Photo: SUPPLIED / GWRCIt will be more expensive to travel on Wellington's public transport later this year. That means for a passenger commuting between suburbs such as Karori, Khandallah, Lyall Bay and the city centre, rush-hour fares are going up from $4.53 to $4.67, but off-peak fares rise from $3.17 to $3.74. Ros Connelly, the chairperson of the regional council's public transport committee, said the 3.1 percent increase was the limit between prudent economic management and what the public could afford. "While my personal preference in an ideal world would be to have free public transport across our whole region. Last year, Metlink increased its fares by 2.2 percent and dropped the off-peak discount from 50 percent to 30 percent.

Mountbatten-Windsor maintained his friendship with Epstein long after the financier’s 2008 guilty plea on a charge of soliciting sex from a minor. The implications for the royal family may be just as serious. “I think we have to separate the notion of a family from the institution of the monarchy,” royal commentator Jonathan Dimbleby told the BBC. William and Catherine, the Prince and Princess of Wales – who have reportedly been among the family members most critical of Andrew – remain highly popular. They did not issue a separate statement yesterday, but a palace official said they supported the king’s statement.

Consultant Jim Reardon believed banks’ one-year and 18-month mortgages were a little overpriced, given where wholesale interest rates have landed. He couldn’t see mortgage rates rising in the next few months. Reardon believed banks’ margins were roughly back where they were before participants in financial markets over-reacted to the Reserve Bank’s commentary at the end of 2025, and wholesale interest rates shot up. Wholesale interest rates jumped, financial market conditions tightened, banks’ margins narrowed, and banks lifted their longer-term fixed mortgage and term deposit rates by about 30 basis points. Reardon believed banks would welcome wholesale rates dropping off a bit.

Half a million dollars, seized by police on Operation Solana. These items were seized as a part of the undercover drug sting Operation Solana. Three firearms were seized, including one that had been 3D printed. 11 arrests were made following the nine-month undercover drug sting Operation Solana. Police seized a 3D printed firearm in a search as part of Operation Solana.

A gastric sleeve operation performed privately in New Zealand could cost $40,000, which was out of her financial reach and why Watson looked overseas. With medical tourism growing, Auckland surgeon Dr Richard Babor said it had reached the point where there was almost always someone in Middlemore Hospital with post-operation problems from overseas surgery. We’d just be providing a follow-up service.”Babor said no official numbers were kept about people affected by overseas surgery going wrong, but it was something bariatric surgeons talked about and would consider. “Any surgery is going to potentially have complications – whether it’s New Zealand, Mexico, anywhere, there’s potential for complications. I do feel very sorry for people who have had bad experiences overseas.”Warren said having weight-loss surgery overseas was viewed differently to other operations, such as dental ones.

Benedict OngDunedin's mayor has warned controversial city councillor Benedict Ong about his conduct, saying she is ‘‘extremely concerned’’. ‘‘I consider your actions in regard to the chief executive and staff relations to be extremely serious,’’ Ms Barker said. ‘‘I am extremely concerned about your behaviour,’’ Ms Barker said. An independent investigator has started looking into Cr Ong’s conduct after an email he sent this month about a staff member. In her email, Ms Barker highlighted various clauses of the code of conduct.

Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up to the mike …

They often shared “a coffee and a chat”, as Holland did with many people in the Tauranga community, including others living rough. Dax Holland was a long-time member of Tauranga’s homeless community and a regular at community meals. Photo / FacebookShadbolt described Holland as a “really nice guy” who was thoughtful and knowledgeable, enjoyed deep conversations and often spoke about philosophy and spirituality. Holland loved music and being around whatever was going on, whether it was singing, dancing or pickleball. “He loved community and he loved people,” Shadbolt said.

