A person has been killed in an Auckland motorway crash as collisions near Harbour bridge and on SH20 caused long delays during the morning commute The sole occupant of a car in a single-vehicle crash on the South-Western Motorway died at the scene on Tuesday morning Northbound lanes on State Highway 20 between Nielson Street and Hillsborough Road had reopened by 8am but long delays would ease only slowly a two-truck collision on the Northern Motorway on Tuesday morning was delaying southbound traffic as lanes were cleared one person was believed seriously injured in two-vehicle crash on SH2 about 5.30am Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday New Zealand RSS Follow RNZ News SH20 SOUTHWESTERN MWY - 6:05AMDue to a serious crash all northbound lanes on #SH20 between Neilson St & Hillsborough Rd are CLOSED and likely to remain closed for some time this morning. Delay your journey, avoid this route or expect long delays in surrounding areas. ^TP pic.twitter.com/dLKYnVN2L6 SH1 NORTHERN MWY - 6:10AMA crash is blocking the two right southbound lanes between Onewa Rd & the Harbour Bridge. Merge left with care to pass and expect delays with only two lanes citybound open through this area. ^TP pic.twitter.com/W312P4nNry SH18 UPPER HARBOUR MWY - 7:05AMA crash is part-blocking the right westbound lane just after Upper Harbour Bridge, prior to Squadron Dr off-ramp. Pass with care and expect some delays as this is cleared. ^TP pic.twitter.com/I8mlxnVONG A person is dead in an early morning crash on Auckland’s Southwestern Motorway Auckland commuters have faced a chaotic morning after two motorways leading into the central city have been disrupted by crashes Police confirmed one person had died following a single vehicle crash on SH20 reported just before 5am The vehicle’s sole occupant died at the scene The Southwestern Motorway has just reopened after all lanes heading into the city were closed for three hours between Neilson St in Onehunga and Hillsborough Rd The affected section reopened just before 8am after police completed a serious crash investigation City-bound traffic remains affected on the North Shore following a two-truck collision just before the harbour bridge All lanes have since reopened over the bridge The single-vehicle crash that closed the Southwestern Motorway happened between the Onehunga Harbour Rd on-ramp and the Queenstown Rd off-ramp around 5am avoid this route or expect long delays in surrounding areas,” NZTA said A police spokesperson said earlier closures of northbound lanes had now lifted and motorists were advised to continue to expect delays as earlier backlogs clear “We appreciate motorists’ understanding this morning while emergency services carried out their work ”The Serious Crash Unit examined the scene this morning and an investigation is under way into this morning’s crash on behalf of the Coroner." SH20 SOUTHWESTERN MWY - 6:05AMDue to a serious crash all northbound lanes on #SH20 between Neilson St & Hillsborough Rd are CLOSED and likely to remain closed for some time this morning. Delay your journey, avoid this route or expect long delays in surrounding areas. ^TP pic.twitter.com/dLKYnVN2L6 Police also urged motorists to avoid the area and expect delays a crash blocked two right southbound lanes between Onewa Rd and the harbour bridge on the North Shore but NZTA is still urging motorists to allow extra time for delays while the traffic eases “Merge left with care to pass and expect delays with only two lanes citybound open through this area,” NZTA said police said that no injuries have been reported in the North Shore crash said they had only travelled about 2km in more than an hour traffic on SH1 before the crash was backed up for about 10km the trip from Silverdale to the city was taking two hours at 6.45am SH1 NORTHERN MWY - 6:10AMA crash is blocking the two right southbound lanes between Onewa Rd & the Harbour Bridge. Merge left with care to pass and expect delays with only two lanes citybound open through this area. ^TP pic.twitter.com/W312P4nNry This is the second day in a row of severe traffic delays for those on the North Shore a truck breakdown in the middle of the harbour bridge clogged the North Shore with queues North Shore councillor Richard Hills shared his frustration over having traffic snarled in his area for a second day He urged locals to not only work from home today if possible and use public transport “Avoid local car trips too as the local roads were all congested “How frustrating for everyone two days in a row A third crash is partially blocking a lane on SH18 however the delays are not expected to be as severe The crash happened after Upper Harbour Bridge SH18 UPPER HARBOUR MWY - 7:05AMA crash is part-blocking the right westbound lane just after Upper Harbour Bridge, prior to Squadron Dr off-ramp. Pass with care and expect some delays as this is cleared. ^TP pic.twitter.com/I8mlxnVONG Sign up to The Daily H a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday Traffic will be detoured between 11am and 1pm in the Kamai Range A fire at a Auckland McDonald's is being treated as suspicious Emergency services responed to a fire at a McDonald's in Pakuranga Pakuranga Road was closed in both directions People were evacuated from nearby buildings as a precaution Firefighters had secured the petrol station next door and were fighting the blaze from there Fire and Emergency said it sent six fire trucks to the scene and crews arrived shortly after 3pm to find the McDonald's "fully alight" They say the building was fully engulfed but all staff and customers were safely evacuated A McDonald's spokesperson confirmed the fire was at their Pakuranga restaurant "The McDonald's Pakuranga restaurant has suffered significant damage as the result of a fire on Monday afternoon "Procedures were followed to alert emergency services and safely evacuate customers and staff McDonald's is assisting emergency services as they begin the investigation into the cause of the fire," a spokesperson said A worker at the next door Z petrol station said there was a lot of smoke and they could see flames They had closed the petrol station down and moved away from it He could still hear explosions when he spoke to RNZ at about 3.25pm "It started around the play area from what I could see initially but it has now engulfed the whole building," he said "The kids are coming out of Pakuranga College so they are battling to control the movement of kids so they don't walk into the smoke," he said it has started near the children's playground The road between Duke Street and Frederick Street has been closed Emergency services were notified of the fire at around 3pm on Monday. Fire and Emergency NZ said the building was "totally involved" in flames by the time crews arrived. Six fire trucks from Howick, Ellerslie, Mt Wellington, Otara, and Papatoetoe were in attendance at the blaze. One was a ladder truck, a FENZ spokesperson said. "Everyone was out at the time and there are no reports of injuries." FENZ said the fire was being treated as suspicious. "A fire investigator is attending to determine cause and origin." Pakuranga Rd was closed for nearly two hours in both directions with road users advised to avoid the area. "Investigations into the cause of the fire at the McDonalds are underway," police said. A staff member at nearby KFC Pakuranga, across the road from the McDonald's, told 1News he heard a couple of explosions coming from the restaurant as the blaze began. He said he heard "one or two" explosions, followed by thick, black smoke billowing into the air. The restaurant was adjacent to a Z petrol station and 250 metres along the same road from Pakuranga College. A staff member at the service station said they had closed their fuel pumps and there was "huge fire and huge smoke" coming from the fire. The Howick Pakuranga Netball Centre Courts were also closed this evening due to the blaze. Auckland Transport said several bus routes, the 72C, 72M, 72X, 734, 420, and 421 were detoured due to the blaze. Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown thanked emergency services who had been responding to the incident. "Please follow the advice of emergency services, avoid the area, and stay safe." A McDonald's spokesperson said the McDonald's restaurant in Pakuranga had "suffered significant damage" in the fire. "Procedures were followed to raise the alarm and safely evacuate staff and customers. McDonald’s is assisting emergency services as they begin the investigation into the cause of the fire." Police were notified of the blaze on Pakuranga Rd at around 3pm on Monday. (Source: 1News) A large fire which caused "significant damage" to a McDonald's restaurant in east Auckland this afternoon is now being treated as suspicious. Fire at Pakuranga McDonald's. (Source: PCBL) Police were notified of the blaze on Pakuranga Rd at around 3pm on Monday. (Source: Supplied) Blaze at McDonald's in east Auckland treated as suspected arson Counties Manukau CIB Detective Senior Sergeant Michele Gillespie said a scene guard has been in place at the restaurant overnight Crime and Justice Person dies following morning crash on Auckland motorway A person has died following a crash on Auckland's south-western motorway this morning New Zealand 'Wake up call': Businesses warned over lithium battery fires Authorities urge the public to avoid putting lithium batteries in the rubbish or recycling but have also told merchants to "take responsibility for disposal" Tree planted as Kyle Whorrall's mother Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei blessed and planted a provided pōhutukawa tree at St Johns Bush in honour of the slain PhD student from the United States New Zealand's most valuable state house cannot be subdivided The almost $4 million villa sits on 619 square metres of land in one of Auckland's sought-after heritage areas Politics 'He will always be a part of NZ' - Community mourns murdered US student Kyle Whorrall The 33-year-old was attacked at a bus stop on St Johns Rd in Meadowbank on April 19 Iwi boss to head new board for Taranaki Maunga 8 mins ago Kiwi motorcyclist killed in 11-bike British Supersport crash 24 mins ago National introduces members' bill to ban social media for under 16s 9:51am Three in hospital after Christchurch house fire 9:29am US states push for speed-limiting devices on the cars of dangerous drivers 9:20am Ten dead after tourist boats capsize in sudden storm in China 3 mins ago 1Two men's shared name brings years of trouble and a hefty bill to one Person dies following morning crash on Auckland motorway The 'Trump slump' boosts the left in Canada and Oz – but what about NZ? Destiny Church to move out of its South Auckland headquarters Erin Patterson shared love of mushrooms in online group Aziz Al Sa’afin: Australian Labor's comeback a wake-up call for Luxon Two arrested over alleged plot targeting Lady Gaga concert in RioBrazilian police said they thwarted an alleged bomb attack planned for Lady Gaga's concert on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro. Lady Gaga rocks Copacabana Beach with free concert for over 2 million fansCries of joy rose from the tightly-packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand. Lorde announces new album name, dateThu, May 1 Kim Kardashian to testify in Paris trial over 2016 armed robberyMon, Apr 28 Chubby Checker, Outkast, Cyndi Lauper join Rock & Roll Hall of FameMon, Apr 28 Lorde releases new single after weeks of cryptic teasesThu, Apr 24 Chubby Checker, Outkast, Cyndi Lauper join Rock & Roll Hall of FameMon A large fire which caused "significant damage" to a McDonald's restaurant in east Auckland this afternoon is now being treated as suspicious Emergency services were notified of the fire at around 3pm on Monday Fire and Emergency NZ said the building was "totally involved" in flames by the time crews arrived and Papatoetoe were in attendance at the blaze FENZ said the fire was being treated as suspicious Pakuranga Rd was closed for nearly two hours in both directions with road users advised to avoid the area "Investigations into the cause of the fire at the McDonalds are underway," police said told 1News he heard a couple of explosions coming from the restaurant as the blaze began He said he heard "one or two" explosions The restaurant was adjacent to a Z petrol station and 250 metres along the same road from Pakuranga College A staff member at the service station said they had closed their fuel pumps and there was "huge fire and huge smoke" coming from the fire The Howick Pakuranga Netball Centre Courts were also closed this evening due to the blaze Auckland Transport said several bus routes Pakuranga MP Simeon Brown thanked emergency services who had been responding to the incident "Please follow the advice of emergency services A McDonald's spokesperson said the McDonald's restaurant in Pakuranga had "suffered significant damage" in the fire "Procedures were followed to raise the alarm and safely evacuate staff and customers McDonald’s is assisting emergency services as they begin the investigation into the cause of the fire." Police say a fire at a McDonald's restaurant in Pakuranga is being investigated as a suspected arson Emergency services attended the fire on Pakuranga Rd just before 3pm yesterday Large plumes of smoke could be seen and explosions heard at the fast food restaurant which has "sustained significant fire damage as a result" "At this point in time we are treating this fire as a suspected arson "A scene examination is being conducted this morning and police will work alongside a fire investigator," she said Gillespie said part of these inquiries would be working to understand how the fire began She said police would like to hear from anyone who saw suspicious activity prior to the fire Anyone with information was urged to contact police online or anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111 A person has died following a crash on Auckland's south-western motorway this morning The single vehicle crash was reported to police shortly before 5am the sole occupant of this vehicle died at the scene," a police spokesperson said "Earlier closures of northbound lanes have now lifted and police advise motorists to continue to expect delays as earlier backlogs clear "We appreciate motorists' understanding this morning while emergency services carried out their work." Police said the serious crash unit examined the scene this morning and an investigation was underway into this morning's crash on behalf of the Coroner This is in addition to an earlier crash on Auckland's northern motorway near the Auckland Harbour Bridge Emergency services responded to a two-truck collision on the northern motorway near the Auckland Harbour Bridge shortly after 5am New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) said all lanes south on State Highway 1 were open again following this earlier crash with five lanes available on the Harbour Bridge "Allow extra time for delays on the Northern Motorway to slowly ease this morning three lanes going south were now open again between Onewa Rd and the Harbour Bridge," NZTA said A pōhutukawa tree has been planted in honour of Kyle Whorrall the US PhD student slain during an attack at an Auckland bus stop last month The 33-year-old was attacked at a bus stop on St Johns Rd in Meadowbank on April 19 friends and colleagues of Whorrall gathered for a vigil on April 24 at the bus stop where he was attacked Whorrall's mother Carole was joined by members of the community and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei for the blessing and to plant a pōhutukawa tree in honour of his life The planting ceremony began with a blessing by Otene Reweti from Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei "This tree will stand as a memorial to Kyle to come to this special place and remember Kyle and what he has done and what he was looking to do "This tree indicates times to harvest different things in our seasons and also pōhutukawa in terms of the star from Matariki and pleiades So Kyle is one of those that we are reminded again of his tragic passing in this area," said Reweti Carole was flanked by Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson and one of Whorrall's flatmates as she shovelled dirt onto the base of the tree She softly commented that she enjoyed gardening as the sun shone down on her in St Johns Bush Others shared a poem or short tribute to Whorrall's life and the tragedy that it was cut short Ōrākei Local Board chairperson Scott Milne said that in times of tragedy it was important to "look at the good stuff" and find moments of connection with one another "We have now forged a relationship across the waters This family will come back to see this tree thrive and out of that tragedy we will find good," he said He told Te Karere the tragedy had "turned our community upside down" "Yet in the matter of a few short weeks the community have come together certainly like nothing I have ever seen before "There is just this deep disappointment and we all feel so privileged to live here He said he hoped over time the grief would "turn to healing" and that Carole would continue to come back and see the tree flourish and grow "People understand they have to talk more to each other watch out for one another and we want to make something of this lovely young man's life by changing our attitude." He said the board had worked hard to build relationships over the past six years "The relationship with Ngāti Whātua is deeply personal and important to this board A 16-year-old youth has been remanded in custody after being charged with his murder and a 32-year-old woman was also charged with being an accessory to murder after the fact Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said the investigation was "by no means over" as police believed "there were other occupants in the vehicle" when Whorrall was attacked He said officers have since seized a black SUV on the North Shore It was being forensically examined by police "Our enquiries are ongoing to locate these persons of interest and I encourage them to do the right thing and come into their nearest police station or phone us." The detective inspector said police were also seeking "critical witnesses" including a white Toyota ute that was cut off by the black SUV doing a U-turn in front of them He said police were still working to fully understand the events leading up to his death The country's most valuable state house sits on a large plot of land that cannot be subdivided because it is in one of Auckland's sought-after heritage areas The state house is a 1900s villa on a leafy street in the inner city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million It is a neighbourhood associated with celebrities from sailors to pop stars — last year Lorde sold her luxury villa next door for $4.3m Auckland Council records show the state house is on 619sq metres of land and is subject to hefty development restrictions because it is in both a special character area and historic heritage area That means the land could not be subdivided and any changes to the villa would need council permission Data from Corelogic shows the five most valuable single dwelling homes in Kāinga Ora's portfolio are all worth more than $3.5m Building projects that would create more than 1000 state homes are on hold while Kāinga Ora reviews its portfolio The agency also intends to sell about 900 homes nationally over the next 12-18 months — currently 49 state homes are on the market — of which 32 are in Auckland The money generated by selling off those properties would then be reinvested in more affordable areas The woman living in the country's most valuable state house last week told RNZ it should be sold in part because she feels increasingly out of place in the upmarket suburb finance and policy Gareth Stiven said none of the five most valuable state homes were for sale or had development plans "Like other high value properties in our portfolio these five homes could be sold further down the track Our current national divestment programme has just begun so assessing homes that will be sold is an ongoing process." All five of the most valuable state homes are in Auckland and all but one could be subdivided according to council planning rules is worth $3.7m and the 4626 square metre land has no significant development constraints is worth $3.5m and is on 2904 square metres of land that could be developed into up to 20 homes could potentially be subdivided into four units Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall earlier said the properties' values were tied up in large plots of land "It shows that you could probably build multiple units on that block of land to get better use and more people living in that area which would be well in demand from people wanting to live there to be closer to town." Goodall believed Kāinga Ora should be considering the future of all five of its most valuable properties "There's probably lots of potential development all across Auckland You would expect that these would be ones that would be on the list to look at." rnz.co.nz More than 60 people gathered at a memorial and fundraising event today for American PhD student Kyle Whorrall who was fatally attacked at an Auckland bus stop last month was attacked at a bus stop on St Johns Rd in Meadowbank on April 19 A 16-year-old youth has been charged with murder and aggravated robbery and a 32 year-old woman has been charged with being an accessory after the fact to murder Whorrall's friends and his mother Carole Whorrall attended the event at a local restaurant which was organised to celebrate the 'essence' of Whorrall and to provide support to his family A letter penned by Whorrall's sister Heather was read out in a speech at the event Her letter said Whorrall was born and raised in California and was always looking for bugs and turning stones he went on a month-long trip to Australasia with his mother and two sisters He was the youngest member of an entomology club a student volunteer at the Los Angeles Zoo and volunteered for Jane Goodall's Roots and Shoots NGO he travelled to Peru for a few weeks to collect spiders six of which were newly-discovered species Whorrall loved the flora and fauna of New Zealand and at the time of his death was three months away from submitting his PhD thesis "He will always be a part of New Zealand." The Meadow restaurant was decorated with many pictures and artwork of bugs made by children from local schools who owns the restaurant and helped organise the event said she wanted to do something for Whorrall's family in these hard times and he shouldn't go home the way he's going home tomorrow - he should be going home as a PhD student graduating in a few months," she said Henry said she posted to Facebook to reach out to the community to brainstorm and people thought a "silent auction" would be a great way to support the family with the costs of the funeral and their travels Henry said nearly 40 businesses had contributed gifts and vouchers to the fundraiser everybody's just really come to the party and just wants to be part of something bigger I think that's the whole reason why we're here is just we're something bigger we're a community of people that just want to reach out," she said Deputy mayor Desley Simpson also attended the event and offered condolences to Whorrall's mother Simpson said she wanted the family to leave New Zealand knowing that the community has reached out with love and support rnz.co.nz A trail-blazing tribal leader today starts a new job bringing together eight iwi to look after Taranaki Maunga Iwi now have equal say with the Crown in running the former Egmont National Park The Minister of Conservation will need iwi agreement to approve management plans for what is now called Te Papa-Kura-o-Taranaki Wharehoka Wano will lead Te Tōpuni Ngārahu – a new body of representatives from the region’s eight iwi – to govern the park alongside the conservation minister The arrangement is laid out in Te Ture Whakatupua mō te Kāhui Maunga, the Taranaki Maunga Collective Redress Act passed unanimously by Parliament in January Another group called Te Tōpuni Kōkōrangi – half appointed by iwi and half by the Crown – will develop management plans for Te Tōpuni Ngārahu and the minister to consider Wano has for nine years been the first chief executive of Te Kāhui o Taranaki the agency set up when Taranaki iwi settled its historical Treaty claims Wano has helped shape Taranaki iwi’s future and he’s also a trustee for the neighbouring iwi’s post-settlement agency Te Kotahitanga o Te Atiawa. He’s one of the dozen counsellors on the Kīngitanga’s Tekau-mā-rua the advisory body for Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po – as he was for her father the late Kīngi Tūheitia At Wano’s farewell from Te Kāhui o Taranaki veteran campaigner Peter Moeahu said Wano was “an ambassador a diplomat extraordinaire,” and reckoned he would need those skills “You might have thought handling one iwi was bad enough referring to South Taranaki’s Te Pakakohi and Tangahoe which are not recognised as iwi by the Crown Te Kāhui o Taranaki chair Jacqui King said Wano had dealt with arms of the Crown on many fronts really challenging because often you get so impassioned by the unjust behaviours and practices “You have to carry that in such a way that you can't be asked to leave - and Whare is an absolute expert at ensuring he says what needs to be said without being offensive.” Te Kāhui’s operations manager Mark Wipatene said he’d known many aggressive cut-throat chief executives – “silverback gorillas who have massive egos” “They wouldn’t last a day in this space because you can’t operate that way.” “Whare has the ability to navigate through that world and bring his kaimahi with him because he has no ego Liana Poutu helped negotiate the maunga settlement and said Wano’s calming influence