The complaint under the Advertising Standards Code and the Alcohol Advertising and Promotion Code was brought by the Communities Against Alcohol Harm lobby group. “The Advertising Standards Complaints Board has not upheld parts of this complaint related to the liberal use of F-bombs in the naming, labelling and advertising of these products,” Cowie said. Advertising targeted to adultsIt also said the labelling and advertising was targeted to a limited adult audience. The Good George Brewing company has been selling its F-word branded gin for five years, and has had only one complaint in that time. The complaints board at that time said that “bugger” was part of New Zealand rural humour and was unlikely to cause widespread offence because the advert was screened after 8.30pm.

January 14, 2026 08:36 UTC

All three expressed the fear of “backlash” or being the focus of bullying if they spoke up. The organisation found the woman had behaved in an undermining, bullying and harassing manner toward staff, and concluded the behaviour amounted to serious misconduct. Oranga Tamariki issued a final written warning and demoted her to a social worker, at her request, with salary protection. In a recent decision, authority member Davinnia Tan found Oranga Tamariki’s process was fair and the woman had full disclosure, representation and multiple opportunities to respond. “When I step back and assess the process in its entirety, I find that Oranga Tamariki met its obligations.

January 14, 2026 08:31 UTC

A major battle to look out for this year, other than the 2026 general election, will be the ‘Battle for Breakfast’. This year will see the appointment of John Campbell as RNZ’s new Morning Report co-host, battling for the morning audience. At the same time, it was revealed last month that TVNZ was also planning a new morning business show for this year. Breakfast is already undergoing a major change with former TV3 political editor Tova O’Brien joining Chris Chang as co-host in 2026. “In a big election year, it’s a masterful move by getting Tova O’Brien as the new Breakfast co-host.

January 14, 2026 08:30 UTC

According to Judge Lance, McEwen in the document said he had no savings or assets and was significantly in debt. “There is simply insufficient evidence in relation to the financial status of Mr McEwen,” Judge Lance said. Judge Lance said some character references, made via email, indicated McEwen still had money. McEwen’s associated entities included Stockfox Limited, Cosmopolitan Holdings Limited, Strategy Services Limited, Fund Administration Services Limited, and Digitech 1 Limited. Other entities included M and A Holdings 1 Limited, M and A Holdings 2 Limited, Agtech 1 Limited, Agtech 2 Limited, Agtech 3 Limited, Startight Holdings Limited, Innovative Capital Limited and McEwen’s Limited Partnership.

January 14, 2026 07:24 UTC

EB Games proposes closing all New Zealand storesTen businesses that didn’t survive 2025Liquidations hit decade-high in worst period since global financial crisisCan you all imagine how insane Mike Hosking would be if Labour were in power and they were shredding companies as fast as National/ACT and NZFirst have managed? - Sponsor Promotion -Do you think there would be jokey laughs and portrait swapping? Labour is good for Capitalism, National is good for Capitalists. Imagine if this many companies were failing under Labour! Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.

January 14, 2026 06:13 UTC





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 …

January 14, 2026 05:13 UTC

In a post on social media, Peters said the Reserve Bank had no role in US politics and should not involve itself. Photo: RNZForeign Minister Winston Peters has urged the Reserve Bank governor to stay in her lane when it comes to United States domestic politics. In a post on social media, Peters said the Reserve Bank had no role in US politics and should not involve itself. "The Reserve Bank of New Zealand is statutorily independent of Central Government on matters of monetary policy. "We remind the Governor to stay in her New Zealand lane and stick to domestic monetary policy.

January 14, 2026 03:17 UTC

Watch: TVNZ2 / TVNZ+StalkedThis vital true crime documentary series is presented by Jazz Thornton and follows the chilling stories of three stalking victims, told through their point of view. Watch: Sky Open / NeonTom Sainsbury stars in Small Town Scandal, the new series based on his podcast. Small Town ScandalTom Sainsbury’s fake true crime podcast about a true crime podcaster investigating a suspicious death gets a small screen adaptation from February 9. Watch: Sky Open / NeonTom Webster returns for Grand Designs NZ's 10th season. Watch: Sky Open / NeonSecrets at Red RocksBased on Rachael King’s award-winning novel, the Emmy-nominated Secrets at Red Rock returns for a second season.

