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Morale at NZTA at ‘rock bottom’ after latest round of proposed job cuts

Source: Radio New Zealand

PSA national secretary Duane Leo told RNZ workers were in a state of confusion. RNZ / Dom Thomas

Morale at the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) is “at rock bottom” after a fresh wave of proposed job cuts, the Public Service Association (PSA) says.

The restructure would lead a further 140 roles to be disestablished, with a net loss of 30 positions.

Proposed changes would impact three groups: transport services, commercial and corporate and system leadership, the PSA said.

PSA national secretary Duane Leo told RNZ workers were in a state of confusion and shock after the proposed cuts were put to them.

“Morale is zero, it’s rock bottom at the moment, and there’s real insecurity out there.”

The restructure was especially disruptive, because it came just three weeks after another restructure that affected more than 250 roles in NZTA’s regulatory group.

He pointed out the latest round of changes marked the second major restructure at NZTA since the beginning of the coalition government’s term.

“Restructure after restructure – it’s taken a huge toll on the workers and their families.”

Workers were particularly confused by the cuts to the transport services group, because it was responsible for some of the government’s most critical infrastructure projects, Leo said.

“The transport services group has been given plans to deliver some huge capital transformation programmes, including Roads of National Significance.

“What they’re doing is actually cutting the people who will build their flagship projects.”

This latest proposal meant nearly one-in-five workers at NZTA were facing uncertainty about their employment, the PSA said.

NZTA told RNZ the restructures were in response to a review of how it plans, invests in, delivers and manages transport system assets.

“We have identified the need for clearer, more connected end‑to‑end ways of working, including earlier and more collaborative planning, more consistent investment decision‑making, and a sharper focus on delivery and asset management.”

The changes were aimed at reducing duplication, strengthening accountability, and ensuring it was set up to effectively deliver its services, NZTA said.

Duane Leo. Supplied

Leo said he did not buy that.

“We’ve heard this consistently over the term of this coalition government: ‘it’s about efficiencies, it’s about making the public service more responsive’. This is not the case. It’s cost-cutting.”

NZTA said it was currently formally consulting with people in its system leadership, commercial and corporate and transport services groups on the proposal.

The PSA had made submissions to NZTA on behalf of all the groups that would be affected, Leo said.

Final redundancy decisions would be announced in July for workers in transport services and in August for commercial and corporate and system leadership staff.

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

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Accommodation supplement change raises concern

Source: Radio New Zealand

Social Development Minister Louise Upston said the accommodation supplement calculation had not changed for 33 years RNZ / Mark Papalii

A critic says a change to the accommodation supplement rules is expected to push some households further into poverty.

The Social Security Amendment Bill was introduced in Parliament on Thursday.

It introduces changes that were signalled in the 2025 Budget, which the government said were designed to better target financial assistance and ensure the sustainability of the welfare system.

It introduces a parental assistance test for 18- and 19-year-old JobSeeker applicants and adjusts the calculation for the accommodation supplement.

Homeowners will be assessed based on contributing 40 percent – not 30 percent – of their income to housing costs before they are eligible for a subsidy.

Child Poverty Action Group spokesperson Isaac Gunson said even households that could meet that threshold would experience “deeper after-housing-cost poverty”.

He said they would probably have to defer things like home maintenance, which could have a flow-on effect to worse health outcomes.

Social Development Minister Louise Upston said the accommodation supplement calculation had not changed for 33 years, and those with unsubsidised housing costs now generally paid a higher proportion of their income towards housing.

“This rebalances that. This will target the accommodation supplement to those with the greatest need, while continuing to support the most vulnerable groups.”

The amount that people are allowed to have in assets and still qualify for the supplement has also not been changed in more than 30 years. A couple or a sole parent could have cash assets up to $16,200.

She said she did not have the details of how many people would be affected or how much it would save.

“The bill has been tabled, they are Budget ’25 measures so there won’t be any surprise there.”

