The way rubbish is collected in Auckland is set to change under a Council proposal in the 2022/23 budget. In future, householders will pay a rates charge regardless of whether or not they use the service or how often they put their rubbish out.In rural areas such as Mahurangi, people who prefer bags instead of a bin will get a supply of bags for the year included in their waste charge. Rubbish & Recycling calendar Council could not say what the charge would be, but this figure will be in the budget consultation documents. Mayor Phil Goff says the budget puts a strong focus on tackling climate change, while responding to the immediate financial pressures faced by Council and continuing critical investment in strengthening Auckland’s infrastructure.“We are already experiencing the impacts of climate change – 2021 was the hottest year in New Zealand since records began 110 years ago and we are seeing increasingly frequent extreme weather such as droughts and flooding,” he says.Lite Injectables“Funding raised by the proposed Climate Action Targeted Rate will lay the foundation for the urgent action we need to take to avoid our children and grandchildren becoming the victims of a climate disaster. At a cost of around $1.10 a week for the median-value residential property, it will attract co-funding from government and is a critical investment in our kids’ futures.”The rate will help fund low emission public transport and increase safe walking and cycling options to address transport emissions. Tree planting will also be funded to reduce the city’s vulnerability to extreme heat. Council estimates the rate will raise $1.045 billion over 10 years.

All lanes north are now open again on the Northern Motorway, just after Upper Harbour Highway off-ramp, Following an earlier serious crash. Expect delays in the area to ease quickly

A person has died after an accident involving a vehicle and a truck on Auckland's Northern Motorway on Monday morning.Police say the fatal crash happened at 6am in the northbound lanes just past Constellation Drive.The driver of the vehicle died at the scene.No other injuries were reported, police say.Motorists can expect delays as the motorway has been closed northbound, with diversions in place at Constellation Drive.The serious crash unit will be investigating.

Hospitality New Zealand says domestic travel is at a standstill with forward bookings pointing to accommodation occupancy rates as low as 20 percent for the next three monthsThe industry organisation said Auckland locations were operating on an average occupancy of less than 20 percent in January, when MIQ accommodation was excluded, with Wellington averaging less than 30 percent."Every cancelled event causes hundreds of cancelled bookings for rooms, dinners and drinks," Hospitality NZ chief executive Julie White said."The government has over-cooked the fear and the health rules. People are fearful to go to their local shops, let alone go to another city. Whatever we try to do - no bookings means no business."She said the accommodation sector needed a reinstatement of the wage subsidy and resurgence payments.Cordis Auckland managing director Franz Mascarenhas said the hotel was making losses in the millions."We have held on to our work force with the hope things might improve, but the elongated time period is getting us to a position when some tough decisions will have to be made," he said."What we want from the government is an indicator of the criteria being used to move us back to Orange (settings) and a targeted time frame by when isolation requirements will be removed, so that the industry can start to trade again. And in the interim, some financial support to get us through."TOP 10 Holiday Parks group chief executive David Ovendale said bookings after the traditional Christmas holiday period "fell off a cliff". "There is no long summer tail this year," he said."If it takes six more months to work through this next phase of the pandemic in New Zealand, the effect on holiday parks and the wider accommodation sector will be terminal for some, perhaps for many - we've got to learn to live with this virus," Ovendale said.Wellington-based Bolton Hotel operator Hannah Chinnery said trading conditions were "terrible"."This is the worst we have experienced in 18 years," she said."With no government financial support, we are burning cash and making unsustainable losses."The owner of Riverstone Motel in Rangiora, Mike Dougan, said the industry needed some financial support now."The phone has almost stopped ringing. If it does, it's someone cancelling," he said.

BeeTopia People are being asked to keep isolating at home while they wait, and not call Healthline or the laboratories to check the status of their test.Laboratories have come under pressure from continued high demand at the region's testing centres.Some results are coming back within 48 hours, but an increasing number are taking up to five days.The Northern Region Health Co-ordination Centre says large numbers of people have been turning up at testing sites across Auckland.That is despite officials' pleas for people without symptoms, or a valid reason for a test, to stay away.The Ministry of Health this week said unnecessary testing could delay results for those who urgently need them."People should only get tested if they have a cold or flu symptoms, are a close contact, or if they have been asked to get tested by a health official," the ministry said.Earlier in the week 70% of those turning up at Covid-19 testing centres had no symptoms

