A popular eastern bays beach has been flagged as unsafe for swimming due to faecal contamination. Water-quality website Safeswim has black-flagged St Heliers – meaning swimmers should not to swim there at all. The only other black-flagged beach in Auckland is Judges Bay in Parnell, which has been unfit for swimming for years. Safeswim said work was under way to fix issues at St Heliers and Judges Bay; however, it is not clear how long the areas will remain off limits for swimmers. Investigations were still under way to find out the source of wastewater pollution going into the stream around Dingle Rd that flows to the beach at St Heliers.

However, his New Zealand-based manager Garry Cossey confirmed McDonald won’t be taking other rides at the Trentham meeting. McDonald hasn’t ridden in his home country since the Karaka Millions meeting at Ellerslie in January last year. “I am feeling a lot better and it was very special to win that race,” he told the Herald. He and wife Katie will meet with doctors on Monday morning to find out the next steps in his recovery. He became the Herald’s Racing Editor in 1995 and covers the world’s biggest horse racing carnivals.

“Everybody seems to want to be at the front of the queue, no matter the risk, and that risk-taking causes carnage. “People just need to remember, just be patient – we’ve got to do better.”National Road Policing Centre director Superintendent Stephen Greally. Photo / FileHe reminded people to remember their seatbelts, drive sober and stick to the speed limit. Traffic leaving Auckland is expected to be the worst on Christmas Eve as people head for beaches and holiday hotspots across the country. “Always drive to the conditions, which can change quickly.

Trade Minister Todd McClay meets with his Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal in India. Trade Minister Todd McClay meets with his Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal in India. India and New Zealand have struck a comprehensive free trade agreement, and India’s cabinet has now, reportedly, also signed off on the deal. Trade Minister Todd McClay recently returned from India, with several sources telling BusinessDesk the final details of a comprehensive free trade agreement (FTA) were ironed out during the trip. On Saturday morning, NZ time, Indian business news media outlet Business Standard reported India’s cabinet approved the NZ FTA deal at the end of last week.

England cricket coach Brendon McCullum is under fire following his team's Ashes series loss in Australia. Photo: Getty ImagesEngland coach Brendon McCullum faced a barrage of criticism from former players and captains yesterday after his team slumped to another crushing Ashes defeat by Australia. "It's mainly about the intensity of Ashes cricket. Former England captain Michael Vaughan also tore into the current team in his column in The Telegraph. "The whole approach of this England side has been badly exposed on this Ashes tour, and you don’t have to look far into history to know that heads will roll after a defeat like this," he wrote.

The website bookpublishers.co.nz, however, has no staff in New Zealand. “The amount of evidence that it was genuine was massive … They have a New Zealand address and phone number,” one said. The 12 urls, along with bookpublishers.co.nz, are all managed by the same website company in Pakistan. bookpublishers.co.nz was registered in 2023 by the CEO of a website company in Pakistan, who supplied a London address. Batalha felt the quality of the work bookpublishers.co.nz delivered to her was so poor she would have been embarrassed to use it.

Judge Gibson said 22 of the charges were representative, meaning each charge relates to multiple instances of offending. Zhanming Shang, here with a translator, pleaded guilty to 50 charges related to the sexual abuse of two boys. Shang, Jones said, believed his experience as a child shaped how he offended as an adult. ‘Depraved and extremely serious’In sentencing Shang, Judge Gibson said he had “systematically groomed” the victims and ingratiated himself in their families. Judge Gibson also imposed a minimum non-parole period of half the total sentence for Shang’s “serious predatory offending”.

Wakatipu High School suffered a five-wicket loss to Christchurch Boys’ in their latest game at the New Zealand First XI boys tournament at Lincoln yesterday. Connor Clarke scored 39 and Angus O’Neill 20 as Wakatipu scored 139 in 45 overs. Christchurch Boys’ chased down the target in the 24th over. Hugo Mawdsley took three for 31 from six overs for Wakatipu, who play Napier Boys’ today. — Allied Media

A woman who listed a tiny home for sale that didn't exist before pocketing the money will now pay the victim back at $20 a week. It will take Haley Denyse Mullen about three years to pay the victim $3125 after defrauding her last year. 'I wanted easy money'Mullen, using the fake name Riley Simpson, listed the tiny home for sale on Facebook on October 29 last year for $3125. The victim inquired and, believing it to be legitimate, agreed to buy it and duly transferred the money. However, Mullen's scam was exposed when she asked the victim for more money.

A judge has described the actions of a man who repeatedly hit his dog with a large square shovel, and later assaulted his daughter, as "callous and cruel treatment" of the animal. After being confronted, Little told the witness to "mind her own business", and told her he was hitting Marama because she had toileted on his deck. The dog was taken away and examined by a vet, and was observed avoiding placing full weight on her right hind limb. 'So fearful... they fled into a room'Then, in June of this year, Little's violence extended to his daughter and ex-partner. The man was given a 20% discount for his guilty plea, having initially pleaded not guilty.

“A Search and Rescue operation was commenced, and the boater was retrieved just before 8pm. “The boater was transported to hospital.”A spokesperson said there was a fire on board the boat which is being investigated.

Leslie noted Pāmu was looking at options around its future, but noted it could come with complexities around leases, farms subject to Treaty settlements, and those with first right of refusal to iwi. “The last thing we also want to leave is a business that has sold some assets and is now unable to fund itself. “One thing Pāmu’s always been very proud of is that we haven’t had to go and seek funding from the Government. A July Treasury report on Pāmu Landcorp’s statement of corporate intent and business plan, obtained by Newstalk ZB under the Official Information Act, stated there was an expectation to improve performance and deliver returns. She joined NZME in 2022 and became a Newstalk ZB political reporter in late 2024, with a keen interest in public service agency reform and government spending.

“There’s nothing harmful about making life happy and magic for your children,” Pearl said. Members of the Gloriavale community wearing their uniforms while on a skiing trip. Photo / SuppliedVirginia was born in the Gloriavale community. The fate of the private school inside the Gloriavale community is uncertain. “The sisters’ contribution to community life is essential and well appreciated by all.”

Eru Kapa-Kingi, a high-profile member of protest group Toitū te Tiriti, which was once closely aligned with Te Pāti Māori, accused the party of running a dictatorial leadership model. Expelled Te Pāti Māori MPs Tākuta Ferris and Mariameno Kapa-Kingi in the House as independents for Question Time in November. “The minute it’s gone too wide and you can’t contain it, then it’s gone beyond us scrapping behind closed doors. Photo / Mark MitchellIt’s been a few weeks since Ferris and Kapa-Kingi moved to their new offices as independents, a few floors away from Te Pāti Māori. “But the difference is it’s not as hard as it was in 2020 when there was just no ground support.”Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer at Koroneihana at Tūrangawaewae Marae in August.

On that basis, it pledged to support far-right populist parties that, in its words, “oppose elite-driven, anti-democratic restrictions on core liberties in Europe, the Anglosphere and the rest of the democratic world”. From strategy to realityTrump’s strategy should not have come as a surprise. Nevertheless, the current coalition Government, like many liberal democratic states, has responded to the second Trump administration by adopting a “softly-softly” approach. More importantly, quiet diplomacy did not curb Trump’s sustained assault on the multilateral, rules-based order on which New Zealand – and most small and middle powers – depend. Yet Trump’s security strategy now leaves the Government with little room to avoid reassessing its stated goal of closer strategic alignment with the US.