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