Checkpoint Podcast Options

6:24 PM.It was almost a victim of the Covid-19 pandemic, but organisers have managed to pull together Southland's annual celebration of Māori and Pasifika culture.

Thousands turned up for the Miharo Polyfest… Read more Video, Audio

6:21 PM.A lawyer representing abuse survivors has called for a major change in the way the Crown Law Office deals with claimants.

Frances Joychild, QC who represents a number of abuse victims, has made… Read more Audio

6:17 PM.As well as the special votes, the government's top line up was confirmed on Friday, with a regal ceremony at Government House.

Family and friends lined the building's ballroom as ministers were sworn… Read more Audio

6:09 PM.The margin is thinner than a cannabis leaf, but voters have said nope to legalising dope.

In the final count 50.7 percent voted no, versus 48.4 percent voting yes - a difference of 67,000 votes.

… Read more Video, Audio

6:06 PM.Joe Biden is inching closer to claiming the keys to the White House. Donald Trump leads in Georgia by just 1,700 votes.

While the former vice president has chipped away at Trump's margin in… Read more Audio

5:55 PM.US President Donald Trump on Friday made a rambling 16-minute address riddled with false claims, delivered in the White House press briefing room.

Is there any substance to his claims of voter fraud… Read more Video, Audio

5:43 PM.There was dismay in the Auckland suburb of Ellerslie today, as special votes flipped Maungakiekie to Labour - losing National MP Denise Lee her seat.

The one term MP was 580 votes ahead before the… Read more Video, Audio

5:39 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Video, Audio

5:31 PM.Meanwhile, there's been just one new case of Covid-19 in New Zealand's managed isolation facilities today.

But as hotels acting as the country's buffer between the outside world reach capacity ahead… Read more Audio

5:27 PM.Acclaimed pop music duo Broods may have to cancel their summer shows in New Zealand after their singer missed out on a managed isolation hotel voucher.

They are among hopeful returnees who booked… Read more Audio

5:20 PM.The Māori Party has doubled its numbers in Parliament to two.

Special votes confirmed Rawiri Waititi in the seat of Waiariki - the only electorate seat the Labour Party lost.

And with 1.2 percent of… Read more Video, Audio

5:15 PM.The revolving door of politics has spat out two National MP's after the party lost its grip on three electorates in the final confirmed vote count.

Maungakiekie, Whangārei and Northland have all gone… Read more Audio

5:11 PM.The race to the White House has turned into a crawl, with the United States still standing-by for confirmation of its next President.

The vital states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Arizona… Read more Video, Audio

6:20 PM.To Lebanon now and three months after the blast that rocked Beirut and killed more than 200 people, the cleaning up is still ongoing.

At least 6,500 people were injured, there was $15 billion of… Read more Video, Audio

6:17 PM.Today marks 139 years since the invasion of Parihaka.

Our reporter Ella Stewart spoke with activist Lourdes Vano and historian Rachel Buchanan about the significance of this day in New Zealand… Read more Audio

6:14 PM.A group fighting against any expansion of Wanaka Airport says the airport's owners aren't being truthful with the community about its plans.

Wanaka Airport, and its sister facility in Queenstown, are… Read more Audio

6:09 PM."No one is gonna take our democracy away from us, not now, not ever." Fighting words from US Presidential-hopeful Joe Biden as the election count crawls on in the US.

The Democrat remains on course… Read more Video, Audio

5:54 PM.It is Guy Fawkes, and also the last day the public can buy fireworks for another year.

However, animal welfare groups and others continue to call for a ban on backyard pyrotechnics - even as free… Read more Audio

5:48 PM.A Covid-19 wastewater testing pilot's being rolled out around the country as a safety net for catching the virus in the community.

The eight-week ESR pilot will see sewage sampled at managed… Read more Video, Audio

5:44 PM.A man accused of killing his ex-wife with a hunting knife in broad daylight in West Auckland says he doesn't remember stabbing her to death.

Sixty-five-year-old Li Manchao is on trial in the High… Read more Audio

5:41 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Video, Audio

5:35 PM.Just in the past few hours, Donald Trump's lead in Georgia has shrunk to a very fine margin.

If Georgia goes to Joe Biden - and it will be very close - that's an upset that should win him the… Read more Audio

5:28 PM.An elderly Hawke's Bay man says he's lost his best friend - his dog Tabatha vanished from outside a Napier shopfront a week ago.

Eighty-year-old Doug Hodgetts believes his 7-year-old Jack Russell… Read more Video, Audio

5:24 PM.A police officer says with the benefit of hindsight, he may have charged the driver of a shuttle which crashed, killing an 11-year-old girl.

Hannah Francis died in July 2018 when the bus she was in… Read more Audio

5:21 PM.A dispute over the humble potato has reached boiling point over claims European frozen fries are being dumped in New Zealand.

Potatoes New Zealand is worried the local industry will turn to mash… Read more Audio