Stories by Guyon Espiner

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".

The New Zealand First Foundation received $100,000 in just one week from two rich-listers, whose donations remained secret because the individual payments fell below the disclosure threshold.

One of the country's biggest fishing companies, Talley's, and its managing director donated nearly $27,000 to the New Zealand First Foundation.

A lobbying firm run by a NZ First Foundation trustee pushed for a law change on behalf of a property development company, which then donated tens of thousands of dollars to the foundation.

The NZ First Foundation has been receiving tens of thousands of dollars from donors in the horse racing industry in payments which fall just below the $15,000.01 at which party donations are usually…

The mysterious foundation bankrolling the New Zealand First Party has been receiving donations just under the threshold at which the donors' names would normally be made public.

Money flowed into the New Zealand First Foundation and money flowed out - but did any of it need to be declared?

A forestry company with close links to NZ First says it gave a presentation to Shane Jones about a project it was seeking a $15 million government loan for - months before Jones says he first heard of…

A fifth death has been reported to the Centre for Adverse Reactions Monitoring on suspicion it is related to Pharmac's brand switch of epilepsy drugs.

An Auckland man had a seizure and blacked out as he drove through Auckland's Waterview Tunnel after switching epilepsy medication brands.