The change does not apply to renters and boarders, nor homeowners who are likely to require longer-term social assistance, including those on superannuation, veteran’s pension, supported living payment, or emergency benefit equivalent of supported living payment.

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

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Air New Zealand cuts 5% of its flights, jobs could go

Source: Radio New Zealand

Supplied

Air New Zealand has cut 5 percent of flights and will start to consolidate other routes after the July school holidays, chief executive Nikhil Ravishankar says.

It comes as the airline is expecting a full-year pre-tax loss of between $340 and $390 million due to the soaring cost of jet fuel.

Talking to Checkpoint on Thursday, Ravishankar said domestic demand was already soft before the war in Iran, and the crisis had only made it more acute.

“Cost-of-living challenges are real and so where we’ve gone in with price increases, we are starting to see the fact that we are getting to the limits of certain markets and the ability to absorb those costs.

“So, we’re being very thoughtful about what we do with price increases.”

He said the airline was eyeing up further cuts to flights after the July school holidays.

Air New Zealand had already cut 5 percent of its flights in response to the war, which had triggered “genuinely unprecedented” fuel prices but ruled out a request for financial assistance from the government.

“We are paying over double what we normally pay for fuel. Recovery will have a long tail. But it all depends on when the conflict will end and how the fuel price recovers.”

Conflict in the Middle East has pushed up fuel prices. AFP

Ravishankar said reducing the frequency of flights, not routes, was the goal – for example instead of flying twice daily between destinations, the airline might fly once.

“That’s by-and-large frequency cuts, so we’re cutting flights that are middle of the day, non-peak flying.”

Ravishankar said it was yet to be finalised which flights would be lost, but the airline was targeting long-haul, international routes between August and October.

He said there would be fewer cuts on regional and domestic routes and expected customers would be advised in June.

Ravishankar said the sharemarket had been informed Air NZ would preserve all costs associated with supporting customers.

He said the first priority was to ensure the airline continued operating a safe, punctual, and reliable service at an affordable price.

“There are a lot of costs that go into running 500 flights a day… so those costs, we’re making sure that they are right, but we’re protecting that.

“But what we’re also doing is going through every single line item in the business and making sure any of the costs that we can live without for now – as we’re dealing with the crisis, that we… remove those costs from the business.”

Ravishankar said despite the difficulties the airline was facing, he loved his job and the role was a privilege.

“This is one hell of an airline. It’s one of the great New Zealand iconic brands, and even today one of the most respected airlines in the world.

“The plans that we have in place ensure New Zealand has a world-class airline into the future.”

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

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No prosecution over toppled Northland pylon

Source: Radio New Zealand

The pylon fell over while being worked on by contractors. Supplied / Kawakawa Electrical Ltd

National grid operator Transpower will not be prosecuted after all over the toppling of a pylon that cut power to about 90,000 homes and businesses across Northland.

The Electricity Authority lodged a formal complaint against Transpower last year, alleging the state-owned company had breached the Electricity Industry Participation Code by not maintaining its assets in line with best industry practice.

The pylon, at Glorit, north of Auckland, fell over during routine maintenance in June 2024 after contractors removed the nuts from three of its legs at once.

Transpower could have been fined up to $2 million if a breach had been proven.

However, on Thursday the Electricity Authority said Transpower had since provided new evidence, and an international expert had found Transpower met the required standards.

As a result, the Electricity Authority had dropped its complaint – but it was now considering whether the standards needed to be changed, or whether a different approach was needed to “reflect New Zealand’s specific circumstances”.

In particular, the current code did not apply to outside contractors, such as the French-owned company Omexom, which was working on the pylon at the time.

The authority said it was “considering whether the concept of good electricity industry practice is fit for purpose, including in circumstances where industry participants may contract out significant parts of their functions”.

Meanwhile, Transpower welcomed the authority’s decision to drop the complaint.

Executive general manager grid delivery Mark Ryall said it confirmed the company’s position that its processes and systems were “consistent with good industry practice”.