wasn’t limited to dealings with government “And when we want to take on some whawhai (fight) Whare’s like ‘are you sure that's how you want to do it?’” Wano’s niece and former colleague Puna Wano-Bryant said he would bring impeccable communication to the Maunga job “He has the ability to open new ways for people to heal and reconcile their own relationships with each other.” Wano-Bryant said she often spotted surfboards in her uncle’s car and he would explain he was off to a “board hui” Fellow surfer and new Taranaki Regional Council chair Craig Williamson has known Wano for almost 20 years and praised his work for the betterment of Taranaki communities We’ve had three board meetings this week.” In 2016 the Crown accepted that Taranaki Maunga and the adjacent ranges would become a legal person and own itself as Te Kāhui Tupua the Crown agreed to share management of the national park Te Papa-Kura-o-Taranaki with iwi There's now a search on for four people to represent the iwi of Taranaki on Te Tōpuni Kōkōrangi serving as the face and voice of Te Kāhui Tupua When Parliament passed the redress law in January it officially recognised the peaks as tupuna maunga – ancestral mountains LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ on Air Kiwi motorcyclist Shane Richardson is one of two riders who died in an 11-bike crash at a British Supersport Championship event was fatally injured alongside Englishman Owen Jenner on the first corner of the race at Oulton Park A statement from British Superbikes said the race was immediately stopped and trackside medical services deployed "Due to the extreme severity of the incident and ongoing medical intervention the remainder of the Bennetts British Superbike Championship event was cancelled," a spokesperson said "This catastrophic accident has tragically resulted in two riders being fatally injured and another sustaining significant injuries." Richardson was initially treated trackside and then taken to the circuit's medical centre before he was taken to Royal Stoke University Hospital with "severe chest injuries" Jenner was also initially treated trackside and then taken to the circuit medical centre where he died from a "catastrophic head injury" British rider Tom Tunstall suffered back and abdominal injuries and a further five riders including New Zealander Morgan McLaren-Wood were transferred to the circuit medical centre with minor injuries which did not require transfer to hospital Three more riders were also involved but were uninjured who was a previous New Zealand rider of the year Cemetery Circuit in Wanganui posted to its social media in tribute to Richardson a fantastic and talented racer and a genuine human" "Devastated to hear we have lost another of our racing family Our thoughts are with Hannah and the family along with our condolences to Owen’s family too." Richardson's sponsor Whites Powersports said the team was "extremely saddened" by the news of his death "Shane will be remembered by many as a great racer Our thoughts go out to Shane’s young family and friends during this tough time The New Zealand Superbike Championship said its "deepest sympathies" went out to Richardson's family and friends We want to protect our kids from the harms of social media. That’s why today National has introduced a members bill to ban social media for kids under 16 years old. pic.twitter.com/TiQJs87DhQ A teenager who admitted being "addicted to speed" behind the wheel had totalled two other cars in the year before he slammed into a minivan at 180km/h in a Seattle suburb killing the driver and three of the five children she was transporting for a homeschool co-op After sentencing Chase Daniel Jones last month to more than 17 years in prison the judge tacked on a novel condition should he drive again: His vehicle must be equipped with a device that prevents accelerating far beyond the speed limit Virginia this year became the first state to agree to give its judges such a tool to deal with the most dangerous drivers on the road already is using it and similar measures await governors' signatures in Washington state and Georgia New York and California also could soon tap the GPS-based technology to help combat a recent national spike in traffic deaths "It's a horror no one should have to experience," said Amy Cohen who founded the victims' advocacy group Families for Safe Streets after her 12-year-old son was killed by a speeding driver in front of their New York home more than a decade ago the minivan driver who was killed when Jones ran a red light was building a backyard greenhouse with her husband to help educate several kids who shuttle between homes during the school day Also killed in the March 2024 crash near Hudson's home in Renton were Boyd "Buster" Brown and Eloise Wilcoxson Hudson's two children were sitting on the passenger side and survived "You always hear of these horrific accidents Smith knew Washington state Representative Mari Leavitt who reached out to offer condolences and tell him she was sponsoring legislation to mandate intelligent speed assistance devices as a condition for habitual speeders to get back their suspended licenses Leavitt predicts it will have an even more powerful impact than revoking driving privileges citing studies showing around three-quarters of people who lose their licenses get behind a wheel anyway the state saw a 200% increase in drivers cited for going at least 80km/h over the speed limit according to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission "I guess I don't understand why someone is compelled to want to drive that fast," Leavitt said "But if they choose to drive that fast with the speed limiter It's going to stop them in their tracks." which Washington legislators passed last month and Democratic Governor Bob Ferguson is expected to soon sign using the first letters of the names of the four victims: Buster didn't receive a speeding ticket in his two previous crashes he likely wouldn't have been required to use the speed-limiter ahead of the fatal one And because it could be 2029 before the law takes effect the judge's requirement at sentencing only applies to his time on probation after being released from prison Competing tech companies that joined forces to lobby for ignition interlock requirements for drunken drivers have been working in unison again the last few years to pitch intelligent speed assistance chief government affairs officer at one manufacturer said fleet vehicles including school buses in the nation's capital have been trying it out for years But it took a lot of refinement before the GPS technology could instantly recognize speed limit changes and compel vehicles with the devices installed to adjust accordingly "We've got a lot more satellites in the sky now," said Ken Denton a retired police officer who is the chief compliance officer at Cincinnati-based LifeSafer the devices would prevent cars from exceeding speed limits or whatever threshold regulators set An override button allows speeding in emergencies but states can decide whether to activate it and authorities would be alerted any time the button is pushed which beeps to alert drivers when they are going too fast is required for new cars in the European Union California Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a similar proposal last year explaining vehicle safety requirements are set by the federal government and he was concerned a patchwork of state laws could stir confusion Before Delegate Patrick Hope agreed to sponsor the proposal in the Virginia Legislature he tried out the device in Nannini's car which was calibrated to not go more than 14km/h over the speed limit "That was my first question: Is it safe?" Hope said Hope is now pondering whether to install it on the cars of his three children the price could be hefty: US$4 (NZ$6.70) per day and a US$100 (NZz$167.50) installation fee The fee would be less for low-income offenders which provides support services to the loved ones of crash victims knows firsthand the kind of impact slowing down speeders can make A year after her son was struck and killed in front of their New York apartment the road's speed limit had been lowered "When you are going a few miles slower it's much less likely to be deadly." Four boats capsized in a sudden storm at a tourist spot in southwestern China More than 80 people fell into a river when strong winds hit the scenic area in Guizhou province late Sunday afternoon The boats capsized after a sudden rain and hail storm on the upper reaches of the Wu River a man could be seen performing CPR on another person while one of the vessels drifted upside down Initial reports said two tourist boats had capsized but state media said on Monday that four boats were involved and the seven crew members were able to save themselves Guizhou's mountains and rivers are a major tourism draw and many Chinese were travelling during a five-day national holiday that ended Monday Chinese President Xi Jinping called for all-out efforts to find the missing and care for the injured the official Xinhua News Agency said on Sunday Xi underscored the importance of strengthening safety at tourist attractions large public venues and residential communities as well as for the rush of people returning at the end of major holidays CCTV said the capsized boats had a maximum capacity of about 40 people each and were not overloaded An eyewitness told state-owned Beijing News the waters were deep but that some people had managed to swim to safety the storm had come suddenly and a thick mist obscured the surface of the river Shane William Pritchard has been charged with crimes he didn’t commit and chased for debts he doesn’t owe That’s because the Dunedin man is not the only Shane William Pritchard in town While the duo’s shared name and age has sometimes been a handy loophole for one Shane for the other it has caused problems for 36 years It’s been years of fearing every knock on the door Years of wondering if he’ll be hand-cuffed and taken to jail to be honest,” says Shane William Pritchard a scout and a member of the Air Training Corp remembers getting quite a shock when her friend called one evening She'd been acting as a referee for a gun licence for Shane whose friend informed her that the police had a long list of offences against Shane’s name Not long after that the police turned up to where Shane was working at the local tannery to arrest him “You're scrambling in your head to think of ways that you can prove it's not you.” Another Shane William Pritchard had been born in Otago They were separated by just two weeks and about 50 miles – one growing up in Mosgiel the other in Milton – but also by the lives they’d been leading To watch the full video story go to TVNZ+ Shane from Milton had huge problems focusing at school He was raised in foster care and then boys’ homes I just wanted to look cool and get in trouble,” he tells Fair Go Milton Shane was used to run-ins with police he got pulled over in his car and asked about his driving licence one’s got a licence and the other hasn’t.’ And I’m like ‘obviously it must be the one with a licence’.” he went to his bank to draw out an ACC payment and was asked which bank account was his He says that at that point he was trying to figure out what was going on “I thought it was just an error.” But he took advantage of the situation and withdrew a large sum of cash Mosgiel Shane became aware of the withdrawal when a scheduled car payment was declined and when Milton Shane turned up at the bank to withdraw more money Identity fraud was considered but Milton Shane was legitimately expecting an ACC payment so the withdrawal appeared to be a genuine mistake and the police couldn’t take any action 'Anything I could get away with Mosgiel Shane thought the bank incident would have alerted police to the problem But his nemesis had cottoned on to the advantages of having a second identity to use Milton Shane acquired a suite of furniture on hire-purchase Milton-Shane clocked up more driving offences Mosgiel Shane thought about changing his name but realised he’d have to provide his previous name in the process the courts and debt collectors such as Baycorp should be able to distinguish between himself and Milton Shane The police first addressed the issue in the 1990s after Mosgiel Shane went to the media He was given a letter to carry with him should he be apprehended He and his parents felt his situation wasn’t being taken seriously Mosgiel Shane went to the media a second time in the mid-2000s the police gave their word that a record in their system would stop the misidentification from happening again This does appear to have worked as far as police action goes But while Mosgiel Shane was given the same reassurance by the Ministry of Justice he continued to receive demands from the courts for unpaid fines He’d also get stopped and questioned whenever he left the country for work trips or holidays It took a huge toll on Mosgiel Shane’s mental health not realising the constant stress it placed on his life John Pritchard says that at times his son felt his life wasn’t worth living worrying about what he was going to do to himself and that really ate me up.” he and his son were in tears as Shane admitted he was at breaking point He described going for days at a time unable to eat or sleep wondering what might happen next "Am I going to be in a position where they've got me in handcuffs or I've got debt collectors coming to the door?" ...You're spiralling into this black hole." He started taking anti-anxiety medication which helped And events regarding Milton Shane seemed to settle Milton Shane was charged for fishing without a licence in Twizel and failing to comply with fisheries officers But a court registrar incorrectly entered the birth date of Mosgiel Shane in the system both Shanes were being chased to pay the $1530 fine It was Mosgiel Shane who spotted the error and rang the court He also sent a statement from his manager saying he’d not been fishing in Twizel that day The reply he got was to say he’d been given the wrong form and that they wouldn’t accept his proof They just wanted to know how I was going to pay the fine.” The first Milton Shane knew about this was when Fair Go told him Mosgiel Shane had been chased for the fine He was told to pay up or face the consequences feeling he shouldn’t have to pay good money to correct someone else’s mistake But it cost Mosgiel Shane over $5000 in legal fees and took months of back and forth between him “Why should anybody have to pay their own money to right somebody else's wrongs and prove who they are I’m sick and tired of proving who I am all the time.” He wanted the Ministry of Justice to take responsibility and reimburse him for his legal costs saying court staff such as the registrar in this case have immunity if they make mistakes such as the one made here and if I make a mistake and it's affecting my client that it's going to cost them money to rectify a mistake that I've made.” he deserves a million apologies from those guys,” she says Milton Shane told Fair Go he still gets in trouble but wants the other Shane to know he doesn’t use his birth date anymore And he had a message for him: “We’ve got to get it sorted for you so you can have a good life with you and your family because I’m trying to get my life together with my son and my grandson” He offers to meet to see if they can sort it out together but I’m not interested in meeting him,.” says Mosgiel Shane He says he doesn’t hold any grudges and accepts Milton Shane’s apology And he believes the only way for that to happen is for the courts and the Ministry of Justice to give him a guarantee that mix-ups won’t occur in the future Fair Go asked the Ministry of Justice to appear in person to apologise and provide reassurance to Shane of its plans to guard against these mistakes The Ministry declined our request to be on camera saying any comment on an individual case would compromise the independence of the courts as the Ministry operates separately But it did send a written apology directly to Mosgiel Shane It also admitted mistakes can occur in clerical records but said instructions were clear and the importance of getting things right had been emphasised to staff Mosgiel Shane isn’t totally convinced that’s the end of it “All I want is for the Ministry of Justice and the courts to do their job I'd like to live without this hanging over me all the time his criminal check has come back showing a clean slate Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's landslide win at the weekend following Canadian Prime Minister's Mark Carney's victory less than a week before should indicate to our politicians that the New Zealand "Trump trend" of 2024 may have peaked Trying to capitalise on the electoral success of US President Donald Trump now that his policies are having real-world effects is proving to be a big mistake for conservative leaders Australian voters have delivered a landslide win for the incumbent Labor Party returning Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for a second term with a clear majority of seats When he said in his victory speech that Australians had “voted for Australian values” an unspoken message was that they’d firmly rejected Trumpian values opposition and Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton had such a bad election he lost his own seat While not the only reason for his electoral demise Dutton’s adoption of themes associated with Trump backfired Opinion polls were projecting Dutton’s Coalition to win and exceeded expectations in the election itself the Liberals were “reduced to a right-wing populist party that is all but exiled from the biggest cities” Commentators identified a number of reasons including his “culture wars” and being depicted by Labor as “Trump-lite” Following a Trumpian pathway turned out to be a strategic blunder And Dutton’s downfall mirrors Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s defeat in Canada’s election on April 28 Canada’s incumbent centre-left Liberals were heading for defeat to the Conservatives But there were two gamechangers: the Liberals switched leaders from Justin Trudeau to Mark Carney and Trump caused a national uproar with his aggressive tariffs and his call for Canada to become the 51st US state Pre-election opinion polls then did a dramatic flip in favour of the Liberals who went on to win their fourth election in a row Poilievre’s campaign had adopted elements of the Trump style such as attacking “wokeness” and using derogatory nicknames for opponents His strategy failed as soon as Trump rolled out “America First” policies contrary to Canadians’ economic interests and national pride The takeaway for serious right-wing leaders in liberal democracies is clear: let Trump do Trump; his brand is toxic Trump’s actions are harming America’s allies affirmative action and climate change have seen voters outside the US react with self-protective patriotism A perceived association with Trump’s brand has now upended the electoral fortunes of (so far) two centre-right parties that had been in line to win and had been banking on the 2024 MAGA success somehow rubbing off on them what has been dubbed the “Trump slump” isn’t a universal trend the centre-left Social Democratic-led government was ousted in February in spite of Trump ally Elon Musk’s unhelpful support for the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party the populist Reform UK party has risen above 25% while Labour has fallen from 34% in last year’s election to the low 20s in recent polls But other governing centre-left parties are seeing an upside of the Trump effect In early January it looked like the incumbent Labour Party would be trounced by the Conservatives and the right-wing Progress Party Opinion polls dramatically flipped in early February boosting Labour from below 20% back into the lead Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre will get another term in office Denmark’s governing Social Democrats have enjoyed a small polling boost since Trump declared he’d like to take Greenland off their hands The common denominator underlying these shifts to the left seems to be the Trump effect Voters in countries normally closely allied with the US are turning away from Trump-adjacent politicians people are rallying patriotically around centre-left Trump is harming leaders who could have been his allies the man himself seemed proud of the impact he had in Canada polls in mid-2024 showed support for Trump was growing – heading well above 20% Australia’s election suggests that trend may now be past its peak with debate over ACT’s contentious Treaty Principles Bill behind it and despite NZ First leader Winston Peters’ overt culture-war rhetoric (which may appeal to his 6% support base) the right-wing coalition government’s polling shows it could be on track for a second term – for the time being While the Trump effect may have benefited centre-left parties in Australia and Canada polling for New Zealand’s Labour opposition is softer than at the start of the year While “America First” policies continue to damage the global economy centre-right leaders who learn the lesson will quietly distance themselves from the Trump brand while maintaining cordial relations with the White House could do worse than follow Anthony Albanese’s example of not getting distracted by “Trump-lite” and instead promoting his own country’s values of fairness and mutual respect.","type":"text"},{"_id":"GUGWB5HTRVGGNP5PFWDLBH7SXM","content":"Grant Duncan is a teaching fellow in Politics and International Relations This story is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence ","type":"text"},{"_id":"BMPLRKQ2NRDPZOPKHPADSUD4UE","content":" Erin Patterson had shared with true crime fans her love of mushrooms excitement over buying a food dehydrator and plans to cook beef Wellington The 50-year-old mother of two has pleaded not guilty to all counts against her including three murder charges for killing her estranged husband's family after feeding them lunch at her Leongatha home Don and Gail Patterson and Heather Wilkinson all died in hospital from death cap mushroom poisoning after eating a beef Wellington Patterson had prepared for them on July 2023 Patterson claims it was "a terrible accident" Three members of a true crime Facebook group Patterson was part of gave evidence on day five of her Supreme Court trial in Morwell The group was created to go over the case of convicted baby killer Keli Lane she was a really good researcher," group member Christine Hunt said about Patterson's online reputation said in 2023 Patterson had shared photos of a black dehydrator with mushrooms inside "She was a bit excited that she'd purchased a food dehydrator," Barkley said via video link Screenshots of Patterson's messages to the group were also shown to the jury "I've been hiding powdered mushrooms in everything the kids had no idea," she wrote in one post said Patterson "seemed to really like mushrooms" In the weeks before the deadly mushroom meal Patterson asked the group if anyone had cooked a beef Wellington and if they had advice Erin said she was making beef Wellington," Hay said "I think she was at the supermarket and she messaged us something about the beef that she was buying." She said Patterson had told them the mushrooms came from an Asian grocer Hay said Patterson asked her for tips on how to make sure the beef Wellington pastry did not go "soggy" as it was one of Hay's favourite dishes said she joked: "I'd make a tofu Wellington" so we had a good laugh about that," she said Patterson's estranged husband Simon finished his evidence to the jury after almost three days in the witness box Defence barrister Colin Mandy SC put it to Simon that he had asked Erin - two days after the lunch - "is that what you used to poison them?" "I did not say that to Erin," Simon responded The jury of 15 people were shown messages from a family group Signal chat between Simon his former wife and his parents - in December 2022 - after he last week claimed she had sent "extremely aggressive" messages to his mother and father which he said were from a few months later having a crack at me and accusing me of some things in response to what I'd messaged her about," he said After his parents tried to help Erin and Simon resolve a dispute over his child support payments his mother Gail took a step back and stopped reading messages from Erin in the group chat "Mum really struggled with anxiety," he said The trial before Justice Christopher Beale will continue today It was the comeback no one saw coming at the beginning of this year didn’t just hold on to power in Australia’s federal election,­­ they surged ahead — snatching seats off the Greens routing the Liberals and securing a majority stronger than any seen in nearly two decades It marked the first time since federation in 1901 that a Labor prime minister has increased their majority at re-election Because this wasn't a win powered by fear or division And if New Zealand’s major parties — both in government and opposition — aren’t paying attention they could be walking towards their own political reckoning Albanese and his senior ministers made one thing clear: Australia doesn’t want to go the way of Donald Trump Penny Wong said it plain and clear in her speech where I was on election night: "We choose our future Albanese was trailing now-former opposition leader Peter Dutton in the polls But the tone of the campaign changed as Dutton faced growing criticism over a series of policy backflips and cultural positions that drew comparisons to the US president — despite his campaign pushing back on the label Dutton proposed cutting back public service jobs and made controversial comments about women — moves that voters and analysts said echoed Trump-era politics He tried to present himself as strong on international affairs even claiming he was