Written by Local MattersArt lovers, rejoice – the Mangawhai Art Trail is back this year and will be held as usual throughout the last weekend in February.More than 30 artists working in a diverse range of media will be setting up shop and opening their doors at 19 different home studio, gallery and other venues to show off their works, methods and inspiration.The 2022 weekend includes two new venues in Waipu and Waipu Cove, as well as three different sculpture sites. It will also incorporate ‘Finding Joy’, an exhibition at the Mangawhai Artists Gallery in Moir Street by Wendy Leach, Ian McGowan and Cliff McPherson. The three painters employ quite different artistic approaches, but were united in a common goal.“Our original idea of finding joy assumed that much of 2021 might be Covid-free, which of course wasn’t the case,” they say. “So how to try to find joy in a Covid world? Each artist, nudged along by our chosen theme, has been able to find some joy in the studio in 2021.”Other artists include first-time exhibitor Lisa Wintle, who will be displaying her detailed oil landscapes in a spot overlooking the estuary at the Pearson Street reserve.There are free Art Trail maps and brochures available at many Mangawhai venues, or find them at www.mangawhaiartists.co.nz or www.facebook.com/MangawhaiArtTrail

Thousands of public health staff, including contact tracers and those processing Covid-19 tests, have voted to strike as the Government prepares for the rising wave of Omicron cases.About 10,000 district health board staff including 600 people who work in labs and about 100 who work as contact tracers, will strike for 24-hour strikes on March 4 and 18, PSA organiser Will Matthews said.“There are over 70 groups of workers who will take strike action: from laboratory workers, who are responsible for the swift testing and return of Covid-19 tests, and Covid-19 contact tracers, to sterile supplies technicians who clean and sterilise all surgical equipment prior to procedures,” he said.Staff will strike over low pay, and poor working conditions. Many departments have vacancies of up to 66 per cent and had exceptionally high workloads.“Almost all the workers, you take them out and the health sector falls apart.”The strike comes after 15 months of failed negotiations. Staff would organise to ensure life-preserving services would still be available on the days of the strike.“Health workers striking is always a last option,” he said.It showed the “depth of frustration at the Government which has been trading on goodwill for too long”.

An update sent out from the Save our Sands team...After a long wait, on Monday the 28th February the conclusion to the RMA Hearing for the first of the three mining applications by McCallum Bros Ltd will commence. The hearing for this ‘Far Shore consent’ was delayed last year after we provided evidence that revealed deep sea trenches in the sea floor where the sand mining company has been operating. Due to this the commissioners requested that a more extensive sea bed survey be commissioned.The results of this were released last week and are damning - the damage is even worse than we suspected. But not all is lost, because of this science the commissioners now finally have in their hands on the data to enable the correct decisions on the future of mining on the Mangawhai - Pakiri coast.Operational breaches, both on water and off water, environmental destruction, sea bed and sea life impacts, sea bird habitat being destroyed are just some of the allegations that McCallum Bros Ltd will be required to front up to.It’s hard to comprehend that granting continuance of these mining practices for the next 35 years, should ever be considered let alone approved. It is also a lasting insult to the community and local iwi that such damage should be allowed, and attempted to be covered up. As you know, we’re a group of volunteers, but we’re working with top legal and scientific experts to ensure we present the best evidence we can at the upcoming hearing. Keep an eye out on the news as more details of this story comes out, also please remember to share the petition with friends and whānau!

The rate of house price growth is slowing, as tighter lending limits and changes to credit rules prevent some buyers from getting into the market.The Real Estate Institute's (REINZ) house price index, which measures the changing value of property in the market, rose 19.9 percent in the year ended January to 4164.Positivity Matakana However, this was a 1.5 percent decrease from December and the index was down 2.6 percent from its peak in November.The national median house decreased 2.2 percent month-on-month but is still 20.5 percent higher than a year ago at $880,000. In seasonally adjusted terms, prices rose 1.4 percent."While we do note a deceleration in the rate of price growth, it does follow a particularly strong year," REINZ chief executive Jen Baird said."Historically low interest rates and a supply deficit saw heightened demand and kept house prices rising through 2021."However, with the Reserve Bank increasing interest rates, inflation rates being at their highest in 30 years, tighter lending conditions, and government regulation, market dynamics are shifting."The number of properties sold in January fell 28.6 percent when compared with the same month a year ago.In seasonally adjusted terms, sales were down 5.3 percent.At the same time, the number of properties available for sale increased 28.5 percent to 19,897, as higher values enticed more people to sell.Baird said it was normal to see sales slow in January but feedback from agents suggest that there are fewer first home buyers in the market with some pointing to recent changes to the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act which had made it harder for some people to access credit."While hard evidence is lacking in terms of the impact of the CCCFA, data from Centrix, a New Zealand credit reporting agency, found the percentage of home loan applications that were approved dropped from 39 percent in October to 30 percent after December."The longer-term effects would be seen in the number of buyers in the market in the coming months, Baird said."Looking forward, we would expect sales volumes to increase as we head into February and March."The median number of days to sell a property across the country rose by two days to 37 days.January saw 14.5 percent of all properties sold by auction across the country, which is down from 15.6 percent the same month a year ago.This is a substantial change compared to December, when auctions accounted for nearly a third of all sales."Anecdotally, feedback in the regions suggests that current prices and access to finance has seen fewer buyers in the market," Baird said.

