Checkpoint for Tuesday 3 February 2026

5:52 PM.Australia correspondent Nick Grimm spoke to Lisa Owen about political conservatives in Australia continuing to endure upheaval, with the opposition there undergoing leadership instability and polls… Read more Audio

5:44 PM.A moggy with a taste for mince is on the prowl in Kerikeri. Keen hunter, Bella the cat burglar, has been bringing home a surprising midnight feast for her owners, sausage rolls in brown paper bags. In… Read more Audio

5:34 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Audio

5:30 PM.An alleged culture of sexism, favouritism and bullying is what drove one of the top kiwi boxers to hang up her gloves. The Sport Integrity Commission has been investigating Boxing NZ and its head… Read more Audio

5:24 PM.This story deals with suicide and mental health. The parents of a Tauranga teenager who took her own life are calling for improvements to the country's mental health system. 16-year-old Maddie Hall… Read more Audio

5:15 PM.Thousands of reports have flooded in about a vile, sickening smell coming from Christchurch's burnt out waste water treatment plant. The pong has plagued the suburb of Bromley and surrounding areas -… Read more Audio

5:08 PM.As the school year gets underway, recently released data shows while the number of students regularly turning up to school is improving it is still a long way from the government's goal of 80 percent… Read more Audio

4:49 PM.A pediatric specialist is urging Aotearoa's drug agency to fund weight loss drugs for teenagers. A Pharmac advisory panel has provisionally recommended funding Wegovy for chronic weight management in… Read more Audio

4:45 PM.Social media giant Meta says banning young people from its platforms will never work but supporters of a law change are crying foul, saying the owner of Facebook and Instagram is using the same… Read more Audio

4:36 PM.Over $170,000 of desperately needed money has been raised for whanau in the flood ravaged East Cape of the North Island. But the chair of Manaaki Matakaoa says locals are in for a long slog when the… Read more Audio

4:31 PM.Squash will debut at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles and with the qualifying procedure now revealed it is good news for New Zealand's top player. There will be a men's and a women's competition… Read more Audio

4:26 PM.The National Iwi Chairs Forum has unanimously backed a High Court challenge from Hauraki iwi Ngāti Manuhiri against the Governments Marine and Coastal Area Act passed last year. The Act makes it… Read more Audio

4:13 PM.US correspondent Todd Zwillich spoke to Lisa Owen about Bill and Hillary Clinton agreeing to give evidence about their relationship with dead sex offender Jeffrey Epstein before Congress, as well as… Read more Audio

4:06 PM.A gear change in driver licensing has some instructors concerned. The government has unveiled the first major changes to the system in 15 years, meaning drivers won't have to sit a second practical… Read more Audio