Photo: SuppliedNelson's mayor says smaller centres are rattled by a warning from Air New Zealand it may have make changes to where it flies and how often. Nelson Mayor Nick Smith said there was a "huge amount of nervousness in regional New Zealand" over the possibility of Air New Zealand reviewing services. Smith said he was due to meet with Air New Zealand in the next couple of weeks. Photo: RNZNew Plymouth Mayor Max Brough warned of a revolt if changes are made to flights. "The airport has been working with Air New Zealand to remind them that it is a popular destination," he said.

A Dunedin teenager allegedly spat in the face of a police officer after being caught red-handed breaking into a car. On arrival, they witnessed three teenagers rummaging through a Toyota Aqua after they had smashed a window. All three teens were arrested and charged with unlawful interference with a motor vehicle. The spitting teen was also charged with assault. They will appear in Dunedin Youth Court this week.

Or will the Hammers deliver one of the all-time shocks in Ranfurly Shield history? Two Heartland Championship teams will get a crack at the coveted Log o’ Wood this season. The Otago Rugby Football Union has offered both a challenge at the shield and has locked in dates. Assuming Otago defend the shield against their neighbours, they will face another challenge from Mid Canterbury in Alexandra on Friday, July 24. Otago claimed the Ranfurly Shield with a stirring 38-36 win over Canterbury in Christchurch in September.

Kapa-Kingi was elected to the Te Tai Tokerau Northland seat for Te Pāti Māori in 2023 after an unsuccessful attempt in 2017. Her electorate win was one of six for the Te Pāti Māori amid “an incoming wave of support” for the party in the 2023 election. Tākuta Ferris and Mariameno Kapa-Kingi in their seats in the debating chamber further back from Te Pāti Māori after being expelled from the party. “They excluded her from the process that led to her expulsion from the party,” Justice Radich said. The party said it acknowledged the court decision which reinstated Kapa-Kingi into the party.

Wild Dunedin Festival of Nature director Carla Munro at the 3-D map of Otago Peninsula. PHOTO: GREGOR RICHARDSONA wild ride, a big old sing-song and a programme of hundreds of events — Dunedin’s nature festival is boasting something for everyone. The programme for next month’s Wild Dunedin Festival of Nature has been released, inviting locals and visitors to celebrate nature, conservation and the outdoors. ‘‘There is a real sense of community around Wild Dunedin,’’ she said. About 30,000 people attended last year’s Wild Dunedin Festival.

Reti’s upcoming retirement may prompt Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to remove him from Cabinet at the upcoming reshuffle. Reti, a medical doctor, currently holds a number of ministerial portfolios, including Universities, Science, Innovation and Technology, Statistics, and Pacific Peoples. He previously served as deputy leader of the National Party under Collins and briefly as interim leader after Collins’ was removed until Luxon took the top job in late 2021. Speaking on Tuesday, Reti said Luxon expected him to continue in his roles for now. He said, even if he remained Health Minister, it would be time to call it quits.

Photo: Screengrab / FacebookANZ chief economist Sharon Zollner told RNZ the increase in oil prices had been "quite exponential." Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold said petrol prices were on track to return to levels not seen since the invasion of Ukraine. "Consumer confidence in particular, I think, is often related to changes in fuel prices because that's a really frequently purchased item in the budget. He said the longer the conflict continued, the worse it would be for the New Zealand economy. But he was less convinced that it wouldn't mean higher interest rates.

He said that Israel wants Iran, whose cleric-run government has championed Hamas, to be “permanently weakened” - a strategy Israel has pursued across the region, notably in repeatedly bombing historic adversary Syria despite a change in government. Both Netanyahu and Trump have spoken favourably of Iranians overthrowing the Islamic republic, which faces widespread opposition and ruthlessly suppressed protests in January, but neither has made it an explicit goal. Trump - who for years denounced US interventionism in the Middle East as wasteful and misguided - has offered different explanations for attacking the country of 90 million people, mostly focusing on degrading its military. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Growing partisan gapIsrael retains strong support within Trump’s Republican Party but the rival Democratic Party - and a few prominent voices on the right - have accused Trump of blindly following Israel into a regional war.

