Air New Zealand raised its fare prices yesterday, adding it could be forced to raise them again and review routes. Air New Zealand has not said whether its potential changes to its network and schedule would be on domestic or international routes. $20 fuel charge for Air Chathams faresRegional airline Air Chathams has announced it is introducing a $20 fuel surcharge on all flights due to increased aviation fuel prices. In a statement, Air Chathams said aviation fuel prices in New Zealand "have risen significantly" due to the war in the Middle East. "This surcharge will be reviewed regularly and will be removed once fuel prices return to more normal levels," the airline said.

Queenstown Lakes District Council introduced new freedom camping rules in December, restricting campers to designated sites. Photo: SuppliedFreedom campers are falling foul of new Queenstown Lakes District Council rules, with about 18 people per day stung with $400 fines. Freedom Camping Act infringements carried $400 fines, while Reserves Act breaches carried $800 fines, the council said. She said the system was working well overall and people were pleased to have a regulated freedom camping system again. A group called Save Clean New Zealand has also been petitioning for the removal of three freedom camping spaces at Beacon Point.

Photo: Contact EnergyThe Slopedown wind farm in Southland has been given draft approval, national and regional benefits winning out over the impact on the local environment. Contact Energy has applied under fast-track legislation for the 55-turbine wind farm, seeking a consent for 30 years. During the operation of the project, Contact Energy must implement acoustically based live curtailment at nine different turbines. The bat detection system installed on the wind turbine must be connected to the wind turbine control system in order to feather and curtail the operation of the wind turbine when the bat detection system detected a long-tailed bat. After interested parties sent in their views, Contact Energy would then comment, and a final decision was expected in the middle of next month.

Te Unua Museum of Southland senior curator Sarah Robinson and team leader experience David Dudfield check the figurehead from the barque England’s Glory. Photo: Invercargill City CouncilA pair of beloved artefacts from the old Southland Museum will soon have new homes in displays that will tell their stories in new ways. Museum team leader experience David Dudfield said both displays’ stories would be told in a new way, as would those of many other items in the museum’s collection. Museum director Eloise Wallace said it made sense to be working with Gibson on the build phase to ensure continuity of the project. "The opportunity to create an entire museum experience from scratch is incredibly rare — especially in New Zealand.

Dunedin pensioner Rob Donaldson holds his SuperGold Card outside Woolworths Dunedin South. Dunedin pensioner Rob Donaldson said he used his SuperGold Card every Tuesday at Woolworths Andersons Bay to get a 5% discount on frozen meals. The card, however, was not accepted at Woolworths Dunedin South, a source of annoyance for many SuperGold Card holders. "A lot of people give the staff flack over not getting the gold card discount," Mr Donaldson said. "Whilst we may not offer the discount in all Dunedin stores, we do offer it broadly across the country."

Craig Watson. Photo: suppliedThe loss of permanent urology clinicians has put Southland in a "crisis situation" and will add to pressure on Dunedin Hospital, the Cancer Society Southern’s leader says. This included two permanent clinicians indicate they would be moving elsewhere, leaving Southland without a permanent urology department. HNZ was unable to give details yesterday about when they were hoping to re-staff the urology department at Southland Hospital in Invercargill. "Southland Hospital will continue to have a urology service in place following the recent resignations.

Photo: Rob KiddA woman who was raped by a stranger who broke into her Dunedin flat says she now lives in "constant fear". Justice Melanie Harland imposed a term of seven years three months before the defendant could apply for parole. The court heard Wicks-Cairns had been jailed in 2013 for the sexual abuse of two young girls and the judge said his crimes were escalating in seriousness. The victim of his latest attack was left suffering "anxiety that appears out of nowhere, leaving me shaking or unable to breathe". He was originally jailed for 15 years but that was overturned by the Court of Appeal in favour of preventive detention.

‘Gripping’ child’s limbsPurches claimed she saw the mother gripping her young child’s limbs under a blanket, leaving red marks. She alleged that as soon as she removed the blanket, the mother removed her hands. When challenged by the defence over the possible cause of the red marks, Purches said she believed they were caused by the mother pinching the child. At the time Purches alleged the harm was intentional, she said the mother had also called for help. Goodison was assisting the prosecution in a trial in which a mother was alleged to have medically abused her child.

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Hughes died in hospital on March 6, but his wife Laura has urged police to drop the criminal charges against the students. Hughes’ wife family has confirmed she supports dropping the charges. Photo / FacebookThe teacher’s home had earlier been described as a “clear target” for the students’ so-called “prank war”, the New York Post reported. Students were said to lose points if they were “caught” in the act by the teacher. “Jason Hughes was a loving husband, a devoted father; a passionate teacher, mentor and coach who was loved and respected by students and colleagues,” it continued.

“This was a supply disruption only, and there are no food safety or quality concerns with any products.”Bread is largely out of stock in supermarkets across parts of the North Island after a "production issue" at Goodman Fielder's Auckland bakery over the weekend. Photo / SuppliedThe spokesperson did not elaborate on the nature of their bakery’s production issue, but apologised to customers for the disruption and thanked them for their patience. A Foodstuffs spokesperson said some stores “have experienced lower-than-usual volumes of a few bread lines due to a temporary supply issue affecting parts of the range”. “Due to a production issue, Vogel’s bread will be out of stock until further notice from the supplier,” one attached to empty bread shelves at New World Point Chevalier read. When approached yesterday, a Woolworths NZ spokesperson said its Auckland stores had been “impacted by a supply issue of Vogel’s bread on Sunday, March 8″.

In the space of a few paragraphs you managed to describe yourself as both a "loudly crowing rooster" and a "big brown Dalmatian from Kaitaia". If you want a national example of that kind of leadership you don’t have to look far. We don’t need a stadium act. We don’t need half the crowd cheering one corner and the other half cheering the other. Just the two of us in the ring, and a referee in case one of us starts to bleed.

Matakanui Gold — the New Zealand-based mineral exploration company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Santana Minerals — has joined the Major Electricity Users’ Group (MEUG). In a statement, MEUG executive director Karen Boyes said Matakanui Gold’s membership highlighted the importance of ensuring major new industrial developments’ access to competitively priced electricity. Matakanui Gold has applied for consent for the Bendigo-Ophir gold project under the Fast Track approvals process, with a decision expected in October. If approved, the project would enter a two-year development phase with main grid power supply expected to begin around mid-2027. — Allied Media

The club’s financial position was detailed in a council report this week which showed it had mostly run at a loss since 2016. Club member Boyd Wilson presented to councillors yesterday, confirming the club’s financial status was in decline. A council report prepared for yesterday said there had been meetings and discussions between the two parties following a 2024 rent review, but the situation was "unresolved". Sports facilities such as the ILT Stadium, Splash Palace, Surrey Park and Rugby Park all received substantial support from community funds, he said. Mr Campbell said that a lack of intervention could lead to a situation similar to Rugby Park, which the council had taken over.

Two-bedroom rentals in the resort town hit $924 a week on average according to realestate.co.nz, the Lakes District — including Queenstown — becoming the first district in the country to surpass $900 per week. The next constraint is the cost, and there is a limited amount available at a certain price." Such significant housing costs could price locals out of the market, damaging community cohesion, Queenstown Lakes District deputy mayor Quentin Smith, of Wānaka, said. "We can’t squeeze ratepayers any further, so we need to find other ways to support our infrastructure needs," Cr Smith said. "That’s why we’re working with the government around a visitor levy, or other measures that could support our infrastructure needs."