NZ Engine

Source: Radio New Zealand

Traffic of up to 5 kilometres built up on Auckland’s Northern Motorway as police closed the highway over a “serious incident”.

Officers shut State Highway 1 northbound at Greville Road in Albany about 10.50am on Wednesday.

It has since reopened.

At the time, police and St John said they were responding to a serious incident.

Motorists were asked to delay their journey or use diversions put in place.

Just before 1pm, police said the incident had been resolved and the motorway was reopening.

“Police would like to thank motorists for their understanding while the situation was resolved.”

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A Sanson cafe owner says a memorial to the children of the Field family is a chance to let mother Chelsey Field know “her little ones’ lives mattered”.

August, Hugo and Goldie Field died late last year, in what is being treated as a murder-suicide. Their father, Dean Field also died.

Emergency services were called to a fire at the family’s home on 15 November.

On Tuesday, Chelsey Field unveiled a plaque installed in front of a colourful picket fence which encircled a fairy garden in the playground at Viv’s Kitchen on the main road of the small Manawatū town.

Vivienne Withers owns the cafe alongside her husband Kevan.

As she constructed the fairy garden on the cafe grounds, she said she decided she had to dedicate it to the children.

“I take things to heart and when this happened I was just starting this little fairy garden,” Withers said.

“I went out there to do a bit on it and it just came to me that ‘I’ve got to make this for the kids. They’ve got to be remembered.”

She said she approached a local trophy engraver who was able to include images of the children on the plaque.

The fence was painted in the same bright colours chosen by the family for the children’s caskets.

The plaque also included the name of Iris – Field’s stillborn daughter whose ashes were lost in the fire that consumed the family home during the incident – as well as the family dog Marlo who also died.

Withers said the children’s deaths had shaken not just the tight-knit community but the nation.

“It’s like it touched the whole of the country. The whole country wrapped their arms around Chelsey. [This kind of thing] just doesn’t happen in New Zealand let alone in little Sanson. It’s just shocking,” Withers said.

Field has been approached for comment.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

“This storm in a T-shirt” is how a climate activist who tried to pay a court fine using a hand-drawn $50 note has described being trespassed for wearing a shirt saying ‘It’s a Climate Emergency’.

Bruce Mahalski was convicted and discharged in December for trespassing at the Dunedin Airport after wearing the shirt and holding a protest sign.

The offender levy is paid by any person or company sentenced in the District or High Court.

But Mahalski objected to paying the fee, saying it implied he committed an antisocial crime when his motives were selfless.

“It is a climate emergency and there’s nothing controversial about that,” Mahalski said.

On Wednesday morning, he arrived at Dunedin District Court with his hand-drawn $50 note, which he did over the weekend, depicting Cabinet minister Shane Jones instead of Ernest Rutherford, a vulture instead of a kōkako and the Beehive instead of a marae.

When court staff questioned what he wanted them to do with it after he presented the note, Mahalski told them they could auction it off and donate the proceeds to victims of violent crimes.

They refused, and another climate activist stepped in to buy the note, covering the fee.

Mahalski said this all started with a collaborative art project where he would go to different places wearing the T-shirt and holding a tiny sign to photograph.

They had been to Christchurch Airport with no issues, but he said it went downhill when he was standing alone, with his sign, as people arrived off the new Jetstar Gold Coast flight at Dunedin Airport last year.

He had gone to the information desk to check he could be there and was told that was okay, but security staff asked him to leave. They had called the police and he had been trespassed when he asked to take photos first, he said.

Another trip to Christchurch Airport had been uneventful, but when he returned to Dunedin Airport, he was trespassed.

The airport was owned by the government and Dunedin City Council, both of whom had declared a climate emergency, he said.

“This storm in a T-shirt. I just can’t believe we’re standing here talking about it,” Mahalski said.

“It’s just absolutely ridiculous that we’re still talking about this stuff when the government in 2018 – ‘It’s a climate emergency, we’re going to do something. We’re going to reduce emissions. Here’s an emissions trading scheme, we’re going to put all of these mechanisms in place,’ and suddenly, bang – it’s all gone. Forget about it. Never happened.”

It was not the first time he had returned an unorthodox offender fee.

“Last time, I took the $50 note for my offender levy into the court in a bag of coal.”

