Lois Williams
DHB gears up for mass vaccination programme
An emergency vaccination programme targeting a deadly meningococcal strain will roll out in Northland next week - more than six months after the District Health Board first raised concerns about the… Audio
Ngai Takoto disappointed DOC trying to stop kauri resin mining
A Far North iwi says it's disappointed the Deparment of Conservation's joined a court challenge to plans for peat-mining on wetlands north of Kaitaia. Ngai Takoto says the legal action is a waste of… Audio
Waitangi marae welcomes cruise ship tourists
Waitangi marae is taking a new lease on life this summer, welcoming tourists from more than a dozen cruise ships to the Bay of Islands. Māori tourism operators are working with Princess Cruises to… Audio
Conservation group wins Supreme Court swamp kauri case
A tiny Far North conservation group fighting the swamp kauri trade is celebrating a major victory today - in the Supreme Court. Audio
Ngāpuhi vote on new Treaty settlement
Ngāpuhi iwi members begin voting on Friday on a new plan to start Treaty of Waitangi settlement negotiations. But a significant number of hapū have already declared they want no part of it. A split… Audio
Call to Celts - out with Halloween, in with Beltane
Whangarei man Doug Chowns is calling on people with Celtic backgrounds to ditch Halloween in October - and celebrate spring as their ancestors did. Video, Audio
No four lanes - but safer road to Whangarei promised
New Zealand Transport Agency has confirmed it won't be building a four-lane highway from Whangarei to Te Hana. Instead it's promising to fix up the worst bit - the notorious stretch of road between… Video, Audio
Ngapuhi hapu spurn proposed new mandate model
Resistance appears to be growing in the Far North to a new proposal to negotiate Ngapuhi treaty claims. The Treaty Negotiations Minister Andrew Little has been working for months to break through the… Audio
Whangarei cultural centre dreams hang on council grant
The long-held dream of a Maori cultural centre for Whangarei is hanging on hopes of a $5 million council grant. Work's underway on stage one - a big carving workshop and waka shelter, east of the Town… Audio
Waipoua Forest kauri dieback to be tested
Scientists begin tests this week in Northland's Waipoua Forest to see how close kauri die-back has crept to Tane Mahuta. The pathogen is already killing trees within a hundred metres of Tane and other… Audio
How close has kauri dieback crept to Tane Mahuta?
Scientists begin tests this week in Northland's Waipoua Forest to see how close kauri die-back has crept to Tane Mahuta. Kauri have been dying in Waipoua for years. Te Roroa, the kaitiaki, have been… Audio
New airline to compete with Air NZ on Whangarei flights
A small Auckland airline is about to take on Air New Zealand on the Auckland to Whangarei run. Fly My Sky currently operates between Auckland and Great Barrier Island. But it says there's a gap in the… Audio
Feedback due on new Ngāpuhi proposal
Ngāpuhi people trying to thrash out agreement on how to settle their Treaty claims have till today to say what they think of the latest plan. Treaty Negotiations Minister Andrew Little and the Ngāpuhi… Audio
Power station consent on hold over public access concerns
Local iwi and Fish and Game advocates are accusing a Northland power company of shutting them out of public reserves on the Wairua River. Northpower says it's put locked gates on the road to its… Audio
New restraint guidelines not working, principal says
Northland's outspoken principals' president Pat Newman is challenging new restraint guidelines that say teachers can't use physical force to make a child do as its told. Audio
1080 drop in Northland welcomed by most, but not all
Conservationists are elated at the prospect of a long-awaited 1080 drop on Northland's imperilled Russell State Forest. DOC contractors are dropping non-toxic bait over the forest this week to get… Audio
Kaitaia locals could lose jobs as biggest employer overhauls business
Dozens of jobs could go at Juken Nissho's Kaitaia Triboard mill, when the Japanese-owned forestry company overhauls the ageing plant. Audio
Dargaville vet clears the air about Northland M. Bovis farm
Dargaville vet Brian Lowe has cleared the air with some plain-speaking about which Northland farm has the cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis, answering questions he says Ministry for Primary Industries… Audio
Corrections Minister urges employers to hire ex-prisoners
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis is urging employers to hire former prisoners and give them a second chance at a decent life. Audio
Luxury golf course subsidises tree-planting in north
A private golf course developed by a US billionaire is now subsidising tree-planting efforts across Northland to protect rivers. The exclusive Tara Iti development, south of Mangawhai, is buying its… Audio
