Checkpoint Podcast Options

5:38 PM.The Olympic Games have become too big, too expensive and too difficult for most cities to host. So much so, only two cities want to host the Games after Beijing. John Campbell investigates. Video, Audio

5:32 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Video, Audio

5:24 PM.National MP Todd Barclay hasn't returned to Parliament after announcing he would stand down at the election. His departure followed the Prime Minister's announcement that the MP told him he had… Read more Video, Audio

5:16 PM.There are currently widespread power outages across the country, as slips cause major and prolonged road closures in several gorges. Steven Selwood talks to John Campbell. Video, Audio

5:12 PM.A completely washed out bridge has been stopping people getting into and out of Martinborough, so the town's businesses have today been operating with skeleton crews. Video, Audio

5:08 PM.Power was cut to about 10,000 homes overnight and Powerco says more than 4000 are still without electricity tonight and some face a second night in the cold. Tom Furley has the latest. Video, Audio

6:23 PM.Realising the Jensen's appeal was less compelling if they didn't have a business to return to, the co-owner of the building the cafe's in has decided to keep Java Point open. Video, Audio

6:12 PM.A wild winter storm is lashing the central and North Island, cutting power to thousands, shutting roads and causing widespread flooding in the Wairarapa. Video, Audio

6:08 PM.The Desert Road is closed and the ski town of Ohakune is cut off after a dumping of snow described as the heaviest in more than 20 years. Snow even fell on the outskirts of Rotorua. Video, Audio

5:40 PM.Marlborough racing personality Michael O'Brien was jailed today for taking millions of dollars in backhanders, in what a judge has described as "sophisticated" fraud. Video, Audio

5:37 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Video, Audio

5:29 PM.The government is being warned of a potential crisis in mental health as community workers leave for higher pay in the aged care and disability sectors. Read more Audio

5:20 PM.A precedent enabling councils and the government to evict victims of climate change from their homes may be about to be set. Read more Video, Audio

5:17 PM.Thousands of people braved the cold to welcome home and congratulate Team New Zealand, in its final America's Cup parade. Video, Audio

5:13 PM.The Desert Road is closed and the ski town of Ohakune is cut off after a dumping of snow described as the heaviest in more than 20 years. Video, Audio

5:08 PM.People have been evacuated due to heavy flooding in Wairarapa, while power has been cut to several areas throughout the country. The central North Island towns of Raetihi and Ohakune are cut off. Video, Audio

6:18 PM.The Government admits it is still weighing up the introduction of Special Economic Zones, where laws could be by-passed to push through developments like coal mines and salmon farms. Video, Audio

6:09 PM.Hail and heavy rain is now falling in parts of the North Island after a wintry blast closed roads and stranded travellers in the lower South Island and inland Canterbury today. Video, Audio

5:55 PM.People in South Canterbury and Central Otago have spent the day under a blanket of snow. Bridget Burke spoke to a few folk who were in the thick of it. Video, Audio

5:54 PM.People in South Canterbury and Central Otago have spent the day under a blanket of snow. Bridget Burke spoke to a few folk who were in the thick of it. Audio