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Labour selects Kingi Kiriona to contest Hauraki-Waikato

Source: Radio New Zealand

Kingi Kiriona at the opening of the Te Ahu a Turanga Highway in June 2025. RNZ/Pokere Paewai

Te reo and haka exponent Kingi Kiriona says government “divestment away from kaupapa Māori” initiatives is behind his decision to step into politics and contest the Hauraki-Waikato electorate for Labour.

Kiriona (Ngāti Ruanui, Ngā Rauru, Ngāti Apa, Ngāti Kahungunu) is the founder of Māori education provider, TupuOra, a former journalist and the tutor of Waikato-based kapa haka, Te Iti Kahurangi.

Te Iti Kahurangi are performing at the Tainui Waka Kapa Haka Festival on Saturday, where Kiriona will make the formal announcement to the crowd in what he says will be his first chance to stand face-to-face with the region after becoming a candidate.

He told RNZ if elected his first priority would be re-establishing a focus on Te Tiriti, particularly in education where the government has removed school boards’ legal obligation to give effect to Te Tiriti and cut funding for te reo Māori teacher training.

“It’s policies like that that really hit hard at the spirit of Māori. And as someone that’s always fought for mātauranga Māori and for the place of mātauranga Māori, particularly within education, alongside my partner, Te Waipounamu, our whānau, our colleagues, actually, in TupuOra, it would be remiss of me not to stand up in the way that I’m standing up right now to say enough is enough. It’s time for change.”

He’s seen the effect shifting government investment away from Māori initiatives has on Māori families first hand.

“My wife and I, we run a Māori education business, TupuOra Education and Development Limited. At our peak three to four years ago under the previous regime, we had a complement of 30 staff, as of January this year, we’re now down to five staff.

“So we’ve seen the direct impact of the divestment away from kaupapa Māori, in this instance, kaupapa Māori education. We’ve seen the direct impact on us, but also on the whānau that we employ.”

As for why he went with Labour, Kiriona said it comes down to one word – “friends.”

“People that know me know that I’m fiercely Māori. Everything that I’ve done has been done and achieved and predicated on Māori values and on what’s best for te ao Māori and certainly in the interests of mana motuhake. But we all know in this game that we call politics, you need friends, you need friends to advance, to make policy gains, funding shifts and so I see an opportunity here with the Labour Party.”

Kiriona said he made it clear his candidacy would always be contingent on receiving the blessing of Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po, which he did earlier this year.

“Her words were, ‘Mō te oranga o te iwi me pēwhea e kore ai au e whakaae.’ So for the betterment of the people, how can I not support or agree? So to receive that blessing is huge.”

Kiriona was born and raised in Dannevirke, but has been living in Waikato for close to 30 where he said he has been blessed to be taken under the wing of key people in the rohe, so it means a lot to stand in the region especially with the blessing of Te Arikinui.

Although Te Arikinui was clear she didn’t want to see an adversarial election campaign against incumbent MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, he said.

Kiriona has an existing relationship with Maipi-Clarke having worked with her father during his time as a journalist, that whakapapa drew him to contact Maipi-Clarke ahead of the public announcement of his candidacy.

“Sure we come from different parties, we may represent different policies on behalf of our different parties. But we are Māori, we’re grounded in tikanga, we’re grounded in kaupapa Māori, we are a part of the Kiingitanga, and the Kiingitanga is predicated on te kotahitanga,” he said.

Kiriona is currently the Deputy Chair of Te Māngai Pāho, following three terms as Board Director of Whakaata Māori. He’s also a sitting member of the Waitangi Tribunal and before its disestablishment was the deputy chief-executive of Te Aka Whai Ora.

In the other Māori electorates Labour has selected the former chair of Te Rūnanga o Koukourarata Mananui Ramsden in Te Tai Tonga, former Auckland Councillor Kerrin Leoni in Tāmaki Makaurau and current List MP Willow-Jean Prime in Te Tai Tokerau.

Incumbent MP Cushla Tangaere-Manuel will also be trying to hold on to Ikaroa-Rāwhiti for Labour.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Fatality following house fire, Rangataua

Source: New Zealand Police

Attributable to Inspector Neil Forlong, Whanganui Area Commander:

Investigators undertaking a scene examination at a house fire in Rangataua located one person deceased yesterday afternoon.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) were alerted to the house fire on Kaha Street at around 6.40pm on Thursday 16 April.

The fire was extinguished by Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ), and Police were notified at around 7.25pm.

A scene guard was put in place overnight, to allow for a scene examination to be conducted during daylight hours yesterday.

Sadly, FENZ and Police investigators yesterday afternoon located the deceased person inside the house.

A scene guard remains in place at the house as investigators continue work to determine the circumstances of the fire.

Work is also under way to formally identify the deceased person and establish the circumstances of their death.

While we are in the very early stages of this investigation, our initial enquiries suggest there may be a connection between the fire and a fatal crash that occurred in Tangiwai on Thursday evening.

One person died in the two-vehicle crash on State Highway 49, which emergency services were notified of at around 6.45pm.

While that person is also yet to be formally identified, the vehicle involved is believed to be connected to the address where the fire occurred.

Residents in the Rangataua area may notice an increased police presence in the community as we continue to make enquiries into the circumstances of these two incidents, to establish exactly what has occurred.

If anyone has information which they think may assist our enquiries, we encourage them to report it via 105, quoting file number 260417/7386.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

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Flash flooding, Lower Hutt – delay travel

Source: New Zealand Police

Motorists in some areas north of Wellington are being advised to delay travel, after heavy rainfall has caused flash flooding in a number of areas.

These include Haywards Hill Road, Western Hutt Road, Eastern Hutt Road, and parts of Stokes Valley and Mana. 

Flash flooding can be unpredictable and dangerous, with unseen objects, debris and currents – motorists are asked to stay off the roads until the rainfall eases and water subsides.

Police are working with other agencies to keep people safe in affected areas.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

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State Highway 67 closed, West Coast

Source: New Zealand Police

State highway 67, between Waimangaroa and Granity, West Coast, is currently closed due to a slip.

Thankfully, no one has been injured.

Water levels appear to be rising and there has been significant flooding, especially around the Westport area.

Police are urging motorists to delay travel – where this is not possible, make sure to drive to the conditions, slow down, and avoid entering flood waters.

You can also use NZTA’s journey planner to check for any further closures to state highways before you travel: https://www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/journey-planner

ENDS

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Rugby: Black Ferns v Canada Pacific 4 match delayed by storm

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Black Ferns celebrate scoring a try against the USA in their opening Pacific 4 series match. www.photosport.nz

The Black Ferns have had their Pacific 4 rugby international against Canada in Kansas City delayed.

The game was due to kick off at 10.15am NZST this morning, but World Rugby has issued a statement saying due to forecasted inclement weather, which includes a tornado watch, the game has been delayed until further notice.

Organisers are now targeting a kick off time of 12pm NZST.

New Zealand goes clash with a win against the USA behind them, while Canada beat Australia.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Live: Heavy rain, reports of flooding in lower North Island

Source: Radio New Zealand

State Highway 58 is closed between Pāuatahanui and Haywards. Supplied / NZTA

MetService has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for areas of the lower North Island, as wild weather lashes the country.

The latest warning applies to Kāpiti Coast, Upper Hutt City, Hutt City, Porirua City, Wellington City, South Wairarapa, and is expected to be accompanied by torrential rain and damaging wind gusts.

There have reportedly been some instances of flooding called in to emergency services.

Follow reports live below:

These severe thunderstorms were moving towards the southeast, and were expected to lie near Wellington, offshore Mana Island, Porirua, Paekākāriki and Pukerua bay at 9.00 am and near Wellington, Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt, Porirua and Wainuiomata at 9.30am.

Additional heavy rain watches and a strong wind watch are also in place as a complex trough moves over the North Island, bringing further periods of heavy rain, thunderstorms and gusty winds.

A heavy rain watch covers the Tararua Range, the Kāpiti Coast and parts of Wellington north of the harbour from 6am Saturday until 2am Sunday, with periods of heavy rain and possible thunderstorms.

Further north, a heavy rain watch is in place for northern and eastern parts of Northland north of Whangārei from 9pm Saturday to 5am Sunday, where localised downpours may approach warning levels.

In the South Island, the Richmond and Bryant Ranges and parts of Tasman District northwest of Motueka are under heavy rain watches from 6am to 3pm Saturday.

A strong wind watch has also been issued for Wellington from 6am to 11am Saturday, with northerly winds that may approach severe gale strength in exposed places.

