Author: Mike Bain/cvnznews.com

By Ashley Church. We’ve just had a big cyclone here in New Zealand and we were fixated on every aspect of its arrival, progress and eventual departure – constantly checking apps, following the news for updates, watching the maps, and trying to work out what was coming and whether we needed to prepare any differently. That’s just common sense. When people think a storm is coming, they want forewarning and enough information to prepare and adjust so as not to be caught out. But what if you checked your weather app and discovered that the storm that you were preparing…

OPINION: Roger Partridge. Critics of judicial overreach face an odd challenge. The most sophisticated response is not to defend the decisions – it is to deny that constitutional limits exist at all. If courts made the rules, the argument runs, courts can remake them. Last month’s column, An Inheritance Worth Defending, drew that response, among others. Four arguments recur. On the surface they are distinct – one concerns the foundations of parliamentary sovereignty, one the proper limits of common law development, one a comparison with Australian constitutional law, and one concerns the lessons to be drawn from two landmark cases…

By Lana Lam and Tiffanie Turnbull/BBC-Sydney. A major fire at one of Australia’s two oil refineries has been extinguished, but the damage has deepened fears over the nation’s petrol supplies amid a global fuel crunch. Emergency crews rushed to Viva’s Corio oil refinery in Geelong, southwest of Melbourne, just before midnight on Wednesday, after reports of explosions and flames. The blaze was put out on Thursday after burning for 13 hours. No one was injured, with dozens of workers on site when it broke out evacuated safely. The refinery – which produces 50% of Victoria’s fuel and 10% of the…

by Canaan Lidor The City Council of Auckland, the capital city of New Zealand, voted on Tuesday, Israel’s national memorial day for Holocaust victims, in favor of a resolution that calls for applying sanctions on the Jewish state, local activists said. The Auckland Council Policy, Planning and Development Committee voted 14 to 2 to request a staff report by July “on the alignment of Auckland Council’s policies and practices with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334. including any potential facilitation of trade with relevant UN-identified entities and advice on how alignment could be strengthened,” according to The Daily Blog news site. That…

By Mike Bain/cvnznews.com National is accusing Labour of signalling support for a raft of new taxes after Labour’s Revenue spokesperson Deborah Russell described proposals from advocacy group Tax Justice Aotearoa as “really good suggestions.” The lobby group released a report calling for a series of major tax changes, including a 50% top income tax rate for earnings over $150,000, a broader capital gains tax, an inheritance tax, a wealth tax, windfall profit taxes, and higher trust tax rates. National MP Simeon Brown said Russell’s comments showed Labour was “pulling back the curtain” on its appetite for further taxation. He argued…

By JNS Staff Iran secretly obtained a Chinese-made reconnaissance satellite in late 2024 and used it to help target U.S. military positions across the Middle East during the recent conflict, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. The newspaper, citing leaked Iranian military documents, said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force took control of the TEE-01B satellite built by China’s Earth Eye Co. after its launch from China. The system reportedly provided the IRGC with imagery and coordinates of U.S. bases before and after missile and drone attacks in March. As part of the arrangement, the Iranian regime gained access to ground stations operated by…

By Steve Gatena Harry Houdini once claimed he could break out of any jail in the world. One day, a challenge was presented.He stepped into a cell, confident.Hidden in his belt was a tool to pick the lock. Thirty minutes passed.Nothing.An hour.Sweat dripped down his face. Two hours in, exhausted, he collapsed against the door. And it swung open.It was never locked.He just thought it was… How often have you been in that cell?Feeling trapped and paralyzed.Not by actual walls, but by voices that have made themselves at home in your head.You’re not good enough.You don’t have what it takes.This…

By Colin Ambler/cvnznews.com New Zealand’s fuel supplies remain stable despite a three‑day drop in petrol, diesel, and jet fuel stocks, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says, confirming the country will stay in Phase 1 of the National Fuel Plan. The latest update triggered one of the criteria for reviewing the plan, after fuel stocks fell more than three days between reports. But Luxon said ministers agreed with officials that the situation did not warrant moving to Phase 2, which would involve precautionary conservation measures and closer coordination with fuel companies. “Our fuel importers continue to report no material issues with future…

