Checkpoint for Thursday 9 August 2018

6:24 PM.The antics of a bouncing South Island sheep have captured worldwide attention after his owner posted a video of the woolly jumper trampolining. Video, Audio

6:22 PM.People are having to wait up to two years for an avocado tree, and the number of trees being grown in nurseries has jumped from 30,000 to 200,000 in the last five years. Read more Video, Audio

6:12 PM.People who have eaten eels and freshwater fish from two South Taranaki streams contaminated by fire-fighting foam are being urged to come forward. Audio

6:08 PM.Following widespread outrage after his speech at Massey University was cancelled on Tuesday, Don Brash is now facing protestors when he turns up to a debate at Auckland University tonight. Video, Audio

5:55 PM.Owairoa Primary School students will no longer have to shiver in shorts as the school has decided to approve long pants after weeks of petitioning. Read more Video, Audio

5:51 PM.Christchurch City Council is pushing back against a suggestion that control of water networks could be taken off local authorities. Read more Video, Audio

5:48 PM.The US is introducing new sanctions against Russia to punish the Kremlin for the country's involvement in the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the British town of Salisbury… Read more Video, Audio

5:42 PM.A contingent of New Zealand firefighters and managers have arrived in California to help battle devastating fires there. Sharon Brettkelly spoke to field liaison officer Wipari Henwood. Video, Audio

5:32 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Video, Audio

5:27 PM.An employer has been recorded asking for $35,000 in return for sponsoring an Indian student's work visa. Now the student is appealing her case to Immigration NZ because the job never existed. Audio

5:23 PM.A jury has dismissed Gabriel Yad-Elohim's defence of insanity, finding him guilty of murdering 69-year-old Michael Mulholland, three days after he was released from a mental health unit. Video, Audio

5:19 PM.The once bustling resort island of Lombok is now a ghost town as tourists flee fearing further quakes. For business owners left behind, the future looks bleak. Video, Audio

5:15 PM.The government is to pay employers the equivalent of the dole - as well as up to $6000 - to take on young beneficiaries as apprentices. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern unveiled the scheme today. Video, Audio

5:08 PM.The controversy into Wally Haumaha's appointment as deputy police commissioner has widened as it was revealed in Parliament that three public servants claim he bullied them. Audio

5:00 PM.Watch Thursday's full programme here. Video