Call for 'Buy Kiwi Made' campaign amid factory closures
Photo: Nathan McKinnon / RNZIndustry groups and local government leaders are calling for the resurrection of a Buy Kiwi Made campaign as alarms sound over new job losses and factory closures. Two of the Buy NZ Made logos. Image: Buy NZ MadeHe said there had been some signs that the industry "was in trouble". Buy NZ Made was first launched in the late 1980s with the slogan "Buy NZ Made & Keep Your Country Working", though organised campaigns to encourage shoppers to buy local date back to the turn of last century. The National government suspended the programme in 2008 but BusinessNZ continued to run the parallel Buy NZ Made campaign.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 08:10 UTC
Two found dead in car in rural Wellington stream
Photo: RNZTwo bodies have been found inside a car that was discovered upside down in a stream in rural Wellington this morning. Police, fire crews and Wellington Free Ambulance were called to the crash in Mākara just after 8am. Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) shift manager Alex Norris said crews arrived to find a car partially submerged in the stream on Mākara Beach Rd - a narrow, winding road between Karori and Mākara Beach. Our neighbour told me it's quite a common place where people go off - there's about a two- to three-metre drop from the road down to the stream. The road skirts a small stream bordered by wire fencing down the bank from Mākara Rd.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 08:05 UTC
Endangered whio return to Rees Valley after decades
Photo: Supplied / Southern Lakes SanctuaryConservationists in Otago are celebrating the return of whio to the Rees Valley after more than 50 years. Southern Lakes Sanctuary staff spotted a pair of the endangered blue ducks on a recent trip to install a new trapline in the valley, north of Glenorchy. "Our staff were lucky enough to be watching a pair of takahē feeding beside a pair of whio on the river. Takahē were released in the Rees Valley last year but the whio had returned of their own accord, Kavanagh said. Photo: Supplied / Southern Lakes SanctuaryIris Scott, who has lived at Rees Valley Station for more than 50 years, said it had been a personal dream to see whio return.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 07:23 UTC
BNZ hits longer fixes again as wholesale costs bite
BNZ has lifted home loan pricing for the second time in a week, responding to higher wholesale funding costs and rising global risk. The bank has now increased several longer‑term fixed mortgage rates twice in eight days, targeting borrowers who prefer to “set and forget” their repayments. BNZ’s standard five‑year fixed rate now sits at 5.79%, up 0.40 percentage points from earlier levels, while the four‑year rate has climbed to 5.59%. Three‑year pricing is at 5.29% and the two‑year rate at 4.89%, Stuff, interest.co.nz, and 1News reported.
Source:Stuff
March 25, 2026 07:07 UTC
Lawyer fined for berating client in 'moralising lecture'
Criminal lawyer Richard Keam has been censured for calling a client "offensive names" during a meeting. Supplied photoAn experienced criminal lawyer who berated his client and called him offensive names said he was concerned the young man was “going down a path which would inevitably lead to prison”. The client left the meeting feeling “distressed and humiliated” after a “moralising lecture” by his lawyer Richard Bernard Keam. Now, in a recently released decision, Keam has been censured and ordered to pay compensation by the Lawyers and Conveyancers Disciplinary Tribunal, after admitting to misconduct. Keam is the managing director of Keam Law, an Auckland-based firm specialising in criminal law, family and trust disputes and civil litigation.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 07:01 UTC
Council manager standing in Dunedin
Photo: suppliedA "reluctant civil duty" has motivated a Gore District Council manager to stand in this year’s general election. Dave Bainbridge-Zafar, who lives in Port Chalmers, north of Dunedin, while working as a senior infrastructure leader for the council, last week announced he would stand for the Opportunity party in the Dunedin electorate. Mr Bainbridge-Zafar said running for office was not in his plans for the year, but found himself resonating with Opportunity after hearing their leader Qiulae Wong speak in Dunedin. We got to speaking at the party afterwards, I was wondering who they were running in Dunedin. It will be separate from what I do in the council chambers," he said.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 05:55 UTC
Willis to reveal triggers for fuel restrictions
Photo: RNZFinance Minister Nicola Willis will set out on Friday the triggers which could prompt the introduction of fuel restrictions, rationing or guidance. Willis had earlier signalled she would have more to say this week about the country's National Fuel Plan and its four alert levels. Just two ships carrying fuel were expected to arrive in New Zealand over the next fortnight. Speaking at Parliament, Willis said that was "within normal patterns" and fuel companies had advised her that more ships were on their way in the weeks subsequent. Willis said the overall figures showed the country still had "healthy stocks" of fuel, with slight changes down to normal "fluctuations" in demand.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 05:55 UTC
Election season heating up as firefighter stands
