Source: New Zealand Police
One person has died following a crash in Kihikihi this afternoon.
The two-vehicle crash, involving a truck and a car, on State Highway 3 was reported just after 2:30pm.
No further injuries have been reported.
The road remains closed, motorists are advised to avoid the area.
Detours are in place via Golf Road and Herbert Street.
ENDS
Issued by Police Media Centre
Source: New Zealand Police
One person has died following a single vehicle crash in Taheke this morning.
Emergency services were called to State Highway 12, Taheke at around 9.15am.
Sadly, one person was pronounced deceased at the scene.
SH12 was closed between Horeke Road and Rakauwahia Road while the Serious Crash Unit conducted a scene examination. It has since reopened.
Enquiries into the circumstances of the crash are ongoing.
ENDS.
Frankie Le Roy/NZ Police
Source: Radio New Zealand
Police said the information provided in the report was being assessed and enquiries were ongoing. 123rf.com
Police are looking for a man who has been reportedly approaching young children over the last month in Wellington.
Reassurance patrols have been placed near the corner of Mt Albert Road and Volga Street, where the matters were reported to have happened.
Police said the information provided in the report was being assessed and enquiries were ongoing.
“We understand incidents like this can be unsettling to the community; however, we ask parents to be alert, not alarmed,” Wellington area prevention manager, inspector Jason McCarthy said.
“The children have done the right thing by avoiding the man and telling a trusted adult. We encourage parents and caregivers to have discussions around behaviours and actions that are inappropriate or that make a child feel uncomfortable.”
Police urged the community to report any suspicious behaviour.
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Source: Auckland Council
Biosecurity New Zealand has announced today that it has lifted restrictions on the movement of fruit and vegetables in Papatoetoe with no further fruit flies found in the area.
Dr Imogen Bassett, Head of Natural Environment Specialist Services, welcomes this news and acknowledges the efforts of the community to keep this unwanted pest out of Auckland.
“We know that these restrictions can be disruptive – a huge thanks to our community in Papatoetoe for stepping up to help protect our natural environment and economy and following the guidance from Biosecurity New Zealand and the council,” says Imogen.
Biosecurity New Zealand will be collecting their bins and removing signage over the next couple of days.
With biosecurity restrictions removed, normal kerbside collections can resume for the impacted area, including the return of food scraps collections for Zone A. The impacted area’s first normal collection will be tomorrow, on Tuesday 31 March.
Remember, you can ask the council for an additional food scraps bin for free, or request to have a broken or stolen bin replaced, by contacting us.
If you haven’t already, give your food scraps collection a try and join thousands of Aucklanders who have already helped turn over 60 million kgs of food scraps into clean energy.
On 25 February, Biosecurity New Zealand announced the discovery of a single male Oriental fruit fly in a surveillance trap in Papatoetoe. Then, on 2 March, three more male Oriental fruit flies were found in the area.
Oriental fruit fly poses no human health risk, but there would be an economic cost to the horticulture industry if it were allowed to establish here.
Biosecurity New Zealand responded swiftly, ramping up trapping and inspection and Auckland Council followed quickly, ensuring the kerbside collections followed the Controlled Area Notice (CAN) in place that restricted the movement of fruit and vegetables in the area.
When announcing the end of the operation, Biosecurity New Zealand thanked the Papatoetoe community for its support which is critical to successfully find and eradicate these fruit flies.
The response timeframe set by Biosecurity New Zealand is based on scientific advice about the life cycle of the Oriental fruit fly and helps instil confidence that there’s no breeding population.
While restrictions are lifted, stay vigilant. If you think you’ve spotted an exotic fruit fly like the Oriental fruit fly or its eggs, or larvae/maggots in your fruit, call Biosecurity New Zealand (MPI) right away on 0800 80 99 66.
More information about what to look out for is available on MPI’s website.
MPI will continue as normal to check the 7,800 fruit fly traps around the country, including more than 4,600 in the Auckland area.
Source: Radio New Zealand
New Zealand’s fuel stocks remain strong, says the prime minister, but Cabinet has today discussed the option of pursuing further commercial opportunities to add to current supplies.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is giving an update on the national fuel plan during an post-Cabinet media conference along side Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones.
Luxon opened today’s briefing by saying the New Zealand government was still “gravely concerned” by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“Every day New Zealanders are waking up to news of developments in the Middle East, but what we are yet to see is a move towards a negotiated settlement and solution.
“The longer it goes on, the more the impact, whether that’s the human toll in the Middle East, and also the economic pain and suffering being caused around the world.”
