1700 to 1707 NEWS
On the opening day of the sex abuse trials on Pitcairn Island the court has heard that the Island's mayor displayed a "callous and cavalier" attitude to his victims. Steve Christian appeared in the specially built courtroom to face six charges of rape and four charges of indecent assault on four women over the period from 1964 to 1975. The public prosecutor Simon Moore described him as prominent and influential and said it was as if he was exercising some right which he believed to be his. Seven men face dozens of sex offences including rape and indecent assault.
Our reporter on the Island, Sue Ingram says the court today heard emotional evidence from one of Christain's alleged victims. Q + A
152 people, including police officers and teachers, have been arrested in [illegible] biggest Internet child pornography bust.
The federal police raided more than 400 homes and say they expect to make more arrests over the coming days. Police seized computers containing images of children being sexually abused and claim to have uncovered studios making child pornography, hidden in suburban houses. New South Wales police commissioner Ken Maroney says two police officers were arrested in his state. CUT
Daniel Sutton of Sydney's 2OE radio station is following events and joins us now LIVE
An urgent investigation is underway into the failure of one of the Cook Strait ferry's navigation systems, which the Maritime Safety Authority says could have caused a serious grounding. Last night at twenty past five the Aratere's automatic navigation system developed a problem at the entrance to Tory Channel. The Maritime Safety Authority General manager operations John Mansell is with us now. LIVE
Three diaries by Captain Cook, estimated to be worth up to 50 thousand dollars, [illegible] been recovered as part of a police operation into the theft of rare books from libraries around the country. Seven people have been arrested following the five month investigation which has seen Christchurch police recover thousands of dollars worth of books. The operation comes just two months after Christchurch police charged four others with the theft of about 30 thousand dollars worth of books from the Christchurch library network. Here's Katy Gosset with this report. PKG
BUSINESS NEWS WITH LIZ BANAS
Angry Hutt Valley pensioners who've been waiting months to get their 15-hundred dollar payout from the winding up of a local Energy Trust, are now being told the Auckland local body elections are partly to blame. Around seven thousand of the Hutt Mana Energy Trust's former 84-thousand customers have not yet received the money due out by last month. A number of reasons have been given for the delays - the latest is that contractor handling the mailout - Independent Election Services - is now tied up with the Auckland elections. Mauveen Millar - a pensioner who lives in Upper Hutt is not impressed. PRE-REC
The director of Independent Election Services and project manager of the Trust payout, Dale Ofsoske (off-sos-key), cites several factors behind the delay, including his firm being given incorrect customer information by an electricity supplier, and the legal challenge to the payout. CUT
David Ogden is the chairperson of the Hutt Mana Energy Trust.
He joins us now. LIVE
1730 HEADLINES
SPORTS NEWS WITH STEPHEN HEWSON
A flight examiner has told a coroner's hearing in Christchurch that the pilot involved in a fatal crash met the testing requirements - but had little experience flying at night.
Seven Crop and Food research staff and the pilot Michael Bannerman were killed when their charter plane went down on a night approach to Christchurch Airport [illegible] June 2003. A flight examiner Thomas Dick, who tested Michael Bannerman about six weeks before the fatal crash, has been giving evidence at an inquest into the deaths. Erina O'Donohue has been at the hearing. Q + A
The lead singer of the Irish rock band U2, Bono has urged Britian's ruling labour party to do more to help the developing world especially tackling poverty and the spread of HIV AIDS in Africa. Bono was speaking at the Party's annual conference.
The BBC's Andrew Marr reports. PKG
An investigation into the drowning of a fisherman on a deep sea trawler fishing off Stewart Island, has revealed a picture of panic and incompetence as the the crew tried for one and half hours to rescue the man before he disappeared from view.
33-year-old Yo Minh Que tripped over a wire and fell into the sea while working on the Korean registered Tasnui, south of Stewart Island in January. A report by the Maritime Safety Authority says the crew threw him three lifebuoys, ten lifejackets and several fishing floats all to no avail. The trawler couldn't manourve close enough to the man because the nets were still out - the report [illegible] it would have taken just tweny minutes to bring them in. Here's MSA spokesperson John Mansell. PRE-REC
Two hundred unemployed people are to be trained in road building over the coming year as the government moves to avert an industry skills shortage. Construction companies warned earlier this year they could be forced to bring in overseas workers to build 4-billion dollars worth of roads in the coming decade because of the lack of local skills. The government officially launched a new road building course in Manukau today at the graduation ceremony for those who took part in the pilot training programme. Jennifer Dann went along. PKG
From now, New Zealanders arriving in the United States will be fingerprinted and photographed as part of a security crackdown.
The US started screening people in this way at the beginning of the year but it only applied to those coming into the country on a visa - most New Zealanders can enter without one. But the policy has been extended to some 27 so-called "visa waiver" nations and as Our US correspondent Malcom Brown explains it came into force this afternoon. PRE-REC
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