Locals have reported that a truck has accidentally lost a load off of the back of it's cab, causing mayhem in Dome Valley.According to Waka Kotahi, this could mean the road could be closed for up to two hours.It is recommended to take SH16 heading south from Wellsford. The dome is closed to all southbound traffic, cars are being turned around by Wayby Road.UPDTATED AT 6:41PMA local has mentioned that there may be another 1-2 hour wait before the road is open again, however Google Maps suggests closure until 7pm.Photo by Nartis Brennan

The transport agency Waka Kotahi has issued a strong wind warning for the Auckland Harbour Bridge and lines company Vector is warning people could be without power for days if the weather gets as bad as predicted.It's forecast Auckland could experience about 120 to 130 gusts an hour between 10am and 4pm.Waka Kotahi expects the Auckland Harbour Bridge will be closed for several hours, with winds expected to reach around 130 kilometres an hour later this morning.The transport agency said last night that its bridge safety protocols require the closure of the bridge to traffic when wind gusts reach 90 kilometres an hour.Auckland Emergency Management group controller Mace Ward said residents needed to check the weather conditions before travelling today."If they're driving anywhere, just check the roads first. Waka Kotahi are warning about high gusts on Auckland Harbour Bridge and the roads."Should the Harbour Bridge be closed, access to the city will be available via the Western Ring Route.

A boatload of fishermen are lucky to be alive tonight after they were thrown overboard near Kawau Island and swept away in rough 2m waves and high winds.NZ Coastguard Kawau skipper Luke McCarthy says his staff are "ecstatic" with the result of the dangerous rescue after receiving an SOS call from a fishing boat shortly after 11am today.The group of five fishermen had earlier anchored off Kawau Island in the Hauraki Gulf about 45km north of Auckland when the 6m vessel began taking on water.Within seconds the boat began listing and capsized - throwing the men into the sea.The vessel's captain managed to stay with the capsized boat as the four others were carried away.

It's a soggy start to the fifth day of the anti-mandate protest which is occupying Parliament's front lawn.Protesters clad in raincoats and carrying umbrellas are pressed up against the barricades put up in front of Parliament, occasionally yelling at journalists on the media balcony to "tell the truth".They are periodically breaking into song, with the national anthem being heard over the calls of megaphones.More vehicles have arrived and joined the hundreds that have been blocking the streets near Parliament since Monday, with members of the Freedom and Rights Coalition expected to rejoin the occupation later this morning.As rain continues to fall in the capital, the lawns of Parliament are looking more like a battleground - complete with trenches.Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard turned the sprinklers on last night and left them running in an effort to make the protesters uncomfortable, hoping it would make them leave."They're not legally on the ground, so there is no problem adding a little to their discomfort."In response, protesters placed cones over the sprinklers and dug irrigation trenches to re-direct the water.

A severe tropical cyclone will dive-bomb into New Zealand this weekend bringing heavy rain and damaging gales for both islands. Cyclone Dovi became a severe category 3 cyclone on Friday as it tracked past New Caledonia towards Aotearoa, WeatherWatch said. It's expected to still be severe when it arrives in the country over the weekend. "The storm is expected to retain category 2 strength as it dive-bombs into the NZ area this weekend from the north."While it will have a lot of intense energy as it moves southwards over the Tasman Sea it is expected to unravel over NZ - but that means it will dump a lot of rain here and as it 'falls apart' it will also bring areas of damaging gales into both main islands," WeatherWatch said. Central New Zealand is in for a battering with 100 to 300mm of rain possible. WeatherWatch warns the rain could cause slips, flooding and road closures.The storm will "fall apart" as it moves, becoming an ex-tropical cyclone and bringing damaging winds to both islands over the weekend. Gusts may be anywhere from 100km/h to 150km/h, WeatherWatch says. Dovi is expected to make landfall in Aotearoa late Sunday night or early Monday morning somewhere in the western North Island most likely between the Waikato and Taranaki. 

