Two a penny

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Mountain of interest in Hillary home

By EMMA PAGE – Sunday, 01 March 2009

The modestweatherboard house of modest national hero Sir Edmund Hillary will go under the hammer on March 18, just over a year after his death.
The winning bidder will walk away with a slice of history and a block of land on the coveted "golden mile" of real estate in the wealthy Auckland suburb of Remuera.
Sitting at the bottom of a sloping shared right-of-way, the rectangular wood and brick three-bedroom house that Hillary built in 1956, three years after conquering Everest, is flanked on both sides by stately homes.
Hillary's unofficial biographer, Pat Booth, says the simplicity of the house reflected its owner.
Prospective buyers can walk unimpeded down a brick path to the front door of Hillary's house, and press a small black-and-white doorbell to be let in. Unpretentious, efficient, but not leaping out at people saying 'I'm Ed Hillary's house'. "It was Ed really. .
The house, which sits on a 1773m2 section sloping down to cricket nets at prestigious Kings School and has just enough elevation for glimpses of the harbour, has a capital value of nearly $2 million."
Bayleys agent David Rainbow is expecting sightseers to mix with the serious buyers at today's charity open home – visitors are asked for a gold coin donation which will go the Himalayan Trust that Hillary founded.
Some people were tickled by the idea of owning the home where Hillary lived for 50 years. Rainbow says there has been a steady stream of interest since the house, designed by architecture firm Gummer Ford, was advertised last week.
Booth says the house was full of items that told the story of the man who represented New Zealand to the world. Others were keen to snap up one of the last sections left for development on a desirable stretch of road – a factor likely to push up the price as much as the fame of its previous owner.
"The house itself breathed Ed and it breathed the Himalayas.
"The house itself breathed Ed and it breathed the Himalayas.
* To view the property and for auction details go to www."
Hillary's widow Lady June could not be contacted last week, but the Sunday Star-Times understands the house was vacated at Christmas time and that she has moved into a smaller townhouse nearby.co.bayleys.

.nz and enter the property code #360901

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Insect bites sting ACC for millions

– Sunday, 01 March 2009

Mozzies are costing taxpayers money.

BITES AND stings from mosquitoes, bees and other creepy crawlies have cost taxpayers more than $11 million over the past four years, as Kiwis troop to their doctors suffering from allergic reactions, infections and rashes.
Victims can claim compensation from ACC if the symptoms from a bite or sting are bad enough to be deemed an injury. And payments are on the rise. They also cover hospital treatment, often necessary if the area becomes seriously infected. The payments cover everything from doctor's appointments to antihistamine tablets, antibiotics and ointments, and adrenalin injections for the severely allergic. That's more than double the $1,496,957 it paid in the year up to June 2004. In the year to June 2008, ACC paid out $3,302,523 in insect bite claims.85m. The total over the four years from 2004 was $11. Bites from fleas, ticks and flies racked up almost $50,000 last year, while bedbugs were the least costly, with just five claims totalling $184 last year.
The stingers bees, bumble bees and wasps top the payout lists, with spiders second and mosquitoes third.
Auckland GP Jonathan Fox, head of the Royal New Zealand College of GPs, said while most people won't go to the doctor with an "ordinary" bite, some need treatment for allergies. Another $2m in claims were attributed to "unspecified" creatures. I have seen some really unpleasant infected legs, and things like that, from infected insect bites. "But probably the most common thing we see is infection.
"If untreated, infection can be quite debilitating."
Any kind of bite or sting anything that breaks the skin can lead to cellulitis and other serious skin infections, said Fox. [The rise in ACC payments] may be a reflection of that that families have been taking children with infected insect bites to the doctor more often, knowing it's going to be covered by ACC. In areas such as South Auckland there have been major campaigns to try and cut down on skin infections. ."
ACC spokeswoman Stephanie Julian thought the increase could be due to a computerised system, and public awareness.

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Cheap deals make Kiwis fly

By KAREN ARNOLD – Sunday, 01 March 2009

The onset of economic winter makes the thought of a tropical holiday more attractive.

