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Bags went missing in Dubai floods, with embassy staff only able to retrieve one instrument and a handful of dress uniforms for defence force musiciansAustralia’s and New Zealand’s defence forces are once again coming together at Gallipoli – this time to ensure New Zealand’s military band can play on.The band’s luggage was among thousands of bags lost during last week’s Dubai floods, with embassy...

Police say the sheep was shot dead after confronting officers called to the property in Waitakere, west of AucklandFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastAn aggressive ram believed responsible for the deaths of an elderly New Zealand couple has been put down by police after it was found alongside the...

Newshub owner Warner Bros Discovery strikes deal with Stuff to provide bulletins amid concerns over the country’s shrinking media marketNew Zealand news outlet Newshub, which is set to shut down due to economic woes, has been thrown a lifeline by local media organisation Stuff that will save its bulletins and website, in new formats.Last week, Warner Bros Discovery confirmed it would close down its...

More than 350 jobs to go after Warner Bros. Discovery closes all its Newshub news operations and TVNZ cuts programs and bulletinsNew Zealand’s news media has been dealt a major blow after two of its primary news outlets announced programme closures and hundreds of job losses between them on the same day, leaving the country with just one state-owned news television service and many...

Net migration to New Zealand hit a near record high in 2023 after a new temporary work visa was introduced after the pandemicNew Zealand will tighten its visa rules for some migrants as the coalition government moves to overhaul the immigration system it says has led to “unsustainable” levels of migration.Last year, annual net migration to New Zealand hit a near record high of...

New Zealand did not follow the US and UK in imposing financial restrictions after accusing Beijing of links to cyber-attacksPoliticians, journalists and critics of Beijing were among those targeted by cyber-attacks run by groups backed by China, western intelligence services said this week.The separate cyber-attacks hit the US, UK and New Zealand – all members of the Five Eyes alliance. The network of five...

New scrutiny of planemaker’s 787 Dreamliner over terrifying drop adds to safety crisis after cabin panel blowout on 737 Max 9 jet Another Boeing jet is facing scrutiny after the planemaker told airlines to check the cockpit seats of 787 Dreamliners following a terrifying drop during a flight from Sydney to Auckland.Dozens of people on Latam Airlines Flight 800 were said to have been...

Questions asked over the place of protest in professional sport after Hurricanes Poua team in Wellington changed the lyrics for their haka just before a game A row over the role of protest in professional sport has erupted in New Zealand after a women’s rugby team called the coalition government “rednecks” during a pre-match haka.The Hurricanes Poua – the women’s rugby union team for...

Defence force aircraft draws fresh criticism as Christopher Luxon joins Ardern and Key in list of leaders held up by ageing planesNew Zealand prime minister Christopher Luxon was forced to travel on a last-minute commercial flight to Australia for a summit on Tuesday, after the country’s beleaguered defence force plane was once again grounded over maintenance issues.The defence force loans planes to New Zealand...

Court found those responsible for tour had not conducted adequate risk assessments ahead of deadly eruptionA New Zealand court has ordered the tour booking agents and managers of an island where a volcanic eruption killed 22 people to pay survivors more than NZ$10m ($6.1m) and fined them around NZ$2.6m.Tour operators White Island Tours, Volcanic Air Safaris, Kahu New Zealand and Aerius, along with the...

Devastated colleagues and friends pay tribute to Collins as a ‘passionate advocate’ and a champion of fairness and equalityNew Zealanders, including leaders from across the political spectrum, have expressed shock and devastation at the sudden death of Green MP Efeso Collins, who collapsed after a charity run in Auckland on Wednesday.“It is with profound shock and sadness that we can confirm that Green Party...

Analyst says drop in births reflect ‘continued trend’ of smaller family sizes and higher rates of childlessnessNew Zealand’s fertility rate slumped to a record low in 2023, official data shows, as the total number of births also dropped.The fertility rate tracks the average number of births women will have in their lifetime. New Zealand, along with many countries around the world, has seen this...

Separatist fighters who seized Phillip Mehrtens say he will be released to protect humanity and safeguard human rights, but did not say whenRebels in Indonesia’s West Papua region have said they will release a New Zealand pilot who was taken hostage a year ago as a bargaining chip for their independence movement.The chief of general staff of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPN-PB),...

Record crowds gather for country’s national day as fears of a wind back of Māori rights lead to angry exchangesThe Treaty of Waitangi explained in 30 secondsAs the sun arced above the Waitangi grounds, boring down on the lush green peninsula where Māori and the British Crown forged a nation in 1840, New Zealand’s new government faced the heat – less from above and...

Australia to send delegation to NZ ‘very shortly’ to brief on second pillar of Aukus alliance after ministers meet in MelbourneNew Zealand has stepped up its interest in joining the non-nuclear pillar of Aukus, amid China’s growing presence in the Pacific and broader concerns over a “reshaped world”.New Zealand’s foreign minister Winston Peters – also a deputy prime minister – and the defence minister,...

Country may be the first to do so, amid increasing concerns about the health and environmental risks posed by the virtually indestructible chemicalsNew Zealand is banning so-called “forever chemicals” in cosmetics from 2026, in what could be the first example of a country doing so.The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) said it has banned the use of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in cosmetics to...

Animals have been popping up on golf courses and surfing contests in Dunedin as they reestablish a foothold on the South IslandA growing population of sea lions in the New Zealand city of Dunedin is provoking “overlapping chaos” as their breeding season coincides with residents enjoying peak summer weather.Two sea lions gave birth on a golf course, another swam alongside competitors in a surfing...

Will Fransen was on a solo fishing trip south of Auckland in New Zealand when he was yanked into the water after hooking a big fishA New Zealand man who survived more than 23 hours in cold waters and an encounter with a shark has been rescued after fishers spotted the reflection from his watch.Will Fransen, 61, had set off on a solo fishing...

Lachlan Galbraith says he feels ‘deep regret’ for stealing a drink bottle lid, but the Hunting and Fishing store in Queenstown says embarrassment ‘is punishment enough’Ocean Alley keyboardist Lachlan Galbraith has publicly apologised after a shop in New Zealand shared CCTV footage of him shoplifting.Hunting and Fishing Queenstown uploaded footage to Facebook and Instagram showing Galbraith placing a A$17.95 drink bottle lid in his...