Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Press Release Service

Headline: Kiwi Web Design Launches Aesthetic Painting

Kiwi Web Design announces the launch of a new, responsive website for Auckland’s Aesthetic Painting, featuring high-end design and local SEO to boost their digital reach.

The post Kiwi Web Design Launches Aesthetic Painting first appeared on PR.co.nz.

Source: Auckland Council

Savings and service reviews led the agenda as the Value for Money Committee’s first 2026 meeting echoed its always-on focus for increased efficiency.

At Thursday’s committee, chair Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson welcomed the council’s continued savings progress – with another $14.9 million saved in the three months to 31 December 2025.

“This lifts our savings to date to $67.9 million – or 79 per cent of our $86 million target for 2025-2026,” says Deputy Mayor Simpson.

“As a council group, we’re continuing to focus on both cost reductions across the business and increasing revenue. These enhance efficiency and deliver savings that keep rates down for Aucklanders.” 

For every $30 million of planned savings in the council’s budget, a rates rise of around 1 per cent is avoided.  

Further financial opportunities are identified through the ongoing Value for Money programme.

For the 2025-2026 year, five Value for Money reviews will look at council’s waste services, stormwater services, heritage property, resource consenting and legal services. These will build on 10 further completed reviews in the last three years.

“Value for Money service reviews have identified more than $60 million of financial opportunities over the past three years. Benefits come from clearer governance, standardised processes and stronger contract management. We are continuously looking at how to do things better,” says Deputy Mayor Simpson.

“The reviews also support improvements in the quality of what we do, as it’s important to continually check we are delivering great services for Aucklanders.” 

The Value for Money Committee also oversees key procurement and contract decisions – applying a value for money and efficiency focus to all decision-making for suppliers and services. 

Source: New Zealand Police

A pair of thieves allegedly responsible for helping themselves to more than $40,000 worth of goods from various stores across Auckland and the Bay of Plenty have wound up in Police hands.

The duo have been trying to evade Police since September, with Police actively looking for the pair given the alleged tally of thefts they had racked up.

Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Williams, Waitematā CIB, says the pair have been continuing their retail crime wave.

“On Friday afternoon our staff were making enquiries at an address in Birkdale.

“The pair initially refused to come out of the address, however they were eventually taken into custody without further incident.”

Detective Senior Sergeant Williams says the pair are allegedly responsible for about $42,000 worth of stolen items from retails stores across the North Island.

“It’s great to see these recidivist offenders identified by staff and a swift response which meant they could be apprehended.”

“This is a fantastic outcome for not only out staff, but our retail community and is another example of the work going into targeting recidivist retail crime offenders.”

A 28-year-old woman has been remanded in custody and will reappear in North Shore District Court on Friday  facing 17 charges of shoplifting.

A 34-year-old man will reappear in North Shore District Court on 9 March facing 27 charges including shoplifting, theft, burglary and possession of an offensive weapon.

He has been remanded in custody until his next appearance.

Police are continuing enquiries, and Detective Senior Sergeant Williams says further charges cannot be ruled out.

ENDS.

Holly McKay/NZ Police

Source: New Zealand Government

A Crown Review Team will conduct an independent review into Wellington Water’s Moa Point sewage plant failure, Local Government Minister Simon Watts says.

“The failure of a key part of our capital city’s critical wastewater infrastructure and the ensuing impact on communities, the local economy and the environment are completely unacceptable,” Mr Watts says.

“After discussions with Wellington Mayor Andrew Little we have agreed an independent and transparent investigation is required to determine the causes of this failure. 

“The public is owed the assurance that we understand what led to this failure and that we are taking steps to prevent it from happening again.”

The team will comprise independent senior water services sector figures with relevant technical engineering, governance, commercial and legal expertise.

The plant is owned by Wellington City but Wellington Water Ltd is responsible for its operation. Therefore, the review team will be appointed to both Wellington City Council and to Wellington Water Ltd in a parallel process to ensure it has the necessary scope to fully investigate and report on the failure of the Moa Point Plant.

“The review team will be tasked with delivering clear, actionable recommendations which set out concrete next steps, including specific actions for Wellington City Council where necessary,” Mr Watts says.

Under Local Water Done Well, management of the metropolitan Wellington region’s water services will soon transfer from Wellington Water to the new council-controlled organisation (CCO) Tiaki Wai Ltd.

“Given this imminent change and the ensuing transfer of assets to the new CCO, including the Moa Point plant, we need timely findings and recommendations,” Mr Watts says.

“As a nation, the need to invest more in our water infrastructure is clear as we fix the basics and build the future. We need to make sure ratepayers’ investment in water infrastructure is used wisely.”

Source: New Zealand Police

Motorists across the greater Wellington area, and particularly through the Hutt Valley, are advised to stay off the roads where possible due to heavy rainfall and flooding.