better positioned than Albanese to stand up to Donald Trump over new tariffs Trump replied: "I don’t even know who the other guy is." the exchange highlighted Dutton’s limited influence Little wonder some voters were questioning whether the Liberal Party had drifted too far from the political centre he was even introduced on stage with the phrase "we’ll make Australia great again" capped by the unprecedented defeat of Dutton in his own electorate He was hoping to make history as the first opposition leader to unseat a first-term government in 100 years he became the first opposition leader to lose his seat at a federal election Winston Peters has fuelled a so-called "gender debate" that inflamed division was seen by some as a direct challenge to Māori rights and the status of Te Tiriti Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and National voted against it at first reading while distancing themselves from the bill — but only after allowing it to progress as part of the coalition agreement Political analysts agreed allowing the bill to be introduced came at a cost While Luxon may not have backed the bill himself his alignment with the parties pushing it drew inevitable criticism Kiwis I have spoken to — not just in New Zealand but here in Australia — said it sent a message (intentional or not) that extreme views still had a seat at the table And that's the real lesson from Australia: When you amplify voices that divide As voters across the ditch and recently in Canada have shown they’re tired of leaders who amplify anger instead of offering answers to everyday struggles such as the cost of living I spotted a familiar face in the crowd at Albanese HQ and made my way over Watching Australian Labor's victory up close was none other than Kieran McAnulty He wasn’t just there to cheer; he was there to learn "You’ve got to give people something to vote for not just something to vote against," he told me summing up what he sees as one of the Australian Labor Party’s key strengths "That was one of the big lessons here they were clear about what they stood for." McAnulty has also spent time in the UK observing how centre-left movements rebuild after defeat shoulder-to-shoulder with the architects of Labor’s success and offering voters a story they can be part of "People want to feel like they're included in a bigger plan they gave people a reason to hope again." New Zealand Labour has its own major challenges to overcome Former prime minister Chris Hipkins struggled to inspire voters during the last election campaign and the party’s support among Māori and younger voters was deeply dented "We’re not pretending we’ve got it all figured out But if there’s one thing we’ve taken from here We’ve got to earn that trust back," McAnulty told me That principle applied to every party in New Zealand The reality is that when politics becomes a game of blame We’ve seen that in New Zealand’s lower voter turnout at the last election where voting was not compulsory — unlike Australia there has also been a general move towards Australia’s independents including the so-called "teal" candidates Their appeal lay in offering an alternative to the binary red-versus-blue approach And that’s something both Labour and National in New Zealand would be wise to reflect on Our next general election is expected in October 2026 Especially when it comes to resetting the tone The National-led coalition could risk looking like Dutton’s and less like Luxon’s original pitch of getting New Zealand "Back On Track" with a steady hand on the economy that was also a slogan used by the now-ousted Liberal leader it’s often said that comebacks happen when leaders offer hope Australia reminded us that when parties reconnect with people’s values and focus on the issues that are front and centre — the cost of living housing affordability and universal healthcare — voters respond at the ballot box Lady Gaga gave a free concert Saturday night in front of 2 million fans who poured onto Copacabana Beach for the biggest show of her career (...) Thank you for making history with me,” Lady Gaga told a screaming crowd kicked off the show at around 22.10pm local time with her 2011 song Bloody Mary Cries of joy rose from the tightly-packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand Concert organisers said 2.1 million people attended the show switching between an array of dresses including one with the colours of the Brazilian flag Some fans – many of them young – arrived on the beach at the crack of dawn to secure a good spot “Today is the best day of my life,” said Manoela Dobes a 27-year-old designer who was wearing a dress plastered with a photograph from when she met Lady Gaga in the United States in 2019 Madonna also turned Copacabana Beach into a massive dance floor last year The large-scale performances are part of an effort led by City Hall to boost economic activity after Carnival and New Years’ Eve festivities and the upcoming month-long Saint John’s Day celebrations in June “It brings activity to the city during what was previously considered the low season – filling hotels and increasing spending in bars generating jobs and income for the population,” said Osmar Lima the city’s secretary of economic development in a statement released by Rio City Hall’s tourism department last month Rio’s City Hall said in a recent report that around 1.6 million people were expected to attend Lady Gaga's concert and that the show should inject at least 600 million reais (NZ$178.3 million) into Rio’s economy Similar concerts are scheduled to take place every year in May at least until 2028 Lady Gaga arrived in Rio in the early hours of Tuesday The city has been alive with Gaga-mania since as it geared up to welcome the pop star for her first show in the country since 2012 Rio’s metro employees danced to Lady Gaga’s 2008 hit song LoveGame and gave instructions for today in a video A free exhibition celebrating her career sold out While the vast majority of attendees were from Rio the event also attracted Brazilians from across the country and international visitors More than 500,000 tourists poured into the city in the days leading up to the show according to data from the local bus station and Tom Jobim airport Rio’s City Hall said in a statement yesterday made a cross-continent trip from Colombia to Brazil to attend the show “I’ve been a 100% fan of Lady Gaga my whole life,” said Serrano who was wearing a T-shirt featuring Lady Gaga’s outlandish costumes over the years the mega-star represents “total freedom of expression – being who one wants without shame” Rio officials have a history of organising huge concerts on Copacabana Beach Madonna’s show drew an estimated 1.6 million fans last year while 4 million people flooded onto the beach for a 1994 New Year’s Eve show by Rod Stewart in 1994 that was the biggest free rock concert in history sixteen sound towers were spread along the beach Rio state’s security plan included the presence of 3300 military and 1500 police officers Among those present were Lady Gaga admirers who remember their disappointment in 2017 when the artist cancelled a performance scheduled in Rio at the last minute due to health issues “She's the best artist in the world,” the 25-year-old said I love you” in Portuguese rose from the crowd behind him whose real name is Ella Yelich O'Connor which also displayed what appears to be the album cover art — an X-ray of a pelvis "100% written in blood," the website read The new album's announcement came a week after she released her latest single What Was That The song's music video was filmed at a mysterious pop-up event in New York City's Washington Square Park that was initially shut down by police. The event ended up going ahead after all, and fans who stayed got to hear the new song for the first time. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lorde (@lorde) It was the first sign of a follow-up to Lorde's previous album Her other albums were 2013's Pure Heroine and 2017's Melodrama she collaborated with British singer Charli XCX on a remix of Girl so confusing — on a re-release of the Grammy award-winning Brat Kim Kardashian thought she was going to be raped and killed when criminals broke into her bedroom in central Paris tied her up and stole more than US$6 million in jewellery 10 people will go on trial in Paris over the robbery abduction and kidnapping of the media personality and the concierge of the residence where she was staying during Paris Fashion Week the night of October 2 Kardashian’s lawyers said she will testify in person at the trial starting Monday and scheduled to run through May 23 "Ms Kardashian is reserving her testimony for the court and jury and does not wish to elaborate further at this time," they said "She has great respect and admiration for the French justice system and has been treated with great respect by the French authorities "She wishes the trial to proceed in an orderly fashion in accordance with French law and with respect for all parties to the case." In interviews and on her family’s reality TV show Kardashian has described being terrified as robbers pointed a gun at her In a 2020 appearance on David Letterman’s Netflix show she tearfully recalled thinking: "This is the time I’m going to get raped Twelve people were originally expected in the defendants’ box and another is seriously ill and can't be tried five of the 10 defendants were present at the scene of the robbery The French press has dubbed them The Granddad Robbers because the main defendants are elderly and have careers as bank robbers with long criminal records Kardashian told investigators she was taken to a bathroom next to her bedroom and placed in the bathtub Her attackers fled on bicycles or on foot and she managed to free herself by removing the tape from her hands and mouth She had also removed the tape from her feet and rushed to her stylist’s room She called her sister Kourtney to tell her about the theft Kardashian told investigators that she had not been injured adding that she wanted to leave France as soon as possible to be reunited with her children According to her testimony and that of the concierge at least one of the suspects had a handgun The gangsters stole many pieces of jewellery estimated to be worth more than US$6 million (NZ$10 million) Only one piece of jewellery — a diamond cross on platinum that was lost during the suspects' escape — has been recovered Two of the accused have partially confessed to the crime is one of two suspected robbers who allegedly entered the apartment his genetic profile was found on the tape used to gag Kardashian who was waiting for him in a parked car at a nearby train station The second robber said he tied up the concierge with cables but did not go up to Kardashian’s apartment said he acted as a lookout in the ground-floor reception area He said he was unarmed and did not personally threaten Kardashian but admitted he shared responsibility for the crime Abbas was arrested in January 2017 and spent 21 months in prison before being released under judicial supervision he co-authored a French-language book titled I Sequestered Kim Kardashian is the second alleged robber suspected of entering the flat although he was filmed by CCTV cameras and numerous telephone contacts with the other co-defendants show his involvement The other defendants are suspected of providing information about Kardashian’s presence in the apartment Others are accused of playing a role in the resale of the jewellery in Antwerp Joe Cocker and Bad Company will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame — in a class that also includes pop star Cyndi Lauper the rock duo the White Stripes and grunge masters Soundgarden the first female rap act to achieve gold and platinum status and the late singer-songwriter Warren Zevon will get the Musical Influence Award pianist Nicky Hopkins and bassist Carol Kaye will each get the Musical Excellence Award who sang at Woodstock and was best known for his cover of The Beatles’ With a Little Help From My Friends a member of Elvis Costello & The Attractions who argued that Cocker is "about as rock and roll as it gets" Soundgarden — with the late Chris Cornell as singer — get into the Hall on their third nomination They follow two other grunge acts in the Hall — Nirvana and Pearl Jam Bad Company get in having become radio fixtures with such arena-rock staples as Feel Like Makin’ Love Can’t Get Enough and Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy The Ahmet Ertegun Award — given to nonperforming industry professionals who had a major influence on music — will go to Lenny Waronker Some nominees that didn't get in this year included Mariah Carey and subsequent Let’s Twist Again are considered among the most popular songs in the history of rock 'n' roll The 83-year-old has expressed frustration that he hadn't been granted entry before including telling the AP in 2014: "I don’t want to get in there when I’m 85 years old so you better do it quick while I’m still smiling." Lauper rose to fame in the 1980s with hits such as Time After Time and Girls Just Want To Have Fun and went on to win a Tony Award for Kinky Boots have six Grammys and a reputation for pushing the boundaries of hip-hop The White Stripes — made up of Jack White and Meg White — were indie darlings in the early 2000s with such songs as Seven Nation Army Artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before they’re eligible for induction The induction ceremony will take place in Los Angeles this fall Nominees were voted on by more than 1200 artists historians and music industry professionals The selection criteria include "an artist’s impact on other musicians the scope and longevity of their career and body of work as well as their innovation and excellence in style and technique" Dave Matthews Band and singer-guitarist Peter Frampton were inducted Lorde has dropped her new single What Was That after weeks of cryptic posts and teases that set fans buzzing It's the lead single from her upcoming fourth album and her first original solo release since 2021's Solar Power which is three minutes and 28 seconds in length Some fans had been lucky enough to hear the track in full earlier this week. On Wednesday, Lorde posted a picture of Washington Square Park yesterday with the caption "tonight 7pm". Fans flooded the park an hour before she was supposed to appear, with photos shared of eager fans scaling trees to catch a glimpse of the singer. Shortly before she was to perform, the Royals singer took to social media to tell fans police had shut the event down. "Omg @thepark the cops are shutting us down," the message read. "I am truly amazed by how many of you showed !!! "But they’re telling me you gotta disperse ... I’m so sorry." However, the pop-up event ended up going ahead after all, with fans who stayed getting their first full airing of Lorde's new single. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lorde (@lorde) Lorde, real name Ella Yelich O'Connor, announced the single last week sharing a headshot-style photo of her wearing a red shirt with a dripping wet face Earlier this month, she dropped a 15-second snippet of the unreleased song Lorde was seen wearing a white shirt and jeans while walking through New York City I gave you everything/Now we wake from a dream What was that?” she sings over a synth beat It was the first sign of a follow up to Lorde's previous album Emergency services have rushed to a crowded Auckland restaurant tonight after an injured man walked in claiming he had been stabbed The incident occurred shortly after 8pm at Mulan Malaysian Restaurant in Birkenhead on Auckland’s North Shore A police spokesperson confirmed a person turned up at a commercial premises with an injury this evening “They were being taken to Auckland Hospital and police were working to follow up to determine what happened,” the police spokesperson said A St John spokesperson said crews were called to the incident around about 9pm and sent one ambulance and one rapid response vehicle A witness told the Herald she and her family had been eating dinner at the restaurant when a man came in and sat at the front “Where he came in was the bar area which is quite separate Because I was with kids and they started to talk about someone being stabbed I thought I better go because it would freak them out Police were outside the Mulan Malaysian Restaurant in Birkenhead after a person showed up with serious injuries New Zealand Herald photograph by Hayden Woodward there were quite a few police and quite a few ambulances “Apparently he just walked in and said he got stabbed.” The restaurant’s owner told the Herald the injured man told staff he had been stabbed and started to show them the wound The whole thing happened within 20 minutes.” The restaurant’s owner told the Herald the injured man told staff he had been stabbed and started to show them the wound In the wake of a spate of fires caused by lithium-ion batteries including the most recent at Abilities' North Shore recycling plant Auckland Council supports the ruling by the Auckland District Court in the matter of Auckland Council v Sims Metal Industries Limited following a significant fire at the Sims Metal scrap metal yard in Favona in July 2023 caused by the ignition of a lithium-ion battery within a large scrap metal stockpile released toxic smoke across parts of Auckland and highlighted a growing national and international issue surrounding battery disposal and fire risk recognised the unique challenges posed by lithium-ion batteries noting there is currently no available technology capable of reliably identifying or detecting them within scrap material The judge described the situation as “a new and emerging issue,” which has led to fires not only in New Zealand but around the globe While acknowledging Sims Metal’s cooperation and the absence of any intentional wrongdoing reduced from an initial starting point of $50,000 The enforcement orders issued require Sims Metal to implement several improvements at the James Fletcher Drive These include the completion of a secondary access point to the site by May 2025 the development of a certified Fire Risk Management Plan and a Stockpile Management Plan The orders are registered with the Environment Court and will remain in place unless superseded by conditions with a new resource consent “There has been considerable difficulty in finding a technical solution to the problems with batteries catching on fire Auckland Council's Field Operations Manager for Compliance emphasised the importance of remaining vigilant despite the novelty of the issue “We recognise this is a new issue and we’re all finding our way with lithium-ion batteries and those handling them The council views this case as an important precedent in balancing empathy for emerging challenges with the necessity of regulatory compliance It also highlights the importance of proactive risk management and industry-wide collaboration to adapt to evolving environmental risks © Auckland Council 2025 All rights reserved For more information on what data is contained in the cookies please click the 'Find out more on the Auckland Council website' button Sign up for our e-newsletter and be the first to know about exciting events and news You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. Visit image gallery to purchase the image A fire at a McDonald's in the Auckland suburb of Pakuranga is being treated as suspicious Police and fire crews were called to the blaze in Pakuranga Rd about 3pm today Pakuranga Rd was closed in both directions but all staff and customers were safely evacuated McDonald's is assisting emergency services as they begin the investigation into the cause of the fire." said he saw a big fireball and could still hear explosions when he spoke to RNZ about 3.25pm "It started around the play area from what I could see initially but it has now engulfed the whole building It appeared to him it has started near the children's playground Auckland Transport (AT) is asking for feedback to change the operating hours of Dominion Road’s southbound bus lane by one hour AT is also proposing to install a peak time right hand turn ban at certain bottleneck intersections to improve traffic flow and we simply can’t fit any more vehicles down it – it’s reached its peak,” Chris Martin AT’s Road Network Optimisation Manager says “More Aucklanders are on move earlier in the afternoon means the peak travel time home on Dominion Road now starts at 3pm rather than 4pm and make the appropriate amendments to keep it moving,” Mr Martin says “The only things we can do to speed up travel is to make the most of the space already on the road and this means using the existing bus lane more and to restrict right hand turns at key intersections “We believe this change will save the average bus passenger up to three minutes in travel time between 3pm-4pm along Dominion Road That’s up to 15 minutes every week,” he says People who travel along Dominion Road will know all too well that it is often congested in peak times While Auckland’s population has grown rapidly since the number of vehicles that can fit down the road Around 7,500 passengers ride a bus through Dominion Road each day with 3,000 of these people tagging on at stops along this road This important route runs up to 29 buses (bus no 252 & 253) per hour in both directions making it essential for the community’s travel needs A key aspect to those bus passengers is when they travel as most will likely be travelling at peak times but AT traffic counts suggest that 1.5k vehicles travel the road in each peak period So at those times buses are carrying the majority of people along the corridor There are only four changes being proposed and while they are small the idea of restricting right-hand turns is bound to upset some people Our data shows that more people are using Dominion Road between 3–4pm than in previous years with the afternoon peak starting earlier and lasting longer Dominion Road is a key bus route with growing delays—up to 6 minutes in the morning and 8 minutes in the afternoon While the 4–7pm bus lane has improved bus travel during peak times especially from school traffic and people working flexible hours is now causing delays before the bus lane begins They should make this change (or better) to all bus lanes around the region northbound (towards the city) traffic backs up from Mt Albert Road southbound (away from the city) traffic backs up from Denbigh Avenue These queues often block the Memorial Avenue intersection so buses get stuck in the same traffic as other vehicles This area often gets congested because the road is narrow and its proximity close to two nearby sets of traffic lights (the Dominion Road / Balmoral Road intersection and a mid-block crossing near Rockfield Road) Turning in and out of Wiremu Street and Dominion Road also causes delays in both directions as vehicles can build up waiting for the vehicle to turn This intersection experiences heavy traffic especially during the afternoon peak period Our observations have shown that southbound (heading away from the city) afternoon peak queues tend to originate from the Dominion Road / Valley Road intersection often extending through the View Road intersection the View Road / George Street intersection slows traffic because of its staggered layout causing inefficient signal timing It’s a bottleneck for northbound (heading to the city) traffic and often makes it hard for buses to change lanes to turn right into View Road These changes look good so it’s worth supporting them Perhaps my biggest issue with them is that it has taken AT this long to get to them They should have made these kinds of changes years ago and looked to do the same thing on other arterials around the region Once small improvements like those suggested by AT have been made perhaps we can also get back to progressing a bigger fix No wait maybe we could build an underground metro system No better still why don’t we build the tunnels for metro and just shove light rail in them We can have all the expense of metro without the capacity I’ll look at getting a working group set up who can maybe start the consultation process with the public Then ignore most of that provide some advice back to us in 3-5 years Then maybe we can look at getting a business case underway maybe we should chuck it down Sandringham Road instead I heard there’s a few houses out that way I still reckon the RMA stymied surface level You can’t even build a house the slightly shades your neighbours yard how could they possibly build a noisy train line near existing residential houses I think surface light rail was going face some serious head winds from well connected and lawyered groups Pretty sure the horse is well dead by this point at this point auckland collectively deserves the traffic woes and pollution after voting for numpties who break promises and numpties who take a flamethrower to those broken promises Pretty sure it’s not just Auckland that chooses the central government Yes I think we are only supposed to be up to the denial or anger parts There is currently a short 200m gap between the bus lanes that start/end at George St and the cycle lanes that start/end at Charles Street These improvements should include cycle provision through the George St/View Road intersection to fill that small gap which is currently the most dangerous part of my commute by bike along Dominion Road 100% “clearway in front of 72-114 Dominion Road near View Road to improve traffic flow… 3pm to 7pm on weekdays” What exactly does “improve traffic flow” mean It’s so close to Balmoral Rd where people can go to avoid those right turns and having Dominion Road obstructed by those turners avoiding the lights seems so unnecessary These changes were of course delayed in the past by the various wider Dominion Rd upgrades that have been deferred over the years There will