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Already a subscriber? Sign in hereAccess to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen. NZ Open leaderboard: Live leaderboard of the 105th New Zealand Open

Photo: PhotosportWhile the hunger for poaching Pacific rugby talent appears insatiable, the same appetite does not exist for providing for the Islands. Listen to RNZ's Fair Game: Pacific Rugby Against the World podcast. World Rugby, which provided establishment support when Moana entered Super Rugby, no longer contributes to those operational expenses. Umaga was diplomatic when asked if the greater rugby world is incentivised to keep the islands under-funded and under-resourced. Photo: AAP / www.photosport.nzUnder minimum broadcast standards, staging a Super Rugby game in Tonga requires transporting roughly three tonnes of equipment into the country - costs the club must cover themselves.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters has placed travel bans on some Iranian ministers. Winston Peters says New Zealanders in Iran need to get out of the countryForeign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says New Zealanders in Iran need to get out of the country as tensions between the Middle Eastern nation and the United States grow. Peters announced travel bans on some Iranian ministers yesterday, which prompted the Iranian Embassy to accuse New Zealand of “misinformation” and taking “inhumane measures”. Peters told Ryan Bridge TODAY it would be a disaster should the United States and Iran go to war, but that “sadly, that is a high potential now”. A few months ago, Foreign Affairs sent a plane to the Iranian border to attempt to evacuate people before finding out that the “threat had broken”.

New Lynn robbery: Man threatened with weapon after car cuts him offA person was robbed after being cut off by a car on the footpath of a residential street and threatened with a weapon in West Auckland. The victim was walking to his accommodation around 9.16pm on Sunday when a black station wagon cut him off on the footpath on Gilliam St, New Lynn, said Detective Senior Sergeant Ryan Bunting. “Two males emerged from the vehicle, making demands towards the victim. One of the offenders was carrying a weapon at the time.”The pair took the victim’s bag after the altercation, which lasted minutes, said Bunting.

A third of New Zealanders have savings of less than $500, Westpac says, with Auckland and Northland lagging the rest of the country. By Susan Edmunds of RNZWestpac has released new data that shows Canterbury and Otago are top of the savings stakes – in both regions 28% of Westpac customers are making monthly payments into savings, and they have the highest median savings balance of $4200. Those regions also had the highest proportion of customers with savings of $15,000 or more, at 32%. Auckland and Northland were at the opposite end, with only 20% of customers making monthly payments into savings and median savings balances of less than $1500. But taking some time to review your overall spending and making small savings commitments can have a big impact over time."

“The primary sector remains a bright spot, driving economic recovery for regional New Zealand,” said Brunsdon. “While the job market remains challenging, households continue to scrimp with their money,” Brunsdon said. Employment gains remained more muted than economic activity, with only three South Island regions experiencing employment growth in the quarter. Earlier this week, BNZ chief economist Mike Jones released a report on regional economic progress, which also identified early signs of improvement in the North Island cities. But some convergence in regional economic performance was likely this year.

Here's our summary of key economic events overnight that affect New Zealand with news a new global debt cycle is underway. The Australian 10 year bond yield starts today at 4.72%, up +3 bps from yesterday. The NZ Government 10 year bond rate starts today at 4.39%, up +1 bp from yesterday. That all means our TWI-5 starts today up +10 bps from yesterday, now just under 63.3. The bitcoin price starts today at US$68,080 and up +6.3% from this time yesterday.

But it has had no overnight air traffic control abilities, meaning aircraft unable to land at either of those two cities must fly a long way to land safely. The likes of this P-8A Poseidon landing at RNZAF Base Ōhakea might, in 18 months, have the more frequent company of jumbo jets. The relevant air traffic control system is not yet available overnight. And Ōhakea has been available to airlines as an alternate runway only between 5am and 10.30pm. It was important for the Air Force base to be available at all times, O’Brien told the Herald.

“I walked to the gym, and 10 minutes in, they all told us to get out,” she told the Herald. “I started to walk back to where I was staying, and I started to notice everything was closing. I packed all my stuff from the place where I was staying and went to my friend’s apartment. Her local friends told her the most recent episode was the worst they had seen. They have been encouraged to monitor local media for updates and follow the advice of the local authorities.

Bayleys agent Edward Pack said both buyer and seller had asked him not to discuss the sale, the outcome of which is public. But the sale listing showed the home was no longer the tired do-up bought in 2020 by a couple who told OneRoof they were determined to restore what they described as “the worst house on the best street”. The home at 109 John St, pictured from the streetfront in December 2020. At that stage, it had a new roof and bathroom, was fully insulated and had been partially rewired, Bayleys listing agent Chris Batchelor told OneRoof. “Elegantly traditional from the street, step inside to a masterpiece of contemporary style and comfort,” read the sale listing, which also championed the blonde parquet floors, kitchen finished in Calacatta Vagli stone and full scullery.

PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONAn elderly driver who ploughed into a line of stopped traffic caused a lane of the highway near Mosgiel to be blocked. Police blamed driver inattention for the crash which happened when the elderly driver failed to see the line of stopped traffic on SH1 south of East Taieri. The drivers of both vehicles involved suffered minor injuries, police said. Minor injuries to those involved including the elderly driver whose airbag deployed. The crash occurred on State Highway 1 just south of East Taieri about 4.20pm yesterday.

Armed police were called to the Z service station in Kaikorai Valley Rd tonight. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONPolice fired a shot during an incident at a Dunedin service station tonight in their efforts to catch a man they describe as a "high risk" offender. In response, police deployed a range of tactical options including one shot from a police pistol", Supt Guthrie said. He was apprehended soon after by a police dog team in the Fraser's Gully area," Supt Guthrie said. "Police want to reassure the community that there is no ongoing public safety risk following this incident," Supt Guthrie said.

A large grass fire that forced the evacuation of homes in Central Otago has been contained. Fire and Emergency NZ crews were called to the blaze about 3.30pm yesterday in the Springvale area near Clyde. A Fenz vehicle moves towards a large grass fire in the Springvale area near Clyde in Central Otago yesterday. Photo: Kaden Campbell via RNZMr McQuillan said residents of most of the properties evacuated had been allowed to return home. About 20ha had been burned on both sides of Springvale Rd, which remained closed tonight.

Another man arrested as part of Operation Vintage died by suicide a year after his arrest. A prosecution summary of facts revealed 45-year-old Clinton Lee Forman, of Cromwell, was allegedly cultivating "large numbers" of cannabis plants on various plots around Haast and Westland. From two of the plots, police seized 88 plants with an expected yield of more than $68,000. Forman was arrested in April 2023 and faced 19 charges, which later sparked police proceedings to restrain his home and vehicle under proceeds-of-crime legislation. His father told a later coronial inquiry the man’s mental health declined "sharply" after becoming aware of the civil proceedings.