Wellington Region

The push is part of the groups wider project that aims to make the entire Wellington region pest free.

Shoppers have packed into stores on one of the busiest shopping days of the year, to take advantage of Boxing Day sales.

As more than 700 people sit down to community Christmas Day lunches, the levels of need in the community this year are the worst it has been, both Auckland and Wellington city missioners say.

A 28-year-old man is due to appear in Court at a later date.

After a heart-wrenching 42 hours fearing her teenage daughter was dead, Amy Walsh has received the best Christmas present of all: "I have my girl."

The Hamilton teen went missing in Upper Hutt on Saturday night and was found on Monday in the hills above Totara Park.

Wellington police investigating the death of a 53-year-old woman are appealing for anybody who may have seen anything the night she was allegedly assaulted.

Last year at one point there was a 70 percent chance of the region being plunged into level three restrictions, this year there is just a 1 percent chance.

Maia Johnston left a family address in Totara Park, Upper Hutt, at around 8.30pm on Saturday.

Support from the community will see 20 loaves of Vonz Kaukau's bread added to an Upper Hutt foodbank ahead of Christmas.

Being able to swim is often considered a life skill, but tough economic times are forcing many families to pull their children out of lessons.

The hub was part of the 'Pōneke Promise' - a joint social contract between council, the hospitality industry, retailers and police.

"Put it this way, you can't taste it anymore," one resident says. Audio

The council voted earlier this month to tear down the footbridge connecting the capital's waterfront and Civic Square, but is holding off after action from a lobby group.

A group of high-profile Wellingtonians are launching a series of events about the future of the city, with the first to feature film director James Cameron.

That equated to nearly 20,000 jobs, economist Shamubeel Eaqub's data shows.

The New Zealand Campus of Innovation and Sport in Trentham said it was working with police on site.

A new plan has been hatched to try to resolve a years-long fight to protect native fish at Transmission Gully.

Health NZ is asking companies to tender for the construction of a new mental health unit in the Hutt Valley, without first getting the approval to build it.

However, motorists are being warned of delays as congestion around the capital clears.