He said the government’s first priority in the situation was maintaining fuel supply.
“That’s mission critical to protecting our economy. Without supply, there are serious impacts to jobs and incomes.”
Today’s briefing after the weekly cabinet meeting follows the latest data released from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) showing total fuel stocks in the country have increased since the last update on Wednesday.
Luxon said he could assure New Zealanders the country was in a good position, with “healthy stocks” of fuel, and the fuel companies had made changes ot their allocations to support demand over the coming weeks, including through Easter and the upcoming school holidays.
He said this meant New Zealand remained in phase one of its fuel response plan.
“But we are continuing to prepare for a move to phase 2 if we need to.”
He said the Cabinet today discussed the option of pursuing further commercial opportunities to add to the current level of fuel security.
“Obviously any option we pursue has to be affordable, practical and timely, but officials are pursuing options with urgency.”
Willis said the government was now actively seeking proposals for New Zealand-refined fuel imports on arrangements that would support additional purchase of stocks through to June.
“The proposals would involve the government working with industry partners to deliver additional fuel from offshore to manage the risk of a shortage of supply. An insurance policy, if you will.”
She said the government had already been approached by some parties with unsolicited proposals to increase supply, commercial assessment of those proposals was now being urgently carried out.
She said this could see additional supplies for New Zealand stored offshore.
On Friday last week, the government gave more detail on updates to its 2024 fuel plan.
That laid out what would trigger a change from the current phase 1, to higher phases; more specifics about what each phase would mean, and how different sectors would be prioritised for fuel if it came to that.
The government has continued to emphasise New Zealand does not face supply shortages.
However, prices have continued to be high – with data from price monitoring app Gaspy showing a 90-cent increase for Unleaded 91 and a 158-cent increase for diesel in the past 28 days.
Luxon told Morning Report on Monday said as long as phases one and two of the national fuel plan are effective, people won’t have to worry about phases three and four.
“At this point in time we’ve had no indication that our fuel importers who we talk to daily, multiple times a day, have had any cancellation of their forward orders,” Luxon said.
He said the government’s utmost priority was ensuring that the country had fuel – even if that meant fuel suppliers paying additional Iranian tolls.
Luxon said he was leaving it to fuel importers and distributors to organise how to allocate fuel.
“There needs to be a reworking of the allocations which is what the importers and the distributors need to work out this week, and it’s up to them to do so.”
Latest figures from MBIE show total national fuel stocks have increased since the last update with movements remaining within expectations. Stocks continue to be robust across petrol, diesel and jet fuel.
Overall, New Zealand has 59.3 days of petrol, 54.5 days of diesel and 50.4 days of jet fuel available. This is as of 11.59pm 25 March.
This fuel is either in New Zealand, within our Exclusive Economic Zone (New Zealand waters) – which includes ships with fuel unloading, ships at berth yet to unload, and ships moving between ports – or on water outside the EEZ up to 3 weeks away.
There is currently no indication of fuel supply disruption, and fuel continues to flow normally into New Zealand.
Supply chain data from US investment bank JP Morgan earlier reported the last shipments of fuel from Gulf Oil are likely to arrive in New Zealand on 20 April.
Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold told Monday’s Morning Report the government would be wise to start prioritising diesel allocation now, and that the situation is only getting worse.
He expected 91 to cost an average of $3.70 per litre by the end of the week.
“New Zealand is at the long end, at the end of a very long supply chain, and basically mid-April is looking like when it lines up for when there will be challenges here.
“Diesel that we burn now could be diesel that we need in three or four weeks.
“You can get on the bus, you can drive your EV to work, but in the end, if we want a farmer to be getting our food off the land, then he needs that diesel.”
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Source: Radio New Zealand
RNZ / Unsplash
The government should start prioritising diesel allocation now as the fuel situation is only getting worse, Westpac’s chief economist says.
It comes as supply chain data from US investment bank JP Morgan reports the last shipments of fuel from Gulf Oil are likely to arrive in New Zealand on 20 April.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says while there will be “some form of disruption to fuel at some point in time”, for now it’s “business as usual”.
Speaking to Morning Report on the unfolding fuel crisis, Luxon said as long as phases one and two of the national fuel plan are effective, people won’t have to worry about phases three and four.
“At this point in time we’ve had no indication that our fuel importers who we talk to daily, multiple times a day, have had any cancellation of their forward orders,” Luxon said.
