Stories by Ruth Hill

Guns, knives, cans of petrol and fireworks are just some of the contraband items regularly picked up by aviation security. They also get a "mountain of butter and Marmite".

Nurses, teachers and other middle class professionals are increasingly unable to buy homes in the cities where they work, with every housing market in the country now rated "severely unaffordable".

Bowel cancer patients in Southland have suffered unacceptable waits of months - and even years in some cases - to get diagnosed because of major failures at the DHB.

One in four classroom carpets is harbouring high enough levels of cat dander (skin flecks) to trigger allergic reactions, according to new research.

A massive clear out of top NZTA management occurred under the watch of chairperson Michael Stiassny, who is quitting early, says Transport Forum head Nick Leggett.

Lower speed limits and higher penalties for using a cellphone while driving are being considered as part of a major overhaul of road safety this year.

Wendy Faulkner has complained to the United Nations that New Zealand is denying her the right to challenge DOC's higher hut fees for non-citizens.

Efforts within New Zealand to lobby against the killing of Minke whales seem ironic while the country's own endangered dolphins still face risks, a leading marine mammal researcher says.

A bull has been killed after dislocating its leg in a rodeo in Gisborne yesterday.

A woman who was denied a post-study work visa has won a reprieve from Immigration New Zealand after a leading law firm took up her case.

Prisoners fighting to regain the right to vote are now planning to take their case to the United Nations.

Jurors who do their own internet research could face serious criminal charges under a proposed law change currently before Parliament.

Wellington Regional Council has signalled it's prepared to dump a controversial hub-and-spoke model at the centre of its problem-plagued bus network revamp.

Trade and national security interests are at stake as China and US remain in dispute.

A moa skeleton sold in Britain for $51,986 this week, sparking questions about laws protecting New Zealand antiquities.

A New Zealander whose son Kelly Savage died in a Japanese psychiatric hospital after being strapped to a bed for 10 days has presented an open letter to Prime Minister Shinzō Abe asking for an end to…

New Zealanders are sadder and fatter - but smoking less.

Freshwater insects, worms and snails are under pressure, but scientists are divided over what this means for the overall state of our rivers.

The former chief mines inspector arrives in Greymouth tomorrow to meet with the families of victims of Pike River and assess new evidence about the second explosion.

Disability care reform campaigner Dianne Moody says she is unimpressed with today's announcement today of an independent review into the Funded Family Care system.

Landlords are likely to be hit with some kind of capital gains tax in future - but New Zealanders should not expect house prices to drop by much. Audio

Dust from an asbestos-contaminated building gutted by fire is being managed by the building's owners, Hutt City Council says.

Patients with advanced breast cancer in New Zealand are dying twice as fast as those in comparable countries.

Just months after a Waikato rest home was ordered to refund $10,000 for poor care of a 92-year-old, an audit has revealed a multitude of problems there.

A retired engineer from the United States is calling on New Zealanders to help a project to rid Mount Everest of half a century's collected human excrement.