Checkpoint for Tuesday 24 May 2011

6:50 PM.News from the Waatea team. Audio

6:43 PM.The National-led Government will spend just over 15 million dollars stabilising an old mining dam near Te Aroha, which is in danger of collapsing. Audio

6:35 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:27 PM.Manurewa locals say their area has enough problems already without putting a new prison there. The Corrections Department wants to build a men's prison in Wiri, where there is already one for women. Audio

6:22 PM.The listed biomedical firm, Pacific Edge, has struck a major deal to license its world-first bladder cancer test in Spain and Portugal. The Dunedin-based company has signed up the biotechnology and… Read more Audio

6:20 PM.A Christchurch school has bought ukuleles for all its children out of earthquake donations. Audio

6:14 PM.The Mines Rescue Service is warning of long delays before any work is done to get back into the Pike River Mine, and says it's never been formally asked to go back in. Audio

6:08 PM.The company that's won the right to build Canterbury's ultra-fast broadband network says the contract will generate thousands of jobs. The Government has today announced Telecom will build the… Read more Audio

5:55 PM.The former Fiji soldier who fled to Tonga after being charged with sedition says corruption is now rampant within the regime of Commodore Frank Bainimarama. Audio

5:50 PM.A cycling group is pinning its hopes on a new coroner's inquest into eight cycling deaths to make the roads safer. The Waikato Coroner is about to visit four regions round the country for a joint… Read more Audio

5:47 PM.News from the Waatea team. Audio

5:45 PM.A volcano erupting in Iceland is again forcing flight cancellations in Britain, as its ash cloud has moved into UK airspace. Flights to Scotland have been stopped and the cloud caused a change in the… Read more Audio

5:42 PM.The Canterbury Regional Council is spending tens of thousands of dollars investigating claims that metal drums holding toxic waste are buried beneath the Opuha Dam, near Fairlie, in South Canterbury. Audio

5:36 PM.Kiwifruit growers are being warned the climate here could make it harder to eradicate the vine disease, PSA. Orchards in Italy and France have been ravaged by the canker - and the industry here should… Read more Audio

5:33 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

5:27 PM.Wellington's plan for a "Wellywood" sign is raising hackles in California. The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce is threatening legal action over the controversial plan for the 30 metre wide sign above… Read more Audio

5:25 PM.The National-led Government will spend just over 15 million dollars stabilising an old mining dam near Te Aroha, which is in danger of collapsing. Audio

5:22 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:17 PM.Dairy farmers in line for a bumper payout this milkmaking season are promising the riches will trickle down into towns and the tax take. Audio

5:16 PM.Schools, hospitals and businesses are first in the queue for ultrafast broadband under one of the country's largest ever communications infrastructure projects. Audio

5:12 PM.Earlier this afternoon the Prime Minister John Key spoke to reporters about the Pike River recovery. He says the Government is happy to put money in to a feasibility study, but to fund any recovery… Read more Audio

5:08 PM.The Mines Rescue Service, which has so far been largely silent about any recovery at Pike River, says it's never been formerly asked to go back into the mine. Audio

5:01 PM.Mines rescue says still not been asked to recover bodies;Credible recovery plan needed - PM;Ultra-fast broadband deal unveiled;Fonterra still on track for record payout;Millions to be spent on Tui… Read more Audio