Source: New Zealand Police
State Highway 1, near Poroutawhao, is blocked in both directions after a crash.
Police were notified of the two-vehicle crash about 10.45am.
The road is blocked while emergency services work at the scene.
Initial indications are that two people have moderate injuries.
Motorists are asked to delay travel if possible and consult Journey Planner for route advice.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Team
Source: Radio New Zealand
[authror:rnz_sport]
Alex Rufer has been suspended following a fifth yellow card. Kerry Marshall / www.photosport.nz
The Wellington Phoenix travel to Adelaide United on Friday night for their first away game under interim coach Chris Greenacre.
Adelaide are in good form and sit fourth on the A-League ladder with the Phoenix dead last.
However, the visitors will take heart from a win and a draw in their two previous meetings this season. Greenacre is embracing the challenge of a game at one of the loudest stadiums in the A-League.
“I’d probably rephrase it, it’s a place you want to go on a Friday night,” Greenacre said.
“I’m a big fan of Friday night football. Coopers Stadium in general has a great atmosphere, it’s often bouncing. We’re really excited by the challenge.
“You stress to the young players, these are the games you want to play in, where the crowd are close to the pitch, the atmosphere is electric, these are the environments you want to play in.”
Coach Ufuk Talay of Sydney FC and interim coach Chris Greenacre of the Phoenix greet each other during the round 19 A-League Men match between Wellington Phoenix and Sydney FC Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images
The Phoenix have been dealt a blow before the match with captain Alex Rufer suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season against Sydney.
“Obviously, he’s our captain, our leader, and what he brings to a dressing room and the field, his quality as a footballer, he brings that consistency and patience.
“That will be a miss for us, but it means that the other players have to raise their game so that doesn’t become an issue.
“It’s a great opportunity for everyone grinding in together and making sure we have a positive impact.”
However, Friday will hopefully mark the return of both Tim Payne from a hamstring injury and top scorer Ifeanyi Eze from suspension.
“Tim Payne has travelled, and he’ll play a part. We’re waiting on a couple of bits with him. [Eze’s] shown a different sort of prospect to what people have seen before. His work rate for the team is absolutely phenomenal, he’s got pace to burn, the unpredictability about him makes him a difficult prospect to handle at time. He’s scored some terrific goals this year.”
Greenacre is aware of the threat Adelaide pose.
“They’re a good side, especially at home, but it’s our job to go and try and turn that crowd. It’s up to us to put in a solid performance and try and change that mentality.”
Last week’s 1-0 loss to Sydney was frustrating for Greenacre in his first game in charge following the departure of Giancarlo Italiano, but he said there were plenty of positives to take out of the performance.
“Obviously, things don’t change overnight. We reviewed the Sydney game, there were parts of the game I was really pleased with, there were other parts I know we need to improve in. In such a small timeframe, it’s important to show the players the stuff you were really pleased with, and in a simple term, you recognise the moment.
“They can see that if we do get it right, we have the opportunity to create chances. It’s just giving them confidence to do that and execute that. We’ve looked at our game plan to try and do the same against Adelaide. It’s been a quick turnaround so we haven’t had a lot of time, but that’s the cards that we’re dealt.”
The round match is scheduled to kick off at at 9.35pm NZT.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Source: Radio New Zealand
Taranaki music fans are being urged to forget the disappointment of Womad taking a break and instead pull on a black T-shirt, a pair of skinny jeans and get ready to rock.
Full Metal Orchestra – which marries heavy rock with a live orchestra – is headed to the Bowl of Brooklands this weekend in a stark contrast to the three-day world music festival.
Shihad frontman Jon Toogood is one of the headliners at Full Metal Orchestra which also includes Phil Rudd of AC/DC, a host of guest vocalists and live sets from acts such as Devilskin and Blindspott.
Shihad’s Jon Toogood.
