Latest: 8.26 PM Thursday October 3 from MetserviceHeavy Rain Warning - RedPeriod: 25hrs from 8pm Thu, 3 Oct - 9pm Fri, 4 OctArea: North Otago, Dunedin and coastal CluthaForecast: Expect 70 to 100 mm of rain, on top of what already has fallen, with the heaviest falls about the eastern hills. Peak rates of 8 to 15 mm/h. Note that the amount and duration of rain is highly unusual for this area and it may cause major impacts.Impact: Threat to life from dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips. Conditions will disrupt travel, make some roads impassable, and isolate communities.Action: Do not enter floodwaters and avoid travel. Act quickly to self-evacuate if you see rising water. Be ready for power and communications outages. See preparedness advice in readiness for action please.--------The Metservice has issued a Heavy Rain Warning - Red for North Otago, Dunedin and coastal Clutha for the period of 34 hours, from 11am today (Thursday October 3) until 9pm tomorrow evening. Forecast: Expect 120 to 150 mm of rain with the heaviest falls about the eastern hills. Peak rates of 8 to 15 mm/h. Note that the amount and duration of rain is highly unusual for this area and it may cause major impacts.Impact: Threat to life from dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips. Conditions will disrupt travel, make some roads impassable, and isolate communities.Action: Do not enter floodwaters and avoid travel. Act quickly to self-evacuate if you see rising water. Be ready for power and communications outages.See preparedness advice in readiness for action please.Follow Emergency Management Otago - WaitakiFollow RNZ's live blog for updates.More to come.Road Closure: SH8 Tarras to Omarama - Lindis Pass

Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher feels “more optimistic” New Dunedin Hospital will be fit for purpose, after a meeting with Health New Zealand Te Whatu Ora Infrastructure head Blake Lepper on Monday night.Mr Lepper made contact with Mr Kircher, who is Otago Mayoral Forum chair, on Friday, following an announcement from the Government last week that hospital plans as they stand can not be delivered on the allocated $1.88 billion budget.“He wanted an opportunity to update the forum after his previous presentation given two weeks earlier. I also invited the members of the Southland Mayoral Forum, and that meeting took place via Zoom.”All mayors from both districts were present, as were the chairs of the Otago and Southland regional councils, Gary says.The Government’s announcement last week triggered a mass protest in Dunedin on Saturday, with an estimated 35,000 people voicing their dissatisfaction at the prospect of a sub-standard hospital.Mr Kircher says he “can't overstate how important the voice of our region's people is in this discussion”.“Letting our central government politicians know what we expect for our healthcare is an extremely important show of support.”Mr Lepper provided an update on negotiations and other happenings since the group last met about two weeks ago.“Importantly, he spoke of his work to get the costs down without affecting services.”It appears Mr Lepper and Health NZ have made “good progress”, but he would have to comment on that himself, Mr Kircher says.“Blake did say that it will be another three to four weeks before he finishes his current process of getting the project back under the latest $1.88B budget.”Health NZ Chief Infrastructure and Investment Officer Jeremy Holman told the Waitaki App on Wednesday, that Health NZ is "working urgently to develop options for New Dunedin Hospital that can be achieved within the budget and deliver modern, fit-for-purpose health facilities that will enhance clinical safety and enable new models of care". The work will be completed over the coming weeks. "We will consult with critical stakeholders, including clinical leaders, to ensure we understand the benefits and risks before a final decision is made. As soon as a decision is reached, we will update the people of Dunedin and the wider Southern region," he says.Those in Monday's meeting found out more details on the order of priorities for reducing costs, and were told cuts to services are the last resort, Mr Kircher says.“We also learnt of the way these projects had been handled, with a strict division between responsibilities of Health NZ and the DHBs.“Car parking is one of those aspects, with HNZ not talking any interest in that as it was seen as a local service matter.”Mr Kircher commented last week that choosing to build the hospital on the former Cadbury factory site with demolition costs, site contamination issues, and positioned in between two State Highway 1 thoroughfares, had contributed to mounting costs.He also landed some of the blame with successive governments for poor management of the project.At Monday's meeting, the mayoral group gained a better awareness of the nature of the agreement in place between the Health Ministry and the contractor, and it appears to Mr Kircher there is “disproportionate responsibility” on the Health Ministry for any cost over-runs.They also gained a better idea of how many services were intended to remain in existing buildings rather than move to new buildings.“It gave a better context to the potential redevelopment of buildings that already exist and for which a better business case can be made.“I believe we finished the Zoom meeting with a more optimistic view that we are on a better path towards getting a hospital we deserve, though there is still a lot of work to be done in a short time.” The “mayors and chairs of Otago and Southland” also acknowledge the amount of support for the appropriate level of healthcare for the south, Mr Kircher says.“We are all committed to achieving that for our people. The more comprehensive and the more accessible that healthcare is, the better.”See a timeline of the new Dunedin Hospital build and read about why the hospital costs keep going up.

Metservice has issued a Road Snowfall warning for the Lindis Pass.MetService Road Snowfall Warning for Lindis Pass (SH8)Issued at 11:01am Wed 2 Oct 2024Lindis Pass (SH8)Valid: 10 hours from 5:00pm Wed 2 Oct to 3:00am Thu 3 OctForecast: Rain is expected to turn to snow this evening. 1 to 3 cm could settle near the summit, with lesser amounts to 800 metres.Disclaimer: These warnings provide information regarding expected weather conditions. They contain no information about current road conditions or about the amount of snow currently lying on any road.

By Jogai Bhatt RNZNothing screams 'how do you do, fellow kids?' quite like trying to use slang that's just not for you.It's why the internet collectively cringed when Prime Minister Christopher Luxon decided to give Gen Alpha's unique 'brainrot' style of speech a go in a video posted to Instagram and TikTok."Straight up, we're getting New Zealand back on track, no cap. The phone ban in schools ate, and it left no crumbs. See the lack of regional fuel tax? It's giving back on track. Delivering tax relief has so much rizz, Nicola Willis understood the assignment. Slay."The video attracted some mixed responses from viewers; some were mildly amused, while others experienced a fair bit of second-hand embarrassment.But why do we find it cringe when old people try to use slang? Who determines when words are in and when they're out? And where do they come from anyway?Skibidi, Sigma, Rizz - where did it all come from?Every generation has their own slang, but Gen Alpha (people born between 2010-2024) have a particularly unhinged way of speaking.They use a hyper-online style of speech, dubbed 'brainrot language'. It's slang that's often niche and insular to the internet, cropping up in places like TikTok, YouTube, Twitch and Roblox - making it uniquely difficult for older generations to understand.It's given rise to words like 'sigma', a humbler version of the traditional 'alpha', 'rizz', the ability to charm or woo someone, and 'skibidi', meaning bad, cool, or nothing at all.How does slang die?'Slay' is already dead. 'Tea' is vintage. Now, it's all about 'gyatt' (like gyatt damn, or goddamn) and 'fanum tax', the act of jokingly taking food from a friend, or collecting the fanum tax. Are you following along?The words are fun and silly and a little bit random - and Gen Alpha is fully aware of this. The more nonsensical a sentence, the more likely it is to receive a comment along the lines of, 'Imagine showing this to a Victorian child' or 'There's no way to explain this'.Something like 'skibidi Ohio rizz' might feel like the funniest thing in the world right now, but according to linguistics expert and content creator Adam Aleksic, these words might not be around for long."If you look at any historical example, the slang words that survive are never the ones we think of as slang words ... look at the words 'selfie' or 'cancel' meaning socially ostracise. We still use them because they didn't stick out as examples of slang."Any time a word is too obtrusive, it gets tied to a meme, people use it ironically and then the meme dies out, it becomes unfunny, like when adults start using it ... I don't think any of the brainrot words are actually gonna stick around."So why is it cringe when old people try to use brainrot slang? RNZ took to Auckland's Mission Bay to ask Gen Alpha (and their parents) just that.Sebastian Gundry (left) loves deliberately misusing Gen Alpha slang. Photo: RNZ / Marika KhabaziSebastian Gundry hears his daughter Kaia and her friends using words like 'skibidi', 'rizz', and 'mewing' all the time. He enjoys deliberately misusing them."Skibidi is something to do with brainrot, Ohio brainrot is when you wear two different coloured crocs, you have a rat tail or a mullet and basketball shorts," he says confidently."Rizz is like Rizla, like rolling paper for a cigarette. I'm pretty much a 100 percent sure on that. And does mewing mean spitting... like mooing?"Kaia explains that mewing is all about flexing your jawline, so you can 'rizz' people up. Rizz, in this case, is short for exuding charisma. For Gundry, it suddenly clicks."Oh it's like your vibe, your aura. And sus is short for suspect... see these words are all just a breakdown of normal words, but they're in half, it's like when you're texting and you can't be bothered writing the whole word."Kaia says it's "absolutely cringe" for adults to use this slang, and Gundry agrees."Words change all the time, they're constantly developing and changing, there's nothing wrong with Covid or Gen Alpha lingo in my view ... I just feel not cool, I shouldn't try and use it, I don't know what I'm saying. We're old and crusty and shouldn't try and be cool."Cosette Tulloch knows what her daughters are talking about - some of the time. Photo: RNZ / Marika KhabaziCosette Tulloch has four daughters aged nine to 15, so she has an idea of what they're talking about - some of the time."Rizz ... is that cool? Is it when you're flirting with someone? Mewing ... is that to do with having a sharper chin? Like a nice, defined jaw line? See skibidi, I was talking with my husband about this the other night and we still don't know what it is. Is it something to do with a toilet?"Tulloch's daughters are reassuring that she's on the right track, but reckon it's still a bit embarrassing when adults try to use these words."They're a little bit older and it's meant for us," 11-year-old Leah says.Her sister Shiloh, 13, agrees: "It's cringe, mum uses it and I'm like no, you can't do that ... but maybe they should just do it to make everyone else cringe."Tulloch says she was told off just that morning for trying to act cool."We drove up from Hamilton so I was like, 'Can we put some Gen Z music on', and Shiloh put on Central Cee and I was singing along and I got told off ... I think we need to embrace our kids' generation. Millennials are cool, I think we're nicer than your generation ... nah, jokes."Darren Tichborne (middle) doesn't try and get in amongst the slang of today. Photo: RNZ / Marika KhabaziEdward Strange, 13, is happy his dad Darren Tichborne doesn't try to get in amongst the slang of today.Tichborne thinks 'sigma' is a car, like a Mitsubishi Sigma. He thinks 'rizz' means "rarking someone up". Sus - "is that suspect? Like Christopher Luxon?" and 'mewing' must mean you have an itchy chin."I just wouldn't have a clue ... kids these days, man."There's just things you wouldn't say. I remember when the word 'lit' was going around some time ago, and that seems to have died a natural death... I actually gave him one earlier. He gave me poor directions and I said, 'you're giving me a bum steer' and he looked at me like 'what?'."Luckily, Edward knows what it means now: "It means like giving bad directions or bad advice."Janine Kenyon (left) loves hearing her granddaughters speak their own little language. Photo: RNZ / Marika KhabaziAda-Rose Wilson, 12, says it's hard to explain these terms: "You just kind of watch videos and figure out what it means" - and says sometimes it feels silly to try and explain them."It's kind of funny cause some people will be like 'Oh yeah, that person is so skibidi sigma rizzful, I've heard people say that before and it sounds really weird."Her cousin, 10-year-old Zelda Capamagian, explains that a lot of the terms are complimentary - 'sigma' means "amazing" or "kind of like cool" while 'rizz' is the ability to get men or women."Are you a parking ticket? Cause you've got fine written all over you," Zelda says.Their grandmother Janine Kenyon says she enjoys hearing the girls chatting away."I think we're a lot more accepting of slang and young ones than my parents were. We were seen and not heard, that was that generation."I stick to my own slang. I mean, I still use 'cool' which is dating back to the 60s, 70s, it hasn't gone away. But I love hearing them do it, it's their little language and they bounce off one another and it's great."Zelda doesn't mind if adults use slang - she and Ada-Rose both think their grandma is sigma - but they're worried about people who don't know what it means."If they're saying stuff and they don't know what it means, they could be saying something else, it could mean something bad. I would feel bad for them."This story was originially published on RNZ

