No reward for prizeThe handing over of the Nobel Peace Prize to a warmonger who is stoking fire abroad with both once-close Nato allies and longtime enemies was odd. No doubt the Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado saw mileage in appeasing Trump’s longing to be recognised. Other peace prize medals have sold for millions of dollars. Though having given a seemingly placating gift to a vacilating president, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize was then sent home with no promise of support. Yes, Dad was heavily involved in farming and farming politics, just like his father, James Begg.

PHOTO: SUPPLIEDA leading health academic says Pharmac should not consider wide-scale funding of so-called "miracle" weight-loss drugs until the country has a solid approach to treating obesity. "They are people with heart disease and heart failure, as well as some groups of people with diabetes. "I really think that this thing needs to be looked at as part of a big picture, not just should we fund Wegovy or shouldn’t we fund Wegovy." "The problem that we have in this country now is that we don’t have the opportunity for adequate counselling in primary care. "But if we are saying that these drugs should be used like blood pressure drugs or diabetes drugs or heart disease and cholesterol drugs, I mean, we’ve got years and years and years of experience with those drugs.

An artistic concept of the planned Weston Rd St John station. PHOTO: SUPPLIEDAfter a 10-year wait, construction of a new ambulance station in Oamaru is under way. Ground was broken at the Weston Rd site at a ceremony last weekend and Breen Construction began work yesterday. The station will have a four-bay garage, housing an ambulance, a volunteer-based first response unit, a ‘‘patient transport services’’ vehicle and an event health services ambulance. Hato Hone St John district operations manager Otago Southland David Milne thanked Weston Rd residents Ray and Janice Walker, who gave the land to St John.

PHOTO: GERARD O’BRIENWhen Staffordshire terrier-cross Layla first came into the Dunedin SPCA, she was sick, scared and severely malnourished. When she was first brought into the Dunedin SPCA in November last year, she was so scared she urinated as soon as she saw a person. SPCA Dunedin centre manager Laura Vander Kley said the day before they found Layla, they got an alert from a member of the public about five dumped puppies. Layla when she first came came to the SPCA in November. "She was really, really upset about that," Ms Vander Kley said.

The group call themselves "money motivated family" and formed from a group of prisoners about July last year. Some members were associated with other gangs before Money Motivated Family, and sociologist Dr Jarrod Gilbert said moving between gangs was becoming more common. "Now, it’s been incredibly common, not just to change from one gang to another gang, but to maybe change two or three, four times. A local tradie, who declined to be named, was aware of one member of the Money Motivated Family. "If you live in Dunedin, you know which gang members to avoid and which ones not to avoid," he said.

The Buxton Carpark featured various lanes and alleyways, and has been a focal point for the police in recent years. It was where Senior Sergeant Lyn Fleming was killed in the early hours of January 1 last year. About 12.35am, Ropiha and two associates were in an alleyway of the Buxton Carpark, in central Nelson. Her colleague, Senior Sergeant Adam Ramsay, was critically injured, and a third police officer was assessed for a concussion. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.

The MAAG was set up in 2020-21, following the Christchurch terror attack, and has the ear of the minister responsible for firearms laws. Associate Justice Minister and Act MP Nicole McKee. They are both familiar to McKee; Spray has worked for McKee’s company Firearms Safety Specialists NZ Limited, which founded Whakatūpato. Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith. Public Service guidelines for filling positions in statutory bodies include nine ways to seek candidates, including asking the responsible minister.

PHOTOS: GERARD O’BRIEN & SUPPLIEDA mural of a lion now graces the side of a Dunedin building. The image on the Mansfield Apartments building at the corner of Bond and Liverpool Sts was created by SwiftMantis, of Palmerston North. The artist had intended to depict a British bulldog (above), but animal welfare groups raised objections, highlighting the breed’s respiratory issues. The building formerly displayed Love is in the Air (above), painted by Polish street artist Natalia Rak in May 2015, showing a girl giving a boy a kiss as he holds a lollipop. That mural was painted over in 2024 so the wall could be repaired.

