Checkpoint for Friday 21 February 2014

6:57 PM.Despite a five-year low in the amount being spent on pokies in pubs and clubs, critics say there is still work to be done to tackle problem gambling. Audio

6:52 PM.The New Zealand First leader, Winston Peters, says the government is ignoring the problems of ordinary Maori by appeasing to what he says are 'so-called' Maori leaders; The Maori Council says the… Read more Audio

6:40 PM.Disagreement about how to reduce poverty and inequality is looming as one of the big debates of election year. Audio

6:35 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:25 PM.A record number of floats and trading activity last year helped bolster the stock market operator's full year net profit by nearly 23 percent. Audio

6:18 PM.The gloves worn by Muhammad Ali when he beat Sonny Liston to win his first heavyweight crown will go under the hammer in New York this weekend, three days before the fight's 50th anniversary. Audio

6:15 PM.An Auckland bus company says it still has no idea why one of its drivers, jailed over a fatal crash, was speeding. Audio

6:10 PM.Up to half of the evidence presented in what's believed to be the longest-running employment dispute, could be ruled irrelevant if the Employment Court accepts Radio New Zealand's submissions . Audio

6:07 PM.Phone companies are predicted to lose billions of dollars over the next six years as people take to calling each other on cheap internet services like Skype. Audio

5:55 PM.People are being warned not to use the auction website 'DealSave' after dozens lost hundreds of dollars just by registering on the site. Audio

5:50 PM.The Independent Police Conduct Authority has decided not to investigate a complaint against the police commissioner by the brother of Arthur Allan Thomas. Audio

5:48 PM.The Maori Council says the Maori Affairs Minister, Pita Sharples, is trying to break law in his proposals to revive Te Reo Maori; The New Zealand First leader, Winston Peters, says the government is… Read more Audio

5:45 PM.Auckland Council is spending about 400-thousand dollars of ratepayers' money fighting a court battle over its decision to slash funding of the region's rescue helicopter service. Audio

5:43 PM.One of the last people to see a Canadian couple alive in Haast Pass says the landslide she was confronted with made it impossible to get beyond to check what had happened. Audio

5:40 PM.It's a brand as old as the touch-tone phone, but now Telecom is hanging up. Audio

5:35 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:25 PM.The man accused of killing his step daughter has been found not guilty in a majority verdict. Audio

5:22 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:18 PM.The New Zealand First leader, Winston Peters, has used his State of the Nation speech to attack immigration policy and Maori. Audio

5:15 PM.There are early signs this week's school pay day has gone wrong, raising fears the troubled school pay system, Novopay, is going through a new patch of problems. Audio

5:10 PM.An Auckland tree climbing company must pay more than 100 thousand dollars for failing to keep a man safe who fell 13 metres to his death in front of his wife. Audio

5:06 PM.The Finance Minister has conceded getting the Government's books back into surplus has become more difficult with the latest financial statements showing the tax take lower than forecast. Audio

5:00 PM.Finance Minister concedes getting Govt's books back into surplus more difficult;Tree fall company must pay $100,000;Latest school pay-day goes wrong;Winston Peters sticks to usual targets in State of… Read more Audio