Checkpoint for Wednesday 17 April 2013

6:56 PM.Rain in Bay of Plenty has come as welcome relief for farmers who have been battling months of drought. Audio

6:53 PM.The Auckland District Health Board is taking a tough line on patient confidentiality after it had to discipline more than 30 staff members who had accessed a patient's medical images. Audio

6:50 PM.The body managing millions of dollars of multiple-owned Maori land says there are about 40 thousand beneficiaries it is actively trying to track down; A Bay of Plenty Maori land incorporation is now a… Read more Audio

6:43 PM.The environment watchdog has accused fisheries staff of ignoring warnings that the native longfin eel is under threat and says the scientific data they use is inadequate. Audio

6:40 PM.Hundreds of people are pouring into Parliament to witness the third and final reading of the legislation allowing same sex marriage. Audio

6:37 PM.The Defence Minister has today come under pressure in Parliament about whether a senior defence official fraudulently filled out his security vetting form. Audio

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

6:25 PM.The Financial Markets Authority wants to play an educative role in persuading New Zealanders not to invest everything they have in housing. Audio

6:22 PM.Telecommunications companies will soon be forced to intercept calls and emails to help the police and other law enforcement agencies including the SIS and GCSB , under new laws unveiled today. Audio

6:16 PM.As you just heard emergency amputations had to be carried out after the blasts - the latest figure is 11 such operations done at hospitals throughout Boston. Audio

6:08 PM.More now on the Ministry of Education decision to go to court over the one-and-a-half billion dollar repair bill it's facing for leaky school buildings. Audio

5:55 PM.The law giving workers Monday off when Waitangi or Anzac Day falls on the weekend has just been passed. Audio

5:50 PM.The FBI says its now knows the bombs that exploded at the Boston Marathon killing 3 people and injuring more than 170 others were constructed within two pressure cookers, and hidden in dark nylon bags… Read more Audio

5:47 PM.A Bay of Plenty Maori land incorporation is now a step closer to being able to provide affordable housing for its iwi beneficiaries; The body managing millions of dollars of multiple-owned Maori land… Read more Audio

5:43 PM.The Prime Minister has confirmed a proposed law change would prevent him phoning prospective candidates to run the country's electronic spy agency. Audio

5:40 PM.The Human Rights' Commission is trying to stop the Sensible Sentencing Trust from continuing to publish the name of a convicted paedophile. Audio

5:37 PM.The failure of security systems to detect a gun in a lawyer's briefcase at a Christchurch court is under investigation. Audio

5:34 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:28 PM.Over thirty Auckland doctors and nurses are being disciplined and some may be sacked for looking at xrays of a patient with an eel stuck in his rectum. Audio

5:26 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:20 PM.Investigators at the scene of the terror attack in Boston have now found a circuit board that may have been used to detonate the deadly explosives. Audio

5:15 PM.Our political editor Brent Edwards was at briefing earlier today on the enw law that will allow the GCSB to spy on New Zealanders. Audio

5:12 PM.Telecommunications companies will soon be forced to intercept calls and emails to help the police and other law enforcement agencies including the SIS and GCSB, under new laws unveiled today. Audio

5:10 PM.James Hardie hasn't returned our calls. Our Economics Correspondent Patrick O'Meara has the latest. Audio

5:07 PM.The Ministry of Education is suing the makers of wall claddings used in leaky school buildings that now require one-and-a-half billion dollars in repairs. Audio

5:00 PM.The one and half billion dollar law suit over leaky school buildings. Forcing Telcos to intercept calls and e-mails to help the police and spy agencies and some hospital staff could be sacked for… Read more Audio