Integrated schools are angry the Government’s excluded them from its surprise $400 million spend up on school property; and the Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis is turning to technology to help monitor freedom camping sites.
1.Integrated schools are angry the Government’s excluded them from its surprise $400 million spend up on school property. They say they will consider legal options for not getting a share of the money.
2.The Samoan Government is widening the target of its mass vaccination programme as it attempts to get on top of the measles epidemic. 48 people have died from measles since the outbreak began in October and more than 3,500 people have been infected.
3.A Samoan community leader in Auckland says it’s going to be a somber Christmas back home because of the epidemic. Some churches in Samoa have cancelled their Christmas celebrations because of a ban on large group gatherings and Samoans in New Zealand are being urged to get vaccinated before making holiday visits.
4.A 36-year-old man Rueben Paul Peeni arrested over the death of a woman in the suburb of Maeroa in Hamilton just over a week ago has now been charged with murder. 38-year-old Crystal-Lee Selwyn died after an assault at a property in Churchill Ave.
5.The Tourism Minister Kelvin Davis is turning to technology to help monitor freedom camping sites. Over $8 million will fund the responsible camping programme with the majority spread across councils to be used to better provide for and educate visitors.
6.Staff at the New Zealand headquarters of oil and gas company OMV have been forced to stay home today after protesters blockaded its offices this morning. About 60 environmentalists co-ordinated by Greenpeace barricaded the entrances to the Austrian company’s New Plymouth building from about 7am.Greenpeace spokesperson Niamh O’Flynn said the intention was to stop the company operating.
7. The United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has warned current efforts to reach global climate targets thoroughly inadequate. Speaking at the opening of the COP 25 Climate Summit in Madrid, Guterres said with the help of science humanity must stop its current war against nature.
8.A major Auckland water pipe has burst and many residents between the CBD and Western Springs can expect reduced water pressure for the next 24 hours.
9. Supporters of a former Christchurch City Councillor says the allegations that derailed his re-election campaign were deliberately leaked giving him no opportunity to refute them.Deon Swiggs, lost his Central ward seat to Jake McLellan after allegations that Swiggs had engaged in inappropriate late-night messaging with young people, and insisted on hugs instead of handshakes.The reporting of the allegations derailed Swiggs’ campaign, although McLellan has maintained he was always on track to win.
10.Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has announced he will step down, saying on state television he will ask his ruling Labour party to start a process to choose a new leader in January.
11.A 23-year-old Cambridge University graduate working as a volunteer for a program connecting prisoners with students has been named as the second person killed by terrorist Usman Khan in the London Bridge attack.Saskia Jones was killed along with 25-year-old Learning Together program coordinator Jack Merritt when Usman Khan, formerly convicted on terror charges, went on a rampage on Friday.
12. Broadcasting Minister Chris Faafoi says the Government will announce future funding options for RNZ and TVNZ by Christmas.
13. Researchers say they are amazed at the dept of anxiety in Australian towns with the worst contamination from fire fighting foam. The Australian Government is looking at the effects the contamination is having on the physical and mental health of residents in three towns.
14.Dogs of all sizes will be able to travel on trains in Auckland from Sunday. Previously only dogs small enough to fit inside a carrier were allowed on board.
15. Adernaline junkies can once again get close to great white sharks, after a court ruling outlawing cage diving was overturned.
16.A new apple which is said to stay fresh for up to a year in the fridge was launched in the United States today. Plant breeders at Washington State University say the Cosmic Crisp apple has a good balance of sweet and tart, and is very juicy.
