Stories by Meriana Johnsen

A member's bill making second language learning compulsory in primary schools has been drawn from the ballot, but which languages will be given priority is up for debate.

Hundreds turned out for the opening of Te Waihinga Community Centre in Martinborough today, a building that reflects the heritage and whakapapa of the small rural town.

Rates of rheumatic fever may be 18 percent higher than official figures show, according to new research by the University of Otago.

Rātana followers are turning to social media to grow the future of the faith. Video

Wellington's regional council is paying $150,000 a month to add extra buses to its ailing new network.

Thousands of people are arriving at Rātana Pā near Whanganui for the church's 100th anniversary celebrations.

A group of women who have had abortions have spoken out to caution the prime minister on law reform.

A group of Māori and Pasifika will be the only indigenous youth delegation at the UN climate conference next month.

Chemicals found in common household products are up for priority review by the Environmental Protection Authority, but chemicals already banned in other countries don't make the list.

The American transport consultant behind Wellington's new bus network blames the capital's bus chaos on the implementation not the design. Audio

The paw patrol is ready for action with three new police dogs hitting the streets after graduating from police training college today.

The Wellington bus network is failing because the right infrastructure is not in place, public transport advocates say.

Girls as young as eight are getting their period and almost half of all girls get their period before high school, a new study has found.

US whistleblower Chelsea Manning has addressed a Wellington audience telling them she hasn't felt free since her release from prison.

The average price of fuel has reached a record 30-year high - and is set to continue rising.

Wellington Regional Council will be making no more than minor changes to the new bus network despite a torrent of complaints and verbal abuse at a public meeting.

A business innovation workshop in Dunedin has heard loud calls for more support - and opportunities - for the small Pasifika population in New Zealand's far south.

The newly elected leader of the Samoa First Political Party says she wants to stop the leasing of customary land.

There needs to be more opportunities for smaller Pasifika communities, a Dunedin councillor says.

Three weeks on from the launch of Wellington's new bus network, some frustrated passengers have given up and reverted back to driving or catching a taxi instead.

A man who had a transplant of bone tissue from a dead person needed psychiatric help afterwards to help him forget the ordeal.

Police have been forced to release footage of an officer tasering a goat 13 times which has led to them changing their taser policy. Video

Huge numbers of Māori are going back to school later in life to learn te reo.

New Zealand banks have been urged to catch up with international trends and offer special low interest loans to people building eco-homes.