Stories by Guyon Espiner

The Service - The senior Labour politician was spied on while he was as an MP, even when he had an oversight role of the intelligence agency.

The Service - The security intelligence agencies broke into the Czechoslovakian Embassy in Wellington during the Cold War to steal secret codes.

The SIS minister will not say if he has been asked to sign off on warrants allowing the SIS to break in to foreign embassies in New Zealand.

The KGB tried to penetrate government systems and infiltrate the ruling Labour Party, the former prime minister says.

Tens of thousands in donor's funds given to the New Zealand First Foundation were spent paying expenses, wages and bills for people closely associated with the New Zealand First leader Winston Peters.

New Zealand First has once again opted not to name any donations from the mysterious foundation bankrolling the party on its electoral return.

Leaked documents show the government is preparing for an extra 300,000 benefit applications, as the Covid-19 pandemic threatens widespread unemployment.

Pharmac's decision to backtrack on funding Keytruda is a major blow for equality in New Zealand's health system, a leading oncologist says.

Women at an Auckland prison have been routinely confined to their cells for periods of up to 29 hours at a stretch - well outside the law, which says they should get at least one hour out of their…

The Chief Ombudsman says Corrections has discouraged him from entering prisons amidst concerns inmates are being locked in their cells 21-23 hours a day during the pandemic.

The drug agency says budget pressures caused by Covid-19 have forced it to freeze plans to fund a drug that would have helped at least 1400 cancer patients a year.

Leading defence lawyers are taking on the solicitor-general after she told prosecutors to oppose bail if a defendant was suspected of having the coronavirus.

The Serious Fraud Office says it will decide by September whether to lay charges in its investigation relating to the foundation bankrolling NZ First.

GSK and Sanofi have put competition aside to team up to find a Covid-19 vaccine - and are pledging not to profit from anything they develop, at least in the short term.

New Zealand insurance companies will save about $100 million on payouts for motor vehicles alone during the lockdown because of the dramatic drop in driving during the pandemic.

Prisoners could be kept locked up past their release date if deemed a Covid-19 risk, according to new guidelines outlined in a leaked memo.

Patients are staying away from NZ hospitals during the pandemic - raising fears among doctors that lives could be lost through delayed treatment.

Four families have now come forward telling RNZ that inmates across the country are being confined to their cells for 23 or more hours a day.

Prison guards say they are having to confine prisoners to their cells for between 20 and 23 hours a day to manage physical distancing.

A malaria drug touted by Donald Trump as a "game changer" in the fight against Covid-19 has been in high demand in NZ.

A bright spot is emerging in the economic gloom with New Zealand's largest company saying it is in good financial heart and expects to remain so during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Pharmac will ease restrictions on at least nine cancer drugs to reduce hospital visits and cut the risk of highly vulnerable patients catching Covid-19.

The head of the Financial Markets Authority is urging those financially hit by Covid-19 to make use of government assistance and only withdraw KiwiSaver funds as a last resort.

Two Hawke's Bay prison inmates are in isolation amidst fears they may have the coronavirus - but one is refusing to be tested.

One economist says New Zealand's unemployment rates could soar to 30 percent while another one described Covid-19's economic impact as "an everywhere, everything, everyone all at once shock".