By Sarah McMillan/cvnznews.com. The Government’s drive to speed up diagnosis and treatment across the health system has taken another step forward, with Dunedin Hospital’s new Surgical Assessment Unit (SAU) now fully operational and already delivering faster care for patients across Otago and Southland. Health Minister Simeon Brown says the $2.4 million unit is reducing emergency department pressure, accelerating diagnosis, and ensuring patients with acute surgical conditions are treated sooner — a shift that mirrors the nationwide expansion of cancer infusion services announced earlier this week. “Patients avoid unnecessary waits in ED and instead receive care in a calmer, more appropriate…

By Mike Bain/cvnznews.com The future of New Zealand’s broadcasting regulator has become a live political battleground, as ACT intensifies its push to scrap the Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA) and the Government signals it may be ready to follow. The pressure escalated after a high‑profile jurisdiction ruling involving online talkback outlet The Platform, which reignited long‑running questions about whether a regulator created in 1989 can meaningfully govern a digital‑first media landscape. ACT MP Laura McClure says the Minister’s recent comments — suggesting the BSA may be abolished — show the Government is “finally catching up” with public sentiment. McClure argues the…

By Brit McCandless Farmer/CBS News For more than two decades, the numbers told a story of decline. Adult conversions to Catholicism had been falling steadily since the early 2000s, according to data compiled by Georgetown University. Weddings, baptisms, and even funerals registered fewer and fewer Catholic participants. The church appeared to be losing its hold on American life. Then something shifted. Since around 2022, dioceses across the country have reported a reversal of that trend, with growing numbers of Americans — particularly Millennials and Gen Z — choosing to join the Catholic Church. This past Easter, some archdioceses recorded their highest number…

By Colin/Ambler/cvnznews.com New Zealand’s cancer patients are set to benefit from one of the largest expansions of community‑based treatment in years, with thousands more people able to receive life‑saving infusions closer to home. Health Minister Simeon Brown says the nationwide rollout of new and expanded infusion services is already underway, marking a major step forward in improving access to cancer care. The upgrade follows the Government’s $604 million boost to Pharmac in Budget 2024, which funded 66 new medicines — including 33 cancer treatments — and created a surge in demand for infusion capacity. Around 13,000 additional cancer infusions are…

By Gavin Blackburn. Israel and Hezbollah have fought multiple wars since the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group was formed in the 1980s as a guerrilla force fighting against Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon at the time. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem urged Lebanon on Monday to cancel a planned meeting with Israel in Washington the following day, reiterating his group’s rejection of direct negotiations with Israel. “We reject negotiations with the usurping Israeli entity…We call for a historic and heroic stance by cancelling this negotiating meeting,” Qassem, whose Iran-backed group has been at war with Israel since 2 March, said in a…

By Gavin Blackburn. Such misfires are common in Nigeria, where the military often conducts air raids to battle armed groups who control vast forest enclaves. A Nigerian Air Force strike targeting jihadist rebels hit a local market in the northeast, killing as many as 200 civilians, a local chief reported on Monday. Officials confirmed a misfire but provided no further details. Amnesty International cited survivors as saying that at least 100 people were killed in the air strike on Saturday on a village in Yobe state, near the border with Borno state, which is the epicentre of the insurgency that…

It’s Tuesday morning.You’re sitting in your driveway, engine running, hand on the gearshift.You know exactly where you need to go.You’ve run the play in your head a hundred times.And you still haven’t moved. In football, they call that living in the huddle.The play is drawn up.The clock is running. But the snap never comes. The snap is the moment strategy becomes action.Before it, you have the perfect play drawn up in your mind.After it, you have reality, and there’s no going back. When Jesus called the fishermen, Matthew tells us they “immediately left their nets and followed him.”Not after one…