A heavy rain watch has been issued by MetService for Eastern Otago, including North Otago, for Thursday and Friday. Heavy rain had already been forecast for many areas of the country, with heavy snow for southern parts of the South Island, but Eastern Otago has now been added to the list.An active front over the Tasman Sea is expected to move eastwards across the country from late Tuesday through to Friday, bringing with it a blast of cold, wet weather.The watch has been issued for North Otago, Dunedin and Clutha, for a 33-hour period from 3am Thursday (3 October), to noon on Friday. A brief period of heavy rain is also expected tomorrow afternoon and evening before the easterly rain sets in early Thursday morning. There is a high chance the watch will be upgraded to a warning - with the risk of streams and rivers rising rapidly, surface flooding, slips, and difficult driving conditions.People are encouraged to clear drains and gutters to prepare for the rain, and drive cautiously.

Waitaki App has been confirmed as an associate member of the NZ Media Council (NZMC) as of 30th September 2024."We're delighted," co-director of Waitaki App Cara Tipping Smith says."We know we're a bridge between traditional media and modern media, so being welcomed to the NZ Media Council (NZMC) feels like a very validating step for what we've achieved over the last couple of years."The NZMC states: "The main objective of the New Zealand Media Council, established as an industry self-regulatory body in 1972, is to provide the public with an independent forum for resolving complaints involving the newspapers, magazines and the websites of such publications and other digital media."The council is also concerned with promoting media freedom and maintaining the press in accordance with the highest professional standards."Membership of the council carries a responsibility to adhere to and uphold the NZMC’s twelve principles of ethical journalism and an acceptance of the Media Council’s complaint procedure as outlined on the Media Council’s website."Waitaki App co-director Alex Regtien says the App published its own code of conduct, the Digital Accountability & Responsible Engagement (DARE), a year ago and NZMC principles were an important part of our consideration then."Now as accepted NZMC members, we stand amongst the likes of New Zealand's leading publishers including the ODT, Oamaru Mail, NZ Herald, and TVNZ, along with international brands such as Warner Brothers Discovery, Netflix and Amazon Prime in our commitment to promoting media freedom and maintaining the highest professional standards."We're incredibly proud of our team, particularly our head of news, Ashley Smyth, whose integrity, diligence and professionalism has been unwavering since we began in November 2022."Members agree to abide by NZMC's 12 principles, and undertake to publish responsibly and ethically. If readers think the Waitaki App has breached these principles, complaints can made in writing to [email protected], and if the issue is not resolved satisfactorily, they can take the matter to NZMC.See the full complaints procedure here.

Mainly fine weather was felt across the nation to kick off the school holidays, but as we near midweek, MetService is forecasting heavy rain and strong winds to put an end to the sunny spree.On Monday, settled weather was widespread nationwide thanks to high pressure that moved in during the weekend. However, today (Tuesday) more clouds will be seen across the skies; northeasterly winds will pick up and some rain will fall around the country's southwest.MetService meteorologist Lewis Ferris warns Wednesday and Thursday are the main risk period for severe weather. “Heavy Rain Watches are already in force for western and northern parts of the South Island. It’s likely some of these will be upgraded to Orange Warnings and areas in the North Island may be added,” he says.This potentially severe weather is brought about by a low pressure system approaching from the Tasman Sea which drags some warm and humid air across our shores.While this does mean some warmer than average temperatures it also increases the chance of heavy rain as the system passes over. Strong northeasterly winds will also be seen before the rain arrives.While most of the North Island will be covered by the warm and humid air, there is some cold air being dragged across the southern half of the South Island. This means Thursday brings the risk of snow falling down to around 500 metres for inland Otago and southern parts of Canterbury. Prolonged rain is also possible around these areas and severe weather forecasts might be issued.While coastal North Otago looks likely to escape the worst of the weather, the drop in temperatures over the next couple of days will be noticeable, with a high of 11 degrees predicted for Thursday, and rain forecast for the next two days.Lewis says It’s a good idea to stay up to date with the latest forecasts this week as the weather from Wednesday will be very different to now and severe weather may impact numerous regions.

