Photo: Wellington WaterWellington Water says replacement equipment to repair the failed Moa Point wastewater plant is yet to be ordered. At the time, Wellington Water chief executive Pat Doughty said up to 80% of equipment in the plant had been damaged. A month on from the shutdown, the company's chief operating officer, Charles Barker, said additional equipment to repair damage parts of the plant had not yet been ordered. In a prior statement, Wellington Water said the clean-up of the site was completed last week and the plant was being readied for "recovery work". "Moa Point plant was designed to be essentially airtight, in part to manage odour.

John Hill went to visit his friend in Birdlings Flat and found flames coming from his house on Lake Terrace Rd. The Lake Terrace Rd house in Birdlings Flat was engulfed by fire and black smoke was pouring out of it. The aftermath of the fire at the Birdlings Flat house. Photo: Geoff SloanAnother Lake Terrace Rd resident saw the smoke and called the fire service. John Hill at the Lake Terrace Rd house.

An ESO is used to monitor and manage the long-term risk posed by a high-risk sex offender or a very high-risk violent offender who is back in the community. At the High Court hearing in October last year, the court heard Douglas-Finch was using anti-libido medication and unwilling to engage with professionals when in a heightened emotional state. A health assessor told the court Douglas-Finch had enduring sex drive and urges that had been present for a long time. He had essentially been institutionalised for most of his life and would continue to require external assistance to regulate his emotions and manage his stresses and his sexual risk. “In my view, an ESO is inadequate to mitigate the risk Mr Douglas-Finch poses to the community.”

Photo: Getty ImagesVegetablesWhat to do in your garden this week. The success of winter and spring crops depends on work done now. Hardy annuals sown now will fill a gap in the garden once the spring show of bulbs is over. Plants that look good in the garden and as cut flowers include Calendula newer varieties have peach and cream shades cornflower, annual chrysanthemum, godetia, larkspur, Nigella (Persian jewels is one of the best mixes) and Scabious. June or July is the best time to transplant fruit trees and garden shrubs, but it pays to get them ready for the shift now.

Photo: SuppliedFormer National MP Jackie Blue is changing her political allegiances, saying the government's handling of pay equity changes was her breaking point. She's resigned her National Party membership and is joining the Opportunity party as a mentor to its new leader. "This is not a decision I take lightly, but I can no longer remain aligned to the National Party," Blue said in a statement to media on Friday. She said workers were "belittled and mocked" during MPs' debate on pay pay equity changes. She joins former Labour MP Iain Lees-Galloway, who also advises Wong in his capacity as the party's general manager.

But as a new season begins in Melbourne this weekend, Lawson’s importance to his team takes on new meaning. For a start, his driver feedback will be key in helping develop Racing Bulls’ car after sweeping new regulations. As Red Bull as an organisation underwent huge changes throughout 2025, none was perhaps more significant than the departure of long-time adviser, Dr Helmut Marko. Dr Helmut Marko pictured talking with Liam Lawson prior to the Grand Prix of Qatar on November 30, 2025 in Lusail City, Qatar. Photo / Getty ImagesHowever, after former team principal Christian Horner said Lawson’s demotion from Red Bull wasn’t his decision, it’s widely understood Marko had played a role in that brutal call.

The Dart Engineering building in Kaikorai Valley Rd was mostly empty yesterday as the business was placed in liquidation. PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERYDart Engineering Ltd was put into liquidation yesterday with staff still in the dark about their future. Staff at the company’s Dunedin headquarters were unsure of what was happening with the business when approached yesterday morning. About 25 people worked at the Dunedin business in Kaikorai Valley Rd but many had already left, after being offered opportunities at other engineering businesses in Dunedin. Mr Williamson was believed to have set up an engineering business in Canada, operating in Red Deer, a city in Alberta with a population of 100,000.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon survived an embryonic coup from Senior Minister Chris Bishop at the end of last year. Photo / Marika Khabazi, RNZNicola Willis, the National deputy leader, told Newstalk ZB this morning “it is not a good number”. “If that was the number National got on the actual election, that would not be an acceptable result. Asked if Luxon was the right person for the leadership, she said, “he has the backing of the National Party caucus”. Collins, the former leader and a current minister, said it was a “tough job” being Prime Minister at a time like this.