Kiwi travellersare snapping up cheap travel deals to the South Pacific and Australia as the battle for the dwindling tourist dollar heats up.
With winter approaching, sunseekers have a smorgasbord of destinations to choose from such as Samoa, where flights and a five-night stay can cost from as little as $729 per person (share twin) or Rarotonga from $799 for five nights – with scooter hire included.
Packages featuring deep discounts, free accommodation and meals are enticing recession-weary punters through the doors of travel agencies around the country. "When do you buy? Now.
Andrew Stark, general manager products at Flight Centre, told the Sunday Star-Times there was no time like the present to book and pay for a holiday as airlines and hotels looked to plug gaps in capacity.
Last year almost 1."
It was the only way punters could guarantee the price and dates of travel that suited them, he said.
House of Travel sales director Brent Thomas said even if unemployment reached 8%, it still meant 92% of the available workforce had jobs and with lower interest rates and more tax cuts on the horizon plus four weeks' holiday for all workers many families would be taking a break.5 million New Zealanders went on an overseas holiday and industry reps are picking outbound tourism could hold its own for much of 2009, despite the recession. "There's a travel psyche in New Zealanders and when things are bad, people look for escapism.
Bookings across House of Travel agencies were up 25% for the end of January and beginning of February compared to the same time last year. "There are airfares to Oz sub-$150."
Thomas said the best holiday deals were close to home, especially to Fiji, the Cook Islands and Australia. You can't get a taxi from Auckland airport to the city for less than $50. If you take off the taxes the fare is about $50. "We are seeing some unbelievable cruising deals two-for-one in the Mediterranean."
And with Americans staying at home, there were also bargains to be had further afield. Thomas said he knew of one family whose first quote for airfares for two adults and three children to the United Kingdom came to $14,000."
Long-haul travel was likely to come under some pressure, but there were still good earlybird deals to Europe for those who booked in advance."
He believes the specials will continue throughout the year as airlines and accommodation providers work to fill empty seats and beds, although prices could vary from month to month, depending on capacity. "By the time they booked, they paid less than $8000.
She and her husband Iain are expecting their first baby in June and will be also travelling with her parents.
Rebecca Stewart, of Auckland, said her family have booked and paid for a trip to Atlanta, in the United States, where they'll spend Christmas with her brother and sister-in-law." Despite the forecast gloom and doom, the couple remain optimistic." Despite the forecast gloom and doom, the couple remain optimistic. "We are prioritising what's important to us and, despite the recession, we're trying to stay positive."
They were among the 30,000 people who attended three Flight Centre travel expos held in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – the highest number of visitors since the expo's inception in 1999.
"It shows people are still interested in spending and travelling," said Stark. He said there was still disposable income around as people put off borrowing for a house or car and chose a cheaper item such as a holiday.
Many were choosing packages that included travel, accommodation and meals such as coach tours and cruises. "Then there are no hidden surprises."
But Stark warned deals couldn't get much cheaper, especially to Europe.
"This time last year fares to the UK weren't less than $2400. During the last 12 months we've seen them $2200, $1800, $1600 and now Korean Air has $1500 return.

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Penniless granny receives $4m loan