Susan Edmunds, Money CorrespondentIt's the catch cry of a certain tranche of X - formerly Twitter - users: Go woke go broke.It has been levelled at everyone from Budweiser in the United States, which suffered a decline in sales after a social media partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, to Strictly Come Dancing in Britain for its ratings falling when it included same-sex couples and a contestant with dwarfism.In New Zealand, Mike Hosking asked Patrick Gower - after the confirmation that Newshub would close - what he would say to people who said "go woke, go broke".The term comes from African-American Vernacular English. Over the past five years it's been used as an insult from the right wing around the world - and particularly in the US - to criticise efforts on anything from the environment to race and gender diversity initiatives.But global research released this month said the opposite could be true. Brands with more inclusive advertising practices had more sales and higher customer loyalty, the study found, regardless of the product category or where in the world the company was.Commentators said being "woke" may well benefit New Zealand businesses, too.Mike Lee, associate professor of marketing at the University of Auckland, said it could help a business if it aligned with customer values."It depends who your audience is… if you're a beer brand like Bud Light and the market segment is a certain type of person with certain values and you decide to use a transgender spokesperson, you could annoy your main market segment, it could lead to a decline in sales."But if you're a brand like Patagonia that's all about environmental sustainability and fighting climate change, obviously you want to go hard on that."Patagonia's brand centres around environmental sustainability. Photo: 123RF via RNZThe Woke Up NZ website - which according to its FAQ page holds strong anti-Black Lives Matter, anti-abortion and anti-trans views - ranks New Zealand companies according to whether they are "extreme woke", "woke", "woke lite" or "not woke".But being woke by this measure does not hurt profits - "extreme woke" ANZ is the country's biggest bank and made a net cash profit of $1.15 billion in the six months to March.The site accuses it of virtue signalling, being involved in LGBTQ initiatives, supporting the Paris Agreement on climate change and having diversity equity inclusion policies.ANZ did not want to comment.The site ranked Hallenstein Glasson "not woke" because it showed no evidence of virtue signalling, no evidence of an LGBTQ "agenda" and had not published any emission reduction targets.Lee said people could end up using those sorts of rankings because they wanted to support "woke" businesses, or avoid them."Whether you go broke because you've gone woke or because you haven't gone woke comes to your market segment, shareholders, customers and what they value."Lee said it was hard to quantify the effect a particular marketing campaign or ad campaign could have on a business's bottom line because there could be other variables happening.He pointed to backlash against Gillette in 2019, when it ran a campaign that targeted "toxic masculinity". "The ad was received very badly and there was a subsequent downturn in the value of the Gillette brand. People said the ad and the backlash must have led to this idea they were going broke because they went woke."But what that failed to realise is there is a whole bunch of other things in the background, the competitive landscape - cheap razors coming in from different suppliers - people were growing beards and shaving less, moving to electric razors. All those things were happening anyway."Hallenstein Glasson was labelled "not woke" by the Woke Up NZ website. Photo: RNZAlan McDonald, head of advocacy at the Employers and Manufacturers Association, said if any "woke" businesses were going broke it was probably more to do with them being in a small niche in a small market at a time when discretionary spending was dropping."In a wider context you see it in the priority issues for businesses - with sustainability and things like carbon footprints and lowering their emissions dropping down the list of business priorities as economic reality bites."Dean Hegarty, co-chief executive at the Responsible Investment Association of Australasia, said working with "woke" principles in mind could be future-proofing.He said from an investment perspective, planning for things such as climate change and societal changes would often be part of an assessment of risk and represented good business decision-making."At a basic level, where you've got governments all over the world who've made commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, you've got strategies and policies put in places to back those ... for you as an investor if you're trying to assess potential risk and predict outcomes, if you're not factoring in that shift in economy and society, it's going to have a negative impact on your ability to predict performance."It's not a 'do you go woke do you go broke' it's quite literally there are significant opportunities to be gained and there is a lot of risk that can be avoided by taking these factors into account in a rally high quality way."He said all the research pointed to the fact that if investment funds were factoring in environmental, social and governance factors when they decided how to invest, at worse they would deliver returns similar to the market. But there was a lot of evidence that they could outperform.A still from a Gillette ad tackling toxic masculinity. Photo: YouTube / Fair Use via RNZHe said what "woke" meant in the United States was different to what it would be understood as here."It's something that's political there, it isn't here. There's an element of that that makes it challenging."He said when his organisation worked with counterparts in the United States they had to be careful about doing anything "woke"."In New Zealand what the Republican party might call woke is actually just decent behaviour, making sure that people have human rights as part of employment conditions… that indigenous rights are upheld. Those are baseline decency elements we've done a much better job of incorporating into the way we live."Andrew Davies, chief executive at B Lab, which certifies B Corps, said in this part of the world there was sentiment that businesses couldn't operate with too much "red tape"."It doesn't quite stack up - businesses need certainty, consistency, rules. We see this when governments change."Some of the really sharp edges of this [woke] debate are predominantly a US issue, but it's far more to do with politics than economics or the theory of business."You do see debates pop up in this part of the world but they manifest in the idea that business needs to be unregulated. That hasn't serves us too well over the last 50 years. Our region did pretty well through the global financial crisis because we had high levels of regulation in the financial sector. There are all these other stories that say regulation is no bad thing… it's a softer version of the same debate."This story was originally reported by RNZ

“A pig’s breakfast” is the term Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher uses to describe the Dunedin Hospital situation.The Government announced last Thursday that a report it commissioned into the new hospital build says the current plans can not be delivered within the allocated $1.88 billion budget, and costs could balloon to $3b.The new hospital plans would either need to be reduced or done in stages, Government ministers say. Gary says the south “has not been served well”.“This is a regional hospital and we need it to deliver the tertiary care that our Ōamaru Hospital isn’t resourced for, and that people throughout Waitaki will depend on.”A massive protest took place in Dunedin on Saturday, with an estimated 35,000 people making it clear they are not happy with the latest announcement by the Government.Gary says while he could not make the protest at the weekend, he fully supports “the spirit of it”.“I have been liaising with Blake Lepper (Head of Infrastructure for Health NZ) and we will be having a Zoom with him and the Otago/Southland mayors and chairs this evening (Monday). “Blake will outline what he is doing to get the project to come in within the latest increased budget, but with the least possible cuts to any of the services.” Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher. Photo: SuppliedGary says the planning of the hospital has been “very much a Dunedin matter”, and the site has had a large part to play in the cost overruns.“Dunedin was adamant that it had to go on the old Cadbury factory site. The rest of the Otago/Southland regions weren’t given any choice.”Costs have blown out due to demolition costs, contamination, and the challenges and expense of building between two State Highway 1 thoroughfares, he says.He spoke to Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop and Health Minister Shane Reti last week at the pre-announcement briefing, and said the people of Waitaki didn’t care where in Dunedin it went.“We just wanted to know that it would have the services and enough capacity for our people, that it was easy to get to and that it had sufficient carparking, because unlike Dunedinites, we couldn’t simply catch a public bus to get there.”Gary says the south has been “failed” by the Government through its “extremely poor management of the project, the exclusion of key infrastructure from the budget, and the contractural mess” which has left .“When PM Luxon criticised councils for not managing water infrastructure well, he didn’t delineate between the current representatives and past ones, and we shouldn’t do that here. “The Government has failed us and past and present governments need to own that.”It has always been expected Ōamaru Hospital will play an important part in the health system for Waitaki locals, and if there are any reductions in the services to be offered in Dunedin, that part may become an even larger one, Gary says.Tell us what you think! Complete this (two-question) Inland App Company survey for Waitaki App, Southland App, Central App, Wānaka App and Queenstown App here.

From Morning Report and Tess Brunton, Otago/Southland RNZ reporterDunedin's mayor says a protest over the weekend was the city's biggest in decades, and has a warning for the government: people are just getting started.About 35,000 people marched through the city on Saturday, amid outrage at the Government's plans to scale back the redevelopment of its hospital.The government says it is unaffordable, and has been accused of breaking an election promise that still features on the National Party website."I was thrilled and very proud of the people of the south, because people came from all around the region to attend that protest and no one expected it to be as large as it was," Mayor Jules Radich told RNZ's Morning Report on Monday."This is the start of a programme of activity and it will be ongoing, and the thing is that it's not too late for the government to keep its promise okay? They have announced [this] bunch of excuses as to why it's difficult - that doesn't mean it's impossible."They can do it, they can keep their promise. And they made a firm promise during the last election and all coalition partners agreed with that, and yet they're here now trying to set the ground and make excuses for not keeping it."A report commissioned by the government found current plans for the hospital could not be delivered within the $1.88 billion budget, which could balloon to $3 billion.Jules Radich. Photo: Supplied via RNZRadich called the report a "smokescreen"."They've added in extra costs to try and cloud the issue. For a start, refurbishment. No one's ever talked about refurbishment being in the scope of this project, refurbishment of old blocks. I mean, they're talking hundreds of millions for that."They're talking about car parks - car parks have been long since taken out of the scope of this project other than you know, parking for staff, and it's very easy - all we have to do is give some private developers a suitable site, and there's plenty of sites around the hospital, and they all build the car parks, no problem at all."And pathology is the other one that they're talking about - [it] has already been taken out of scope by the previous government and agreed to by this government when they were in opposition. So it's a smokescreen."Artist's impression of the planned new Dunedin Hospital from Te Whatu Ora website. Photo: Supplied / Te Whatu OraRadich said it was not too late for the government to go back to the plan it promised."Dr Reti is saying, well, they are going now to discuss all of the options. They laid out two options last week. But those, the way they were laid out, neither of the options were unacceptable, but the least acceptable of course is keeping the old building."I mean, if they think they're going to build a modern health system by starting with a 50-year-old broken-down building and patch that up, I mean, that is no way to build a modern health system."Patients in tentsDunedin Hospital emergency doctor Joshua Smith said the current hospital was old, cramped and not meeting the region's needs."We're seeing on a daily basis patients and corridors, huge numbers of patients in the waiting room," he told Morning Report."Some days we have patients ramping, which means that they arrive in an ambulance and there's simply no room in the department for them to be handed over. And that means they have to stay in an ambulance in the car park for hours at a time, or even be cared for in a tent by ambulance staff."It's simply not acceptable. It's unsafe. Where do we want it?"Prostate cancer survivor Robert Scott, who lived near Port Chalmers, said the government needs to spend the money and build the hospital right."It made a huge difference for me being able to access the care. I could go in each day and get my treatment every day for a month, you know, it was only a 10-minute drive from my house."Carolines lives in Owaka - an hour-and-a-half away by road or 20 minutes by helicopter."I know so many people who have had major medical events and needed to be here… if Auckland can get so many roads, surely we can get a hospital."Another said the time for broken promises is over."It can hardly cope now, and they're going to make it smaller and they're not looking to the future. It's short-sighted."Health Minister Dr Shane Reti said the government remained committed to building the new hospital, but it needs to deliver for hospitals across the motu as well.Health Minister Dr Shane Reti. Photo: RNZ / Samuel RillstoneOver in Westport, more than 1000 people silently marched through the streets to protest the healthcare crisis on the West Coast. From Tuesday, a phone and video service will replace GP clinics for after-hours primary care.Ros Bradley from Carters Beach was worried about getting sick on the weekends because there was so little cover"I really feel for… people older than us. I mean, we're both in our 70s, but you know, there's people that can't get out, they're vulnerable, and that's terrifying."Alan Gregg said he was worried about the threat to medical services in Buller. He said they hear the rescue helicopters transferring people on a near daily basis."At the end of the day that's a cost to the medical area, and probably if we had a hospital that was well-stocked, well serviced and well-maintained, those costs could be saved in other areas."Allen Morris says he is sick of the local health services being run down. Photo: RNZ / Rachel GrahamDel Morgan, from Reefton said the government - and the last - had decimated the health system."We're stuck with the telehealth thing. We're stuck with doctors who we don't know because they change all the time. You can't can't build a rapport with them."Reti said he had been assured in-person care would remain available on the West Coast alongside more after-hours care.Originally reported by RNZ

