Checkpoint for Tuesday 1 October 2013

6:53 PM.Researchers have found Moa shared a much wide range of foods than previously thought. A team of scientists from Landcare Research used several methods including DNA analysis of coprolites, or fossil… Read more Audio

6:48 PM.The commercial division of the South Island iwi, Ngai Tahu, has made a total net profit of nearly 78-million dollars, and has major plans to expand its dairy farming; A prominent Maori leader angry… Read more Audio

6:42 PM.The country that made America's Cup history by being the first to take the trophy off the US, is back in the game. The Australian billionaire Bob Oatley and his Hamilton Island Yacht Club have been… Read more Audio

6:38 PM.New figures show another drop in the country's recorded crime. Ten of the 12 police districts recorded a decrease in the year to June. But there's been a rise in the number of recorded sexual offences… Read more Audio

6:36 PM.A survey commissioned by Kiwibank has found small businesses are sitting on unpaid invoices worth 2.5 billion dollars each month. Audio

6:33 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:21 PM.The owner of a controlling stake in one of the nation's five electricity generators and retailers expects household power bills should fall by between 15 and 20 dollars a month in the next couple of… Read more Audio

6:16 PM.The Housing Minister, Nick Smith, says the FirstHome scheme announced today will help modest income earners in provincial New Zealand buy their first home. Audio

6:12 PM.Ged O'Connell, the acting national secretary for the EPMU, the union which represents mineworkers. Audio

6:09 PM.The Labour Party says taxpayers will foot the bill for Solid Energy's restructure, when it is the Government's fault that the state coal miner is in financial trouble. The Government has reached a… Read more Audio

5:57 PM.It's been revealed earthquake damage was only one factor considered by the Ministry of Education when it decided to close schools in Christchurch and that it was just as much to do with reducing the… Read more Audio

5:54 PM.The Corrections Minister, Anne Tolley, has rejected calls for a review into the health care of prisoners. Radio New Zealand News last week revealed that the police are investigating the care of a… Read more Audio

5:48 PM.The business arm of the South Island iwi, Ngai Tahu, has made a total annual net profit of nearly 78-million dollars, and has major plans to expand its dairy farm interests; A prominent Maori leader… Read more Audio

5:44 PM.There has been another drop in the country's overall crime rate, but the number of sexual offences continues to rise. More than three-thousand-800 were recorded by the police in the year to June, up… Read more Audio

5:42 PM.Smoking in a Skycity lounge could be banned after a High Court judgement found the way smoking approval is determined is inconsistent with the law. Audio

5:38 PM.The Employment Court has begun hearing the longest running employment dispute in New Zealand. Radio New Zealand's former managing editor of news, Lynne Snowdon, is challenging the public broadcaster's… Read more Audio

5:35 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport Audio

5:29 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:24 PM.The Accident Compensation Corporation has posted a net surplus of 4.9 billion dollars for the last financial year. That's 3.6 billion ahead of budget. The chair of the ACC Board, Paula Rebstock, says… Read more Audio

5:20 PM.The United States government has officially shut down. It's the first time this has happened in 17 years. The White House has put in place a skeleton staff to operate essential functions like the… Read more Audio

5:13 PM.The Government is selling off 400 state houses in the provinces and offering first home buyers a 20-thousand dollar subsidy to buy them. Only first-home buyers are eligible for the scheme. They have… Read more Audio

5:07 PM.Taxpayers are stumping up 155 million dollars and the four major banks are taking a slice of Solid Energy as part of a deal to ease the state-owned coal miner's crippling debt. Audio

5:00 PM.Solid Energy restructure announced; Govt's $20K subsidy for first home buyers; US government shuts down; ACC levies could fall as Corporation posts $4.9 billion surplus. Audio