New Zealand

Seymour says NZ pays over $1 million an hour in interest on govt debt — ACT's plan aims to wipe $12.4b of it in four years, no new taxes.

Voting places for the 2026 General Election are confirmed, and there's a hard enrolment deadline Southland voters need to know about. More than 2,300 voting places will be open across New Zealand on election day, Saturday November 7. Advance voting opens Monday October 26. In total, 2,

The Walter Peak fire is out. Firefighters demobilised on Thursday evening after the blaze was declared fully contained, ending a week-long battle that burned through an estimated 1,350 hectares across Walter Peak Station, Cecil Peak Station and adjoining Conservation Estate. The final push came after crews made significant progress

10.15am, Thursday 8 October from Fire & Emergency. More positive news. The first flight this morning found no visible flames around the perimeter. The fire hasn't grown noticeably overnight. The fire is not out yet, so we have crews back on the ground supported by helicopters, targeting

The Walter Peak fire has grown to an estimated 1,200 hectares, and firefighters are warning it could get bigger. Operations resumed at 7am this morning, with four helicopters running monsoon bucket runs to cool hotspots and dampen the perimeter. A fifth is up as an aerial platform directing the

New Zealand has a new agency running its school property portfolio, and the Government says it is the clearest sign yet that the old way of doing things is finished. The New Zealand School Property Agency formally began operations today, taking over responsibility for building, managing and maintaining school property

The government's books are in better shape than expected, with Treasury forecasting a significantly smaller deficit and a path back to surplus that Finance Minister Nicola Willis called "within a hair's breadth" of breaking even a year ahead of schedule. The Pre-election Economic and

Fonterra farmers are getting $9.69 per kilogram of milk solids for the season just finished, with the co-operative posting its strongest result in years after a period of significant change. The co-op reported total group operating profit of $3.4 billion for FY26, up 97.6% on the prior