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Checkpoint FOR FRIDAY 17 SEPT 2010
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1700 to 1707 NEWS
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The ACT party is again in crisis, with David Garrett resigning from the party this morning and more questions being asked about the leadership of Rodney Hide. Mr Garrett - who admitted this week that he stole the identity of a dead child in 1984 - has declared his political career is almost certainly over and has taken two weeks leave from Parliament to consider his future. Mr Garrett was discharged without conviction five years ago after pleading guilty to the passport fraud, but still Mr Hide encouraged Mr Garrett to stand for Parliament despite the crime. Mr Hide decided to withdraw his support after questions about the truthfulness of an affidavit Mr Garrett gave to the court . Here's our political reporter Liz Banas. PKG
David Garrett has been closely associated with Sensible Sentencing Trust since 2001, only resigning from the group when he decided to become a politican before the last election. The trust's spokesman Garth McVicar spoke to Mr Garrett this morning. PREREC
Our Political Editor Brent Edwards is with us now. LIVE
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1720 TRAILS AND BUSINESS WITH
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A week before New Zealand athletes are due to move into the Commonwealth Games village in Delhi their accommodation is still not ready. The team's chef de mission Dave Currie is in India inspecting the security and accommodation. He joins us now. LIVE
A prisoner will serve just over six more years in jail for killing a prison officer at the Springhill Prison in North Waikato in May.
Latu Kepu appeared in the High Court in Hamilton after pleading guilty to the manslaughter of 33 year old Jason Palmer. Mr Palmer died from head injuries after Kepu punched him as he was being let out of his cell and he fell hitting his head on concrete paving.. Andrew McRae was at the sentencing. PKG
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17.30 HEADLINES
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Returning to our top story - the MP David Garrett, has resigned from the ACT party today - less than 48-hours after it was revealed he stole the identity of a dead child to get a false passport. The Labour Party leader Phil Goff says Mr Garrett has lost all credibility and has no other choice than to resign from Parliament. But Mr Goff says Mr Garrett isn't the only MP who should be held to account over the matter.
CUT Labour leader Phil Goff The ACT party's leader, Rodney Hide, joins us now: LIVE
The head of Air New Zealand says it will always be a mystery why the pilots on board a fatal test flight in France decided to do a slow speed check at a dangerously low altitude.
Five of the airline's staff and two German pilots died when the Airbus A320 crashed into the Mediterranean Sea near Perpignan. The French investigators have found the stall warning sensors were iced up because a local maintenance crew had allowed water into them and they didn't work when the pilot attempted a risky manourvre that put the plane into a nose dive. The investigators want test flights to be regulated so that there are standard international rules that can't be broken without sanction. Air New Zealand's chief executive Rob Fyfe says the report doesn't explain why the pilots decided to do something they knew was risky. PREREC
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17.45 TRAILS
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WAATEA
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Severe thunderstorms with torrential rain and winds of 130-kilometres an hour are currently sweeping up the country.
Earlier today lightening strikes hit the lower North Island knocking out power to more than three-thousand in Lower Hutt and Wainuiomata. About 50 homes still have no electricity. With weather warnings in place for the entire country, we're joined now by Metservice forecaster Oliver Druce. LIVE
The Government will contribute up to 10 million dollars to help restore heritage buildings in Christchurch. Our reporter Eric Frykberg is in Christchurch and he joins us now. LIVE