Alliance Group has announced a proposal to close its Smithfield meatworks in Timaru.It told workers consultation would run until 11 October and a final decision was expected to be made by 18 October.If the closure went ahead, Alliance said wherever possible it would offer workers the opportunity to apply for re-deployment at the company's other plants.However it anticipated there would be a significant number of redundancies.Alliance chief executive Willie Wiese. Photo: Alliance/suppliedThe lamb processing season finished at the Smithfield plant on Wednesday. Venison processing was still running, but workers were told there were no shifts on Friday and to attend the meeting instead.Alliance chief executive Willie Wiese said a decline in sheep processing numbers was behind the proposal."This proposal aims to align our operations with current livestock availability, ensuring we have the right scale and cost structure to meet future demands as a leading red meat processor."We simply cannot maintain excess processing capacity when livestock numbers don't support it. This proposal aims to align our operations with current livestock availability, ensuring we have the right scale and cost structure to meet future demands as a leading red meat processor."By optimising our capacity to match livestock flows, we can position ourselves for long-term success and reduce our cost base. We simply cannot maintain excess processing capacity when livestock numbers don't support it."The 139-year-old Smithfield plant was the company's oldest site and required significant investment in repairs and maintenance to keep it operational. It was also facing encroachment from retail development."We know our people at Smithfield, their colleagues and the local community will be devastated by this proposal," Wiese said."Smithfield has a long and proud history, having been part of Alliance's network for more than 30 years. Our priority is to support affected employees during this immensely difficult period. We will also work closely with local authorities and support agencies and ensure the local community is informed, supported, and included in discussions."'It's going to impact our family and the people around us' - Smithfield workerOne of the Alliance workers, Clint Agnew, started work at the plant 20 years ago and said staff were not given the chance to ask questions at Friday morning's meeting. Agnew was annoyed and upset about the proposal to close the meatworks."I'm feeling a bit torn up really, a bit emotional and yeah, a bit sad. Luckily I'm venison so I don't finish until December, but by then a lot of jobs will be taken because all the other fellas will go out and have found it."Agnew said it was hard to find work in Timaru, but he would stay in the town.Clint Agnew held back tears as he spoke about the colleagues he's had at 20 years at the plant. Photo: RNZ / Tim BrownOne woman, PJ, who works at Smithfield said after the meeting that everyone had been told they were losing their jobs, and Alliance was shutting the plant."It's a proposal but I can see it happening."She said the news had come as a big blow and it was yet to fully sink in."This is a whole community, this is most of Timaru standing here so it's gonna hit real hard."Wendy, left, and PJ after learning of Alliance Group's proposal to close the Timaru meat processing plant. Photo: RNZ / Tim BrownAnother Alliance employee said he was sad at the thought of losing his job at the Smithfield meatworks.Samiuela Kolovatu, who is originally from Tonga, said the team at the meatworks were like family and the job had given him good skills and experience."It's a bit hard job, it's a good money job and now there are lots of families and friends who don't know what is going to happen in the long run."He said the company had not given reasons for the closure but staff had been given a document and told to send the company any questions and feedback."For now it is not yet confirmed... but they said the proposal is to close the plant permanently and they told us they are going to look for opportunities for some of the workers at other plants but it is not guaranteed for everyone."It's going to impact our family and the people around us, there are so many people around here that are going to be looking for a job, it's hard... I don't know what is going to happen going forward."He said if the plant did close he would stay in Timaru and try to find another job."It's really good money when we make it here, supports each other and family but for now, we just hold on."Smithfield meat processing plant employee Samiuela Kolovatu. Photo: RNZ / Tim BrownSouth Canterbury Chamber of Commerce chief executive Wendy Smith said it was a black Friday for Timaru."The immediate impact on those approximately 600 staff is absolutely terrible and our hearts go out to them."We will obviously ensure wherever we can that there are wraparound services for them, but this has a wider impact on all the service industries that support such a large business."She said the meatworks was part of the region's agricultural, manufacturing and processing history and part of South Cantabrians DNA."It's been well publicised that the red meat industry has been through challenging times and that is a concern, we are hoping that there are some small green shoots starting to show ... but obviously there are some other issues we need to grapple with."Smith said the chamber would be looking to see how it could support those affected and help to build up business again."The company themselves will obviously have a level of support and then it will be the Ministry of Social Development and the rest of our community to support them wherever we can."Alliance workers after hearing about the proposed closure of their workplace. Photo: Tim Brown/RNZSurprise meeting calledOn Thursday, the company announced a surprise meeting would be held at 11am on Friday. The company would not say in advance what it was about.Alliance Group of Smithfield plant in South Canterbury. Photo: Alliance/suppliedAhead of the meeting, Timaru Mayor Nigel Bowen said the plant employed more than 600 people at peak season, and workers were going into the meeting with a lot of questions."There's a lot of concern for those workers that are affected. There's been rumours for some time now around possible changes, potential closure, so I guess one thing that is positive is that affected parties will have that confirmed in one way or another."Bowen said a closure would be significant for the region, given the large number of staff and supporting trades it would affect."We've been talking, certainly, with agencies, Chamber of Commerce, economic development, and certainly there'll be as much support as possible wrapped around anyone if there is any closure of sorts," he said.Alliance reported a loss before tax of $97.9 million for the year ending September 2023. This loss was largely due to weakening global markets, changing land use that has resulted in lower livestock volumes, and inflationary pressures.

Parents of local primary children will be well aware school holidays are an extra day longer this year, with schools closed today - but for good reason.This year’s North Otago Primary Principals’ Association Teaching and Learning Conference runs every two years, and is happening in Ōamaru this Friday and Saturday.This is the ninth time the conference has run, and organising committee chair Deidre Senior says there are more than 220 teachers, teacher aids, and administrative staff attending. "This is a huge event. We have some high-quality presenters and bringing them all together on a teacher only day means that we are able to access all these people collectively."While it is a teacher only day - schools are required to be open for a particular amount of days each year - so a teacher only day now, just extends our days at the end of the year," she says. This is the highest number of participants since the first conference in 2008.“This year we have a record number of teacher aids/learning assistants attending, and for the first time ever we have our administration staff attending, who are sponsored by the provider of the student management system that all of our schools use.”The three keynote speakers are neuroscience trainer Kathryn Berkett, Farm4Life founder Tangaroa Walker and Nanogirl co-founder Dr Michelle Dickinson . '''Teachers become the pupils during an art class with local legend Donna Demente, in her Grainstore Gallery on Friday. Photo: SuppliedThere is also “an exceptional line up of workshop presenters”, including NZ Writing expert Murray Gadd, Maths expert Rob Proffit-White, as well as regional and local experts, Deidre says.The conference is being held across three venues to accommodate numbers, and attendees will be packing out the Ōamaru Opera House, Brydone Hotel and The Business Hive.It's not only the teachers and school staff who will benefit, all workshops and speakers means a flow-on effect for the children, she says."Our keynotes in particular have messages that we think are important for everyone."Kathryn Berkett will discuss the importance of understanding how children’s brains work and what that means for teachers."Tangaroa Walker’s message is one of overcoming challenges and supporting others, while we have brought in Dr Michelle Dickinson as a way to support the importance of teaching science and how accessible it needs to be to students."At a time when the government is stressing the importance of literacy and maths, it’s still important for teachers to be exposed to good practice."The workshops also have hands-on activities teachers can take back into their classrooms, Deidre says. Workshop facilitator Arnika McPhail at Ōamaru's The Business Hive on Friday morning. Photo: Alex Regtien.