There is flooding across a number of areas.

If you must travel, please slow down and be prepared for surface flooding or obstructions on the road.

Anyone travelling should check NZTA’s Journey Planner website for the latest road conditions before heading out.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

Source: NZ Department of Conservation

Date:  16 February 2026

Kākāpō Yasmine hatched an egg fostered from kākāpō Tīwhiri on Valentine’s Day, bringing the total number of kākāpō to 237 – though it won’t be officially added to the population until it fledges.

DOC Operations Manager for kākāpō/takahē Deidre Vercoe says the first chick of the breeding season is an exciting moment on the long road to recovery for this critically endangered species.

“These exceptionally rare taonga only breed every 2–4 years, so it’s a long time between chicks. We have more breeding-age birds than ever before this season, so we’re anticipating many more chicks to come.”

Deidre says fostering eggs and chicks between different kākāpō mums is one way to improve nest success rates.

“Kākāpō mums typically have the best outcomes when raising a maximum of two chicks. Biological mum Tīwhiri has four fertile eggs this season already, while Yasmine, an experienced foster mum, had no fertile eggs.”

Kākāpō face a range of challenges with low hatching success being a key obstacle. So far this season there are 187 eggs, and 74 of them are fertile. Of those, not all will hatch, and not all chicks will survive through to fledging.

“The kākāpō population was once down to just 51 birds which created a genetic bottleneck we are still managing today,” says Deidre.

“Kākāpō are one of the most intensively managed species in the world and while numbers are still so low, the breeding season requires a lot of intervention.

“Priority goes to the eggs and chicks that are less well-represented across the gene pool, and we have a more hands-off approach with those that are well represented. This approach helps us answer questions around what a natural breeding season might look like one day.”

Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu representative on the Kākāpō Recovery Group Tāne Davis says the hatching of the first kākāpō chick of the season on Pukenui Anchor Island is a welcome milestone of special significance to Ngāi Tahu.

“Pukenui Anchor Island serves an important purpose in accommodating the growing numbers of not only kākāpō but other critically endangered taonga species.

“While it is wonderful to see the manu thriving on this island due to its predator free status, we need to continue our collective efforts to create other safe havens for the chicks of the future.

“One of our future aspirations through Predator Free Rakiura is to return the kākāpō back to its original home,” Tāne says.

Until that happens, the best way for people to see a kākāpō is Kākāpō Cam, a live camera streaming from the nest of a female named Rakiura, on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island.

The camera was first trialled in 2022, and Deidre Vercoe says the team is thrilled to have it up again for breeding season.

“Kākāpō cam is a great way for people to see conservation in real time and do their own little bit of naturing from their home, office or wherever in the world they might be,” she says.

Rakiura is currently sitting on two eggs, and all going well, her first egg is due to hatch in about a week, which could mark a world first opportunity for viewers to watch a chick from one of New Zealand’s most elusive species hatch, live in its nest.

The Kākāpō Recovery Programme has been supported since 2016 by National Partner Meridian Energy.

Meridian Energy CEO Mike Roan says it’s a privilege to stand alongside the Department of Conservation during this remarkable period of growth.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to welcome the first kākāpō chick, beginning what we hope will be a bumper breeding season. Every chick is a milestone for the species, and we’re excited to play a part in helping these incredible birds thrive for generations to come.”

Background information

Since 1995, DOC’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme and Ngāi Tahu have worked together to rebuild the population from just 51 manu (31 males, 20 females) and we’ve supported the species through 12 breeding seasons, reaching a population high in 2022 of 252. 

This breeding season is the 13th season in 30 years of the programme. This is because kākāpō only breed once every two to four years. The only known breeding trigger for kākāpō is the mast (mass fruiting) of the rimu tree, which last occurred in 2022.

There are 236 adult kākāpō alive today and each wears a small backpack radio transmitter to help track their location and monitor their activity levels.

There are three breeding populations, on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island near Rakiura, and Fiordland’s Pukenui/Anchor Island and Te Kāhaku/Chalky Island.

Contact

Source: Auckland Council

In human years she wouldn’t quite qualify for a Gold Card but in kōkako years, Ruahine is a living legend.

At around 21 years of age, Ruahine is believed to be the oldest known active breeding female kōkako in New Zealand and this season she’s once again doing what she’s done best for decades: raising chicks in the Hūnua Ranges. Two fledglings currently trail closely behind her and her long-term mate, a quiet but powerful symbol of how far kōkako conservation has come.

Ruahine was translocated to Hūnua in 2006 as an adult bird of unknown age from Māpara, making her at least 21 today, although she could be older; a remarkable achievement for a species that was once perilously close to disappearing from the ranges altogether.

Principal Ranger and lead of the Hūnua Kōkako Restoration Project Miranda Bennett says that when Ruahine arrived, Hūnua would have looked very different through kōkako eyes.

