3+ week, 4+ day ago (381+ words) Q+A host Jack Tame is TVNZ's new 6pm weekend newsreader. He and TVNZ have been in discussions about him assuming the role left vacant by Melissa Stokes, after her elevation to the weekday newsreading role. Stokes will take over from long-serving newsreader Simon Dallow in three weeks - Dallow's departure, first reported by Media Insider three weeks ago, was confirmed by TVNZ earlier this week. TVNZ presenters, from left, Jack Tame, Melissa Stokes, and Daniel Faitaua. Tame hosts TVNZ's Q+A on Sunday mornings and the state broadcaster is understood to be keen to use more of his talent - he is, arguably, the best TV interviewer in the country. And while newsreading requires a slightly different skillset, he is considered a polished presenter. Another leading contender who will likely continue to be a fill-in newsreader is Daniel Faitaua. Media Insider learned…...

3+ day, 9+ hour ago (460+ words) Newstalk ZB has finished the year as the country's leading commercial radio station, for the 17th year in a row, while The Breeze is New Zealand's top music station." Both NZME and MediaWorks will take heart from the performance of several of their stations in the latest GFK radio ratings, released today." NZME's Newstalk ZB - led by breakfast host Mike Hosking - retains its number one position, with a share of 14.8 - down 0.1 on the previous survey. MediaWorks' The Breeze retains second spot with a share of 9.5 (+0.2)." MediaWorks music stations (The Rock, More FM, Magic/Breeze Classic, Mai and The Sound) hold the next five positions, followed by NZME's Coast, The Hits and ZM rounding out the top 10." Coast - which has undergone a music review and overhaul in recent months - has had the biggest jump in national share, up 0.9 to a share of…...

1+ week, 1+ day ago (588+ words) One of the country's largest iwi is taking the Government to court over proposed changes to conservation law that it says violate the iwi's Treaty settlement with the Crown." Whenua " land " is a central part of all iwi settlements. Ng'i Tahu's area of interest covers most of the South Island, including two-thirds of the country's conservation estate. This estate includes a wide range of culturally significant sites, species and landmarks that are significant to many New Zealanders, such as Aoraki/Mt Cook." Conservation provisions were a core part of the iwi's 1998 settlement, including guarantees the iwi would be able to participate in environmental area management plans and assurances its conservation estate would be protected." Ng'i Tahu leader Justin Tipa said the proposed changes to the Conservation Act undermined these assurances. The proposals include making more than 60% of public conservation land…...

4+ day, 2+ hour ago (548+ words) The two New Zealand women accused of importing 36kg of methamphetamine, estimated to be worth $37.7 million, into Australia can now be named as Karina Here McGaw and Emily Jade Grindlay. The women, both 22, had their baggage searched after arriving at Melbourne Airport from Malaysia on Monday. Australian Border Force officers allegedly found a white crystalline substance in each of the women's suitcases, totalling about 36kg, which later tested positive for methamphetamine. The case was referred to the Australian Federal Police (AFP), who arrested the women at the airport. Both have been charged with the importation and possession of a commercial quantity of a border-controlled drug, which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Police estimate the value of the meth is more than A$33 million (NZ$37.7m) and could have been distributed in 360,000 street deals. McGaw and Grindlay appeared in the Melbourne Magistrate's…...

3+ week, 6+ day ago (602+ words) How is it possible that the Dame Noeline Taurua crisis has actually got worse today?How is it possible that she's got her job back today and this thing has still got worse? I'm getting the impression that Netball New Zealand do not realize how bad this is today. If they don't realize the enormous damage that Dame Noeline has done to them by going on at least three radio interviews and one TV interview and saying repeatedly the same thing - that she does not know how she was stood down, that there was no investigation to clear her before she was brought back - if they don't realize how enormous this is, I can't explain it to them. They're not responding today to Dame Noels' comments and they're not saying if she's right or wrong. All we know is that…...

1+ day, 3+ hour ago (109+ words) Football commentator Jacob Spoonley joined Jason Pine to review yesterday's Wellington Phoenix's game, and preview today's Auckland FC's match. Follow the podcast on Wellington Phoenix have secured a surprise win over Adelaide United, lifting them to 6th in the A-League. An early goal from Alex Rufer and a penalty from Ramy Najjarine helped the team secure a 2-1 victory over the South Australian side. And tonight Auckland FC take on the Newcastle Jets at the Go Media Stadium, where a win would take them to the top of the table. Football commentator Jacob Spoonley joined Jason Pine to review the Phoenix's game, and preview Auckland FC's match....

2+ week, 2+ day ago (494+ words) A prominent sexual violence survivor and advocate says New Zealand should be "extremely grateful" for the actions of a young woman that sparked the downfall of one of the country's top cops. A bombshell report released this week from the Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) criticises some of the most senior police officers in New Zealand for failing to properly investigate the woman's complaints that former deputy commissioner Jevon McSkimming was a sexual predator. Louise Nicholas, a survivor and sexual violence advocate, gained a public profile after she alleged police officers raped her when she was in her teens. While four men were later acquitted, her case sparked an inquiry into how police treated victims of sexual violence. More than three decades after her case, which was also marred with allegations of a police cover-up, Nicholas said the police response…...

2+ week, 4+ day ago (543+ words) A man who fled from Afghanistan and sought refugee status in New Zealand went on to establish a chop shop which received $800,000 worth of stolen cars. Abdul Ahmadi was the director of a dismantling business that was carrying out legitimate work. But it was also dismantling and exporting stolen cars overseas behind the scenes. Ahmadi operated dismantling yards in Christchurch and Wellington and, over a period of time, became known as someone who accepted stolen cars. Some vehicles were stolen and delivered to his yard within hours. They would quickly be dismantled and shipped overseas. The practice came to an end when police raided his Christchurch yard and found several stolen vehicles on site. When authorities eventually completed their investigations, they found that 38 stolen vehicles with a combined value of $800,000 had been through Ahmadi's yards. The offending occurred between December…...

1+ week, 5+ day ago (660+ words) The days of a hospital lift breakdown causing immobile patients to be transferred to other hospitals will soon be over for Northland's Bay of Islands Hospital. The two-storey revamped hospital opened in 2018 with just one elevator, which broke down so frequently, staff questioned if it was new. Health NZ Te Whatu Ora will install a second lift in the growing hospital by the end of 2026, giving a backup in case of breakdown. NZ Nurses Organisation delegate Ros Harvey, who worked as a nurse on the 20-bed ward on the second floor, said it was a nightmare every time the sole lift broke down. The latest breakdown was for eight days in October but shorter breakdowns happened so frequently they have become "the norm, she said. A chairlift was installed by the stairs but was not suitable for patients who were…...

1+ week, 3+ day ago (593+ words) Christopher Luxon is "a very intelligent guy" and the only talk about turfing him from the top job is coming from the "chatterati", columnists and those with short attention spans who "always want some excitement", a senior Cabinet minister says." No one in National's caucus had raised with him the idea of replacing Luxon, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith told Ryan Bridge on Herald NOW this morning." Goldsmith's comments came after Herald columnist Matthew Hooton wrote that senior ministers were complaining the Prime Minister was failing to show the country that a "bold and comprehensive reform programme", rivalling great reforming Governments of the past, was under way across most portfolios." "They say this Government lacks a Prime Minister who can comprehend and pull it all together, communicate the vision that underpins it and build confidence among voters and the business community…...