It could cost up to $3 billion to build the new Dunedin Hospital as currently planned, which the government says is simply unaffordable.Ministers announced on Thursday the planned redevelopment would either need to be reduced, or done in stages.A report commissioned by the government found the current plans could not be delivered within the current $1.88b budget.Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop said it would cost "several hundred million dollars" more than that - possibly up to $3b.And that didn't cover costs for things that hadn't been included: a pathology lab, refurbishment of the existing site, and car parking, he said.Health Minister Shane Reti, right, and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop speaking to media on the cost blowout for the Dunedin Hospital redevelopment. Photo: RNZ / Tess Brunton$3b would have made it "one of the most expensive hospitals ever built in the Southern Hemisphere", Bishop said."We are concerned that much needed upgrades to other regional hospitals could be at risk."We can't justify spending up to $3b here because that comes at the cost of (other regions) ... that is the blunt truth that there are trade offs to spending."He called it a "problematic project" which "has been troubled since 2017."Bishop said $1.88b was still a "big investment"."We are now making it clear the troubled nature of this project," he said there hadn't been enough of that."We are trying to do the right thing by the public, of Dunedin, but also the rest of the country."We're making tough decisions and being upfront and transparent."Health Minister Shane Reti said there were problems from the very beginning and he expressed his frustrations.He defended promises made on the campaign trail, saying they were based on the information they had at the time.Health New Zealand's head of infrastructure delivery Blake Lepper said the outpatient building remained on track for opening in 2026 and that was a "real focus".He couldn't say whether the scheduled dates for inpatient services would change as a result of today's announcement."No decisions have been made."Changes in the region's demographics since the initial planning, including updated demand modelling, would be taken into account when deciding how to move forward, Lepper said.Thursday's announcementThe Government has signalled plans to downgrade the Dunedin Hospital redevelopment after an independent review has found it cannot be completed as scoped within the approved budget.Health Minister Shane Reti and Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop - who are both in Dunedin to brief stakeholders - are warning that vital upgrades to other hospitals could be at risk if the budget blowout at Dunedin was not addressed.The new Dunedin Hospital site in June 2024 Photo: RNZ/Tess BruntonThey said they had instructed Health NZ that the project was to be delivered "within its current appropriated budget of $1.88 billion".They provided urgent advice on two options for delivering it:1. Revision of the project's specification and scope within the existing structural envelope, such as reducing the number of floors, delaying the fit-out of some areas until they're needed, and/or identifying further services that can be retained on the existing hospital site or in other Health NZ buildings within Dunedin among other possible solutions.2. A staged development on the old hospital site including a new clinical services building and refurbishing the existing ward tower.The project had approved funding of $1.59 billion under the previous government.In March this year, Cabinet agreed to authorise a further $290 million in capital funding due to cost pressures.Bishop said the current appropriation was therefore $1.88 billion.Health Minister Shane Reti. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone"We now know that the New Dunedin Hospital, as currently designed, can't be delivered within that appropriation. In fact, despite the project's original 2017 cost estimates of $1.2 - $1.4 billion, it's now possible it could approach $3 billion, which would make it one of the most expensive hospitals ever built in the southern hemisphere."This cost simply cannot be justified when hospitals around New Zealand are crying out for maintenance, upgrades and new facilities. Dr Reti and I are concerned that badly needed infrastructure upgrades to Whangarei, Nelson, Hawke's Bay, Palmerston North and Tauranga hospitals may be put at risk if New Dunedin continues to go so far over budget."Earlier this year, Cabinet commissioned an independent review into the project by former chief executive of Health Infrastructure New South Wales Robert Rust.The report, just released, found "the delivery of the NDH project as currently scoped and planned is probably not achievable within the approved budget and that there remains significant uncertainty as to the cost of the Inpatients Building".Reti said the uncertainty was due to several factors, which also created doubt whether the new hospital could deliver the health outcomes promised."To make matters worse, insufficient money had been set aside for other associated costs such as a pathology lab, refurbishment of the existing facilities and car parking which are collectively estimated at an additional $400 million. No business cases have been prepared for any of these additional elements of the project."Compounding our concerns is the fact that recent project pricing came in several hundred million dollars over the hospital's appropriation, even without including the pathology lab, refurb of existing facilities or car parking," he said."Health NZ and Infrastructure Commission advice has made it clear that this project was troubled from the moment the site was selected in 2018 and has been trapped by this poor decision making ever since."The extraordinary cost premiums associated with the land purchase and demolition costs, contaminated ground, piling difficulty, flood level risk, and an extremely constrained construction site flanked on three sides by state highways made it an unattractive project for contractors and suppliers, further driving up construction costs. Since the 2017 Business Case, the cost per square metre to build the hospital has increased by 200 percent from $10,000 per sqm to $30,000 per sqm."Construction had already begun on the New Dunedin Hospital, with the Outpatients' Building scheduled to be operational in 2026 and the Inpatients' Building in 2029.This story was originally published on RNZ.

MetService is forecasting rain, wind, and snow to close out the working week, before brighter and drier weather arrives just in time for the start of the school holidays this weekend.The South Island faces wet and windy conditions today (Thursday), as a large weather system gradually moves northwards across the country. The heaviest rain is expected in the ranges of Westland, Buller, and the headwaters of the Canterbury and Otago lakes and rivers - areas currently under Watches or Orange Warnings for Heavy Rain. This wet weather will extend to the North Island overnight into Friday, MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane says.“Most, if not all, of the South Island will see some rain by the end of Thursday, and the same for the North Island on Friday.“Many areas should expect a period of continuous rain as the system passes, followed by drier spells mixed with a few passing showers. However, Southland and Clutha could see periods of heavier showers on Friday morning.”Snowfall is also expected for inland South Island, Thursday night into Friday, with snow levels forecast to reach down to 200 metres in Southland and Clutha and 300 metres in Otago. This snow may impact on-road travel on high-level roads and passes into Friday morning and Road Snowfall Warnings have been issued.In addition to the rain and snow, strong northwesterly winds will make their presence felt over the South Island and lower North Island on Thursday and early Friday. The Canterbury High Country is under an Orange Warning for Strong Winds, where gusts could reach 120 km/h and it’s looking like a breezy day in other parts of Canterbury, including Christchurch. For Wellington, Wairarapa, and Marlborough, blustery winds from Thursday late afternoon until early Friday morning mean they are under a Strong Wind Watch. Winds could remain breezy for coastal areas of the South Island once winds turn southwesterly on Thursday evening. However, brighter skies are on the horizon for the weekend. Apart from a few showers in western parts of both islands and coastal Southland, much of the country can expect a mix of partly cloudy and sunny weather.“After weeks of rapid ups and downs in the weather, it seems the weekend looks to bring a stretch of more settled weather, which could last into mid-next week before the next weather system,” Mmathapelo. “This should provide plenty of opportunities for families to get out and enjoy the start of the school holidays. And for the rest of us, it’s a chance to soak up the extra daylight hours after the clocks go forward on Sunday.”

