire station to Karangahape Road, protesting over pay and work conditions.

Banners highlighted concerns with the fleet, equipment and staffing.

Firefighter and union delegate Adam Wright had previously said the protest wasn’t just about pay.

He said the fleet was in tatters, with a conservative estimate of 800 fire truck breakdown in Auckland over a 12-month period.

The ERA will next hold a case management conference.

The Professional Firefighters Union has issued strike notices for 5 December, 12 December and 19 December.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

Another measles case has been confirmed, taking the national total to 28 – 22 of which are no longer infectious.

Health New Zealand said the latest case is in Wellington.

New locations of interest include Dunedin Hospital’s Emergency Department waiting room and triage on the afternoon of Tuesday, 2 November.

Health New Zealand said it’s highly likely that several of the cases confirmed on Wednesday can be linked back to exposure at Auckland Airport’s domestic terminal last month.

Health NZ said people should stay up-to-date with locations of interest online, check their immunisation status, and if need be get vaccinated – especially if planning to travel overseas.

“Two doses of the MMR vaccine (after the age of 12 months) protect about 99 percent of people from getting measles.”

It said people should allow two weeks for immunity to develop following vaccination, and also encouraged those returning from overseas to monitor for symptoms.

Those with measles symptoms, including fever, cough, runny or red eyes, and a rash starting at the face, should contact Healthline on 0800 611 116, or their usual healthcare provider.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Police will use the Eagle helicopter in Christchurch as part of a two-month operation to tackle a recent rise in youth crime.

Officers arrested a 14-year-old boy after an Opawa dairy owner was stabbed during an aggravated robbery on Tuesday.

Three people robbed Opawa Discounter dairy in an early morning raid and left owner Kamlesh Patel with serious injuries.

The offenders fled in a car, taking a till and other items.

Canterbury District Commander superintendent Tony Hill said the Eagle helicopter would be temporarily sent to Christchurch on Friday.

“This operation is being launched to disrupt offending patterns, hold offenders to account and deter any further offending,” he said.

“We understand there is a lot of frustration among the community following recent offending, and we hear you.

“We know the impact this has on business owners and their staff. Nobody should turn up to work in fear of becoming the next victim of this violent offending.”

Police said they were also boosting the ‘youth targeting team’ with extra staff.

On Tuesday Hill called for public help to find people involved in the dairy robbery and any sightings of a silver Toyota MarkX with the registration number NRP221.

“We would like anyone who may have seen this vehicle in the Opawa or surrounding areas to please contact police immediately,” he said.

In a post on social media, Kamlesh Patel’s daughter Nidhi Patel said the attack on her father was “shocking and heartbreaking”.

“My dad works 16-18 hours a day, 7 days a week. He pours his heart into supporting his community and genuinely loves what he does. The dairy is not just his work – it’s his home, his safe place,” she said.

Patel said the family had been left shaken and frustrated.

She said her father was in a stable condition but had a long road to recovery.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Police arrested a North Canterbury resident for over 500 tags in various locations throughout Kaikoura, Canterbury and Dunedin.

The 23-year-old man will be appearing at the Christchurch District Court on 5 December on charges of entering agricultural land with intent and wilful damage for graffiti.

Senior Sergeant Stephen McDaniel said that Police are happy to have the brazen tagger off the streets.

“Not only was the offender spray painting his ‘tag’ everywhere, he was also taking videos of his offending and posting them to social media and benefiting from the notoriety.”

The offending tag was found on public bridges, toilets, walls, rubbish bins, walkways, light posts, former gun emplacements, train tracks, water tanks and drainage pipes.

“The offending leaves a lasting piece of graffiti on the public structures, and in some instances the offender has spray painted the same spot after councils have cleaned up their prior graffiti.”

“Graffiti or tagging is considered as intentionally damaging property, and we’ll hold offenders to account,” says Senior Sergeant McDaniel.

