Act Party leader David Seymour addresses the Tauranga Chamber of Commerce Seymour looked back on the first half of the Government’s term He discussed his proposal to create a smaller and more “focused” executive to have a Government that delivered core services efficiently and gave taxpayers “real value for money” during which local businesspeople addressed issues within their specific industries asked about Seymour’s direction for Tauranga’s infrastructure woes Ross said the biggest challenge the Western Bay faced was infrastructure He said housing affordability was a major issue for employers in attracting people to Tauranga and some of his workforce had started to live in Waikato because it was cheaper to commute over the Kaimāī Range to get to work Seymour said it had taken 15 years to gather a rational consensus about housing and the demand problem it’s about infrastructure consenting and funding and it’s also about building materials I think we’re doing absolutely the right thing.” asked Seymour how he would use his position regarding New Zealand’s GDP per capita decline calling it “especially concerning” “It signals not just a cycle downturn but a potential structural weakness in productivity and competitiveness in New Zealand “How are you going to leverage your position and how is New Zealand going to find its way out of this?” Seymour said the Act Party believed New Zealand was punching below its potential “I think there’s a real paradox in our national identity that we all come here as pioneers “There is a central conflict in our character as a nation “Part of the problem we have is that we have a whole lot of people who remain pioneers but they’ve taken their pioneering off to a new country – I think this is existential for us.” Pert told SunLive he attended the meeting primarily to see where Seymour was aiming to place himself and how he would influence what was required for the New Zealand economy “It’s about productivity and efficiency How do we get our goods to market effectively and cost-effectively?” said Pert “Productivity is going down the gurgler and this area … it needs to have that free flow of goods." Seymour said he supported congestion charging because “somebody has to pay” “You’ve got to consider congestion charging if you’re serious about having the infrastructure.” He said if you’re opposed to congestion charging you must find another way to pay for infrastructure such as targeted rates or for the central government to share more GST “The conversation and the debate need to be started with the assumption that somebody has to pay Then you can have a rational conversation.” Seymour said the No 1 concern about the marine precinct sale was what the council would use the money for “You’d want to see that money going into infrastructure to relieve congestion “I appreciate there’ll be people there who currently use the marina and they’ll be annoyed,” he said adding that if it was a choice between that or upgrading critical infrastructure then you had to ask what was in the best interests of the city as well as the best interests of some individuals Seymour said some people would say more money needed to be spent on the health sector “The truth is that the health budget is $30 billion it’s because all the policy reform in the last five years has been what I call the macro level,” he said “There hasn’t been a real focus on the micro level.” Seymour said the real answer was better organisation which he thought Health Minister Simeon Brown was doing now He said the Government could pay doctors more if less was spent on bureaucracy but also about quality of life and the length of the hours they have to work and the satisfaction – ‘am I making a difference?’” Seymour said people often thought it was cheaper for a council or government to own the building they operated in “The basic idea of getting someone else to build it someone else to take the risk and just paying a flat fee.” Seymour said getting a third party to build maintain and manage the risk of the building while paying a flat fee was cheaper than owning the building “Tauranga is different from the rest of New Zealand because the problems in Tauranga are mostly how we manage our growth which is a different problem for most of the country “I think people are really looking to the Government to give a bit more hope and a bit more stimulus so hopefully we’ll see that soon.” you have to admit that both of the coalition deputies (Seymour and Peters) are honest David Seymour's Treaty Bill was suppressed because of politics and a deluge of deliberately stirred up misinformation about it we will have to address the actual requirements of the Treaty and amend it to fit the 21st century The "Treaty Industry" will need to be ignored and we will need honest politicians (an oxymoron?) and proper consultation with ALL the people of NZ We need something which is FAIR and accepted by ALL to take us into the future I see David Seymour as being in the heart of this Posted on 04-05-2025 14:56 | By You Must be Joking by his comments that Mr Seymour has no "skin in the game" on matters relating to the Governance of Tauranga He suggests that if the proceeds from the undervalued sale of the Marine Precinct are spent wisely then all should be forgiven even though the Mayor described it as a "shit deal" for Ratepayers Furthermore his support of a Congestion Tax will be concerning for Retailers in the CBD most of whom have been existing in the unlikely hope of the Business "turnaround" promised by Commissioners and TCC as a result of the expenditure of around $600 million of Ratepayers money I believe we have a very good Government at present Any three of them in my opinion could easily be Prime Minister proactive and men of integrity with a heart for New Zealand How do you feel about Tauranga’s rapid population growth Back to top Fire crews working at the scene of an electric truck fire at Bethlehem Town Centre on Saturday A fire investigator has returned to the scene of an electric truck fire last night in Tauranga Fire and Emergency New Zealand Northern shift manager Michael Anderson said a crew remained at the scene overnight when it was given back to the owners,” Anderson said Anderson said an aerial fire truck from the Mount Maunganui fire station joined the other crews at 8.22pm “Our crews started heading home about 10pm and we had one remain on scene until 4am A fire investigator also attended on Saturday night and returned today The electric truck caught fire while parked at the ChargeNet charging site in the Bethlehem Town Centre carpark “ChargeNet can confirm that at approximately 4.50pm .. a fire occurred involving an EV [electric vehicle] truck at our Bethlehem charging site,” ChargeNet said in a statement “The charger was quickly disconnected from the vehicle The driver was able to exit the vehicle safely and no injuries have been reported.” ChargeNet said the Bethlehem charging site has been temporarily shut down “Emergency services responded promptly and removed the vehicle at around 4am this morning “Our technical team is working closely with emergency services and on-site personnel to support their response and undertake a thorough assessment.” ChargeNet said initial indications suggest the vehicle involved was a custom-built electric truck partners and the public is our highest priority,” it said “We are in direct contact with the vehicle’s owner and will continue to assist Fire and Emergency New Zealand and other relevant authorities as needed “Further updates will be provided as more information becomes available.” EV FireSafe director Emma Sutcliffe said electric truck battery fires are rare with just 13 such incidents verified globally the leading cause is manufacturing faults that can trigger a chemical process called thermal runaway which is extremely difficult to control in large battery packs,” Sutcliffe said “The safest response is often to allow the pack to burn out while protecting nearby structures.” EV FireSafe is an Australian company funded by the Australian Department of Defence specialising in EV battery fire research and emergency response – particularly when EVs are charging Global and NZ data from EV FireSafe and Drive Electric Global and New Zealand data shared by EV FireSafe and Drive Electric show that EV battery fires are rare EVs are less likely to catch fire than petrol/diesel vehicles Data from Norway shows that there is a 0.005% fire rate for EVs versus a 0.03% fire rate for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles Data collected from the Netherlands shows that only 38% (2022) and 25% (2023) involved battery ignition Charging-related fires are also uncommon with less than 15% of EV battery fires happening while charging This means that charging is not always the cause New Zealand has had six recorded EV fire incidents with no reported injuries fatalities or confirmed cases involving charging The only high-reach ladder truck in Auckland broke down last night The departure of the Royal Princess on April 15 marked the end of the main cruise ship season for Tauranga this year who volunteer their time to welcome visitors wrapped up their season with a special farewell event that included a visit on the Royal Princess One more cruise ship - the Insignia - is visiting the port this season until the Celebrity Edge begins the next season on October 16 Tourism Bay of Plenty said Tauranga has had a strong 2024/25 cruise season with 91 ship arrivals bringing thousands of passengers and crew into the region Tourism Bay of Plenty general manager Oscar Nathan said “These visits provide a significant boost to our local economy Amadea leaving Tauranga harbour on February 12 Nathan said Tauranga was consistently rated the best port experience in Tauranga by visiting cruise lines “The vibrancy that cruise visitors bring is felt right across the city and we’re proud to be a key gateway for cruise travel in New Zealand.” Final tallies for ship visits and the full economic impact were still being confirmed the 2024/25 season brought an estimated 143,279 passengers and 62,804 crew to our shores - more than 206,000 people “These provisional figures are in line with recent seasons and represent a significant contribution to our local visitor economy,” Nathan said “There were a few itinerary changes due to weather such as a cancelled berth from the Westerdam and adjusted schedules for the Crown Princess and MSC Magnifica ambassadors and staff were proud to showcase the best of the coastal Bay of Plenty to guests from around the world.” Raked sand drawings farewell passengers aboard the Royal Princess as it departs Tauranga Harbour on Tuesday The Insignia will make a late-season call on May 27 ahead of winter “We’re looking forward to welcoming back the Celebrity Edge in October and kicking off another exciting season this coming spring.” The Complex 2 development in Tauranga's Historic Village features a new cafe NZME has launched On The Up – a national campaign showcasing amazing stories of inspiration, success, courage and possibilities. Reporter Megan Wilson speaks to hospitality businesses about the revitalisation and “great potential” of Tauranga’s Historic Village It is a new era for the Historic Village as two “destination” eateries plan to open in June attracting more visitors to the growing area More than 230,000 people visit the quaint and colourful village annually The 17th Ave village hosts up to 10 large community festivals annually It is owned and administered by Tauranga City Council as a community facility A restaurant and garden bar “where the atmosphere is just as good as the food” is coming to the village this winter Ezel is also an entrepreneur and owns Nectar Sangria Mitch Lowe told the Bay of Plenty Times the couple bought Ariel and Mali Cottans’ restaurant Malka which they were renovating to become the Med The couple wanted to create “a bit of a destination” by making it “a full indoor outdoor-themed dining experience where the atmosphere is just as good as the food” It would have private rooms for functions and “elements of well-curated music” “We just feel like there’s nothing else like it in the area so we’re just hoping it’s a place that locals just really fall in love with .. “I think that what we’re bringing is a young fresh approach to a historic sort of site.” Lowe said the Med was serving pitas and salads “out the window” while renovations were under way indoors The restaurant and garden bar would open at the start of June “if all goes well” following their liquor licence application Ichiban co-owner and chef Karen Aya Onishi said she and her husband Diego Pires opened in the village in March where the Whipped Baker used to be. Business had been “great” and “better than we expected” The couple had owned a food caravan since 2019 They did a function in front of the village last year and saw “great potential” in opening permanently The Village Barber owner Trina Pyle was celebrating five years in business at the village in May She signed the lease in 2020 and was “proud” to say the business had survived Covid-19 Pyle started offering a special rate for Tauranga Hospital staff during Covid-19 and continued doing so as she loved giving back to essential services She thanked her “best support person” Des McCleary and her loyal customers Pyle said many clients said it would take “forever” to find parking and the council should consider allocated parking for village customers “so that they can pop in The council’s venue and events manager Nelita Byrne said it was working through parking options as part of the Historic Village Grounds plan Byrne said the village was “well connected” to alternative transport options with the bus stopping nearby and being on the Kōpūrererua Valley Cycleway A new cafe in the “heart” of the village is preparing to open after two years of construction Byrne said the cafe was part of the council’s $7.2m Complex 2 development the Balcony Room venue with capacity for 175 people two retail spaces – already open for business – an office space and service facilities to support functions and events which seated more than 60 patrons indoors and had outdoor seating would serve the surrounding business precinct The council was in the negotiation stage of the procurement process for a tenant and hoped to have the cafe open by June Byrne said “significant” work was involved including structural and earthquake strengthening The project’s original scope was to revamp the existing building by constructing a commercial kitchen and cafe on the ground floor “a number of unforeseen structural issues” with the wider building were uncovered requiring additional remediation works and seismic strengthening An extra 3.4m was approved by the council in September 2023 for the building Byrne said the village was Tauranga’s “vibrant and diverse community hub” as it became a “popular tourist destination” for cruise ships and domestic visitors Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post Paying for clean-up means less money for the community Distiller and co-founders George White and Stephanie Downer The London Spirits Competition is one of the world’s most competitive and respected events in the industry This marks back-to-back wins for the young company which also secured the same accolades in 2024 with its Clarity 2023 Gin Distiller and co-founder George White launched Clarity with distiller and co-founder fellow distiller Stephanie Downer in early 2023 driven by a vision to do things differently and a whole lot of determination,” White said “We’ve faced challenges from every direction – recession pressures and even Trump’s tariffs complicating our export plans – but we’ve stayed true to making high-quality Rather than using the standard industry method of distilling all botanicals together Clarity individually distils each ingredient – from berries to bark – before blending them for a balanced “Gin-making is like cooking,” Downer said “Some botanicals need a delicate hand Distilling them separately gives us control and lets each flavour shine.” the duo has earned a string of international awards They have also expanded their range to include vodka and navy gin and secured national distribution across bars “It hasn’t been easy,” Downer said “We used to buy ingredients week-to-week because we couldn’t afford bulk orders and started contract recipe development to keep cash flowing We’ve been hands-on with every step – even the label design.” There are further expansion plans for Clarity Distilling but White said they remain focused on their founding principles “Our dream is to be a household name,” White said but your go-to spirit any day of the week.” The collection bins now take absolutely verything since Maleme street was discontinued with no local alternatives for South Tauranga Still recycle as much as I can but now not everything anymore and so into the red bin Thirty plus kilometres return and frees are too much of a disincentive I used to recycle a lot more but too difficult now How about TCC having an Amnesty like in Auckland where rubbish is just placed on the street for free removal Not Gardenwaste or Recyclables but broken whiteware and computers I still have the old glass screen monitors and have no idea who will take them Steamroller’s defensive veteran Amanda Lowry will be representing the Bay Of Plenty at the festival Physically disabled athletes from across New Zealand will converge on Tauranga for the Healthvision Festival of Disability Sport multi-sport event spans three venues and highlights the talents passion and determination of the whaikaha community The action-packed weekend features tournaments and inclusive play across more than 10 sports Wheelchair rugby and wheelchair basketball tournaments take centre stage at Mercury Baypark Arena badminton and youth-friendly inclusive play with sailing taking place at Sulphur Point said the event provides a vital opportunity for connection and participation “The annual festival is a wonderful opportunity for our whaikaha athletes to connect and provides them with a platform to showcase their passion and skills,” she said “Whether you are there to participate or spectate it is going to be a lot of fun and we welcome everyone to join us in celebrating these wonderful athletes.” Morrison said the festival offers activities for a range of ages and abilities including a dedicated play programme for younger participants One of the festival’s most anticipated elements is its have-a-go sessions These inclusive opportunities allow anyone with a physical disability including those with low vision or hearing impairments to try various sports alongside their friends and whānau Parafed Bay of Plenty executive officer Ian McDonald said the festival has grown significantly “Over the last five years since the festival started which shows the growth in disability sports,” said McDonald “With over 150 athletes participating in 2024 it’s clear that sport can offer life-changing experiences and pathways A new addition for 2025 is physical disability rugby league which features a skills and drills session supported by the Warriors Community Team and Bay of Plenty Rugby League The Tauranga Western Bay Community Event Fund continues to support the event and Western Bay of Plenty District Council Tauranga City Council manager of venues and events Nelita Byrne said: “Events like this are incredibly important for connection The weekend concludes with an awards evening to honour sporting excellence community contribution and achievement across all festival codes The batteries of an electric truck caught on fire at Bethlehem Town Centre on Saturday Multiple fire crews attended the scene of an electric vehicle fire in Bethlehem, Tauranga last night An electric truck caught fire in the carpark outside Kmart at Bethlehem Town Centre causing large clouds of billowing smoke to drift across the surrounding area blanketing a section of Bethlehem Rd and parts of the Bethlehem Town Centre with bystanders saying they were evacuated from Kmart “We received a call at 4.50pm,” Fire and Emergency New Zealand northern shift manager Garreth Lewis said “It was an electric truck with two batteries on fire at Bethlehem Town Centre.” Lewis said there were no reports of any injuries “We’ve been there since after receiving the call; what we’re doing is cooling it with a significant amount of water.” He said about 20 firefighters attended the scene with three fire trucks from Tauranga and Greerton “And in addition to that,Lewis said a hazmat unit was also sent as the fire involved hazardous substances “The hazardous materials unit have special equipment to deal with these sorts of incidents.” Lewis said the firefighters had to drown the batteries to allow them to cool A masked volunteer firefighter at the scene said the smoke was difficult to work with Bethlehem Rd was blocked from the first entrance into Bethlehem Town Centre to Westermoreland Rise and locals have been advised to close their house windows and stay indoors A detour was put in place from State Highway 2 into Bethlehem Rd then Cambridge Rd and back on to Bethlehem Rd Lewis said a fire investigator also attended “They will do their investigation into the cause of the fire.” EV truck fires are particularly intense due to the vehicles’ large battery size and complex failure modes it becomes a prolonged operation due to the chemical and structural nature of lithium-ion cells Thermal runaway can occur during fast charging or overcharging when one cell in the lithium-ion battery overheats and causes a chain reaction the battery essentially feeds its own fire making it difficult to suppress with conventional firefighting methods Water doesn’t work well on these types of fire as thousands of litres of water may be required to cool the battery sufficiently batteries can reignite as internal temperatures spike again Burning EV batteries can release toxic gases such as hydrogen fluoride requiring firefighters to take extra precautions An artificial reef programme aims to restore marine life in Tauranga Harbour Tauranga Harbour saw a massive decline in biodiversity after Cyclone Gabrielle and a colossal build-up of sediment covered reef systems has created an underwater reef system to help the necessary larvae and algae find a new home aims to support marine ecosystems and the “blue economy” “The rest is the circle of life,” Tua said ​Deep Dive Division is a Hamilton-based company specialising in