January 14, 2026 02:39 UTC

Company incorporations also reached its highest levels since 2021, with 60,897 new companies started in 2025. At the end of 2025 there were 744,378 registered companies in New Zealand, gaining a net 10,412 companies over the year. “This Government is committed to doing what we can to grow the economy and improving the conditions for doing business,” Simpson said. The result follows the Government putting an additional $35 million into Inland Revenue in Budget 2025 for tax compliance and collection. “There’s ongoing cost rises, there’s uncertainty with an election later this year, and neither is going to help the economy or consumer sentiment.

January 14, 2026 01:31 UTC

The black 2016 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 was impounded. Photo: NZ PoliceA 63-year-old Southland man has been busted for allegedly doing burnouts and driving at "ridiculously dangerous speed" in his $160k American muscle car. The man is also alleged to have taken passengers for a spin in his black 2016 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 during the high-speed spree in Edendale. Police have now seized the $160,000 Corvette and banned the driver for 28 days after executing a search warrant. The incident unfolded on Christmas Eve when police received multiple reports from the public about a black sports car speeding.

January 14, 2026 01:06 UTC

It isn’t clear what type of surgery the Foreign Minister had, but this isn’t the first time he’s had surgery while in office. In 2020 he had keyhole surgery after being hit by symptoms of food poisoning, while a “serious” 2019 surgery kept him away from Parliament for four weeks. Winston Peters told Newstalk ZB he is still recovering from a pre-Christmas surgery. New Zealand First Party leader Winston Peters said he doesn't want to be falling off horses after a surgery in December. “And then I see Warren Buffett still bouncing around, running one of the finest funds in the world.

January 14, 2026 00:34 UTC

“I’m going to confront these lies, they’re horrible,” Busfield says in the video. And I’m going to fight it. I’m going to fight it with a great team, and I’m going to be exonerated. The star, 68, allegedly told the kids to call him “Uncle Tim” and tickled them on their stomach and legs, per the warrant filed by Albuquerque police on January 4. Hospital staff reportedly told the responding officers that it appeared the children had been groomed.

January 14, 2026 00:30 UTC

Photo: SuppliedA young driver has died in a fiery crash after being seen dangerously driving in Hamurana, north of Rotorua. The silver Lexus, with the driver and two young passengers inside, was reportedly seen cutting people off and being driven at 80kmh over the speed limit on Tuesday. "Their actions were courageous and saved lives of the trapped passengers." The passengers were taken to hospital in a serious condition, while the young driver was found dead at the scene. He asked for anyone with dashcam or CCTV footage of the silver Lexus sedan, carrying the registration DZS7, to contact police.

January 13, 2026 23:48 UTC

Photo: RNZWorkers are arriving in Queenstown and leaving within weeks because the cost of living is too high, recruiters and unions say. And we did not necessarily find Queenstown to have higher wages, just higher prices," she said. Data from Infometrics showed across the board, the average Queenstown worker earned $69,788 - 12 percent below the New Zealand average. Workers in, workers outEdmunds said he was not holding out hope for employers to pay their workers more. Edmunds said Queenstown had always been expensive place to live - but it should not just be a playground for the ultra-rich, he said.

January 13, 2026 23:04 UTC

Asked about this by the Otago Daily Times yesterday, Cr Ong said his Facebook statement was "self-explanatory". In that statement, Cr Ong said Cr Chambers had made "discriminatory remarks against our South Asian community" at a meeting on December 12. Cr Ong said he had "a chance private conversation" with Cr Chambers afterwards "where I sought to assist him to understand why his discriminatory remarks were wrong". Cr Russell Lund said last month Cr Ong spoke to him "immediately after his confrontation with Cr Chambers in the carpark" and Cr Ong was distressed by Cr Chambers’ alleged conduct. Cr Ong wanted Cr Chambers to apologise.

January 13, 2026 22:02 UTC