Checkpoint for Tuesday 1 March 2022

5:07 PM.Thousands of people are being told to get retested for Covid-19 after an overwhelmed lab system failed when the Omicron wave hit.

It's been revealed tens of thousand of people have been waiting more… Read more Audio

5:11 PM.As Victoria University faces a rapid spread of Covid among students, the Tertiary Education Union says it is very disappointed in university leadership.

"I think we've seen a pattern over two years… Read more Audio

5:21 PM.Tickets booked, bags packed. New Zealanders are saying 'see ya later' with the suspension of isolation requirements.

But while an overseas holiday is now back on the cards for some - the move's not… Read more Video, Audio

5:27 PM.Sudima Hotels chief operating officer Les Morgan told Checkpoint says all their hotels will go back to operating normally as accommodation when the contract with the government ends.

[embed]… Read more Video, Audio

5:35 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report Audio

5:38 PM.A huge convoy of Russian military is advancing closer to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

Satellite images show it is much longer than first thought - stretching 64 kilometres. US lawmakers have received… Read more Video, Audio

5:39 PM.In a change of tune, the Government is now looking at a law change allowing it to slap sanctions on Russia - like many of its allies.

The Prime Minister has previously downplayed the prospect - but… Read more Audio

5:42 PM.Childrens' cries are echoing through train stations in the Ukraine city of Lviv, as fathers farewell their families fleeing the country.

Lviv is not far from the border with Poland, where hundreds of… Read more Video, Audio

5:49 PM.Cities hotter and less livable - the stark warning out of the latest global climate report.

It paints a grim picture for the world - with temperatures predicted to keep inching up - and another call… Read more Video, Audio

5:52 PM.Tourism operators are pleased to see self isolation for travellers kicked to the curb, but say they still need answers about the border.

By the end of the week, self isolation will be a thing of the… Read more Audio

5:55 PM.Time to hang up the size 14 throwing shoes. One of the great New Zealand sports careers has officially come to an end - with champion shot putter Dame Valerie Adams confirming her retirement in… Read more Video, Audio

6:06 PM.Tourism Minister Stuart Nash has told Checkpoint by the end of March government can give a date for tourists from visa waiver countries to come to NZ without isolation. He said by end of March… Read more Video, Audio

6:17 PM.Construction crews working on Transmission Gully have unearthed a kitty litter of the most adorable kind.

Seven wee kittens were found near a digger on the site yesterday and are now being cared for… Read more Video, Audio