Checkpoint for Wednesday 27 April 2011

6:57 PM.Auckland patients are being promised fewer delays to non-urgent surgery thanks to a new 27 million dollar centre at Greenlane. Audio

6:54 PM.The breakdown in traditional family life and the Americanisation of young people are being blamed for the continuing rise in teenage pregnancy in American Samoa. Audio

6:46 PM.Tomorrow the Christchurch City Council will consider bringing in a ban on drinking alcohol on the streets of Riccarton. Audio

6:43 PM.News from the Waatea team. Audio

6:37 PM.Farmers fear a new proposal from the Environment Ministry will stop them clearing native scrub as it grows back, cost too much and force some off their land. Audio

6:32 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:22 PM.Business confidence has rebounded sharply, despite February's devastating earthquake in Christchurch. Audio

6:17 PM.The head of an internet safety group in New Zealand. Audio

6:10 PM.The daughter of an elderly couple, shot dead in Waikato in 1994, is condemning the decision to allow one of the men who killed her parents to work outside jail. Audio

5:54 PM.The Prime Minister, John Key, says he got a good hearing from his British counterpart David Cameron over a departure tax which makes long haul trips out of the UK more expensive. Audio

5:51 PM.A Chinese national has been found guilty in Tonga's first case of human trafficking. Audio

5:49 PM.News from the Waatea team. Audio

5:45 PM.The New Zealand Government has been urged to fix what's being termed a distorted housing market that harms the poor. Audio

5:41 PM.The Police in Waikato are investigating how two babies were injured, one of them critically. Audio

5:37 PM.The daughter of an elderly couple, shot dead in Waikato in 1994, is condemning the decision to allow one of the men who killed her parents to work outside jail. Audio

5:35 PM.Don Brash has been lobbying individual ACT MPs in Auckland this afternoon as he keeps up the pressure to roll Rodney Hide as Party leader. Audio

5:31 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:25 PM.Hackers may have stolen the details of millions of PlayStation players. Audio

5:23 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:21 PM.For more on the latest disruptions, we're joined by Paul Evans from Hastings Distrcit Council. Audio

5:17 PM.About 80 people from four coastal settlements in Hawke's Bay are facing a second night away from home, after flooding threatened their properties. Audio

5:12 PM.Don Brash has been meeting with Act Party MPs today to push his bid to oust leader Rodney Hide. Audio

5:08 PM.Customs at Auckland Airport has seized nearly ten million dollars worth of crystal meth which they say was brought in by ten Malaysians who were each hiding up to a kilo of the drug in the soles of… Read more Audio

5:00 PM.Ten million dollar drug bust at Auckland Airport; Don Brash meets MPs to push his leadership bid; Flood evacuees face second night away from home; Latest on disruption after wild weather near… Read more Audio