By Nicky Park, RNZ Team Leader Entertainment and Lifestyle [email protected] we expect a bunch of grumpy people walking around on Sunday? And how can we take the edge of that transition? And how on earth do I get the kids to calm down when it's still light outside? Here's what the sleep experts say:It's just an hour, will it really affect us?"It does. There's really clear research out there that shows that missing out on sleep by an hour or more can lead to poorer functioning the next day," says Dr Karyn O'Keefe, from the Sleep/Wake Research Centre.That one-hour shift can make it harder to get to sleep, and hence harder to wake up, she explains. So it impacts different aspects of functioning like sleepiness, but also mood, reaction time, motivation, concentration and decision making.What happens to our brain and body clock when daylight saving switches over?Daylight saving, Dr O'Keeffe says, causes what's called "circadian disruption"."Everyone has a body clock in the brain that needs to be synchronised to the sun in order to stay healthy and function well. And of course, when we move our bodies to have a different sun time suddenly the internal clock in our brains is not synchronised anymore and that disruption also causes problems."The combo of this with that poor quality of sleep feels a bit like jetlag (without the joy of a holiday)."Suddenly we've made this one-hour shift... which seems like it's really small but it's enough to cause some problems."Daylight saving: When it starts, why we observe it and how to change the time on your phoneHow long does it take for our body to find a new rhythm?The spring transition is the easier one - going into daylight saving time, putting the clock forward an hour "we just squash an hour out of our day"."What happens is that when we go to bed, it's like 10.30pm our body clocks are actually thinking that it's earlier than that, so we don't actually start to feel sleepier until later than we normally would - so we have trouble falling off to sleep."Then when we go to wake up in the morning our natural wake time is actually an hour later."Dr Karyn O'Keefe is a senior lecturer at the Sleep/Wake Research Centre. Photo: SuppliedIt's not such a problem on Sunday, but on Monday morning we might feel robbed of that extra hour when getting up to start the working week."We're still thinking that we should be waking an hour later with the old body clock time.""So we can be frustrated in the evening or at night and tired and groggy in the morning and have short sleep as well. It's like this combination of feeling really groggy and grotty for, um for a couple of days at least."What can I do to help my brain and body ease through it?If you're organised or a sensitive sleeper you could give sleep shifting a go - starting to adjust your body clock gradually in the days leading up to daylight savings."The way you would do that was you'd go to bed... 20 minutes earlier on Friday night, 40 minutes earlier on Saturday night and then on Sunday morning, you just wake at your usual time."That helps us sort of assist with our sleep and also make sure that we don't sleep in too much and muck up our timing of sleep."The other big thing is getting plenty of sunlight on Sunday, throwing the curtains open in the morning to soak up as much as you can."If we can do that we have a a better chance of actually synchronising our body clocks with the sun pretty fast."On the flipside, at the end of the day, avoid light, black out your bedroom and try and make it feel like bedtime.Does being old/young/healthy/stressed - play any part?"Yeah, there are a couple of things," Dr O'Keeffe says."One of the outcomes that we see sometimes with daylight saving transitions is that people who've are vulnerable to heart problems can have those problems exacerbated. So there is a little bit of research out there to show that daylight saving transitions can lead to a higher risk of having a heart event of some kind."She says people who are extreme early birds or night owls will also have a harder time picking up a new sleep pattern, rather than the average sleeper."When a person is an evening type trying to make this transition in the spring, it's really hard for them in particular to make the shift in their body clock. So it takes them longer basically to get there."It's not as easy or as comfortable as somebody who's sitting in the, like the typical pattern of, of sleep and wake."How do I get the kids to sleep when it's still light outside?"The struggle is when it is lighter in the evenings. or there's lots of the kids in the neighbourhood outside on the street playing," says baby and toddler sleep consultant Cherie Richards."We all want to be out later and longer and it's hard to unwind, so the bedtime routine is really gonna be key here."For those who have early rising kids, this daylight savings change is easy - hopefully you get a sleep in: "You can just roll with it and we're going to wake up to a hopefully later start time to the day."This is definitely the better time shift rather than the other way around. That's the nightmare of a one."Like the advice for adults, Richards suggests making sure children get lots of light exposure through the day, especially in the morning."We want to use light to our advantage. Heading out into the sunshine early in the morning and then again in the early afternoon."Then before their bedtime getting their room super dark is really important. So even though it might be light outside, we can still control the internal environment by getting some really good block out blinds."Mare sure that it is pitch black when it comes to bedtime because that's when we need the melatonin surges to kind of be strong there."Is there anything I can do to make it easier for my kids (and me?)If you have a child who is sensitive and a bit more, what Richards calls "high needs", when it comes to sleep there's some groundwork you can do to be ready for Sunday - taking a more "proactive approach".Cherie Richards helps babies and toddlers get into good sleeping habits. Photo: Supplied"What that would look like is on, you know, Monday and Tuesday say we had all of their nap and feed times 15 minutes earlier... and their bed time's going to slowly shift earlier too, so 15 minutes earlier."So if they're always in bed at 7, we we're popping them down at 6.45. Then say Wednesday and Thursday, you do it again, but it's 30 minutes earlier."So you can do it gradually... if you have more sensitive-prone kids it can really make a difference."Remember for babies who are over three months old and on a routine you have to shift their feed times as well."It's like a jolt to their whole rhythm. So, even though we're like, oh, it's only one hour, one hour is a heck of a lot at that age."But newborns, she says, you don't need to worry about, they are none the wiser.I'm already a really bad sleeper, what's going to happen to me?Anitha Patel, an insomnia and sleep care specialist, points out: "For some people who are already kind of having insomnia issues, it can obviously trigger quite a bit if you're already not sleeping too well.Anitha Patel, an insomnia and sleep care specialist. Photo: SuppliedFor these people, Patel really encourages some homework before daylight savings on Sunday."If we prep and we kind of develop what we call a sleep bank... it shouldn't have so much of an effect."She also suggests easing into Monday morning if you know you're susceptible to poor sleep. Any important meetings or tasks, things that require focus or attention, shove them to the end of the week."Ease into the whole thing," she says.And keep your sleep hygiene up to scratch - consistent wake-up times, trying not to sleep in on the weekend, sleeping away from your devices.If you really need to, you could take a power nap, but time it right."You've got to be really careful about what time you're doing it and you don't want to have it for too long."It's about 20 or 30 min - in the earlier day or earlier part of the afternoon, not too close to your bed time - that is something that's going to build up your sleep bank."So you're not going to have so much of a deficit when you actually have daylight savings."This article was originally published by RNZ

One month into her residency at the newly established Crucible Art Studio, Ōamaru artist Karen Aitken is enjoying the chance to connect her two passions - science and creativity.The Crucible Art Studios and Gallery were officially opened earlier this month at Gillies Metaltech in Tyne Street, tying in with the first Crucible Artist Residencies beginning with Karen and also Wellington artist Sian Quennell Torrington.The studios are based in the Pattern Shop where, for many years, pattern makers have crafted the patterns to be used to make moulds for the foundry.In addition to the existing Crucible Gallery, two new exhibition spaces have been created, which had previously been used for pattern storage.Gillies was acquired by the Hynds Group from the Gillies family 21 years ago, and the gallery, studio and residency programme has been instigated by the Hynds Foundation - a charitable trust established eight years ago, as a way for the group to give back to the communities that support its companies.The residency launched in February and the four chosen artists were announced in June. Karen began her 16-week stint in August, and Sian’s 12 weeks started earlier this month.Motoko Kikkawa and John Ward Knox, both living in Dunedin, will begin their residencies in February next year, and the next round of applications opens in March.Karen completed an art diploma through Aoraki Polytechnic in 2014, and is involved in the Ōamaru art scene as part of Crafted Gallery, a co-operative retail space on Harbour Street, where a group of local artists display and sell their work.She facilitates life drawing classes at the Harbour Street Collective Cafe and also teaches primary children after-school art classes.Karen intends to spend as many hours as possible at the Crucible Studios during her residency, to maximise the time she has available.“I've never done a residency before, so this is totally new for me, and I really, really appreciate the opportunity to be here. It's awesome. “It's a great way to explore and be creative, and we're connecting with the staff here and the technologies. That's a really special thing as well,” she says. By the end of November, Karen hopes to have a collection of sculptures, drawings and cast-iron pieces, and possibly some mixed-media ceramic and cast iron, to exhibit and put up for sale.A lot of her work focusses on diatoms, a type of single-cell algae, encased in silica “like a glass skeleton”, which she is passionate about.“They're absolutely beautiful when viewed through a microscope.”Waitaki is home to a diverse range of well-preserved diatom fossils which are more than 30 million years old, and a feature of the Waitaki Geopark.One of Karen's ceramic diatoms Diatomaceus. Photo: Hynds Foundation website“Before art, I had a background in science,” Karen says. “So, that's all part of the science part. I like putting those together. And the Victorians, they looked at diatoms under a microscope and created artworks by arranging the diatoms. I like that Victorian/science/art combination as well.“This is a very Victorian process, the casting of iron as well.”The process of casting the iron was a foreign one to Karen before she began her residency, and she finds it “amazing".Patterns (usually made of wood) are used to create a negative space in sand, and molten metal is then poured into the mould where it hardens.She has been experimenting with making her patterns out of papier-mache, and seeing if clay, and potentially even latex will work.“It’s very experimental… we’re just seeing what we can get away with,” she says.She is also trialling working in the sand directly, for example poking holes in it, “just to make an interesting pattern”.The Crucible is named for a crucial piece of foundry equipment. Metaphorically, it symbolises an environment where individuals, concepts, and experiences come together to create something new and forms the DNA of our residency, the Hynds Foundation website says.“The crucible is a vessel in which materials yield to intense heat before being transformed into an object. Metal making has often been described as part science, part magic…it is seldom a lone activity, requiring a team to bring the concept to fruition.”Residency co-ordinator Katherine Kovacs, herself an established artist, facilitated the residency selection process, and the artists were chosen by a panel of three - so different perspectives could come into play, she says. “You're looking for a good fit, quality of work and an exhibition history. And we also ask for references.”By the end of their residency, artists are expected to produce a body of work to exhibit, and are also encouraged to engage with the local community and spread the word about what they are doing.They are paid a stipend, and artists from out of town are provided help with accommodation costs. This is the only artist residency in a metal foundry that Katherine is aware of.Katherine says Karen stood out to the panel for her involvement in the community. “Not just for her ceramic work, but for her involvement in life drawing.”And Sian, who the Waitaki App hopes to meet with soon, seems very engaging, positive and community-minded, she says.The Hynds Group of Companies, and Hynds FoundationThe Hynds Group owns six companies in New Zealand and Australia, including Gillies, that are centred around the civil construction industry.Each of the companies contributes annually to the Hynds Foundation, which six trustees - all Hynds family members - oversee.The group works to identify and support initiatives that align with its purpose - to enrich and support New Zealand communities, and is guided by five pillars - to support arts and culture, health, education, community well-being, and more recently - environmental sustainability.The vision the Hynds Foundation had for three of the buildings, which played a vital role in the Gillies business for decades, has now been realised with the help of Ōamaru-based architect Virginia Barlow. They have been transformed into spaces the group hopes will inspire creativity and community engagement.The Crucible Art Studios and Gallery will soon be accessible to the public and showcase the works of the resident and visiting artists through exhibitions and events.Outside Crucible Gallery on Tyne Street. Photo: Ashley Smyth