Police are asking the public to report any illegal graffiti they witness.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

The Ministry of Education says early childhood services and school boards are legally responsible for funding asbestos-contaminated sand removal, after a kindergarten operator estimated a $350,000 clean-up to decontaminate her sites.

Whānau Manaaki chief executive Amanda Coulston told Checkpoint on Wednesday test results showed three of 13 of its kindergartens returned positive results for asbestos contamination.

The not-for-profit group had spent $40,000 on the tests so far, and she estimated the final cost to between $300,000 and $350,000 – a clean-up that is not covered by insurance, Coulston said.

That includes rounds of testing, removing carpet and soft toys, and refurnishing the sites, she said.

The Ministry of Education had been “pretty hands off in terms of all of this”, and they’d been told to try for reimbursement from suppliers, Coulston said.

When asked for a response on these issues, the Ministry of Education’s Helen Hurst early learning service managers and school boards were responsible for managing abestos risks on their sites, including removing it, under health and safety legislation.

Early learning service managers and school boards are considered the Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBU) under the Health and Safety at Work Act, she said.

“While the Ministry does not fund asbestos remediation because it falls under the health and safety responsibilities of early learning services, we do not underestimate the impact this can have,” Hurst said.

Centres forced to close could request funding if they were impacted by asbestos contamination that could not be safely isolated, and the service had to shut for a short time, Hurst said.

Dozens of schools and early childhood centres had to shut following the revelation that popular children’s play sand products have been contaminated with asbestos last month.

Three early childhood centres are closed on Thursday due to the contamination.

“We want to acknowledge the significant effort early learning services and schools have put into responding to this issue,” Hurst said.

“They have acted quickly and responsibly to protect learners and staff, in a situation that is no fault of their own. Their commitment to safety has been evident in the way they have managed this challenge.”

The Ministry of Education was working closely with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) as the lead agency dealing with the issue, and WorkSafe as the regulator, Hurst said.

More advice could be found on the website, and the Ministry is focused on supporting centres and schools by providing step-by-step guidance and practical support to help them stay open, she said.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

People in three Far North towns – including the summer holiday hotspot of Paihia – have been warned to boil their tap water before drinking or cooking with it.

The boil-water notice was issued at 2pm on Thursday after tests showed the presence of E coli bacteria in the water.

It applies to all households and businesses in Paihia, Ōpua and Waitangi connected to the town supply.

A council spokesman said the test results indicated “a very low risk” to public health, but that could not be confirmed until further testing was completed on Friday morning.

Water used for drinking, ice, food preparation, oral hygiene and pets should be boiled for at least one minute.

Residents in the affected area should not rely on water filters alone, he said.

Anyone who developed gastroenteritis (“tummy bug”) symptoms should seek advice from a medical practitioner.

The spokesman said a reservoir at Te Haumi, just south of Paihia, had been isolated to prevent any risk of wider contamination while the investigation and water testing continued.

Taumata Arowai, the national water services regulator, had been notified.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Auckland police cannot say if a machete found in their investigation into the killing of US student, Kyle Whorrall, is linked to his fatal attack.

Another teenager was charged with the 33-year-old’s murder on Wednesday.

The 17-year-old boy from Glenn Innes was due to appear in the Youth Court on Thursday, also charged with aggravated robbery.

Whorrall, who was 33, was attacked at a bus stop in Meadowbank in April and died in hospital following the attack.

In September, five months after Whorrall’s killing, police announced they had found a machete in a nearby reserve.

They could not say at the time if the weapon, found in vegetation at Maybury reserve, was used in the killing.

“What I can say is that it is a large bladed weapon, and we are looking for a large bladed weapon, we are not at Maybury reserve by accident,” Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said at the time.

“We remain open minded in relation to this weapon, forensic testing is underway but we won’t know the results for some time.”

It has been two months since the announcement.

After Wednesday’s announcement of a further murder charge, RNZ asked if forensic testing results for the machete had been returned.

Police were not able to say.

“I’m conscious we have laid further charges in this investigation,” Baldwin said.

“As matters are before the court, I’m not able to comment on specifics around evidential matters,” he told RNZ.