Supplied
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Source: Radio New Zealand
TVNZ’s headquarters in Auckland. RNZ/Calvin Samuel
TVNZ has posted a sharply lower half-year profit as revenue slumped in a tough advertising market, and on a one-off accounting write-down.
The state-owned broadcaster’s profit for the six months ended December 2025 was $2.4 million, compared to $53m a year ago.
Revenue fell 12 percent to $134m, driven by a sharp fall in advertising income, which TVNZ said reflected the broader economic environment.
The company recorded a $28.5m write-down in the value of its assets, largely in programme rights.
TVNZ said it offset the impact of lower revenue by investing in digital advertising and by managing its costs.
It said digital advertising continued to grow, with digital accounting for more than 30 percent of total advertising revenue.
“We can now tell the difference between someone streaming alone and a household watching together, which means we see the true scale of our digital audience,” chief executive Jodi O’Donnell said.
2026 would be “a defining year” for the media company.
“We’re investing now to ensure TVNZ is the place New Zealanders choose first for the news, entertainment and sport they love,” she said.
“That comes with planned short-term costs, but we’re confident in the long-term value these changes will create for New Zealand audiences and advertisers.”
TVNZ expected to deliver a dividend of $1.6m to the Crown, compared to $3.1m in the 2025 financial year.
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Source: Radio New Zealand
RNZ
Business failures are forecast to continue, even as the economy grinds to recovery.
Centrix said this week that liquidation numbers were up 16 percent year-on-year.
Simplicity chief economist Shamubeel Eaqub has compiled data from the NZ Gazette, which shows that in the year to February, 30 percent of businesses that were wound up were in construction.
Another 15 percent were in accommodation and food services, and 10 percent were rental, hiring and real estate.
Security and safety businesses had the highest proportion of businesses failing with a wind-up rate of nearly seven per 1000 enterprises. That was followed closely by accommodation and food services.
“[Security] is quite a small sector, most of them are security companies, a few road safety businesses… There are a lot of small operators.
“Really the story is in the big ones, the construction and hospitality … that’s where things are really tough.”
Construction businesses were being wound up at a rate of about four per 1000.
Inland Revenue is often cited as a factor in the increasing rate of liquidations. After a quiet couple of years during the pandemic, it has stepped up activity sharply to pull in overdue tax.
Eaqub’s data showed that, at 70 percent of windup applications, Inland Revenue’s share was the same as it had been in 2016.
“I think it’s the [increase] that’s caught people rather than the fact that you’ve broken the law by not paying your taxes and you should be caught. I think some of the writing tends to be a bit sympathetic towards these dodgy businesses not paying their taxes. I have no sympathy for them… you can’t trade while insolvent. If you can’t pay your taxes, you’re insolvent.”
He said in previous downturns it had taken quite a long time for the rate of business closures to slow.
“It takes about 12 months after the economy cycle recovers before the business closures start to come down. That’s because that transition point in the recovery is quite challenging for a lot of businesses. They’re already going into it with relatively low cash reserves, people are desperate.
“They take on a lot more work than they can do in pricing that’s not accurate with costs increasing … This period can catch a lot of people out in the construction industry in particular.
“This is probably the riskiest period for the sector because they can see the recovery and then make decisions, they make rush decisions at this point in time then catch them later on… a period of economic recovery doesn’t mean that it is going to turn around straight away… there’s still this pressure businesses should be really aware of and make sure they’ve got a good close eye on their finances, they’re pricing up jobs correctly, they’ve got the future supply of work.
“This is when people start to move as well – in a lot of smaller businesses, you lose one or two staff, that might be half or three-quarters of your workforce.
“It’s all of those things that happen at the beginning of an economic cycle that can be quite frightening.”
Eaqub said it was notable that some lenders were taking action against businesses.
Bizcap, which describes itself as “New Zealand’s most open-minded lender” has applied to wind up eight businesses this year alone.
