Checkpoint for Wednesday 17 August 2011

6:57 PM.New Zealand's top inventors and entreprenuers have gathered in Wellington for the official opening of the new Ministry of Science and Innovation building. Audio

6:46 PM.Kohanga Reo supporters from around the country have been putting their case to the Waitangi Tribunal today for an urgent hearing; The Trustees of Te Rakato marae on Mahia Peninsular in Northern… Read more Audio

6:44 PM.A campaigner against 1080 poison says he is sure his group has nothing to do with the deaths of six kea. Audio

6:41 PM.The Prime Minister has criticised the official measure of unemployment as he tries to rebut Labour Party claims about the rise in young people without jobs. Audio

6:36 PM.The 90 year battle to sell apples in Australia is finally over. Audio

6:33 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:26 PM.Every hour an adult spends sitting in front of the television could be shortening their life span by 22 minutes according to new research. Audio

6:22 PM.The country's largest listed company, Fletcher Building, says home building is at its weakest level in more than 70 years, when the country was in depression. Audio

6:18 PM.Big sea swells are threatening a possible evacuation of people along the Hawke's Bay coast. Audio

6:14 PM.A former AUT manager has pleaded guilty to stealing more than 600-thousand dollars from the university. Audio

6:11 PM.The convicted paedophile and former Christian political leader Graham Capill will be released on parole next month. Audio

6:08 PM.After months of pressure from opposition parties, the National-led Government has moved to increase the number of mines inspectors. Audio

5:55 PM.All Blacks fans want Telecom to put its campaign urging them to abstain from sex during the Cup, to bed. Audio

5:50 PM.The Waitangi Tribunal has been hearing evidence today on why Kohanga Reo supporters should be granted a hearing under urgency; One of the country's oldest Maori general practitioners has died; A… Read more Audio

5:46 PM.The outgoing Governor-General, Sir Anand Satyanand, has called for better voter turnouts, at his official farewell at Parliament. Audio

5:43 PM.Food and fuel deliveries have finally arrived in Queenstown, after the biggest snowfall in 50 years, cut supply routes for three days. Audio

5:39 PM.The Government has backed down and begun an overhaul of how mines are inspected instead of waiting till after the inquiry into the Pike River disaster is finished. Audio

5:38 PM.Dozens of volunteers turned out in their four-wheel drives today to help the Meals on Wheels team deliver more than 700 hot lunches around Christchurch. Audio

5:32 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:25 PM.The emperor penguin, known as Happy Feet, is to head home aboard the country's only deepwater, ice-strengthened ship. Audio

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

5:19 PM.The convicted paedophile Graham Capill, former leader of the Christian Heritage Party, is being released on parole next month. Audio

5:17 PM.The police say hope is fading of finding a man who is missing after a boat sank in the Hauraki Gulf. Audio

5:14 PM.The boyfriend of a woman who went missing eight years ago has been charged with her murder. Audio

5:12 PM.Dennis Wood of Greymouth spent 17 years as a mines inspector, stepping down in the late 90s partly in protest at the overhaul that weakened the inspection regime. Audio

5:07 PM.After months of pressure the Government has backed down and announced an overhaul of how mines are inspected. Audio

5:00 PM.The government backs down and agrees to get tough on mine safety. The boyfriend of a woman missing for eight years is charged with her murder and Graham Capill is to be released from jail. Audio