Checkpoint for Wednesday 3 April 2013

6:54 PM.Better technology, roads and driver attitude of motorists are some of the reasons the country's road toll has decreased in recent years. Audio

6:50 PM.Ngati Maniapoto has become the first Iwi to sign a joint management agreement with a number of local councils to help protect the Waipa River; The government is calling for feedback on recommendations… Read more Audio

6:47 PM.An Australian study has found that children who experience puberty early, are also more likely to have poorer mental health at a young age. Audio

6:44 PM.Three English tourists who were robbed at knifepoint in the Bay of Islands, had shared cigarettes with their attackers earlier in the evening. Audio

6:38 PM.Two Chinese companies have won approval to spend more than 400 million dollars building infant formula processing plants in Canterbury and south of Auckland. Audio

6:34 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:24 PM.Firefighters have been battling a large fire at the University of Auckland's Maidment Theatre after a curtain caught alight. Audio

6:21 PM.The Commerce Commission will press on with its review of Chorus' broadband prices, despite the Government's plans to overhaul the telecommunications rules. Audio

6:17 PM.The Mayor of Westland District Council says freedom camping may need to be reassessed now that the council has had to suspend its camping bylaw. Audio

6:12 PM.The first-ever treaty to stop countries exporting weapons that could be used for war crimes or genocide has been adopted overwhelmingly by the United Nations. Audio

5:54 PM.The Automobile Association is calling for new road safety campaigns targeting Maori and Pasifika communities. Audio

5:51 PM.Ngati Maniapoto has become the first Iwi to sign a joint management agreement with a number of local councils to help protect the Waipa River; The government is calling for feedback on recommendations… Read more Audio

5:47 PM.The judge in charge of Australia's largest inquiry into child abuse has told its opening in Melbourne today that the aim is to right the wrongs of the past. Audio

5:44 PM.The squatter who lived in a driftwood and tarpaulin shelter on a Taranaki beach for 16 years has been evicted and won't be going back. Audio

5:35 PM.The Prime Minister is defending calling up Ian Fletcher to tell him about the spy agency's top job. Audio

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

5:27 PM.Mainzeal's liquidators have told contractors meeting in Auckland to expect to get back substantially less than they are owed by the failed building company. Audio

5:25 PM.Police in Tauranga are trying find out how a kidnapping, the death of a teenager and a car accident are connected. Audio

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

5:19 PM.Two big Chinese infant formula companies have been granted permission to build dairy plants in New Zealand, investing more than 400 million dollars between them. Audio

5:15 PM.North Korea has amped up the pressure on Seoul by banning South Korean workers from entering a joint industrial park. Audio

5:07 PM.The Prime Minister has defended his role in the appointment of Ian Fletcher as director of the Government's spy agency. Audio

5:00 PM.John Key defends his role in the appointment of the country's top spy. Police investigate how a kidnapping, a car crash and a dead body are all connected and North Korea amps up the pressure on Seoul.