commercial and scientific diving services across Aotearoa It is believed to be the only Māori and Pacific-owned dive company in New Zealand combining Māori perspectives with environmental science and advanced technology meaning “pearl” in te reo Māori and symbolising the nucleus of change The artificial reefs were also given another name and use natural fibres and marine-grade concrete along with proven techniques in how to deploy and rig them to the ocean floor The artificial reef systems have been deployed in the water to biomimic the habitats of our natural marine ecosystems and restore and protect biodiverse native marine life Six of the structures were manufactured at Hynds Pipe Systems Ltd under the leadership of Hynds Holdings director and R&D director Aaron Hynds The remaining three were constructed using a 3D concrete-printing technique The project was a collaboration between Deep Dive Division, the University of Waikato Hynds Pipe Systems Ltd and the Port of Tauranga The trial is scheduled to run for an initial period of 24 to 36 months The effects of the artificial reefs on marine life are plain to see and happen fast Tua said when they started installing the second part of the reef he saw that crayfish were already crawling on the first part “It went straight to the hole that was designed for it.” Projects like Peara were a push into the “blue economy” and the beginning push into aquaculture “We embrace this industry because there will be jobs for local people.” It was a purpose-driven project, starting with surveying the water and marine life and understanding the situation in Tauranga Harbour in real time There was also a purposeful New Zealand-led and based approach to creating these artificial reefs “Many reef systems going in New Zealand are being bought in from Australia.” Deep Dive Division recognised the strong cultural identity New Zealand has regarding the ocean and freshwater “We’ve got a marine heritage that we need to acknowledge.” Deep Dive was established in 2018 and was involved with urban ocean agriculture structures with a more real-world approach to environmental science She said the idea for the artificial reef followed the initial meeting with their partners in Tauranga Harbour “We were sitting at our home office whiteboard and sketching something up.” University of Waikato professor Chris Battershill and Professor David Schiel, from the University of Canterbury, have led Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment-funded research to assess marine life loss in the Eastern Bay of Plenty Battershill has worked closely on the development of Peara providing scientific guidance on the conditions needed for marine ecosystems to regenerate The Peara reefs were designed to support the growth of seaweed and shellfish Inbuilt harmonics also helped deter whales and reduce the risk of beaching such as natural marine rock or engineered structures like Peara the reefs provided essential footholds for marine life to grow in sandy or silty environments that typically lacked structure Reef structures and their acoustic properties were designed using mātauranga Māori to support the colonisation of native marine species in harbours “These native colonisers help resist the spread of invasive species.” Native kelps such as Ecklonia and Carpophyllum forest species provided habitat for important taonga like crayfish kina and other invertebrates that also served as food for fish “These reef outcrops offer refuge for marine biodiversity that is now rare or absent in the harbour.” Tilly is looking for an indoors-only home A female cat discovered living in a vehicle in Tauranga by the SPCA has recovered from cat flu and from having her ears amputated - now she needs a forever home Tilly is being touted as a “true rescue cat” by Tauranga SPCA staff after she was taken to the Alach St centre five months ago with severe cat flu and sunburned ears “Tilly has had quite the ordeal for a two-and-a-half-year-old cat; her living conditions were not ideal and she desperately needed to see a vet,” Tauranga SPCA animal attendant Bethany Thomson said A member of the public alerted Tauranga SPCA to Tilly’s living situation “Tilly came to us through a welfare concern reported to SPCA “She had given birth in the car – and both Tilly and her kitten had quite severe cat flu Tilly clearly needed some help as the living conditions in the car were not adequate.” Thomson said when Tilly was admitted to the centre’s hospital for treatment of cat flu “it took her a long time to get over it.” Tilly underwent an operation to remove her sun-damaged white-coloured ears caused by high UV exposure in the car and no pet sunscreen It is recommended for white cats that owners apply sunscreen.” Thomson said the edges of both of Tilly’s ears looked slightly discoloured – and they’d taken too much sun damage and needed to be removed “Our vet assessed it [the sunburn] was precancerous and it was best to remove Tilly’s ears before it spread.” The short-haired domestic cat has now fully recovered – with hearing in both ears intact – and Tauranga SPCA is trying to re-home her “We would like to Tilly be homed indoors to protect her from the sun and so her ears don’t fill up with rainwater – and we need family that will apply pet sunscreen on her nose regularly because it is white “She is confident so a family with children would suit as long as she can be kept inside.” Thomson said the white-coloured cat with a uniquely patterned “raccoon-like” tail isn’t shy about her ear-less face She is super friendly and has the loudest purr Tilly would be a great fit in most families because she’s so easy-going and chill.” Thomson said Tilly’s recovery had taken months of dedication and care from SPCA staff and volunteers loving personality shines – and she’s looking for a family to cherish her and spoil her rotten so no further treatment is needed – she just needs a loving home to take her in.” If you’re willing to make a real difference to a feline which has been through so much strife, phone Tauranga SPCA on 07 578 0245 placed 3rd in the enduro principal at this year's North Island Secondary School Mountain Bike Championships but her medal was given to the rider who placed 4th A Tauranga homeschooled student has been denied a medal for the second year in a row in a moment she described as “really awkward” Amelia Twiss, 13, competed in the North Island Secondary School Mountain Bike Championships in Tauranga and was one of two riders who placed The reason: because she is homeschooled. She is a member of the Tauranga Mountain Bike Club recently taking away the club’s spirit award for her dedication to riding Amelia told the Bay of Plenty Times how she felt in the moment she was supposed to stand up on the podium with her silver medal “It’s just really awkward for me and everyone else,” Amelia said but she got my silver medal and was bumped up to my spot.” She said she went into competing this year knowing she would not be able to receive a medal I go to the events because I love the vibe of being out there said there was no valid reason to exclude a group of children from competing with their peers “It’s this weird thing that happens at the end of the race “You’re singled out in a crowd of a couple hundred people watching and what should be a celebration is Twiss said other riders were trying to give away their medals “It speaks for itself how the kids are feeling about this they feel uncomfortable that someone else is not getting the medal “While it’s not all about winning and the medal it’s about what it’s doing to the community and other athletes,” she said promotes and protects secondary school sport for all students Eligibility regulations were introduced in 2007 for the events they sanction and were reviewed in February of this year homeschooled students who were members of the Home Educators School Sport Association could participate in a School Sport New Zealand-sanctioned event School Sport New Zealand chief executive Michael Summerell said homeschooled students were eligible to participate in more than 140 events on their sanctioned calendar homeschooled students have a range of ways to participate and be recognised in sport.” He said regional offices offered tournaments and weekly opportunities for homeschooled students throughout the academic year “Regional offices set their own eligibility criteria for their events but do look to align with each other and School Sport New Zealand on some policies.” Sport Bay of Plenty sanctions school sports in Tauranga and a spokesperson said they enabled homeschooled students with Ministry of Education approval to participate in events The organisation’s terms of involvement stated homeschooled students were not eligible for medal placings delivery partners might recognise a performance with separate awards “These rules aim to ensure a fair and consistent environment for all participants,” the spokesperson said “Sport Bay of Plenty remains committed to working with families and partners to ensure all young people have meaningful sporting opportunities.” Mountain Bike Tauranga was the delivery partner for the North Island Secondary School MTB Championships said their organised events did not exclude or look at what schools participants attended and the rules around medals/placings needed a review “It is awkward to apply School Sports New Zealand rules that have consequences for our club members,” he said “An internal review will be occurring to see if we can do more to support our members.” Home Educators Students Sports Association (HESSA) is the national body set up in 2023 to represent the rights of home-educated domestic students to compete in sports there were 10,757 homeschooled students as of July 2024 HESSA co-chair Mel Ewart said the problem began at secondary age when control of student sport and competitions moved from clubs to societies governed by school principals the only thing that has changed is the adults who decide who is eligible to compete in the student sport Ewart said there were few homeschool students who experienced school-sanctioned events “HESSA asserts that every Kiwi student has the right to compete in student sports and we reiterate that participation without the right to compete is not inclusion.” She told the Bay of Plenty Times the current regulations did not serve the well-being and aspirations for the futures of all domestic students “Sports participation without the ability to compete is not an inclusive sport.” Kaitlyn Morrell is a multimedia journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post She has lived in the region for several years and studied journalism at Massey University National MP Tom Rutherford has been praised for his bravery after he stopped his car on a highway outside Tauranga to talk with a distressed man in his mid-20s on the busy road The Bay of Plenty MP today said he was returning from the Te Puna Harvest Market with his fiancée on State Highway 2 in a constant stream of traffic about 3pm on Saturday when he encountered a man standing in the lane he was travelling in “He was moving between lanes as vehicles travelled at 80km/h hopped out and ran to talk with him to get him at least into the middle section of the road,” Rutherford said a couple of others from the community stopped and parked their vehicles on either side so we could block a lane on each side at least Rutherford said he and another man who stopped sat with the man and talked with him about what he was going through they got him to get into one of their vehicles where he could wait safely for further help to arrive The police arrived and took the man to the hospital Leonie Wilson also pulled over on SH2 after seeing the man running between the lanes and called the police She saw Rutherford standing in the middle of the road talking to the man and trying to get him off the road to safety standing in the middle of the highway risking his own life to help this guy he didn’t know,” she said Rutherford said it just so happened he was driving past yesterday and did what anyone would do to look after people in the community The MP was hesitant to talk about the incident Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he was unaware of Rutherfords heroics over the weekend but it “sounded like him” he’s got a great future… he really cares about people Sign up to The Daily H a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday Emergency services are responding to a vehicle crash at Mount Maunganui "Police received a report of a three-vehicle-crash on Hewletts Road at around 4.30pm," a police spokesperson said "There are no reports of injuries or road blocking." Phone 0800SUNLIVE or email newsroom@thesun.co.nz Tauranga City Basketball’s Helen Richardson and Volleyball Tauranga’s Jenny Kirk outside the newly-created indoor courts facility on Cameron Rd Four new indoor courts will open this month in Tauranga city centre providing the community with much-needed space for sport and recreation as the city continues to grow The former site of The Warehouse on Cameron Rd was purchased by Tauranga City Council (TCC) in early 2024 and has been converted into a multi-purpose sport and recreation centre featuring indoor sports courts and plenty of parking will be managed by Bay Venues on behalf of the council It will be called The University of Waikato Haumaru Sport & Recreation Centre and will be open full time from Monday Haumaru will be home to a wide range of community sports “We are very excited to see this project completed in such a quick turnaround time and look forward to using it,” said Volleyball Tauranga manager Jenny Kirk She said the new facility will help provide more indoor sport opportunities for people of all ages in Tauranga “It’s been over 10 years since we added indoor court space for our ever-growing community,” Kirk said Haumaru will also help host large sports tournaments that come to the city There will be opportunities for casual bookings and court hire as well as recreational activities for local schools and the wider community This will include Tumble Time play sessions for preschoolers and their parents during weekdays The public will get a chance to check out Tauranga City Council’s newest facility at a Community Fun Day event on Saturday The day will feature free activities and games food trucks and plenty of fun for the kids including a special play area with an inflatable slide Tauranga City Basketball competitions and events manager Helen Richardson said it was “very exciting” to have four new courts to use for competitions and tournaments “We’ve been at capacity for many of our competitions the additional courts will help alleviate some of the strain and creative ways to fit teams and games in We are excited to be able to offer midweek adults’ competitions that we haven’t been able to due to lack of court space Huge thank you to Tauranga City Council and Bay Venues for getting this up and running so quickly.” Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale said he’s looking forward to seeing the new community venue full of life when it opens “With both our city’s population and participation in indoor sports on the rise Haumaru is a welcome addition to the network of community facilities across the city,” he said “Its central location and ease of access will make this venue a great place for people of all ages and abilities to come together It will also contribute to the wider transformation of Tauranga city centre as we work to make it an even better place for people to live Bay Venues chief executive Chad Hooker commended the council on its decision to invest in community facilities to cater for a growing population and for having the vision to repurpose an existing building to deliver new courts quickly and cost effectively Hooker emphasised the importance of partnership and collaboration in delivering high-quality public amenities “The creation of Haumaru has been a combined effort We’ve worked closely throughout with TCC and many other key stakeholders in the city “We are looking forward to celebrating the opening of this new venue with all these partners and the wider community The name “Haumaru” was gifted by mana whenua The name has local significance and is also about health and wellbeing which fits with the active sport and recreation activities that will take place in this facility The University of Waikato is the naming rights partner for Haumaru through its commercial partnership with Bay Venues helping to support the activation and growth of Tauranga’s sports and fitness venues Deputy vice-chancellor Professor Alister Jones said the opening of Haumaru reflects the university’s long-term commitment to Tauranga and the Bay of Plenty “Tauranga has been our home for more than 30 years and we are continuing to increase our contribution to the city and region “Haumaru is a fantastic new space for people to connect strengthens the vibrant city centre environment we’re helping to build offering more opportunities for our students for study We’re proud to be part of Tauranga’s growth and look forward to seeing students and the wider community making the most of the new facility,” Jones said Tauranga City Council says water remains safe to drink Fluoridation of the water supply from Tauranga City Council‘s Waiāri Water Treatment Plant remains suspended “Repairing the tank was originally expected to take six weeks however our contractor has deemed the tank irreparable and are manufacturing a new tank as a replacement,” said a spokesperson in a statement released this afternoon The replacement tank is anticipated to be operational in mid-June “This allows sufficient time to install test and certify the new tank before bringing it online Fluoride dosing at the Waiāri Water Treatment Plant will remain suspended until the replacement tank is operational.” This primarily affects the water supply to residents east of Golf Rd (Waiāri side) The council said residents can be assured their water continues to be safe to drink The original fluoride tank was installed and brought into operation in November 2024 when the council moved to comply with the Director-General of Health’s directive to fluoridate Tauranga’s water supply “We are committed to keeping our residents informed and will advise the community when the tank is back online and fluoride is reintroduced to the water supplied by the Waiāri Water Treatment Plant “We continue to update the Ministry of Health on progress to rectify the issue.” Vetro Mediterranean Food owner Liz Cerdeira says paid parking outside her store will impact business The introduction of paid parking on more Tauranga city centre streets will create “real problems” Paid parking will be extended to the city centre fringe between Arundel St The decision was made by councillors at a Tauranga City Council meeting on Monday when they adopted the Tauranga Parking Management Plan The introduction date and fees for the new parking areas were yet to be decided Vetro Mediterranean Food owner Liz Cerdeira said paid parking outside her 3rd Ave store would have a big impact on staff The majority of her team had to drive because the buses did not run early enough or from the areas where they lived “There are no buses available for them to get in and out easily in the times that they need “All big cities have decent public transport Cerdeira was worried staff wouldn’t want to work there if they had to pay for parking “It’s a real problem when you start charging people all-day parking and you don’t offer alternatives She hoped parking would still be free on Saturdays because it was her biggest retail day “It’s unfair that they’ve just put that through without another consultation and they should also be showing that the bus system is better than it was.” but Cerdeira was worried about other businesses “We are competing against the malls that offer free parking so people aren’t going to come into town where they have to pay “Council will literally just kill the centre of town.” Excelso Coffee owner Carrie Evans shared Cerdeira’s concerns about buses Her workers could not take a bus because their shifts started at 6.15am or 6.30am Many surrounding businesses were industrial so having paid parking did not make sense because there was no need to encourage parking turnover “Paid parking on streets where there aren’t [retail] businesses is not the answer.” Evans suggested having a 10 or 15-minute period of free parking to support businesses like hers She was concerned if customers didn’t pay for parking and were fined “Small businesses are having such a hard time right now.” Allure Nail Studio co-owner Margaret Fraser said it provided customer parking and so paid parking would not impact the business It also had staff parking at its Monmouth St business Council city development and partnerships general manager Gareth Wallis said there would not be any changes to weekend parking The parking plan aimed to balance the needs of residents and customers who competed for limited parking City centre workers were encouraged to use long-term parking facilities The council supported improved public transport, but responsibility for public transport planning and delivery lay with Bay of Plenty Regional Council The regional council made some network changes aimed at improving reliability on Monday “Improved public transport won’t negate the need for parking management and our team will continue to monitor and adapt to demand.” Consultation on the draft parking strategy was held in 2021 and there was ongoing informal engagement with city centre businesses The council also received regular feedback from city fringe residents about the ongoing issue of commuters occupying on-street parking and moving their vehicles during the day to avoid time restrictions or fines Regional council acting transport operations manager Simon Bell said most Tauranga urban bus services ran between 6am and 7pm which were comparable to services in other similar-sized New Zealand cities such as Hamilton “Services are planned to meet a broad range of needs across the network within available budgets and are reviewed periodically.” more two-hour time-restricted parking (P120) areas will also be added to the streets between 11th Ave and Marsh St The council would also hold community engagement on the development of a Mount Maunganui Parking Management Plan – LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air Rotorua Hospital anaesthetist and