“An independent report found the tower fall was caused by a crew working for our service provider failing to follow approved processes and procedures. It also highlighted that, despite strong systems and oversight, human error can still occur.”

Ryall said the tower fall should never have happened, and apologised for the impact on people and businesses in Northland.

Since then Transpower had strengthened its oversight of service providers, to make sure their practices were robust and their crews had the correct skills and training.

“We continue to work hard with our service providers to improve our practices to ensure that we can prevent an incident like this happening again,” Ryall said.

A report ordered by then Energy Minister Simeon Brown shortly after the accident made 26 recommendations for Transpower, Omexom, the Electricity Authority and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

All 19 recommendations for Transpower have since been carried out.

In November last year Sydney-based law firm Piper Alderman started class action against Transpower and Omexom on behalf of the roughly 20,000 businesses affected by the outage.

The firm did not specify how much money it was seeking, but economic consultants Infometrics estimated businesses had lost $60 million as a result of the power cut while the Northland Chamber of Commerce put the figure at $80m.

In the months after the collapse, Northland’s Chamber of Commerce and local MP Grant McCallum pushed hard for compensation from Transpower and Omexom.

Eventually, the companies agreed to give $500,000 each to a “resilience fund” supporting projects with long-term benefits for Northland.

About 180,000 people were affected by the outage.

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

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Pharmac adds Wegovy for weight loss to list for future funding

Source: Radio New Zealand

If chosen for future funding, Wegovy would be available to people with a BMI of 35 or more with at least two comorbidities. AFP / Jens Kalaene

Pharmac has added the weight-loss drug Wegovy to its list of medicines suitable for future funding.

In a decision released Thursday, the drug-funding agency confirmed it had added Semaglutide – brand name Wegovy – to its list of ‘Options For Investment’, which includes all the medications that Pharmac would fund, if the budget allowed.

The order of that list is not made public for commercial reasons.

If chosen for future funding, Wegovy would be available to people with a Body Mass Index of 35 or more with at least two comorbidities.

In February, Pharmac’s obesity treatments advisory group recommended the drug be funded with high priority.

Currently unfunded, Wegovy would cost someone about $400 a month.

The original application was for Wegovy to be funded for chronic weight management in adults with a BMI of more than 30.

According to the 2024/25 New Zealand Health Survey, that would apply to an estimated 34 percent of New Zealanders over 15 years of age, but the committee’s recommendation bumped that up to a BMI of 35, in line with comparable countries like Canada, England and Scotland.

“However, the group also considered that this threshold could be raised to a BMI of 40… if funding treatment down to this level proved to be cost-prohibitive or not cost-effective.”

With a BMI over 50, a person would not need comorbodities to qualify, according to the recommendation.

Below that threshold, a person would need to have at least two of the following – dyslipidaemia, hypertension, diabetes, obstructive sleep apnoea or established cardiovascular disease.

It also included a condition that treatment would stop, if someone did not experience at least a 10 percent reduction in weight after six months.

It noted that, due to the “relatively high prevalence of obesity and weight-related comorbidities, the budget impact of funding semaglutide for weight management would be very high”.

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

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Public urged not to share videos of violent assaults online

Source: Radio New Zealand

Two people were injured, one critically, after being lured to Queens Park in separate attacks last week (file image). Supplied / Google Maps

Southland Police are urging people not to share violent videos of assaults circulating online, as they investigate any links between attacks and dating apps.

Police could not confirm if the videos were linked to two separate attacks in Invercargill’s Queens Park last week that left one person in critical care and another seriously injured.

The victims were lured to the park using dating apps.

In a statement, police said the videos were being investigated in relation to “a number of reported assaults linked to dating applications”.

Police could not say how many assaults had been reported.

Acting Inspector Mel Robertson said they believed criminals were following online trends to use dating platforms to meet people with the intention of violently assaulting them, filming it and sharing it online.

“We strongly urge people not to share these videos or encourage this behaviour. It is abhorrent, callous offending and completely unnecessary in our community,” she said.

She said there was no information at this stage to suggest certain groups of people were being targeted and anyone using dating apps should take measures keep themselves safe.

“If you are meeting people from these applications, please ensure you let somebody trusted know your plans and movements and always meet people in public places,” she said.

Police could not confirm which app was used and were still working to establish whether the two Invercargill attacks were linked.

On both occasions, more than one offender was involved, a spokesperson said.

Invercargill city councillor Steve Broad said people were horrified by the attacks.

Broad said he hoped police, community organisations and others could examine what could be done in terms of safety advice, possible improvements to security or lighting and ensuring systems were in place to keep people as safe as possible in a “changing world”.

“Those foundational safety issues may be the same and hopefully there is change happening in this space, but I think technology certainly adds to the complicated nature of it,” he said.

Broad said he was gutted about the attacks.

“I find the attacks really sad as an individual. I’m probably still grappling with it on a personal level as well. The journey of me being gay, particularly through my teenage and young adult years, was one that … you didn’t always feel safe to be yourself,” he said.

“These attacks certainly resonate with me on that level.”

Despite those challenges, Broad said he had found Southlanders to be “some of the loveliest, warmest, realist and most authentic, loving people that I know. This community has been incredible to me”.

Broad was the highest polling candidate in last year’s council elections.

“This community has known my sexuality and has voted in historic numbers to say we see you, we accept you and we want you to represent us and maybe there’s more to me than being gay in the eyes of my community, which I think is a testament to them,” he said.

As chief executive of Y Southland, Broad said he worked for an organisation that sent a strong message of diversity and inclusion.

“I see our young people, our rangatahi coming in and being so accepting and difference is normalised and difference is actually protected and really valued,” he said.

But he said people had approached him with fears the attacks were homophobic, he said.

“It’s a moment where the community gets to send a message to each other around who we are and that we are certainly as a community far, far bigger than this, far more accepting and far more safe than this,” he said.

“It’s also a reminder for the LGBTQ+ community that there is great hope and great things happening in this space but to be vigilant. There are still challenges when it comes to our acceptance and visibility and safety, so just to take care of each other and ourselves, particularly when navigating technology and connection.”

The first attack on the evening of 8 May left a person in critical care and the second, in the early hours of 10 May, resulted in serious injuries.

At the time, Robertson said it appeared people were lured to secluded locations late at night intending to attack them.

“Not only are [the offenders] taking advantage of people’s trust but they are planning these attacks with the intention to seriously injure these people.

“We urge anybody who is planning to meet someone from a dating app to choose a location which is public, or well-lit at night, as well as letting someone trusted know your plans and movements,” she said.

In 2023, a series of violent attacks against gay men in Christchurch saw six teenagers charged with multiple serious offences.

Some of the attacks were filmed and shared on social media.

Police said anyone who had been the victim of an assault, knew of someone who had, or had any information that could assist investigations should contact them by dialling 105 or online at 105.police.govt.nz.

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

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Arrests made following flee across Tauranga

Source: New Zealand Police

Attributable to Detective Senior Sergeant Natalie Flowerdew-Brown: 

Two men, aged 21 and 22, have been arrested following a fleeing driver event across Tauranga this morning.

Just after 4:20am, Police observed a vehicle driving at speed on SH2 near Kairua Road.  The vehicle was signalled to stop, however failed to do so, instead completing a U-turn and driving on the wrong side of the road towards the Police vehicle. 

The vehicle was then observed travelling in convoy with a second vehicle.  Both vehicles have driven on the wrong side of the road in the Mangatawa area.  Police attempted to stop the vehicles however were forced to take evasive action when one of the vehicles has driven directly at them. 

Officers maintained sight of the vehicles as they travelled towards Matapihi, with one of the vehicles being spiked on Matapihi Station Road a short time later.

The vehicle with spiked tyres was abandoned and the driver got into the other vehicle and decamped.

Police monitored the vehicle as it drove towards Mount Maunganui.