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon dismissed Hawke’s Bay mayor’s concerns regarding the use of state of emergencies, stating a preference for being over-prepared for significant weather events. Wairoa Mayor Craig Little stated firmly on Monday that he declined the invitation to join Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Napier, Hastings, and Central Hawke’s Bay councils in declaring a local state of emergency for Cyclone Vaianu. “We’re becoming woke as a country when it comes to states of emergency,” Little said. “We didn’t need a state of emergency. When you make a call like that, it means you are under the pump. “I think…

cvnznews.com/ Editorial. The clean‑up from Cyclone Vaianau has barely started and already the fallout is as much about trust as it is about debris. Forecasts promised a hammer blow; the reality was a glancing strike. The result is predictable: frightened children, furious parents, and a public increasingly convinced the Met Service and Emergency Management are crying wolf. This is not mere annoyance. My own nine-year-old grandchild had heard the news and noted parental concerns feared going to bed because of the storm Other parents reported the same raw terror. That fear is real, and it is the direct product of…

By Abby Trivett/US Correspondent. We may just be living through one of the most prophetic moments described in the Bible. According to a new Pew Research study, 60% of adults in the United States were found to have “an unfavorable view of Israel,” going up seven points from last year’s 53% disapproval rating. Along with this disheartening statistic, 59% were discovered to have “little or no confidence in Netanyahu to do the right thing regarding world affairs,” which is also higher than last year’s 52% disapproval rating. What’s interesting about this is that it doesn’t appear to be a political party…

Supplied-Partner Media Outlet. A paramedic has been struck off after secretly injecting his lover with abortion drugs during a sexual encounter. Stephen Doohan, who was married at the time, began an affair with his victim after they met in Ibiza. Doohan later separated from his wife and it soon became apparent that his new lover was pregnant. Despite agreeing together to keep the baby, Doohan crushed up some abortion drugs and secretly injected them into his lover while they were having sex. The woman later had a miscarriage and suspected that Doohan may have done something. Doohan convinced her to…

By Linda Woodhead/European Correspondent. In the same week that a new archbishop of Canterbury was installed, YouGov admitted that a poll suggesting there was a “quiet revival” of Christianity was a dud. It had been inflated by fraudulent results and should be ignored. To those of us who study the bigger picture of religion in Britain, this comes as no surprise. There are good reasons to doubt that Britain is experiencing a Christian revival today – but that does not mean it is dying out. To understand what is happening in Britain, it is helpful to compare it with the US, which has…

By Al Perrotta/Daily Signal. Of the many activities planned in conjunction with America’s 250th birthday, none can be expected to be as powerful, as impactful, as rich as what is set to take place April 18-25 along the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Over 480 national leaders from politics, entertainment, ministry, and industry will be gathering at the Museum of the Bible for “America Reads the Bible,” a complete reading of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation. We Really Need an Ezra Moment Creator and organizer Bunni Pounds, who worked as a political consultant for years before founding the nonpartisan political…

By Obianuju Mbah/Partner Media The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety) has reported that 1,402 Christians were killed by armed groups in Nigeria over a 96-day period this year. The incidents are said to have occurred between January 1, 2026, and April 6, 2026, spanning from New Year’s Day to Easter Monday, Nigeria’s Daily Post newspaper reports. In its latest update, Intersociety said that 1,800 Christians were abducted in the same period – with 180 of the abductees killed. “Out of every 1,000 abducted, 100 will never come back,” said Intersociety chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi. The figures form part…

By Mike Bain/cvnznews.com A new UK study, Religion at Work: the invisible dimension of workplace diversity, finds many employees who identify with a religion feel unable to speak openly about their faith at work. While the research surveyed UK workers, its findings raise questions for New Zealand employers about whether workplaces here are doing enough to include people of faith. Key findings from the study (summary) Why this matters in New Zealand Practical steps for New Zealand employers If you want to read the research Bottom lineEven if New Zealand lacks a directly comparable national survey, the UK findings are…