“Keep working, keep the kids in school, doing all that stuff. Please don’t think ‘it’s Covid 2.0, I’m making sourdough at home again’.”
Luxon said he had received assurances from Korean President Lee Jae Myung that New Zealand will receive all of the fuel it ordered last year.
Christopher Luxon said he was leaving it to fuel importers and distributors to organise how to allocate fuel. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
“All of the refineries in the different countries which we source our oil from are hustling in the world looking for alternatives. Some are getting some success, some are not.”
The government’s utmost priority was ensuring that the country had fuel – even if that meant fuel suppliers paying additional Iranian tolls, he said.
“We are as well prepared as any country that I’ve talked to, but … we’re thinking about days ahead.”
Luxon said he was leaving it to fuel importers and distributors to organise how to allocate fuel.
“There needs to be a reworking of the allocations which is what the importers and the distributors need to work out this week, and it’s up to them to do so.”
Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold told Morning Report the government would be wise to start prioritising diesel allocation now, and that the situation is only getting worse.
Yemen’s Houthis have now entered the war, and Iran has accused the US of plotting a ground invasion while in the midst of negotiations – threatening to lengthen the conflict.
“The US authorities are talking about the possibility of the war lasting at least another two to four weeks and ground operations would more or less guarantee that it would take much longer than that.”
He expected 91 to cost an average of $3.70 per litre by the end of the week.
“New Zealand is at the long end, at the end of a very long supply chain, and basically mid-April is looking like when it lines up for when there will be challenges here.”
Even though crude oil prices were fluctuating, prices were continuing to rise because it was not reaching refineries, Eckhold said.
Diesel was in even higher demand, and the government would be wise to prioritise its supplies, he added.
Westpac chief economist Kelly Eckhold. Supplied / LinkedIn
“Diesel that we burn now could be diesel that we need in three or four weeks.
“You can get on the bus, you can drive your EV to work, but in the end, if we want a farmer to be getting our food off the land, then he needs that diesel.”
There were also concerns that the alternative route taken by some oil through the Red Sea could be cut off at any time, he said.
“Perhaps about a third of the losses are currently being made up by utilising those pipelines. Obviously, it probably only takes one of those tankers to get blown up in the Red Sea before that route would be choked off.”
He was calling on the government to start escalating its fuel plan now.
“This problem is not going away.”
Finance Minister Nicola Willis said earlier this month that inflation could reach 3.7 percent, but Eckhold said it would likely be closer to 4 percent.
“If you want to talk about worst cases, then we probably should be adding a couple of percentage points on top of that.”
Energy transition consultant and chair of the Wise Response Society Nathan Surendran told Nine to Noon it was likely the fuel escalation level would rise, and that three of the criteria had likely already been met.
Rationing sooner rather than later was right call, because the “implications of running out of fuel are extremely unpalatable”, Surendran said.
“This is a massive amount of energy that’s disappeared from the global economy. And it is very, very likely that we will have some form of rationing at some point.”
The government needed especially to reserve fuel for the production and transport of food, he said.
It was counting ships bound for New Zealand as part of its fuel stocks, but he was concerned that those vessels could be redirected if it was outdbid by another country.
“These are commercial entities and their profit making mandate comes before anything else.”
He acknowledged raising the fuel escalation level could induce panic-buying – but pointed out that was happening already.
“Hopefully people have filled up now and they’re at capacity and we’ll just go back to more normal buying cycles.”
Rural fuel distributor Fern Energy says with allocation rules as they are, it is needing to prioritise some of its fuel deliveries based on need.
The most up-to-date figures showed that there was 18.1 days of diesel in the country, with a further 28.3 days worth on ships bound for New Zealand, but an update is due to be released Monday.
Fern Energy chief executive Chris Gourley told Morning Report people were trying to beat the price by filling up early, and in some cases by hoarding, which was creating demand spikes in certain regions that could not be met because of new allocation rules.
“Importers have said to us that in some ports, they are managing that fuel to make sure it lasts until that next boat comes in, and they’re giving us strict … seven-day allocations.”
He emphasised it was not a problem of supply, but increased demand.
These allocation rules meant that sometimes there was not enough fuel where it was needed, and distributors were forced to bring it in from other regions, which slowed it down, he said.
They were also prioritising deliveries based on need, which was especially important at this critical part of the farming season, Gourley said.
“They are harvesting, they are working through that final stages as they work towards winter … so we are trying to prioritise based on that need, and trying to get to those customers before it becomes dire and they lose their crops.”