Keaton Pronk, a licensed insolvency practitioner at McDonald Vague, said it was unusual that a lender would do that rather than relying on security it would normally hold against its loans.
He said, across January and February there had been 228 winding up applications, of which 157 were from Inland Revenue, 48 were one-off creditors and 23 were creditors with multiple applications.
The Financial Markets Authority also took action against a group of related entities.
A spokesperson for the Financial Services Federation said it was likely that no security was being held against those loans or not enough to cover the debt.
Bizcap did not respond to a request for comment.
Centrix said there were signs of improvement in seven of 19 industry sectors, particularly agriculture, wholesale trade, and information media and telecommunications services.
Frank Witowski, a Business Mentors New Zealand mentor told Nine to Noon this week that people should act quickly if they were in trouble.
Many businesses did not keep a close enough eye on their spending, he said, and waiting too long to ask for help.
“I would say see an accountant and go through your books to see what spending you’ve got. Sometimes people don’t look for help, they try to sort it themselves and it doesn’t always work.”
He said it might be possible for businesses to add other services or products to stand out, or look for ways AI could offer efficiencies.
Cutting prices was unlikely to help, he said. “Price cutting has been going on for so long now. If you don’t have the revenue you need, you’re gradually going down and down, It’s good for buyers to get discounts left, right and centre but for businesses they eventually can’t run it any further.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Source: Radio New Zealand
Rock icons Guns N’ Roses have added an Australian and New Zealand leg to their 2026 world tour.
Kiwi fans will score the very last show of the tour at Auckland’s Eden Park Stadium on 17 December.
Eden Park chief executive Nick Sautner said at the time it was a “truly historic announcement”.
“This concert will be a true celebration of a new post-Covid-19 era, providing much-needed entertainment and economic benefit to Auckland.”
Guns N’ Roses’ three-hour-plus show promises fan favourites alongside bangers dusted-off from their lengthy back catalogue.
Guns N’ Roses are made up of Axl Rose on vocals and keys, Duff McKagan on bass, Slash on lead guitar, Dizzy Reed and Melissa Reese on keys, Richard Fortus on rhythm guitar and Isaac Carpenter on drums.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Source: Radio New Zealand
RNZ / Simon Rogers
A High Court judge in Auckland has upheld a District Court ruling that voided the outcome of the 2025 local body election in Papatoetoe.
High Court Justice Jane Anderson reserved her decision in February after hearing a petition filed by the Papatoetoe Ōtara Action Team, which won all four seats on the Local Board subdivision.
A new election will be held in Papatoetoe, with voting opening on 9 March.
Papatoetoe Ōtara Action Team candidates (from left) Kushma Nair, Sandeep Saini, Kunal Bhalla and Paramjeet Singh RNZ / Blessen Tom
In February, Ben Keith, legal counsel representing the winning candidates, called Manukau District Court Judge Richard McIlraith’s decision in December “neither fair, nor sound”.
Simon Mitchell, representing the Labour candidates in the local body election, described the voting irregularities as “significant”.
Twenty candidates have since thrown their hat into the ring to contest the new Papatoetoe subdivision election that has been organised following the District Court ruling in December.
Voting opens on 9 March and closes at midday on 9 April, with ballots sent by post to all eligible voters.
Labour candidates contesting the 2026 Papatoetoe local body election (from left) Avinash Kaur Dhaliwal, Lehopoaome Vi Hausia, Raj Pardeep Singh and Ashraf Choudhary RNZ / Blessen Tom
In December, Judge McIlraith ruled that voting irregularities materially affected the result of the Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board election, declaring it void.
At a preliminary hearing, Judge McIlraith ordered five ballot boxes containing votes from the electorate to be scrutinised.
Seventy-nine voting papers were subsequently identified during examination as having been cast without the rightful voter’s knowledge.
Papatoetoe was the only Auckland electorate to record a significant rise in turnout in the latest local body election.
While other Auckland areas saw turnout drop, voting numbers in Papatoetoe increased by more than 7 percent.