Just before 5:20am the vehicle was driving the wrong way along Takitimu Drive, where it narrowly avoided a collision with a truck.  The vehicle has then slowed to a stop forcing a vehicle travelling in the opposite direction to also stop.  One of the occupants has exited the vehicle and it is alleged they attempted to carjack the stopped vehicle.

Following the unsuccessful carjacking, they fled on foot.  A Police dog unit tracked the pair and just before 8am the two males were located and taken into custody.

The men will appear in the Tauranga District Court on Friday 15th May charged with unlawfully taking a motor vehicle, reckless driving, attempted robbery, attempted unlawful taking of  a motor vehicle and two charges of burglary.

Enquiries into the incident are ongoing, and Police are appealing for information from anyone who witnessed this event, or anybody with information that could assist our enquiries.

Please contact Police via 105, either over the phone or online at 105.police.govt.nz.

Please reference the file number 260514/0580.

ENDS 

Issued by Police Media Centre

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Super Rugby Pacific: Blues looking to ‘make it ugly’ against Hurricanes

Source: Radio New Zealand

Anton Segner will step in for the injured Dalton Papali’i this weekend. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz

While many would consider the tactics to be boring or ugly, for Blues coach Vern Cotter, they are a thing of beauty.

No nonsense, up the guts, smash-and-bash footy.

Few teams do it better than the Blues and they will need to bring every ounce of ugly in order to knock over the high-flying Hurricanes on Saturday night at Eden Park.

“The beauty of rugby is the collisions and the physical contact so I think if you let the Hurricanes play, I mean they’ve scored just about the most tries I think in the competition so if you’re going to deny them that, you’re going to have to be present at the points of contact which is around that collision and contact tackle and carry so I think that’s beautiful,” Cotter said.

In the heart of that physical battle will be Anton Segner, promoted to starting openside after Dalton Papali’i fractured his jaw against the Crusaders last week.

Segner said not to expect an expansive Blues gameplan.

“We’re a team that prides ourselves on our physicality. And yeah, if you’re part of a team like that, then things do get ugly, it’s cliché for a reason that the games are lost and won up front.”

The German-born loosie admitted they didn’t turn up at Te Kaha, as the Crusaders out-worked them under the roof.

“We put out a disappointing performance last week, there’s a whole lot of get-betters that we need to get out of that game and right our wrongs. There’s a good bit of edge in there (at training). So you can definitely tell that we’re excited about playing the top of the table team at the moment.”

Cotter conceded that the Canes were the benchmark at the moment.

“They’re playing good rugby. So we look at it as an awesome opportunity for us to show them what we have, because we know that when we play our game and we play our game well, that we can give them a good challenge.”

As well as the irrepressible form of Fehi Fineanganofo, who is on track to break a 30-year try scoring record, the Hurricanes have also welcomed back the dangerous Kini Naholo making for a lethal wing pairing.

Fineanganofo has dotted down 15 times in 2026, just one shy of Joe Roff and Ben Lam’s combined season record of 16.

“You’ve got to respect the quality, it’s the plague or cholera, isn’t it? That’s one or the other. So they’re both very good but yeah we’re aware of the strength they have on the edges and they get the ball space there and they can beat players not only with their step but also with their power so it becomes one-on-one so a big job for us,” said Cotter.

A big job lies ahead for Segner, who shoulders more responsibility this weekend as he steps in for the injured skipper.

He has been in career-best from at the Blues, but has been tuning out external calls for an All Black promotion.

“I want to earn my performance each week, I know that there’s a bit of chat about that out there but to be fully honest with you I’m not focused on that. I’m focused on the Blues and on the game this weekend and my main focus going into this season is to win a championship here.”

While the Blues will be without Papali’i, Beauden Barrett is back in the number 10 jersey for the crucial clash.

“It’s time to step up a bit, it’s a home game and we’re towards the end of the season. So we’ll just have a look at our intent on the paddock,” Cotter said.