Federated Farmers spokesperson David Birkett previously told RNZ up to 95 percent of farming machinery used the fuel.
The hops season had just finished, so recently they had been prioritising that industry, Gourley said.
It was also the middle of the grape harvest season, and there was a huge amount of food in the ground that needed to come out, he added.
The most up-to-date figures showed that there was 18.1 days of diesel in the country, with a further 28.3 days worth on ships bound for New Zealand. 123RF
The forestry industry was also struggling, but that was more about cost and less about fuel demand, he said.
“Some of them are actually saying ‘do you know what? We’re going to just pull up and stop working until this settles down’.”
It would be “useful” for the government to start telling certain ports how to allocate their fuel, he said.
“(In) three or four weeks when the supply issue settles, it could be too late for some farmers … There could be some need immediately, if it’s possible, to improve allocations for distributors like Fern, so we can get on and get fuel to farmers quicker.”
He was confident that there would not be any issues around supply to the country, but reiterated that allocation was a concern
“Supply isn’t going to be an issue for New Zealand. Sustained high prices is what we’ve got to focus on next.
“The crisis is a price shock crisis.”
Meanwhile, companion driver service Driving Miss Daisy had so far chosen to absorb the rising cost of fuel.
This was because a large number of its customers were elderly or disabled – people on generally on fixed incomes, it said.
General manager Andrew Kirkpatrick told Morning Report over the last four to five weeks, their fuel expenditure was up 30 to 35 percent.
It was getting “harder and harder” to afford this additional cost, he said.
“Transferring our pain to our clients is something we want to avoid if we can.”
It would be helpful for the government to provide financial assistance to those people on fixed incomes, who might not be able to afford their service if they had to increase prices, Kirkpatrick said.
“For many of our clients we are an essential service, not a luxury. And for those clients, they don’t necessarily have practical alternatives.
“For them to be able to continue to remain engaged in the community, to get to their medical appointments, to do their shopping or their rehabilitation, whatever it might be. If they are asked to pay that additional costs it will put financial pressure on them.”
The company hoped it would be an essential service as it was during the pandemic, so that if the country is forced to allocate fuel or subsidies are needed, its clients won’t be disadvantaged.
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Source: Radio New Zealand
The new Bill is being championed by Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Workplace safety law changes risk bringing in a two-tier system – one for small businesses, the other for large – according to a business leaders’ forum.
A parliamentary select committee is hearing submissions on the Health and Safety at Work Amendment Bill, which is being championed by Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden.
It would be the biggest reform of workplace safety rules in a decade.
Paul Goodeve is on the Business Leaders’ Health and Safety Forum and heads Clarus, which subcontracts to smaller firms.
He told MPs on Monday that the Bill would make it harder for him to ensure the small operators met his big-operator standards, set under the new bill.
“Everyone wants people to go home unhurt and that requires the entire system to work in alignment.
“Different cars driving on the road, some having to stop at the traffic lights but others not, it just creates problems with the whole health and safety system.”
Under the Bill, small businesses must manage only risks defined as “critical”, while all others must manage all risks and prioritise critical risks.
The Bill adds a new definition of ‘critical risk’, covering hazards which could lead to death, serious injury, notifiable incidents or occupational disease – but does not create an offence for failure to prioritise critical risks.
Its proponents say it will cut compliance costs and reduce uncertainties, while reducing deaths, injuries and illness at work.
But Goodeve’s colleague and forum chair Sheridan Broadbent told the committee the carve-out covered small businesses, even though they had a 24 percent higher injury rate than the others.
It was out of step with global good practice, and by their assessment would increase ACC costs and lower productivity, said Sheridan, an independent director of companies.
“In checking in with our colleagues at the UK regulator, they are really scratching their heads to understand why we would go down this path.”
But another lobby group BusinessNZ told the committee the Bill “right -sizes” health and safety duties for small businesses.
Chief executive Katherine Rich said the current law was too complex, creating uncertainty and “real fear” of getting it wrong.
Small business owners had told them this led to overcompliance, the use of consultants and lots of paperwork, she said.
They backed the Bill and had seen no evidence that the duties of the small would conflict with the large, as in practice, such as an architect adhering to a big construction site’s health and safety duties when they went on the site, Rich said.
Critics have voiced worries that bullying and other psychosocial risks would be managed far less under the bill.
Young Workers Resource Centre director Matariki Roche told the committee that young workers were over-represented in small businesses, and were worried about psychosocial issues taking a real back seat.
But Rich said all good employers worked hard to manage such risks.