Association of Salaried Medical Specialists executive member Andrew Robinson is participating in a 24-hour senior doctors' strike on May 1 A Rotorua Hospital anaesthetist who suffered burnout at work says the health system is “perennially stretched” and “getting quietly worse” Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS) executive member Andrew Robinson is one of 100 senior doctors at Rotorua Hospital striking on Thursday Nationally, more than 5000 senior doctors will go on strike, including 206 staff at Tauranga Hospital but the union says life-saving services will be maintained Last-ditch mediation between Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora and the union failed to avert the strike Health NZ is “disappointed” the union did not take its latest offer to members saying the offer was “fair and realistic” given “tight financial constraints” The union says the offer failed to take staffing shortages “seriously” and would “drive existing doctors away” Robinson told the Rotorua Daily Post he was working “well in excess” of his contract “I went part-time during the week because I was just so burned out and I don’t think that any job should be such that you have to reduce your hours from one FTE [fulltime equivalent] to be able to do it.” Robinson said his contract included one in six weekends on call but staff shortages meant he worked one in four – bringing him up to “the equivalent number of hours to one FTE anyway” Robinson said Rotorua Hospital employed about 17 or 18 anaesthetists He understood most Rotorua Hospital departments were short-staffed Health NZ’s offer was “not really adequate” to recruit doctors improve on-call rosters and “get rid of the gaps” Robinson said he would “far rather be doing the orthopaedic list” instead of striking “We’re just working in a system that is just perennially stretched and it’s getting quietly worse.” Health NZ Te Whatu Ora Te Manawa Taki deputy chief executive Cath Cronin said it was “deeply disappointed” the union did not take its latest offer to members giving an independent party “the opportunity to hear from both sides and make a recommendation” “We value our doctors and want to do the best we can for them but the reality is that Health NZ has limited budget available for salary settlements within its tight financial constraints “We believe we have been fair and realistic including offering to remove the lowest pay steps for senior doctors.” Cronin said an estimated 4300 planned procedures would be postponed due to strike action Cronin said a first-year specialist would receive a $17,700 (9.5%) increase on base salary and the same percentage on other remuneration They would receive a $12,211 (6%) salary bump the following year A second-year specialist would receive a 6.2% increase on base salary ($11,800) and other remuneration then a 6% ($12,211) salary rise the following year “We have heard ASMS and have focused on their concern regarding growing and retaining our senior doctor workforce.” Cronin said it offered newly qualified senior medical officers “a very substantial salary increase” This included a 3% rise over two years for all other salaries and a lump-sum payment of $8000 to doctors with three or more years’ experience It offered an incentive for “hard-to-recruit districts” to help attract and retain senior doctors Health NZ referred to its press release when approached to respond to Robinson’s comments Most specialists were already near or at the top of the specialist scale the offer worked out at “less than 0.77% on average” An ASMS press release said Health NZ’s offer failed to take staffing shortages or achieving health targets “seriously” “This will drive existing doctors away rather than help retain them let alone attract any new senior doctors we need to fix the gaps.” The impact of doctor shortages was already being seen with longer wait times in emergency departments and for first specialists’ appointments Health NZ addressed some issues in mediation This included removing the bottom three steps of the pay scale to “restore relativities with junior doctors” Dalton said the recruitment and retention allowance was for four districts only and it needed to be “rolled out across the country wherever there are shortages with clear criteria” Vacancies for senior medical officers across the country averaged at 12% The strike would result in planned procedures being postponed “but the same number of procedures are lost every week due to ongoing staff shortages” ASMS members were working to maintain all life-preserving services during the strike Hospitals and emergency departments will remain open Megan Wilson is a health and general news reporter for the Bay of Plenty Times and the Rotorua Daily Post He piko he tuna is about resilience and love the despite challenges of life A sinkhole opened up on Golden Sands Drive in Pāpāmoa A sinkhole that opened up near a Pāpāmoa school was caused by a failed wastewater pipe and was discovered next to a public footpath on Golden Sands Drive the council said a wastewater pipe had failed and created a tomo with sand being drawn into the pipe Staff and contractors had secured the site and ensured underground services in the area were protected How the pipe failed “will be identified when excavations are complete” The pipe had been isolated and overland pumps installed to redirect flow and pump wastewater to the Golden Sands pump station The statement warned there maybe “noise and odour” associated with this temporary set up with traffic management in place and two lanes operating on Golden Sands Drive “We thank the Pāpāmoa community for their patience as we work resolve the issue as quickly and safely as possible.” A resident told the Bay of Plenty Times on Thursday he had “never seen so much hi-vis” “I wouldn’t have expected that to happen around here,” he said Almost 20 people were at the site assessing the sinkhole at the time Patrick Paul Moloney pleaded guilty to four charges in Tauranga District Court A Tauranga man has admitted his role in a series of assaults and posting videos of them online initially pleaded not guilty to four charges in December During a case review hearing in Tauranga District Court today Moloney pleaded guilty to one charge of common assault two charges of injuring with intent and one charge of posting harmful communication The assault charges carry a maximum sentence of three years in jail The digital communication charges carry a maximum sentence of two years in prison or a $50,000 fine Judge Paul Geoghegan called Moloney’s acts “frankly despicable” and made the seriousness of his crimes clear Moloney was one of three people arrested following a police investigation into an alleged Tauranga vigilante group targeting people they believed were contacting minors online The others were Aucklander Ethan Marc Jeffs and a third person who has interim name suppression Moloney was released on bail and is due to reappear in court for sentencing on July 29 Kobe Kara came up with a huge four-point play at the death The Hawke’s Bay Hawks have beaten the Tauranga Whai by a single point thanks to a Jackson Ball epic and two huge plays at the buzzer The Whai controlled the fourth quarter in Taradale and as time ticked down it had looked as if 17-year-old Ball’s 33 points would be in vain But two heroes stepped up for the Hawks at the death Kobe Kara nailed a hail-mary four-point play as the shot clock ticked to zero to give the home side an unexpected lead with 16 seconds left and Jayden Bezzant then landed what looked like the game-winner after a scramble for an offensive board But there was still 1.8 seconds left on the clock and Luca Yates then grabbed the inbound and launched a three-pointer of his own to send the crowd and the Hawks into delirium Yates then stopped the inbound pass to seal the win The Hawks now have a 7-5 win-loss record and are right in playoff contention after taking the scalp of the Saints away from home over the weekend The Saturday closure comes amid a proposal to shut Napier Library for at least two years The main body of the barge that capsized in the Tauranga Bridge Marina has been removed The main body of a barge that capsized at Tauranga Bridge Marina has been removed A 30m-long barge capsized on March 31 at the Tauranga Bridge Marina leaving a crane partially submerged in the water The council said the barge owner was working with their insurance company to remove the remaining parts of the crane A Maritime NZ spokesperson said it was too early to confirm why the barge capsized “Once we understand why this incident happened Maritime NZ will work with the barge owners to ensure all reasonable steps are taken to prevent a recurrence Maritime NZ has put a prohibition notice on the barge involved so it cannot be used.” Tauranga Bridge Marina manager Tony Arnold said the barge had completed its contract at the marina and was leaving Tauranga when the incident occurred Bay of Plenty harbourmaster Jon Jon Peters said an estimate that 10 litres of diesel had leaked was incorrect “Absorbent booms were strategically deployed around the area to minimise the impact of this small leakage,” Peters said “There were no adverse effects from the small amount that was discharged There have been no further leakages since then “An alternative route has been identified and is suitably marked with navigation aids.” The directive by Simon Watts is to get councils to focus on the basics Councils like the Tauranga City Council need to get back to basics Local Government Minister Simon Watts says A bill will be introduced directing councils to get back to basics Watts said in an interview with the Bay of Plenty Times He said a rates cap could be considered in the future Councils needed to focus on core activities to control excessive rate rises The economy was facing a tough time as ratepayers “That’s what local government should do.” The Government had recognised feedback from ratepayers and taxpayers about the degree of increases in rates “These concerns that we have heard [are] in regards to council expenditure being on items and activities that aren’t seen as the basics or core activities “The Government is currently investigating the rates cap and model “We’re working through the detail at the moment and we’re working together with local government officials in order to design what that model will look like for councils such as Tauranga City Council.” Mayor Mahé Drysdale said in an email that Tauranga City Council elected members understood the community’s concern about proposed rate rises “We are working hard to find savings which would reduce the average increase for 2025 and 2026 to 10% or lower,” he said Commercial and industrial rates increases would be higher than those for residential properties as there was an element of catch-up involved “That has been addressed over the past two years but we acknowledge this comes at a bad time for businesses that are struggling in the current economic environment.” the council rates team did have some ways to assist ratepayers “We would encourage businesses and individuals to contact them directly to discuss the available options.” Watts was in Tauranga to meet with the Tauranga City Council Western Bay of Plenty District Council and the infrastructure forum Watts said the Government saw the potential in this region and wanted to work with local councils to unlock it Watts met Drysdale to discuss what the Government expected local councils to deliver “Ensuring local councils were delivering the basics well and not spending money on nice-to-haves,” he said Watts said ratepayers would judge that and assess how to deliver to their needs A cap on rates wouldn’t constrain the ability of councils to execute the delivery of core activities they need to undertake It would not constrain the ability of the council to derive economic growth Watts said central government could establish guardrails and regulations that would enable good local decisions to be made “It’s not where we want to be participating but there are things that we can do to enable and help that through more funding and financing tools.” Local Water Done Well reforms were well under way and Watts expected to see councils make decisions about their plans and actions in the coming months “I’ve been impressed so far with the degree of work under way here at a local level to make that a reality,” Watts said He said the rates cap would support and enable more economic growth and productivity within our cities and regions which was essential for the broader economy “In the finalised details around the rates capping model we’ll share more information.” Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford said the council didn’t have a revenue problem .. “It’s important that Government ministers understand the growth and economic opportunities we’ve got here locally.” Tauranga faced significant increases in insurance The Tauranga City Council found $29m in savings since being elected last year and would continue to look for further savings He did not support the rates capping proposal but favoured standardised benchmarking across councils to help ratepayers compare performance and value for money “Once we’ve considered all submissions to the draft Annual Plan 2025 and 2026 and the final rates have been struck ratepayers will be able to see what this means for their properties.” The council wanted to work with the Government on potential ways to ease the rating burden on communities while maintaining the ability to deliver needed infrastructure “Rate capping won’t deliver the growth in our region that the Government wants and that it directly benefits from through an increased tax take.” Posted on 30-04-2025 12:56 | By Ian Stevenson TCC is a mess that they are very desirous of continuing with 24/7 To limit TCC to "Core" activities is actually a must to squeeze out the waste and so defrauding ratepayers of monies for "Nice to haves"...but then it is actually worse than that no matter it is Commissioners or elected members the TCC organisation cares not as long as the endless trail of "toys" and "nice to haves" continues they will keep doing it all Hope everyone one enjoys paying 167% more in rates by 2034 if the TCC budgets (LTP) is correct which is almost certainly not so Well seems our council haven't heard the previous messages as still spending on non core nice to haves So Mahe you don't like capping rates but think your spin department will make it sound like value for money Even now just spent near $200,000 on a spin video in support of excessive spending Still no sign of any meaningful restructuring So will you really listen to the ministers messages or the rate payers seems not from the track record of the disappointing elected council Worse no elections this year until 2028 and we are overwhelmed with rate rises and debt for future generations for a reason (not by me mind you) and you accepted the challenge to change the downward death spiral of Tauranga dealt to us by the Commissioners and started by those before The council has not taken into consideration rates rises costs for pensioners Al’s they will not look into a life style village in Papamoa that is paying rates on land they don’t even OWN they don’t give a dam but can go out and spend money on a new building So perhaps the minister can justify the proposed congestion tax when he is telling councils to tighten their belts Posted on 30-04-2025 15:23 | By Shirley Arabin The percentage of any rate increase is immaterial when the base property valuation is so far out of date It's time the Council started fighting for a better air service into Tauranga with more reasonable fares It's crazy when the price from Tauranga to Auckland is nearly the same as Auckland to Brisbane the ratepayer pays for their (TCC) existence and then with the cost overruns and cock ups on vitrually everything they touch...the ratepayer pays again (ie: 'passed on')....that's how it goes and seems perfectly acceptable to you Mr Drysdale doesn't it I would say there is NO intention to listen to the minister and reduce cost in any way whatsoever that is clearly confirmed in the last sentence of the article... …again that the $29M that the Mayor says they have saved was for the boardwalk from the city to Memorial Park It is a project that wasn’t going to get off the ground any way The Minister for Local Government couldn’t have been clearer he insists that Councils pull back their spending He has also insisted that they spend no more on cycle and pedestrian lanes Our Council are blithely ignoring these directions Personally I think council should have much more vigorous discussion before deciding on these projects Any one of them needing a budget of more than $3M should be kicked down the road until it is clear that we need it Posted on 30-04-2025 16:12 | By Fernhill22 Where do we start with TCC's lavish spending of ratepayers' funds on nice to have projects- The Civic Precinct-New Library the undervalued sale of the Tauranga Marine Precinct & ongoing costs associated with redevelopment of this the cost of putting in cycle lanes throughout the CBD All at a time when there has been a cost-of-living crisis going on It's the constant lies that keep coming out from council there is no honesty or transparency with their ratepayers as the recent Marine sale showed why when given a choice this council always take the most expensive options around road design features but so is the ability for locals to pay for housing and food Do more people cycle to work now council spent millions on cycle lanes and misplaced road humps Council make platitudes toward maori rights this council are pushing Maori into poverty and hardship more than any other group What use are cycle ways to Maori if they can't afford the bicycle because rates increased 15% and wages only increased 1% How about deferring the 130 million dollar museum We already have a ratepayer-funded art gallery costing over a million dollars a year to run that should have been 100% user-pays Tauranga City Council need to take heed of this message from Simon Watts as do those elected Councilors who support TCC and it's aspirations Those Councilors along with Drysdale could very well be 'down the road' come the next election What a shame we can't get rid of Grenfell on his $606,000 salary as well Let's remember that businesses claim rates against tax as a business cost The poor mug rate and taxpayer has had enough Stop the"nice to haves" make businesses pay their share and give the rest of us a well deserved break from constant cash grabs The Marina was sold for $20 million under value The Mayor and Council blame the Commissioners but they could have stopped it Then we have a contract for coffees for the next five years to the tune of $2000.00 per week I hate to think what the electricity and insurance will be on the new building in Devonport Road There are a handful of things to make a start on These guys need to stop pontificating and get real why are Priority One still getting Council funds I looked at their website recently and I have never seen such a load of garbage Once we’ve considered all submissions to the draft Annual Plan 2025 and 2026 🤣 It is clear from the last couple of sentences that Mahe intends to ignore everyone and instead to continue to take as much money from ratepayers as he can He also continues to claim $29 million in savings for stopping a project that should never have been approved to begin with That this boardwalk project was given the go ahead in the first place shows the councils total disregard for value for money In th region of 1400 plus and probably to increase the way we are tracking and yet no restructuring or rationalizing if operations to get better value for money that they tout The government has had to look everywhere to try and bring within budgets so why isn't the council that comparative to other councils have higher wage bills and staff numbers and in the top highest rates for the whole country Probably water will lead to increasing staff levels in house Or with a slight of hand a separate entity set up for water with more staff but still on ratepayers bills An essential core service that competes against nice to haves The Council will not provide a full detailed line by line copy of the proposed budget which would give the rate payer a clear understanding of it The Council is hiding the nice to haves and excesses in the cut down budget numbers they provide it had the average salary of the 1300 Council staff at $95,000 It's a mess and Mayor Drysdale has been a huge disappointment They proposed 12% rates increase and are talking about 16% for commercial and under 10% for residential CPI is currently 2.5% and has not exceeded 7.5% in many years It's time Mahe and his Council took a look at themselves Wake up and listen to the people you represent .....surely 'capping' the rates is the ONLY way to reign in the crazy and often unneccesary spending from TCC?...if they are allowed to and each rateable year extract almost ANY number they desire to justify 'pet' projects rather than what their primary job actually is then this will NEVER become sensible or be justified will it..... I could not disagree with Drysdale and puppeteer TCC executives more.... Hemi Rolleston has won the Te Awanui Māori Ward seat Hemi Rolleston is Tauranga’s new Māori ward councillor taking up the seat his nephew was unable to fill Tauranga City Council released the final result for the Te Awanui Ward byelection on Wednesday evening The Te Awanui Māori Ward byelection was triggered after Mikaere Sydney resigned his position in January Sydney was elected to the council in July 2024 but was unable to take up his position due to illness The final vote count shows Rolleston won by 119 votes Rolleston, who is Sydney‘s uncle told Local Democracy Reporting he was proud and elated to take on the role “The message is clear the community supports me He is a professional director and previously worked at Tauranga City Council as the head of Māori land He has also been a board member of Priority One Mayor Mahé Drysdale said he was looking forward to welcoming Rolleston to the council governance table “The Māori Ward is an important seat because it helps ensure there is wide community representation “I look forward to Councillor Elect Rolleston joining our team of 10 and providing a voice for the Te Awanui Ward as we work collaboratively for the good of Tauranga.” Rolleston would officially join the council on May 8 - LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air Five liquor stores across the wider Tauranga area caught selling booze to minors have had their licences to sell alcohol suspended for two days next month with another three suspension decisions pending Papamoa Liquor Centre and Super Liquor Te Puke have all lost their right to sell alcohol for 48 hours Manager certificates at four of the five stores – Liquorland CBD Tauranga Papamoa Liquor Centre and Super Liquor Te Puke – have also been suspended for 28 days next month The suspensions were ordered by the independent Alcohol Regulatory and Licensing Authority (ARLA) after controlled purchase operations involving underage volunteers on March 8 or 9 the authority said the duty managers involved admitted they had not asked the volunteer’s age their date of birth nor if they had any suitable form of identification The breaches of the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act occurred during joint compliance operations by Tauranga City Council’s licensing inspectors and a Tauranga police alcohol harm prevention co-ordinator The suspensions have sparked calls for “greater accountability and oversight” of off-licence premises and stricter licensing criteria for duty managers from Tauranga alcohol harm expert Dr Tony Farrell has confirmed the number of compliance failures during controlled purchase operations had more than doubled in two years Council Alcohol Licensing team leader Sam Kemp said eight premises failed controlled purchase operations last month Kemp said the council was awaiting ARLA decisions for the remaining three off-licence premises and three duty managers for whom suspension applications had been submitted we have observed a significant increase in compliance failures which have more than doubled from three in 2023 He said the four suspensions last year included two duty managers one of whom allowed a person to become intoxicated on the premises To date there had been eight failures in 2025 “This trend appears to be primarily due to complacency among duty managers who often neglect basic compliance practices such as asking customers for their age or requesting identification.” Dr Tony Farrell from Mount Medical Centre said the sale of alcohol to minors was “extremely concerning” “The evidence is clear that alcohol use in those under 18 is associated with significant harm and greater likelihood of risky behaviours “Early alcohol use also increases the risk of developing long-term dependency These harms are well-documented and preventable He said retailers who sold alcohol had a responsibility to “uphold the law and protect young people from these risks” and failing to check ID was a “serious breach” of that duty a two-day closure may be “little more” than an inconvenience Farrell said he supported “mandatory training and stricter licensing criteria” for duty managers regular controlled purchase operations and a graduated penalty system that included longer suspensions He said the broader issue was that off-licence alcohol sales were “widely accessible and heavily marketed” “A national approach to reducing alcohol availability and advertising exposure is urgently needed.” Associate Justice Minister Nicole McKee said it was the responsibility of liquor outlets to work within the law and conditions of their licence “I am aware that most licence holders have appropriate systems in place to ensure they do those who fail to comply should be expected to face the full consequences of their offending.” McKee said she regularly met with stakeholders with a range of interests and views on alcohol licensing “We are looking at many parts of the [Sale and Supply of Alcohol] act that can address harm reduction but also note an overall reduction in alcohol consumption generally.” Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year Congestion charging is a "dirty cash grab from central government" Steve Morris made the comment on Monday as the council discussed its submission on the Government's Land Transport Management (Time of Use Charging) Amendment Bill The Bill would enable local authorities to work with the New Zealand Transport Agency to design schemes charging motorists to use roads in high-congestion zones in peak hours It is before Parliament's Transport and Infrastructure Committee for public submissions with the Government intending to pass the legislation this year The council's draft submission said it supported the general intent of the bill but some councillors opposed this position Morris said he was not convinced supporting time-of-use charging was in the best interest of residents and paying for time-of-use charging is just another naked Morris said this was because it was not clear in the bill if the revenue from congestion charges on local roads would be used locally or elsewhere "This bill enables money to go into government coffers from our residents Councillor Glen Crowther said the council should take a neutral position on congestion charging alternative transport options had to be provided meaning Government funding for public transport would be needed Councillor Rick Curach said congestion charging would be a "real burden" for people who did not have easy access to public transport He was concerned the government could impose time-of-use charges focused on revenue generation rather than congestion reduction Curach wanted assurances congestion reduction would be quantified by a percentage and that the charges would be removed if the target was not met Council principal strategic transport planner Sarah Dove said the bill was silent on congestion reduction targets but this was probably because these would vary hugely between regions The bill was clear that the charges were to encourage better use of existing networks through congestion reduction Councillor Rod Taylor said the council was only submitting on the legislation and any discussion on whether Tauranga should implement congestion charging would come in the future The council's submission requested local authorities be involved in any decision to proceed with a charging scheme rather than a minister directing the New Zealand Transport Agency to make and implement that decision It asked that all revenue from the scheme be managed by the relevant local authority and used in the area of charging The submission was adopted by the councillors after the wording was changed to say the council acknowledges The submission said projections showed without substantial investment in transport infrastructure congestion in Tauranga could significantly worsen in the next decade The funding required for transport infrastructure over the next 20 years was estimated at $10 billion This shortfall has previously led to discussions about alternative funding mechanisms the commissioners running Tauranga City Council scrapped plans to investigate congestion charging options after strong community opposition 81 percent had opposed congestion charging When the Bill passed its first reading in Parliament in March Transport Minister Chris Bishop said it would reduce travel times increase efficiency and help boost economic growth and productivity "Modelling shows that successful time-of-use charging - charging motorists to travel on certain roads at peak times - will encourage people to change the time or mode of travel and could reduce congestion by up to 8-12 percent at peak times." He said it required the transport agency to lead the design of schemes in partnership with councils "enabling local solutions within a nationally consistent framework" "The legislation is not about raising revenue but maximising the efficiency of the roading network "Any revenue that is collected will first be used to pay for the scheme's costs and then reinvested to improve transport in the region." LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air Parliament kicked off this week with the first reading of a bill trying to improve something everybody hates - sitting in traffic Cabinet has agreed to allow councils to introduce congestion charges with legislation to be introduced this year Auckland mayor Wayne Brown commissioned the report in support of his case for a time of use - or congestion - charge NZTA Waka Kotahi agreed to fund $5.2 million for the 15th Ave to Welcome Bay project A recent survey comparing Tauranga to seven other cities in Aotearoa revealed 77 percent of residents considered traffic congestion "a big problem" Local Democracy Reporting RSS Follow RNZ News Processed with VSCO with a4 preset The Deep Dive Division team preparing for the deployment of the artifical reefs An artificial reef programme aims to restore marine life in Tauranga Harbour Tauranga Harbour saw a massive decline in biodiversity with a colossal build-up of sediment covering reef systems aims to support marine ecosystems and the “blue economy” “The rest is the circle of life,” Tua Karalus said ​Deep Dive Division is a Hamilton-based company specialising in commercial and scientific diving services across Aotearoa It’s the only Māori and Pacific-owned dive company in New Zealand combining Māori perspectives with environmental science and advanced technology meaning “pearl” in te reo Māori and symbolising the nucleus of change The artificial reefs are also given another name Artificial reef systems have been deployed in the water to biomimic the habitats of our natural marine ecosystems and restore and protect biodiverse native marine life Six of the structures were manufactured at Hynds Pipe Systems Ltd under the leadership of Hynds Holdings director and R&D director Aaron Hynds Artificial reef systems have been deployed in the water to biomimic the habitats of NZ’s natural marine ecosystems and at the same time the remaining three were constructed using a unique 3D concrete printing technique The project is a consultation between Deep Dive Division, the University of Waikato Karalaus had started installing the second reef at the Tauranga Harbour “It went straight to the hole that was designed for it.” Projects like Peara are a push into the “blue economy” and the beginning push into aquaculture “We embrace this industry because there will be jobs for local people.” starting with surveying the water and marine life and understanding the situation in Tauranga Harbour in real time There is also a very purposeful New Zealand-led and based approach to creating these artificial reefs “Many reef systems going in New Zealand are being bought in from Australia.” Deep Dive Division recognises the strong cultural identity New Zealand has regarding the ocean and freshwater “We’ve got a marine heritage that we need to acknowledge.” Deep Dive was established in 2018 and involved with urban ocean agriculture structures followed by the initial meeting with their partners in the Tauranga Harbour “We were sitting in our home office whiteboard and sketching something up.” University of Waikato professor Chris Battershill and professor David Schiel from the University of Canterbury have led Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE)-funded research to assess marine life loss in the Eastern Bay of Plenty Battershill has worked closely with Karalus on the development of Peara The Peara reefs are designed to support the growth of seaweed and shellfish Inbuilt harmonics also help deter whales and reduce the risk of beaching the reefs provide essential footholds for marine life to grow in sandy or silty environments that typically lack structure Reef structures and their acoustic properties are designed using mātauranga Māori to support the colonisation of native marine species in harbours “These native colonisers help resist the spread of invasive species.” provide habitat for important taonga like crayfish kina and other invertebrates that also serve as food for fish “These reef outcrops offer refuge for marine biodiversity that is now rare or absent in the harbour.” Scott Parker and Branden Pritchard chill out before hitting the road A sasquatch could well be spotted in Tauranga when The Boondocks take to the stage at Palace Tavern, 217 Maunganui Rd, Mount Maunganui with Scott Parker on bass and vocals and Branden Pritchard on drums will be supported by punk acts Pink Plates and Not Exact “We have never done a headlining tour but we are excited for it,” Parker said The sasquatch was seen in the band’s music video for their latest single but Parker said they were looking forward to returning to the city Parker and Pritchard formed The Boondocks in 2022 but they have been friends since childhood they are one of the hottest new rock bands in New Zealand The Boondocks released their seventh single and made a video with Imaginary Friends producer Dave Thompson The track Black Taxi became a smash hit for the band The two have played with some of New Zealand’s finest rock bands Following in the footsteps of some of these Kiwi rock legends can be a little daunting but Parker said there is a “real revival for band music” going on rock music’s probably the crew of the crop.” Parker said he can be quite shy off the stage but another persona takes over once on stage and loves engaging with the crowd “I feel like that expresses myself shamelessly.” There is a touch of impostor syndrome for Parker with the band’s success but he loves his interactions with fans while on the road they did about 40 tours and would meet people in small towns throughout New Zealand “It is pretty cool that people want to take photos,” Parker said Organising their first headlining stint has been a learning curve for Parker and liaising with local bands like Not Exact Parker said that the band will keep tickets at $10 for the show as they want to get as many people through the doors as possible rather than worrying about turning a profit Tickets are avaliable from: https://www.undertheradar.co.nz/ticket/28454/The-Boondocks-Bear-With-Me-Tour-Tauranga.utr The sale of Tauranga's marine precinct at Sulphur Point has been finalised The controversial $13.98 million sale of Tauranga’s Marine Precinct for a superyacht service development has been settled The settlement comes two weeks after a High Court judge dismissed the interim injunction that had halted the sale managing director of precinct-based marine service company Pacific 7 on the basis of the displacement of the working boats that use the precinct and a lack of consultation with precinct users found the arguments for stopping the sale “generally weak” and that claims of a local fishing boat fleet being harmed were “overstated” Council chief executive Marty Grenfell said Justice Andrew’s findings were unambiguous council has now met its legal and contractual obligations with regard to the sale of the precinct,” he said in a statement Councillors discussed the sale behind closed doors for two hours at a meeting on Monday Grenfell said the sale gave effect to the council’s original intent for the precinct when it was established in 2015 This was to help grow the region’s commercial marine sector and create significant economic benefits for the local community the precinct has never achieved its full potential and ratepayers have been funding ongoing operating losses in the order of $1.5 million a year.” The sale committed the purchaser to design construct and complete development of the precinct so that it met its strategic objectives and established a purpose-built marine service facility for the wider benefit of the industry and the community He said the council would continue to engage with all marine industry stakeholders and ensure the wider interests of the community were met Rofe approached the council in late 2023 with a proposal to buy the precinct with a vision of it becoming a “premier superyacht refit destination” Rofe said with the settlement complete his company could begin the transformation works first envisaged by Tauranga in 2014 Rofe said it would deliver a world-class marine precinct that was fit for purpose to provide employment and opportunities in specialist marine services for larger pleasure craft and local commercial vessels “The Tauranga Marine Precinct will offer all users the same care and respect that is given so generously by the people of Tauranga Moana to all who visit our beautiful city.” The first stage of the $11.4 million precinct project opened in 2018 Its development was funded by the council through land sales and Bay of Plenty Regional Council through the Regional Infrastructure Fund this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read Tauranga Boys' College prop Ioapo Kupita looks to break the Auckland Grammar line with a 46-18 home victory over Auckland Grammar Grammar had previously pipped Rotorua Boys’ High School 32-27 in a pre-season classic thanks to a late try but Tauranga effortlessly punctured their otherwise perfect pre-season “We took their set piece away at scrum and lineout time and they just couldn’t get going,” said Tauranga coach Aidan Kuka Grammar now need to regroup before their Auckland 1A season-opener at home to Botany Downs Secondary College on Saturday while Tauranga’s next big school exchange is away to Westlake Boys High School on May 14 Tauranga were never behind against Grammar nabbed one try apiece on their respective wings while co-captain Jay McQuoid returned to action with one as well Brother Tommy McQuoid scored from fullback while other tries came from No 8 Seremaia Salikikoro and bench-starters Tipene Taikato-Smith and replacement halfback Will Baker Kicking was tricky in conditions where it rained for most of the first half but Tauranga first five-eighth Ivan Ward made two conversions and halfback Rydian Spice kicked a third Grammar were without New Zealand Schools centre Nico Stanley which meant the contest was robbed of a showdown with Tauranga co-captain Ethan McManemin a member of the New Zealand Māori squad last year Grammar are again being coached by Dave Askew While there was much college pride evident the match also marked the end of an era for the Botany Downs rugby programme with long-time head coach Logan Fui leading the team for the final time Fui had been instrumental in growing the college’s programme over the past decade but is now passing the torch to a new generation in former First XV captains Sua Ioane (2018-2020) and Trent Justino (2019-2022) The team will be managed by Craig Rooksy and Vanessa Walter with both Fui and Walter stepping into supporting roles for the remainder of the year Botany Downs principal Karen Brinsden paid tribute to Fui and the team “I am immensely proud of our First XV rugby team for making history once again by securing a victory against Tangaroa and ensuring our place in the 1A competition,” Brinsden said “This achievement is particularly remarkable given the relatively young age of our school The depth and growth of our rugby programme are a testament to the dedication and hard work of our coaches and managers over the years “We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Logan Fui who will be transitioning into a supporting role this season His leadership and dedication have been invaluable to our team’s success.” when they qualified for 1A rugby for the first time however they found it to be a steep learning curve and finished bottom as well as critical exposure for the players many of whom gained first-hand experience competing against some of the nation’s best young players the playoff match was about more than survival “While some 1A programmes boast histories that span 50-100 years Botany’s success is a true David-v-Goliath story Botany continues to punch above its weight across multiple sporting codes and a culture that promotes high participation and inclusivity.” The clash with Tangaroa was a fiercely contested with both sides enjoying their share of possession and strong defensive moments the deadlock was broken when Botany executed a set-piece move from a tap penalty Flanker Dylan Terblanche powered through staunch Tangaroa defence to score under the posts with fullback Lauchlan Taylor adding the conversion for a crucial 7-0 lead Botany dominated possession late in the first half but were unable to convert promising opportunities out wide who launched relentless attacks and pinned Botany deep in their own half But defensive resilience was the key for Botany and they repelled wave after wave of Tangaroa pressure There was a critical moment when Taylor attempted a 45m penalty kick into a strong breeze to extend the lead but tricky conditions saw the ball fall short The final moments encapsulated the spirit of the game with Botany holding firm on their own 22 until a Tangaroa handling error sealed the result and celebrations began When Ōtara’s Tangaroa College beat Macleans College 27-24 in the Auckland 1B final last year they proudly posted the following engagingly viral mantra on social media: “No scholarships but unfortunately there is another “No” that is now hard to avoid: “No points” because the 7-0 loss follows on from the same playoff last year when Tangaroa also failed to score Westlake Boys’ High narrowly beat Liston 22-19 in a physical pre-season battle on Saturday with a lot of X-factor players with physical bulk and a standout centre who is fast and big,” warned Westlake coach Rob Midenhall Last year’s 1A round-robin top finishers Saint Kentigern finished their pre-season with a home game against St John’s (Hamilton) before a first-round tussle with De La Salle College But on Saturday play was called off early in the second half home team first): Dilworth v St Peter’s; St Kentigern v De La Salle; Mt Albert Grammar v King’s College; Sacred Heart v St Paul’s; Auckland Grammar v Botany Downs; Liston College v Kelston Westlake kick off their defence of the Kyocera-sponsored North Harbour First XV competition on Saturday with a home match against a Rangitoto team which troubled them last season Westlake have been solid in pre-season with skipper and openside flanker Arlo Leith perhaps the player most to watch out for In Westlake’s final warm-up win over Liston Hooker Jeremiah Samoa was the standout in defence with No 8 Solomone Tuitupo Westlake coach Rob Mildenhall welcomed the pressure of being the team everyone in North Harbour would be looking to knock over “One of the great things about working at a school like Westlake is it is a school that likes to achieve,” Mildenhall said “We want to perform in the face of pressure “Rangitoto were a young team last year but still gave us a tough