Checkpoint for Tuesday 17 December 2013

6:54 PM.New research has found that pregnant women should be taking four times the level of vitamin D currently recommended here. Audio

6:48 PM.A Maori rights activist has lost his appeal against his conviction of assault on a man at a lake near Levin; One of the lawyers taking a case against the Treaty settlement process says the Waitangi… Read more Audio

6:37 PM.ASB, ANZ and Westpac all face legal action over misrepresenting the complex 'interest rate swap contracts' which it sold to farmers. Audio

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

6:26 PM.The Government is delaying by 12 months big changes to child support laws because they're so complex the IRD has missed the target. Audio

6:24 PM.The building of Auckland houses and apartments has hit a five-year high, though the housing shortage is still estimated to be between one and two years worth of supply. Audio

6:16 PM.The government is kickstarting a law change to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes and tobacco, but it won't come into force until legal action in Australia has been settled. Audio

6:12 PM.There's a very different picture in Australia where the Prime Minister is warning that all Australians will feel the pinch because of ballooning budget deficit - totalling more than 123 billion… Read more Audio

6:08 PM.The Government has confirmed it will spend an extra one billion dollars in next year's Budget but says it's no lolly scamble. Audio

5:55 PM.Australians might now be able to claim another New Zealand icon as their own. Audio

5:48 PM.A Maori rights activist has lost his appeal against his conviction of assault on a man at a lake near Levin; One of the lawyers taking a case against the Treaty settlement process says the Waitangi… Read more Audio

5:43 PM.A senior Customs manager told Immigration officials months before the raid on Kim Dotcom that feeding the FBI information on the internet mogul would buy them 'many brownie points'. Audio

5:40 PM.The lawyer for Helen Milner has told the jury the Crown's case depends on a woman who embarked on an unrelenting crusade against the murder accused. Audio

5:36 PM.In the US a judge has ruled the government's collection of massive amounts of data about telephone calls is unconstiutional and unlawful. Audio

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

5:28 PM.A cyclist who was attacked and seriously injured by an enraged driver on a road near Reporoa is relieved the man has been sent to prison. Audio

5:25 PM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

5:18 PM.ASB, ANZ and Westpac are to all face legal action over misrepresenting the complex 'interest rate swap contracts' sold to farmers. Audio

5:13 PM.A West Auckland police officer turned to smuggling to try to keep prisoners calm after new no-smoking rules came in. Audio

5:09 PM.The Government has confirmed it will spend an extra one billion dollars in next year's Budget as it remains on track to return to surplus by the middle of 2015. Audio

5:00 PM.An extra billion dollars in Govermment spending and the lion share goes to health and education. The police officer who turned smuggler to help prisoners deal with the new smoking ban and banks to… Read more Audio