be more like this on all the arterial that Connected Communities tied up for years Need to be looking at bus lanes during events as well Wiremu Street should be left turn only permanently buses and general traffic often get stuck there because people want to turn right and the intersection is blocked due to people not respecting the cross hatching Right turn out would probably be needed off-peak as people can use Volcanic St (or McDonalds) 2012 – we have this great idea for a modern light rail system 2025 – what if instead of 4pm the bus lane started at 3pm 2026 – too many objections from ‘stakeholders’; nothing was done Nothing controversial here — all seems sensible The problem seems to be companies/owners claiming they were blindsided by these changes and that changes will destroy their business and notify everyone that in the next 30 years Dominion Road may become bus only (no private cars allowed) — regular updates and planning every 5 years This should give everyone a chance to adjust Start charging car drivers who occupy public road space with their silly metal boxes with wheels They have been blocking our public space for too long and no one will stand up to them and say ENOUGH We need true leadership in this donkey town if we wish to be considered a respectable city The fact that in the upcoming election or even previous election we didn’t have any candidates running on a platform of reimagining transport in Auckland is telling Despite congestion being most people’s key issue… As someone who takes a bus twice a day down Dominion Road can I say the issue isn’t so much the time the bus lane starts as enforcement I reckon every day there are cars parked in the lanes within the 4-7pm restriction Buses have to stop and merge into the very busy car lane Maybe a week of someone actually ticketing those cars would make a difference I don’t know if they’ve gotten slack since but when I used to catch the 20 along New North Road I always saw AT staff and tow trucks at the ready for when the clear lanes were active Yellow lines=tow truck driver removing the problem vehicle immediately ATs current plan will need AT staff onsite to sign off on tow trucks taking action and every single day there are cars getting towed at 4pm Is Dominion Rd not seen as important enough Maybe just not enough tow trucks and staff to go around I’m not exaggerating – every single day no matter how many they tow there just seem to be more queueing up to take their turn to get towed Because Dominion Rd is only 2 lanes each way at this point the right turn restriction at Memorial Ave should be 24/7 There are good alternative options in both directions and making it 24/7 makes the route planning consistent for drivers (and Maps directions etc) I cannot fathom why they didn’t restrict right hand turns on Wiremu 20 years ago the lights turn green and only a handful of cars get though before the lane is at a standstill because cars are parked in the bus lane and a car is stopped on the main traffic lane waiting to turn right into Wiremu Meanwhile the traffic from Balmoral road intersection gets backed up along Dom Rd all the way to Valley road The 3pm bus lane start will be great for doing school pickups on the bike Always a bit hairy biking through there when the bus lane is not in operation No one abides by the no right hand turn at certain hours unless they actually policed it which seems unlikely Because car convenience is king (even when it affects car convenience!) I know that when the Mt Albert town centre signals were redesigned some 5 years ago a 3% (of total traffic flows) right turn caused some 10-20% overall capacity loss and corresponding delays AT investigated for ages whether to ban that right turn They decided it was too much a change for people to accept It’s interesting they are now looking at it here The easy way to fix the View Road intersection is to not turn right at View road The few buses that currently do that are called express Denbigh Avenue Roundabout wasn’t mentioned Small roundabouts simply don’t work at rush hour Buses in one direction park in the middle of the roundabout to let fellow bus drivers coming the other way have a chance But you often have to wait 5 minutes for that to happen I get the felling AT don’t really want to fix Dominion Road as it will reduce the business case for Light Rail Some pretty easy fixes that are not mentioned here Unless there are UK style cameras everywhere policing this (including when people block intersections by covering the cross hatching) it will not do much other than drum up well researched articles and robust drive show debate on NZ herald and ZB Lack of enforcement seems to be the main contributor to the driver quality (or lack thereof) in Auckland I don’t think there is a day where I have driven that I haven’t seen offenses that Maybe we need to expand what offences under the Transport Act parking wardens can enforce Will AT commit to following official process Or will the project team incorporate valid feedback … throw it all away because someone complained The supply of public goodwill to keep submitting when AT shows no respect for their own processes might dry up It’s unfortunate that central government isn’t stepping and not saying “its time to build $7 Billion 4.5 KM Heavy Rail with 4 stations(Bellwood Ave Windstone) under Dominion RD” cause that right now it would solve Dominions congestion A lot of people down would be wanting a mode that gets them to Waitemata/Britomart same time as a car would A Road user charge will be displacing vehicles to another main corridor(Mt Eden Rd & Sandringham RD) in the short term and in the long term 10-15 years time vehicle use will increase back to full capacity numbers again be back to the same issue The whole road user charge is nonsensical and not practical solution to solving Dominion RD Ideally the government should scrap some RoNS roads(SH1 Whangarei to Port Marsden Highway Petone to Grenada Link Road and Cross Valley Link) and use the roads for next election cycle RoNs which is in real need of Heavy Rail line right underneath Also with adding Heavy Rail underneath we’d be solving housing supply value of properties would increase due to convenience and accessibility we’d be fixing rental market availability and reducing rental average prices in Auckland and making journey times quicker as a car would It’s unfortunate that central government didn’t get light rail built 8 years ago stops every 800m at street level right on the doorstep of shops and apartments green tracked corridor for more urban nature Even more unfortunate that this current government cancelled light rail entirety without a replacement “Auckland Transport (AT) is asking for feedback to change the operating hours of Dominion Road’s southbound bus lane by one hour This would also save them all the waste from having to first accept & use that feedback in a redesign and then backtrack it all under small backroom pressure AT Transport: why not institute xpress buses along Dominion Road and restore the xpress bus on New North Road the taxpayer residents) far less – just a few more buses and drivers we can only afford to spend billions on roads such as Mill Road and East West Link We can also afford billions on tax cuts for landlords surely the fact that dominion road buses have been overcrowded and unreliably bunched up for years at the maximum frequency that sporadic bus lanes can handle – to speak NOTHING of the congestion where bus routes all interline at Symonds St and Wellesley St – can be solved by a few peak express services The truly brilliant (/s) minds of the so-called fiscally responsible at work Not sure how effective an express bus would be if the only way around an all stops bus is to pull into the stationary line of traffic in the general lane The express bus goes via Ian McKinnan Drive and and Queen Street It’s not really an express bus as it used to be though express meant non-stop to Mt Roskill shops (which was always fun as there were always people in the bus wanting off before that) These days it’s only non-stop to just past the overpass especially for people from Lynfield and Blockhouse Bay surely there is demand for very limited stop one via Ian McKinnon all the way to Lynfield and Blockhouse Bay Pity with the split I guess it kills it’s power off a bit No stops between SW Motorway/Denbigh Ave say and Upper Queen St apart from one at the midway point of Balmoral Rd old Jan 2021 sure had more “express” buses compare to now There was 17 in the morning and evening peaks compared to 10 morning and 5 evening ones now 2.5 & 3.4 hr span to now just 1 hr & 1/2 span I guess when less people worked from home & bus budget/trimming of some peaks services they got the chop Of course this peak/express is more a city centre one compared the standard 25 bus which passes right by the University Part-time right turn bans will be useful across the network using mix of static signs and VMS will provide monitoring of compliance and benefits as proof of concept At least demonstration of minor changes will build support for lots more minor changes while we wait for politics and the economy to align for doing a real fix to the tramway suburb Can they head to full 24-7 tidal lanes and full right hand turn bans I think some similar things were out on hold due to the impending light rail plans George Street-Dominion Road is an awkward one because that is one of the few ways to get from Dominion to New North Road I guess it will all just shift to Charles St which leads to George (sounds royal) That Charles looks dangerous turning out of to Dominion due to the motorway like bit coming from the overpass downhill run I guess when they say: “We are proposing to install part-time right turn bans at 7-10am and 3-7pm on weekdays *in and out* of Memorial Avenue from Dominion Road to improve traffic flow.” ..they just mean *into* Memorial Avenue from Dominion Road A month is a long consultation time for a set of straight-forward changes I appreciate that there may be a legal minimum timeframe Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Greater Auckland is an independent volunteer-run analysis and advocacy platform for improving the quality of our cities we provide evidence based debate on urban form Our aim is to foster a greater Auckland for all Thanks for signing up for news from Greater Auckland Keep an eye on your inbox for regular updates We love being able to keep you in the loop - it means we know theres a community of like-minded people who are keen on making Auckland better on bikes Sign up for updates about what's happening Several fire crews are battling a fire at an industrial building in west Auckland Fire and Emergency were first alerted about 3.20am this morning to the blaze at a timber manufacturer and storage company in Glen Eden Crews found the fire coming from the rear of the 20x90 metre building Fire and Emergency says the fire appears now to be contained Monthly Auckland residential property sales continued to gain momentum during April and sales for the first four months of the year were their highest for four years “By the end of April this year we had sold 3440 properties 18.5 percent higher than in the first four months of last year 65.5 percent higher than in 2023 and 2.8 percent higher than in 2022,” said Peter Thompson “It underlines that in terms of the number of sales being made the Auckland market is building some traction While down nearly a third on those for March this was the highest number of sales we have made in April for four years and we only exceeded this number in April once in the last nine years “Sales in the early part of April slowed when talk of tariff ‘trade wars’ reached their highest but rebounded quickly towards month’s end “March is the peak of the summer selling season and a decline in sales numbers compared to March is normal “From a price perspective the market showed no signs of lifting with prices in April drifting downwards with the median price at $934,000 “Prices normally ease back post March as we head into autumn “A marked feature of sales in April was the high percentage of sales in the under $750,000 price segment which accounted for 26.8 percent of all sales In March this price segment accounted for 23.4 percent of sales “The high number of new build apartments and town houses in the under $750,000 price segment currently hitting the market are proving extremely popular with first time buyers and investors “Sales of properties for in excess of $2 million represented 7.5 percent of all sales and this figure is consistent with the percentage of $2 million sales in April last year “New listings for April were a healthy 1578 and properties for sale on our books at month end were 6113 “This number is only marginally down on last month’s record level of properties for sale at month end “April sales in the rural and lifestyle markets to the north south and west of Auckland continued to enjoy strong sales activity in the month with sales reaching a little over $61 million This level of turnover was down only 5 percent on March’s outstanding sales month “With 28 rural and lifestyle properties being sold this was the highest number of sales in the month of April in four years.” “We are concerned at the apparent decline in monarch butterflies in NZ,” said Jacqui Knight founding trustee of the Moths and Butterflies of NZ Trust The New Zealand Plumbing Awards acknowledge the many positive achievements and success stories in the plumbing the national conference has been held for over 100 years "Insurers recognise that in the early stages of recovery many people may not be able to quickly lodge a claim," ICNZ chief executive Kris Faafoi said "While you should contact your insurer as soon as possible don’t wait to take steps to reduce further damage and begin recovery if it’s safe to do so." As most seasonal influenza vaccines are made using chicken eggs the SMC asked experts for background on seasonal flu vaccine manufacture and alternatives to the standard jab "ODF is much more than a technical specification: it is a symbol of freedom of choice support for interoperability and protection of users from the commercial strategies of Big Tech," said Eliane Domingos The Union says the loss of the rail-enabled Aratere a crucial link between the North and South Islands significantly weakens the resilience of New Zealand's national supply chain A North Shore recycling firm has been fined for a fire caused by lithium-ion batteries with Auckland Council calling it a wake-up call for industry vigilance on battery disposal Simsmetal Industries was fined $30,000 in a case brought by the council in the Auckland District Court after a fire at its scrap metal yard in Favona in July 2023 caused by the ignition of a lithium-ion battery within a large scrap metal stockpile released toxic smoke across parts of Auckland and highlighted a growing national and international issue surrounding battery disposal and fire risk The Glenfield plant caught fire last Thursday evening burning to the ground and destroying essential equipment The organisation provided employment and support to more than 100 disabled people Fire and Emergency NZ community education manager Tom Ronaldson said the organisation encouraged people and businesses to dispose of used lithium-ion batteries safely “Do not place lithium-ion batteries into the general rubbish collection – they should be taken to battery collection locations or transfer stations to be recycled We also advise people not to leave discarded batteries in piles.” Judge Jeff Smith recognised the unique challenges posed by lithium-ion batteries The judge described the situation as “a new and emerging issue” which had led to fires not only in New Zealand but around the globe While acknowledging Simsmetal’s co-operation and the absence of any intentional wrongdoing The enforcement orders require Simsmetal to implement several improvements at the James Fletcher Drive “There has been considerable difficulty in finding a technical solution to the problems with batteries catching on fire,” Judge Smith said “This is not only a national problem but an international one; these orders form a workaround solution until more technical solutions Auckland Council’s field operations manager for compliance “But businesses still need to take responsibility for their disposal - this is their business The council viewed the case as an important precedent in balancing empathy for emerging challenges with the necessity of regulatory compliance It also highlighted the importance of proactive risk management and industry-wide collaboration to adapt to evolving environmental risks Sign up to The Daily H Househunters are being offered $500 grocery vouchers or a free week's rent by Auckland landlords keen to lure them - but are being told to hold off for more TradeMe statistics showed the number of new rental listings in the city in February was up 34 percent on the same time last year - from 8049 to 10,805 Aspire Property Management managing director Mike Atkinson said the market was like musical chairs "At the moment there are a lot more chairs than there are people playing the game so it's a lot easier to get a seat," he said Aspire had about 1000 properties on its books Atkinson had noticed more little sweeteners enter the mix we have a couple of properties at the moment offering one week's free rent That's particularly common amongst apartments," he said RNZ also found properties on Trade Me advertising two weeks free rent and several houses that had dropped their weekly rent by up to $60 a week Atkinson said would-be tenants would probably be better off in the long term by negotiating a lower weekly rent "If you find a property that you think is a nice property that you'd like to live but its $20 a week more than you think you can afford to pay then definitely put an offer in to the agent or landlord," he said One of the biggest things landlords could do to help get tenants was to allow pets Atkinson said "new listings" figures did not tell the full story because many homes were are sitting empty for longer than they were a year ago showed and an almost 60 percent increase in available rentals in South Auckland Those working in property said there was a mix of reasons - including Aucklanders moving overseas or putting their own homes up for rent when they could not sell them RNZ visited a Mount Roskill viewing to ask house hunters what they were seeing Prashitesh and Palvi were searching for a family home and had noticed some of the incentives but they were not enough to lure them or its not the type of house we want," Palvi said noticed there was a lot more choice than when he last looked two years ago "We've already looked at 20-25 houses so it good Latest figures from realestate.co.nz showed the growing renters market might be having an impact on weekly rents The average rental Auckland in February fell four percent on the previous year to $689 a week the president of advocacy group Renters United said talk of a renters market was not all it seemed to be There was still a power imbalance that meant very few renters were negotiating cheaper prices "If you are a renter that knows about these statistics then but its not something we are seeing across the board," he said His advice to renters who did get a good price was to lock it in their contract for as long as possible Renters in two major cities may be paying less than they were a year ago Housing affordability has improved - unless you're a tenant The tenants were evicted after complaining about sewage in the kitchen More properties are coming onto the market and some are taking longer to rent out Owners renting out part of their homes thinking they are not covered by tenancy rules are falling foul of the law Top Stories RSS Coromandel townships are being isolated by flooding as ex-tropical Cyclone Tam continues to cause havoc across the upper North Island Auckland ferry services have been cancelled due to “significant risk” while holidaymakers’ flights have been disrupted as the storm lashes the upper North Island Major roads across Northland are underwater with some motorists being plucked to safety from stranded vehicles after heavy rain caused surface flooding multiple townships are having access cut by flooding State Highway 25 is now affected on both sides of the peninsula As heavy rain continues to fall and high tide approaches NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi warns that worsening conditions are expected to force full closures on both sides of SH25 within hours About 10,000 households remain without power tonight in Northland could be waiting for up to three days for reconnection About 10,000 Auckland homes lost power during last night’s intense winds but Vector says about 85% of customers have now been reconnected Roofs have lifted from several Auckland buildings while trees have been blown on to homes and cars as gale-force winds ripped through towns and cities Images posted on social media show the Paihia waterfront consumed by a massive ocean surge Other photos show trucks navigating submerged Northland roads An elderly Auckland couple were trapped in their home by a tree blown over by ex-tropical Cyclone Tam’s destructive winds MetService has extended its “significant” warnings across the North Island as powerlines and trees topple and roads flood in Northland Fire and Emergency New Zealand has responded to more than 150 calls since 6pm last night as MetService warns the wind will continue for at least 10 more hours One of those calls was a couple in their 80s who were trapped in their home on Honeysuckle Lane in Mairangi Bay the neighbour’s tree fell on her family home The tree narrowly missed her parents’ bedroom and badly damaged the property’s exterior balcony were trapped in the house as firefighters cut the tree with a chainsaw “They’re a bit worried it might collapse on them,” Kidd said Northlanders have been warned they might have no power for three days “We’ve managed to restore power to about 8000 connections approximately 12,000 are still without power “Please be aware that if you’re currently without power it’s likely you’ll remain off for most of today and possibly overnight Aucklanders have been warned strong winds will last for at least another 14 hours said strong winds will persist in Auckland until midnight and until 8pm in Northland Strong wind watches are in place for Taumarunui Northlanders have been told to expect 40 to 70mm of rain over the next 12 hours Heavy rain warnings have been extended for the Coromandel Peninsula with MetService telling residents to expect 30 hours of intense rainfall from now until tomorrow afternoon Heavy rain warnings are also in place for 36 hours for Bay of Plenty and 39 hours in Gisborne Tasman is set to receive the longest duration of heavy rainfall with a 56-hour spell of deluges forecast from 6pm this evening Heavy rain watches are in place for Auckland and Great Barrier Island until 3am A heavy rain watch will commence for Bay of Plenty tomorrow at noon and 6pm tonight in Tongariro Associate professor Vinod Suresh was critically injured after being hit by a car outside the University of Auckland An Auckland University professor doesn’t know when he will be able to walk or eat again after being hit by a car while walking on the footpath in central Auckland Five pedestrians were injured when a car mounted the footpath and crashed into a tree on Symonds St on March 24 outside the University of Auckland engineering school Dr Vinod Suresh was left fighting for his life The associate professor at the University of Auckland’s Department of Engineering Science and Auckland Bioengineering Institute now faces a long road to recovery from his injuries; his quads separated from his pelvis “If it was not for the quick actions of the ambulance and fire rescue .. I might not have been here today to talk about it,” he told the Herald in an exclusive interview this week “The injuries [are of] such a serious enough nature that even now I cannot eat any solids or take any liquids I basically can’t live an independent life.” He has lost a significant amount of weight because he is unable to eat The crash has had “devastating consequences” for Suresh his wife and their two school-aged children and I don’t think there’s a way to quantify that experience in words.” A 20-year-old driver accused of causing the crash has name suppression He has been charged with possession of a drug utensil two charges of carelessly operating a vehicle and a further three charges of operating a vehicle carelessly and causing injuries Suresh said he is trying to avoid feeling resentment and instead looking towards the future there’s not a whole lot of point in trying to understand the motivation or character of the person driving the car .. My focus has been on dealing with the consequences.” hasn’t worked since her husband was injured and is at his hospital bedside every day We want him to be back to where he was,” she said “It’s beyond frustrating that someone’s carelessness can cause this “[Suresh] was on the footpath; there was nothing he could have done.” Suresh plays squash and is a volunteer leader for Sea Scouts and the entire village is really affected,” his wife said His “significant pain” is mostly managed by painkillers and while he’s trying to take his recovery one day at a time “I’m worried about what the effect of this [will be] on my health going forward.” Jaime Lyth is a multimedia journalist for the New Zealand Herald Lyth began working under the NZ Herald masthead in 2021 as a reporter for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei Billboards attacking Green Party MPs Chlöe Swarbrick and Tamatha Paul have appeared in Auckland and Wellington with the group responsible saying the party has an "anti-victim mentality." which resemble Green Party campaign hoardings contain the slogans "Defund