“There were just 23 adult kōkako in the entire ranges, all descended from a single remaining matriarch. Ruahine is part of the generation that helped turn that around.”

She was one of 14 Māpara kōkako brought in to boost both numbers and genetic diversity. Settling in the area known as Flat Bush – not flat, but flatter than most of Hūnua – Ruahine first paired with a Māpara male, Taranga. After his disappearance around 2010, she partnered with a local male and has held the same territory ever since. Whether it’s been the same male all these years remains one of Hūnua’s quieter mysteries.

Ruahine’s contribution goes well beyond longevity. More than ten of her chicks, banded as nestlings, have gone on to join the breeding population. In 2012, she also played a starring role in a conservation first, becoming the only kōkako to successfully foster eggs transferred between sites, from Tiritiri Matangi to Hūnua.

“That egg transfer was incredibly delicate work,” says Bennett.

“Ruahine sat patiently on plasticine eggs for a full day while her own eggs were relocated, before the Tiritiri eggs were flown in and placed under her. It worked and it’s still the only successful kōkako egg swap of its kind.”

Today, Ruahine and her mate are surrounded by more than 250 kōkako pairs across the ranges, a powerful indicator of sustained pest control, habitat protection and long-term commitment.

Councillor Richard Hills says success belongs to many hands.

“Auckland Council has proudly supported this mahi for decades, working alongside mana whenua, community groups and ecologists to restore the mauri of the Hūnua Ranges.

“Ruahine’s story shows what’s possible when we invest in nature for the long term.”

For mana whenua, kōkako are taonga; their return restoring not just biodiversity, but whakapapa connections to the ngahere.

And Ruahine?

She’s still out there, still singing, still raising the next generation. Not bad for an ‘old bird’ who’s nowhere near done yet.

Source: New Zealand Government

Science, Innovation and Technology and Universities Minister Dr Shane Reti will visit India this week to attend the flagship artificial intelligence (AI) Impact Summit, strengthening international AI partnerships and unlocking opportunities for New Zealand. The theme for the summit is ‘AI for People, Planet and Progress’.

“Attendance at this summit ensures New Zealand has a seat at the table, along with senior international Ministers and officials, to help shape global AI standards, while providing opportunities to strengthen international partnerships and drive economic growth,” Dr Reti says.

“As highlighted in the New Zealand AI Strategy, AI has enormous potential to lift productivity and grow our economy, with some estimates predicting that generative AI alone could add $76 billion, around 15 per cent of GDP, by 2038.

“Our government is focused on unlocking economic opportunity through AI adoption, while ensuring appropriate guardrails. That’s why we are investing up to $70 million over seven years to support innovative AI research and applications, develop world-class expertise, and sharpen New Zealand’s competitive edge.

“This visit is also a chance to strengthen our science, innovation and technology relationships and promote New Zealand as an outstanding destination for international education.

“India is a growing powerhouse in science and technology. While New Zealand already has strong links between universities and research organisations, there is significant potential for greater research collaboration between our two countries. 

“International education partnerships bring students and export earnings into New Zealand, while AI adoption will lift productivity, support higher incomes, and help drive economic growth.”

While in India, Dr Reti will attend the AI Impact summit, meet with science and education counterparts, engage with leading technology firms and undertake a range of education focused engagements. Dr Reti departs New Zealand on 14 February and returns on 21 February.

Source: New Zealand Police

Police can release the name of the man who sadly died following a crash on Korokipo Road, Fernhill, on Friday 9 January.

He was Patutai Patterson Kire, 60, from Flaxmere.

Police extend condolences to Patutai’s loved ones.

Enquiries into the circumstances of the crash are ongoing.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

Source: New Zealand Police

Police are continuing to make progress in investigating a shooting in Onehunga last month.

The Auckland City Organised Crime Unit has been investigating the incident on Arthur Street on 16 January 2026.

Detective Senior Sergeant Matt Bunce says the investigation team executed a search warrant at a Māngere property on Friday.

“Our detectives were supported by the Armed Offenders Squad, in which we have recovered a shotgun and ammunition,” he says.

“At this stage we are unable to confirm this firearm was involved in the original offending.”

Police have charged a 43-year-old man with unlawful possession of a firearm as well as unlawful possession of ammunition.

He appeared in the Auckland District Court over the weekend.

“We have no tolerance for blatant violence involving firearms in our community,” Detective Senior Sergeant Bunce says.

“The public will appreciate we can’t share the details of the work ongoing, however we have a dedicated investigative team that is working to hold those involved to account for what happened that day.”

Detective Senior Sergeant Bunce continues to call for any information to assist the ongoing investigation.

If you can assist, update Police online now or call 105 using the reference number 260116/9278.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS. 

Jarred Williamson/NZ Police