Michael BakerA public health expert says New Zealand is in its ninth wave of Covid-19. Prof Baker said the waves were not seasonal, being equally distributed between winter and summer. Prof Baker said there was no data to show if people were still testing, but many had become more complacent. As well as topping up antibodies, Prof Baker said getting regular boosters reduced the risk of Long Covid. The ‘‘disabling illness’’ was not being monitored at all in New Zealand, which Prof Baker said was a ‘‘gap’’ in tracking the virus.

In addition, farmers are required to report the movement of animals to the NAIT database within 48 hours. These measures form the backbone of the country’s livestock traceability framework, designed to safeguard the dairy and livestock industries from disease outbreaks. In total, the failures involved nearly 1,000 animals, leading the court to impose three separate fines of NZ$11,666 each. MPI officials emphasized that robust livestock traceability is essential for managing disease risks in dairy and beef production systems. Lessons from the country’s battle with the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak demonstrate how a single untracked animal can create significant industry-wide consequences.

Photo: SuppliedAir New Zealand has suspended its earning guidance and warned it may have to further hike prices and adjust where and how often it flies. It said the guidance it issued last month was no longer appropriate due to what it said was 'unprecedented' volatility in fuel prices. But it said it may need to take further action on its network and schedule if high jet fuel prices continued. The national carrier said the difference in the crack spread price - the margin charged by refineries - had jumped from US$22 barrel to as high as US$115. Airlines are charged for the Brent crude price of a barrel of oil - hovering around $US100 - and the crack spread price.

The report said the 84-year-old was living in the Stokeswood Care Home dementia unit in Lower Hutt. In August 2023 Beets was assessed as needing Dementia Level 3 secure residential care and placed in the dementia unit operated by BUPA Care Service. Coroner Thomas said Beets' family had questioned the circumstances surrounding his fall to understand whether anything could have been done to prevent it. "Our thoughts remain with Mr Beets' family, and we recognise the distress this event caused them. "Aged residential care is supporting residents with increasingly complex behavioural and clinical needs, particularly within dementia care settings.

Photo: ReutersUS President Donald Trump thinks the war against Iran "is very complete" and that Washington was "very far ahead" of his initial four to five week estimated time frame, according to a CBS News interview with him. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no Air Force," Trump told CBS News. Trump has thus far offered shifting objectives and timelines for the war that has killed scores in Iran, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah ​Ali Khamenei. Trump told CBS News the US is "very far" ahead of his initial 4-5 week estimated time frame for the war. On Iran's new Supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who is the son of the slain supreme leader, Trump told CBS News: "I have no message for him."

Lange’s younger brother Peter said he was shocked and upset about not being informed, and that the former Labour leader would “probably be laughing from wherever he’s looking down” about the situation. So that’s where we put him.”Lange’s ashes and headstone were removed from the Waikaraka cemetery due to fears of flooding. She said his headstone, described by Lange’s younger brother Peter as “a lovely, handsome stone”, was removed by a nearby stonemason. Artist Peter Lange is happy that his ex-Prime Minister brother David's ashes were scattered on the Hokianga Harbour - as he wanted. At the service, he was asked why Lange’s ashes weren’t in Hokianga as he wished.

Photo: ReutersEscalating hostilities have forced nearly 700,000 people to flee their homes in Lebanon over the past week, a UN agency said on Monday, as the war between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah entered a second week. On Monday, Israeli strikes sent columns of smoke billowing from Beirut's Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs, and over the hilltops of southern Lebanon. "Mass displacement across Lebanon has forced nearly 700,000 people – including around 200,000 children – from their homes, adding to the tens of thousands already uprooted from previous escalations," Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF regional director, said in a statement. Photo: ReutersThe Israeli military announced on Sunday that two of its soldiers had been killed in southern Lebanon, its first fatalities of the conflict. More than 1 million people were forced to flee their homes in Lebanon during a war between Hezbollah and Israel in 2024.

Iranian players saluting for the national anthem after being reprimanded for not singing in an earlier match. Photo: Getty ImagesThe New Zealand government may offer asylum to Iranian female football players in Australia who are likely to face persecution if they return to their home country. US President Donald Trump has urged Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to grant the whole team asylum. Don't do it, Mr. Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. On RNZ's First Up, Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour was asked if Australia should grant the players asylum - or if New Zealand should offer it.

Its research found that nearly 500,000 children in the Philippines had been trafficked to produce child abuse materials. Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) digital child exploitation manager Tim Houston confirmed multiple purchasers of long-distance child abuse have been discovered in New Zealand. Photo / Mark MitchellHouston said, at a high level, this offending often involves a “facilitator” who has access to a child advertising the opportunity for abuse online. “A key focus of any livestreaming of child exploitation investigation is identifying the victim and ensuring, where possible, their safety and wellbeing wherever the offending is occurring,” Mills said. “When I first started, people would import DVDs into the country or even sometimes VHS or a magazine with child exploitation material.

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Sticky Forest will remain an outstanding natural landscape zone, despite the Environment Court’s decision to rezone part of the land. The Environment Court has ruled that a further 7ha of Sticky Forest will be rezoned from rural to large lot residential. Sticky Forest has a complicated ownership history dating back to the 1870s, when Kāi Tahu leader and politician H.K. The 50 Maori who came to own Sticky Forest were originally promised a block of land at Manuhaea, The Neck, but as that land had been leased for farming, in 1895 the Crown swapped it with the block of land now known as Sticky Forest. Sticky Forest houses an extensive trail network used primarily by mountain bikers.

It is more perverse as we strongly identify with our regions through rugby, culture and in many other important ways. I am not suggesting the current regions are perfect or well run; the evidence shows otherwise. Local governance is not a managerial puzzle or structural inconvenience. The regions are the direct descendants of the original provinces, often closer to locals’ needs, iwi and hapū than Wellington can ever be. Pass authority from Wellington to cities and regions that understand their own environments better than someone elected in Auckland or an unelected official in the capital.

PHOTOS: SUPPLIEDAn operator of a Catlins camping ground says he is being forced out by council red tape, racist taunts and a lack of support from the wider community. There was only one way to get to the headland and that was a road through the camping ground. That created pressure on amenities and the trust’s only income was the rent payment from Mr Schmidt and Ms Shua. The trust was not ‘‘putting its head in the sand’’ and wanted to support the operators of the camping ground, he said. Mr Schmidt had given the trust an indication he would be moving on when his lease ended in June.

Photo: GettyOne of the world's largest pornography websites has blocked Australian users days before a deadline to introduce age-verification measures aimed at protecting children. "A child today can't walk into a bar and order a drink," eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant told ABC Radio on Monday. Ms Inman Grant said pornography sites using a button to ask users whether they are over 18 will no longer suffice. "There are now a dozen lawsuits in the US taking on various chatbot providers," Ms Inman Grant said. Ms Inman Grant said the social media ban has had early success, with 4.7 million accounts restricted across banned platforms such as Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.

The defendant losing his job, Richards said, was a “normal and ordinary consequence” of offending like this. It means a court can no longer make an order for an offender’s permanent name suppression without the victim’s agreement. This brought Judge Maxwell’s starting point down to 21 months, which meant the defendant was eligible for home detention. Between September 3 and 17 last year, the girl sent the defendant 12 images and 19 short videos. “On Sunday 21 September 2025 at 10.40am, the defendant paid for an Uber to bring the victim to his house.