Lillian Hanly, Political [email protected] - There's been a lot of talk about the coalition government's Treaty Principles Bill - it has been the cause of protest around the country and triggered an urgent Waitangi Tribunal report.Various groups have come out in strident opposition, including lawyers, historians, translators and churches.The bill brings to life ACT Party policy, to enshrine what the Treaty means into law. The party has long argued the original articles have been interpreted by the courts, the Waitangi Tribunal and successive governments - over decades - in a way that has amplified their significance and influence beyond the original intent.The proposed bill, and the referendum it would trigger if passed into law, were at the heart of the party's post-election negotiations with the National Party last year. In the end, ACT secured a commitment to get the bill as far as select committee - but no further. This was a concession neither party was happy about, an uneasy compromise, and one proving increasingly problematic for National and its leader Christopher Luxon.As the introduction of the bill to Parliament draws closer, the temperature will continue to rise.Both National and NZ First have said on the record they will not vote for the bill past the first reading, which means it's doomed to be voted down around the middle of next year.ACT leader and the bill's sponsor, David Seymour, is calling for his coalition colleagues to respect the democratic process and make up their minds once the public has had its say.So, why all the fuss if it won't become law? What's the proposed legislation all about? Where did the original principles come from? And where will it all end up?RNZ political reporter Lillian Hanly is here to answer those questions.Why is it happening?The Strengthening Democracy section in the coalition agreement between ACT and National states: "To uphold the principles of liberal democracy, including equal citizenship and parliamentary sovereignty, the parties will: "Introduce a Treaty Principles Bill based on existing ACT policy and support it to a Select Committee as soon as practicable".ACT campaigned on holding a public vote to scrap the principles that have been established through the courts - such as partnership - and codifying in law a new interpretation focused on the protection of "land and property rights" and "all New Zealanders" being "equal under the law".Part of the policy includes putting the new principles to a binding referendum - but that would only happen if the bill were to become an act of law.Seymour argues the interpretation of these principles has been developed through the Waitangi Tribunal, courts and public service, and "New Zealanders as a whole have never been democratically consulted on these Treaty principles". The principles have been developed to justify actions many New Zealanders feel are "contrary to the principle of equal rights", he claims, including co-governance in the delivery of public services. The purpose of the bill, says Seymour, is to provide certainty and clarity and to "promote a national conversation about their place in our constitutional arrangements".Act Party leader David Seymour. Photo: RNZ / Samuel RillstoneThe bill has been given the go-ahead by Cabinet, with changes made to the wording of the original policy and initial proposal - the most substantial of which is to include reference to the rights of "hapū and iwi" in what would be the second principle.Seymour said he hoped this would allay some concerns about the legislation.The bill will also get the full six-month select committee treatment, which provides the opportunity to have a cross-party group of MPs consider extensive written and oral submissions, giving the legislation a public forum and a parliamentary-facilitated public debate. On the other hand, critics argue it is costly and a waste of valuable parliamentary time. Furthermore, there are widespread concerns the ensuing debate, on the elevated public platform afforded by the committee hearing, will ignite racial tensions and stir up resentment among different New Zealanders.What are the original Treaty principles?There are two important points to note for context: the principles, as currently interpreted, derive from the original Treaty articles, and the 1840 document was signed in the context of Māori already having declared their independence through He Whakaputanga, signed in 1835. The Treaty should also be viewed in the context of its significant status as one of New Zealand's founding constitutional documents. Aotearoa does not have a written constitution, rather a collection of fundamental laws, conventions, and documents, including Te Tiriti.The Māori text, Te Tiriti, was the one signed by most rangatira Māori (540, compared to 39 who signed the English version), and it is that text that is recognised in international law (contra preferentem). The two different versions have been cause for confusion, the crux being whether Māori ceded sovereignty or not.The Māori text indicates Māori retained 'tino rangatiratanga', whereas the English text indicates Māori gave to the Queen of England the 'rights and powers of sovereignty'. The difference has been debated for years and came up again for discussion recently at Parliament.Questioning in the House by Chlöe Swarbrick led Luxon to state Māori did cede sovereignty, leading to Labour's Chris Hipkins stating for the first time that Māori did not. The Greens and Te Pāti Māori have always held that position, whereas ACT and New Zealand First align with Luxon and say Māori did.Photo: RNZ / Rebekah Parsons-KingSo how did those principles come about?The Treaty of Waitangi Act in 1975 established the Waitangi Tribunal - which was tasked with "determining the meaning and effect of the Treaty for the purposes of inquiring into Māori claims" - claims that referenced breaches of Te Tiriti. The Tribunal points out that due to the differences in translation, the act requires them to "decide issues raised by the differences between them". So, the Tribunal has authority to examine whether legislation is consistent with the Treaty.Essentially, the 'Treaty Principles' have been established over time. This has been part of ongoing efforts to reconcile the two different texts, interpret how Te Tiriti should be applied in particular cases, or, how to give effect to its spirit and intent. For that reason, there's no exact list of principles, they aren't defined in law, and they have been developed over 40 years of case law and government policy.Some of the key ones articulated by the courts and the Tribunal, and referenced in the Cabinet paper later released by Seymour are:Partnership - under which the Crown and Māori both have a positive duty to act fairly, honourably, and in good faith towards one anotherActive protection - which places upon the Crown a positive duty to protect Māori interests and taongaRedress - which requires the Crown to redress the wrongs it has perpetrated against its Treaty partner.Writing recently about this bill, legal academic Carwyn Jones said these principles "reflect a significantly watered-down version of Te Tiriti". Beyond that, he's written about the Treaty Principles proposed earlier by ACT, saying they "do not at all reflect the meaning of Te Tiriti". He thinks it is unsurprising that Parliament decided an "expert body" should have the job of interpreting and applying the principles of the Treaty. In this article he lists some of the other principles as they have been applied through different legislation over the years.ACT would argue the principles have a very influential role in decision-making, political representation and resource allocation that has gone too far. Seymour believes it is necessary to define the principles "or the courts will continue to venture into an area of political and constitutional importance".New Zealand First agrees with the basic tenets of that position, however, that support does not extend to ACT's legislative solution. The party has publicly stated it will vote against the bill once it returns to the House for its second reading, after the select committee process is complete.What is the bill?The final version of the bill is still being drafted, so the wording of the legislation that will go before Parliament is not yet finalised. What we have seen though, is the detailed proposal Seymour took to Cabinet, and the risk/benefit analysis done by Ministry of Justice officials.His plan got sign-off, including that six-month select committee process and progressing work on what a referendum might look like - fuel to the fire for opponents. Parliament is expensive to run, and they argue it is a waste of time and resource having such an extensive consultation process for legislation already dead in the water.There have been a few different iterations of this final version though, the first of which came from the ACT policy, announced on their website in October 2022.Then, once the coalition agreed to the policy during negotiations in 2023, the next iteration came in the form of a leaked Ministry of Justice document in January 2024.In February, the ACT Party launched an information campaign about the Treaty Principles Bill with a website, and listed the principles verbatim to the leaked Justice document, confirming these were the proposed articles.The September Cabinet paper contained the final version of the principles that will now be drafted into a piece of legislation by the Parliamentary Counsel Office. Seymour released this paper along with the officials' Regulatory Impact Statement. Hepointed to a change in Article 2 due to concerns raised about the specific rights of hapū and iwi. That is because they were the signatories to the Treaty, along with the Crown.Here's the final proposed principles copied in full:Civil Government - the Government of New Zealand has full power to govern, and Parliament has full power to make laws. They do so in the best interests of everyone, and in accordance with the rule of law and the maintenance of a free and democratic society.Rights of Hapū and Iwi Māori - The Crown recognises the rights that hapū and iwi had when they signed the Treaty/Te Tiriti. The Crown will respect and protect those rights. Those rights differ from the rights everyone has a reasonable expectation to enjoy only when they are specified in legislation, Treaty settlements, or other agreement with the Crown.Right to Equality - Everyone is equal before the law and is entitled to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination. Everyone is entitled to the equal enjoyment of the same fundamental human rights without discrimination.ACT says the policy is based on the text of the Treaty itself, and they'd spoken to "a wide range of New Zealanders" in developing it.Officials raise concernsThe Regulatory Impact Statement that Ministry of Justice officials prepared for the bill raises a range of concerns.Overall - the officials say "although the proposal to introduce the bill could have some value, we consider the status quo is more beneficial".By maintaining the status quo, the officials say, "the courts and the Waitangi Tribunal would continue to articulate the meaning of the Treaty principles in line with the existing legislation and practice". That option would also "uphold Treaty obligations to the same extent as they are now". They acknowledge that defining the Treaty principles in legislation "might provide a level of clarity about the intent of Parliament when it refers to the principles", but they say it could also "introduce more uncertainty into our constitutional arrangements" by unsettling the "established jurisprudence about the effect of the principles".The officials say maintaining the status quo could also "minimise the risk of damaging Māori-Crown relations, because the proposed bill could be seen as an attempt to limit the rights and obligations created by the Treaty". The advice points out the proposed principles are "inconsistent" with Te Tiriti. In particular, the officials say, "it does not accurately reflect Article 2," because by restricting rights of hapū and iwi to those specific in legislation it "implies that tino rangatiratanga is derived from kāwanatanga", thus, they say, reducing "indigenous rights to a set of ordinary rights".The officials say that not recognising collective rights of hapū and iwi calls into question the very purpose of the Treaty and its role in the country's constitutional arrangements.They also note the findings of the interim report from the Waitangi Tribunal on the bill, which stated the policy was "unfair, discriminatory, and inconsistent with the principles of the Treaty". The Tribunal report itself - released before this final set of principleswas released - said if the bill was enacted based on the principles proposed by ACT, "it would fundamentally change the nature of the partnership between the Crown and Māori" by "substituting existing Treaty principles for a set of propositions which bear no resemblance to the text or spirit of the Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi".And the officials said the proposal and debate around the bill could generate division "posing a threat to social cohesion", the impacts of which they advise Māori will suffer and bear the brunt of the blame for. They said putting the decision to the wider public through a referendum brings a "significant risk that the will of a non-Māori majority will impose on the minority partners." Seymour responded to this in the Cabinet paper by saying he found it disappointing and that it was the kind of thinking theTreaty Principles Bill seeks to challenge.Thousands attended a nationwide hui at Tūrangawaewae Marae in Ngāruawāhia, on 20 January, 2024. Photo: RNZ/ Ella StewartProtests against the bill so farWhen the coalition agreement was announced a 'National Māori Action Day' was planned soon after, in relation to the policies affecting Māori.The momentum continued with the former Māori King, Kiingi Tuheitia, calling on Māori to attend a Hui ā Motu - a national hui - at Tuurangawaewae in the new year. That momentum carried on to discussions at Rātana, and to Waitangi Day commemorations and protests.Government policies, including the bill, led to multiple urgent inquiries by the Waitangi Tribunal, with Seymour responding by calling them "increasingly activist". There has also been a call, led by Māori rights activists including Tāme Iti, Hone Harawira and Annette Sykes, for a national hīkoi from Te Hāpua to Wellington, to arrive at Parliament around the time of the introduction of the bill.When it comes to the Treaty Principles Bill, people have expressed concern this is an attempt to rewrite Te Tiriti, or an attempt to change the nature of the relationship between Māori and the Crown without any consultation with Māori - one of the partners to the Treaty. The Cabinet paper states the bill is "not intended to alter or amend the text of the Treaty itself" and Seymour has reiterated this too.Multiple people and groups have now come out in opposition to the bill, including many Māori, historians, translators, former politicians, health experts, churches, and legal experts.ACT is the only political party in full support of the bill, with the coalition parties saying they will support it only to select committee - as per the agreement - and all opposition parties saying they oppose it entirely, and that it shouldn't be allowed to go ahead at all.Timeline18 November - Bill introduced to the House21 November - First reading and referral to select committeeWeek ending 16 May 2025 - Select committee report backMay 2025 - June 2025 - Remaining House stagesThis story was originally reported on rnz.co.nz

