Checkpoint

Europe correspondent, Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about French President Emmanuel Macron speaking in response to the latest nationwide protests, as well as the UK health secretary announcing a major funding boost heading into winter.

The Crown says Kyle Whorral went to the shops and never came back. The 33-year-old PhD student from America was killed in an attack at a bus stop in the Auckland suburb of Meadowbank in April last year. Four teenagers are on trial after pleading not guilty to his murder and aggravated robbery in the High Court at Auckland. Finn Blackwell reports.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The Kiwis and Kiwi Ferns have taken their Rugby League World Cup campaigns to Christchurch. The sides are set for a double header under the roof on the back of brutal opening games of the tournament. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

A disused Waikato sand quarry could be the new home of music festival Rhythm and Vines, after its Gisborne swan song this summer. After almost a quarter of a century the event that injects millions into Tairawhiti's economy is on the move. The organisers want to expand the festival's capacity and make access easier. Tamahere, between Cambridge and Hamilton, could be the right spot. Waikato Distric...

Supermarket customers have been facing long queues at New World. A pricing issue is causing the week's specials not to show up at some checkouts, causing some shoppers to be overcharged. Reporter Felix Walton spoke to Lisa Owen.

Gloriavale says its school board did everything in its power when allegations of a historic sexual assault surfaced against a staff member. The opening arguments have been made in the High Court at Wellington over the future of the West Coast Christian community's school. The judicial review follows the decision by the Secretary of Education to cancel the private school's registration, over seriou...

Police investigators took evidence home and loaded it into unsecured artificial intelligence services on their own devices in breach of police policy. Documents released to RNZ detail some of the AI breaches and also suggest that sensitive files have been uploaded to unsecured cloud services. Barrister and privacy law expert Kathryn Dalziel spoke to Lisa Owen.

Te Pāti Māori MP Orinii Kaipara is doubling down on her support for gangs, as the furore around a gang pad meet up continues to draw fire. Kaipara promised to "restore the mana" of the Mongrel Mob last week, who she says are overwhelmingly victims of state abuse. That's been rubbished by the coalition parties, who've hit Te Pāti Māori, the Greens and Labour hard since the news broke. Political rep...

The Christmas lights and tinsel may have come and gone by the time we have a new government, with a coalition deal not expected to come quickly. RNZ Political Editor Jo Moir spoke to Lisa Owen.

King Country made history over the weekend, finally winning the trophy that's named after their most famous player - former All Black and King Country lock Sir Colin "Pinetree" Meads. The union defeated defending champions Mid-Canterbury 24-14 in the Heartland Championship final in Ashburton on Saturday. Mead's daughter Shelley Mitchell spoke to Lisa Owen.

The Silver Ferns are one up in the four test Constellation Cup, after beating the Australian Diamonds in Auckland last night. Sports reporter Bridget Tunnicliffe was at the game and spoke to Lisa Owen.

Four University of Canterbury students have built a robot capable of solving a Rubik's Cube in under 10 seconds, smashing human world records. It took the engineering students about a year to develop the robot. One of the students, Maz Cameron spoke to Lisa Owen.

A massive blaze at a military base in Albert, Canada has killed at least four soldiers and left dozens injured, including 19 in a critical condition. The blaze reportedly started when a grass fire ignited on a training ground at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright. Senior reporter for Global News, Ashleigh Stewart is at the base in Wainright, Albert spoke to Lisa Owen.

Is the cost of living away from home dictating students choice of university? Figures supplied to RNZ show fees for university halls of residence are going up between about three and seven percent. Victoria University have set the annual increase at five percent for 2026/27. President of the Victoria University students association, Aidan Donoghue spoke to Lisa Owen.

Checkpoint producer speaks to Lisa Owen about Grant Solley, a West Auckland man whose therapy goats put smiles on people's faces wherever they go.

United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about the National Health Service releasing new guidelines on single-sex spaces, as well as a new figures revealing just how much the cost of living has been costing British households over the past five years.

Business news for 16 October 2026.

All Blacks coach Dave Rennie has expressed his dismay at the draw for next year's Rugby World Cup. Rennie worried the bracket would see a repeat of the 2023 tournament, where two of the world's best went home before the semi-finals. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

Suspected copper thieves have caused a major internet outage in parts of the Bay of island. It's affecting about 750 homes and businesses in the wider Russell area and means they are unable to take electronic payments. The outage is the second major one in a week. It's causing issues heading into the weekend and is another blow to business that have had a slow winter. Rikki Kinnaird is the co owne...

A business that catches wild crayfish to order and delivers them fresh the next day, has won a top food award. Tora Collective took out gold in the primary sector section of the NZ Food awards. The company catches premium seafood off the South Wairarapa coast, the kaimoana goes into natural packing and arrives at its destination the next day. Tora Collective's co-owner, Claire Edwards spoke to Lis...

It appears to be a tale of two stations for businesses in Auckland's CBD following the opening of the long-delayed City Rail Link. One month has passed since the gates opened with two new station - Karanga-a-Hape and Te Waihorotiu - added to the existing rail network. While some businesses say they're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, others have been left wondering if the years of distru...

A court case has laid bare the enormous power imbalance between dancers and a Wellington strip club where they worked; ultimately finding them to be employees and not contractors, as claimed by the business. The five women took an employment case against Calendar Girls after they were effectively fired for challenging changes to their work conditions. Cherida Fraser from the Aotearoa Sex Workers C...

More than 100 years ago, a group of Kiwi soldiers toiled 20 metres below the streets of the historic French town of Arras during World War One. A group of carvers from Te Puia, the NZ Maori Arts and Crafts Institute, some of whom whakapapa back to those soldiers, have been working on a special carving. A delegation from Arras tavelled to Rotorua today to receive the Waka Maumahara. Waikato Bay of...

Police a targetting a big weekend of womens sport hoping to attract new talent to their ranks, whether it be fans or players. They're running an ad campaign around the Tauihi womens professional basketball league, with the announcer shout outs during the games. Police recruiters will also be at the Black Ferns game in Hamilton tomorrow. Assistant Commissioner Jeanette Park spoke to Lisa Owen.