The revelation of the machete from police came at the same time a 16-year-old was also facing charges of murder and aggravated robbery.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

By Noam Mānuka Lazarus, Massey University journalism student

A mountain biking instructor says Wellington mountain bike trails have again been littered with logs, dug up and blocked with wooden barriers.

Police and the Wellington City Council have been investigating the damage to the Matairangi/Mt Victoria trails this week.

On Thursday, police told RNZ they had “exhausted all available lines of inquiry” in the attempt to find those responsible.

Inspector Jason McCarthy, the Wellington area prevention manager, urged members of the public to come forward with any information that might help.

Rod Bardsley, a mountain biking instructor who rode the trails regularly, said the trails had been cleaned up since the initial damage, but he saw last night that had been vandalised again.

Bardsley said holes had been dug in the ground, and support structures which held the dirt tracks together had been pulled out. One trail had even been fenced off, with wooden beams put up between trees on either side of the track.

Bardsley said the trails were well used by bikers, and damage to the tracks could be extremely dangerous for bikers who rode at high speeds.

RNZ has approached Wellington City Council for comment.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

PPTA president Chris Abercrombie. Photo: Supplied

*This article has been updated to correct the size of the pay offer rejected by school support staff

The secondary teachers’ union says its members accepted the government’s pay offer because they wanted to clear the decks before the start of next year.

It says the settlement is a foundation, not a finish line in terms of teachers’ pay and conditions.

The Post Primary Teachers Association announced on Thursday afternoon its members voted to accept a deal providing two pay rises totalling 4.6 percent over two years.

The offer was put to a ballot after facilitated bargaining with the Public Service Commission.

Association president Chris Abercrombie said the union’s members wanted to settle the pay deal so they had a clean start to next year.

“I think they really wanted to settle it to get a settled start to the year next year,” he said.

“There’s significant change in our sector at the moment, we know there’s curriculum, there’s assessment, there seems to be changes coming out of the government weekly in the education space, sometimes daily it feels, and so I think they just wanted a settled environment so they could focus on the other areas they needed to focus on.”

Abercrombie said the settlement provided a better pay rise and fewer clawbacks than offers teachers had previously rejected.

He said the pay rises of 2.5 and 2.1 percent delivered in January 2026 and in January 2027 were over a term of 24 months, whereas the previous offer had similar increases over a 30-month term.

Some wins

Abercrombie said the settlement also increased allowances for teachers who had extra duties and did not include a previous government claim for more teacher-only days outside of the school term.

He said the pay rises kept pace with current inflation but did not get teachers’ ahead of rising costs.

“So there was some wins, but there was also some clear areas that we didn’t get,” he said.

“So I think we need to see this settlement as a foundation and definitely not a finish line. There’s some key areas that we want this government to be working on and we’ll be watching carefully to make sure they occur in the future.”

Education Minister Erica Stanford said the settlement recognised the effort and hard work of secondary teachers.

Public Service Commissioner Brian Roche said the settlement meant 80 percent of trained secondary teachers would have a base salary of more than $100k from 28 January 2026.

Meanwhile, the Educational Institute Te Riu Roa said primary and area school teachers were waiting for new offers and had further talks scheduled for next week.

It said primary principals have been in further negotiations and were expecting an offer while area school principals had negotiations scheduled and were expecting an offer.

The NZEI said support staff, kaiārahi i te reo, guidance counsellors and therapists rejected offers this week that included pay rises totalling 4.3 percent over 30 months.

In October about 500 principals represented by the Primary Principals Collective Bargaining Union accepted an offer that increased their pay by 4.7 percent over two years.

Primary, secondary and area school teachers held a one-day strike on 23 October.

Education sector pay talks

Secondary school teachers

• Accepted a deal providing a 2.5 pay rise in January 2026 followed by a further 2.1 percent in January 2027.
• The settlement followed facilitated bargaining between the PPTA and Public Service Commission.

