Some patients and advocacy groups see Pharmac as “slow to respond”, “highly defensive” and “lacking respect” for them, according to an independent report released by the drug-funding agency today.The report – commissioned by Pharmac’s board and based on workshops held late last year – found there was “a credibility and…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will meet with Narendra Modi when he visits India next week.Luxon will be accompanied by “one of the largest delegations a New Zealand Prime Minister has ever travelled with” when he heads to India on March 15.The delegation will be made up of New Zealand business leaders;…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today said he was “relaxed” about National MP Andrew Bayly, who recently resigned from his ministerial portfolios, taking two weeks’ leave from Parliament to trek to Mount Everest base camp in Nepal.Bayly stood down from his portfolios last month after admitting he grabbed the arm of…

Transport Minister Chris Bishop has announced registrations of interest for the first stage of the Northland Expressway project will open later this week at the NZ Infrastructure Investment Summit.This week’s Infrastructure Investment Summit has been arranged by the Government to showcase its infrastructure pipeline and “exciting growth sectors to companies…

While street crime across the country continues to plague city centres and businesses, one centre has been bucking the trend.Every day, Gisborne Police can be seen out on the streets, carrying out patrols and checking in on local businesses.Tairāwhiti area commander Danny Kirk said his team refocused their priorities midway…

A Department of Conservation (DOC) permit issued to NZTA Waka Kotahi allowing it to kill protected species – including kiwi and long-tailed bats – at the Mt Messenger bypass site in Taranaki has been ruled unlawful.The High Court found the permission granted under Section 53 of the Wildlife Act was…

Two Auckland landlords have been ordered to pay a combined $25,900 in exemplary damages and compensation on behalf of two tenants who were unlawfully evicted after complaining about the state of their rentals.Investigators from MBIE’s Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team said the properties were “some of the worst they have…

The country’s biggest bank is again defending its massive profits in the face of parliamentary scrutiny, saying it reflects the size of the business. New Zealand’s major banks fronted MPs today, as the Parliamentary inquiry into banking competition continues. ANZ reported a full-year profit of almost $2.1 billion last year…

Foreign Minister Winston Peters will travel to the United States later this week to meet members of the Trump Administration, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, discuss world affairs and continue to build New Zealand’s ties with the US.”The United States is one of New Zealand’s closest and most important…

There has been a spike in a potentially deadly disease linked to dirty spa pools in New Zealand.Health New Zealand said there were 10 cases of legionnaires’ disease in the year to March, up on three for the same period last year. Eight of those new cases were strongly linked…