Photo: RNZThe second phase of the Covid-19 response inquiry has found the government's response was effective but late and not communicated well enough to people. Public divisions and anger over the pandemic response in part prompted the second phase begun in December 2022, amid questions if phase one had gone far enough. Phase two looked at four areas of pandemic response from February 2021 to October 2022:- vaccine approval and safety. "These topics, and the time period covered ... capture some of the most difficult and divisive elements of New Zealand's pandemic response," the report said. - Produce regulatory impact statements in future pandemics, and update the Cabinet rules so pandemic decisions get reviewed.

Former councillor Conrad Stedman and former mayor Aaron Hawkins received the most support. Crs Steve Walker, Christine Garey and Mickey Treadwell endorsed Mr Hawkins. Crs Andrew Simms, Lee Vandervis and Russell Lund endorsed Mr Stedman. Cr Lund said Jo Galer was his first pick for council, followed by Mr Stedman, while Crs Walker and Garey also endorsed Richard Knights. Crs Lund and Vandervis also indicated they would not welcome a return to the council table by Mr Hawkins.

Brent crude oil eclipsed US$110 ($185) a barrel for the first time in three and a half years before dropping back under US$90. Parham said Waitomo’s prices had gone up around 10-15 cents on petrol and 20-plus cents on diesel. “We are really seeing diesel being impacted more than petrol at this stage because of the crude that comes out of the Middle East. This morning, Air New Zealand said it was suspending its earning guidance because of volatile jet fuel prices. Jet fuel prices were about US$85 to US$90 per barrel before the conflict but had surged to US$150-US$200 in recent days.

PHOTO: RICHARD DAVISONPolice are investigating the cause of a crash in South Otago that led to one driver being critically injured yesterday. Emergency services were summoned, including a rescue helicopter, which transported the SUV driver to Dunedin Hospital, departing the scene about 10am. Acting Senior Sergeant Robin Hutton, of Balclutha, said police were still establishing the cause of the accident, which led to the SUV driver sustaining critical injuries. ‘‘The male driver of the SUV was flown to Dunedin Hospital in a fairly serious condition. One patient, in a critical condition, was transported to Dunedin Hospital, the spokesperson said.

Trump said the war would continue until Iran is "totally and decisively defeated," but predicted it would be over soon. Trump did not, however, define exactly what victory in the war would look like. Israel says its war aim is to overthrow Iran's system of clerical rule. Israel had said it would kill whoever succeeded the elder Khamenei unless Iran ended its hostile policies. After speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump said the United States will waive certain oil-related sanctions to ease the shortage.

In its Q1 Global Dairy Quarterly report, the specialist agribusiness bank says overall global dairy prices have shown tentative signs of recovery in recent months, with consecutive increases seen in Global Dairy Trade (GDT) auctions lifting sentiment in the sector. However, the report, by the bank’s RaboResearch division, notes that global dairy markets continue to be well supplied, with strong milk production growth across all the world’s major dairy-exporting regions, except Australia. This global supply growth has been supported by relatively low livestock feed prices, which have encouraged production and kept milk supply levels elevated worldwide, RaboResearch says. Abundant global supplyAbundant global milk supply had led to a pronounced impact on global dairy prices in the final quarter of 2025, the report said, with the prices of a number of dairy products – including fats, whole milk powder, skimmed milk power, cheese and whey – declining. OutlookLooking ahead, RaboResearch expects global dairy markets to gradually tighten as farm margins come under pressure and supply growth cools across the major exporting regions.

Southland A&P Society president Paula Bell is looking forward to another bumper show next year and refuses to let the office’s weekend ransacking be a cloud over what she has lauded as ‘‘the most successful show yet’’. Photo: TONI MCDONALDAn overnight break-in at the Southland A&P Showgrounds at Donovan Park on Saturday left a bitter aftertaste to an otherwise near-record show weekend. Southland A&P Society executive officer Georgie Day said the extremely successful weekend ended with a stomach-dropping discovery at the site office for organisers on Sunday morning. Society president Paula Bell said the break-in came hard on the heels of a hugely successful show, but she refused to let it rob credit from the small committee, which had worked extremely hard to organise the event. ‘‘We’ll definitely be looking at security, but honestly, the office was locked and everything was properly secured,’’ she said.