Community

Rugby Park's fireworks are back — and bigger than before. The ILT Fireworks Spectacular returns on Friday October 2, 2026, when the Southland Stags host Northland in their final regular season home game. Kick-off is 7.10pm. The fireworks go up at approximately 8.50pm, straight after full-time. Now

Nearly $370,000 is heading into Southland communities after the first round of 2026 grants from the NZAS and Ngāi Tahu Community Development Fund was announced this week. Ten projects share $367,000 in the fourth annual round of the $500,000 fund, which is administered jointly by Rio Tinto

Southland District Council is spending its $1 million Milford Sound windfall on public toilets. Council agreed at its meeting on Wednesday to direct the money — received from selling its two percent shareholding in Milford Sound Tourism Limited — toward renewing and upgrading public toilets along the main tourist route through Southland

New Zealand's top one percent of earners pay more income tax than the entire bottom half of the country. That's the central claim in a new handbook from the Taxpayers' Union, released this week as the 2026 election campaign heats up. The group says its

Two of New Zealand's rarest birds have just got a very wealthy support crew. The kākāpō and the Chatham Island tāiko have been named in the Phoenix Species Project — a $200 million global initiative backed by Re:wild, the Bezos Earth Fund, Leonardo DiCaprio, and a handful of

Gore District Council is staying in the room on local government reform — but making clear it hasn't agreed to anything yet. Following an extraordinary council meeting today, Gore agreed to keep exploring reform proposals from both Invercargill City Council and Southland District Council under the Government's

Invercargill’s town crier Lynley McKerrow is bringing the Abbeyfield shared housing concept to the city. A public meeting on Friday night will reveal more details and the steering committee of just four is looking for more support to move the initiative ahead. There are currently 16 Abbeyfield houses in

A Winton-raised military chaplain has been recognised for building a support system for SAS families that the New Zealand Defence Force has now adopted across its operations. Chaplain Class 3 Rich Lander received a Chief of Army Commendation in Auckland last week, following four years attached to the 1st New