Checkpoint for Tuesday 19 May 2015

6:51 PM.Prime Minister John Key quizzed on the government's tightened tax regime for residential property investors. Finance Minister Bill English coy on contents of his seventh Budget, to be presented on… Read more Audio

6:46 PM.A Gisborne kura says the Government's slashed nearly 40-thousand dollars of desperately needed funding from its budget due to an incorrect decile rating; Norway's biggest oil giant will be told to… Read more Audio

6:42 PM.Relationships Aotearoa's board has been meeting with Anne Tolley's ministry this evening, after the Minister told it this morning there'd be no cash injection coming. Jane Allison only took over as… Read more Audio

6:39 PM.The Social Development Minister, Anne Tolley, says there are deep-seated problems with the financial management of Relationships Aotearoa. The non profit counselling and support services met with the… Read more Audio

6:37 PM.Harrowing accounts of sexual assault and squalid living conditions at the Australian-funded detention centre on Nauru have been revealed in submissions to a Senate inquiry. Audio

6:33 PM.Apple has been handed a mixed ruling by a U.S. appeals court in the latest twist in a blockbuster intellectual property battle with Samsung. A prior patent infringement verdict was upheld but a… Read more Audio

6:29 PM.As the Government faces ongoing pressure over the spiralling prices in the Auckland housing market, the Finance Minister has confirmed there will be measures to increase supply in Thursday's Budget. Audio

6:23 PM.Smudge McNeilage is the match officials manager for Auckland Rugby. Audio

6:21 PM.Parents who stormed onto the field at an under 8's rugby game and had a stand-up row have been condemned. The game at Coxs Park between Ponsonby and Waitemata had to end early. Auckland Rugby has… Read more Audio

6:16 PM.Chris Gallavin, the Dean of the Canterbury Law School has been following the case closely. Audio

6:12 PM.A newly acquitted John Banks wants the Solicitor General to stand down over what the ex-Cabinet Minister is calling a vindictive and personal prosecution. Audio

6:07 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:52 PM.A Gisborne kura says the Government's slashed nearly 40-thousand dollars of desperately needed funding from its budget due to an incorrect decile rating. Audio

5:49 PM.The Prime Minister has been challenged on his continued insistence there is no housing crisis in Auckland in Parliament this afternoon. This follows the announcement the Government will tax capital… Read more Audio

5:45 PM.Three Australian men who joined Islamic State are now in talks with Canberra officials about coming home. Fairfax journalist Marissa Calligeros says negotiations began several months ago. Audio

5:44 PM.Secondary principals say some of the 18 organisations responsible for chasing truants and unenrolled students need to lift their game. They want the Education Ministry to put more pressure on the… Read more Audio

5:39 PM.Police in south Auckland have a clearer description of the man spotted vandalising the children's section of Papakura Cemetery on Saturday night. The man was recorded on CCTV footage in the cemetery… Read more Audio

5:36 PM.The New Zealand dollar rallied this afternoon, after the Reserve Bank's survey of inflation expectations showed an unexpected rise, suggesting that a cut to interest rates might not happen as soon as… Read more Audio

5:28 PM.The man accused of raping and murdering Blessie Gotingco says he was high on methamphetamine and out to score more when he accidentally crashed into the North Shore mother of three. He said he thought… Read more Audio

5:25 PM.The country's largest counselling service is facing collapse without more funding and has been defending itself at meetings today with the Minister and bureaucrats who claim it's inefficient. Audio

5:19 PM.The Government is planning to revamp the way it funds community organisations working with vulnerable, at risk and poor young people. It says some providers might have to lay off staff or cease… Read more Audio

5:14 PM.John Banks speaks with Mary Wilson. Audio

5:12 PM.Our reporter, Michael Allan, has been reading the judgement. Audio

5:08 PM.Freshly acquitted, a combative and tearful John Banks has today lashed out calling the Crown very personal and very vindictive in pursuing him in the Dotcom donations prosecution. Audio

5:00 PM.John Banks is acquitted; Our reporter goes through John Banks judgement; John Banks says three years of hell is over; Govt intending to revamp way it funds community organisations; Meetings over the… Read more Audio