Checkpoint is a drive-time news and current affairs programme on Radio New Zealand National. It broadcasts nationwide every weekday evening for two hours and covers the day’s major national and international stories, as well as business, sport and Māori news. This recording covers the first hour. The following rundown is supplied from the broadcaster’s news system:
Checkpoint FOR WEDNESDAY 16 JULY 2014
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1700 to 1707 NEWS
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An Australian soldier has died after falling down a crevasse on Aoraki-Mount Cook this afternoon. The police say the man, who was in his 40's, fell in the Grand Plateau area just before half-past twelve this afternoon. (12:18pm) The police, and the Australian Defence are declining to be interviewed on Checkpoint. Our reporter Natasha Bayler joins us now. i/v
It'll take weeks to find out if the disgraced Invercargill engineer blamed for the Southland Stadium roof collapse has designed other dangerous buildings. Anthony Major has been expelled from the Institution of Professional Engineers four years after the collapse. An IPENZ inquiry found him negligent, incompetent and potentially causing a loss of life. It's also warned that other buildings designed by Mr Major should be checked. Invercargill City Council's chief executive Richard King says it's going to do that but it'l take time. i/v
The father of the of the Opotiki man who was killed during what is believed to be a gang fight has had his chance to say farewell to his son at Rangipo Prison today. Joe Collier, who was 22, died after a fight broke out between two groups of people from neighbouring houses. The mill worker, who is charged with his murder, also appeared in court. Our reporter Natalie Mankelow was in court and is now in Opotiki. i/v
A double whammy of lower than expected inflation, and a big drop in dairy prices, could mean mortgage rates stay lower for longer. Economists say the Reserve Bank may be forced to reconsider planned interest rate rises in response to the latest figures. Lauren Baker reports. PKG
The driver of a truck that crashed down a steep bank near Kaikoura is still missing. Rescuers have spent all day searching for him after his truck, carrying hazardous chemicals, went off the road in the Hundalee Hills at about five-thirty this morning. One of the rescuers says it appears the driver lost control and clipped the bank, before careering through the barrier to the other side of the road and over the cliff towards the river some 40-metres below. Abseilers scaled down the bank this morning to search but found no sign of the driver. One of them - Brent Williams who's a paramedic with the Westpac Rescue Helicopter, says it was a difficult job to get down the almost vertical, muddy bank to the truck. CUT Sergeant Graeme Crosson has been overseeing the rescue, and he joins us now from the crash site i/v
More details are emerging about a New Zealand soldier's drunken night out in Niue which has landed him at the centre of an investigation by military police. The lance-corporal is accused of spraying a fire extinguisher into several rooms of the Matavai Hotel on July the 2nd, where he was staying while preparing for a training exercise. Niue's police chief, Tony Edwards, says powder from the extinguisher damaged the hotel's electronics and air-conditioning system. The Defence Force says it has apologised to the hotel and guests and is seeing what assistance it can offer in making repairs at the hotel. Reporter Ryan Bridge has been talking to locals on the atoll. i/v
More on the Australian soldier who has died while climbing Aoraki Mt Cook. The 44-year-old man fell down a 40-metre crevasse in the Grand Plateau area at around midday. He was one of a party of ten people and it's believed he was on a training exercise when he fell. His body has been recovered and has been flown back to the Mount Cook Emergency Service Centre Trevor Streat (street) is one of the alpine guides who help recover the body i/v
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17. 30 HEADLINES
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17. 35 MARKET UPDATE
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The troubled Aratere Interislander ferry has cancelled crossings across the Cook Strait - because it's running too slow. In Feburary the Aratere went to Singapore for three months, for testing and repairs, after losing its propeller in the Cook Strait in November. Our reporter, Michael Allan has been following the latest set-back i/v
Israel has resumed its airstrikes on Gaza striking the homes of two of Hamas' top leaders. As expected Hamas, which controls Gaza, rejected last night's proposed ceasefire which lasted just six hour, and fired dozens of rockets into Israel. This led to the first Israeli death of the current conflict. On the Palestinian side authorities say more than one hundred and ninety people have been killed over the past eight days. Jeremy Bowen reports from Gaza : PKG
As we're reporting tonight - An Australian soldier has died while climbing Aoraki Mt Cook. The 44-year-old man fell down a 40-metre crevasse in the Grand Plateau area at around midday. 10-kilometres away on the opposite side of the mountain, a massive and rare land slip has engulfed a climbers hut. New Zealand Alpine Club's Sam Newton says a pilot first spotted it. i/v
[The latest candidate to stand for the Waiariki electorate has ambitions to become Prime Minister.
The iwi radio announcer, Pat Spellman, has dropped his support for the Labour Party and joined the New Zealand Independent Coalition - which is led by the MP Brendan Horan. PKG]
Marvel Comics have turned their Norse God super hero, Thor, into a woman. They say the new Thor isn't a temporary female substitute, but that SHE is now the one and only Thor. So how have comic fans taken to this news? Kylie Klien is a comic book fan and film critic i/v
The Green Party's announced it plans to invest an extra billion dollars into research and development, while hitting out at what it calls the Government's 'pollution economy approach'. The Government says the Greens are bursting with embarrassingly old rhetoric and need to get with the times. Here's our political reporter, Craig McCulloch. PKG
Medical staff at the Christchurch Hospital are worried that patients are missing essential appointments and surgeries because of a lack of parking. The Canterbury District Health Board says parking has always been a problem but it's likely to get worse later this year when the development of the Acute Services Building gets underway . Jemma Brackebush reports. PKG
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Presenter: Mary Wilson, Jim Mora
Editor: Maree Corbett
Deputy editor: Jo Leavesley
Producers: Mei Yeoh, Ryan Bridge, Bridget Mills