time and will be a year older and wiser this time around.” North Harbour Kyocera First XV Saturday (all games 12 noon home team first): Whangārei v Massey; Rosmini v Takapuna Grammar; Ōrewa v Mahurangi; Westlake v Rangitoto Palmerston North Boys’ High School walloped Whanganui Collegiate 51-5 to win the first of their “White Jersey” traditional fixtures The rivalry between the schools stretches back to 1923 first five Jamie Viljoen flashed into a gap to register the first of his 21 points Openside Viliami Rongokea-Tupou was explosive and signed his name on the scoresheet Fullback Hunter Kennedy scored 17 tries in 2024 and applied an exclamation mark in this match when he sprinted 70m for the hosts’ seventh and final try The match doubled as a reunion for the 1975 First XV that beat New Plymouth Boys’ High School to win the Moascar Cup Future All Blacks hooker Bruce Hemara was the captain A Whanganui Collegiate Rugby Supporters’ social media post put the best possible spin on the result “Our men stuck at it till the final whistle and showed enough in patches to make sure this will be our worst result of the season.” Wellington premiership champions St Patrick’s College Silverstream rebounded strongly from defeats to Feilding High School (24-38) and Marlborough Boys’ College (7-17) to trounce St Bede’s College 55-24 in the annual fixture and Teddy Cooling scored the hosts’ nine tries with Davis adding four conversions and Fletcher Cooper a solitary success Silverstream enjoy a 31-13 advantage in the rivalry Wesley College scored a 33-28 win over Napier Boys’ High and Christ’s College beat St Pat’s Town 24-12 Rupeni Raviyawa and Tyrese Tane and three Nixon Foreman conversions earned Feilding High a 26-20 victory over Gisborne Boys’ High and Storm De Thier scored and Ruan Ludwig added a conversion and penalty Timaru Boys’ High beat Dunstan High 33-5 in their final pre-season game Wellington reader Richard Swan was among those who attended the Tauranga-Wellington game at Easter and was happy to confirm that Tauranga’s Tommy McQuoid was indeed outstanding at fullback For someone relatively small and never immediately tackled in drawing a comparison with Christian Cullen Swan also quite correctly pointed out that references to Tauranga having benefited from having the New Zealand Secondary School team’s starting halfback/first five combination of Charlie Sinton and Mason Verster in 2024 should also have included No 8 Aiden Spratley – something that made the college’s spine even more impressive last year And Swan not only noted that Spratley’s younger brother Cooper played openside against Wellington Phil Spratley was a Wellington College old boy who in 1999 went within 0.76s of running a four-minute mile Rotorua Boys’ High bounced back with a 41-29 win against St Peter’s (Cambridge) Rotorua have now headed to Australia for two matches The first is on Tuesday (April 29) at 3.40pm against Nudgee College This game will be livestreamed with a link shared on Rotorua’s Facebook page against TSS (The Southport School) at 10.30am Moana Pasifika coach Tana Umaga is a special guest at St Peter’s rugby community dinner at the college on Thursday May 1, with James McOnie and Melodie Robinson hosting; tickets $85. Meanwhile on Tuesday, May 20, 6pm, St John’s College (Hamilton) are hosting a rugby quiz at The Cook as a fundraiser for planned 2026 tour to South Africa – with entry $200 for a team of eight. As a further fundraiser, the pub is selling “St John’s Gold Lager”. # Readers are invited to send their first XV rugby updates, news snippets and hot takes to nzschoolboyrugby@gmail.com Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read. Liston College defeated Kelston Boys’ High 21-16 in a stunning upset. Inside are workers developing some of the world’s most technologically sophisticated and revolutionary modes of transport. It's the head quarters of Syos Aerospace, a drone manufacturer that has just signed contracts with the UK's Ministry of Defence worth $66.8 million dollars. Syos Aerospace CEO and founder Samuel Vye spoke to Q+A the day before he left to the UK for the announcement of the deal. While he was unable to divulge the details of the deal, he was happy to talk about the work of his robotics company. The Tauranga warehouse is Syos’s development and research hub. The prototypes are trialled in New Zealand but manufactured in a facility South East of London. UAV’s or unmanned aerial vehicles make up the bulk of the work but Syos has also developed, long range uncrewed vessels, helicopters and ground vehicles. Inside their headquarters, an array of aerial drones and parts sit on long work benches. It’s the weekend so not many technicians are in but in an adjoining area, an engineering is fine tuning the rotor on an uncrewed helicopter. There are impressive display prototypes in a showroom area. One of them, a missile shaped drone, with retro Thunderbirds vibes, has one role, Samuel Vye explained; to shoot other drones out of the sky. The robotics company has been supplying the British Ministry of Defence with drones and won contracts with other customers up against some of the world’s biggest aero-space companies. When Q+A asked Vye about why a small Bay of Plenty robotics company is becoming a go-to drone manufacturer, he replied: “It’s not about the specific drone." "It’s about the capability that Syos Aerospace has in rapidly developing the next drone that’s needed by the customer. So we’re always horizon scanning what the future looks like so at the drop of a hat we can spend six weeks and rapidly develop the next drone systems that a customer might currently need." He told Q+A that it would be keen to bid for contracts when the New Zealand Ministry of Defence puts out tenders for drone supply. The Ministry’s recently released Defence Capability Plan indicates it has between $200 million and $450m to spend on drones for maritime and security surveillance and combat. At a UK military base this last week, Vye and his team presented the company’s latest drone technology to British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. The British Prime Minister made special mention of Syos in when announcing a new UK and NZ defence co-operation agreement. Starmer confirmed that the drone deal with Syos would support Ukraine. Back in Tauranga, the Syos CEO answers questions about how their drones may be used in war. “We don’t stick weapons on any of our drone systems.” “So we stay away from that controversial subject so all our systems are set up as surveillance, cargo systems to be multi role, multi use by our customers.” On the question of whether the drones provide a platform to be armed, Vye said: "I guess a Toyota Hilux provides a platform to be armed." The systems developed by Syos have a wide range of applications beyond conflict zones. There’s a race on to produce long range aerial drones and USVs, unmanned surface vehicles; boats that can surveille and patrol the far reaches of New Zealand’s massive EEZ. Other systems can be used for conservation work, fire fighting and search and rescue. Vye said the world will soon look very different. “Imagine numerous swarming drone systems in the sky, on the ground, in the sea. "The low cost, high volume, mass application of drones is really the future." Syos Aerospace chief executive officer and founder Samuel Vye. (Source: Q and A) Amongst cluster of warehouses in Tauranga’s industrial zone, there’s a large shed with no signage. UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and Prime Minister of New Zealand, Christopher Luxon, look at drones on a display by SYOS, during a visit to a military base training Ukrainian troops, on April 22, 2025 in West of England. (Source: Getty) Charges filed against Woolworths over pricing Supermarket charged in the Auckland District Court with breaching the Fair Trading Act Business Trade war: Sir John Key's 'optimism' on Trump's next tariff moves Former New Zealand prime minister has long disagreed with the US president's view on trade but says he is hopeful the tariffs will land in a "sensible place" New Zealand's Cardinal John Dew prepares to go into conclave Dew is among the 133 cardinals gathered in the Vatican to elect a successor to Pope Francis New Zealand Qantas confirms new Auckland-Perth flights Flights between Auckland and Western Australia's capital would begin in December Destiny Church to move out of its South Auckland headquarters the building was extensively renovated with funding sourced from the sale of its Mount Wellington site and a $1000 tithe from Destiny Church members Russia and Ukraine clash over ceasefire proposals as fighting rages Moscow accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of threatening the safety of dignitaries attending Victory Day celebrations World Film industry anxiously awaits details on Trump's 100% movie tariff 7:17pm Search underway for Masterton man, 74, missing since Sunday 7:07pm Crooks, culture first order of business for Mike Bush in Victoria 7:05pm Charges filed against Woolworths over pricing, misleading specials 6:45pm Police, experts warn 'emerging risk' of 3D-printed firearms rising 6:33pm Trade war: Sir John Key's 'optimism' on Trump's next tariff moves 7:28pm 1US woman who disappeared for more than six decades found safe Two men's shared name brings years of trouble and a hefty bill to one Person dies following morning crash on Auckland motorway Kiwi motorcyclist killed in 11-bike British Supersport crash Destiny Church to move out of its South Auckland headquarters Photos: Lorde among stars at 2025 Met Gala A$AP Rocky and Rihanna also revealed they are expecting their third child. 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 fansSun, May 4 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 Kim Kardashian to testify in Paris trial over 2016 armed robberyMon Amongst cluster of warehouses in Tauranga’s industrial zone Inside are workers developing some of the world’s most technologically sophisticated and revolutionary modes of transport It's the head quarters of Syos Aerospace a drone manufacturer that has just signed contracts with the UK's Ministry of Defence worth $66.8 million dollars Syos Aerospace CEO and founder Samuel Vye spoke to Q+A the day before he left to the UK for the announcement of the deal While he was unable to divulge the details of the deal he was happy to talk about the work of his robotics company The Tauranga warehouse is Syos’s development and research hub The prototypes are trialled in New Zealand but manufactured in a facility South East of London UAV’s or unmanned aerial vehicles make up the bulk of the work but Syos has also developed an array of aerial drones and parts sit on long work benches It’s the weekend so not many technicians are in but in an adjoining area an engineering is fine tuning the rotor on an uncrewed helicopter There are impressive display prototypes in a showroom area Samuel Vye explained; to shoot other drones out of the sky The robotics company has been supplying the British Ministry of Defence with drones and won contracts with other customers up against some of the world’s biggest aero-space companies When Q+A asked Vye about why a small Bay of Plenty robotics company is becoming a go-to drone manufacturer he replied: “It’s not about the specific drone." "It’s about the capability that Syos Aerospace has in rapidly developing the next drone that’s needed by the customer So we’re always horizon scanning what the future looks like so at the drop of a hat we can spend six weeks and rapidly develop the next drone systems that a customer might currently need." He told Q+A that it would be keen to bid for contracts when the New Zealand Ministry of Defence puts out tenders for drone supply The Ministry’s recently released Defence Capability Plan indicates it has between $200 million and $450m to spend on drones for maritime and security surveillance and combat Vye and his team presented the company’s latest drone technology to British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer along with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon The British Prime Minister made special mention of Syos in when announcing a new UK and NZ defence co-operation agreement Starmer confirmed that the drone deal with Syos would support Ukraine the Syos CEO answers questions about how their drones may be used in war “So we stay away from that controversial subject so all our systems are set up as surveillance On the question of whether the drones provide a platform to be armed Vye said: "I guess a Toyota Hilux provides a platform to be armed." The systems developed by Syos have a wide range of applications beyond conflict zones There’s a race on to produce long range aerial drones and USVs unmanned surface vehicles; boats that can surveille and patrol the far reaches of New Zealand’s massive EEZ Other systems can be used for conservation work Vye said the world will soon look very different “Imagine numerous swarming drone systems in the sky mass application of drones is really the future." The Commerce Commission has filed criminal charges against Woolworths NZ for alleged inaccurate pricing and misleading specials that may have breached the Fair Trading Act The commission filed the charges against Woolworths in the Auckland District Court It indicated in December last year that it would be filing separate criminal charges against Woolworths and two Pak'nSave supermarkets the commission said there were ongoing issues with pricing in the supermarket sector and the operators may have breached the Fair Trading Act deputy chair Anne Callinan said operators should know what the expectations were "Supermarkets have long been on notice about the importance of accurate and clear pricing and specials and we're not satisfied with the continuing issues we're seeing across the industry "Pricing accuracy is a consumer right and an expectation of a competitive market well-resourced businesses that should invest the time and effort to get pricing and promotions right." She said the charges were filed to remind all supermarkets that they are expected to fix the pricing accuracy issues and implement better processes In a statement when the charges were announced Woolworths managing director Spencer Sonn said it was important customers could trust prices advertised at their supermarkets Woolworths said it has cooperated with the Commerce Commission's pricing investigation for some time rnz.co.nz Former prime minister Sir John Key says he remains optimistic about Donald Trump's domestic economic policy despite opposing the tariff strategy that has sent global markets into turmoil in recent months who served as prime minister for eight years was the keynote speaker at an Auckland business summit earlier today Sir John told 1News he believed Trump would ultimately take a more moderate approach to tariffs than initially proposed "I'm not a fan of tariff policies I don't think they really work," he said as I think the stock market is telling you at the moment that actually there will be a more sensible landing place for the tariffs that he's wanting to impose." Sir John said he "wasn't entirely surprised" at Trump's call to go ahead with the policy "They're just a negotiating point I think he simply put on widespread and high rates of tariffs on every country to give himself a leverage point and a negotiating point "What I think he actually grossly underestimated was the stock market reaction You can actually make the case that his own strategy hasn't worked The reason the markets have recovered is because he's taken those tariffs off the most part 'I'm going to negotiate case by case'." Sir John suggested Trump's economic policies could still generally be positive for the US but the tariffs could be trickier for the global economy Asked whether he stood by his October comments that Trump would be good for the economy he said: "Do I think he's going to reduce regulatory burden in the United States It depends on where things shake down in terms of tariffs." Sir John acknowledged that for certain industries Trump's policies could be "a really negative thing" particularly if the president's proposed 100% tariff on the film industry were to be implemented "I can't see how it would be cost-competitive to make a movie in New Zealand with a 100% tariff on it," he said noting that films such as The Hobbit would not have been made in New Zealand without government subsidies who now served as a director of US tech company Palo Alto Networks said he had "always been opposed" to Trump's tariff policies but believes they won't be the "dominant part of his economic solutions" "I don't think it's perfect from New Zealand's point of view but I don't think we should panic either and America will still be a very big market for us to sell things to," he said "There are growing markets around the world It's not a great thing from New Zealand's point of view We've got a very sound economy with lots of options in front of us." Sir John suggested a belief that the Republican Trump was was better "on balance" for the US economy than Democratic opponent Kamala Harris he expressed concerns about Trump's tariff approach: "China doesn't pay those tariffs middle-income consumers or consumers in America do because when a tariff goes on a good that you bring into a country He added: "I don't agree with the massive tariffs and I don't think you'll follow through with all of that and I certainly don't agree with this view on trade." Cardinal John Dew is about to go into conclave to vote for a new pope is among the 133 cardinals gathered in the Vatican to elect a successor to Pope Francis Dew and his fellow Cardinals will be locked away from the world as they participate in daily votes in the Sistine Chapel until white smoke billows from the rooftop signalling a new pope is selected Read more about how the conclave works here He follows in the footsteps of Cardinal Reginald Delargey and Cardinal Thomas Williams - Kiwis who had previously entered conclave in 1978 and 2005 Dew said cardinals had been meeting daily to share their perspectives on the needs of the church and what qualities a new pope would need to possess to address said needs “Listening to what everyone is saying and the kind of person they're looking for to hear the passion that people have for spreading the work of the Gospel,” Dew said “I think one of the things that a new pope will need to do is to continue to try and give hope to the world “But as well as being the leader of the Church he needs to be a world leader who's prepared to speak out and in this world of disinformation and misinformation and sometimes lies Dew said other cardinals who had previously participated in conclavce described the centuries-old tradition as "divinely inspired" “A couple of the cardinals actually said you can go into the conclave and even have some ideas but it's only after a vote or two that things start to clarify,” he recalled but it became very clear that he was the one They described that as the work of Holy Spirit “And the fact that you're in a place where you have no contact with anybody else – no cell phones no iPads – the whole thing becomes a bit like a retreat and a real time of prayer.” Dew said finding a successor among a sea of so many contenders also had him feeling some "apprehension" the fact that this only happens once every few years and it has incredible consequences for the Church and for the world 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." Ukraine and Russia are at odds over competing ceasefire proposals as Moscow accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of threatening the safety of dignitaries attending Victory Day celebrations after he dismissed Russia's unilateral 72-hour ceasefire Zelensky instead renewed calls for a more substantial 30-day pause in hostilities He said the proposed ceasefire could start anytime as a meaningful step toward ending the three-year war “Let’s be honest — you can’t agree on anything serious in three Zelensky said that Moscow’s announcement of a 72-hour ceasefire next week in Ukraine to mark Victory Day in World War II is merely an attempt to create a “soft atmosphere” ahead of Russia’s annual celebrations “so that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s guests on Red Square feel comfortable and safe.” He said that Ukraine cannot provide security assurances to foreign officials planning to visit Russia around May 9 warning that Moscow could stage provocations and later attempt to blame Ukraine Zelensky said that some governments had approached Kyiv seeking safety reassurance while their delegations are in Russia “Our position is very simple: we cannot take responsibility for what happens on the territory of the Russian Federation,” he said “They are the ones providing your security and we will not be offering any guarantees.” Zelensky said he had instructed Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry to advise against visiting Russia during this period “We must tell those who approach us: we do not recommend visiting the Russian Federation from a security standpoint don’t ask us — it’s your personal decision.” The Ukrainian leader reiterated that Kyiv’s military actions will remain “mirror-like,” responding to Russia’s moves He acknowledged that implementing a complete front-line ceasefire without robust international monitoring remains nearly impossible but emphasised that the 30-day window offers a credible start He confirmed ongoing efforts to convene the next round of negotiations with the US He also expressed hope that it could happen in Ukraine saying it was a “positive sign” that such a gathering is under discussion despite recent personnel changes in Washington Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that he had “unequivocally threatened the world leaders who are planning to arrive in Moscow on May 9” deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council said Saturday that nobody could guarantee Kyiv’s safety if Ukraine attacked Moscow celebrations on May 9 “In the event of a real provocation on Victory Day no one will guarantee that May 10 will come in Kyiv,” he wrote on Telegram Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russia expects Kyiv to take steps to de-escalate before Victory Day actions aimed at de-escalating the conflict during the holidays,” Peskov told journalists were meant to “test Kyiv’s readiness to find ways for long-term