NZ Engine

Source: New Zealand Police

Emergency services are attending a serious crash on Victoria Street, Auckland Central.

A two-vehicle crash was reported at 5.40am, near the intersection of Albert Street.

At this stage one person is in a serious condition.

Victoria Street is closed between Queen and Hobson Streets.

Police are advising motorists to use alternate routes as road closures may be in place for some time.

The Serious Crash Unit is in attendance and an investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the crash.

ENDS.

Amanda Wieneke/NZ Police

Source: New Zealand Police

Emergency services are responding to a crash involving a car and bus at Waitao, Tauranga tonight.

The crash was reported about 6.15pm, and happened on Welcome Bay Road, between Waitao Road and Water Lane.

One occupant of the car is in a critical condition. The occupants of the bus were not seriously injured.

The Serious Crash Unit has been notified and Welcome Bay Road is likely to be closed for some time. Diversions are in place between Kairua Road and Water Lane.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre

Source: New Zealand Police

Attributable to Sergeant Tory Press:

Porirua Police have seized a dirt bike that fled from officers on Friday.

Police identified the bike through their enquiries and seized the vehicle on Sunday, impounding it for six months.

The bike has been confirmed as one of several that were used in Belmont Regional Park to damage farm infrastructure and stress livestock that are currently lambing.

Porirua Police continue to prioritise the investigation and enforcement for similar offending and appreciate the ongoing support of the community providing information.

Police continue to urge anyone who witnesses dangerous driving behaviour to please call 111 if it is happening now, or make a report via 105 if it is after the fact.

Alternatively information can be provided anonymously to Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS

Issued by the Police Media Centre.

Source: New Zealand Police

Quick thinking by a shop owner put a group of violent offenders on the back foot and Police closely behind.

A Glen Eden superette owner was preparing to open his store around 6.45am on Tuesday, when five youths with their faces covered arrived outside, in what turned out to be a stolen car.

Inspector Kelly Farrant, Waitematā West Area Prevention Manager, says the store-owner’s rapid reaction literally stopped the offenders in their tracks.

“He quickly pulled the doors closed and prevented the youths entering his Kaurilands Road store.  The group abandoned their attempt to get inside and left in a stolen car.”

Inspector Farrant says just minutes later a member of the public reported seeing the stolen vehicle nearby in Henderson.

“The offenders got out of the car and fled,” Inspector Farrant says.  “However, a Police dog handler tracked them to a nearby property.”

Five youths, aged between 12 and 14, were arrested and will be referred to Youth Aid for attempted aggravated robbery and unlawful use of  a motor vehicle.

“I’d like to acknowledge the shop owner’s quick action and prompt reporting to Police, which not only prevented further harm but assisted us in identifying who these offenders were,” Inspector Farrant says.

“I’d also like to acknowledge the member of the public who recognised the youth were up to no good and phoned police.

“This allowed our people to provide a rapid response and arrest them before the committed further crimes. 

“I would like to reassure the community that our staff are working exceptionally hard to ensure the public and business owners are safe and feel safe in our communities.”

ENDS

Nicole Bremner/NZ Police

Source: New Zealand Government

Housing Minister Chris Bishop has congratulated Community Housing Funding Agency (CHFA) following their launch of $200 million of A+ rated bonds.

“This means $200 million in cheaper lending is now available for Community Housing Providers (CHPs). It will help them deliver more social homes as well as more affordable homes, at lower cost,” Mr Bishop says.

“I congratulate CHFA on leading this innovation, and for being the first domestic issuer of social bonds in New Zealand. I look forward to seeing all the great outcomes this unlocks for families and communities across New Zealand.

“These social bonds were well received by the market demonstrating the level of confidence that investors have in supporting social and affordable housing in New Zealand.

“The Government has funded CHPs to deliver more than 2,000 social homes from 1 July this year and is helping them unlock lower borrowing costs by backing CHFA through a $150 million lending facility. This means CHPs will be able to deliver more social homes for less.

“We are also working on further initiatives that will make it easier for CHPs to access financing for social housing. These initiatives will reduce borrowing costs, enabling CHPs to deliver more homes for less and reinvest savings into social programmes. I’ll have more to say soon.

“CHFA’s bond launch today is an important step towards levelling the playing field between Kāinga Ora and CHPs – and ultimately delivering more homes for Kiwis who need them.”

Source: New Zealand Government

Health Minister Simeon Brown has today announced a series of appointments and reappointments to four health regulatory authorities.

At the Midwifery Council, Melanie Tarrant has been reappointed, with Suzanne MacIntosh and Laura López joining as new members.

The Nursing Council of New Zealand will see Iosefa Paituli Tiata reappointed, alongside the appointment of Professor Sharon Brownie, Dr Frances Hughes, Anthony Hill, and Tony Ward.

The New Zealand Medical Radiation Technologists Board will include the reappointment of Peter Dooley, together with new members Dr Andrea Doubleday and Nic Ross.

The Medical Sciences Council of New Zealand will include reappointments for Brett Besley, Ruth Beeston and Dr Nicola Swain, with Marike Rossouw, Grandy Li, and Dr David Cumin appointed as new members.

“All of these councils and boards play a vital role in protecting the health and safety of New Zealanders by ensuring practitioners are fit and competent to practice, and I thank each of the appointees for their commitment to patients,” Mr Brown says.

All terms of office will commence on 29 September 2025.

Midwifery Council – biographies 

• Melanie Tarrant was first appointed to the Council in October 2018. She is a current member of the Health New Zealand Technical Advisory Group of the National Perinatal Bereavement Care Pathway, and a Trustee of the Food for Thought Educational Trust, a charitable trust focused on teaching children across New Zealand valuable nutrition education skills.
• Suzanne MacIntosh is an experienced midwife and has worked in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom. She is currently a Midwife Clinical Coach for Health New Zealand Counties Manukau and has previous experience as a Senior Core Midwife. She is a preceptor and educator of student midwives, mentors first year midwifery practice, and coaches new graduate midwives.
• Laura López is currently a member of the University of Otago’s Women’s Health Advisory Group and has previously held roles as an Administrator in Finance Transition for Playcentre Aotearoa and Vice President of Public Relations for Wadestown Toastmasters Club. She has also taken on a variety of volunteer roles at Wilton Playcentre, including Co-President and Treasurer.

Nursing Council of New Zealand – biographies

• Iosefa Paituli Tiata has been a member of the Council since 2018. He is a minister at Mount Roskill’s Congregational Christian Church Samoa and has worked as a financial controller for the Church in Samoa for six years and was its chief accountant for five years.
• Professor Sharon Brownie has over 40 years of nursing experience and is currently the Director of Health Strategy and Partnerships at Swinburne University of Technology in Victoria, Australia. She has held a number of academic and educational roles internationally. She has previously been in roles where she was responsible for sizable budgets and health workforce development mandates, such as Chief Executive of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists.
• Dr  Frances Hughes is a Registered Nurse and has an extensive background in nursing and health care executive and governance positions globally, Australia (Queensland), the Pacific region and New Zealand. Her speciality area of practice is health policy, mental health, high and complex disability, and aged care. Dr Hughes has been international recognised for her leadership and made a companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2020 for services to nursing and mental health.
• Anthony Hill is a Barrister and is a member of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Lessons Learned from Aotearoa New Zealand’s Response to COVID-19 (Phase 2) and was the Health and Disability Commissioner from 2010-2020.
• Tony Ward brings over 30 years of experience across nursing, paramedicine and tertiary education. He has led the Paramedicine programme and served as Head of Discipline across Paramedicine and Perioperative Practice at Auckland University of Technology, while lecturing widely across postgraduate health curriculums. Mr Ward is a Registered Nurse, Registered Critical Care Paramedic and Registered Extended Care Paramedic. He brings practical frontline experience in across New Zealand and internationally (Australia, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste) together with a deep knowledge of education, clinical systems, and service development.

New Zealand Medical Radiation Technologists Board – biographies

• Peter Dooley has been a member of the Board since March 2017. Mr Dooley has over 20 years’ experience as a Medical Imaging Technologist including one year practising in the United Kingdom. He has a Bachelor of Medical Imaging from Christchurch Polytechnic and an MRI Post Graduate Diploma from Unitec New Zealand. Mr Dooley also has experience as a Guest Lecturer for Medical Imaging at Ara Institute of Canterbury.
• Andrea Doubleday currently works for the University of Auckland where she is a Senior Lecturer and Programme Director for the Bachelor of Medical Imaging in the Department of Anatomy and Medical Imaging and is the Course Director for five courses. She has  over 30 years’ experience in academia and over 40 years’ experience as a Medical Imaging Technologist. She has previously served in roles such as Clinical Programme Leader for the Bachelor of Health Science (Medical Imaging) at Unitec and has held multiple roles as a senior lecturer in medical imaging for Unitec, Deakin University in Melbourne, and the University of Auckland.
• Nic Ross is an experienced medical imaging and nuclear medicine technologist, with over 20 years’ experience. He is currently employed as the Charge for Computed Tomography and Positron Emission Tomography and Computed Tomography (PETCT) and has been the Manager at I-MED Hamilton Radiology since 2014. He also held the role of United Kingdom PETCT and Nuclear Medicine Specialist at IBA Molecular. He has experience with the New Zealand Society of Medical Imaging and Radiation Technology where he was the Regional Director for the Waikato and Bay of Plenty area from 2014 to 2023, and the President from 2016 to 2018.

Medical Sciences Council of New Zealand – biographies

• Brett Besley has been a member of the Council since 2019 and served as the Chair from 2020 to 2024. He has over 20 years’ experience as an anaesthetic technician and during this time has served in education and facilitator roles. He is currently employed as an Anaesthetic Technician for Health New Zealand – Te Whatu Ora Bay of Plenty.
• Ruth Beeston has been a member of the Council since 2019 and is the current Chair. She has over 30 years’ experience in the medical laboratory field and has worked in both specialist and routine biochemistry laboratories.
• Dr Nicola Swain has been a member of the Council since 2018, is the current Deputy Chair, and is also the Chair of the Medical Sciences Secretariat. She has previously served as the Chair of the Examination Committee, and on the appointment committees for both the new Chief Executive. Dr Swain holds a number of governance roles and is currently a member of the Human Rights Review Tribunal.
• Marike Rossouw is a qualified Medical Laboratory Pre-Analytical Technicianin Phlebotomy from the New Zealand Institute of Medical Laboratory Science and is currently the Patient Services Manager for Awanui Labs in Auckland, where she oversees nearly 300 pre-analytical staff across the region.
• Grandy Li has over 15 years’ experience as a medical laboratory scientist and is currently the Head of Department in the Specimen Reception for Awanui Labs Dunedin where she leads a team of over 20 professionals and actively participates in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as a member of the Awanui CPD moderation group.
• Dr David Cumin has over a decade of governance experience and is a Senior Lecturer in the department of Anaesthesiology at the University of. Dr Cumin currently holds roles on the University of Auckland School of Medicine Postgraduate Board of Studies Committee and the Auckland Health Research Ethics Committee and the School of Medicine Research Committee.

Source: New Zealand Government

Dr Anna Breman, the First Deputy Governor of Sweden’s central bank, has been appointed as the new Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Finance Minister Nicola Willis announced today. 

“Dr Breman comes to New Zealand with an impressive blend of technical skills and organisational leadership experience. She has been a Deputy Governor of Sweden’s Riksbank since 2019.

“She holds a PhD in Economics from the Stockholm School of Economics and has previously been group chief economist at Swedbank, a leading Swedish commercial bank. She has also worked at the Swedish Ministry of Finance, the World Bank and as an academic economist in the United States.

“Dr Breman was nominated for the role by the Reserve Bank Board following a worldwide search in which 300 potential candidates were identified.

“The core criteria against which candidates were assessed were enterprise 

leadership, technical credentials, stakeholder engagement experience, personal resilience and cultural capability.

“A long list of 10 international and domestic candidates was created drawn from academia, government, financial or regulatory institutions and central bank leadership. Of these candidates, four were shortlisted for interviews with Board members during July.

“Dr Breman has been appointed for a term of five years. She begins her new role on 1 December and I look forward to working with her.

“I also want to acknowledge Christian Hawkesby who has done an admirable job of filling in as Governor since 8 April. Mr Hawkesby will finish up at the Reserve Bank when Dr Breman starts. Prior to that, he has undertaken to do all he can to prepare and support the new Governor, and I thank him for that. 

“I wish him all the best for the future.”

Source: New Zealand Government

Associate Health Minister with responsibility for Rural Health Matt Doocey and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Patterson are in Te Kūiti today as part of the Rural Health Roadshow.

“Te Kūiti is the tenth roadshow stop. I started the roadshow in Levin and have since visited Wairoa, Wānaka, Ōamaru, Hanmer Springs, Gore, Tūrangi, Kaitaia and I was in Hāwera yesterday,” Mr Doocey says.