A number of Christian organisations have called for an end to violent hostilities in Lebanon as the country continues to be targeted despite a ceasefire between the US and Iran. Earlier this week the US and Iran announced a two week ceasefire, the exact terms of which are unclear and disputed. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has continued military action in Lebanon. At around 2pm on Wednesday, Israel launched an intense aerial bombardment on the Lebanese capital, Beirut, allegedly targeting the militant group Hezbollah. The Lebanese Health Ministry says at least 182 people were killed and 890 wounded. The country’s president,…

By Sarah McMillan-Updated: Sunday, 12 April 2026 04:00pm SummaryCyclone Vaianu made landfall today and has been described by MetService as a “multi‑hazard, potentially life‑threatening event”. Current warnings and emergency status Impact and infrastructure Safety advice for the public Latest notable updates By Sarah McMillan-Updated: Sunday, 12 April 2026 — 09:35 NZST Cyclone Vaianu is now impacting New Zealand’s North Island, moving south across the region and bringing damaging winds, heavy rain, coastal inundation and large swells. Authorities report widespread power outages and multiple states of emergency as communities brace for the worst of the storm. What’s happening now Local council…

Supplied by Partner Media Ceirion H Dewar, a missionary bishop in the Confessing Anglican Church (CAC), has called upon the people of Britain to repent and return to the Christian faith. The CAC was founded in 2019 and, although not a part of the Anglican Communion, sees its spiritual roots as going back to the earliest days of Christianity in the British Isles. Bishop Dewar last month wrote an open letter to His Majesty King Charles III, calling upon him to end the “erosion of Britain’s Christian inheritance”. In recent days some have criticised the King, who is also Supreme Governor…

By Chris Trotter – OPINION Power, if it is to have any lasting legacy, must be seized. Not inherited, not bestowed, but taken. Those who seize power do so for many reasons: self-preservation; personal aggrandizement; to effect changes long desired or too long delayed. Power stripped of the crucial element of conscious personal purpose is reduced to mere placeholding, and placeholding represents the end of politics, the final step taken before all power is lost. Christopher Luxon did not seize power; he inherited it from a National Party caucus at its wits’ end. His colleagues bestowed the party leadership upon…

By Amelie Botbol Freedom of navigation through the strategic waterway is a key part of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire deal. U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday denounced Iran for its “very poor job” in allowing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a key condition of the two-week ceasefire agreed by Washington and Tehran that paused 40 days of war in the Middle East. “Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing Oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz. That is not the agreement we have!” Trump posted to Truth Social. One hour earlier,…

By Mike Wagenheim Australia has launched a pilot program in the country’s schools to help educators identify and address antisemitism in the classroom. The initiative, developed by the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in partnership with the Australian government, was formally rolled out on March 17 at a policy dialogue focused on a national approach to antisemitism in education. The program is being piloted over six months in New South Wales and Victoria, with plans for a nationwide expansion. It brings together federal and state education authorities, as well as public, independent, Catholic, Jewish and Islamic school systems, officials…

by Mike Bain/cvnznews.com “Watch that no one deceives you.” — Matthew 24:4 Another weekend, another weather warning — but this one is different. Cyclone Vaianu is not a distant headline or a hypothetical threat. It is a real, fast‑moving system tracking directly toward Aotearoa, and both MetService and the National Emergency Management Agency are urging New Zealanders to act now, not later. Even the Prime Minister has publicly acknowledged the seriousness of what’s coming. And yet, as always, there will be some who shrug, delay, or assume it will “blow over.” That mindset is not new. Scripture tells us that…

The announcement of a conditional two‑week ceasefire between the United States and Iran has sent ripples through global markets and diplomatic circles, offering the first real pause in a conflict that has dominated headlines for more than a month. The deal, brokered with Pakistan’s mediation, hinges on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz — a critical artery for global oil shipments — and a halt to attacks on US and regional targets. For New Zealand, the ceasefire brings immediate economic and strategic implications. Oil prices, which surged above US$110 a barrel during the height of the crisis, have now…

by Mike Bain/cvnznews.com. Wellingtonians didn’t need a glossy report to tell them rates have become unaffordable — but now they have one anyway, and the reaction has been swift and furious. The Wellington City Council’s newly released Rates Affordability Research, commissioned from Infometrics, confirms what households have been shouting through submissions, emails and comment threads: rates have surged to some of the highest and least affordable in the country. Residential rates have more than doubled since 2012, rising from 2.2 percent of household income to an average of 3.8 percent today. In suburbs like Oriental Bay, the burden has blown…

