Checkpoint for Thursday 12 March 2015

6:54 PM.TVNZ bosses up before Commerce Committee. MPs' pay rise bill put on the back burner. More questions about bridges in Northland. Auckland's "Lone Kauri" comes up in committee. Flag referendum bill… Read more Audio

6:48 PM.A geologist who has studied the movement of pounamu says its stones move in a river like fish swimming upstream; This year marks the 120th anniversary of the Turangawaewae Regatta, the sight of Maori… Read more Audio

6:36 PM.A Paleo cookbook for babies has had its release date pushed back after health experts warned that a baby might die from one of its recipes. Audio

6:35 PM.The ACC Minister is defending the Government's decision to cut levies by only 5 percent when the corporation recommended a 21 percent drop. Audio

6:26 PM.Tasmania's 100 million dollar poppy industry is worried about the security of poppy fields after recent thefts. Audio

6:20 PM.More now on Cylcone Pam . Metservice says it's expected to weaken to a category four by the time it reaches New Zealand on Sunday, but it'll still bring severe south-east gales and heavy rain to… Read more Audio

6:14 PM.The government says Northland towns like Kaikohe could be next in line for high speed internet, with the extension of its ultra-fast broadband programme. Audio

6:11 PM.People are battening down in Vanuatu in the face of a severe cyclone with emergency teams racing to find refuge for more than 45,000 people in the capital Port Vila. Audio

6:06 PM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport Audio

5:55 PM.New geological research into the movement of pounamu has found its stones move in a river like fish swimming upstream. GNS Science says the research in conjunction with the South Island greenstone's… Read more Audio

5:52 PM.New legislation to change MPs' pay has been delayed and the Green Party says the Government clearly stuffed it up in its haste to get it passed. Audio

5:47 PM.In the U.S, the police chief of Ferguson has resigned, a week after a scathing Justice Department report. Audio

5:39 PM.A pre-school teacher who smuggled methamphetamine into the country to feed her habit has been allowed to continuing teaching. Audio

5:35 PM.The Latter Day Saints Church in Utah is in mourning following the death of three of its members in an horrific car crash just south of Hamilton last night. Audio

5:34 PM.The New Zealand dollar has jumped in trading by more than a cent against its American counterpart. Audio

5:27 PM.An Australian teenager linked to a suicide bombing attack in Iraq left a series of improvised explosive devices at his family home before going to Syria. Audio

5:24 PM.The Chief of Defence Force, Tim Keating, says there's no "D-Day" around the Iraq deployment, and it won't go ahead until satisfactory legal protections for the soldiers have been secured. Audio

5:18 PM.Thousands of people in Vanuatu are bracing for what could be one of the most devastating cyclones in decades. Audio

5:14 PM.Deputy mayor Penny Hulse says Council has unanimously decided to conduct a full review of this particular consent process. Audio

5:12 PM.A spokesperson for the protestors, Aprilanne Bonar, is with us. Audio

5:08 PM.Auckland Police have charged the kauri tree protest climber with trespassing after he came down today, hours after the tree won a reprieve from the developers' axe. Audio