Checkpoint FOR TUESDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2012
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1700 to 1707 NEWS
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The Archbishop of Sydney has accused the media of a "persistent campaign" against the Catholic Church, in the wake of Julia Gillard calling the most comprehensive inquiry into child sexual abuse in Australia's history. In the last two hours Archbishop George Pell has held a news conference, saying the Church is not the "principal culprit", and it objects to the abuse by paedophile priests being exaggerated. We'll hear more on that shortly. But first, the Royal commission's been triggered in large part by New South Wales Police Detective Superintendent Peter Fox. He spoke out about church obstruction of investigations into child abuse just last Thursday. Peter Fox says he has to believe that type of obstruction won't hinder the new inquiry, which will investigate not only churches, but charities, state governments, schools, community organisations and even the police. He's says this investigation is long overdue. PREREC
As we mentioned the Archbishop of Sydney George Pell has been hitting back. At the weekend he said that no nationwide inquiry into child abuse was necessary. Now he is saying the church will cooperate with the Government-ordered Royal commission. But at a news conference this afternoon, he's also accused the media of bias. This audio is from the ABC.
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One of those paedophile priests who were moved around a lot was the late Denis McAlinden.
We've learned he sexually abused a girl in New Zealand in 1984 - he was here for a year, but was also sent by the church to Papua New Guinea. All his transfers happened despite families complaining as far back as 1953 about McAlinden abusing their daughters, who were as young as 5. His victim here went on to get compensation from the Australian Catholic Church, something reported just last month in Newcastle. Archbishop John Dew, the President of the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference, joins us now. LIVE
The jury in the JJ Lawrence murder trial will resume its deliberations again tomorrow morning.
The jury is considering whether Joel Loffley is guilty of the murdering two year old James or JJ Lawrence at their Ōrākei home last November. In summing up today Justice Patrick Keane told jurors Mr Loffley is entitled to the presumption of innocence and they would have to assess the credibility of some witnesses and evidence Sofia Wenborn is at the High Court in Auckland CUTS + LIVE
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1720 TRAILS AND BUSINESS WITH Jonathan Mitchell
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Renewed speculation about his leadership has been rejected by Labour leader David Shearer, and his fellow MPs have rallied around him. But the speculation was enough to prompt a series of barbs across the debating chamber as the Prime Minister, John Key, answered questions about the Government's record on unemployment and climate change policy. Here's our political editor Brent Edwards. PKG
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17.30 HEADLINES
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Miners at the country's biggest opencast coalmine will vote shortly on cutting their hours to save the State-owned operator 32 million dollars. But Solid Energy says its Stockton operations are very close to marginal at current depressed global coal prices. It wants to reduce some shifts from 12 hours to 10 hours, as well as cutting back on contractors and equipment. The SOE has only just laid off hundreds of jobs at its underground mines Spring Creek and Huntly East, as well as the Government cleaning out the company's board. Pat McManus, the mayor of Buller District joins us now. LIVE
Greece has been given another two years to make deeper budget cuts as the debt ridden nation struggles to meet the terms of its financial bailout. In return for the extra time, Greece will have 33-billion Euros added to its debt bill from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. But as the new austerity framework stokes social unrest, there's disagreement as to whether the country can return to solvency by the new target date of 2020. Here's the ABC’s Peter Ryan: PKG
FBI agents appear to have renewed their investigation into David Petraeus and his extramarital affair with Paula Broadwell that led to him resigning as director of the CIA. They've spent hours searching Ms Broadwell's house in Charlotte, North Carolina, and have taken away a number of boxes. Lawmakers and others have questioned whether Ms Broadwell, who co-wrote a biography of the decorated former general, obtained classified information from him or another source. For the latest our correspondent in the US is Simon Marks. LIVE
The Social Development Minister, Paula Bennett, has told parliament there are jobs going for those who are looking for work, even if the job market is tough. The increase in the unemployment rate dominated Question Time today, with the Prime Minister, Finance Minister, Employment Minister and Social Development Minister all called to their feet. The Household Labour Force Survey, released last week, put unemployment at a 13-year high, at 7-point-3 percent. Here's our political reporter, Clare Pasley. PKG
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17.45 MANU KORIHI
Tēnā koutou katoa,
A Christchurch Māori language school threatened with the prospect of a merger has launched an investigation into what effect the amalgamation would have on the wider community.
Te Whānau Tahi has already sent its first submission to the Minister of Education, Hekia Parata - opposing a future merger with Te Whakapūmau i Te Reo Tūturu o Waitahā.
The Government wants to join the two schools as part of a wider plan to reorganise the education system after the earthquakes.
Melanie Riwai-Couch is co-ordinating the submissions for Te Whānau Tahi.
She says they'll examine the effects a merger could have on Māori families who have children at the kura.
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Melanie Riwai-Couch says kura have until December the 7th to put in a submission.
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Local landmarks and ancestral Māori names are being considered for the name of a new school in eastern Bay of Plenty.
The Government announced eleven months ago that Murupara's Rangitahi College and Murupara Primary School would close early next year.
A replacement school which incorporates primary and secondary students will be opened early next year.
The Establishment Board of Trustees Chair, Jacob Te Kurapa, says residents and kaumātua within the community have been consulted about what to call the new school.
He says some of the names suggested include Te Pa Harakeke o Murupara and Murupara Collegiate.
Mr Te Kurapa says it's important the name reflects the town's culture, identity, and heritage.
The new school's name will be decided upon by the Board within the next two weeks.
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A leading Māori tourism operator says the success of cultural tourism in this country depends on getting the right balance between competitiveness and authenticity.
The Tamaki Māori Village, near Rotorua has won an Australasian award for the Best Indigenous Cultural Experience amongst backpackers.
The Director of Tamaki Tours, Doug Tamaki says cultural tourism involves being competitive to gain market share coupled with being sensitive about how Māori culture is reflected to visitors.
He says it's important the show doesn't portray Māori as something out of a museum but as a progressive culture that continues to grow and flourish
Mr Tamaki says it's important to continue to improve on what they can offer tourists.
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The Māori All Blacks test match against Canada being played on their short tour of England this month will now be televised live in this country. 24/11
The game being played at Oxford University is the last game of the team's three match tour.
Earlier Sky Television said it wasn't possible to broadcast the game because there was little local interest in the United Kingdom and it wasn't being filmed.
Sky now says it's now working with Māori TV and will show the match live on its pay-channel, with a repeat screening on Māori TV later in the day.
The team's other two matches, against Leicester and a Champion Select 15 are also being shown live.
That's Te Manu Korihi news, I'll have a further bulletin in an hour.
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The crisis of confidence in the BBC has deepened with an internal report finding basic journalistic failures in a news report, which wrongly accused a Conservative politician of child sex abuse. The Mayor of London Boris Johnston says what the national broadcaster did was more revolting and idiotic than anything perpetrated by Rupert Murdoch's now defunct News of the World newspaper. Two top BBC executives have already stood aside and Mr Johnston wants more heads to roll. The ABC's Brendan Trembath reports: PKG
The World Anti-doping Agency is calling on the pharmaceutical industry to do more in the fight against drugs in sport. The systematic abuse of doping products and procedures is topic of a conference in Paris from where Alex Capstick reports PKG