Rain and strong winds are being forecast for many parts of Aotearoa New Zealand today and Tuesday, with a more widespread weather system bringing wet weather, possible snow and a drop in temperatures later in the week, MetService predicts. However, brighter conditions are in store for Wednesday.The last few weeks have been characterised by wet weather moving furiously across the country. On Sunday, thunderstorms swept across parts of the North Island, resulting in over 22,000 lightning strikes - 7000 of these over land - and power outages. This trend of rapidly-moving bands of rain is set to continue.Today (Monday, September 23), rain is expected over the western South Island with showers in other areas of the South Island and western North Island.However, many regions can look forward to some blue skies as the rain tracks north. This respite will be short-lived, as another round of wet weather is expected on Tuesday, accompanied by thunderstorms, hail and possible snowfall in inland Southland and Otago, along with gusty westerly to southwesterly winds across both islands.MetService meteorologist Mmathapelo Makgabutlane explains, “The strongest winds will be felt in Central Hawke’s Bay, the Tararua District, and the Wairarapa, where an Orange Strong Wind Warning is in place for Tuesday, with gusts of 120 km/h possible. “Strong Wind Watches are also in effect for much of the South Island,” she says.“Thunderstorms in the western and lower South Island may bring additional gusty winds as they pass through.”The most widespread rain of the week is expected on Thursday and Friday, as a large weather system moves over the country. While the largest rainfall accumulations are expected in the western South Island, most reaches of Aotearoa can expect a decent bout of rain, first for the South Island on Thursday, and then to the North Island on Friday.Other hazardous conditions are expected with this weather system, Mmathapelo says.“In addition to rainfall, strong winds will sweep across the country, affecting the South Island and lower North Island. “Snowfall makes a return, mainly for inland parts of the South Island, which may impact road travel on high-level roads and mountain passes. This will also have a flow-on effect on temperatures as they take a dip, especially over the South Island. “In a nutshell, almost all of Aotearoa will see something from this weather system.”While the week begins and ends with active weather, Wednesday brings a brief respite, she says.“Sunnier and drier conditions will give those umbrellas a much-needed break, offering an opportunity to get some laundry dried. “The only trade-off will be a chillier start to the day with many low single-digit minimum temperatures, and some parts of the South Island even dipping below zero.”

By John Gerritsen of RNZSecondary teachers warn students are increasingly using artificial intelligence to cheat on their school work - and some are getting away with it.They told RNZ that AI had huge potential for improving education, but misuse of the technology was a big problem.Schools were using computer programmes to scan essays and reports for evidence of AI use, but teachers said it was not foolproof.St Patrick's College Wellington head of science Doug Walker said misuse of AI had grown rapidly and the school now ran an AI-detector over all computer-based essays and reports."If I gave students just free rein, I suspect the majority of them would use AI," he said."Most often I'm dealing with cases where students have been told not to use it and then you're investigating what has happened in terms of using AI. That can be quite hard to unpick and to work back through to see how much of the work is the student's own or how much has used or relied on AI."St Patrick's College Wellington head of science Doug Walker says misuse of AI by students has grown rapidly. Photo: John Gerritsen via RNZAI detection tools could give wildly different estimates of the likelihood that a report or essay contained AI-generated content, he said.If those tools raised a red flag, Walker said he looked at the various changes and edits a student had made to their work.In one recent instance, this checking process revealed a paragraph giving instructions to Chat GPT to reword the essay it had created in the style of a 17-year-old.A common tell-tale sign was copying and pasting of large blocks of text.Students were, however, becoming more sophisticated, Walker said."They've got to the stage now where they've realised that can be spotted quite easily and so now they'll have an AI-generated response and then physically type that AI-generated response so that you can't see large blocks of text suddenly appearing in the history of the student's work," he said."Some students are genuinely using it to try and generate sources, like websites, to go to learn about something. Some would be using it to help break down a more complex concept into language that's more suitable for their understanding."But I think there's a very fine line between that and then having it generate the report and then claiming that understanding as their own," Walker said.Auckland English teacher Kit Willett said he got a shock after as many as one in five students misused AI for assessments early last year."I haven't seen anything on that scale. There has always been plagiarism and cheating, but when tools like this are so accessible and so easy to use and so easy to generate large amounts of content, it becomes a lot easier to plagiarise."Onslow College deputy principal Michael Bangma said those students who had been caught using AI to do their work were just the tip of the iceberg."For every piece of work that is detected, there'd be a lot that's not detected in every school - I'd be pretty confident of that. But I think some schools are saying, 'Oh well, we all just have to do it on pen and paper.' That's just going backwards and trying to deny the future."Westlake Girls High School science, technology and maths coordinator and fellow with Unesco's International Research Centre on Artificial Intelligence, Susana Tomaz, said problems with misuse were over-stated."We get stuck on the misuse and and a lot of those progressive conversations just stop there on the plagiarism. Research has shown that AI has not increased plagiarism - it's just another way of plagiarising."The Education Ministry said both it and the Qualifications Authority had advice for teachers on AI and the level of acceptable use.But Hamilton secondary school teacher Benny Pan said students and teachers needed more."We don't have national guidance... [and] because we don't have that, students feel like they can do whatever they want and because educators don't know what is right, what is wrong or what is allowed, what is not allowed, it's pretty hard to judge what is misuse or not sometimes."Pan said he and other educators were working through the AI Forum to fill the gap."You will see many passionate educators working on this," he said.An AI-generated image used by pupils at Maungatapu School in Tauranga to illustrate a story about Maui and how he stole the sun. Photo: Maungatapu School / supplied via RNZThreat to creativity?At Tauranga's Maungatapu School, the seven and eight-year-olds of Room 14 created a highly polished picture and song about the legend of Maui stealing fire.Or did they?Teacher Chris Dixon said his class wrote their own versions of the story and then used AI to improve and edit their stories, create a song and illustrate it."The stories had been changed - these wonderful pieces of writing - but you couldn't tell they were ever written by the child; [they had] completely lost their voice," he said."We had some very interesting conversations around, 'Is this still your work?' [and] 'You're really proud of this - but is it really yours?"Some of his pupils said the work was no longer theirs, but others were delighted with the results and wanted to show their parents.It was a great way to get the kids thinking, but Dixon said he was worried about the effects on children's creativity."There needs to be a space for children to develop creativity themselves. I don't want to see that replaced by machine learning or an artificial intelligence tool."If it's used to enhance learning, that's fantastic - as long as it's not taking away the skills that children are developing at this age."It would normally take a class weeks to illustrate a story, but using AI the work was done in about an hour, with very high production values, Dixon said."Why would we go to the effort of drawing when we can use a tool to do it for us?"This story was originally published by RNZ