Checkpoint for Friday 18 August 2023

6:12 PM.New Zealand's education sector says the country's recovery from the Covid slump in international students is well under way. International student numbers are sitting around the low which is about 2/3… Read more Audio

6:07 PM.Six months after the Cyclone Gabrielle devastated parts of Hawke's Bay, growers in one of New Zealand's fruit bowls are slowly getting back on their feet. Apples and pears alone make up an industry… Read more Video, Audio

5:54 PM.The naughty porker of statehighway 16 formerly known as ''Kevin Bacon" now renamed "Reggie" has found his forever home. The roaming road hog blocked lanes on Auckland's North-Western motorway and… Read more Audio

5:50 PM.Expectations were high ahead of the FIFA Women's World Cup, and tourism businesses say the tournament has definitely exceeded them. Aotearoa hosted 29 games, drawing some record football crowds and… Read more Audio

5:46 PM.Another day and another ferry service sunk. Fuller360 has revealed it will not be reinstating its Coromandel ferry service this summer. That's hot on the heels of the operator announcing it will no… Read more Video, Audio

5:41 PM.Progress is being made on a fix for the road between Kopu and Hikuai in the Coromandel. By March, it's hoped a steel bridge will span the 110-metre wide slip on State Highway 25A. For some on the… Read more Video, Audio

5:33 PM.Sports reporter Felicity Reid joined Lisa Owen in the studio. [embed] https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6334196804112 Read more Video, Audio

5:29 PM.All Blacks first five Richie Mo'unga has slammed the decision to overturn England captain Owen Farrell's red card for a dangerous tackle and says there seems to be "double standards" in World Rugby… Read more Audio

5:22 PM.It's a solid serve of criticism from some diners at Victoria University's catered halls of residence. The Uni says its only had a handful of complaints despite serving meals to about 2,000 students… Read more Audio

5:17 PM.Those who've been warning the government about shortcomings with its Accredited Employer Work Visa say it shouldn't have taken a whistleblower to spring it into action. The Immigration Minister has… Read more Audio

5:13 PM.ACT Party leader David Seymour has doubled down on his joke about about blowing up the Ministry of Pacific Peoples, even after two men entered its office to film and interrogate staff yesterday. The… Read more Audio

5:06 PM.It's pay day for Alan Hall, a man wrongly convicted of murder. Almost $5 million and a letter from the government saying he is innocent. The Supreme Court quashed Hall's conviction for a murder during… Read more Audio