sustainable peace between Russia and Ukraine.” and prompted another appeal from Zelensky for more decisive support from the country’s allies Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said drones hit 12 locations across the city late Friday The Kharkiv Prosecutor’s Office said that Russian forces used drones with thermobaric warheads it said thermobaric weapons create a powerful blast wave and a hot cloud of smoke The prosecutor said its use may indicate a deliberate violation of international humanitarian law nearly every night in Ukraine turns into a nightmare "Strong and real decisions are needed from our partners — the United States all our partners who seek peace,” Zelensky wrote on X Russia fired a total of 183 exploding drones and decoys overnight Russia also launched two ballistic missiles Russia’s Defence Ministry said its air defences shot down 170 Ukrainian drones overnight The ministry said eight cruise missiles and three guided missiles were also intercepted were injured in a drone strike on the Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk overnight The latest wave of attacks comes after the US and Ukraine on Wednesday signed an agreement granting American access to Ukraine’s vast mineral resources It finalises a deal months in the making that could enable continued military aid to Kyiv amid concerns that President Donald Trump might scale back support in ongoing peace negotiations with Russia A search and rescue operation is underway for a Masterton man in his 70s missing since Sunday John Rafferty was last seen at Masterton Railway Station about midday on May 4 The 74-year-old did not board a train and left on foot about 20 minutes later Matheson said it was possible Rafferty was staying with a friend but police and loved ones "want to know he’s safe" and John doesn’t have his cell phone or wallet," he said A search team and a helicopter has been out looking for the missing man "We are really keen to know that he’s safe." Police have released an image from CCTV showing Rafferty on a station platform on the day of his disappearance He was wearing a blue jacket with 'NASA' written on the back Anyone who saw him was asked to contact police on 111 or online at 105 if there was Information after the fact The next top cop of the troubled Victoria police force embraces his "outsider" status to curb its leadership malaise and has a stern warning for crooks Former New Zealand Police commissioner Mike Bush won the race to become Victoria's chief commissioner after months of top-level staffing woes The 40-year police veteran steps into the role on June 27 with a five-year contract The Kiwi conceded the job will be no picnic with Victoria's crime rate hitting an almost decade-high in 2024 everyone knows that," he told reporters today "These crime issues are actually global they are quite similar wherever you go but it's not good enough just to turn up after the act Rising youth crime and high-profile cases of alleged offenders committing crimes while on bail spurred the Victorian government to strengthen laws in March Bush said he was familiar with the crackdown but bail laws were just one part of the solution to tackling youth crime along with a "prevention mindset" He retired from the NZ police force in 2020 after joining in 1978 and spending his final six years in the top job Whakaari/White Island volcano eruption and Covid-19 pandemic were among the biggest crises Bush confronted during his tenure Bush also made headlines in 2022 after it emerged he had a past drink-driving conviction when unsuccessfully applying to become head of the UK's Metropolitan Police Former New Zealand police minister Stuart Nash describedr Bush as hard but fair He said Bush regularly met with police forces across the Tasman in his previous role and recalled travelling with him to every district across New Zealand once a year to chew the fat with communities and then we all had biscuits and a cup of tea," Nash told AAP "Mike is someone who had deep credibility in policing." The state government has not handed the reins of Victoria Police to an outsider since former NSW Police assistant commissioner Christine Nixon in 2001 The Kiwi was happy to wear the "outsider" tag and is already hatching plans to hit the ground running "I've got a lot to do to come up to speed," Bush said "Culture is a consequence of leadership." establishing relationships with community groups amid rising tensions and increasing police visibility on the beat were among his other top initial priorities Victoria Police was thrust into leadership turmoil in February with a no-confidence vote from officers costing chief commissioner Shane Patton his job Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent became acting chief and expressed an interest in making the move permanent before throwing in the towel in April Deputy Commissioner Robert Hill will serve in an acting capacity until Bush takes over Bush intends to speak with Patton before starting and said he wouldn't shy away from pushing back if he disagreed with the government Premier Jacinta Allan said a recruitment agency was hired and instructed to find a leader capable of addressing the "challenges" plaguing the force "Mike Bush is the best person for the job," she said whose union led the no-confidence vote against Patton following a bitter pay dispute admitted there was a disconnect between members and leaders The state police union secretary welcomed Mr Bush's appointment and pledge to listen to the mounting workforce concerns "We have a police force that is currently under-resourced that needs fresh officers," he said Audrey Backeberg disappeared from a small city in south-central Wisconsin after reportedly hitchhiking with her family’s babysitter and catching a bus to Indianapolis Nobody ever knew where she went or what happened to her All that changed last week when she was found alive and safe in another state thanks to the fresh eyes from a deputy who took over the case in February Detective Isaac Hanson discovered an out-of-state arrest record that matched Backeberg which triggered a series of investigative moves that led to finding her alive and safe in another state Turns out Backeberg chose to leave the town of Reedsburg on her own accord – likely due to an abusive husband safe and secure; And just kind of lived under the radar for that long,” he said Hanson was assigned the case in late February and he and other officials met with Backeberg’s family to see if they had a connection with that region They also started digging through Backeberg's sister's Ancestry.com account obituaries and marriage licenses from that region they found an address where a woman was living that Hanson said shared a lot of similarities with Backeberg including date of birth and social security number Hanson was able to get a deputy from that jurisdiction to go to the address "I was expecting the deputy to call me back and say ‘Oh nobody answered the door.’ And I thought it was the deputy calling me I could sense that she obviously had her reasons for leaving.” Most of the information he learned during that call he declined to share saying that it was still important to Backeberg that she not be found “I think it overwhelmed her of course with the emotions that she had having a deputy show up at her house and then kind of call her out and talk with her about what happened and kind of relive 62 years in 45 minutes,” he said Hanson described discovering her safe after more than six decades practically unheard of And while he doesn't know what will happen next in terms of her family reconnecting he said he was happy that she can reach out if she wants to so she has my contact number if she ever wants to reach out or needs anything any phone numbers of family members back here," he said "Ultimately she kind of holds the cards for that.” 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 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 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 Whanganui 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 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 Tauranga City Council will spend $91.9 million on the lease for its new offices over the next 15 years The council has also budgeted about $33.5m for the interior fit-out of the new build at 90 Devonport Rd, in central Tauranga. Staff will begin moving from other leased locations into the new $45m building — New Zealand’s largest mass timber office — at the end of this month Annual rent for 65 carparks was an extra $313,352 The council will lease the building from Willis Bond having sold the property developers the land for the project in 2021 for $8.5m This was reduced from the initially agreed sale price of $10.75m largely because the site’s in-ground conditions were considerably worse than anticipated council city development and partnerships general manager Gareth Wallis told Local Democracy Reporting He said the $33.5m interior fit-out included construction of walls The base delivered by developers Willis Bond was a “cold shell” with only basic structural elements and core utilities Furniture and fittings from the current offices would be reused where possible Between 600 and 700 people would work in the building on any given day The council would use a system to manage desk utilisation efficiently tried and tested in its other leased office spaces The council’s lease for 1 Spring St will end on April 30 Leases for 306 Cameron Rd and 46 Spring St end on May 31 Council chief executive Marty Grenfell said the move would consolidate offices boost efficiency and support the city centre’s revitalisation The long-term lease meant “no upfront construction costs” and the new office would strengthen the council’s values of whanaungatanga and collaboration by bringing teams closer together He said it would add to “recent positive momentum” from other CBD projects such as the waterfront playground and ongoing $306m civic precinct Te Manawataki o Te Papa development Bay of Plenty Regional Council chambers had been used for Tauranga council meetings but these would be held in the new building until 2028 when they would shift to Te Manawatako o Te Papa’s Civic Whare Perks staff will enjoy in the Devonport Rd building will include coffee on tap The council has accepted a tender of $470,000 to supply and service four coffee machines The estimated cost to council per cup from the machines was 70c and 40c for instant The council has 1299 full-time equivalent staff and associated employee costs of $128m a year Its 2023/24 Annual Report said 40 people earned between $180,000 and $259,999 a year His remuneration package was based on advice from an independent consultant Council staff also had access to benefits such as up to $100,000 life insurance cover for permanent staff for death or terminal illness a subsidised Bee Card for work bus commutes an extra week of annual leave and up to $5000 for staff returning from parental leave A pōwhiri was held on April 2 to bless the Devonport Rd building it has a 6 Green Star Design rating and features rainwater harvesting and electric vehicle charging By replacing most traditional concrete and steel elements with engineered timber the building’s all-of-life carbon emissions were around 60% less than a typical commercial building Council Te Pou Ahurea cultural advisor Josh Te Kani said they worked with mana whenua to ensure mātauranga Māori principles were incorporated into the design LT McGuinness Tauranga manager Jack McGuinness said the project was an opportunity to create something significant for the city “It’s special to see the first mass timber building of this scale become part of Tauranga city centre “The delivery of 90 Devonport shows what is possible with mass timber — bringing sustainability and resilience together to create a space fit for today’s modern workforce,” McGuinness said in the council statement Willis Bond managing director Wayne Silver said he hoped it was the first of many mass timber developments for the company The project was delivered on time and under its original budget Willis Bond would not provide the building’s final cost or initial budget Local Democracy Reporting reported in January that two building consents totalling $45.5m had been issued by the council for 90 Devonport Tauranga City Council will consult about its plans to manage water from March 28 A Tauranga councillor has questioned how the council is presenting its water services options in a public document Glen Crowther took issue with wording in a consultation document approved in a Tauranga City Council meeting on Monday He claimed it suggested some options did not meet Government requirements as opposed to not aligning with what “Cabinet ministers” want from Tauranga Councils have until September 3 to submit a plan for managing drinking storm and wastewater services in the future under the Government’s Local Water Done Well programme Councils could keep delivering water services in-house or set up water organisations alone or with other councils Tauranga proposed a multi-council model potentially shared with the neighbouring Western Bay of Plenty District A separate council-controlled organisation would be created to jointly manage water services It agreed to consult the community on this and two alternatives: keep services in-house or create its own CCO to manage water delivery services in Tauranga Mayor Mahé Drysdale said advice from consultants MartinJenkins and the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) recommended working with other councils to deliver water services and it’s been spelled out very clearly … that they want us to join with other councils.” The consultation document said the proposed joint option aligned with the Government direction of Local Waters Done Well the single-council CCO partially aligned and the in-house model did not align Crowther said those statements were incorrect because the council was meeting the statutory requirements for all three models He said it would be better to say the in-house model would fully comply with the DIA’s Local Water Done Well model it will not align well with what the Cabinet ministers are wanting in the relationship with Tauranga City.” Drysdale said that if the council did not opt for a multi-council CCO it would not align with the direction of the Government “I can 100% say that that is correct because I’ve had multiple conversations including one minister that will not meet me until we align with their direction.” Crowther said he understood the council would not align because “a Minister Ministers or the Government feel it wouldn’t align with what they want from a Regional Deal” But Local Government Minister Simon Watts had said publicly he was “happy for councils to choose” between the Government and local authorities create long-term agreements for funding and resources Drysdale said he was comfortable with the consultation wording because the Government’s direction was “very much we want you to work together” Councillor Steve Morris said Crowther raised a “significant issue” where the Government might be making public statements of one nature and ministers privately said something different I think the expectation of the community is that Government conducts transparent business as well.” Local Democracy Reporting asked Drysdale which minister refused to meet with him Drysdale said the council was in regular contact with Government ministers to ensure its direction aligned with Government policy “It’s not appropriate to elaborate on those contacts at this time.” The Government’s direction was for councils to work together to achieve benefits of scale “If we are going to work together on a Regional Deal it seems logical Watts said City and Regional Deals were partnerships built on trust and collaboration to increase economic growth Councils had “flexibility” on structuring water services provided they meet Local Water Done Well statutory requirements “Proposals for regional deals will be assessed on how well they align with government priorities A spokesperson for the minister said he had engaged in informal discussions with Drysdale on a range of matters including Local Waters Done Well and the regional deals model “These have not been substantive discussions.” Last week, the Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s consultation was criticised by one of its councillors as “tokenistic” Tauranga City Council’s Local Water Done Well consultation runs from March 28 to April 28 A previous version of this story incorrectly said Glen Crowther claimed the council was “lying” in the document The story and headlines have been changed to reflect this A High Court injunction preventing the sale of Tauranga's Marine Precinct at Sulphur Point has been dismissed A judge has dismissed an injunction halting the controversial sale of Tauranga’s Marine Precinct said the interim injunction order was no longer in force and had been discharged He found the arguments for stopping the sale “generally weak” while claims of a local boat fleet being harmed were “overstated” Tauranga City Council’s $13.98 million sale of the precinct to Christchurch developer Sam Rofe was due to settle in November, but was halted by a last-minute High Court interim injunction managing director of marine service company Pacific 7 Kelly also applied for a judicial review of the council’s processes relating to the transaction The basis for Pacific 7’s injunction was the displacement of the working boats that use the precinct and a lack of consultation regarding the sale with precinct users The case was heard by Justice Andrew in the High Court at Tauranga in February with the public gallery so full that an overflow courtroom was needed Justice Andrew’s decision said the merits of Pacific 7’s claims were “generally weak” “I concluded that Pacific 7 had overstated the impact on the black boat fleet The haul-out and fit-out services of the Marine Precinct would remain available after the sale to Pacific 7 and other users on commercial terms The development agreement allowed use of the precinct by the working boat fleet for at least the next three years There were also alternative locations for Pacific 7 and the working boats there would be a “material change” for Pacific 7 and others at the precinct likely to face “a period of considerable uncertainty” In regard to the claim about a lack of consultation Justice Andrew said the council “went beyond minimum requirements for consultation” It carried out engagement outside of and after the 2021– 2031 Long-Term Plan amendment process The council formed the Marine Precinct Advisory Group after an independent review in 2019 and Kelly was a member There was consultation by TwentyTwo consultants from June 2021 to December 2022 This involved several reports and episodes of engagement with the council and Marine Precinct stakeholders The stakeholders’ consultation included Pacific 7 and the Harvey Family Fishing Group The option of the type of disposal of the precinct was expressly canvassed on multiple occasions Justice Andrew acknowledged the significant contribution Kelly made to the Marine Precinct community He concluded that during the relevant consultation and decision-making period Kelly had “stepped back significantly from the Marine Precinct” Kelly took a two-year break for a sailing trip with his family He had previously told TwentyTwo that he did not plan to continue operating at the Marine Precinct “Mr Kelly’s position may well have changed but his apparent surprise late in the piece that the precinct was to be sold does appear Pacific 7’s lawyer Matthew King told Local Democracy Reporting his client was reviewing the decision and taking legal advice on next steps Tauranga City Council confirmed on Friday it had received the High Court judgment Publication of the judgment was embargoed for 24 hours council chief executive Marty Grenfell said it would take advice to “understand the implications of the judgment and its obligations to all interested parties” Local Democracy Reporting has asked Pacific 7 about its next steps in the case and approached counsel for Rofe for comment on the judgment This story has been updated with the council’s Saturday statement SunLive readers are reporting receiving courier delivery scam texts to their mobile phones Courier delivery scams appear to be circulating and targeting Tauranga this week impersonating delivery companies and getting people to send personal or financial details Callers to Sunlive are reporting receiving texts and phone calls that appear to be scams A text sent to one Tauranga resident’s phone from an unknown outlook.com email address reads: “New Zealand parcel: Your parcel has arrived but your shipment has been suspended due to missing house number (Please reply “Y” then close this message or copy and paste it into Safari to continue.)” A website link is also included within the text message A Katikati resident reported receiving an identical text to their phone but from a different outlook.com email address Texts are not the only mode of message being used by scammers it seems as another Tauranga caller to SunLive reported receiving a phone call A text received by a Tauranga resident on Wednesday “Just got a phone call from a normal cell number that immediately started playing an automated message about suspicious credit card charges to my Visa card I don’t have a Visa,” the SunLive reader said Netsafe said with the increase in online shopping more opportunistic scammers are targeting internet users by sending emails and text messages that impersonate delivery companies “These are known as parcel delivery scams They are designed to obtain personal or financial details from the recipients,” Netsafe said Netsafe said variations include messages claiming that you have won a prize or a new phone have been selected to participate in a survey or need to pay customs duty on a package you ordered Anyone who has received a scam email or text message can contact Netsafe seven days a week for free How do parcel and courier delivery scams work Scammers often send emails or text messages to multiple people tricking them into believing they are relevant These messages typically direct you to a scam website and request your payment details A text received by a Katikati resident on Wednesday it may even download a malicious app to your phone that can steal your information Common tactics include claiming an organisation like NZ Post or DHL attempted to deliver a parcel and asking you to click a link to rearrange delivery They may also ask you to approve a pickup time for a package via a link which then takes you through a process to pay a small customs fee Large unauthorised withdrawals may follow for those who pay What to do if you receive a scam text or email Netsafe have some top tips for what to do if you've received a courier delivery scam message If you've received a scam email do not respond or click on any links in the email Contact the named organisation directly if you believe the message might be genuine Block the scammer’s email address by marking the email as junk your email filter will learn to redirect emails from that scammer’s email address away from your inbox close the scam webpage.  