Checkpoint

New Zealanders sending money overseas are losing hundreds of millions of dollars a year because of hidden fees, according to a Labour MP. Arena Williams has put forward a bill that would force banks and financial institutions to be more upfront when they say that a transfer is 'fees free'.

Job seekers say not being able to tell if some companies are using AI to screen their cover letters and CVs is dehumanising.

AFL club Carlton has been hit with a hefty fine for its handling of an on-field mental health episode involving one of its young players. An investigation carried out by AFL officials found there were clear warning signs the player should've been taken out of last month's game against the Collingwood Magpies much earlier. The incident has prompted sweeping changes across the AFL to better handle m...

The number of 15 to 24 year-olds who don't have a job is rising, despite a slight fall in the number of unemployed overall. Stats NZ figures released on Wednesday show young people who are not in employment, education or training, also known as NEETS, has increased from 13.3 percent in December to 14.4 percent in March. There's one group of young people especially impacted, one in five women betwe...

Americas correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Melissa Chan-Green how nine people have died in a coal mine explosion in Colombia and how China has called out the United States over its sanctions on Cuba. She also spoke about how Mexico City is sinking and new satellite images reveal just how fast it's going down.

The way New Zealanders are able to hold media to account and challenge content is about to change after the Government announced it wants to scrap the Broadcasting Standards Authority. Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith said that the media landscape has changed since the BSA was set up in 1989 and regulation hasn't kept up. In a statement, the BSA said it has said for more than 15 ye...

Australia correspondent Nick Grimm spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about how Australian mortgage customers are facing the news that bank interest rates are on their way up and despite how four people have now been attacked in Western Australa's Lake Argyle, it didn't stop a major swimming event being held there over the weekend.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

Days after copping demerit points for what was deemed as aggressive behaviour on the cricket field New Zealand bowler Kyle Jamieson will be back in action on Wednesday morning. Playing in the Indian Premier League for the Delhi Capitals, Jamieson celebrated a little bit too hard at weekend, which caught the attention of competition organisers. Sports reporter Felicity Reid spoke to Melissa Chan-Gr...

A pharmacist said there would need to be additional training if the profession was called on to offer more treatments to ease pressure on GPs. ACT leader David Seymour said his party would extend the role of pharmacists beyond changes already coming into effect next month. In a policy announced on Tuesday, he said pharmacists could treat chest infections, ear infections, skin infections and acute...

The High Court has heard how a Nelson policeman did not realise he had been hit by a car that killed his colleague, until he woke up injured on the ground. Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay was critically injured and his colleague Lyn Fleming was killed in the crash in the early hours of New Year's Day last year. Hayden Tasker is on trial for her murder and badly injuring Mr Ramsay. Reporter Samantha Ge...

With fuel prices expected to be impacted for at least six months, the flow on effect on household expenses is likely to last through to the new year. The Prime Minister says the conflict in the Middle East brings "huge amounts of anxiety and worry and concern," for New Zealanders. Meanwhile, ANZ spending data out on Tuesday showed an unusually large drop in grocery spending for the month of April...

While Minister Simon Watts on Tuesday described the latest development as "the Government getting out of the way," councils who have pushed back against the Government's plans have been thrown a lifeline. They've been given three months to join with other councils and pitch a plan to the Government for how they would like reform to look in their region. It now will not be passed into law before th...

Crossing the Cook Strait is about to get a whole lot more expensive for commercial operators and consumers. The Interislander is hiking its fuel surcharge to 54 percent on commercial vehicles and trucks crossing the Cook Strait due to soaring energy prices. International shipping company Maersk announced its own 27 percent fuel surcharge and Bluebridge adjusted its prices last month. As Alexa Cook...

The New Zealand rugby factory is continuing to export players in their prime. Hurricanes flanker Devan Flanders is the latest to join the long list of kiwis taking their talents offshore. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is heading home with fuel security for New Zealand intact and some of the country's biggest businesses better connected to help weather the economic storm. RNZ political editor Jo Moir spoke to Melissa Chan-Green from Singapore.

There's been trouble at sea following Donald Trump's plan to help stranded ships sail out of the Strait of Hormuz. The operation dubbed "Project Freedom" started on Tuesday and saw tensions in the region quickly explode with reports of the US and Iran trading attacks in the vital shipping route. The US President ramped up warnings against Iran saying its forces will be "blown off the face of the e...

It might have been a hot buttery topic of debate around the water cooler as to whether people are a fan of the beige butter from the U.S or the golden variety of New Zealand. But the "which butter's best" debate has now taken a bit more of a serious turn, with complaints now reported to Consumer NZ. Some customers have reported concerns through their "play fair" line, saying they were mislead by t...

One of New Zealand's most polluted waterways could lose its title thanks to a milestone reached in a years-long clean up. The first phase of a new wetland to help turnaround Lake Horowhenua's water quality is just weeks away from completion. For years, Levin's sewage was pumped into the lake. That stopped decades ago but the effects from that are still felt, as are the effects of excess nitrogen f...

United Kingdom correspondent Diane To spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about how the UK government has said it might ban pro-Palestinian demonstrations as a move to tackle antisemitism and how a new report is sparking dystopian fears with facial recognition. She also spoke about King Charles' royal visit to Bermuda.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The Wellington Phoenix women have returned home ahead of their biggest week so far in the A-League. On Sunday, they lost the first leg of the semi-finals to Brisbane Roar in Queensland and need to turn it around for game two at Porirua Park this Sunday. Sports reporter Felicity Reid spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.

A New Zealand microbiologist says the death of three people from a rare virus while on a cruise ship is concerning. The passengers died after what is thought to be an outbreak of hantavirus on a ship that's anchored off the coast of west Africa. Another passenger, a 69 year-old British man, is also in intensive care and the company operating the cruise ship says it's confirmed he has the virus. Mi...

People in the settlement of Clarkville north of Christchurch are worried someone could be seriously hurt or killed by gravel trucks pounding their narrow residential roads. Gravel is being extracted from the Waimakariri River in preparation for the new $1 billion Woodend Bypass motorway. When locals heard that extraction work, which began in summer, was set to resume again today, they blocked the...

A court has heard a man was drunk, annoyed and motivated by anger towards police before he drove into two Nelson officers, killing one and seriously injuring another. 33-year-old Hayden Tasker is on trial for the murder of senior sergeant Lyn Fleming in the early hours of New Year's Day last year, at the High Court at Christchurch. The Crown argues Mr Tasker had murderous intent, while his defence...