The current law was passed in 2015 in response to the fatal Pike River mine disaster five years earlier.
Many submitters to the select committee have said they liked the Bill’s stress on using ‘codes’ more to show industries “what good looks like”.
Van Velden has led the push for more reliance on the Approved Codes of Practice.
However, some submitters warned the codes can take a long time for industries to agree on, and the process had to be well resourced.
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Source: NZCTU
New Zealand has 41,465 fewer filled jobs compared with two years ago, with Stats NZ data confirming a sustained decline in employment that the Government has failed to address, says NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi President Sandra Grey.
“This data shows what so many people are already feeling. Life is hard for those looking for work. We have had sustained job losses since the last election, yet the Government appears to have no plan to help people who are out of work,” adds Grey.
The data reveals widespread job losses across industries and regions:
“The picture looks the same no matter where you look. Auckland has lost 21,000 filled jobs in two years. Northland, Waikato, Gisborne, and Hawke’s Bay have all gone backwards. This isn’t an isolated problem – it’s happening right across the country,” says Grey.
Workers who do have jobs are also falling behind. Earnings have grown by less than inflation, meaning real wages continue to decline. Working Kiwis are working harder and earning less in real terms.
“This data is from February this year – it doesn’t yet account for the latest economic headwinds from the oil crisis and global uncertainty. Data from March onwards is likely to show conditions getting tougher. The Government’s only plan right now is more cuts and hoping the conflict in the Middle East resolves itself. New Zealand deserves a better plan than this,” says Grey.
“Working people cannot afford to wait while the Government pins its hopes on external forces beyond its control. We need investment in jobs, support for affected sectors, and a commitment to ensuring workers share in any economic recovery,” says Grey.
Source: Radio New Zealand
Census data between 2018 and 2023 period showed a 37 percent increase of people living without shelter in Aotearoa New Zealand. Nick Monro
A kaupapa Māori housing and support provider is warning proposed move-on powers could push vulnerable whānau further away from help, rather than addressing the root causes of homelessness.
It comes after hundreds of people across the motu protested on Sunday, opposing the proposed orders – including an overnight vigil in Wellington cathedral.
Ki Tua o Matariki urged the government to reconsider changes to the Summary Offences Act, which would allow police to move on rough sleepers or people displaying disorderly behaviour.
It would also apply to people who were obstructing or impeding someone entering a business, breaching the peace, begging, or displaying behaviour indicating an attempt to inhabit a public place.
Under the proposal, breaching a move-on order could result in fines of up to $2000 or up to three months’ imprisonment.
The powers could apply nationwide and potentially affect rangatahi as young as 14.
Ki Tua o Matariki Chief executive Zoe Witika-Hawke said the approach risks criminalising hardship.
“Punishing people who cannot afford necessities such as housing, food, or transport does not reduce homelessness, it deepens fear and mistrust,” she said.
Witika-Hawke said from what she sees on the ground, homelessness is not a choice.
“We’re not seeing that people choose homelessness… what we’re seeing is people really wanting their lives to be better.”
She said trust was critical in supporting whānau into stable housing and wellbeing.
“For whānau to engage in support, trust must come first. Pushing people further into the criminal justice system moves them away from the very support that enables long-term wellbeing.”
Ki Tua o Matariki provided housing and wraparound support for mātua taiohi (young parents), hapū māmā and their whānau, including mental health services, education pathways and kaupapa Māori wānanga.
Witika-Hawke said the proposed changes risk sending the wrong message.
“What does that tell our whānau? What does that tell our communities? Are we trying to push people to the corners of society where they become more unwell?”
She said the inclusion of rangatahi raised serious concerns.
“A 14-year-old homeless and moving them on and potentially punishing them with a fine or imprisonment is just unfathomable to us.”
“What we’re seeing is rangatahi who want tautoko (support), but also want to trust the people that are giving the tautoko. And I think once that trust is built, things do change. A 14-year-old on the street does not choose to be homeless.”
Nick Monro
The organisation said Māori were disproportionately affected by homelessness, with 2023 census data showing Māori were over-represented in rough sleeping and insecure housing.
Māori women were particularly impacted, with a study by Ihi Research in 2024 finding four out of five homeless women in Aotearoa were Māori.
Hineraukura Martin, a founding member of Māori maternal mental health advisory group Hine Ki Te Wheiao, said the proposal assumed people sleeping rough had somewhere else to go.
“It prioritises public comfort over addressing the structural drivers of homelessness, including inflation, rising living costs, and housing insecurity,” Martin said.