Joseph Mooney. Photos: suppliedElection season has started in Southland with incumbent Joseph Mooney once again putting his hat in the ring — but an unlikely Labour candidate may prove a formidable challenge. The election will be held on November 7 and National MP Joseph Mooney is running for a third term. Facing Mr Mooney is a new face to the Labour Party, Dipton farmer Peter McDonald, who has plenty of experience serving his community. It’s good to have multiple points of engagement for Southland — the more the better — and another advocate for Southland with Labour," he said.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 05:55 UTC
New Zealand is expensive - here's what we can do about it
Image: RNZNew Zealand is an expensive country, Reserve Bank chief economist Paul Conway says, with many products priced well above the OECD average. The price of housing services and utilities in New Zealand is also assessed as being the most expensive in the OECD." Real per capita income in New Zealand was below the OECD average, he noted. Further, productivity growth in the New Zealand economy fell significantly following the global financial crisis and has been negative in the wake of the pandemic. "Improving the purchasing power of New Zealand households requires improved productivity.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 05:55 UTC
Father of meningitis victim renews vaccine plea
Put simply, meningococcal disease is an infection caused by bacteria. People who survive meningococcal disease often have serious long-term effects, including amputation of limbs, hearing loss, seizures, brain injury, and permanent skin scarring. File photoHe wants universal access to the vaccine before students leave school, saying the current system is "not good enough". The outbreak has reinforced fears about how quickly meningococcal disease can spread in close-living environments such as university halls. His only daughter, Courtenay, a "normal, healthy 16-year-old", had received a standard meningitis vaccine as a youngster, but her family later learned she wasn't fully protected against "all of the different strains".
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 03:40 UTC
How two faulty vehicles sparked $1.4m Tongariro fires a month apart
Investigators managed to locate a vehicle about 400m from the site of the fire’s origin, on the opposite side of the road, hidden from sight. The November fire was likely ignited by a vehicle losing a wheel and causing the undercarriage to scrape along the road producing sparks. Photo / SuppliedWhen found, the vehicle did have four wheels fitted; however, the left-hand rear wheel was not correctly attached. There was damage to the underside of the vehicle “and evidence of metal components being subjected to high temperature”. Photo / SuppliedAs the trailer was dragged along the road, sparks landed in roadside grasses.
Source:New Zealand Herald
March 25, 2026 01:56 UTC
Jetstar axes some NZ flights amid fuel price surges
Photo: ODT filesJetstar has axed a number of New Zealand flights as the war in the Middle East drives up the price of jet fuel. A Jetstar NZ spokesperson said 12 percent of scheduled services had been affected, including some services between Auckland and Christchurch as well as Auckland and Wellington, and some international flights between Auckland and Sydney and Auckland and Brisbane. The changes were temporary, the spokesperson said, due to the rise in jet fuel prices and other rising costs. It said like other airlines it was dealing with unprecedented volatility with jet fuel prices due to the conflict in the Middle East and was adjusting schedules to manage the impact. Reuters reports jet fuel prices have soared from $US85-90 per barrel to $US150-200 per barrel in recent days leading to a number of airlines including Air New Zealand increasing fuel surcharges.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 01:53 UTC
$10k for dinner with Luxon
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon during a cooking demonstration at Fonterra's headquarters in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, last year. Photo: RNZ / Giles DexterAnyone with a spare $10,000 can buy a chance to eat dinner with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Christchurch Town Hall next month. That is how much it will cost for a seat at the most expensive "platinum" table where Luxon will be sitting during the National Party's 'Mainland Dinner' fundraiser. Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey and Women’s Minister Nicola Grigg will also be there. A National Party spokesperson told the Herald: "National is holding a campaign fundraising dinner with MPs in their capacity as leader and spokespeople.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 25, 2026 01:27 UTC
Pair sought as Queenstown shop worker left 'extremely shaken'
Photo: NZ PoliceQueenstown police are hunting for two men over disorder in a shop which left a worker distressed. "Nobody was physically injured, however the store worker is understandably extremely shaken," police said in a statement. It was believed the men pictured could help with inquiries, police said. The incident hapepend at a store on Eleventh Avenue, Queenstown on January 24. If this is you, or you can help us identify those pictured, please contact Police via 105, either over the phone or online, referencing file number 260128/1485, police said.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 24, 2026 21:57 UTC
Farm takes a new direction
Since then, the family had launched a free-range hen farm, selling produce under the brand Old Road Eggs. He had been feeding the milking herd baleage and fodder beet but the silage supply had not been needed, he said. The boundaries of the more than 190ha dairy farm includes State Highway 1 and Taieri River. A swollen river puts the entire dairy farm underwater at least once a year, he said. Nearly 40 people attend a Taieri Discussion Group event, run by DairyNZ, hosted by Josh and Ellie-May Adam’s dairy farm in Allanton, near Mosgiel.
Source:Otago Daily Times
March 24, 2026 21:38 UTC