HEADLINES & NEWS
Vets employed by the Agriculture Ministry have voted to return to work ending their week long strike. The vets went into negotiations asking for a 10 percent pay increase and walked off the job last Friday, forcing the closure of many meatworks and leaving thousands of meatworkers suspended from their jobs. More than 80 percent of vets voted to accept the latest offer, which has yet to be formally ratified, of a four percent flat pay increase with no change to conditions. Ivan Finlayson, who is the secretary for the National Union of Public Employees, which covers MAF vets says that the vets have indicated they will accepted the reduced offer because they wanted to stop their industrial [illegible] on being a political football. CUT Joining us now is MAF's Assistant Director General Grant Burney. LIVE
And joining us now is the chief executive director of the Meat Industry Association, Bryan Lynch. LIVE
The new bank to be run by New Zealand Post has again dominated events at Parliament today. The Act Party leader Richard Prebble waived Parliamentary immunity to allow himself to be served with court papers on Parliament's steps. Less than an hour later, Mr Prebble was again quoting form the bank's leaked business plan in Parliament. And, as it warned yesterday, the credit rating agency Standard and Poors has downgraded New Zealand Post's long-term credit rating, following the announcement that the banking service will go ahead. Our political reporter Kathryn Ryan has been following today's events and joins me now. LIVE
BUSINESS NEWS WITH CLAIRE SILVESTER
Around 200 people gathered in Auckland at a memorial service for Marie Jamieson [illegible] afternoon. The 23-year-old disappeared on February the 10th on her way from the central city to her Avondale home and her body was discovered earlier this week behind a west Auckland factory. Family, friends and supporters turned up to the service at the Auckland Domain bringing tributes of flowers and messages of support for her family.. Our reporter Barbara Dreaver was there and we talk to her now LIVE
While controversial rap artist Eminem hoped to collect on four Grammy nominations, outside the Los Angeles event 2000 protesters rallied to denounce his lyrics. Their protest, billed as a "Rally Against Hate," was held to protest Eminem's nominations and his violent, obscenity-laced lyrics often that often target gays and women. Our correspondent in LA, Peter Bowes joins us now.... LIVE WITH DROP INS
5.30 NEWS HEADLINES
SPORT with RICHARD CROWLEY
In Fiji, police have today forced Fiji Television to stop filming a panel discussion on the current Court of Appeal hearing which will decide whether to uphold the country's multi-racial constituion thrown out in the May 19 coup. The television station had been warned it did not have a permit for the large panel discussion to be held in a hotel outside Suva - and today 50 police officers in eight trucks turned up when it looked as if the recording was going to go ahead. Reporter Virisila Buadroma (Buandrooma) has been following the story and she joins us now. LIVE
The cash strapped Solomon Islands Government is to hold what it calls a pivotal meeting with its major foreign aid donors next week. The government is under increasing pressure to meet its commitments, with many services cut back or no longer provided. The chairperson of the Solomon Islands Development Trust John Rowan says the economy is on the brink of collapse and the central bank will soon be unable to provide funds to cover the cost of imports. PREREC
A major overhaul of the country's outdated hazard monitoring network has been announced today, with the Earthquake Commission spending around 5 million dollars a year for at least the next decade creating a new system. The funding will be used to buy instruments to measure the size and location of earthquakes, equipment to provide early detection of volcanic activity in the North Island and recorders to analyse how bridges and buildings perform in a quake. Sarah Gregory was at the launch of the GeoNet project and filed this report. PKGE
A price war has broken out among the country's skifields, with the cost of expensive season passes taking a dive. NZski dot com, which owns the Mount Hutt, Coronet Peak and Remarkables fields is offering skiers the chance to save 900 dollars on what they would have paid last year for a season pass to all three mountains.
That's if they get in early enough - the 300 dollar ticket is only available until April 23rd. The move has already seen other South Island ski fields match or better the price for the limited offer - and North Island fields say they will undercut it by fifty dollars. Joining us now is General Manager of NZski dot com - Duncan Smith. LIVE
Consumer groups have made their pitch for lower electricity prices at the first day of hearings by the parliamentary select committee considering the proposed new regime. The Government says the Electricity Industry Bill will encourage [illegible] prices and greater energy efficiency. But several consumer groups claim that won't necessarily lead to LOWER prices unless there are changes to the bill. Our Economics Correspondent, Stephen Harris, reports. PKGE
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