the Police" and "Vote Green" Defund da Police," a reference to KRS-One's track Sound of da Police which Paul played during her DJ Set at Cuba Dupa last month The pictures of Paul have appeared on a screen on a building on Whitmore Street The billboards look similar to the campaign hoardings Paul used in her successful bid to win the Wellington Central electorate in 2023 An authorisation statement at the bottom of the billboards confirmed the Sensible Sentencing Trust was behind the campaign the group said Auckland and Wellington's CBDs "face significant challenges in relation to public safety and crime but the Green MPs representing these communities would have the police 'defunded' and even prisons 'abolished'." Spokesperson Louise Parsons said the "vast majority" of Green voters would be "shocked by the radical views of the Green Party's electorate MPs in Auckland Central and Wellington Central" The Sensible Sentencing Trust is a group which advocates for tougher penalties against offenders The billboards were later changed to use photos captured from Parliament TV The Sensible Sentencing Trust said the Greens had complained to the billboard company asserting copyright breaches as they owned the copyright to Paul's official candidate photo it "reactivated" in order to oppose the government's Three Strikes sentencing bill which it said was "watered-down" and a "betrayal" to voters who were promised a tougher regime said her party had always pushed for "real evidence-based debate on policy," though the party would not comment on whether it would take action against the billboards "After 40 years of trickle-down politics and economics calm discussion about how to genuinely make our communities safer or will we stay stuck in the knee-jerk shock politics?" Swarbrick said "It's clear right wing organisations and political parties are keen to shut down any civil discussion about where things have gone wrong and how we could improve - so much for being free speech advocates." Defunding the police is not Green Party policy At a panel last month Paul said police resources could be used more productively and suggested other agencies and organisations were better placed to take on some of police's functions She said a "visible police presence" was making people feel more on edge and she had received "nothing but complaints" about police beat patrols A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission confirmed the Green Party had contacted the Commission about the advertisements the billboards complied with the Electoral Act While third-party promoters are required to obtain authorisation from a party secretary to publish an advertisement that may reasonably be regarded as encouraging or persuading voters to vote for a party they do not need authorisation if the advertisement encourages voters not to vote for a party based on the overall content and context of the billboards our view is that they may reasonably be regarded as encouraging or persuading voters not to vote for the Green Party the prior written authorisation of the party secretary is not required," the spokesperson said The billboards also included a promoter statement with a name and address The spokesperson said the Electoral Commission does not regulate the content of election advertisements and if a party was concerned the content did not comply with advertising standards it could go to the Advertising Standards Authority She says a "visible police presence" makes people feel "more on edge." "This tragic accident is bigger than politics and Tamatha Paul should be ashamed of herself" The Greens say Benjamin Doyle is feeling "scared and worried about their whānau" Politics RSS Peter Prescott is still fighting a speeding ticket he received in 2016 A man who took his fight against an $80 speeding ticket all the way to the Supreme Court racked up $34,000 in legal fees and was declared bankrupt when he couldn’t pay them Peter Prescott has now failed to have his bankruptcy annulled and is liable to pay more legal fees to the New Zealand Police after another unsuccessful trip to court Prescott was caught driving 64km/h in a 50km/h zone and was sent a ticket for it he tried to claim he wasn’t driving the car When he didn’t pay the fine and the matter went to court Prescott didn’t show up and he was fined a further $80 and $30 in court costs Prescott unsuccessfully appealed the fine in the District Court and rather than seek leave to appeal he sought a judicial review of that decision That request for review was struck out and Prescott was ordered to pay nearly $7000 in court costs Prescott tried unsuccessfully to have the High Court recall that judgment before making a bid to the Court of Appeal to stay the costs order That was also dismissed and close to $6000 was added to his burgeoning debt A further $2500 was added to the bill after Prescott tried and failed to get leave to apply to the Supreme Court Prescott did have one small win in 2020 when he applied to the High Court to appeal the original District Court decision before applying to the High Appeal and Supreme courts to recall earlier decisions to decline a judicial review Then in December 2020 police served a bankruptcy notice on Prescott for failing to pay them close to $7000 in court costs Prescott tried and failed to have this bankruptcy notice set aside and was ordered to pay a further $12,000 in costs By September 2021 Prescott owed the police $27,000 and in 2022 he was declared bankrupt then tried his hand at the Court of Appeal to have the order reversed Prescott tried to have his bankruptcy annulled in the High Court at Auckland on the basis that the process of the hearing was unfair because he had a hearing deficiency that prevented him from fully participating in the hearing Prescott raised five cross-claims against the police but didn’t produce any actual evidence to support them Prescott claimed he raised this issue with the court at the time which states that a person must be given a fair opportunity to be heard and a reasonable opportunity to present their case Prescott said he was deprived of the opportunity to properly or fully present his case and this was a failure in procedure and process Associate Judge Paul Cogswell said he had carefully considered Prescott’s submissions but couldn’t find anything in the conduct at the original bankruptcy hearing that reached the standard to annul the order the applicant was never deprived of an opportunity to raise cross-claims in opposition to the bankruptcy application,” he said “The applicant’s claimed hearing deficiencies did not interfere with his ability to properly prepare his adjudication opposition and substantiate his alleged cross-claims The applicant had known for many months that evidence was required to support any such argument “He simply failed to bring the requisite evidence to establish the cross-claims.” Associate Judge Cogswell said nothing police did or said prevented Prescott from putting his case forward “The applicant has not pointed to any ground relied on by the police in the adjudication hearing that he could not respond to or was embarrassed by,” he said Prescott also did not provide any evidence that he had a hearing impediment to the court Associate Judge Cogswell dismissed Prescott’s claim on the basis he was unable to prove that the hearing had defects there was any evidence that could have affected the outcome or that there was any other reason why he shouldn’t have been declared bankrupt Police are entitled to claim more legal costs against Prescott because of the unfavourable ruling Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022 Tropical Cyclone Tam has just been named by @FJMETserviceWhile Tam's centre is expected to remain west of Cape Reinga, it will still bring significant weather to the upper North Island late Wed-ThuThis will include strong winds near or above 100 km/h 🔴 and heavy rainfall 🟣 pic.twitter.com/gsvZCJepmX we are in for a very wet and windy few days heading into the Easter holiday break ‼️A deep subtropical low is approaching the country from the northwest on Wednesday.\n\nAssociated fronts are expected to.. The severe storm barreling towards the upper North Island has been upgraded to a tropical cyclone The Fiji Meteorological Service has named the storm “Tropical Cyclone Tam” NIWA Weather said Tam’s centre was expected to remain west of Cape Reinga “It will bring significant weather to the upper North Island late Wednesday to Thursday “This will include strong winds near or above 100 km/h and heavy rainfall.” Tropical Cyclone Tam has just been named by @FJMETserviceWhile Tam's centre is expected to remain west of Cape Reinga, it will still bring significant weather to the upper North Island late Wed-ThuThis will include strong winds near or above 100 km/h 🔴 and heavy rainfall 🟣 pic.twitter.com/gsvZCJepmX Weather warnings have been issued for Northland MetService said it was possible these could be upgraded as the storm gets closer “It’s going to be pretty substantial,” MetService meteorologist Michael Pawley told the Herald Monster waves are expected along the east coast from Northland to Gisborne with a 6m swell expected on Thursday The Auckland Harbour Bridge could be closed or have speeds lowered at short notice and motorists should be careful on the roads Auckland Transport said public transport could be affected due to a higher risk on the roads “MetService is expecting bad weather to hit Auckland from Wednesday to Friday,” a spokesperson said “We’re advising Aucklanders to be safe and plan ahead There will be a higher safety risk out on the roads and some public transport services may also be affected - especially ferries.” An orange heavy rain warning will come into force for Northland at 3am tomorrow An orange strong wind warning will begin in Northland Auckland and Great Barrier Island at 3pm tomorrow There is a high chance these could be upgraded to red warnings Waitomo and Buller are also in the firing line Heavy rain watches have been issued from Auckland south to the Bay of Plenty for between 3am Thursday to midday Friday Strong wind watches cover Coromandel to Taumarunui from midnight Wednesday to 6am Friday Auckland Emergency Management general manager Adam Maggs told Newstalk ZB that residents should prepare their houses for the storm “That means moving and securing outdoor furniture and clearing drains and gutters,” he said “If our community sees there is a stormwater blockage call Auckland Council and we will be able to deal with that.” Maggs also advised Auckland residents to put their rubbish bins out on the day of collection rather than the night before “That will reduce them blowing around our communities.” He also said people should report downed trees on the Auckland Council website so arborists could quickly remove them Maggs suggested Auckland residents should create a plan and check their emergency supplies if power was to go out “Do you have a torch and a radio to listen to updates,” Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news and local stories from Tāmaki Makaurau He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022 Severe weather is continuing to batter the top of the North Island as Cyclone Tam brings heavy rain and strong winds the storm will begin to arrive in Coromandel Bay of Plenty and the north of the South Island RNZ is the statutory civil defence lifeline radio broadcaster and will be providing vital information and updates as they come to hand. Check out the frequencies here Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday about 10,000 homes in the region were left without power More than 24,000 households and businesses are without power in Northland Mourners on their way to the funeral of a Mongrel Mob member have blocked intersections, ridden motorbikes on footpaths, used flush medians to overtake others and – upon arrival at a South Auckland cemetery chapel – changed into their gang patches The person told the Herald this afternoon that police were monitoring the funeral, understood to be that of patched Mobster Nassey August August’s death has already been in the news after a relative this week told the Herald his body had been taken with a “lack of transparency” from North Shore Hospital to Just Funerals in Māngere Bridge and where a subsequent fire is now under investigation by police and Fire and Emergency Police confirmed this afternoon that officers have been monitoring a funeral procession today for a gang member in South Auckland said: “Our role is to balance the rights of people to grieve while ensuring attendees and [the] public are safe – and to hold those exhibiting illegal behaviour to account.” Authorities did notice what Pyne described as “some unsafe driving behaviours” “To report or send in any video footage of anyone causing concern we encourage you to make a 105 report either online or over the phone.” The witness who spoke to the newspaper said the gang member’s body had first been taken this morning from an address in Drury in the back of a ute “where roughly nine people were riding in the back” In a post on Facebook before August’s funeral mourners were told the farewell for the “beloved Dad friend and Life member of the Notorious Mongrel Mob Auckland” would begin in the southern suburb of Drury before a service at Manukau Memorial Gardens’ chapel The wake is planned for an address in Drury from 3.30pm The witness emailed the Herald to say police had already monitored the funeral procession as it travelled through Papakura and Takanini and then on to the chapel in Manukau Memorial Gardens “On the way up there the people blocked intersections used flush medians to overtake traffic and when they arrived at the cemetery Police followed the procession and watched those involved on CCTV and with the Eagle helicopter Some in the procession were recognised as having warrants for arrest or were breaching their bail “[They were] permitting the funeral-goers to wear their patches in a public place.” Under the Gangs Legislation Amendment Bill that came into force last November it is illegal to display gang insignia in a public place Hawke’s Bay police arrested several people after a funeral in Hastings yesterday Police said there were several breaches of laws banning the public display of gang insignia Three people face charges related to alleged traffic offending with police saying their investigations are ongoing “Police encourage the public to report any instances of unlawful activity to police so we can take appropriate action,” Hawke’s Bay area prevention manager inspector Caroline Martin said this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read A Herald analysis goes inside $60 million of sales by one of NZ’s biggest property traders to reveal the buy and sell prices from each of the 71 deals and the traders’ investment philosophy House hunter Sarah’s phone beeped every morning with a list of the latest South Auckland homes that had just gone on sale But in January four Hills Real Estate-listed homes looked strangely familiar Sarah rewatched the January 29 auction on YouTube the Hills Real Estate team had bought and put the homes back on sale all within two days She soon found Hills-linked property traders had bought and sold dozens of South Auckland homes in 2024 that she had also been interested in The traders’ goal is to buy and on-sell the homes as quickly as possible at prices tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars higher Sarah fears it artificially drives house prices up Rickhil Prakash, director of Hills Real Estate and previously named as one of New Zealand’s biggest property traders replied that his team were not pushing prices up He said trading was a risky business and his team ran a constant danger of making a loss if they couldn’t resell the homes for higher prices Hills’ customers have also told the Herald they bought flipped homes from the agency and are happy with the service it gave them Many smaller property investors also view traders positively believing them to be among the industry’s elite deal makers with a wealth of knowledge that can be shared The differing opinions led the Herald to peer behind the curtain of 71 deals done by Hills Real Estate-linked property traders in recent years We used public records and a list of sold homes from the agency’s website to estimate the gains or losses on each deal Hills-linked property traders made an estimated $5.4 million gain buying and selling 71 homes in recent years at an average of $76,242 per property The homes were mostly bought and sold in 2021 and 2024 That indicates the traders were active during the booming Covid-housing market and then jumped back into the market last year the traders bought homes for an estimated $54m and resold them for just under $60m They successfully resold 61 of the homes for a gain The biggest estimated gain was $307,174 in 2021 on a Randwick Park home at 78 Hyperion Drive while the biggest loss was $66,087 on 12 Pesaro Pl in Clover Park also in 2021 The 71 deals include an estimated $1.7m gain in 2024 after the traders bought just over $20m worth of homes and resold them for about $22m The deals also reveal a changing trading pattern Homes flipped in 2021 mostly passed through the ownership of one trading company called Akrish Properties Limited Prakash was listed as that company’s director with Inland Revenue claiming the company owes $1.8m in taxes Prakash told the Herald the liquidation was caused by a change in the market and there was no risk of this happening with his other companies have typically been bought by a network of traders working together to put up the purchase costs and share in the profits It is important to note the Herald’s analysis is a best estimate based on public records It is not intended as a definitive statement on the traders’ total gains These 71 properties were chosen because it’s been possible to confirm they were flipped by Hills-linked traders Each has previously been listed for sale on the Hills Real Estate website and each has passed through ownership of a company with a Hills real estate agent as its director these 71 properties are not a complete list - the Hills’ traders have also been involved in other deals The public records also might not capture the full information or rationale behind every deal The homes could have been sold as part of a larger deal involving multiple properties while off-market prices paid to developers for newbuilds might not be included The estimated gains also do not include all the taxes and costs incurred nor do they show how profits are divided between investors Prakash told the Herald property trading is a “very risky” business he doesn’t readily recommend to others relationships with real estate agents to help identify home sellers and buyers and moving fast are all keys to successful deals The aim is to buy the right homes – typically at prices under $1m – and then quickly find a new buyer for them before the settlement date arrives Selling before settlement means traders typically only put up a deposit without also paying so-called holding costs it was easier to use this technique to net a profit because Auckland house prices were skyrocketing when prices have been growing much slower or have remained flat Prakash and fellow Hills Real Estate agents Artika Prakash and Vashneel Prasad subsequently changed their trading philosophy in 2024 That involved teaming up with other investors in a type of trading ecosystem The other investors typically put up the initial investment costs the Hills team identifies which properties to buy and then pays the investors a guaranteed return or margin based on the gains and we have agreements so it’s no risk for our investors,” he said it’s not possible to on-sell the homes before the settlement date - which is often about three months long - arrives That typically leads the traders to pass ownership of the home to another investor That investor then holds the home until the Hills traders can find an end buyer The Hills team has to in turn pay a substantial fee to the investor for this service give us $10,000-$20,000 a month just for holding,” Prakash said Some of the flipped homes analysed by the Herald involved trading companies selling the same property to each other up to nine times in quick succession - sometimes on the same day Prakash said the rapid sales and change of ownership was a way to divide the gains between the investors trading in 2024 had proven difficult and a trader “should be happy” if they make $10,000 or $20,000 after all the costs “Rewards are small after [the] agents’ fee “You can lose lots of money if you don’t know the market and network.” While he didn’t recommend trading’s high stakes he was willing to work with and pass on his knowledge to others Prakash disputed claims his team pushed house prices up Successful flipping required that he find bargains at the “right price” and then sell them at “market price” we can’t sell higher than market price,” he said Those that buy from Hills know they are buying at market price because their banks make them get independent valuations before granting them a mortgage His team always tell - both those they buy from and those they sell to - that their aim is to onsell or flip the homes Hills’ traders also often take on the most risk in a flip That’s because they regularly buy unconditionally at auction the next buyer nearly always signs a conditional purchase agreement that is dependent on the home being given a green light from pre-purchase building and toxicology reports He pointed to one recent purchase where a home was only found to be contaminated and have building issues as a result of the next buyer’s pre-purchase reports Both the seller and the buyer were the winners from that transaction “Losing side here is us because we have to clean someone else’s mess” before selling it Some families who bought flipped homes from the Hills Real Estate team also told the Herald they were happy Some had sold older homes to Hills in return for getting a “good” price to buy a newbuild from the company’s trading team Others said Hills’ access to a wide variety of homes and network of real estate agents helped them find the perfect property They also said Hills openly told them that its team had recently bought the home and what price they paid for it Real Estate Authority chief executive Belinda Moffat said there was nothing preventing a real estate agent from acting as a property investor or trader “While on-selling of properties within a short timeframe is not inherently unlawful .. [the] REA may have an interest in whether any licensed real estate professionals (licensees) involved in such transactions are meeting their regulatory conduct obligations,” Moffat said “Such obligations may include disclosure of information about the property that should in fairness be disclosed to the parties and disclosure of any defects in the property “including compliance with tax legislation and fair trading requirements which may be addressed by the Inland Revenue Department home buyer Sarah remains unconvinced about the traders’ actions She said she’d spent four months hunting for a house and she believed the volume of flipped house deals was messing with prices “It’s difficult to trust real estate agents anyway,” she said “And this is just adding to the stress of buying a property.” Workplace Relations Minister to make 'major' workplace relations announcement Located on Druces Rd in the suburb of Wiri Destiny Church is moving out of its purpose-built three-hectare premises in South Auckland after more than a decade of congregating there The development of the Druces Rd property in the suburb of Wiri was introduced in 2012 as the City of God the building was extensively renovated with funding sourced from the sale of its Mount Wellington site and a $1000 tithe from Destiny Church members never quite lived up to the scale models Brian Tamaki unveiled when he was looking for what he described as "lots of pennies" to build it See John Campbell's investigation of tithing and the Destiny Church's premises in his series Under his Command on TVNZ+ Destiny Church said in a statement that its departure from the Druces Rd property was "simply due to the long-expected end of our lease term" and remaining onsite is no longer possible," a spokesperson said "This is a routine commercial matter – nothing more." Massey University Emeritus Professor Peter Lineham Massey University Emeritus Professor Peter Lineham said he was "really surprised" to hear Destiny Church was leaving its Wiri premises. "There are so many aspects, a school, a health centre, a gym, there's a lot of aspects in which it's trying to serve an extraordinarily poor community. How's it going to do that in another site?" John Campbell on Destiny Church: ‘I’ve never encountered so much fear’Today John Campbell launches Under His Command a five-part investigation into Destiny Church and the women who live in its shadows Lineham told 1News he estimated the size of the congregation had fallen by more than half from a peak of around 2500 at standing-room-only services. "Destiny places a big priority in high earning people... they must have lost significant income in the last few years. I don't wonder that they cannot afford to continue in the present location." Qantas confirms new Auckland-Perth flights Flights between Auckland and Western Australia's capital would begin in December Business Two men's shared name brings years of trouble and a hefty bill to one but one has spent years breaking the law while the other just pays a steep price for sharing his name Lake Alice survivor legally challenges Crown redress Malcolm Richards was 15 when he went to Lake Alice and said he still lived with the impacts of being drugged Seven harsh truths we've learned as young female business founders Fifteen years of working in the finance world did not prepare me for the unique