Samantha Gee

The government has announced all of the South Island will move orange in the new Covid protection framework.

That means no gathering limits for hospitality, weddings, funerals, close contact… Video, Audio

Police and the NZ Defence Force will now have to be vaccinated, or be out of a job.

The government has announced they will have to have their first dose by mid-January and be fully vaccinated by the… Audio

People on the West Coast are coming to terms with the discovery of human remains deep in the Pike River Mine, almost eleven years after the deadly explosion.

Tomorrow's the anniversary of the deadly… Video, Audio

The Auckland City Mission - Te Tāpui Atawhai - is worried about not meeting demand at Christmas, as its team faces the ever-growing demand for support created by Covid restrictions.

The Mission's… Audio

A health expert wants Air New Zealand to go a step further and implement a no jab, no fly rule domestically.

The airline's announced travellers who are 12 and over will need to show proof of… Audio

More than three months after severe flooding in Westport damaged hundreds of homes, many residents are left wondering when and if they will be able to return.

It exposed a town grappling with poverty… Video, Audio

Māori health services in Te Tauihu - the top of the South Island - are connecting with youth through social media in the drive to improve vaccination rates.

In Nelson Marlborough, 16 percent of Maori… Audio

Twenty-five thousand New Zealanders around the world entered the lobby today, desperately trying to get a space in MIQ in a bid to return home.

It was the third release of the MIQ virtual lobby… Audio

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced today the South Island will remain in alert level two but there has been some reprieve, with a slight easing of restrictions for hospitality… Audio

The government wants to introduce tougher safety rules for adventure activity operators, in response to the deadly 2019 Whakaari eruption.

Forty-seven people - most of them tourists - were on the… Audio

After a mammoth journey with non-stop flying for more than eight days, flocks of Eastern bar-tailed godwits are finally arriving at the top of the South Island.

The birds have travelled more than… Audio

The bells of Nelson's cathedral rang out this morning, heralding the arrival of the bar-tailed godwits. The migratory birds have just flown about 12,000 kilometres non-stop from Alaska at the northern… Audio

Since saliva testing was rolled out for border workers last month, close to 1,000 people have opted for it instead of having a nasal swab.

Now the Ministry of Health has plans to offer saliva testing… Audio

A salvage effort is underway in Picton Harbour for a runaway locomotive and wagon that have tipped into the water.

KiwiRail says it wasn't being loaded onto a ship at the time.

It weighs about 50… Video, Audio

The first Interislander ferry to cross the Cook Strait since yesterday afternoon has almost reached the port in Picton. Sailings were temporarily suspended yesterday after a remote control train… Audio

The economic impact of lockdown is starting to bite.

In Auckland's CBD - a week of level four restrictions is estimated to cost at least $20 million in consumer spending.

Samantha Gee has more. Audio

A cold front has swept across New Zealand in the last 24 hours, leaving motorists stranded, closing schools and bringing a heavy dusting of snow to skifields.

Highways across the country have… Video, Audio

The Queen Charlotte Track in the Marlborough Sounds remains closed after heavy rain caused slips, windfalls and washed away a bridge, leaving some sections impassable.

A Department of Conservation… Audio