“Treating homelessness as a behavioural issue rather than a systemic one risks ignoring the economic realities many whānau are facing. We believe the focus must shift toward practical, compassionate solutions that respond to the real pressures impacting our communities”
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith previously said move-on orders were not about criminalising homelessness.
“Only people who refuse those orders will face prosecution. A move-on order is not a criminal charge,” he said.
Goldsmith said the policy was about ensuring public spaces were safe and accessible.
“This is about reclaiming our streets and our city centres for the enjoyment of everybody who visits, works and lives there.”
He said police had “the expertise to connect people with the support services they may require”.
“New Zealanders are fair-minded people, and our culture is one where we seek to help those who are in need, but that doesn’t mean we should accept our city centres, particularly our showcase tourist spots, becoming places of intimidation, and dysfunction,
Police Minister Mark Mitchell previously said officers would use discretion and aim to connect people with support services where needed.
“We’ve got something that will formalise it, that will actually hopefully get them engaging with those services and actually fix those issues, and at the same time we won’t have people living on our streets. I don’t think any fair-minded Kiwi in our country wants to see people out living on our streets.”
A ‘move-on’ law will provide police with the power to issue ‘move-on’ orders against people who display disorderly, disruptive, threatening or intimidatory behaviour; obstructing or impeding someone entering a business; breaching the peace; all forms of begging; rough sleeping; and behaviour “indicating an intent to inhabit a public place”. Nick Monro
But Witika-Hawke argued without investment in housing and support, enforcement alone would not work.
“Targeting the root issue requires investment… more social support, more health support, more opportunities for our whānau to be navigated into homes.”
She said the current climate including rising living costs was already placing pressure on communities.
“People are feeling hopeless. People are feeling like they can’t see an end to the struggle,” she said.
“If you create an environment where you make the struggle harder… then that hope in people’s mental health is going to suffer.”
“I think care, over a punitive approach, is actually what’s going to make the best difference in this moment.”
Ki Tua o Matariki was calling for a shift toward prevention and kaupapa Māori-led solutions.
“Maybe it’s a time to pause and think about developing policies that benefit those that are struggling in the current climate and design things for them rather than the other way around,” Witika-Hawke said.
“Our communities deserve public policy grounded in manaakitanga, not punishment.”
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Source: Radio New Zealand
ASB Poyfest Festival Directors – Seiuli Terri Leo Mauu & Tracey Watkinson. Supplied/ASB Polyfest
ASB Polyfest, the largest Pasifika secondary school festival, is into its second week and for the first time it has been split in two, with this week dedicated to Māori performance.
Now in its 51st year, the annual festival sees thousands of visitors and performers come through the Manukau Sports Bowl, with more than 80,000 expected this year.
Te Paparewa Māori event director Tracey Watkinson told Midday Report the Māori stage had grown so much that the decision was made to move indoors to the nearby Due Drop Events Centre.
“We had outgrown the Manukau Sports Bowl, or Te Paparewa Māori had, that the greyhound area that we were in which was the biggest area of the Manukau Sports Bowl was unavailable to us anymore.”
The name Te Paparewa was given by pou tikanga Hemi Tai Tin and basically translates to “Māori stage,” she said.
Tofiga Maletino performing a Samoan dance group from Alfriston College. Nick Monro / RNZ
Te Paparewa Māori runs from Monday until Thursday and Watkinson said with 62 groups representing 72 kura across Auckland it is one of the biggest stages in the country.
“It’s one of the busiest first days that I’ve been involved in in the last 15 years, thank you to our whānau for coming out to support those kura,” she said.
Te Paparewa Māori is also a qualifying event for the national secondary schools kapa haka competition and Watkinson said there is a buzz from students and their whānau.
“It’s fabulous out here today, from our stall holders, to our stakeholders, to our whānau, to our rangatahi that are coming in and performing there’s a real buzz and a vibe here.”
The Baradene College Fiji group at ASB Polyfest 2026 on 18 March 2026. RNZ Pacific / Coco Lance
Wehenga 3 (division 3) are competing on Monday and Tuesday, followed by Wehenga 2, with Wehenga 1 rounding out the competition on Thursday, she said.
“Our sessions on Wednesday and Thursday have already sold out, so that tells you the kind of volume of whānau and community that we have coming through.
“We’re grateful, as an event we’re grateful to our Pasifika and Diversity whānau for their support of us and I think we support them in this journey but to cope with growth this is sort of it for us.”
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