Checkpoint for Tuesday 5 May 2015

6:51 PM.MPs express congratulations on birth of royal baby; PM faces questions about "ponytail gate" from Andrew Little. Questions also for Bill English on housing from Green MP Kevin Hague. Audio

6:45 PM.The Auditor General has released a highly critical report about the Maori social welfare initiative Whanau Ora, saying it is confusing, bureaucratic and poorly administered; Tangata whenua are backing… Read more Audio

6:42 PM.New rules are being drawn up about restraining school children or putting them in timeout rooms but IHC and Youth Law warn that doesn't mean this should occur more often. Audio

6:40 PM.One of the gunmen who attacked a Dallas art exhibition on Sunday had been on the FBI's watch list since 2007. 30 year old Elton Simpson and his accomplice Nadir Soofi were shot to death by a police… Read more Audio

6:35 PM.The Auditor General's office admits it's impossible to tell how successful the social welfare initiative Whanau Ora has been. In a highly critical report the public spending watchdog has looked at the… Read more Audio

6:26 PM.The country's biggest motorway project needs repairs because it's made with faulty concrete. Fletcher Building subsidiary Firth is having to front up to repairs for 35 customers. Audio

6:25 PM.Urgent work to save the New Brighton pier in Christchurch will cost more than twice what was spent building the attraction in the first place. An assessment has found the Canterbury earthquakes caused… Read more Audio

6:17 PM.A tsunami alert has been issued after a 7 point 5 magnitude earthquake off the Papua New Guinea coast. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre says there may be hazardous tsunami waves within 300… Read more Audio

6:15 PM.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed the well-being of around 260 New Zealanders in Nepal with only a few people unaccounted for. One of those is 63 year old Peter Curreen from Marlborough… Read more Audio

6:08 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:56 PM.Faulty concrete's been poured at one of Auckland's big motorway projects and it has to be repaired. Ramp 4 on the Great North Road Interchange that's part of the Waterview Connection needs repairing. Audio

5:52 PM.Tangata whenua are backing a new rates model introduced by the Far North District Council which they say gives multiple-owners of Maori land a fair rates system for the first time. The board which… Read more Audio

5:49 PM.An Auckland High School has banned the anonymous messaging app yik yak after a student led campaign to stop bullying. Yik Yak allows people to anonymously create and view messages or "Yaks" within a… Read more Audio

5:45 PM.Jobs are on the line at the New Plymouth District Council where about 140 leadership roles are being looked at in a drive to be more efficient. The council says it expects streamlining its management… Read more Audio

5:41 PM.It's impossible to tell if the 137 million dollar Whanau Ora programme to improve the lives of Maori has achieved what it set out to do. The Auditor General has looked at the first four years of the… Read more Audio

5:38 PM.Nine workers at Parliament who are on zero hour contracts have all but won a promise of guaranteed hours. This comes after Labour leader Andrew Little pressed the Speaker, David Carter to take action.

5:35 PM.The New Zealand dollar is bouncing around after the Reserve Bank of Australia cut its offical cash rate by a quarter-point, to a record low of 2 percent, late this afternoon. Audio

5:30 PM.The British media have lauded the choice of Charlotte Elizabeth Diana as the name of the new baby princess, with its close links to the families of both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Audio

5:25 PM.An Australian twitter user who recommended attacking an anti-islamic event in Texas just days before two people were shot dead outside it, has now posted a guide on Twitter on how to join ISIS. Audio

5:21 PM.The Prime Minister walked into Parliament today expecting to be mocked about repeatedly pulling the ponytail of a waitress at his local cafe in Parnell. But while John Key was questioned about it he… Read more Audio

5:18 PM.The head of the Olympics has flagged the possibility of New Zealand hosting the Games. The president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach who's on a two day visit here, says he's open… Read more Audio

5:16 PM.A High Court judge has told the Blessie Gotingco jury he will be questioning them individually to ensure they obey his order not to read any media reports about the case. This follows a court… Read more Audio

5:11 PM.Kumeu and Huapai are in John Key's Helensville electorate and a community leader there is warning that locals would be disgusted if the Government over-rides Auckland Council's decision. Pete Sinton… Read more Audio

5:07 PM.The Government and the Auckland Council are now openly butting heads over who's going to pay the infrastructure costs for special housing areas designed to ease pressure on the city's residential… Read more Audio

5:00 PM.Govt butts heads with council over Auckland housing, Helensville locals warn Govt over special housing areas, Judge warns Gotingco jurors off web searches, Could NZ host the Olympics? PM expected to… Read more Audio