Checkpoint Podcast Options

5:33 PM.After nearly a year away from red ball cricket, Kane Williamson will return to the New Zealand test side for the upcoming series against the West Indies. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

5:25 PM.A food waste researcher would like to see mandatory kerbside composting put back on the table, after researchers discovered just how much food is wasted in New Zealand every year. Their report… Read more Audio

5:17 PM.The prime minister is struggling to hose down the opposition's claim his Kiwisaver policy is likely linked to a rise in the retirement age. The proposal unveiled yesterday would see employers required… Read more Audio

5:09 PM.The government has unveiled its renovation to building rules, with changes including mandatory home warranties, indemnity insurance for some professionals and a doubling of penalties for so called… Read more Audio

4:48 PM.The biggest losers in National's bid to super size Kiwisaver are low income earners and small businesses according to an economics expert. If re-elected National is proposing to raise Kiwisaver… Read more Audio

4:44 PM.The mother of a man who died after being pepper sprayed in Mt Eden Prison wants to see meaningful change, as the second part of inquest into his death gets underway in Auckland. It's been nearly four… Read more Audio

4:37 PM."Chump change" is how one striking worker at Resene Paint in Lower Hutt has described the company's latest pay offer. A noisy protest of around 80 workers and supporters braved the rain to picket the… Read more Audio

4:32 PM.The All Black season finished with a comfortable win over Wales, but attention now turns to what will happen next. Questions have been raised over coach Scott Robertson and captain Scott Barrett… Read more Audio

4:25 PM.Howick councillor Bo Burns is calling for a review of the city's rates; specifically the so called Uniform Annual General Charge. That's the fee that's the same amount for every household regardless… Read more Audio

4:06 PM.An enchanted Santa experience was more of a nightmare before Christmas for an Auckland mum, after she discovered the T&Cs would allow the business to use any photos taken of her children for its… Read more Audio

5:52 PM.How would you feel if that little voice in your head went completely quiet? You know the one that stresses about all the mistakes you've made just as you're trying to get to sleep or replays that same… Read more Audio

5:44 PM.United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about the UK Covid-19 Inquiry pubishing a damning report on how political leaders responded during the pandemic, as well as the UK Home… Read more Audio

5:35 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Audio

5:31 PM.The Wellington Phoenix women have suffered a double blow with two players out for the remainder of the A-League season with an increasingly common injury. Female footballers are more at risk of ACL… Read more Audio

5:28 PM.A lawyer for Pike River families says police now have enough evidence to lay manslaughter charges over the mine disaster. Twenty-nine men were killed in the 2010 mine explosion and while charges under… Read more Audio

5:24 PM.Competition is picking up between the banks as they fight for home loan customers. But it looks different these days - where once we saw them slashing rates aggressively, now they use cash back offers… Read more Audio

5:15 PM.The debate over transgender inclusion in sport is heading to court. Auckland Pride is seeking a judicial review after the Minister for Sport and Recreated ordered the removal of the guidelines for… Read more Audio

5:08 PM.The head of the Principal's Federation is calling for the government to pay for asbestos testing and clean-ups in schools after a contamination scare with kids play sand. Retail giant Kmart has sold… Read more Audio

4:51 PM.It's hoped rams brains may help researchers better understand the long term consequences of repeated head blows on sports people. Rams, which frequently butt heads, will provide Auckland University's… Read more Audio

4:46 PM.The government has quietly rejected advice to set a much more ambitious long-term target for New Zealand's carbon emissions. The Climate Change Commission wanted the country to aim for net-negative… Read more Audio

4:38 PM."Keep marlin and reef fish off the menu," That's the message from recreational fishers as the government plans to let commercial fishing companies keep and sell bycatch, that right now can't be used… Read more Audio

4:35 PM.One of the most highly anticipated series on the cricket calendar has finally got underway in Perth. The build up to the opening test of the Ashes between England and Australia has been on another… Read more Audio

4:24 PM.A gruelling all terrain ultra race where you dont find out the exact course until just hours before you launch yourself in the literal wilderness is back after a two year hiatus and a falling out with… Read more Audio

4:11 PM.Asia correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Lisa Owen about a suspected mass poisoning at a hostel in Bali that has left one tourist dead, and a number of others hospitalised. Audio

4:06 PM.Flipping burgers, stacking shelves and folding clothes, the work that students used to dread, is now becoming a pipe dream for many. Students are applying for record numbers of jobs but there just… Read more Audio