“These roadshows are an opportunity for me to hear direct feedback from rural communities, like Te Kūiti and those who are working in rural health about what’s working well and where the barriers may be. It is also a great opportunity to hear how well the Rural Health Strategy is being implemented.

“Te Kūiti is home to one of six rural urgent care prototypes being rolled out across the country this year. Each prototype will test practical improvements to rural services, such as improved access to diagnostics, on-call pharmacy support, and digital tools to back up rural clinicians.

“Access to healthcare is one of the biggest concerns for people living in rural and remote areas. Budget 2025 invested $164 million over four years to strengthen urgent and after-hours care nationwide, meaning 98 per cent of Kiwis will be able to access these services within one hour’s drive of their home.

“The funding includes targeted support for more than 70 rural and remote communities, including extended after-hours, 24/7 on-call in-person clinical support and improved access to diagnostics and medicines.

“All New Zealanders deserve timely access to quality care, and this Government is committed to improving health and mental health outcomes, including for the one in five people living in rural communities,” Mr Patterson says.

“I’m looking forward to meeting with people in Te Kūiti and hearing firsthand about their experiences with healthcare in their community. It’s important we understand both the challenges and the opportunities so we can work together to improve access and outcomes in the rural setting.”

Source: New Zealand Government

Tongariro te maunga

Taupō te moana

Te Heuheu te tangata!

Whekuwheku ana te whenua i te tāhekenga o hūpē me roimata, haehae ana te manawa i te ngau o te aroha, hotuhotu ana te ngākau i te kaponga ōu e te kupenga a Taramainuku.

Kei konei mātou, kua taka a roto i te rongotanga ake i tēnei hinganga. Ka tangihia tonutia tō tātou Ariki. Ko ngā kāwai o te Whare Ariki ka pākinikini tonu.

E te tāiki ngāpara, topaki atu rā ki te ururuatanga o te wao, ki te puhikaioreore o te ngahere, ki tō tātou maunga tūpuna, ki Tongariro, e kupa atu ai tō wairua ki te kōmata o te rangi. Ki reira kanapu mai nā hei mata o te ariki, o Tāwhirimātea.  Ki te marae ki Tāpeka te kōrero whānui mōu.

It is with sadness that I received the news of the passing of Ariki Tā Tumu Te Heuheu Tūkino VIII, KNZM.  Ariki Tā Tumu was the eighth paramount chief of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and an influential leader among Māori, New Zealanders and many global fora.

Ariki Tā Tumu was a respected leader and was committed to Tūwharetoa and Māori heritage.  He served as Chair of the Māori Heritage Council, the Tūwharetoa Trust Board, and the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.  

In 2005 Ariki Tā Tumu was appointed a Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit and accepted redesignation as a Knight Companion in 2009. 

We mourn the loss of a leader who was dedicated to the advancement of Iwi, Māori, New Zealanders and ahurea (identity and culture) and the taiao (environment) everywhere. 

Sincere condolences and thoughts to Lady Susan and whānau.  Crown representatives are expected to attend the tangihanga over the course of the next few days.

Source: New Zealand Police

Local Police expertise and a decision to breach bail has led to the recovery of a firearm, and a date back in court for one man.

Early Tuesday morning, one of our Henderson Beat Team members was out conducting mobile patrols In New Lynn and spotted a male behind the wheel of a car.

“The man was known to our local staff, they knew he was forbidden to drive and breaching the conditions of his bail” Waitematā West Area Prevention Manager, Inspector Kelly Farrant says.

Officers signalled for him to stop on Arawa Street.

“After arresting the male and seizing his vehicle, staff have begun an inventory search of the car and uncovered a loaded sawn-off shotgun,” Inspector Farrant says.

“He also had nearly five thousand dollars in cash, as well as a sizeable amount of methamphetamine.”

Inspector Farrant praises the efforts of local police staff in holding the male to account.

“It’s pleasing to see our staff’s local knowledge shine and recognising potential risks to our communities,” she says.

“In this case that good work has taken another firearm out of circulation, and a repeat offender faces the consequences of his actions.”

A 36-year-old man will appear in the Waitākere District Court charged with breaching bail, unlawfully possessing a firearm and failing to comply with the terms of his license.

ENDS.

Amanda Wieneke/NZ Police