Check for malware on your device using a free online scanner Contact your phone company for advice if you opened the link on your mobile If you've shared personal information or bank details report any shared bank account or credit card details to your bank immediately Apply for a chargeback if you have sent money using your credit card Netsafe is encouraging people to report courier delivery scams “If you think you’ve been targeted by a scam inform your friends and family to help them avoid falling victim,” Netsafe said  Screenshot of the Check Netsafe website Identifying whether a website is real or fake can be challenging. Netsafe have created the ‘CheckNetsafe’ Anti-Scam Tool which helps you determine the legitimacy of a website or link “You can contact Netsafe seven days a week for free confidential and non-judgmental advice about an online issue impacting you or someone you know “Whilst we cannot investigate or track scammers we can provide advice on steps you can take to stay safe and what to do if you think you’ve been scammed.” For more information on courier delivery scams or downloading malicious apps, go to the Netsafe website for support and help Anyone that receives a scam SMS text message is urged to report it free of charge by forwarding the message to 7726, or head to the DIA website for a step-by-step guide of how to report spam Whakarewarewa beat Tauranga Sports 52-19 on Saturday at Puarenga Park who are the sole Rotorua representatives in the BOPRU Baywide premier rugby competition continue to occupy the top spot on the standings after they dispatched nine-time Baywide titleholder Tauranga Sports A Tauranga Sports penalty opened the scoring before the hosts took control of the encounter A double to Whaka prop Jesse Mason Grant was the highlight of the home sides eight try 52-19 win A hard-fought game between Te Puke Sports and Te Puna saw Pirates lead 14-5 at halftime Both sides touched the ball down in the second spell before Te Puna came back to trail by just three points Captain Taine Craig-Ranga scored Te Puke’s fourth try with just a minute on the clock to see the home team post a 28-19 victory Te Puke Sports became the first side to repel a Jordan Cup challenge this season and will square off with Rangataua next week Number 8 Grady Forbes played his blazer game while prop Alex Johnston was Te Puke’s player of the day Greerton Marist cemented a place in the top four after they defeated Rangataua 35-19 laid down the challenge to the other Development contenders in the early action at Murray Salt Stadium Greerton Marist defeated Rangataua 52-14 with Whakarewarewa getting past Tauranga Sports 29-19 flexed their muscles with solid wins in the Western Bay of Plenty Championship title race Arataki were too strong for Pāpāmoa winning 50-10 with Rangiuru defeating the combined Judea/Matakana Island side 48-10 Katikati had a solid tussle with Eastern Districts before taking the win points on offer Colts/Under 85kg teams who emerged victorious were Greerton Marist Round One (22 March) Greerton Marist 49 Tauranga Sports 10 Round Two (29 March) Te Puna 24 Greerton Marist 22 Round Four (12 April) Tauranga Sports 42 Te Puna 36 (HT 22-17) Round Five (26 April) Te Puke Sports 51 Tauranga Sports 21 Round Six (3 May) Te Puke Sports 28 Te Puna 19 Next Challenge - Te Puke Sports v Rangataua Baywide Premier: Greerton Marist 35 Rangataua 19 Points Table (Provisional) Whakarewarewa 24 Baywide Development: Greerton Marist 52 Rangataua 14 Baywide Colts: Greerton Marist 53 Te Teko 31 Mount Maunganui 50 Marist St Michael’s 10 WBOPRS Championship: Arataki 50 Papamoa 10 All Draws & Points Tables can be found at www.boprugby.co.nz  Tauranga City Council Consultation ran from Friday 28 March to 5pm We are now collating all responses to the survey questions If you have expressed an interest in speaking in support of your submission in May we will contact you to confirm a time and date After Council considers all feedback and makes decisions the Annual Plan 2025/26 will be adopted at the end of June 2025 and we need to commit to a certain level of investment to maintain what we have now and to provide for our future growth.  The challenging economic outlook affects all our ratepayers and we are conscious of the trade-off between investing in our city and what our ratepayers consider an affordable amount of rates to pay There has been some significant changes to our finances in recent months:​ we are committed to prudent financial management Our approach has been to find savings across all areas of council operations for more efficient delivery of council services and we’re prioritising our capital spend to what is most important for the city Key Annual Plan 2025/26 budget proposals:  While we don’t have much wiggle room for this annual plan we want to understand what’s most important for Tauranga to help inform our future decision making The decisions we are making now will help shape our next long-term plan in 2027.  we would like you to answer three over-arching questions to give us a strong sense of the areas you want us to prioritise in our future planning.   We might not be able to reflect all your thinking in this annual plan but it will give us information to start planning ahead We would also like your thoughts on our proposed changes to rates fees and charges and our Development Contributions Policy.  Consultation document (3mb pdf) For a more accurate indication of how much you are likely to pay search your property address in our rating calculator Rating calculator sign up for our Kōrero mai - Let’s talk Tauranga newsletter Sign up to stay informed Get involved in the discussion about your city. Learn about the work happening in your neighbourhood. Tauranga City Council, Private Bag 12022, Tauranga, 3143, New Zealand |Terms of use|Privacy statement The $2.8 billion to $3.3b Tauriko West project which includes a new four-lane State Highway 29 and widening State Highway 29a In a statement on Tuesday, Transport Minister Chris Bishop said the New Zealand Transport Agency board’s endorsement of the Tauriko West Road of National Significance (Ron) investment case was great news for jobs and growth in the Western Bay of Plenty “Western Bay of Plenty is growing strongly and the Government is committed to unlocking its potential “The new Tauriko West Road of National Significance will support economic growth increase productivity and connectivity to Bay of Plenty and boost housing and commercial development.” Bishop said SH29 and SH29A were the primary inter-regional and freight connections between Auckland These state highways were essential for growth and prosperity in the upper North Island.” The NZTA Board has endorsed the investment case for the new Tauriko West Road of National Significance - A four-lane off SH29 from Redwood Interchange to Takitimu North Link Interchange designed to accommodate speeds of 110km/h; - Widening existing SH29A from Takitimu Drive Toll Road to Barkes Corner including three new interchanges and two overbridges; - Board support for consideration of tolling subject to ministerial confirmation The NZTA Board also approved $97.2 million in funding for route protection a new SH29 will be built and SH29A widened to support economic growth “These upgrades will support the Tauriko Business Estate extension and enable the potential development of 30,000 new houses in the Western Corridor by 2063 “Other benefits of the project include a 40% improvement in travel time reliability 13-minute reduction on SH29 and 6-minute reduction on SH29A and a projected 50% reduction in deaths and serious injuries.” The Tauriko West project will be delivered in four phases: Phase 1: Ōmanawa Bridge replacement (SH29) — The replacement of the Ōmanawa Bridge realignment of the connections on SH29 around the bridge and minor improvements to the Ōmanawa Road Intersection Construction is expected to start later this year Phase 2: Route protection for SH29 and SH29A — Designating consenting and progressing property acquisition so NZTA is ready to proceed with the detailed design and construction when funding is made available This also protects the route from being built out in the upcoming development of the area Phase 3: SH29 offline — Constructing a new 4-lane SH29 from north of Ōmanawa Bridge to connect to Takitimu North Link Interchange including Takitimu Drive Toll Road and revocation of the existing SH29 (indicative design and construction timeframe Phase 4: Widening existing SH29A — From Takitimu Drive Toll Road to Barkes Corner and a new interchange at Barkes Corner “With the NZTA Board’s endorsement of the investment case the SH29 Tauriko West Rons can now progress to designate and consent a new route between Ōmanawa Bridge and Takitimu North Link in the western Bay of Plenty “Protecting the Tauriko West route provides certainty for this significant growth area and ensures NZTA is best placed to move forward when funding for design and construction becomes available It also protects the route from being built out in the upcoming development of the area “The investment case endorsed by the NZTA board sets a budget envelope of between $2.8 billion to $3.3b for the overall project with decisions to unlock funding made by the NZTA Board as each phase of the project progresses “Phase 1 and 2 of the project to replace the Ōmanawa Bridge and start route protection for the SH29/SH29A corridor are under way with phase 3 and 4 covering the construction of a new four-lane SH29 and widening of the existing SH29A “The Government Policy Statement on Land Transport (GPS 24) requires NZTA to consider tolling for all new Rons The investment case supported tolling to help fund the construction and maintenance of the road and the NZTA Board will consider further information before making a final recommendation to the Government Tauriko West has a benefit/cost ratio of 1.7 “The SH29 Tauriko West Rons project is a critical part of the Government’s plan to boost economic growth and productivity increase the availability of much-needed housing and industrial development offline four-lane SH29 corridor between Redwood Lane and TNL designed to accommodate speeds of 110km/h (tolled or untolled) Includes widening Takitimu Drive Toll Road to 4 lanes Upgrading SH29A with a design speed to allow for 100km/hr and four lanes for general traffic including three grade-separated interchanges at Redwood Lane and SH29A/SH36 Takitimu roundabout to be at-grade signalised intersections Replacement grade-separated walking and cycling crossing at Barkes Corner to provide safe access across SH29A Walking and cycling connections at Redwood Road Cambridge Road and Barkes Corner to provide safe access across SH29 SH29 Revocation — agreed future Urban Connector function on day of handover reflects a higher place function and a reduced movement function Route protection on SH29A and SH36 to accommodate future growth Economic growth and productivity (travel time): A 40% improvement in travel time reliability (13min reduction on SH29 and 6min reduction on SH29A) at all times of the day from 2035 to 2063 on SH29 and SH29A to key destinations Economic growth and productivity (housing): The transport system supports the completion of Tauriko West (3600-4000 new houses) the remainder of the Tauriko Business Estate extension and potential development of 30,000 houses in the Western Corridor by 2063 and improved network resilience on SH29 and SH29A with increased lane capacity Correction: The introduction to this story has been updated to reflect the overall cost of the project An aerial view of the slip in front of Brian and Melanie Gardner's Maungatapu Rd property Tauranga’s “forgotten five” are desperate for a solution three years after a huge slip forced them out of their homes and left them facing millions of dollars in repairs a 10m-wide slip fell away from Brian and Melanie Gardner’s waterfront section on the Maungatapu peninsula the slip had extended to neighbouring Maungatapu Rd properties and crept closer to the retired couple’s newly renovated home they and two other couples were told to evacuate for their safety The three properties were issued dangerous building notices and classed as unsafe to occupy by Tauranga City Council under the Building Act but the slip damaged the fronts of their properties The homeowners have been asking the council for help to repair the slip but the council had “completely absolved themselves of any responsibility” Melanie Gardner told Local Democracy Reporting This is the first time they have spoken to media about their plight Melanie said they did not expect the council to pay for all the repairs the council allowed homes to be built on an unstable cliff did not decommission soak holes used for stormwater drainage across the suburb and contributed to the slip via a leaking water pipe shouldn’t you have a hand in helping to repair it?” The council bought out other slip-damaged homes on the peninsula but said the circumstances on Maungatapu Rd were different and it could not use ratepayer money to fix private development issues An ICE Geo and Civil engineering report prepared for the council said the Maungatapu Rd land failures were caused by high rainfall and possibly exacerbated by changes in development along the peninsula In 2022 the area received 126% of its average June rainfall and 195% for July Brian Gardner said he and his neighbours were the “forgotten five” because other unliveable slip-damaged homes on the Maungatapu Peninsula were paid out by the council The Government funded half of the payouts through the Future of Severely Affected Locations (FOSAL) programme Melanie Gardner said they had tried every avenue they could think of to get a resolution but all were no-exits We’ve gone through hell and it’s still continuing.” approached the commission running the council when the slip happened and “held out” for the new council elected in July 2024 The owners met with council staff and new Mayor Mahé Drysdale in October to discuss sharing the repair cost Melanie said Drysdale told them he would present their case to the other councillors and respond in four weeks After an email chase-up he replied in December saying the council believed issues of damage or risk to private property should be raised with homeowners’ insurers and the Natural Hazards Commission He initially declined an invitation to visit their homes “It is not tenable for council to help fund your repairs and so I do not want to unfairly raise expectations by visiting,” his letter said He later offered to visit but said it would not alter the council’s position Three of the owners received money from the Natural Hazards Commission but not enough to fund slip repairs Their insurance covered the loss of items but not the damage to their land An initial estimate for the repairs was $3 million The ICE Geo and Civil report recommended repairing the slip damage as one project The five owners also spent thousands on individual geotechnical reports The worst-case scenario for the Gardners would be walking away from the home they bought for $1.95m and spent $250,000 renovating Melanie also didn’t want to leave the “nightmare” to their children when they died Next-door neighbours Angela and Peter Moore have been renting elsewhere since being evacuated “We just want to get on with our lives and we want a direction to go into or someone to help us.” Angela said they were meant to be enjoying their home with their children and grandchildren Paying rent while their property sat there doing nothing had been financially draining but the slip took most of the garden and left a visible crack in the lawn Neil McIntosh was able to stay in his home It was nerve-racking living there because the slip could get worse McIntosh said he invested in stormwater drainage to prevent water pooling on the lawn Drysdale told Local Democracy Reporting the decision not to share repair costs was made by the council commission and the advice he received was there was no basis for revisiting it “While this is devastating for the land owners and we have a lot of sympathy for their situation council needs to consider the impact of decisions on ratepayers as a whole.” It needed to decide whether it was appropriate for ratepayers to fund remediation of private land Council building services manager Steve Pearce said the FOSAL process only applied to Cyclone Hale the Auckland Anniversary weekend floods and Cyclone Gabrielle The Maungatapu Rd properties were damaged before this The slip on Egret Ave came from a council reserve above and one home ended up on the council-owned road Pearce said the council had different responsibilities as a landowner The Maungatapu Rd slips were on private properties and were not impacting or affected by public land use ratepayer funding to support private development issues.” Pearce said the council monitored the properties and the slip’s progress regularly since it happened If the owners were to get engineering and geotechnical advice that their homes were safe to live in they could present this to council and move back in Council corporate services general manager Alastair McNeil said Maungatapu had a history of land instability and slips around the coastal edge The council recommended homeowners did due diligence before buying a house which included getting a Land Information Memorandum (LIM) that said if natural hazard notations were on the title council had no plans to retrofit the entire stormwater drainage infrastructure across the peninsula due to immense cost and complexity with no guarantee of addressing land instability Information provided by council said studies following landslides in 1979 and 1995 suggested a link between soak holes and increased landslide risk but this relationship was not scientifically proven The council said it had no record of a water main leak on Maungatapu Rd in the week before the slip Tauranga Te Papa Rotarians Alan Hitchcock and Simon Ellis Expect to see a sea of yellow rubber duckies ‘swimming’ Tauranga’s waterfront this Sunday as The Great Tauranga Duck Race fundraiser gets under way at 11am Among the 5000 ducklings will be corporate ducks fashionista ducks and possibly even motorised ducks – all competing for hundreds of dollars and bragging rights For more than seven years the Tauranga Te Papa Rotary Club has been running the fundraiser The ducks will be released into The Strand Waterfront on an outgoing tide with the finish line being the pier opposite the Hairy Maclary statues Organiser and Rotarian Simon Ellis said funds raised this year will benefit schools Rotary charitable activities and the Life Education Trust which provides a unique mobile classroom with its long-time famous Harold the Giraffe to primary school children around the district Harold the Life Education giraffe will be joining us on Sunday,” Ellis said “There will also be ticket sales on race day at the Tauranga Waterfront before the race.” The start line is at the eastern end of the waterfront by the McLeod Crane The finish line is by the jetty opposite the Hairy Maclary statues with great visibility for viewing with the corporate ducks racing at 10.30am “Ducks can be all dressed up and branded in company colours or logos There is also the Best Dressed Duck Award and spot prizes.” The second part of The Great Duck Race sees 5000 ducklings released into the harbour at 11am “Each of these ducklings is numbered and raffle tickets will have been sold for each one Tickets for these ducklings will be sold for $5 each primarily by Tauranga school PTAs and the Life Education Trust Ellis said the schools and Life Education Trust keep 100% of all proceeds from their own duckling sales they have the potential to raise more than $20,000 without the need to organise an event as Tauranga Te Papa Rotary does that for them [And] Tauranga Te Papa Rotary will sell the remaining tickets.” Ellisa said his Rotary club had overseen more than $80,000 of grants and cash distributions in 2023/2024 and more than 45,000 hours of volunteer support The Great Tauranga Duck Race is at The Strand Waterfront For more information, visit: www.taurangatepaparotary.club Tauranga ratepayers face a proposed overall rates rise of 12 percent from July but the mayor says it could have been more than 20 percent if the council had not found savings Tauranga City Council elected members voted on Monday to approve the draft Annual Plan for community consultation rates and planned work for 2025/26 - is the first for the council elected in July to replace government-appointed commissioners Mayor Mahé Drysdale told the meeting a lot of what was in the Annual Plan was already in motion and could not be changed When the council started work on the plan it was facing an overall rates increase of more than 20 percent This was because the council wanted to "balance the books" and decided to fund $25 million in depreciation not included in the Long-Term Plan Growth was not as strong as had been predicted which meant the council needed to find $29m in savings to get to 12 percent He said he was still unhappy with 12 percent and the council would try to find a further $6.7m in savings to reduce rates by 2.5 percent more by the time the Annual Plan was adopted in June a residential property worth $885,000 would pay about $394 (11.3 percent) more in rates for the year A commercial property valued at $1.23m would pay $1556 (17.7 percent) more in rates An industrial property valued at $2.3m would pay $2959 (16.8 percent) more in rates Deputy Mayor Jen Scoular said the community needed to be aware that the cost of running the city was $599m for the 2025/26 financial year "It's expensive to run the city because it's a complex beast." She also asked that the total staff costs be included in the consultation documents Councillor Hautapu Baker said he wanted to ensure the council engaged well with the community "In terms of general engagement approach or raising civic consciousness an annual plan process is one of the safest avenues to really get innovative with how we do that." There were generations of Tauranga families disengaged from civic consciousness He wanted Tauranga to have the highest voter participation in New Zealand at the 2028 election and the work for that started now "We have a really choice opportunity to actually create generational change through the way that we approach and engage with our people." the council will hold 18 events where people can speak to councillors and staff about the Annual Plan Consultation on the Annual Plan will run from 28 March until 28 April Estimated residential rates rises by property CV in the draft Annual Plan 2025/26: Explainer - Many councils are in the process of updating rateable values Drysdale says he can't find a home in his desired school zone The process of replacing John Holyoake will occur as the council prepares for the local government elections in October Drysdale was elected in July as part of the first council to take back democratic control of the city Tauranga Te Papa Rotarians Simon Ellis and Alan Hitchcock fashionista ducks and possibly even motorised ducks – all competing for hundreds of dollars and bragging rights For more than seven years the Tauranga Te Papa Rotary Club has been running the fundraiser The ducks will be released at 11am into the water at The Strand on an outgoing tide Organiser and Rotarian Simon Ellis said funds raised will benefit schools Rotary charitable activities and the Life Education Trust Harold the Life Education giraffe will be joining us on Sunday,” Ellis said “There will also be ticket sales on race day at the Tauranga waterfront before the race.” “Ducks can be all dressed up and branded in company colours or logos “There is also the Best Dressed Duck Award and spot prizes.” 