All four seats went to first-time candidates from the Papatoetoe Ōtara Action Team.
The Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board has two subdivisions, with the Ōtara having three seats and Papatoetoe four.
None of the previous local board members of the Papatoetoe subdivision were re-elected.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Source: New Zealand Police
Police have arrested and charged a 23-year-old man following a reported burglary at the Feilding Library.
On Sunday March 1, Police were notified of a burglary believed to have occurred overnight, with initial estimates placing the value of alleged stolen items at more than $20,000.
Sergeant Mike Linton says thanks to vigilance from members of the public and strong community knowledge, Police were able to identify the alleged offender immediately.
“As a result, Police located a 23-year-old man, where he was arrested and charged with burglary.
“This quick result highlights the strength of the local community working alongside Police.
“This is another example of our community banding together and remaining vigilant by reporting suspicious behaviour,” says Sergeant Linton.
“This is a great result, quickly apprehending someone who thought it was acceptable to steal items that benefit our community. It reinforces the work our staff are doing to target offending and hold offenders accountable in our area.”
Police would like to thank the members of the public who came forward with information and continue to encourage anyone who sees suspicious activity to report it.
The 23-year-old man has been remanded in custody and is due to reappear in court at a later date.
If you see any suspicious or unlawful activity, please contact Police immediately on 111 with as much information as you can safely gather.
Information can be provided in non-emergencies through 105 online or by phone, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 0800 555 111.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre
Source: New Zealand Government
The Government has passed legislation clarifying the law on the impact of ACC payments on welfare entitlement to make sure the process is fair for everyone.
Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says the Social Security (Accident Compensation and Calculation of Weekly Income) Amendment Act fixes an anomaly which saw one group of people being treated differently to another.
“This involves one group of people who receive ACC and welfare assistance at the same time, and others who receive welfare assistance while their ACC claim is being considered.
“Until now, as interpreted by the courts, the latter group, who receive lump sum payments, have been treated more generously than the former.
“This hasn’t resulted in equal treatment and isn’t in line with the policy intent. Put simply – it hasn’t been fair. The Government had a duty to fix this situation and clarify the law and that’s what we’ve done.
“We have worked carefully to overcome the anomaly which arises if there is an overpayment with MSD benefit and supplementary allowance payments while their ACC claim is being considered.
“As a result of the Select Committee process, Cabinet agreed that all individuals who were actively seeking a review of the decision by MSD prior to the introduction of this Bill will be treated in accordance with the decisions of the Appeal Authority and High Court.
“I accept that there will be a range of reasons why people are claiming ACC, and some of those are incredibly challenging and traumatic, but ultimately there should be no difference in MSD support between someone who is paid weekly ACC versus someone who gets a backdated payment.
“We want the process to be fair and equitable and not treat two separate groups of ACC recipients differently.”
Source: Radio New Zealand
RNZ / Nate McKinnon
The increasing use of digital price tags could allow supermarkets to use AI algorithms and ‘dynamic pricing’ where prices change in real time, a competition researcher says.
The government’s amendment to the Commerce Act, included increasing the Commerce Commission’s powers in combating predatory pricing , clarifying merger processes, and modernising the rules around new technologies, including AI.
University of Sydney researcher Lisa Asher says legislation should block the use of dynamic pricing in supermarkets.
She told Nine to Noon supermarkets in the United States were using data about customers to change pricing in online shopping.
Asher says legislation planned for New Zealand does not go far enough to stop the same happening here.
Woolworths New Zealand says it does use electronic shelf labelling in almost all stores, but it does not use dynamic or any personalisation in pricing.
“ESL is about more accurately displaying the prices we advertise. Instead of changing thousands of paper tickets every week across our 185 stores, we can update prices using ESL,” the company said in a statement. .
“We do not use dynamic pricing. We do not have any personalisation in our pricing.”
supermarket price errors supplied
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand