HEADLINES & NEWS
The Fiji appeal court has upheld the 1997 constitution as the supreme law of the land. It says the constitution is still in place, and the interim government installed by the military after the May coup is illegal. The court of five judges says parliament was not dissolved on May the 27th, but was prorogued -or discontinued - for 6 months. The court has upheld the ruling of Justice Anthony Gates in November that the multi-racial constitution under which the ousted Chaudhry government ruled is still legally in force. Our reporter in Fiji Shalen Shandil joins us now. LIVE
Joining us now is prime minister Helen Clark. LIVE
[illegible] Youth and Family has been given a shakeup in a major review of its ability to care for and protect at-risk children. The report by former Principal Youth Court Judge Mick Brown makes 57 recommendations, making it clear that the department is under extreme presssure and that children are not always receiving the help they require. HIs report doesn't give a figure for how much more money the Department needs but it says say funding should be driven by what it costs to meet the needs of every child social workers deal with. The government has promised to act immediatley on many of the recommendations and the Social Services Minister Steve Maharey says he's confident of Cabinet support leading up to the next Budget. CUT Judge Brown says many frustrated former social workers have told him they left Child YOuth and Family because they didn't have the time or the resources to monitor the placement of children properly. He says there's now the dangerous situation of too many inexperienced people holding senior positions, but he's refusing to condemn the department. PREREC
BUSINESS NEWS WITH PATRICK O'MEARA
There are signs Britain's foot and mouth disease outbreak may have spread to continental Europe. Two farms in Germany have been placed under quarantine after veterinarians detected signs of the disease among some sheep imported from Britain, and investigators are looking at a first possible outbreak in Northern Ireland. France is to slaughter 30-thousand sheep that had contact with animals from Britain since February the 1st as a precaution. 26 cases of the disease have been confirmed in Britain, and other suspected cases are being investigated. Our London correspondent Alaistair Wanklyn reports. PKGE
The Environmental Risk Management Authority told the Royal Commission on Genetic Modification today that even the toughest surveillance regime cannot provide certainty that New Zealand is GE free. ERMA is the last organisation to make a submission to the commission as part of its inquiry into the use of gene technology in New Zealand. Our reporter, Veronika Meduna, has been covering the hearings and joins us now. LIVE WITH DROP INS
In Australia, thousands of people are expected to bid farewell to cricket's greatest batsman, Sir Donald Bradman, tonight as his funeral procession wends through Adelaide. The batsman, known as 'The Don', died at his home earlier this week at the age of 92. A private funeral will be held at Adelaide's Centennial Park cemetery and a public memorial service will be held later this month. I asked Richard Mulvaney who is the director of the Sir Donald Bradman Memorial Museum in Adelaide why Sir Donald was such an important figure to Australians. PREREC
5.30 NEWS HEADLINES
SPORT with RICHARD CROWLEY
The Australian Prime Minister John Howard has bowed to public pressure and announced his government is to cut the price of petrol. The move comes after the government and its allies were badly hit in two recent state elections and polls have shown that the petrol excise is one of the great areas of voters discontent. A general election is due later this year. I asked our Australia Correspondent Kerry Anne Walsh exactly what cuts Mr Howard has announced. PREREC
The Wellington, Nelson and Marlborough regions were the third driest on record [illegible] the months of January and February.
The records for these regions go back 140 years and only 1908 and 1939 were drier during the first two months of the year. January figures from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research show that there was less than a quarter of the month's expected rainfall in Marlborough, Nelson, Canterbury and Buller, and there was less than half the normal rainfall in Buller, north Otago and Wellington. I asked NIWA climate scientist Jim Salinger just exactly how little rain there's been. PREREC
Local iwi and Department of Conservation staff today climbed a mountain to look at a new kind of native tree which has just been discovered in Northland. The tree, which is thought to be a relative of makamaka has been discovered by DOC in the Waima range, in Hokianga. It was found during a forest survey of a property which was offered for sale to DOC. I asked the area manager for DOC John Beecham who was with the group what he could see. PREREC
A judge in the Napier District Court has fined a 44 year old lawyer Philip Jensen 1500 dollars for the cultivation and possession of cannabis. The jury in [illegible] three day trial had previously found the accused not guilty of possessing [illegible] for sale and supply. Prior to the trial starting Philip Jensen had pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis. Heugh Chappell was at the trial and joins me now.. LIVE WITH DROP IN
A state of emergency has been declared after a strong earthquake hit the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It was centred on the Washington state capital, Olympia, and caused damage in Seattle and Portland. Dozens of people have been injured in the tremor which measured six point eight on the Richter Scale. Steve Mort reports. PKGE
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