New Zealand

'Our Freshwater 2026' report highlights worsening quality of groundwater, rivers and lakes, with increasing levels of nitrates, E.coli above legal limit, and nearly half of New Zealand's river network unsafe for swimming due to faecal contamination

Tens of thousands of people attended the annual rock and car festival Beach Hop in Whangamatā; the Beach Hop, established in 2000, has degenerated in 2026 into cases of unsuitable behavior that brought to 30 arrests, more than in the last years combined

KiwiSaver -a voluntary, work-based retirement savings scheme- will see withdrawal rules changed to help farmers, diplomats and soldiers buy their first homes, as Finance Minister observed current rules are unfair to workers in service tenancies

Farmers and businesses are taking stock of the cost of flooding that swamped paddocks and swept through Little River, Banks Peninsula, which remains under a state of emergency though State Highway 75 to Akaroa reopened and telecommunications were restored

With Lyon Farrell, Rocco Jamieson and Dane Menzies qualifying for the men’s snowboard big air final, the Kiwis accounted for a quarter of the 12-strong field at Milano-Cortina Olympics, but no medals came to New Zealand in the first day of races

Rising harassment and intimidation of migrants and faith groups prompted protests across Auckland; organizers have been denied a permit to walk across the harbour bridge last month for safety reasons and the pressure placed on the bridge's infrastructure

Helicopters airlifted 40 people to safety overnight, as slips and flooding cut off trapped motorists at Waioeka Gorge; after heavy rain hammered the area between Matawai and Ōpōtiki and as conditions rapidly deteriorated State Highway 2 remains closed

NZ doctors are increasingly finding themselves caring for patients who require medical help following gastric bypass and gastric sleeve procedures undergone abroad; medical tourism is posing new threats as post-op complications cases rise

A judge voided a South Auckland election result over voter fraud claims and the private company running the polls has admitted to a separate privacy breach; the Electoral Services MD released to councillor election results with confidential information

A kauri cross from St. Patrick's Church in Napier was returned 44 years after it fell during the 1981 fire that destroyed the steeple, one of Hawke's Bay's largest; the artifact was recovered and has now been returned to the church

A popular brand of coloured sand sold in New Zealand has been urgently recalled over concerns it may contain asbestos following independent testing in Australia that confirmed asbestos contamination in similar products

"Alarming" gaps in measles immunization, specially among Maori and Pacific communities, should be urgently closed, the WHO advises, revealing that vaccination rates are lower than those of 2012 and another outbreak could occur with current active cases