The National Emergency Management Agency advises that as storms approach you should:

  • Take shelter, preferably indoors away from windows;
  • Avoid sheltering under trees, if outside;
  • Get back to land, if outdoors on the water;
  • Move cars under cover or away from trees;
  • Secure any loose objects around your property;
  • Check that drains and gutters are clear;
  • Be ready to slow down or stop, if driving.
  • During and after the storm, you should also:
  • Beware of fallen trees and power lines;
  • Avoid streams and drains as you may be swept away in flash flooding.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Lower Hutt’s Eastern Bays Shared Path opens

Source: New Zealand Government

Lower Hutt’s new Eastern Bays Shared Path opens this morning, improving resilience for this coastal route and providing safer walking and cycling connections, Transport Minister Chris Bishop says.

“The new 4.4km seawall and shared path along Marine Drive between Point Howard and Eastbourne is a significant investment in both transport resilience and safer travel for Lower Hutt’s Eastern Bays,” Mr Bishop says.

“This project strengthens a critical coastal route that Eastern Bays communities rely on, helping protect Marine Drive from waves and erosion, as well as extreme weather events.

“The seawall also protects critical infrastructure under the road, including a major wastewater discharge pipe serving the Hutt Valley – making this a value-for-money investment in the services people depend on.

“Sitting alongside the soon-to-be-completed Ngauranga to Petone Shared Path, the project delivers a safer, more attractive walking and cycling connection between local bays and into the wider Lower Hutt network, supporting active travel and reduced congestion.

“I want to acknowledge the patience of Eastern Bays communities during construction. It’s taken a while, but the Bays are now more resilient, and this long-awaited piece of infrastructure is now done.” 

Notes to editor: 

  • The project progressed from early community engagement in 2015 and consent approvals between 2019–2021, to construction beginning in August 2022.
  • The project is delivered in partnership with iwi mana whenua (Taranaki Whānui ki te Upoko o te Ika and Ngāti Toa Rangatira) through a Mana Whenua Steering Group alongside Hutt City Council.
  • Delivery is led by Te Ara Tupua Alliance (NZTA, Downer NZ, HEB Construction, and Tonkin + Taylor), which is also responsible for the Ngauranga to Petone shared path.
  • The total cost is $81.9 million, funded by Government (NIFF) $30 million, NZTA $25.5 million, and Hutt City Council $26.4 million.
  • Construction has been delivered in stages across the Eastern Bays, with key completions including:
    • Eastbourne to Days Bay (first section opened November 2023; construction completed April 2024)
    • Sunshine Bay and York Bay (completed December 2024)
    • Sorrento Bay (bird protection area completed September 2025; full construction completed December 2025)
    • Point Howard (completed November 2025)
    • Lowry Bay (completed April 2026)
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Transport Minister Chris Bishop brushes off leadership bid questions

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Transport Minister Chris Bishop is playing down political pressure following recent poll results, insisting he remains focused on the job and confident in the Prime Minister. RNZ / Penny Smith

The Transport Minister Chris Bishop is playing down political pressure following recent poll results, insisting that he remains focused on the job and confident in the Prime Minister.

Touted as a potential contender for the National Party’s top job amid speculation about Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s job security, Bishop batted down questions of a potential leadership bid.

Bishop also brushed off questions about his marginal Hutt South seat, and said he’s “head down” working for constituents, and will campaign on his record and future plans.

When asked directly, he confirmed he has confidence in the Prime Minister, declining to discuss private conversations but stressing they are in regular contact.

“Look, I’m just head down, bum up on my portfolios and also working hard locally as well.”

“I’ve got a good track record as a local MP, and I’ll be running on that record and also running on my and the government’s plans for the future.”

“You know, Hutt South has always been a closer venture. It always will be. It’s what they call a marginal seat.

“All I can do is put my best foot forward, run on my record, and run on future plans.

“The Prime Minister and I talk all the time… but I’m not going to get into what I’ve said to him or what he’s said to me recently.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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Fuel price pressure could mean May OCR increase, top economist says

Source: Radio New Zealand

New Zealanders are likely to continue to spend more but get less fuel for the near term at least. Quin Tauetau

New Zealanders are likely to continue to spend more but get less fuel for the near term at least – and the pressure on prices could mean the official cash rate has to rise as soon as May, one economist says.

Brad Olsen, chief executive at Infometrics, said data released on Friday by Stats NZ showed total fuel spending in March was just over $580 million, about 10 percent higher than a year earlier.

