Three people have died in a crash involving two vehicles on SH29 near Matamata this evening.

A brawl almost broke out in the courtroom today after the sentencing of a Hells Angels gang prospect who carried out a prolonged and vicious assault resulting in the death of a mother of two.

A councillor who took his own council to the Supreme Court over a stoush that started with a $12 parking ticket has had his application to appeal dismissed.

Lanes have been blocked after a bus crashed into a barrier on Newton Road in central Auckland.

A Whanganui moggy has used up one of its nine lives and gotten a new nickname after being rescued from a Phoenix palm in Gonville where it was stuck for more than two weeks.

The family of two mothers killed in a fatal Waihola crash say they are glad the remorseless teenage driver is being named today but remain disappointed with his sentence.

A scathing report by Treasury into Oranga Tamariki's finances has described "loose fiscal controls" within the agency and a "weak organisational strategy and direction".

The teenager whose body was found in a burned out car near Havelock North has been farewelled in Hastings today.

The country's first potential Unesco accredited global geopark is one step closer to becoming reality.

Police hope quick arrests following criminal incidents at several businesses in Palmerston North this week will reassure the community.

London's 5Rights Foundation says small countries like New Zealand should follow the likes of the Netherlands, and look to curb education technology that spies on children.

CCTV footage led police in South Korea to the woman wanted over the killing of two children found in suitcases in South Auckland.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is in London for the Queen's funeral, but before that she will meet King Charles, Prince William and British Prime Minister Liz Truss.

Rotorua businesses are calling for the government to intervene in emergency housing as the iconic destination prepares for an influx of summer tourists.

Many people across New Zealand will be receiving their local government election voting papers today.

At many supermarkets tomatoes cost $15 a kg, potato chips are $1.50 - for many families, struggling with increased costs of living healthier choices are hard.

New Zealanders in London are divided about the grandeur surrounding the Queen's death.

New Zealand police are seeking the extradition of a woman in Korea over the deaths of two children, whose bodies were found in suitcases in Auckland last month.