Primary school teachers

• Still in negotiations. Previously rejected an offer that provided pay rises ranging from 1.4 to 2.5 percent in the first year and 1.3 to 2.1 percent in the second year.

Primary school principals

• About 500 principals represented by the Primary Principals Collective Bargaining Union accepted in October an offer worth 4.7 percent over two years.
• Principals represented by the Educational Institute Te Riu Roa have yet to settle and were expecting a new offer from the government.

Area school teachers

• Refused an offer of 4.7 percent over two years. Represented by NZEI and PPTA. Talks scheduled for next week.

School support staff

• Refused government offer of cumulative increase of 4.35% within 12 months of ratification, in a vote that closed on Wednesday this week. Represented by NZEI.

Community education

• PPTA members voted to accept a deal that provided about 440 staff including tutors a 3.8 percent pay rise over the term of the agreement. Some non-teaching staff would get increases of 2-3.5 percent.

Residential special school staff

• Members of the Public Service Association accepted a settlement in October. It provided residential staff with pay rises of 2.1 to 2.8 percent, and administrative staff with 1.2 to 2.7 percent over a 22-month term.
• The Education Ministry said it would apply to 144 union members and 97 others.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Auckland has managed to avoid a predicted IKEA stampede and traffic jams as the first shoppers entered the new store at Mt Wellington in Auckland.

Despite warnings of motorway gridlock and potential delays finding a carpark, traffic was free flowing in the area with Google Maps showing a 16-minute trip from Auckland CBD and no congestion at the Mt Wellington off-ramp.

Eager shoppers gathered outside the Mt Wellington store, with some telling RNZ they arrived as early at 4.45am.

Drivers had been warned to expect 40-minute queues today, with traffic analysts expecting crowds of up to 20,000 a day to visit the store.

In a “worst case” scenario, they predicted a 40-minute crawl on the nearby motorway and another 40 minutes to find a car park.

The Swedish furniture store opened officially at 11am, while the carpark was opened to shoppers at 8.30am.

An RNZ reporter at the store estimated around 800 were gathered outside including Bernie, who had driven over two-and-a-half hours from Papamoa, saying he and hsi wife had waited six years for the opening.

“We chose to open at 11am so that we avoid the morning traffic,” IKEA’s NZ manager Johanna Cederlöf said.

Other shoppers told RNZ traffic had not been as bad as anticipated, and the carpark was not yet full.

Speaking to media following the ribbon cutting, Christopher Luxon welcomed what he said was a “long time coming” and evidence of “really good foreign investment in New Zealand”.

“This is great for competition, this is great for consumers across New Zealand and actually, you’ve seen other retailers welcome the move as well.”

Asked whether welcoming the Swedish retailer with open arms is a slap in the face for local businesses, Luxon said competition will “make them better”.

“They should step up and compete, and I know they will.

“There are a lot of retailers that are welcoming the competition. It will make them better and it will actually be a good thing for New Zealanders.”

What will the roads be like?

Auckland Transport and NZTA encouraged road users to plan ahead for the day and allow plenty of extra time for their journeys.

Auckland Transport Operations Centre (ATOC) Manager Claire Howard said substantial crowds were expected at IKEA for weeks or even months which would have a substantial effect on the transport network across Auckland.

“Surrounding streets in Mt Wellington will also be busy, with forecast delays of up to 40 minutes on Mt Wellington Highway in peak traffic.”

ATOC – a joint Auckland Transport and NZTA venture for managing the network in real time – has been working with the retail giant to ensure their traffic management plan minimises the traffic impact as much as possible. It would be actively managing light signals and diverting traffic where possible as congestion levels increase.

Congestion was expected to be at its worst during peak hour during the week and on Saturdays between 1 and 4pm – particularly heading northbound from South Auckland toward Mt Wellington.

Staff would be on the ground at Sylvia Park Train Station to help direct people to the store who were travelling by train.

IKEA’s NZ manager Johanna Cederlöf, said for anyone who wasn’t in Auckland or who wanted to avoid the opening day crowds, they could shop online from midnight as a way to beat the crowds.

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