Stories by Amy Williams

With the green light for double-bubble outdoor gatherings, Aucklanders are getting ready to fire up their barbeques and pack picnic hampers for their first weekend meet-ups in a long time.

For many Auckland parents, school holidays will be more of the same - being at home with the kids. Psychologist Dr Melanie Woodfield has some tips.

The chief executive of one of the country's long-standing commercial construction firms is delighted staff and sub-contractors can return to the city's building sites today.

A small Waikato community is waiting anxiously for hundreds of Covid-19 test results to come back today.

Essential workers crossing Auckland's level 4 border will not have to show they have tested negative for Covid-19, only that they have had the test.

Building product manufacturers are gutted at the limit of 100 staff being approved to restart in Auckland's lockdown despite a national materials shortage putting home builders in limbo. Audio

Auckland warehouses are overflowing with building materials that importers have been prohibited from distributing during lockdown despite severe shortages.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment will today spell out how some Auckland factories can restart under level 4 to help prevent a freeze on housing construction. Audio

A new virtual lottery is on its way for those seeking to book a stay in highly sought-after managed isolation, but it's on hold for now, deemed too risky during the Delta outbreak.

An Afghan man who expected his wife and toddler to join him in New Zealand this month has spoken about the relief he felt on learning they were safely evacuated from Kabul.

The pastor of a church linked to the Delta variant outbreak says people come from all over Auckland to attend its Sunday services.

CoreLogic study shows that Auckland buyers will need to pay an extra $90,000 for deposit.

It appears anyone over 16 who wants to get the Covid-19 vaccine in Auckland can, just by finding a clinic that is taking walk-ins.

New research shows disabled people are twice as likely to experience violence than the able-bodied, and for women that abuse is likely to occur at home.

The business owner who championed the four-day working week says New Zealand lags behind the rest of the world when it comes to leaving Monday-to-Friday behind.

The rising price of dairy products on supermarket shelves means foodbanks are no longer receiving regular donations of milk and cheese to give to those most in need.

The economic and cultural agency Auckland Unlimited has been allocated $8 million from MBIE's skills initiative and aims to train 3500 Pacific people over four years.

The marine industry is in talks with government officials to set up a trans-Tasman sea bubble for cruising and superyachts to bring much-needed business to the struggling sector.

More than 150 aerospace specialists have arrived on short term visas to work in New Zealand for the satellite launch service provider Rocket Lab since the country's border closed.

Hundreds of foreign investors are expected to arrive in New Zealand in coming months as a result of new border exemptions allowing wealthy investors linked to two government programmes to visit.

An immigration advisor has questioned why hundreds of others must wait until borders open.

Parents of children with special needs are often asked to reduce the hours their children attend school, or take an extended break to avoid them being expelled altogether.

The country's international airports - including three mothballed terminals - will today be the scene of family reunions as the trans-Tasman bubble finally becomes a reality.

Doctors at Auckland Hospital have been told they cannot fly to Australia for business or continuing education when the bubble opens later this month.

A New Zealand aid worker who recently returned from a Rohingya refugee settlement in Bangladesh is devastated to hear about a deadly fire there.