Checkpoint for Tuesday 29 June 2021

6:18 PM.It appears the capital has dodged a bullet - another day with no community Covid-19 cases means a return to alert level 1 from midnight.

Wellington, Wairarapa and the Kāpiti Coast shifted to level… Read more Audio

6:08 PM.It's the multi-million-dollar trade expo to promote New Zealand business that NZ businesses cannot really get to.

The government has sunk close to $60 million into creating a pavilion at the Dubai… Read more Video, Audio

5:56 PM.A question mark hangs over former National leader Todd Muller, with his successor Judith Collins saying his political future is in the hands of the caucus.

Muller has announced his retirement from… Read more Audio

5:53 PM.Parts of Queensland will go into a three-day snap lockdown starting tonight after two new local cases have been detected.

The lockdown comes in the first week of school holidays there but the Premier… Read more Audio

5:50 PM.A substantial amount of sensitive Waikato DHB data has been released online.

The documents - which contain both staff and patient information - have been posted on the dark web following last month's… Read more Audio

5:46 PM.Whangarei District councillors have rejected the government's three waters reforms after a heated debate today.

The government has so far put $760 million aside for the overhaul, that will take… Read more Audio

5:42 PM.The government is demanding answers after a video showing a boy being tackled and put into a headlock at an Oranga Tamariki care facility was leaked to media.

Newsroom.co.nz published footage taken… Read more Video, Audio

5:36 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. [embed] https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6261490638001 Video, Audio

5:30 PM.The government is mulling the idea of mandatory QR scanning in "high-risk" locations, but Cabinet is seeking advice on the move after daily scans fell from a high of two million every day at the… Read more Video, Audio

5:23 PM.The government needs to ring fence spots for business in MIQ and look at shortening isolation for fully vaccinated people if it wants to grow the post-Covid-19 economy, according to one business… Read more Video, Audio

5:19 PM.A polar blast has brought wild weather to much of the country today. Snowfall from the bottom of Te Waipounamu to central parts of Te Ika-a-Māui has caused massive disruption.

Our reporter Timothy… Read more Video, Audio

5:16 PM.Wellington's mayor has declared a state of emergency for the south coast as big swells and a storm are expected to hit on Tuesday night.

Charlotte Cook is at Breaker Bay with the details.

  Read more Video, Audio

5:08 PM.Guests at the Novotel Auckland Airport were told earlier on Tuesday they must stay beyond their mandated 14 days in MIQ, because two others have Covid-19.

The travellers who arrived from Dubai and… Read more Video, Audio