challeges young women face Life Chch students discover resilience helps young people deal with the challenges of life Tipene Funerals owners break silence after ex-employee jailed Francis and Kaiora Tipene told TVNZ's Marae they should have noticed something sooner but said they knew nothing of former employee Fiona Bakulich's offending 11 mins ago 26 mins ago 6 mins ago Stephen Stone’s son files complaint over Crown Solicitor’s statement Today John Campbell launches Under His Command, a five-part TVNZ+ investigation into Destiny Church and the women who live in its shadows For more than 25 years Destiny Church and its controversial leader Brian Tamaki have occupied a small fundamentalist corner of New Zealand’s religious culture the church has made fresh headlines due to its active stance against the LGBTQI community with members of its Man Up division (and other Destiny offshoots) targeting rainbow events and most notably storming the Drag Story Hour at a West Auckland public library in February resulting in injuries to the public and seven Destiny arrests claiming to “strengthen men to become better fathers husbands and leaders in their home and community” But an unexpected phone call to John Campbell in February revealed that some members' aggression and fear tactics aren’t limited to public displays That phone call led to Campbell taking a deep dive into the shadows behind Destiny all eligible for tax exemptions on their income Through watching hours and hours of Tamaki's sermons and conducting more than 20 interviews with current or former members of Destiny he discovered a culture of at best antiquated patriarchy and at worst violence and coercion I've never talked to so many people as afraid as the women I encountered in this investigation,” he says Today John Campbell launches Under His Command, a five-part investigation into Destiny, screening on TVNZ+ what sparked your interest in Destiny right now "We’re dealing with a whole lot of Destiny Church people and some of them are in a really bad way." Years ago Campbell Live did quite a lot of stuff on Destiny (Brian Tamaki has accused me of being obsessed with him) but I hadn’t done much on them recently and hadn’t really been thinking about them The Campbell Live stuff was more about the notion that a business was being built around a relatively low-income congregation “There is so much pain and hurt" and I thought I felt like I really needed to sit down with this person So I travelled out of Auckland to meet them There was no doubt that they were genuinely troubled JC: This person introduced me to more Destiny people And then I went back to some of my old Destiny contacts But I got passed around and eventually established contacts with three or four members They had all either left the church or were still in it And they didn’t have the sense of agency or the financial means to leave - their families are in the church These conversations felt like this kind of unburdening These women were hurt and scared and exhausted They made me promise that Brian (Tamaki) and the Man Up guys wouldn’t know I’d spoken to them those Man Up guys know where I live." "If my husband finds out I’ve spoken to you I’ll get a hiding." who does fantastic work in the family violence awareness space about why people stay in toxic relationships She talked about the dynamics of coercive control how it traps people in relationships by tapping into their vulnerabilities On a larger scale you could say that a group like Destiny exercises that same kind of control because it attracts vulnerable people and convinces them that there’s great danger outside of the group ES: The premise of Destiny’s support group for men Why are these women so afraid of Man Up and its members I spoke to a Mongrel Mob former chapter head who said Man Up really worked for him But the women I spoke to believe it’s an organisation that isn’t nearly as dedicated to dealing with toxic male behaviour as it would proclaim They said it’s sometimes been more interested in victim blaming – as in the woman shouldn’t have “triggered” the man’s anger I think Man Up would very emphatically deny that that’s their message (our many requests for interviews were denied and I don’t have explicit evidence of that in more recent years but what I am able to say emphatically is that many of the women I spoke to are terrified In part they’re terrified about losing their place in the community but four or five of the women I spoke to were afraid of a violent response Kaupapa Māori academic Professor Leonie Pihama – she’s incredible – had some interesting things to say about how even if the men of Man Up were no longer violent in a domestic setting their violence has been transplanted and directed at the LGBTQI community She also talked about Destiny’s use of haka against the LGBTQI community – and how utterly inappropriate it is to weaponise the haka in such a harmful way I’ve watched hours of Brian Tamaki sermons – the incendiary tone it’s not good for your heart to be assailed with that has become a kind of vehicle for Destiny Church JC: That former Destiny member talked about attacking drag queens being Tamaki’s “ticket” because Destiny’s toxic response to drag events gets media attention And then I found footage of Tamaki himself actually using that word – “ticket" about all of the moral panic around things like Homosexual Law Reform (1986) the Civil Unions Bill (2004) and same-sex marriage (legalised in 2013) you can’t go to market with that stuff anymore because none of it was true So in order to create moral panic you have to go harder You look at the Pride Parade on Ponsonby Rd there are people wandering along waving a rainbow flag or something and they’re met with this fury Some of the Destiny members I spoke to anonymously said they were ashamed of the church’s homophobia They talked about having a brother or cousins who are gay ES: Aside from potentially being a marketing ploy what do you think motivates the intense trans- and homophobia JC: Brian Tamaki seems obsessed with fatherhood and protecting families from the people he regards as perverted He constantly conflates LGBTQI with paedophilia and child abuse when we know that if you were a child abused in the last 30 or 40 years it was likely to have happened in a state institution or a church But that conflation of child abuse with trans people or gay people is incendiary. Leonie Pihama said you have to think about some of these Man Up members might have come from. If you look at the overwhelming link between state care and violent crime and gang membership – many Man Up members may share that background and they’re being taught to channel their rage towards a community that doesn’t deserve it including a growing concentration on immigrant communities (I was really taken aback by the explicitness of some of this) but the LGBTQI community is the one he returns to again and again JC: Māori activism - Tamaki calls Te Pāti Māori a terrorist association He’s suggested that 98% of immigrants are “probably terrorists” they’re here to invade.” He calls multiculturalism “evil” Hundreds of people turn up every week for these sermons but it’s nearly all men who go out on these confrontational missions he talks about making phone calls and saying to people “you get to the Te Atatū library” In this TVNZ+ series I look at other issues attached to Destiny (such as laundry baskets full of cash disappearing into vans parked out the back of the church) But what to me is key now is that this is a community that is being galvanised into a kind of rage And people who don’t want to be part of that feel afraid to step away And it’s rage towards communities that don’t deserve it And then there's the tremendous amount of hurt and fear being cultivated within the church talked to people as afraid as the women I encountered in this investigation Qantas has announced that direct flights between Perth and Auckland will take off later this year Flights between Auckland and Western Australia's capital would begin in December The airline also added flights between Perth and Johannesburg and Sundays with an approximate flight time of 8 hours Perth to Auckland flights would operate as QF111 on Monday The approximate flight time was around six hours and 45 minutes Both flights would use Qantas A330 aircraft with 27 business class seats and 224 economy seats The new flights would allow a one-stop route to London via Perth It would also allow for connections via Perth from Auckland to airports across South Africa the new flight to Auckland would also allow a one-stop connection to New York on the airline's QF3 service “We’re so excited to be launching two new international routes unlocking more options and greater choice for all Australians to connect to the world through our growing network," Qantas International chief executive Cam Wallace said “By connecting Perth directly with Auckland and Johannesburg we’re supporting the local economy by opening valuable inbound tourism opportunities for Western Australia as well as generating new jobs for the state These routes also enable further growth throughout Australia with connections across our domestic network." A Flaxmere man tortured as a child at the Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital is taking the Crown to court Malcolm Richards will file a claim in the High Court at Wellington later this morning seeking a judicial review of Cabinet's redress decision Those tortured at the Manawatū psychiatric facility had until last week to choose a rapid payment of $150,000 or head to arbitration The redress scheme only applies to survivors who are still alive that had been subjected to electric shocks and/or paraldehyde injections but Richards has refused the redress on principle "No way I'm taking part in it because it's not legal We can't allow the perpetrator of this crime Richards was 15-years-old when he went to Lake Alice and said he still lived with the impacts of being drugged He was the second survivor to successfully argue his case at the United Nations committee that urged the New Zealand government to compensate him Richards believes December's redress package breaches Article 14 of the United Nations' Torture Convention This article states each country must ensure in its legal system that victims of torture obtain redress and have an enforceable right to fair and adequate compensation including the means for as full a rehabilitation as possible It also states that if a victim of torture dies their dependants are entitled to compensation Richards' lawyer Chris Griggs said Cabinet's redress decision hasn't been legislated excludes survivors who were tortured by means other than shocks and injections and provides ex-gratia compensation that can't be enforced or effectively challenged in court New Zealand ratified the Convention against Torture in 1989 but with a reservation that the government reserves the right to award compensation to torture victims only at the discretion of the Attorney-General of New Zealand The government has said New Zealand is the first country in the world to acknowledge torture of children and provide compensation to recognise their suffering Griggs said the case was a simple one that boiled down to the government needing to comply with international human rights laws "A lot of survivors are telling me what's happening is like a serious crime has been committed by the government so the government goes into a room with the victim and tells them this is what the penalty will be and no correspondence will be entered into Griggs said he would be asking the court to essentially "quash" Cabinet's decision and declare the government needed to comply with international minimum standards While the United Nations didn't have any teeth by way of enforcing these standards Griggs said it was New Zealand's reputation on the line "New Zealand holds itself out to be a champion of human rights We're the first country to speak out on breaches of human rights standards overseas We don't comply with the International minimum standards for remedying torture." "I have heard stories of children being lined up against a wall with their backs to the staff and having syringes full of paraldehyde thrown at their bottoms like a dartboard New Zealand must live up to what happened and the only way we can do that is by complying with the international minimum standards laid down by the Torture Convention." Griggs has drafted a bill to set up an independent tribunal to assess torture claims and compensation and says there's already precedent for this type of arrangement "You might remember many years ago we had a big problem in New Zealand with leaky buildings so the government set up the water weathertight homes tribunal to deal with that problem "Here we have a situation where the government has tortured a whole bunch of New Zealanders over a number of years and international law requires there to be an equivalent process "All we're saying is just treat the survivors of Lake Alice and the other institutions in New Zealand where people have been tortured in the same way you've treated people who've had problems with the weather tightness of their homes Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Morning Report no amount of money could make up for what survivors endured "Their stories of abuse were harrowing and heartbreaking Obviously the UN made a determination on Lake Alice quite rightly around torture we've worked hard to make sure we've put in place a redress system to make sure people are compensated for that no amount of money frankly makes up for what survivors have endured." The government's focus was on making sure it acknowledged and formally apologised supported survivors with a better redress system and prevent abuse through improving the operating practices of key government agencies Richards has taken up woodworking in his shed as a means of coping with stress and trauma "It's just what I found that I can lose myself in and when things become too much I just go out to my shed and start cutting out stuff and making stuff." He does not see the point in taking the rapid payment that has been offered by the Crown "[The Minister responsible Erica Stanford] rang me before she made that announcement and I told her no way I'm taking part in it because it's not legal to set their own sentence," Richards said "What's the point of taking $150,000 and living with this.. it gets so much for me that I've gotta go out and lock myself in the shed away from my family." Richards said he had been trying to access support through ACC for special items like screwing teeth — normal dentures give him flashbacks to being gagged at Lake Alice — and a phone plan — he is forgetful and uses his phone to remind him about appointments and medications But challenging the Crown's redress was about more than just money "There's more to this than $150,000 cash The investigation is the most important thing." The Lake Alice redress scheme is separate from Cabinet decisions about the wider redress system for those abused in state care rnz.co.nz Twelve Year 10 students from Christchurch’s Hornby High School have just finished a two-week wilderness adventure as part of Project K The Graeme Dingle Foundation runs the 14-month programme which is designed to help young people deal with the challenges of life 1News were there as the group returned on mountain bikes They were given a rousing guard of honour by fellow students and showered in love and hugs by their families Tania Mulholland greeted her son Toby McLeish with a tight hug "It's been a really long two weeks without him," she said getting them to achieve things that they've never done before so I think it’s great," she said Kayla said she has learnt "to never give up and to keep trying" Felt like I just wanted to go home but I just pushed through The teens trekked through native bush and arduous terrain near Otira One student said the tasks brought out the best in each of them "You'll feel scared and lonely and down and you just need to push through because you can do this," they said The students were nominated by their teachers to take part Hornby High School principal Ian Murray said those who were chosen had the "best opportunity to grow resilience and character to help them through the challenges that some of them may have been facing at the time" Their final task was to deliver a speech about what they’ve learnt I pushed myself beyond my limits and realised I had more to me than I thought," Kayla told the audience The Graeme Dingle Foundation's general manager for the Canterbury region said they've seen students flourish after going through the programme “We've seen them from students that have got their shoulders down and their heads down chin up and just beaming that they've overcome some amazing obstacles," she said The Graeme Dingle Foundation supports 27,000 young people to undertake a similar journey of discovery each year The owners of Tipene Funerals have spoken out for the first time after a former long-time employee was jailed for misconduct in relation to burials Francis and Kaiora Tipene told TVNZ's Marae they should have noticed something sooner but said they knew nothing of former employee Fiona Bakulich's offending For the full Marae story, watch on TVNZ+ Fiona Bakulich, 48, a former employee, was jailed for two years and three months and ordered to pay more than $16,900 in reparations over her misconduct The Tipene owners spoke to Marae in their first interview since Bakulich was jailed Francis said he was called to a meeting alongside Bakulich at Waikumete Cemetery by Auckland Council staff Cyclone Gabrielle had badly damaged a mausoleum housing two coffins interred by Bakulich Repairs to the roof necessitated the disinterment of the remains revealing she had not installed the zinc liner required and pocketed the $3000 in cash instead "I just couldn't believe how someone could do that." Bakulich was stood down for six weeks and continued offending upon her return to work The pair said they only discovered she had further defrauded families after her dismissal and I wish we did so we could have acted sooner," Francis said but I'm deeply apologetic to those whānau." Asked how the charges weren't detected in the company's accounting Francis said the transactions were taking place off-site so that's a hard one to swallow." The company would have to "build trust from the bottom up" the pair said of their business' relationship with the community Marae did not receive a response when Fiona Bakulich's lawyer was approached for comment The son of Stephen Stone has filed a Law Society complaint against the Auckland Crown Solicitor alleging she misled the court with her statement about the lack of evidence to retry his father who was acquitted of double murder last week said Alysha McClintock’s statement had caused "significant harm" to his father and family by “perpetuating a myth” the Crown case was dropped because witnesses were unavailable Stephen Stone spent more than 26 years wrongfully imprisoned for the 1989 murders of Deane Fuller-Sandys and Leah Stephens the Crown admitted he and three others convicted in connection with the crime suffered a miscarriage of justice The Court of Appeal accepted a police failure to disclose two key documents led to the miscarriage Stone’s convictions were quashed in October and a retrial ordered Known as the "Larnoch Road Four" their convictions relied heavily on four eyewitnesses who were given immunity from prosecution and name suppression McClintock told the High Court in Auckland one of the key reasons a retrial couldn’t go ahead was because three of the four witnesses were "no longer available through a combination of the consequences of the appeal decision death and witnesses no longer being in New Zealand" The Evidence Act sets out scenarios where a witness is considered unavailable These include if the person is dead; outside of New Zealand and it’s not reasonably practicable for them to be a witness; they are unfit to be a witness; or they cannot be compelled to give evidence Daniel Stone acknowledged one witness was dead and one was in Australia he claimed that it was not correct to say three witnesses were no longer available the others were “wholly unreliable” witnesses and the Crown’s statement was: “Designed to publicly spin the position in favour of the prosecution in an inappropriate abuse of the Crown's role.” During the Court of Appeal hearing in August the court heard the two non-recanting witnesses had changed their stories significantly multiple times and how bodies were disposed of,” Stephen Stone’s lawyer Annabel Maxwell-Scott told the court The Court of Appeal declined to rule their evidence inadmissible “The fact Mr X and Mr Y each made a number of startling contradictory statements to the police was before both juries in the earlier trial,” the judgement said McClintock said there was no longer enough evidence to prove charges against Stone beyond a reasonable double – referring to additional ESR testing on samples collected by police at the time which had not produced any results of significance; and Stone’s admissions of murder to get parole did not provide a basis for prosecution said outside the court on Wednesday that the Crown’s statement was “incredibly frustrating” “There is no acknowledgement of their own role in these miscarriages of justice and they gave the distinct impression that they believe Stephen has done something — and that's outrageous in my view." McClintock told 1News: "It is not appropriate for me to engage in debate about the reasons for my decision or the content of the statement through the media." Attorney-General Judith Collins’ office said: "It is not appropriate for the Attorney-General to comment about what has been said in Court by a prosecutor about a particular criminal prosecution." Stephen Stone’s acquittal was handled very differently to the acquittal of Alan Hall – another high-profile miscarriage of justice case the Crown and court acknowledged the miscarriage "We cannot end this judgment without acknowledging that just as the criminal justice system has failed Mr Hall so too has it failed the Easton family," said the 2022 judgment Alan Hall was declared innocent in 2023 and received nearly $5 million compensation for 19 years wrongful imprisonment Earlier this month, she dropped a 15-second snippet of the unreleased song. In the video posted to TikTok on April 10, Lorde was seen wearing a white shirt and jeans while walking through New York City. "Since I was 17, I gave you everything/Now we wake from a dream, well baby, what was that? What was that?” she sings over a synth beat. It was the first sign of a follow up to Lorde's previous album, 2021's Solar Power. Her other albums were 2013's Pure Heroine and 2017's Melodrama. Last year, she collaborated with British singer Charli XCX on a remix of Girl, so confusing — on a re-release of the Grammy award-winning Brat. 10 mins ago 5 mins ago A huge fire at a McDonald’s restaurant in the Auckland suburb of Pakuranga is being treated as suspicious The fire spewed smoke across the East Auckland suburb this afternoon and closed Pakuranga Rd in both directions Witnesses said they heard explosions and thought the fire had started from the playground attached to the restaurant Fire and Emergency New Zealand said a fire investigator had been requested as the fire is being treated as suspicious at this stage The fire has now been extinguished and Pakuranga Rd has reopened in both directions Earlier a police spokesperson said emergency services were attending a building fire on Pakuranga Rd At this stage there are no reports of injury “People are being evacuated from buildings in the immediate area as a precaution.” A Fire and Emergency spokesperson said at about 2.59pm they received multiple calls about a building on fire on Pakuranga Rd and crews are currently working to extinguish the fire A video sent to the Herald showed thick grey and black smoke coming from the building on Pakuranga Rd At the height of the fire a staff member at the nearby petrol station told the Herald he could see plumes of smoke coming from the nearby McDonald’s “There are heaps of fire trucks and police cars,” he said You can’t see anything outside because the smoke is so thick.” A witness told the Herald he was filling up at the petrol station when he smelled what he thought was gas “There was a ute next to me smoking from the exhaust the playground (at McDonald’s) on fire was obvious.