He was inspired by American artist J.S.G. Boggs, who was charged with counterfeiting after hand-drawing bank notes and using them.

The hand-drawn note would now be auctioned off on TradeMe, with half the proceeds going to victims of violent crime and the other half to the climate movement. He hoped it would raise about $1000.

As to whether he would return to Dunedin Airport, he did not plan to but expected other activists would.

The government was contacted for comment.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

People whose GPs no longer use Manage My Health may still have had their historical data hacked.

Hackers are threatening to release 400,000 files from 120,000 patients, if the health portal does not pay a US$60,000 (NZ$103,000) ransom.

Manage My Health has begun telling general practices whether their patients have been affected, and it is working on telling individual patients via a Privacy Act notification.

A number of people have told RNZ their GP had previously switched from Manage My Health to another platform, but they can still log in to Manage My Health and see their information there.

Manage My Health chief executive Vino Ramayah confirmed the company holds on to records unless a patient cancels their account.

It was up to patients to cancel their account, not their GP, he said.

“When… a practice leaves Manage My Health, the patients have a choice to continue to use Manage My Health or they can close the application, in which case we will delete the data,” he said.

“It’s essentially patient data – we need their consent because we’ll be wiping out a lot of their historical data, so that is why it is stored.”

People can use the platform privately – they do not need to use it through their GP, he said.

Ramayah said people should have “a level of personal diligence” with their Manage My Health accounts. Users should change their passwords regularly, and use two-factor authentication, he said.

“I would encourage everyone to consider security as a very key part of your thinking, especially when you put sensitive information in an application, irrespective of whether it’s Manage My Health or… any other healthcare app.”

How long should medical records be kept for?

The privacy commissioner’s website said health agencies should not keep medical information for any longer than they have a lawful purpose for using it.

“The Health (Retention of Health Information) Regulations 1996 say that health agencies must keep any health records they hold for a patient for 10 years from the last time they provided services to that patient.

“However, this requirement doesn’t apply if the health agency has transferred the files to a new healthcare provider or if they have given the complete file to the patient (or, if the patient has died, to the patient’s executor).”

Informing affected patients, GPs

Manage My Health said on Tuesday it was beginning to tell GPs whether their patients were caught up in the breach.

It said affected GPs could log in to a portal to see which patients had their data stolen and what records were taken.

It would also inform practices that no longer use Manage My Health, and it was working on notifying affected patients.

“The Privacy Act requires individuals to be notified when their information has been accessed in an unauthorised way,” it said.

“[Manage My Health] is taking on this responsibility on behalf of the practices, to which the information is being provided so that practices can provide support after individuals have been notified.

“Privacy Act notifications will go to practices through Manage My Health, together with details of how more information and support can be accessed.”

Manage My Health would also establish an 0800 helpline for impacted patients, it said.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

A Sanson cafe owner says a memorial to the children of the Field family is a chance to let mother Chelsey Field know “her little one’s lives mattered”.

August, Hugo and Goldie Field died late last year, in what is being treated as a murder-suicide. Their father, Dean Field also died.

Emergency services were called to a fire at the family’s home on 15 November.

On Tuesday, Chelsey Field unveiled a plaque installed in front of a colourful picket fence which encircled a fairy garden in the playground at Viv’s Kitchen on the main road of the small Manawatū town.

Vivienne Anne Withers owns the cafe alongside her husband Kevan.

As she constructed the fairy garden on the cafe grounds, she said she decided she had to dedicate it to the children.

“I take things to heart and when this happened I was just starting this little fairy garden,” Withers said.

“I went out there to do a bit on it and it just came to me that ‘I’ve got to make this for the kids. They’ve got to be remembered.”

She said she approached a local trophy engraver who was able to include images of the children on the plaque.

The fence was painted in the same bright colours chosen by the family for the children’s caskets.

The plaque also included the name of Iris – Field’s stillborn daughter whose ashes were lost in the fire that consumed the family home during the incident – as well as the family dog Marlo who also died.

Withers said the children’s deaths had shaken not just the tight-knit community but the nation.

“It’s like it touched the whole of the country. The whole country wrapped their arms around Chelsey. [This kind of thing] just doesn’t happen in New Zealand let alone in little Sanson. It’s just shocking,” Withers said.

Field has been approached for comment.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

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

Source: Radio New Zealand

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