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 TUESDAY 14 JULY 2015
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1700 to 1707 NEWS
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John Banks says he's not giving up his hunt to find out why Crown Law withheld key evidence during the Dotcom donations prosecution against him. In May the Court of Appeal threw out Mr Banks' conviction and re-trial because the Crown didn't tell it that Kim Dotcom had changed his mind about the date of crucial lunch where mayoral campaign donations were supposed to have been discussed. Neither Mr Banks nor his wife could have been at the lunch on that day, he was at campaign event and she was at work. The Appeal Court says the Crown's failure to disclose the evidence caused a miscarriage of justice. The Attorney General Chris Finlayson now says he's had a careful look at what happened and is satisfied with the Crown's actions and has full confidence in the Solicitor-General, Mike Heron. Mr Finlayson wouldn't speak to Radio New Zealand. But John Banks says there are still plenty of questions for Mr Heron to answer. i/v
A woman who was beaten by her husband with a cricket bat and throttled has told a judge that sending her husband to prison would punnish her. Daljit Singh admitted charges of injuring with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, assault with a weapon and threatening to kill. He was sentenced at the High Court in Auckland this morning to three-and-a-half years in prison. Our reporter Edward Gay was in court to hear Singh's wife plead for leniency: i/v
Greece's prime minister Alexis Tsipras is being accused of surrendering his country's sovereignty to Brussels. After 17 hours of negotiations, eurozone leaders finally struck a deal to keep the near-bankrupt country in the euro. But before Greece gets any money, the country's parliament must approve the agreement by Wednesday local time. The conditions attached to the deal are deep and hard-hitting. There will be higher taxes, big cuts to pensions and 50 billion euros worth of Greek state assets are to be privatised. From Greece, here's the BBC's Gavin Hewitt PKG
New Zealand Football is launching a series of appeals against the expulsion of the Under-23 side from an Olympic qualifying tournament in Papua New Guinea. The Oly-Whites were to play Fiji on Sunday and the winner would represent the Oceania Confederation at next year's Olympics. But they were disqualified just hours before kick-off for fielding an ineligible player in their previous game . New Zealand Football maintains its done everything right and the team should not have lost the right to play for an Olympic spot. Denise Garland reports. PKG
Aucklanders are bracing for new rates rises, with the official figures for each household set to be released at midnight on the council's website. 10-thousand households face increases of more than one-thousand dollars a year, with an average residential rates rise of nine-point-nine percent. The key transport levy alone adds 114-dollars a year. Those hit with the biggest increases have already received a letter or phone call from the council which has comitted 90-thousand-dollars to make about 12,000 calls, and send about 77,000 letters. Cath Morrin, who lives in Point Chevalier, says her family is facing a 40 per cent rates hike: CUT We're joined by the council's General Manager of Financial Plan, Policy and Budget, Matthew Walker: i/v
A company that supplies breathalyser locks on cars for people convicted of drink driving says it'll dump its government contract unless the law changes to ensure more people are sentenced to use them. Smart Start is one of two companies contracted in 2012 to make sure there are interlocks and people trained to install them around the country. A new law gave judges the option to impose the devices as part of sentencing and the Transport Agency was estimating that by now they would be widely used. Those convicted would have to pay an instalment fee of 175 dollars and an ongoing monthly fee of between 145 and 175 dollars. But Gavin Foster from Smart Start says judges simply haven't used the inter-lock option. i/v
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17.30 HEADLINES
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17.35 BUSINESS
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Marlborough District Council says it will come down like a ton of bricks, on whoever it was who strung a wire across a popular cycle track. The wire was found at the weekend by a walker on the Conder Track in Renwick, which is often used by families with young children. The Council says it was a barbaric and malicious act of vandalism and someone could have been badly hurt. The Deputy Mayor Terry Sloan says it's the first time he's heard of a track being sabotaged: i/v
Pressure's building on the Government to commit to reopening Dunedin's historic courthouse, whatever the price tag. The heritage stone building was closed two months ago so the earthquake-prone tower could be strengthened. The courts minister has refused to guarantee it will reopen because of the cost - but now the city council has weighed in, saying that's not an excuse. Here's Otago reporter, Ian Telfer. PKG
Mexican authorities are offering a four-million-dollar reward for the recapture of the nations top drug lord. Joaquin (wa-quinn) "El Chapo" Guzman (gooz-min) broke out of jail in dramatic style yesterday for the second time. The head of the prison has now been sacked and while officials are embarrassed many Mexicans are responding to the jail break with large doses of black humour. here's the ABC's Michael Vincent. PKG
The only road serving a community north-east of Nelson has been reopened, three and a half years after being wrecked in a storm. A three-million-dollar project funded by ratepayers and the Government has restored the road to Cable Bay. Here's our Nelson reporter Tracy Neal who was at today's reopening. PKG
The Crown says the investigative journalist, Nicky Hager was initially regarded as a potential suspect in the hacking of Cameron Slater's computer and the Police were wanting to find out if he was in possession of stolen property. Mr Hager has asked the High Court in Wellington to rule on the legality of a search warrant and actual search of his home last October. The search took place after Cameron Slater laid a complaint when information from his computer, obtained by a hacker known as Rawshark, was published in Nicky Hager's book Dirty Politics. Mr Hager's lawyers have told the court the search trampled on media freedom protections and had grave implications for democracy in New Zealand. However the Crown's lawyer, Brendan Horsley told the Court the Police had acted in good faith Our Court reporter, Ann Marie May is following the case. i/v
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The Bay of Plenty Regional Council says it's cleaned up its act after accepting it didn't communicate well with Māori about an oil spill in April.
Local iwi complained they had to rely on second-hand reports to find out about the15-hundred litres that poured into Tauranga Harbour.
The leak angered tāngata whenua when they were alerted via the media instead of the council.
Alexa Cook reports.
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In addition to its debt crisis, Greece is looking for more help to deal with incoming migrants. The country's overtaken Italy as the number one destination for migrants trying to enter Europe illegally by sea. More than 70-thousand people have crossed from Turkey to the Greek islands already this year -- that's a ten-fold increase on the same period in 2014. The ABC's Barbara Miller filed this report from the Greek island of Kos. PKG
Prince William, has started work as an air ambulance pilot. He said he was looking forward to using the skills he'd learned as a search and rescue helicopter pilot with the Royal Air Force. The prince is based at Cambridge Airport -- from where the BBC's royal correspondent, Peter Hunt reports. PKG
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Presenter: Mary Wilson, Jim Mora
Editor: Maree Corbett
Deputy editor: Denise Garland
Producers: Mei Heron, Michael Allan, Duncan Snelling