5000 ducklings will be released into the harbour at 11am Tickets for theducklings will be sold for $5 each Ellis said the schools and Life Education Trust keep 100% of proceeds from their own duckling sales [And] Tauranga Te Papa Rotary will sell the remaining tickets.” Ellis said his Rotary club had overseen more than $80,000 of grants and cash distributions in 2023/2024 and more than 45,000 hours of volunteer support The Great Tauranga Duck Race is at the waterfront at The Strand For more information, visit: www.taurangatepaparotary.club A number of properties are reported to be without power in Tauranga this morning The website said crews are working to restore supply to the areas as soon as possible There is no listed cause of the outages and Powerco is still investigating Is it a bad brew at Tauranga City Council or a fair staff perk It's been revealed the council's got a five-year contract for coffee machines and coffee supplies at the cost of $470,000 Criticism from some ratepayers has been scorching but is it better for productivity to have onsite brew and not just the instant stuff Tauranga City Mayor Mahe Drysdale told Checkpoint the costs needed to be put into perspective The council had over 1000 staff so the coffee worked out to be about 65 cents a cup "While $94,000 may seem like a big number in most people's budgets we've just put out our annual plan today where we propose to spend and invest $1.1 billion Drysdale said the decision to spend $94,000 a year on coffee "did not come over the desk of elected members "Look there are perks for every employee and it's not something we see as councillors." He added it was more important to focus on the "the big issues." "We've gone out for consultation on our annual plan and local waters has done well both of those have a huge impact on how our city runs in the future those are decisions that don't even come over our desk "In the context of council it is a minor expense I'm not focusing my time on that as I have way bigger issues to solve." Drysdale said the Tauranga council spent about $120 million a year in staff personal expenses and perks Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday A Wellington café owner says its coffee prices will increase by up to 30 cents per cup before end of the month as the wholesale price of coffee continues to rise Auckland company Extraordinary has developed a form of debit card that lets workers choose the benefits they need most New Zealand RSS Extended Interview with Maxine Ngaronoa Reweti-NgataAn extended interview with Maxine Ngaronoa Reweti-Ngata.Watch1h 32mPGAwardsNew Zealand Television Awards Te Māngai Pāho Best Māori Programme Award Without it you will not be able to play audio or video Scam alerts: we’ve seen an increase in scam texts and emails claiming to be from us, asking for payments.Check our example scams or report a scam to us NZTA App: our mobile app provides a simple and secure way to access your driver licence and vehicle information.Learn more and download the NZTA app These works will see the rebuild of a section of State Highway 29 (SH29) near Tauriko and 2 different sections of State Highway 2 (SH2) near Elizabeth Street and Hewletts Road This includes new asphalt layers and road markings During work hours there will be lane closures and detours in place To minimise disruption to motorists all work will be done at night or over a ‘super weekend’ where crews will work 24/7 between Friday 21 February and Monday 24 February.  Work kicks off on Friday 21 February on the northbound slip lane at the SH2/Elizabeth Street roundabout crews will be onsite 24/7 from 6pm Friday 21 February through to Monday 24 February at 6am Completing this work over 3 days in a super weekend when there is less traffic on the road without peak traffic flows is a new way of working the alternative is 2 weeks of nightworks with various detours and road closures.    While this work is taking place this slip lane will be closed meaning there will be no right hand turn at the bottom of Elizabeth Street towards Mount Maunganui a detour will be available via Cameron Road.   From Tuesday 25 February until Friday 14 March crews will move to SH29 from Cambridge Road down the hill to the slip lane and on to the Takitimu Drive toll road Work will be carried out each night from 8pm through to 6am the road will be closed to eastbound traffic (towards Tauranga) from Cambridge Road to the SH29/SH36/29A roundabout due to the narrow lane width and equipment required to complete the work.   crews will be taking on intersections on SH2 Hewletts Road Work was done on Hewletts Road early in 2024 but the intersections were always programmed to be rebuilt this year Work will begin in mid-March and take about 6 weeks to complete more information will be provided closer to the date for this work.  View larger map [PDF, 2.1 MB] NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi works to create transport solutions for all New Zealanders – from helping new drivers earn their licences to leading safety campaigns to investing in public transport New Zealand Taxpayers' Union's Debt Clock on its nationwide tour A hīkoi around New Zealand calling for the Government to balance its books arrived in Tauranga today Led by a seven-metre Taxpayers’ Union Karaka Nama (Debt Clock) the hīkoi highlights the Government’s borrowing from future generations But the Government claims debt got out of control under the previous administration NZ Taxpayers’ Union spokesman Rhys Hurley told SunLive the hīkoi began last Friday after Anzac commemorations had finished which is taking a big trailer with the nation’s debt on it and we took it around Northland and now we’re making our way down through the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.” The debt clock was parked at the Tauranga Bridge Marina from 2.30pm to 4pm on Wednesday The Debt Clock tour will end on May 15 outside Parliament “What we are trying to do is inform communities about how much debt the Government is in about how that is broken down per household which is money that could be better spent on core public services.” Hurley said as Government debt continued to pile up the tax burden on the next generation of taxpayers continued to grow more and more money would be spent on paying back debt and interest resulting in less money for core government services like health and education “We want to get people informed of the issue so that on Budget Day Taxpayers’ Union executive director Jordan Williams said Willis was borrowing $47m a day to fund this year’s deficit the Government is actually spending more now than when [Labour Finance Minister] Grant Robertson left office “That’s true in both inflation-adjusted terms and as a percentage of the economy.” Williams said on the eve of the hikoi, the International Monetary Fund released its latest global economic report showing New Zealand had the worst fiscal deficit of any developed economy Finance Minister Nicola Willis told SunLive debt got out of control under the Labour Government leaping from $58 billion in 2019 to $175b in 2024 This amounts to $22,000 more in debt for every New Zealander That level of borrowing is unsustainable and will impact our kids and grandkids.” Willis spoke about how there would be no lolly scramble in Budget 2025 “Budget 2025 is a responsible budget that secures New Zealand’s future I announced we are reducing the operating allowance from $2.4 billion to $1.3 billion reducing the amount of borrowing needed to keep the public services New Zealanders expect.” Willis said the aim was to keep New Zealand on track towards balanced books and debt reduction Labour Party finance and economy spokeswoman Barbara Edmonds said the reality was Labour ran consecutive surpluses before Covid “The Minister of Finance keeps talking about Labour’s borrowing we had one of the lowest mortality rates in the world “We kept people in work with record-low unemployment when Treasury was forecasting economic collapse We delivered record pay raises for teachers and nurses Edmonds said Willis’ Government borrowed $12 billion last year it should be for things that actually make life better for Kiwis.” but a narrow obsession with the balance sheet wouldn’t help families put food on the table Willis said their tax cuts cost $1.2 billion in 2024 so there was no basis for Edmonds’ numbers Tax relief in Budget 2024 of $3.68 billion on average a year was fully funded from savings and revenue initiatives Hemi Rolleston looks set to win the Te Awanui Māori Ward seat according to progress results Hemi Rolleston is set to be Tauranga’s new Māori ward councillor Tauranga City Council released the progress result for the Te Awanui Ward byelection on Tuesday afternoon The result is based on the counting of about 80% of returned voting papers He consulted Sydney’s whānau about stepping in to “complete the mahi” The 56-year-old has whakapapa to Ngāi Te rangi The council said in a statement the progress result did not include special votes and voting papers returned on Tuesday The outcome could change once all voting papers were counted A preliminary result was expected to be released by 1pm Wednesday Tauranga Boys’ College have hit the ground running in 2025 despite having a relatively new First XV rugby team with only seven returnees from last season And that was without co-captains Jay McQuoid and Ethan McManemin who were sidelined with concussion stand-downs But he’s hoping lessons from their time remain particularly for new first five-eighths Ivan Ward “Charlie and Mason worked really hard to promote themselves and create a competitive environment for the team last year,” Kuka said “The challenge for this year’s group is to build that again “I don’t think I can replicate talented players as coach – individuals have to understand who they are as a player “But Ivan had a front-row seat last year to what a good 9 or 10 should look like – how they pushed each other the Wellington-Tauranga match was a vibrant spectacle between two sides expected to be leading contenders in their respective competitions (It’s likely Hurricanes winger Kini Naholo holds the record for most tries in any game against Wellington College he scored five tries in a 78-0 win for the eventual National Top Four champions moving so light and rapidly on his feet it seemed he could reject the BOP Steamers Academy for K-pop McQuoid latched on to an errant pass and sprinted 80m to complete his hat-trick Kuka described McQuoid as an exciting prospect promoted from last year’s Tauranga Under-15s “Opponents underestimate his power,” Kuka said but in contact he has the ability to wriggle out of a tackle A conversion followed from the assured Ward and the Tauranga Titans didn’t relinquish the lead again conceding a raft of penalties and three successive tries whose dad Sean helps coach Evans Bay-based Marist St Pat’s Winger Malachi Emmett regathered a chip-and-chase for a second time and McQuoid completed his quartet with a 30m surge winning the Ranfurly Shield in 2004 and representing the All Blacks Sevens “A ‘follow-me’ type of leader who is always full steam ahead.” Except for kickoff receipts (a headache for Tauranga too) there’s a lot to like about Wellington College and they regrouped from 45-24 down to score the last try “We don’t seem to have a problem in scoring but I’m more concerned about our defence,” Kuka reflected first five-eighths Archie Sims offers variety and stability Centre Narvin Campbell breached the defence more than once Openside Connor “Notorious” Gregor was all heart “They were tough,” Kuka said of Wellington Tauranga now host Auckland Grammar at noon on Saturday. Grammar are reluctant to publicise their First XV rugby these days but have won all their pre-season matches to date including a 28-19 away victory over Palmerston North Boys’ High Tauranga Boys’ College pre-season: bt Dilworth 36-33 In its 2024 Global Top 20 first XV school rankings, the UK-based nextgen.com (Ireland) website selected Tauranga Boys’ College as the third-best behind Paul Roos (South Africa) and Irerland’s Blackrock College Hamilton Boys’ High were fifth (up from 11th in 2023) Nelson College were 10th (unranked in 2023) St Kentigern were 13th (same as 2023) and Feilding High were a new entrant at 16 But there was no place for Kelston Boys’ High Blues champions and World Schools Rugby Festival winners (and conquerors of Paul Roos) in Abu Dhabi in December There was little surprise when St Kentigern College defeated St Andrew’s College 39-12 in the final of the Presbyterian Schools Quadrangular Tournament The Pakūranga powerhouses have won the event on 10 consecutive occasions and 23 times since its inception in 1989 But those who attended the third-place playoff would have been gobsmacked by the outcome of that fixture as tournament hosts Lindisfarne College embarrassed their longest and fiercest rivals Lindisfarne opened in 1953 and have jousted with Scots in various sporting codes since Scots have won the Wellington Premiership five times and were semifinalists in 2024 making the semifinals of the Central North Island series only twice since 2016 In the unprecedented rout, Lindisfarne scored 14 tries, with Noah Rogers scoring two and kicking nine conversions for an individual haul of 28 points. That beats the 24 points future Rugby World Cup-winning fullback Israel Dagg scored in Lindisfarne’s 24-0 whitewash of Scots in 2005 Fletcher McKay (2) and Charlie East (2) were also multiple try-scorers for Lindisfarne who have also beaten Super 8 sides Gisborne Boys’ High (27-26) and Palmerston North Boys’ High (34-15) in pre-season Lindisfarne are coached by Andre Bell who guided Scots to the 2023 Wellington Premiership and a 61-26 thumping of Lindisfarne that season A further dive into the history books reveals Bell attended Lindisfarne he captained a First XV that beat Scots 40-9 and Taradale High School 113-0 penalty) in an era when tries were worth only four points Former All Black Dominic Bird is director of rugby with support from Hurricanes Poua head coach Fusi Feaunati Scots lost by a combined five points to the 2024 finalists but depth proved to be an issue and remains a challenge with a Second XV that has been in Premier Four Premier divisions in Wellington typically have 10 teams Quad Summary: St Kentigern College 43 Lindisfarne College 7 Third playoff: Lindisfarne College 98 Scots College 19 Final: St Kentigern College 39 St Andrew’s College 12 Hamilton Boys High will face three Japanese schools in pool play at the Sanix World Rugby Youth Tournament in Fukuoka from April 28-May 5: Tokai University Sagami High (Kanagawa) Gose Industrial High School (Nara) and Nagasaki Hokuyodai High School (Nagasaki) Other international entrants in the 24-team tournament are Barker College (Australia) Meanwhile Howick College are contesting the eight-team girls sevens at the Sanix tournament facing defending champions Fukuoka Rugby Football Club Japan) and Hong Kong China Junior Dragons in pool play Hamilton Boys’ High School First XV squad for the Sanix tournament: Henderson’s Liston College continue to catch the eye in pre-season with their latest effort being a 33-26 away win over Nelson College Liston finished seventh in Auckland’s 1A competition in 2023 but could be heading for a higher placing in 2025 Meanwhile Nelson have a new first XV coaching line-up this year has moved up to head coach and is being assisted by Tim O’Malley a recent retiree from professional rugby with over 50 appearances for Tasman Mako St Thomas of Canterbury beat St Peter’s (Auckland) 36-21 after leading 21-7 at the break while touring Rosmini College beat King’s High (Dunedin) 27-21 Marlborough Boys’ College completed a short tour of the capital with an unblemished record Marlborough blunted Wellington Premiership champions St Patrick’s College Silverstream 17-7 Marlborough were semifinalists in the Miles Toyota Premiership last year a result not achieved in the Crusaders region competition since 2014 This suggests a similar outcome may be attainable this season Marlborough’s scrum is bolstered by burly and mobile props Jordyn Gardner and Mason Nicklin whose brother Rico Nicklin is a tireless and combative captain Both brothers scored tries in the win against Silverstream Marlborough’s head coach is Tonga Taumoefolau father of eye-catching Moana Pasifika winger Kyren Taumoefolau Readers are invited to send their first XV rugby updates, news snippets and hot takes to nzschoolboyrugby@gmail.com Liston College defeated Kelston Boys’ High 21-16 in a stunning upset Whakahoutanga papa tākaro o Tauranga takiwā many of our playgrounds originally constructed in the 1990s will need to be renewed Our goal is to create and build a comprehensive network of playgrounds across Tauranga ensuring every neighbourhood has access to fun and engaging play spaces We want to make sure there’s a playground within 500m (as the crow flies) of most residential homes in Tauranga City Our park renewals focus on four key outcomes – Nature View our map of all playgrounds in Tauranga Playground maps We deliver three different types of playgrounds across the city The four playgrounds we're gathering feedback on are part of the local neighbourhood play space category meaning the design will focus on play features rather than amenities like BBQs Please keep this in mind when sharing your thoughts Corner of Flack Street and Tabraham Crescent We're excited to share plans for playground upgrades in your area: Beaumaris Boulevard Reserve in Bethlehem and Liston Park in Gate Pā are set to be refreshed These playgrounds fall under the local neighbourhood play space category and what new play equipment would you love to see Kiriwehi Reserve in Pyes Pā and Emerald Shores Reserve in Pāpāmoa will soon feature new playgrounds for the local community What would make these reserves places you'll want to visit again and again Even if these aren’t your local playgrounds most of Tauranga’s playgrounds will get an upgrade so there’s a good chance your favourite play space will be next To keep up to date, you can visit this web page for the latest news, or please sign up for the Tauranga City Council's Weekly Bulletin The council says there are no reports of oil in the water but oil booms have been used as a precaution Diesel has been released into Tauranga Harbour following the capsizing of a barge at the Tauranga Bridge Marina A statement from a Bay of Plenty Regional Council spokesperson said about 10l of diesel had been released into the harbour andproactive absorbent booms were in place to contain the spill “A light sheen may be visible near the containment area,” the spokesperson said “We were notified of this barge capsize by the Bay of Plenty Regional Council on the afternoon of 31 March and a Maritime Officer attended the scene where they spoke to the barge and tug crew and other witnesses,” a Maritime NZ spokesperson said in a statement Bay of Plenty Regional Council staff were notified at about 2.15 pm on Monday that a 30m long barge operating at the marina had tipped on its side resulting in the crane lying in the water, Bay of Plenty Regional Council compliance manager and on-scene commander Matt Harrex earlier said no oil had spilt into the water from the capsize the council mobilised spill response equipment which was deployed when they started to see fuel leaking from the barge “Council staff were on site yesterday working with the relevant parties to ensure the barge is safely secured and it will continue to be monitored until it can be salvaged.” Harrex said the barge and crane were yet to be salvaged and the company’s insurance agency was in the process of contracting a salvor and arranging a salvage plan we will have more detail on what the salvage plan will entail and how long it will take.” Harrex said it may take time for suitable equipment to be available for the operation An earlier statement from the Bay of Plenty Regional Council said no one had been injured “Our compliance and harbourmaster staff are currently assessing the situation and will continue to monitor and liaise with the salvage team,” the statement said Maritime NZ is aware of the capsize and is continuing to make enquiries into the incident which will inform their next steps Boats have been asked to keep clear of the area Paying for clean-up means less money for the community.