The stories you might have missed this week, requiring no translation.
POST HASTE
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The Attorney-General and Minister in charge of the SIS, Chris Finlayson, defended the speed under which new laws against terrorist fighters are being put through Parliament. The bill passed its first reading on Tuesday night, and public submissions closed on Wednesday. But some said there’s no good reason for the rush.
TEXT REGRET
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Prime Minister John Key says he didn’t mislead Parliament, after saying that he hadn’t had contact with blogger Cameron Slater over the IGIS report. He returned to the House to say that he had exchanged texts with Slater, and says he could not recall the exact number of occasions on which he had communicated with Slater, saying it was “a handful” of times.
RUNNING COSTS
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Convicted murderer and child molester Phillip Smith could be released from a Brazilian jail if he is not deported by Monday. A judge has ordered him deported within 10 days, but police in Brasilia are slowing down the process, saying they are waiting for a Supreme Court decision on the case. Meanwhile, it emerged that Smith defrauded the taxpayer of nearly $27,000 in student living costs while in prison. (UPDATE: He has now been deported.)
‘WHAT DID I DO TO MERIT THAT?’
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A 93-year-old Auckland resthome resident was recognised for her work as a French spy during World War 2. Phyllis Latour Doyle, was parachuted into France to get information on German positions during the war and on one mission played a crucial role in the D-Day landings in Normandy. She was made a Knight of the National Order of the Legion of Honour.
SAY NO TO TXTSPK
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Texting while driving is the number one distraction, but AA Insurance's latest Drivers' Index reveals personal grooming, applying makeup, talking on a mobile phone, and changing the station are all on the list. (It became illegal to use a cellphone while driving in 2009.)