Inside Parliament, Minister for Covid-19 Response Chris Hipkins stressed that the pandemic is not over.Hipkins made the comments in the debate of the Prime Minister's statement in the House this afternoon.He referred to the number of protesters outside Parliament and the number of Covid-19 deaths experienced overseas."More people are dying of Covid-19 in Australia than were on the Parliamentary forecourt. Each week, more people die from Covid-19 than have been standing on the Parliamentary forecourt each week."Hipkins also thanked police officers for protecting those working on the Parliamentary precinct.Speaking after visiting a Covid-19 vaccination centre in Albany, Auckland, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told the group of anti-vaccine mandate protesters to 'move on'.Ardern said it was ultimately an operational matter for police."Obviously every New Zealander has a right to protest, but there are also rules around what is able to happen on Parliament's forecourt and of course we would expect that people have behaviours that don't disrupt the ability of others to go on with their lives as well."She said the majority of New Zealanders shared a similar sentiment, to keep one another safe and do as much as they could to ensure we could continue to live our lives as we did before the pandemic."It is not unusual to have protest activity at Parliament, that is part of our democracy, but we do need to make sure that we keep that balance with people being able to live their lives - particularly people who live in the Wellington region or work in the Wellington region. So that is of course what the police are endeavouring to do."I'm not going to question those who have the expertise around how to manage situations like this."She said she had seen a number of protests in her time in Parliament and this was certainly not the largest.The National Party confirmed it did not support the convoy protest, despite one of its MPs posting on Facebook that she wanted to thanks the protesters.Maureen Pugh edited the post before deleting it entirely, saying she didn't know the protesters were anti-vaccination.The party's Covid-19 spokesman Chris Bishop said he did not see the post before it was deleted.Bishop said Pugh has apologised for her actions and that there are no anti-vaxxers in the National caucus.

UPDATE FRIDAY 11TH 8:45PM - EVENT CANCELLED DUE TO EXTREME WEATHERThe Extravaganza Fair is coming to Matakana Country Park THIS Saturday from 9am to 5pm!The event is fun for all ages, with unique and interesting stalls bringing their own styles, crafts and business.The fair brings marvellous family shows, live music and entertainment on our very own Extravaganza Stage and the team behind it invite local performers to join also.For the kids, there are cool and interactive games! They bring back the ‘old school fun’ through sack races, tug of wars, horse derby’s, 4 man ski races etc, with prizes to be won for all.Kids toys like hola-hoops, devil sticks, balancing planks and building blocks lay waiting to be picked up by roaming children and the chill zones (bean bags, picnic tables and sun shades) create a relaxed atmosphere that encourages people to stay all day.There’s a selection of healthy food and drink options or one can also indulge on ‘classic fair’ treats.Loads of fabulous, unique and interesting shopping, rides, food, kids fun and unique NZ Tiny Homes. TThe Extravaganza Fair strives to be a fun and sustainable event that encourages communities to interact with music, arts and one another.

RNZPolice made more arrests this afternoon as they continued to hold the line.Police said it was disappointing that despite the grounds being officially closed to the public earlier today, a number of protesters are still refusing repeated requests to leave the precinct."We continue to acknowledge people's rights to protest, however those who behave unlawfully will face arrest."Some protesters responded with abuse, haka and hurling objects at officers.At an unprecedented media briefing this afternoon, Wellington District Commander Superintendent Corrie Parnell said the health and safety of police staff and the public was paramount.Parnell said two police officers who had been assaulted in today's confrontation with anti-mandate protesters were now recovering.Police had twice deployed OC spray after officers were pulled into the crowd. He said they were not seriously injured and such behaviour was unacceptable.WIN! A dinner for two at Bam Boo asian canteen here: Valentine's CompetitionParnell said that earlier today police saw some weapons such as placards and sticks, as well as a knuckle duster which signalled the sentiment of some of the occupiers.He said the presence of children was a significant risk factor and that some protesters had placed children in front of adults.He said police could not control that but could control how they dealt with the children."There has never been an occupation of this scale, it's unprecedented and there has to be a measured approach," he said.Asked how long the occupation would continue Parnell said "my intention is it won't be here for another week".

At least 100 officers greeted protesters today, many of whom had camped overnight at Parliament after travelling across the country in convoy to protest against vaccine mandates and the Government's response to the Covid-19 pandemic.Protesters have tried to breach the gates of parliament, prompting a wall of police to make arrests.At least two people have been put in handcuffs and led away by police.A speaker earlier in the day said he intended to walk up Parliament's steps at 3pm, and encouraged others to join him.The crowd show no signs of retreating despite the heavy police presence and trespass notice.

A rāhui tapū has been placed over the Hauraki Gulf and much of north Auckland’s east coast, as concerns grow for diminishing tipa (scallop) numbers.The rāhui tapū (ban of an area or resource) was laid by Ngāti Manuhiri kaumatua at a dawn ceremony at Tāwharanui Regional Park on Waitangi Day.The trust's chief executive, Nicola MacDonald, said the scallop beds had been taking a hammering and the rāhui, which will be put in place on Waitangi Day, would help restore the taonga for future generations."Our scallop beds which are in and around Te Hauturu-o-Toi, Kawau Island, Omaha and parts of Mahurangi are in such a state of deprivation that we don't believe the shellfish can recover.""A rāhui acts as a korowai, cloak, of protection and says to all communities taihoa, let's stop, let's allow the natural world to recover. Let's respect this for a period of time until we see the regeneration and when it does regenerate, let's work with our mana whenua until we have sustainable fisheries."