“ and a few of us started to worry about whether it would reach the petrol station He could still hear explosions at about 3.25pm “It started around the play area from what I could see initially but it has now engulfed the whole building “The kids are coming out of Pakuranga College so they are battling to control the movement of kids so they don’t walk into the smoke.” Muzodiwa told RNZ the fire appeared to have started near the children’s playground A McDonald’s spokesperson confirmed there was a fire at the McDonald’s Pakuranga restaurant “The McDonald’s Pakuranga restaurant has suffered significant damage as the result of a fire on Monday afternoon “Procedures were followed to alert emergency services and safely evacuate customers and staff “McDonald’s is assisting emergency services as they begin the investigation into the cause of the fire.” Destiny Church confirms it is moving out of the three-hectare South Auckland premises by the end of the year The Church first moved into the Druces Rd property in Wiri in 2014 It was built with the money raised from the sale of their original church and a $1000 tithe from Destiny Church members the church plans to move out of the property when the lease expires in December A Destiny Church spokeswoman told the Herald staff were considering various sites “The [Wiri] property is being sold to new developers so they are looking to redevelop the property,” she said “We have understood for a long time our lease would expire at the end of the year.” The spokesperson said Destiny Church had a fantastic relationship with its current landlords Massey University Emeritus Professor Peter Lineham told 1News he was surprised Destiny Church was leaving its Wiri premises there’s a lot of aspects in which it’s trying to serve an extraordinarily poor community How’s it going to do that in another site?” Lineham estimated the congregation had halved from its peak of about 2500 at standing room only services “Destiny places a big priority in high earning people.. they must have lost significant income in the last few years,” he told 1News “I don’t wonder that they cannot afford to continue in the present location.” to help improve congestion and keep your city moving and we simply can’t fit any more vehicles down it - it’s reached its peak,” Chris Martin “Making better use of the existing bus lane is one of our most effective ways of beating congestion helping more Aucklanders travel to and along the road,” Mr Martin says “By increasing the operating hours of the bus lane we can increase the number of people who are able to travel down Dominion Road by bus “One double-decker bus can hold up to 100 people If more people experience a faster bus journey that’s potentially up to 100 fewer vehicles squeezing their way down this road.” AT wants to make other changes to Dominion Road to improve congestion including restricting right hand turns at two specific intersections in peak time traffic “Balmoral is especially prone to congestion on Dominion Road in peak times and part of the problem is the number of motorists turning right down Wiremu Street looking for a park,” Mr Martin says “This turning traffic must wait a while for northbound traffic to clear and means other southbound vehicles on Dominion Road back up behind causing big delays down through to the intersection with Balmoral Road AT is proposing to restrict right-hand turns from Dominion Road onto Wiremu Street and also Memorial Drive in peak hour traffic between 7am–10am and 3pm-7pm on weekdays We are also proposing to implement a permanent no right turn ban onto George Street AT invites you to provide feedback on the proposed changes for Dominion Road at haveyoursay.at.govt.nz A senior gang member was arrested at the airport as he returned to New Zealand for a funeral and charged with serious drug offending Photos and videos recently posted to social media show the influential gangster shopping for designer clothes and driving expensive cars the police have suspected the gang boss was making money from a different kind of business detectives laid charges in the Manukau District Court which alleged that he had supplied methamphetamine as far back as January 2023 participated in an organised criminal group and been involved in $400,000 of money laundering the prosecution was kept quiet so the police National Organised Crime Group could work with authorities overseas to arrest and then extradite the influential gang member back to New Zealand to stand trial But the police were caught by surprise when the principal target of the covert investigation returned to New Zealand of his own accord but was instead greeted by police waiting at the Auckland International Airport He was arrested and appeared in the Manukau District Court to face further charges of importing and supplying methamphetamine which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment There was also a further charge of conspiring with fellow gang members to import methamphetamine He was denied bail but was granted interim name suppression until his next court appearance in August The non-publication orders also prevent the identification of the gang he belongs to a supporter sitting in the public gallery took a photograph of him standing in the dock The image was then posted to social media by a member of the gang Several other members of the same gang chapter have been arrested and charged with drug dealing offences in recent months as part of the same covert investigation The arrest of the high-ranking gang member is the latest in a series of drug investigations by the National Organised Crime Group which span the globe But despite more drugs being seized than ever before, the consumption of methamphetamine more than doubled in 2024 to the highest levels recorded in national wastewater testing just over 15kg of meth was being detected each week weekly consumption exceeded 29kg and peaked at 39kg in October The spike last year was “dire” and showed that police and Customs were “swimming against the tide” despite their best efforts according to a ministerial advisory group appointed by Cabinet in February The independent panel is chaired by Steve Symon a veteran prosecutor and senior partner at law firm Meredith Connell the Customs Minister and Associate Police Minister “New Zealand is losing the fight against transnational are dedicated and passionate … but current activities are not keeping pace with the accelerated growth of organised crime,” according to the group’s March report “Successive Governments have set ambitious targets and working groups talking about these strategies organised crime is worse than ever and continues to grow.” The advisory group is likely to recommend “bold steps” over the next six months to strengthen anti-money-laundering measures and achieve better information-sharing between government departments Jared Savage covers crime and justice issues with a particular interest in organised crime He joined the Herald in 2006 and has won a dozen journalism awards in that time including twice being named Reporter of the Year He is also the author of Gangland and Gangster’s Paradise Goodman Group is upgrading Highbrook Crossing to add retail dining and public space to New Zealand’s largest business park in East Tāmaki Mairehau house fire: Firefighters battle two-storey house blaze 10 patients were assessed and treated by our crews in total Auckland commuters face a chaotic morning after two highways leading into the central city have been majorly disrupted by crashes NZ film industry faces uncertainty over US tariff ongoing decline in livestock numbers and questions over longer sentences reducing reoffending Reporter Sierra is at Magnificent Moa Day where experts are revealing their incredible 3.6 million year-old find Emergency services are attending the fire at a McDonald's on Pakuranga Rd Christopher Luxon holds a post-Cabinet press conference Air New Zealand's chief executive talks about the $490m Dreamliner retrofit and his job A video of a dog abuse incident is circulating on social media showing a dog swinging in the air and slamming into the ground on a walk in Manurewa where hip hop crews from all over the world are battling to see who’s the best and Parliament tackles alcohol and mental health The Coleman family has been melting down precious metals for more than 40 years This is the first time they've shared inside their multi-million dollar gold and silver operation The Prime Minister joins Mike Hosking in the Newstalk ZB studio to talk all the big politicial issues Moana Pasifika beat the Highlanders 34-29 in Dunedin Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was joined by Deputy PM Winston Peters and Minister of defence Judith Collins to make a pre-budget defence announcement The NBA star's split-second jab at an Australian reporter’s accent was picked up by microphones and 3D-printed limbs help child amputees in Gaza Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is expected to be joined by Defence Minister Judith Collins and deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters make a pre-Budget defence announcement Neighbours heard explosions as a fire ripped through a Mt Roskill house Mum pays tribute after Auckland bus stop killing Australians vote early and insurance companies brace for claims Megyn Cordner and Lucas Prince started their business from the back of a van in 2022 Andrew Che lost his life savings after sending it to the wrong account Barclays Bank has refunded his money after a prolonged battle for compensation Aerial footage reveals the scale of flooding across areas of Canterbury after a destructive weather system hit the region and prompted a state of emergency North Shore real estate agency chief responds to a Real Estate Disciplinary Tribunal decision Mark Mitchell provides an update on the state of emergency in Christchurch and Selwyn A possible mini tornado was spotted about Auckland Harbour as the latest band of wild weather hits the city Fire and Emergency NZ said it responded to more than 30 callouts overnight more Kiwis turning to methamphetamine and Drs are back at the negotiating table NZSA chief executive Oliver Mander speaks about CEO pay in 2024 Waiwhetu woman Julie Paterson heard 'a loud cracking' and saw a tree branch falling towards her during Wednesday's storm Heather Keats updates the powerful system battering New Zealand breaks down why Wellington is under a rare red warning with extreme winds and Local MP Hon Nicola Grigg speak to the media on the local state of emergency in Selwyn Gisborne locals and health workers marched to Heipipi Park where speakers highlighted what they say is a regional health crisis NZ Herald Live: Simeon Brown talks to media A tourist in the Philippines climbed into a crocodile cage to pose for a selfie Auckland’s critically threatened reef heron (matuku moana) is in the spotlight after an initial summer survey revealing concerning findings with numbers in the inner Hauraki Gulf worryingly low As part of their work to protect the biodiversity of bird species in the Auckland region Auckland Council’s Environmental Services team alongside a dedicated network of bird experts surveyed some of the likely key locations for a reef heron across the region between December 2024 and February 2025 While Auckland is likely a national stronghold for these birds The team’s mission: to uncover the secretive nesting habits of this elusive species and assess its population health with sightings of two juveniles and three lone birds where nationally there are estimated to be between 300-500 birds Critically threatened reef heron on sea shore Auckland’s coastlines are arguably under the greatest pressures in the country from coastal development our growing population and the increasing uses of coastal spaces Auckland’s local reef heron population could well be facing greater pressures than elsewhere in New Zealand Environment and Parks Committee Councillor Richard Hills says the survey findings reinforce the need to ramp up protection efforts often mistaken for their more common white-faced relatives prefer rocky shorelines where they stealthily hunt small crustaceans and fish avoiding humans and nesting in secluded caves and pest species like cats and stoats have likely contributed to their decline forcing them to retreat to small offshore islands Auckland Council’s Regional Biodiversity Advisor Jacinda Woolly notes that while the discovery of nine birds in the Manukau Harbour is encouraging the low numbers in the inner Hauraki Gulf is concerning “The fact that we found four nests in the Manukau suggests there are still some areas where they can thrive but we need to do more to protect their habitats The findings from this initial survey will be used by Auckland Council to inform targeted protection measures and advocacy for safeguarding critical nesting sites reef herons can still be spotted in the areas they regularly use They are sometimes seen stalking the shallows using their wings to create shaded areas that lure unsuspecting prey within striking distance Auckland Council asks people to respect the birds’ habitats Simple actions - such as keeping a safe distance if you see one controlling pets near coastal areas and always following the relevant dog rules (especially on our pest-free islands) and supporting conservation initiatives can make a significant difference “The reef heron is a taonga of our coastal environment,” says Councillor Hills we can give them the best chance of survival.” More information is available on New Zealand Bird Online.  For more information on what data is contained in the cookies, please click the 'Find out more on the Auckland Council website' button. To accept cookies from this site, please click the 'I Agree' button. Sign up for our e-newsletter and be the first to know about exciting events and news. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pets and Pats (@petsandpatsauckland) The company focused at first on some of Auckland’s wealthier inner suburbs the company’s signature light blue “pup buses” are ubiquitous throughout the city servicing over 50 suburbs despite marketing on its website that promotes the exclusivity of a “private canine country club” you will be a loving and cherished member of our farm family,” the company boasted of its Dairy Flat property in the top reaches of Auckland’s North Shore But the seemingly explosive growth of the company over the past decade attracted the negative attention of neighbours who found that Pets & Pats had violated the terms of how the Dairy Flat property could be used Numerous criminal charges were filed against Beer and her company in July 2022, alleging that she had violated her resource consent 83 times between late December 2021 and the end of May the following year. The charges, under the Resource Management Act, each carried a maximum possible sentence for Beer of up to two years’ imprisonment and a $300,000 fine. The company faced a potential fine of up to $600,000. Interim name suppression was granted for both Beer and her business early on in the legal process. That was despite the fact that Pets & Pats had already been the subject of past media coverage because of neighbour complaints, including reporting that Beer had been under investigation by Auckland Council. Due to a series of legal twists that followed the filing of charges, this is the first time that the court proceedings can be reported. The complaints about Pets & Pats - primarily about noise - go back at least five years. Over that time, 17 different neighbours have registered more than 279 complaints with the city. Some of those neighbours would later turn to the media, frustrated by the perceived slow response by code enforcement officers. “...For the people who live with it day in, day out, it is easy to feel nothing is happening and no one cares,” one person told the Herald in 2022. “I am watching my neighbours having their confidence in the council and judicial system undermined.” The complaints resulted at first in an attempt by Beer’s landlord to evict her, citing noise and suggesting - unsuccessfully - that she had been less-than-forthcoming about her business when she signed the lease in 2015. Beer fought the eviction notice through the Tenancy Tribunal and was eventually victorious, with landlord Barfoot & Thompson ordered to pay her $7400 to recoup legal fees. Tribunal adjudicator Joon Yi found the noise, while interfering “with the peace and comfort of the neighbours”, wasn’t unreasonable. Three reports from acoustic testing companies were submitted to the tribunal, none of which showed noise above Auckland Council’s limit for the “rural production” zone. But whether Pets & Pats had abided by its resource consent was another matter. Beer would find herself on the losing end of that battle, eventually orderd to pay a $40,000 fine. The company was ordered to pay another $37,500. Prosecutors, meanwhile, estimated the company had earned $180,000 in extra profits by ignoring resource consents over just a nine-month period. They argued that the estimate was “conservative” - and an Environment Court judge would later agree. The company had operated at the property without a resource consent for two years before one was retroactively granted in September 2017. In the agreement, the company said it would offer “a boutique field trip activity for dogs”, with no more than 60 dogs visiting the property from 11am and 1.30pm on weekdays. An extra hour was added for winter months due to muddy conditions, so that the dogs could be bathed before they were returned to their owners. In addition, no more than 12 overnight boarders would be allowed. Dogs were not to be exercised on the front paddock, and were to be kept away from neighbouring properties. They were to arrive only in the company’s vans so that the area wouldn’t be overburdened with traffic from owners dropping off animals. “Any aggressive behaviour and/or barking is quickly dealt with and, if this becomes a recurring problem, then the dog’s suitability for the facility will be reviewed,” the business promised. “Overall, the majority of the dogs are at the premises for 90 minutes maximum per day ... As such it will have less than minor adverse amenity effects upon its immediate neighbours.” While the dogs were allowed to play freely on the property, they were never left unsupervised, the company also stated. In June 2021, Auckland Council took action - claiming that several aspects of that agreement were being ignored. Notice was sent to the business ordering it to comply with the agreed resource consent within the next month. Two days before the deadline, the company acknowledged it had not been complying with the regulation but asked for a two-month extension so that it could apply for a revised resource consent. Curtailing its current practices, the city was told, would “significantly impact the business”. Compliance officers showed up at the property about five months later, in November 2021, to see if the abatement notice had been complied with. It hadn’t. Unable to gain access to the property, the officers instead visited a neighbouring property. There they noticed more than 40 dogs at Pets & Pats before 10am; “loud and consistent noise” of dogs barking; at least five dogs jumping over fences between paddocks; and dogs rushing to the fence when the officer approached. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pets and Pats (@petsandpatsauckland) an officer returned and observed barking and howling with at least five dogs making noise at the same time Auckland Council went to the Environment Court just before Christmas that year seeking an interim order for the company to follow its resource consent Chief Environment Court Judge David Kirkpatrick denied the request but emphasised it didn’t mean he was siding with Pets & Pats long-term An order just before Christmas would inconvenience customers who had their dogs booked during holiday travel adding that the company had not been given time to prepare a defence the parties attended court-assisted mediation but to no avail A code compliance officer returned to the property in March 2022 finding dogs outside the permitted exercise areas The officer noted a van with about 15 dogs arrived at 9.17am accusations and legal manoeuvring had been reported repeatedly by the Herald in July 2022 after Auckland Council prosecutors filed the criminal charges Although prison would be an extremely unlikely outcome for such charges it was argued that Beer’s business and her wellbeing could suffer if clients got the impression she was being treated as a criminal which ended up lasting for the duration of the case and far beyond Both Beer and Pets & Pats appeared for sentencing in August 2023 after entering guilty pleas to nine representative charges earlier that year wasn’t finalised until a written judgment was issued nearly a year later Beer and her business had each sought a discharge without conviction and permanent name suppression Permanent suppression was opposed by the prosecution and by lawyers for the Herald Prosecutors Jade Magrath and Katia Fraser sought a starting point fine of between $180,000 and $200,000 to be split between Beer and her business with discounts then applied for their guilty pleas It was also suggested that reparations to neighbours might be appropriate They argued the offending was aggravated by the “lengthy and consistent non-compliance in the face of graduated enforcement steps” the commercial motivation behind the non-compliance the lack of remorse and the adverse impacts on neighbours Judge Fitzpatrick was presented with eight victim impact statements from neighbours “Many of the effects related to the noise of dogs barking incessantly reducing or preventing the ability to converse outside or read study or work inside without all of the doors and windows being closed,” the judge later noted “The barking distresses a number of the neighbours one of whom has sought professional assistance They also describe issues with dogs that have escaped from the property and with the impact of the scale of the activity on traffic on local roads.” Every neighbour who addressed the court spoke out against continued name suppression suggesting that anonymity so far had emboldened the defendants to continue offending Defence lawyers Bronwyn Carruthers KC and Lewis Hebden argued that the resource consent violations were “largely immaterial and the effects relatively minor” suggesting that it was instead out of concern for the welfare of the dogs and to stay afloat after the Covid-19 pandemic If the judge decided to enter a conviction the defence argued that no fine was necessary to accompany it They emphasised that noise was not the reason for the prosecution and suggested that deterrence would be a better fit for cases in which businesses operated with no consent at all shortly before the charges were filed and interim name suppression was granted Beer said she had been the victim of a complaint campaign by neighbours whose overriding concern - noise - was unfounded She expressed frustration at having been targeted by the city when she was providing what she said was a much-needed service to inner-city dog owners whose pets wouldn’t otherwise get to experience rural life given the huge uptake in pet ownership during the pandemic “It’s almost like we are becoming an essential service,” she said But Judge Kirkpatrick agreed with prosecutors that the offending was prolonged and showed an “apparent unwillingness” by the defendants to take steps that might have reduced the non-compliance He set a starting-point fine of $100,000 to be split between the defendants reducing the combined fine to $77,750 when taking into account their guilty pleas would not be out of all proportion to “the serious gravity of the offending” the grounds had not been met for permanent name suppression “There may well be consequences for [the] business but the compliance record of a business which operates under a resource consent is something that should not be withheld from suppliers to and customers of that business,” he explained In September 2023, after the sentencing hearing but with her identity still suppressed while awaiting the final decision, Beer was named as one of three finalists for Māori Women’s Development Inc’s annual businesswomen awards The award category was for growth and development The battle for secrecy didn’t end with the Environment Court decision resulting in continued suppression for five more months until their argument could be heard last October by the High Court at Auckland under Justice Peter Andrew New defence lawyer Emma Priest argued the Environment Court had erred in its suppression decision by failing to adequately consider the impact of media attention on Beer and failing to consider the risk of misinformation Justice Andrew rejected the arguments in a written decision nine days after the hearing “There is no evidence to suggest that that business would be significantly affected by the adverse publicity that the appellants are concerned about,” he wrote can be expected to be balanced because media organisations are subject to ethical obligations of fairness.” Priest had also argued that the victim impact statements read aloud at Beer’s sentencing were irrelevant to noise complaints and shouldn’t have been allowed The judge acknowledged that there “may be some merit to the criticisms” about relevance the noise complaints raised by the neighbours can be properly considered to be one of the effects of the offending.” He ordered suppression to lapse on November 6 last year allowing the defendant three more weeks to prepare Despite the second consecutive judicial decision siding with the principles of open justice there was another development in the ongoing case against Beer that made continued suppression necessary for a completely different reason: fair trial rights Auckland Council had filed a new tranche of charges against Beer and the company alleging they continued to violate the Resource Management Act at the same Dairy Flat property from June 2023 to April 2024 The New Zealand Criminal Procedure Act bars any new reporting on a defendant’s prior offences if fresh charges are pending Beer and Pets & Pats also sought interim name suppression for the new charges The new charges mirrored in large part what had been alleged earlier Compliance officers continued to visit neighbours noting that dogs were in areas of the property they weren’t supposed to be and more dogs remained at the property than were allowed It was noted that officers were not allowed onto the Pets & Pats property Neighbours’ complaints about noise also continued But prosecutors again acknowledged that the noise was not the basis for the charges Beer returned to the Environment Court on December 19 and entered guilty pleas to the new charges Lawyer Lewis Hebdon asked Judge Sheena Tepania to allow Beer’s name to remain secret through the financially difficult holiday season Beer also initially expressed concern that suppression being lifted could result in a bank loan falling through Judge Tepania expressed reluctance to consider those grounds anyway stating that she didn’t want to subvert good faith between a lender and borrower The judge quoted extensively from the recent High Court decision rejecting permanent suppression for the previous charges She denied interim suppression but allowed the defendant time to consider an appeal which the judge pointed out would take Beer past the holiday season Beer was set to be sentenced on the latest charges in April but the hearing was adjourned due to a weather event She and the company are now set for sentencing later this month Beer will again face up to two years’ imprisonment and a $300,000 fine while Pets & Pats could be on the hook for a fine of up to $600,000 Pets & Pats moved out of the Dairy Flat property last June relocating to a large rural property in Kumeu things seem to be going much more smoothly at the new property judges noted at hearings in October and December Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter 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Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read. Police are carrying out a scene examination at the restaurant this morning. 