“We estimate that prices were about 14 percent higher in March compared to a year ago, and that’s sort of a weighted average across all fuel types, which means that actual volumes of fuel purchased probably declined about 4 percent compared to March last year, which again is in keeping with that expectation that probably for the first two weeks households were going and trying to fill up before things got even more expensive, and then they were trying to park their car up a bit more and not use the very expensive fuel that they just got because no one wants to refill with even more expensive fuel out the other side.”

He said fuel spending was up 19 percent month-on-month.

It was a pattern that was likely to continue.

“Spending activity on fuel will remain high but over time the actual volumes being delivered are likely to remain a bit more subdued.”

Brad Olsen, chief executive at Infometrics. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone

He said that would be more the case with petrol than diesel.

“In terms of volumes, just simply it’s still required in so many parts of the economy that you just can’t move away from.”

Higher fuel spending by households would limit other activity.

“We’ve also looked at card spending on core industries, so excluding fuel and vehicles. That figure declined 0.1 percent in the month of March compared to February on a seasonally adjusted basis.

“Not an immediate sign of demand destruction. I think because everyone, again, was just getting their heads around what was going on throughout the month.

“But we would expect going forward that households, because of how big of a drop confidence had in March and clearly is still going to have in April, plus potential interest rate hikes coming through, that does make for a pretty challenging position where a lot of households are going to go, ‘I’m probably not going to spend all that much. I’m going to try and limit my overall consumption because I’m just so worried about what’s coming next’.”

He said inflation was starting to look “pretty ugly”.

“Our estimates are probably higher than the Reserve Bank and some of the other forecasters out there have it for the data that comes out on Tuesday next week. The worry for the Reserve Bank there is that, yes, clearly there’s higher fuel prices and similar that have come through. But even pricing pressures in parts of January and February are probably more intense than the Reserve Bank would be comfortable with.

“If you’ve already got a position before the fuel crisis where pricing pressures were higher than anticipated, despite a still fledgling economic recovery, that sort of says to the Reserve Bank that businesses were already primed around prices going up. There was already more underlying inflationary pressure. You then add on the pressures that you’ve got now and everyone’s saying, well, I might have to raise my prices to try and cover the increases that I’m having to pay for.

“That does set you into that pretty worrying position where, for the Reserve Bank, they might well be facing higher starting inflation and clearly higher ongoing inflation. It could be a pretty potent mix for inflation expectations, which is why we’ve opened the door… to amore lively conversation for a May hike, potentially, than I think a lot of people are sort of counting on.”

ANZ senior economist Miles Workman said the cost in New Zealand dollars of refined fuels in Singapore had dropped a little recently.

“Part of that is owing to the rise in the NZD. However, that’s not a guarantee that prices at the pump will fall one for one, given high shipping costs and very tight global markets.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

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RNZ dismantling ageing transmission masts in Auckland, outages expected

Source: Radio New Zealand

Work has begun to dismantle RNZ’s 92-year-old northern mast on Selwood Road. RNZ

Work is underway to dismantle and replace two ageing RNZ transmission masts in West Auckland, with listeners warned to expect temporary AM outages over the coming weeks.

The project began on Thursday at RNZ’s Henderson transmission sites, where the 92-year-old northern mast on Selwood Road is being taken down in sections using a 126 metre crane.

The northern mast on Selwood Road is being taken down in sections. RNZ

Once that work is complete, the top of the southern mast on Lincoln Road, which stands 153m high and is 71 years old, will be removed by helicopter, before a crane dismantles the rest.

Both masts are past their 50-year design life, and RNZ stated that independent engineering reports have found they can no longer be safely maintained.

Both the Selwood Road and Lincoln Road masts are past their 50-year-old design life. RNZ

Both towers are planned to be decommissioned by June 2026 and replaced with a single new mast on the northern site, which will continue to support AM transmission and emergency broadcasting.

The Henderson sites provide AM coverage for the wider Auckland region, including RNZ National on 756 AM.

RNZ

During the works, which are expected to take around four weeks, listeners will experience daytime outages on that frequency, although delays are possible depending on the weather.

RNZ said coverage will return to normal once the project is complete, and the overall broadcast area will not change.

Listeners can switch to 101.4 FM in central Auckland, or use other AM frequencies depending on location.

Updates on outages will be published on RNZ’s website.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand