Checkpoint

An emergency department doctor is urging the University of Otago and Police to get tough after a party of 400 people in the city's quarter left one person with serious injuries and others having to be treated for alcohol and drug-related harm. The party comes less than a week after a Coroner warned students about excessive alcohol consumption following the death of a 20 year old who choked on his...

United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about Princess Diana's brother Earl Spencer making headlines after an interview with the BBC, as well as a man stealing a double-decker bus.

A navy lieutenant has denied he repeatedly raped a woman while deployed overseas. The lieutenant, who has interim name suppression, is facing a court martial at the Devonport Naval Base on Auckland's North Shore. Reporter Felix Walton spoke to Lisa Owen.

Woody debris is washing down from forestry blocks in rain and covering many beaches on Tairawhiti's East Coast. Diggers have to be used to clear central city beaches of the stuff. Gisborne District Council has commissioned an independent review into its consenting and monitoring processes. In May, Minister for Regulation David Seymour wrote to the Gisborne District Council, imploring it to effecti...

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The Warriors lost the NRL semifinal last night and some fans lost control at Eden Park. Projectiles were thrown at the referee and his assistants as they left the field following the Newcastle Knights 12-10 victory. Eden Park chief executive Nick Sautner wants to the government to get involved in a crack down on unruly fans. Sports reporter Felicity Reid spoke to Lisa Owen.

The families of two men killed at work are shocked by the government's changes to workplace health and safety legislation. They're worried more people will die at work as a result and want to see the changes repealed before they come into effect next April. South Island Correspondent Timothy Brown reports, in the second story of a two-part series.

An urgent SOS has gone out over rural health services. Six staff at the Pahiatua Medical Centre have resigned amid growing concern around extreme workloads and patient safety. In a series of letters to clinic owners Tararua Health Group and the PHO staff have laid out a litany of serious issues. Public health advocacy groups Kaitiaki Hauora and Patient Voice Aotearoa are now holding meetings in Pa...

After National and Labour unveiled their plans to break up the supermarket duopoly, Te Pāti Māori has today added its own policy to the pre-election mix. It will campaign on a $3.1 billion plan for "kai sovereignty", including funding for Māori owned supermarkets if elected. Political reporter Lillian Hanly spoke to Lisa Owen.

Tairāwhiti's beaches are some of the most well-known and loved in New Zealand, but they're now always covered in forestry slash. The debris is swept down from forestry blocks in the rain. It's a constant reminder the region is still struggling with industry practices that led to catastrophic damage in disasters like Cyclone Gabrielle and Cyclone Hale three years ago. Teuila Fuatai reports.

The Wellington based Tokomanawa Queens have pulled off another massive coup for the national women's basketball league. Last month the Queens announced Charlisse Ledger Walker would be playing in New Zealand for the first time in six years following her debut season in the American Basketball league. Now they have lured high profile WNBA player Hailey Van Lith to the franchise. Sports reporter Bri...

Surgery is a delicate, precision operation at the best of times, but imagine if your patient weighs less than four grams. Massey University vets were faced with exactly that prospect when they patched up a native skink. The tiny creature had been attacked by a cat in Whanganui and had a serious puncture wound on its side. Ingrid Brookshaw, a Veterinary resident at Massey Wildbase Hospital led the...

Australia correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Lisa Owen about the deaths of several women and children in alleged domestic violence incidents across New South Wales, as well as fears of bird flu wiping out the endangered Australian sea lion as four more cases are confirmed.

Six staff at a rural medical centre have tendered their resignations over patient safety and workload concerns. Last week a nurse practitioner at the Pahiatua Medical Centre told Checkpoint patients would die if something didn't change and quickly. Staff threatened a mass walk out if a review and action plan weren't put in place, and after meeting with managers, six have decided to go. Registered...

Table tennis is proving popular among dozens of people living with Parkinson's disease across New Zealand. This Saturday a Ping Pong Parkinson's NZ tournament is taking place in Palmerston North. Checkpoint producer Johnny Sutherland spoke to Lisa Owen about the event.

United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about King Charles weighing in on artificial intelligence, issuing a stark warning about its potential dangers, as well as a wildfire in south-west London leading to a major breakthrough in the case of a woman who went missing nearly seven years ago.

It's do or die for the Warriors this weekend. Should they lose to the Newcastle Knights on Sunday at Eden Park, their season is over. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

A four-year-old Timaru girl is taking her love of all things stones and bones to the next level after her mum stumbled across the remains of a big bird. Earlier this week Pippa Yates, found what she suspected were bones of the now extinct moa, while on her daily walk at Saint Andrews beach south of Timaru. The South Canterbury Museum confirmed the find, and now the family are carefully cleaning up...

A major Auckland property developer says a government proposal to remove building height restrictions in the CBD is just politics and he doesn't believe there will be a single new apartment built in the short term because of the change. Under current rules, parts of the Auckland CBD have building height limits of 72.5m, in other areas the limit is 35m. The proposal would remove these caps for the...

Patients will die if changes aren't made quickly, according to a nurse working at a Tararua medical centre. All the staff at the Pahiatua Medical centre are threatening to walk off the job en masse over work loads and serious concerns about patient safety. The PHO manages the contract for the Pahiatua Medical Centre. CEO Tony Wai, spoke to Lisa Owen.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The government's plan for a nine-month repayments deadline for Retirement Villages was leaked this morning. Operators are outraged, residents have their eyes on Labour's three-month proposal, the minister claims they've found a middle ground. Political reporter Russell Palmer filed this report.

Auckland's not about to rise up, unless there's an incentive, according to the boss of Auckland apartment company, Okham Residential. The Government wants taller and bigger towers in the city's centre, so it's looking to remove height and other restrictions. Modelling suggests that changes could make way for an extra 20 million square metres of floor space - which could support about 31,500 reside...

It's a scenario critics of citizens arrests say they've feared all along - untrained members of the public detaining people. Now, a 19-year-old has appeared in court after an alleged arrest in Hamilton went too far. This, just weeks after new laws came into effect allowing anyone to use reasonable force to hold someone they suspect has committed a crime. Waikato Bay of Plenty reporter Rachel Moore...

Waiheke Island's only respite care house for kids with disabilities will be sold on the open market, ending a crucial 30-year service for parents who booked their children in for school holiday programmes and overnight stays. It's been closed and vacant for a year, after Spectrum Care said the service at Melanna House was running at a loss, and they made the difficult decision to pull out. Amy Wil...