Council of Trade Unions' annual Mood of the Workforce survey showed incomes are falling even more behind on the cost of living. Photo: RNZA major union-backed survey shows more workers reporting their incomes are not keeping up with the cost of living. The Council of Trade Unions' annual Mood of the Workforce survey showed nearly 60 percent of the more than 3000 surveyed saying their income had fallen behind the cost of living, compared to nearly 50 percent last year. Some haven't received a pay rise in five yearsThe survey showed union members were more likely to receive annual pay rises. "How do you go an pay for your groceries if you haven't had a pay rise in five years?

The latest New Zealand Drugs Trends Survey (NZDTS) shows the price of the class A drug had fallen from $563 per gram in 2017 to $334/g in 2025; after adjusting for inflation, the price dropped even further to $253/g, which represented a 55% drop since 2017. "The percentage of high frequency users in the survey, who use meth weekly or more often, has almost doubled, increasing from 27% in 2018 to 57% in 2025. He said the growing consumption and lower prices were the result of a massive increase in meth supply to New Zealand. The annual survey provides a snapshot of drug trends via an anonymous online survey of more than 8800 people. It asks respondents about drug use patterns, market prices, views on drug policy, help services and barriers to seeking help and harm reduction initiatives.

PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSHFirefighters remove corrugated sheets after a shed fire in the Brighton Domain yesterday. A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokeswoman said they received multiple calls about the fire and the first crew from Brighton arrived about 1pm. The shed was fully involved, but firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze. After 50 minutes, firefighters left the scene. The shed was left in the hands of the Dunedin City Council for the remaining clean-up.

“Ed asked everyone to jump on a song and it was really nice to see them also jumping and enjoying the music.”Footage of the moment shows two uniformed officers among the crowd on the stadium floor, caught up in the moment. “Ed Sheeran is a vibe, I can’t blame them,” wrote one. !”Ed Sheeran fan Sagar Makkar and his wife have passed their love for the singer to their 18-month-old daughter. A guitarist himself, Makkar said he has serenaded his wife with Sheeran’s hit Perfect on “multiple special occasions”. “I just filmed a normal moment and I didn’t really expect that it’ll reach so many people.

Angus Murray, 13, of Waikouaiti, stands beside a Royal New Zealand Air Force Douglas DC-3 cockpit in his family’s backyard. Taking pride of place in Waikouaiti man Athol Murray’s backyard is the cockpit of a Douglas DC-3 Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) plane that was used in the war. Mr Murray’s father was also a pilot, as is Mr Murray. The Royal New Zealand Air Force DC-3 plane at the Taieri Aerodrome in November 1947. Now, it is in Waikouaiti and was a favourite toy of Mr Murray’s son, Angus, when he was growing up.

Court documents state Kiel-Pirini first showed up at Middlemore Hospital with a hand injury on the afternoon of January 4 last year. Menacing drive-by, then gunfireThe victim, on crutches, was walking towards the hospital when Kiel-Pirini’s vehicle drove slowly past. Tipene Kiel-Pirini fired a gun during a confrontation in the Middlemore Hospital carpark. Photo / Doug SherringAnother associate of the Mongrel Mob member, who had initially remained in the Holden, then emerged wearing a balaclava. Of course, that doesn’t excuse having returned to the hospital with a loaded gun, both lawyers and the judge agreed.

A National Skin Cancer Survey — released today by the New Zealand Cancer Society and the University of Otago — has found sunburn rates are highest among young adults aged 18-24, and more than one-third of them reported more than three sunburns over a summer. "Despite long-standing awareness that skin cancer is largely preventable, these findings show that sunburn remains very common, particularly among young adults. "This seems to coincide with a significant drop in government funding for sun safety campaigns over recent years, which may be contributing to the lack of progress in reducing sunburn rates. She said 50% of respondents reported they liked to get a suntan, and 43% agreed that a tanned person looked healthier, particularly among young adults. "The high level of public support provides a clear mandate for increased, sustained and co-ordinated investment in skin cancer prevention," she said.