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

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‘What they have done is insane’: Young Kiwi surfer dreaming of riding against the best

Source: Radio New Zealand

Teenage surfer Alani Morse talks to media at the opening press conference for the Raglan leg of the World Surf League. Rambo Estrada/WSL

Teenage surfer Alani Morse is dreaming of taking on the best as she prepares for the biggest competition of her young career.

The 15-year-old won a wildcard qualifying event in April to compete in the World Surf League round at Raglan over the next week, lining up against the sport’s elite.

The field includes Australian legend Stephanie Gilmour, who underlined her GOAT status with a victory at the most recent Championship Tour stop at Snapper Rocks on the Gold Coast.

Gilmour, American Caitlin Simmers and Vahine Fierro of Tahiti are the three Morse would most love to share a wave with.

To make that happen, Morse must first progress through the preliminary round to make the main bracket and potentially take to the water alongside one of her heroes.

At the top of that list is 20-year-old Simmers, the 2024 world champion.

“I’ve met her and she’s just a nice normal person and she just wants to have fun. You could be super-serious and it’s her job but she just wants to surf well and have fun,” Morse told RNZ.

The pair have been messaging ahead of the event, with the American excited to be surfing in New Zealand.

“I’d love to end up in a heat with her because I think she would push me a lot.”

Alani Morse won a wildcard qualifying event in April to secure her place in the Raglan event. © Surfing New Zealand / PhotoCPL 2026 / PHOTOSPORT

Still, Morse said she draws inspiration from the entire Championship Tour field.

“What they have done is insane, I’m just at the start but they’ve done it their whole life and I respect that.”

Over the past year, Morse has competed in several Qualifying Series events and hopes one day to follow fellow New Zealander Paige Hareb onto surfing’s top-tier Championship Tour.

Competing against the world’s best had always been part of the dream – she just did not expect it to happen this early in her career.

Now, with the event fast approaching, Morse said she has started to realise just how significant it is for both herself and New Zealand surfing.

“Seeing how much this inspires the younger generation is really cool and I’m excited to be competing against the world’s best including some who are my heroes.”

Morse also has one advantage over much of the field: local knowledge.

Having lived in Raglan for the past five years, she knows Manu Bay better than most. While the break can take time to understand, Morse feels she has now mastered many of its intricacies.

She said several competitors in the New Zealand Pro had already reached out for local insight and, while she had shared a few tips, she was keeping most of Manu Bay’s secrets to herself.

More than $100,000 is up for grabs for winners on the WSL with a total prize pool of more than $15 million available over the Championship season.

While her goal is to progress through at least one heat and perhaps collect a pay cheque, Morse admits what she will take most from the event is the experience.

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Auckland rugby league player Eugene Hanna dies after injury in club’s first game of season

Source: Radio New Zealand

File photo. Photosport

A West Auckland rugby league club says one of its players has died after he was injured in his team’s first game of the season.

In a Facebook post, chair of Glenora Rugby League Football Club in Glen Eden, Jane Hunt, confirmed Eugene Hanna, a player in its Premier Reserves squad, passed away on Tuesday after he was injured during a game against the Te Atatū Roosters on 2 May.

“Eugene sustained an injury … which was tragically unsurvivable.

“Glenora Bears would like to extend its gratitude to the Te Atatu Roosters members who helped at the scene, the attending paramedics and Auckland Hospital for their care these last two weeks.

“Eugene was a valued player in our Premier Reserves squad, and although a new Bears member had good friends within the club.

“To his family, friends and teammates, we extend our sincere condolences. There are not enough words to express the unimaginable loss and grief you are feeling at this time.”

West Auckland football club Lynn-Avon United AFC shared on Facebook that the 30-year-old previously played for them.

“Sadly, we advise the passing of Eugene, a former player of the Lynn-Avon Men’s Reserves team in 2022.

“He was known by many club members and will be remembered as a genuine all-round good bloke.

“The Committee and club extend our sincere condolences to Eugene’s family and friends.”

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