12 mins ago 28 mins ago 8 mins ago {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"/2025/05/05/new-zealands-most-valuable-state-house-cannot-be-subdivided/"},"datePublished":"2025-05-04T19:24:34.335Z","dateModified":"2025-05-04T19:24:34.335Z","headline":"New Zealand's most valuable state house cannot be subdivided","description":"The almost $4 million villa sits on 619 square metres of land in one of Auckland's sought-after heritage areas The country's most valuable state house is in the Auckland suburb of Ponsonby and is worth almost $4m The woman living in the country's most valuable state house last week told RNZ it should be sold, in part because she feels increasingly out of place in the upmarket suburb. Anita Jones in front of the state house she lives in that is worth almost $4m. (Source: rnz.co.nz) Kainga Ora general manager for strategy, finance and policy Gareth Stiven said none of the five most valuable state homes were for sale or had development plans. "Like other high value properties in our portfolio, these five homes could be sold further down the track. Our current national divestment programme has just begun, so assessing homes that will be sold is an ongoing process." All five of the most valuable state homes are in Auckland and all but one, the most valuable, could be subdivided according to council planning rules. The largest property, in Henderson, is worth $3.7m and the 4626 square metre land has no significant development constraints. The second largest, on the North Shore in Hillcrest, is worth $3.5m and is on 2904 square metres of land that could be developed into up to 20 homes, according to council records. Two others in Westmere, worth $3.7m and $3.6m, could potentially be subdivided into four units. Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall earlier said the properties' values were tied up in large plots of land. Goodall believed Kāinga Ora should be considering the future of all five of its most valuable properties. The state home worth almost $4m - 'I reckon they should sell it'The state house is on a leafy street in Auckland's inner-city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million rnz.co.nz National introduces members' bill to ban social media for under 16s Christopher Luxon announced the bill alongside Tukituki MP Catherine Wedd this morning Erica Stanford sent pre-Budget documents to her personal email There are multiple examples of Stanford using her personal email for ministerial business Explosions heard in 'suspicious' blaze at east Auckland McDonald's Pakuranga Rd was closed in both directions and buildings were being evacuated around the immediate area as a precaution 7 mins ago The woman living in the country's most valuable state house says it should be sold as Kāinga Ora plans to put hundreds of homes on the market The state house is on a leafy street in Auckland's inner-city suburb of Ponsonby and is worth close to $4 million Shortly after Anita Jones moved into the four-bedroom state house in 2016 she learned Lorde had bought the house next door - the pop star sold the luxury villa for $4.3m last year Jones said the neighbourhood has been a good place to bring up her four children Data from Corelogic shows the villa is the most valuable single dwelling in Kāinga Ora's portfolio - at $3.9m "It's actually quite a big property well I reckon it is and I'm actually looking at transferring so they can have the house for a bigger family because it's only the three of us and it's quite big for us," Jones said "My thoughts would be I reckon they should sell it." It also intends to sell about 900 homes nationally over the next 12-18 months - currently 49 state homes are on the market of which 32 are in Auckland A nearby neighbour of the most valuable state house said it does not make financial sense for the state agency to keep the Ponsonby house "I think it probably should be sold because it's worth three or four million so you could probably build a lot more for that." Kāinga Ora said it does not have plans to develop any of its five most valuable houses All are in Auckland and each are worth more than $3.5m Corelogic head of research Nick Goodall said the properties' values were tied up in large plots of land finance and policy Gareth Stiven said the planned sale of 900 state homes represented about 1% of its current portfolio "These homes will be in regions across the country Decisions to sell specific sites will be ongoing and at any one time there will be properties at various stages of the process." He said tenants would be offered another Kāinga Ora home "Money from the sale of existing Kāinga Ora properties will be reinvested into our housing portfolio fit-for-purpose homes that are the right size and in the right location."  the agency estimates $400-$500m of money from house sales would be redirected toward new replacement homes "It's also important to note we are not reducing the number of Kāinga Ora homes a newly built home is delivered elsewhere." while a flat or unit is about the $1m mark Jones said she was ready to move out of the area especially in the area Ponsonby it's not actually suited for low-income families It's nice to be close to the city but income She said she recently asked to transfer to another house in Auckland partly because her family felt increasingly out of place in the upmarket suburb "Because I'm actually ready to move along there's been a lot of stuff happening inside the house and my family and we've kind of caused a bit of riff-raff on the street so I think it's time for us to move." rnz.co.nz isn’t just designing compact homes – he’s testing them himself With the Pocket Houses project in Auckland’s Ōtāhuhu Tim Dorrington set out to challenge traditional models of residential development by creating a pair of cleverly designed compact dwellings that occupy the footprint of a double garage space-savvy alternative for those shut out of the conventional housing market – from first-home buyers to downsizers and small families Recently awarded in the multi-unit category at the NZIA Auckland Architecture Awards the Pocket Houses are bold in both form and intention Dorrington talks about the thinking behind the design the challenges of being both architect and developer practical design might be one way forward in New Zealand’s housing landscape What was the initial spark for the Pocket Houses – was there a particular site client or problem that inspired their design That’s the thing with this concept – we’ve been looking at alternatives for an under-represented part of the population for a while: architecturally designed free-standing houses for first-home buyers as we wanted to test the concept and prototype on ourselves first The problem was the apparent lack of options for certain house buyers in particular price brackets We started off looking at options for “small but perfectly formed” free-standing houses that could work on a multitude of sites and thoughtful in design – putting ourselves in the shoes of the people who might live in these wee houses the homes occupy the footprint of a double garage How did you approach the challenge of creating homes that are compact but don’t feel constrained or compromised We wanted to use the double garage as a reference point because most people know that size – and many already have an under-utilised double garage on their site that could house a Pocket House instead It’s all a way to make the concept more accessible and demystify architecture a bit We made use of virtually every square metre There’s very little circulation space – besides the stairway all the floor area is dedicated to household uses We also used a slightly unique material and colour palette You can see the underside of the floor joists above the lounge/kitchen/dining area – painted black – which visually lifts the room and the daybed (which doubles as a guest bed) is all done in clear-finished plywood had to be made to keep the project affordable without losing design integrity you have to pick your battles and make any concessions consciously We focused the richer materials and colours downstairs in the shared areas which allowed us to keep the bedrooms simpler – painted Gib walls we painted all the doors in soft pastel colours It’s a simple way to add interest without cost We designed the spaces and built-in elements to have multiple uses – the landing is the home office the underside of the floor is a feature ceiling We also rethought the roof structure to reduce material use and developed a method where the interior fit-out and exterior cladding could happen in parallel – lots of small moves added up You developed this project yourself – how did wearing both the architect and developer hats shape the outcome it’s simpler – the design meetings are easy (or non-existent!) and decisions are quick design and documentation – but it was eye-opening to discover all the other costs along the way which we came to call ‘compliance’ or ‘permission’ costs prototype-style housing project like this – trying to do something good – it almost feels like there’s a disincentive to try when faced with the roadblocks and bureaucracy Why did you choose orange roofing tiles as cladding and what kind of response have you had to that bold decision A client I was designing a coastal brick house for lent me a book of brick houses and one had a really interesting texture that turned out to be roof tiles if those tiles can work on a roof in New Zealand I discovered there were other benefits – they’re thermally efficient like brick let’s go with the natural terracotta colour unexpected colours – how important was playfulness in the design of these homes I think playfulness and not taking yourself too seriously is important in all design view lines and spaces to bring joy and spark while also offering calm and flexibility in how you live in them Were there any unexpected lessons or surprises during the build that might inform future iterations Definitely – especially in the compliance and permission space Some of these processes could be much simpler It’s encouraging to see recent moves toward self-certification for simple structures We need a bit more trust – earned trust – and fewer layers and roadblocks we have a one-size-fits-all system for projects of every scale and complexity low-risk builds like this shouldn’t be burdened with the same processes as large-scale architectural works There’s room for a more streamlined pathway well-designed housing scaling – across Auckland or in other cities It’s almost like a different tier of housing but offering an alternative for people who feel they have no other options beyond questionable low-cost builds Pocket Houses could be developed as a kind of village – high landscaping and a greater focus on individuality and ownership – versus a block of townhouses It also challenges the idea of a “forever home” Maybe you can have the right house for the right time – start small That could free up under-utilised buildings Do you think architects in New Zealand have a responsibility to respond more directly to the housing crisis a form of gentle densification in both site impact and potential scalability architects would have more scope to take the lead on solutions like this — but unless you do it yourself it’s hard to get these projects off the ground But there could be better systems to allow projects like this to happen more easily What would you like to see change — from councils or the industry — to make projects like this more common Streamlining the path to consent for small standalone homes would make a massive difference to affordability and timelines There are already positive changes — self-certification for some trades minor dwellings permitted on certain sites and suggested fast-tracking for buildings under 70m² One big improvement would be combining the separate consent processes — resource processing those took twice as long as the build and cost far more Infrastructure and development fees are another hurdle they could add 50% or more to the actual build cost non-building costs were 20–25% of the total — for permissions and connections That works against the goal of increasing housing stock You’ve just won an award for the multi-unit category in the NZIA Auckland Architecture Awards for the Pocket Houses — how does that recognition feel NZIA awards are special because they’re judged by our peers experience the project in context — warts and all It’s great to be recognised in the multi-unit category but the judges seemed to really like the place One comment that really stuck with me was that the houses made them happy — and honestly The active botanical skincare brand is rolling out in 50 Sephora stores from May 13 From sushi to souffle and blue cod tempura Jesse spotlights the very best of Ōtautahi spiced treat that turns carrots into something surprisingly sweet and snackable Beetroot is the secret ingredient in this chocolate orange cake These pint-sized Pocket Houses in Auckland's Ōtāhuhu are award-winning The first installment of a four-part series on Indian migration to New Zealand Data from the 2023 Census shows the Indian population is now the third-largest ethnic group in New Zealand but what was the experience of early immigrants from South Asia Rina Patel looks back at her grandparents' incredible journey in a bid to fill in the missing pieces of her family's past Long before Ponsonby Road was home to specialty coffee shops and designer stores four Indian brothers planted their roots in Auckland selling fresh produce from a small grocer that would grow into a city icon a name now woven into the fabric of Auckland's history Magan and Manilal Fakir - four siblings who left India in the 1920s in search of a new life their journey didn't begin there - the first whisper of their family's connection to Aotearoa actually came from an earlier generation knows little about her great-grandfather - only that he was the first of their whānau to set foot in Aotearoa She doesn't know how he arrived or where he might've disembarked And only a few weeks ago did she find out his name - Fakir Chhiba "That was like a missing piece for our whānau," Patel says … I asked my mum again and she was able to recall it What did help was her thinking about the naming convention." naming conventions followed a paternal surname meaning their father's first name would become their last name It also meant that family names varied from generation to generation "I've been trying to find his immigration record and just this weekend gone via 'family search' … his name does appear in there," Patel says … I'd love to find out what boat he came on and whether there's a record of his passport details Like many early Indian migrants to New Zealand Patel's whānau came from the Navsari region of Gujarat a coastal stretch in western India known for its deep trading history and centuries-old ties to migration The Fakir brothers would have been among a small number of Gujarati teenagers arriving in New Zealand for work as scrub cutters It would have been an incredibly difficult journey Travel from India to New Zealand in the early 1900s was gruelling and often dangerous Steamships cut through vast stretches of ocean their lowest decks cramped with passengers who could afford little more than a ticket in steerage where travellers slept shoulder-to-shoulder Women and children were separated from men in different holds and there were no facilities for babies or toddlers On voyages lasting six weeks to two months fearful they might slip from their grasp - or worse travelling to New Zealand with her 2-year-old daughter I just keep picturing that it would've been really basic," she says "I think of bread and water - I don't even know what people had on voyages of that nature My grandparents would have been able to tell me but I would have been too young to have even asked these questions just to get an idea of what that environment was like I'm sort of constructing them because it's all I can do." Jeram Fakir had left Bhana Brothers and relocated to Eltham Baby Jasu soon had three younger siblings to play with: Ashok In a self-published short story collection titled 22 white-as-cheese-and-bland-as-unsalted-butter of a town" She can only imagine the culture shock and challenges her grandparents faced at the time navigating something so different from the home they had left behind "I just don't know how that was absorbed or felt I went on a road trip to Eltham with a cousin of mine "We got there and the maunga was stunning off the main road we saw the building where they had their fruit shop spotted the building they grew up in as well But I felt very out of place in Eltham and that was only 10 Hostility and resistance were everyday realities for these pioneering families laws aimed at restricting the entry of "race aliens" - a term used to target Indians and Chinese - were repeatedly introduced the threat of a so-called "Hindoo Peril" - coined from a 1917 cartoon about the volume of Indian immigrants entering New Zealand - still loomed barber shops and dress circles of cinemas openly refused entry to Indians securing stable employment remained just as difficult The Shop and Office Act of 1921-22 sought to limit business ownership to British subjects but with India under British rule until 1947 running market gardens and selling fresh produce door to door Patel's grandparents made a life for themselves in Eltham an undercurrent of racial tension was often present "It was never spoken about but there were definitely attitudes that my ba (grandma) and dada (grandfather) carried around for sure," Patel says Patel sensed an unspoken awareness of Pākeha dominance in her grandparents' generation "I was kind of made aware of that in a really non-direct way," she says "I might just hear them talking about 'goriya' in a conversation in the background and think they have strong feelings about these people "There's definitely some attitude there and maybe judgement but that's not unusual for anyone that's tauiwi (non-Māori) Dahi and Jeram moved back to Auckland when their four children became young adults and Patel's father immigrated to New Zealand and married her mother the family got into the dairy pipeline "big time" "We were in the dairy business for a good 18 "But then like all the brownies in Ponsonby at the time it got gentrified and we all moved out and ended up in Otāhuhu I spent a lot of my childhood behind the counter with my parents." the family's time in business came full circle Decades after her grandparents' first fruit shop in Eltham their final venture was a fruit and vegetable shop in Onehunga Patel has few memories of her grandparents but she's come to understand the weight of their sacrifices - the years spent apart living fragmented lives on opposite sides of the world all in the hope of building a better future for her parents' generation She remembers her grandma as "quiet and sweet and generous just an observer," always in the kitchen making kadhi or reading Gujarati books by lamplight "He would always pat me on the back real hard "I don't know if he was trying to put energy into me or just wanted to let me know I was alive I'd brace myself for the big thud whenever he saw me * Jogai Bhatt travelled to India with support from the Asia New Zealand Foundation IndoNZ is a dedicated initiative producing content for and about the diverse Indian community in New Zealand Radio New Zealand is an independent public service multimedia organisation that provides audiences with trusted news and current affairs in accordance with the RNZ Charter. Contact the team by email at indonz@rnz.co.nz some Kiwis of Indian origin feel disconnected from their adopted homeland but having ties to South Asia has some advantages too Kiwi Indians have played a leading role in making Waikato the country's dairy production powerhouse since the 1960s The country's national museum and the Wellington Indian Association embark on a project to identify dozens of unnamed portraits that were acquired from the former Cuba Photographic Studio premises 25… A floral tribute at the bus stop on St John’s Road His mother Carole Whorrall attended a memorial event nearby About 50 people have today packed into an Auckland restaurant near the site of a bus stop attack in which US student Kyle Whorrall was tragically killed The memorial event at the Meadow cafe included a silent auction with gifts and services donated by local businesses to help raise funds for Whorrall’s family Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson and Ōrākei Local Board chair Scott Milne were in attendance said while drawing a butterfly for the memorial one child asked: “Does Kyle have wings now?” She said Whorrall was “deeply admired” by his colleagues and friends the community and Whorrall’s sister Heather Thomas were shared with the gathering who said her brother’s love for nature blossomed shortly after he learnt to walk turning over rocks or sifting through soil He was always on the lookout for some captivating bug.” Carole Whorrall travelled to New Zealand from the United States and spoke to the Herald this week about how she wanted her son to be remembered gentle and deeply caring person whose love for the natural world shaped his life and inspired those around him,” she said in a written statement “He was passionate about his work and admired greatly by his colleagues and friends “He was dedicated to making a difference and about to embark on a brilliant career He was deeply loved and admired by his family.” was in the last stages of a PhD in entomology at the University of Auckland and was based at Landcare Research in St Johns Local body chair Scott Milne said there is a sense of shame in the community but he is proud about how the community has come together to honour Whorrall “I’m trying to find the silver linings in all of this awful situation.” He hoped Whorrall’s family didn’t become strangers and felt able to return and reconnect with the community because we feel the loss and the tragedy that has occurred But sweet because our community has really rallied beautifully together to support Kyle’s family and flatmates.” Simpson said today was one of a number of things organised for Whorrall by the community “I think this community has shown resilience warmth and wrapped its arms around all of those affected.” The Ōrākei Local Board has arranged for another memorial service on Monday at St Johns Bush where a pōhutukawa will be planted to honour Whorrall Meadow owner Gina Henry said there had been an outpouring of grief in the community She said about 40 businesses gave services or goods for the auctions His mother will fly home to California on Monday evening and said the family planned to hold his funeral there “There have been a number of memorials here in New Zealand by friends colleagues and those who never knew him but wished to celebrate his life,” she said “We are deeply moved by the kindness and concern of everyone here in New Zealand.” A family friend has set up a crowdfunding page to help the family cover the costs of their travel US$53,000 ($89,000) has been raised towards a goal of US$60,000 “The circumstances of Kyle’s death have introduced unexpected and uniquely challenging obstacles to his family who must now travel thousands of miles to deal with this horrible tragedy,” the organiser of the fundraiser said the family arranged for professional photos to be taken of Whorrall‘s bedroom in his St Johns flat as a memento Photographs showed a room crammed with plant life on every surface US National Park posters and natural artefacts Display cases of insects filled one corner of the room Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin said there had been no further arrests or charges in the homicide investigation but search warrants had been executed in the past few days Police were following “positive lines of inquiry” Police had also found the occupants of a silver Mitsubishi Grandis they were seeking last week saying that they could hold information about why Whorrall was killed Carole Whorrall said the police had been “very diligent” in their investigation and “extraordinarily kind” to the family Police and a cordon outside the house in Rānui this morning A person was taken to hospital in a serious condition after an assault in the West Auckland suburb of Rānui last night A cordon was in place this morning outside a property on View Ridge Drive where there was loud noise of a revving car and a woman screaming about 11pm Police today said they were called to a Rānui address following reports of an assault saying the alleged offender is yet to be located A 33-year-old woman known to the victim has been charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm She will appear in Waitakere District Court tomorrow Police said the victim remains in hospital and is in a stable condition Traffic will be detoured between 11am and 1pm in the Kamai Range.