New Zealand

ACT wants repeat burglars locked up for three years, no exceptions. The party will take a Three Strikes for Burglary policy to the 2026 election. Anyone convicted of burglary three times would face a minimum three-year prison sentence — no parole, no home detention, no early release. ACT Deputy Leader Nicole

More New Zealand students are finishing their qualifications — and doing so in greater numbers than at any point in recent years. New Ministry of Education data shows the number of students completing a provider-based tertiary qualification rose 8% in 2025 compared with 2024. Domestic completions climbed 5.9% to 123,

Lotto NZ is holding back one piece of information after each draw — and it's the one that usually sends everyone scrambling for their tickets. From Wednesday July 8, the locations where winning tickets were sold will no longer be published on draw night. Players will still get the

The Prime Minister has called it "utterly unbelievable" and the Justice Minister says he is "shocked" — a former Lotto presenter accused of money laundering was paid a full government salary for five years while suspended from his Ministry of Justice job. Russell Harrison, 56, continued drawing

A plan to turn Kingston into a self-sufficient town of 10,000 people — with its own supermarket, healthcare, jobs and public transport — has been unveiled by the developer behind the lakeside township's expansion. Kingston Village Limited (KVL) is in the early stages of assessing a long-term concept that

Michael Laws is returning to Parliament — or at least trying to. New Zealand First has announced the former Whanganui mayor and Otago Regional Councillor will stand for the party in the Waitaki electorate at the next general election. Laws, who lives in Cromwell with his wife Cheryl, has deep ties

The ACT Party has revealed at its 2026 AGM that Hon Nicole McKee has been chosen as Deputy Leader of ACT. "The ACT Caucus has placed its trust in me, and I am deeply grateful. Together, we are focused on locking Labour out so we can unlock New Zealand&

Around 1000 litres of fuel and a number of other items were stolen from a commercial property near Tarras last weekend, and Cromwell Police want to hear from anyone who was in the area. The burglary happened at the corner of Jollys Road and Deep Creek Road sometime between 5pm