The Health Ministry has been consulting with the state spy agency, the GCSB, over tracing people as it works to get its Covid-19 systems up to speed; and cabinet ministers are meeting now via video link to decide whether New Zealand will come out of the nationwide lockdown.
1.Cabinet ministers are meeting now via video link to decide whether New Zealand will come out of the nationwide lockdown. Ministers started cabinet earlier today at 10:30am to give them time to make the decision that will affect all New Zealanders and could decide the fate of thousands of businesses.
2.The Health Ministry has been consulting with the state spy agency, the GCSB, over tracing people as it works to get its Covid-19 systems up to speed. This comes amid growing concern globally that contact tracing could lead to mass surveillance, and local concern the Government is not being transparent enough.
3.A man with a machete has been shot dead by police in South Auckland. Police said they received multiple calls after 1am about a man damaging cars, smashing windows in a house and trying to cut power lines in Papatoetoe.
4.An Auckland man has been charged with attempting to infect three police officers with Covid-19 by spitting on them last month. The 31-year-old has name suppression.
5.Hunting or camping in Te Urewera will not be allowed at Covid-19 alert level 3, Tūhoe says. Hunters have been calling for the Government to allow the activity under level 3, saying it is food gathering for many people at this time of year, and it can be done safely.
6.A suspected gunman who dressed as a policeman killed at least 10 people, including a police officer, in Nova Scotia, Canadian police say. The 12-hour rampage ended in a car chase and the attacker is also dead. Residents in the rural town of Portapique had been advised to lock themselves indoors after the attack began on Saturday.
7.The Australian Government has ordered the competition watchdog to develop a mandatory code of conduct to govern commercial dealings between tech giants and news media companies. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said a mandatory code would help “level the playing field” by requiring digital platforms such as Google and Facebook to pay news media businesses for the content they produce.
8.New Zealand’s largest news website has received an influx of donations in its first hour of an online contribution scheme. Stuff readers can now donate to help fund the company’s local and national news teams.
9.A New Zealander has been arrested in a major methamphetamine bust in Australia that began in the waters off New Caledonia. Australian Federal Police say the 33-year-old man is one of two men arrested on board a yacht carrying a tonne of the illicit drug also known as P. Police say the haul has an estimated street value of up to $A750 million ($NZ789m).
10.Higher tobacco prices and rising rents have pushed inflation higher than expected. Consumer prices rose 0.8 percent in the March quarter taking the annual rate to a near nine year high of 2.5 percent.
11.Bob Dylan’s handwritten lyrics to his 1960s classic The Times They Are A-Changin’ are going up for sale with a $US2.2 million (NZ$3.6 million) asking price in what could mark a world record for rock lyrics.