The Commerce Commission is proposing to approve Transpower’s plan to replace and expand the ageing undersea electricity cables that connect the North and South Island power networks — a project carrying a major capital allowance of $1.1386 billion. The draft decision covers the first stage of a two‑part upgrade to the high‑voltage direct current (HVDC) link, including replacing the existing submarine cables and installing an additional fourth cable. The upgrade also includes replacing the HVDC control system, which manages power flow between the islands. If approved, the project would protect current transfer capacity and add an extra 200 MW, strengthening…

Pharmac is facing mounting pressure from frontline pharmacists who say New Zealanders are being left in the dark as the Iran war disrupts global medicine supply chains. The first confirmed casualty: isosorbide mononitrate — a lifeline drug for angina patients — now officially delayed, with pharmacies warning they have no clear guidance to reassure increasingly anxious patients. Industry leaders say the silence from Wellington is “unacceptable” as the Strait of Hormuz shutdown begins to bite. Isosorbide mononitrate — a widely used angina medication — is the first drug Pharmac has formally listed as facing shipping delays because of the conflict.…

Story by Staff/PNW News. There was a time when Christians in America were told they were imagining things. No one is targeting your faith, they said. No one is trying to silence biblical truth. No one is punishing believers for simply standing on what Scripture teaches. Then a story like Jaden Ivey’s comes along–and the mask slips. The Chicago Bulls did not waive Jaden Ivey because he committed a crime. He was not arrested. He was not accused of violence. He was not cut for some drunken scandal, sexual misconduct, or disgraceful off-court behavior that so often gets excused in…

By PNW Staff This Easter weekend, sanctuaries across America will be packed. Parking lots will overflow. Extra chairs will be unfolded. Families dressed in spring colors will fill pews, sing “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today,” and hear once again the greatest announcement in human history: Jesus Christ is alive. And in one sense, that is deeply encouraging. Pastors are expecting one of their biggest crowds of the year, just as they have for years. More than half of U.S. Protestant pastors say Easter is their church’s highest-attendance Sunday, and for many others it ranks second or third–alongside Christmas and…

The Empty Tomb John: 20 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but…

Donald Trump delivered a rare primetime address today, declaring that the United States is “nearing completion” of its military objectives in Iran while signalling that the conflict will continue for another two to three weeks. The speech, framed as an update on the month‑long US‑Israeli offensive, mixed claims of decisive battlefield success with warnings of intensified strikes ahead. President Trump opened by praising what he described as “swift, decisive, overwhelming victories” achieved since the joint campaign began on February 28. He asserted that Iran’s navy had been destroyed, its air force “in ruins,” and its missile and drone capabilities dramatically…

Christopher Luxon has unveiled his election‑year Cabinet reshuffle, elevating Chris Penk and Penny Simmonds into Cabinet and promoting Cameron Brewer and Mike Butterick as ministers outside it. Simeon Brown picks up Energy, Paul Goldsmith takes over the Public Service, and Louise Upston becomes Leader of the House. Those moves matter — but the real story is what happened to Chris Bishop. Bishop has been stripped of three roles: Leader of the House, associate sport, and, most dramatically, his position as National’s campaign chair. In exchange, he receives the Attorney‑General portfolio. On paper, it looks like a sideways shift. In reality,…

Who’s In, Who’s Out, and What’s at Stake Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will reveal his long‑anticipated Cabinet reshuffle on Thursday, a move forced by two major departures and shaped by the political realities of an election year. Senior minister Judith Collins is set to leave Parliament mid‑year to become president of the Law Commission, while Shane Reti has already confirmed he will retire at the election. Their exits open up a rare pair of Cabinet‑level vacancies — and with them, a chance for Luxon to reward rising talent and rebalance his top team. Collins currently oversees Defence, the Public Service,…