PHOTO: STEPHEN JAQUIERYA relic of the past holds a mob of sheep at Longford, near Middlemarch. The schist stone sheepyards were built in 1912 using draught horses to drag the stones into place. Restored by current owners Andrew and Lynnore Templeton, the yards still see occasional use.

Photo: Craig BaxterAn award-winning Otago University student magazine has been significantly cut down in size just one year after celebrating its centennial. Critic Te Arohi, a free-weekly which was first launched in 1925, focuses on matters of interest to University of Otago students. But the Otago University Students’ Association has cited higher publishing costs and decreased advertising revenue as reason to drastically cut it in size: 36 pages and 16 pages on alternate weeks. OUSA student media manager Elizabeth Leach-Young said the primary driver of the change was the cost of print production. ‘‘Our video content does well and we really enjoy making it.’’She hoped to continue Critic’s engagement with the university students, whether in print or online.

“We have long talked about a transition of roles for the Kaimanawa horse musters at Waiouru. Photo / Alan GibsonThe Kaimanawa horses evolved over 150 years from a blend of released farm and military horses. Well, I might be outspoken, but the only alternative is to have them shot.”KHH patron Elder Jenks pats rehomed Kaimanawa horse Ngahuia. “The horses are the winners, and we want to keep it that way.”KHH member Marilyn Jenks with rehomed Kaimanawa horse Ngahuia. Rehomed Kaimanawa horse Tiki Tane.

Travellers and expats seeking to flee as the war rages on now face a battle to leave the region as domestic carriers have halted most air travel out of the Arabian Peninsula. The impacts are huge - a significant travel hub for connecting flights across the globe, Dubai International Airport hosts an estimated 90,000 people transiting every day. Peter and his wife were supposed to fly home to New Zealand on Wednesday, but Emirates cancelled all flights, leaving the couple stuck, forced to figure out a new path home. Visa requirements for travel into India quickly halted those plans and the pair purchased new flights to Bangkok at a costly price. Peter is now trying to help them travel to Oman where they can wait for flights back home to Europe.

Photo: RNZOne of the thousands of North Island health workers who were not paid overnight has been dipping into her son's bank account while she has just $2 in hers. Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora (HNZ) is scrambling to pay about 5500 staff in Waikato after a payment glitch. Waikato Hospital health worker Helen, who did not what her surname used, told RNZ she felt embarrassed having to ask for money. Apologies from HNZ were not enough and IT failures had become a recurring feature of the public health system, Fitzsimons said. Health Minister Simeon Brown acknowledged staff who worked through the night to fix the problem.

Mourners do wheelies on their dirt bikes on the Waikato Expressway after the funeral for jockey Ngakau Hailey last year. ‘A really talented rider’Hailey, 18, was a promising jockey and was set to ride at the Cambridge races the day after his death. A Givealittle page was also set up to support his family through the tragedy, which raised more than $11,000. Meanwhile, just days after his funeral, a video surfaced online of a group of mourners performing wheelies on the Waikato Expressway. Gough said Hailey often told his family how much he enjoyed dirt bike riding.

In an update this afternoon, Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Hayward, of Counties Manukau West CIB, said inquiries began after a police unit passed by an altercation occurring allegedly between two security guards and a man. “We have made further inquiries into what has taken place, and two men have been charged as a result,” Hayward said. It is not clear how the incident began or who the security guards were working for at the time of the incident. One of the security guards can then be seen appearing to kick the man in the head before the other security guard dragged him across to the side of the road. The guard can be seen punching the man with closed fists at least four times.