New Zealand

A former Australian detective has ridiculed the National Party's zero-tolerance approach to gangs, saying the strategy has been a disaster across the ditch.

The Opposition is pitching a police unit -… Video, Audio

Transpower says it is still trying to figure out what caused a massive power outage to the top of the North Island on Wednesday.

A circuit supplying power to Northland and the Far North tripped… Audio

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has described the opening of a Suicide Prevention Office a "bitter-sweet milestone".

The office was one of the key recommendations of the Mental Health and Addiction… Audio

The Rodeo Association says the cancellation of one its summer events is a blip, not a trend, and is confident rodeo's popularity is not waning in the face of opposition.

Animal welfare group SAFE… Audio

There's been another death in Samoa's measles epidemic, bringing the toll to 33.

All but four of the deaths are children - under the age of four - including one who died in the past day.

About 200… Video, Audio

The jury in the High Court murder trial of Venod Skantha has retired to decide if the former Dunedin Hospital doctor is guilty.

The 32-year-old denies killing 16-year-old Amber-Rose Rush in her… Audio

The Samoa Red Cross says people in the Pacific nation are panicking, with 32 people confirmed dead from measles.

There are almost 2,500 people infected, with 176 of them in hospital.

There has been… Video, Audio

Auckland Council's sending enforcement officers out to the Waitakere and Hunua Ranges this summer to catch any law flouters who use closed tracks and risk spreading the deadly Kauri dieback disease.

… Audio

National has revealed it would expect judges to hand out tougher sentences if it's in power, even though the judiciary is independent and should not be swayed by the government.

Among the party's law… Video, Audio

A protest aboard an oil drilling ship at the Port of Timaru has come to an end, with police forced to build a scaffolding tower to arrest the remaining protestors.

The Greenpeace protest began early… Video, Audio

The Health Minister has called out the Hepatitis Foundation over extravagant expenses and gross mismanagement, saying it's unacceptable.

The regulator, Charities Services, completed its investigation… Audio

Secondary school principals around New Zealand are increasingly worried by delays to regulate the vaping industry.

More than 60 health, community and school organisations have written an open letter… Audio

The government's sending a warning to motorists with faulty airbags - if you don't get them fixed, you won't be getting a warrant of fitness.

The Takata Alpha airbags have caused injuries and… Audio

New Zealand Cricket says if it finds the person accused of racially abusing English paceman Jofra Archer, it will refer them to the police and ban them for life.

The 24-year-old bowler says he was… Audio

Samoa's measles epidemic has killed 32 people. It's the second day in a row the death toll has increased - all but four of the deaths are children under the age of four.

And a mass vaccination… Video, Audio

The National Party has put gangs squarely in its crosshairs, proposing that an elite police team be set up - modelled on Australia's 'Strike Force Raptor' unit.

The idea is one of series of proposals… Audio

A jogger repeatedly smashed in the head by a serial attacker preying on lone women says she felt pure terror as the man punched her.

The woman was out for a late afternoon run on a walkway on… Video, Audio

A fundraiser has been launched in New Zealand to help families affected by the measles epidemic. Audio