Foveaux Strait. Photo: Getty ImagesThe Royal New Zealand Navy has completed a successful fishery patrol around Stewart Island and Foveaux Strait, working in partnership with Fisheries New Zealand (FNZ). Inshore patrol vessel HMNZS Taupo conducted the patrol this month with FNZ officers aboard, providing a visible presence to commercial fishing vessels operating out of ports including Half Moon Bay, Bluff and Riverton. FNZ compliance manager south Garreth Jay said in a statement FNZ and the Navy jointly conducted patrols throughout New Zealand’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). ‘‘Working with our Navy partners gives us greater capacity to inspect commercial fishing vessel operations further out to sea and helps provide a greater picture of fishing operations throughout the EEZ.’’During the patrol, fishery officers inspected vessels’ electronic reporting, paperwork and fishing practices.

PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERYTwo new low-cost fuel outlets under construction will only increase competition in what is already an intense market in Dunedin, an industry commentator says. NPD is building fuel stations in Mosgiel and Kaikorai Valley. AA fuel spokesman Terry Collins said the introduction of two new low-cost stations was likely to cause more fluctuation in fuel rates. The price of fuel in New Zealand was largely dictated by external geopolitical factors, he said. Fuel prices in general had gone up in recent years not because of margins from retailers, but rather transportation and other costs associated with the industry.

Aussie entrepreneur Karl Jameson’s traded part of his Chantecler property, including this house, for a Christchurch shopping mallA Christchurch shopping mall has been swapped for a lavish Queenstown homestead and garden. Australian entrepreneur Karl Jameson traded a 3.7ha part of his Chantecler property, off Queenstown’s Lower Shotover Rd, with Christchurch developer Lilly Cooper’s shopping mall, The Colombo. In 2023, Mr Jameson bought the entire 12ha Chantecler property off Maureen and Mike Henry for a reported New Zealand record $45.5million, in an off-market deal negotiated by Queenstown real estate agent Hamish Walker. It is this part of the property Mr Jameson has swapped with Ms Cooper. Mr Henry said Mr Jameson on this visit also paid over the final settlement, having part-settled in 2024.

“It has been a nightmare.”Despite contacting Wellington Electricity most days to get updates, she said she could not get any estimated time of repair from the company. The most recent message Wellington Electricity sent Tarsh stated crews would be working to restore her power by Saturday. Photograph / RNZTwo days into the Korokoro power outage, Roughton said, his community technically had its power turned back on, but it bounced between 90 and 130 volts. But he said he received the opposite advice from Wellington Electricity, which encouraged him and his neighbours to turn their mains on. Photo / Mark MitchellWellington Electricity told the Herald in a statement that there were two main reasons for the delays in restoring power.

Wellington resident horrified after raw sewage ‘exploded’ from his toilet, hit the ceilingThe resident lives near Moa Point in Wellington. Photo / RNZ, Samuel RillstoneBy Kaya Selby of RNZA Wellington resident says sewage “exploded” out of his toilet while Wellington Water staff were working on his street. Ed, a Miramar resident who doesn’t want his surname used, told RNZ it happened on on Thursday morning. “I’d heard some gurgling in the pipe system, and as I opened the door to the bathroom, a little fountain of raw sewage was exploding out of our toilet, so much so it was reaching the ceiling,” he said. “It’s covered every surface in our bathroom, just particles of raw sewage everywhere.”

On the Governor-General of New Zealand website, it lists the current line of succession, using the former prince’s old title of the Duke of York. A spokesman for Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said no advice or communication had been received regarding any change to succession. He did not provide a response when asked if Luxon would support actions to remove Mountbatten-Windsor as an heir to the throne. The Governor General’s website points to the Royal Succession Act 2013, which lays out the law of succession and is replicated in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries. This rule will apply to any children in the line of succession born after 28 October 2011.

The latest social media trend asks AI to make a caricature based on what it knows about us, but what it reveals is so much more. For the last couple of weeks, social media has been chocka with assorted lifestyle influencers, bored boomers and governing parties of Aotearoa jumping on the AI caricature trend. “We’re only at this stage with AI because we’ve been so well-trained by the social media age that our personal information and privacy doesn’t really matter to us any more,” he says. And for those who use AI as a form of therapy and a place to spill personal secrets? Darren Blomfield, caricature artist.