By TONY WALL – Sunday, 01 March 2009

An elderlygrandmother with no known assets or income was lent $4 million by a mortgage fund company chaired by former prime minister Jim Bolger -a transaction now under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office.
Mortgage documents obtained by the Sunday Star-Times show that Trustees Executors, a trust company chaired by Bolger, advanced $4m to Maria de Magalhaes, a 73-year-old Portuguese speaker originally from Mozambique, who was only in the country on a visitor's visa. .
The money was lent in February 2007 against an apartment building in central Auckland linked to Turnbull and his wife, architect Monica de Magalhaes. Although it is unclear what the company was told about de Magalhaes, sources close to the case say a simple check would have uncovered her true identity and financial position.8m, which she has little or no hope of paying.
Maria de Magalhaes has since defaulted on the loan, has been bankrupted at Trustees Executors' request and had a high court order against her for $3. She has been trying to gain an income by running Portuguese lessons at an Auckland high school. It is understood bankruptcy proceedings have been started against her.
In addition to the $4m loan, two other loans totalling almost $5m were advanced by Trustees Executors to Turnbull's sister-in-law, also called Maria de Magalhaes. She is now on the domestic purposes benefit and looking after their three children, while Turnbull has moved to Hong Kong and is understood to be living in a hostel.
Monica de Magalhaes has also been bankrupted and owes millions of dollars. The money was part of the $242m Tower MortgagePlus fund, administered by Trustees Executors and frozen last April.
Sources dealing with the fallout of the saga say it raises serious questions about the lending practices of Trustee Executors. More than 5000 investors had savings tied up in the "low-risk" fund, of which about 40% has been returned. More than 5000 investors had savings tied up in the "low-risk" fund, of which about 40% has been returned.
"She signed whatever he put in front of her," one source said.
Sources said Maria de Magalhaes trusted her son-in-law.
"How can they give a loan to someone with absolutely no assets? It's sub-prime stuff. But the source said it was incredible that Trustees Executors had not done proper checks.
"I don't know anything about business to be honest, nothing at all," she said."
Maria de Magalhaes seemed confused about the details of the loans when approached by the Star-Times.
"At the end of the day, the buck stops with the board and the chairman," said William Cairns, an Auckland mortgage broker who was mortgage manager at Guardian Trust for eight years.
Other sources said that as chairman of the board Bolger had to take responsibility for the poor lending practices."
Nicki Crauford, the chief executive of the Institute of Directors, said the board of a lending institution was responsible for properly monitoring the activities of its managers. "The board has to make sure policy is being adhered to and if it's not, people are held accountable and they should be reviewing their lending strategies. The executive director of the company, Deepak Gupta, declined to comment. The executive director of the company, Deepak Gupta, declined to comment. Tower executives referred all inquiries to Trustees Executors.
SFO director Grant Liddell said he could not comment while the case was under investigation.
Turnbull had already shifted to Hong Kong when he was adjudicated bankrupt last year. If he returns, he will require the permission of the Official Assignee to leave the country again.

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Kid, 10, buys booze in liquor-store sting

Sunday, 01 March 2009

Aseries of undercover stings involving minors buying liquor has revealed shocking results, with a 10-year-old child being allowed to make a purchase.
The revelations come at the same time as the Law Commission conducts a full-scale review of liquor laws because of the "high prevalence of hazardous drinking" among Kiwi youth.
Three recent covert investigations conducted by , TV3's consumer watchdog show Target and police used dozens of children aged under 18 who attempted to buy liquor. Before then buyers needed to be 20 years old.
The legal age for purchasing alcohol is 18 and has been since 1999.
The newspaper instructed the actress to select one bottle of white wine and take it to the counter without producing identification.
Last week sent a 17-year-old girl into 10 liquor outlets throughout Auckland.
She used a Visa card with no available credit so that the transaction would fail.
The stores that agreed to sell alcohol were Southmall Liquor, Manurewa Liquor, Three Kings Liquor Store, Onehunga Liquor Centre, Super Liquor Clendon, Kingsland Liquor Centre and Liquor Galaxy Kingsland.
Of the 10 outlets visited, seven swiped the underage customer's card. One said he thought it was satisfactory to sell to the minor because his employee noticed the actress was "with two older guys who were outside the shop".
Some of the offending store owners told they were reviewing their policies and would counsel staff.
The findings of ' sting were mirrored in at least two other recent probes.
All of the sting results were passed to police on Friday.
The producer of TV3's Target which screens on Tuesday at 7.
The producer of TV3's Target which screens on Tuesday at 7. Of those, nine agreed to sell liquor.
The show sent a 17-year-old actor to 10 Canterbury outlets.
Then, unbelievably, three of the offending seven stores agreed to sell liquor to a 13-year-old.
A 15-year-old then attempted to purchase from the offending stores seven of those agreed to go ahead with a further illegal transaction.
Target Producer Simon Roy said the results showed retailers were willing to flout liquor laws and were happy to disregard the harmful affects alcohol has on youngsters. Of those three stores, one agreed to sell to a 10-year-old. The results were really incredible," Roy said.
"This was the worse year ever.
Target passed their results onto Canterbury police who in January conducted their own controlled purchase operation of the nine offending stores and had similar results.
A Target sting in 1999 exposed a Wellington mini-market who sold to an 11-year-old without checking identification.
Of those, 25 percent failed the test and have been referred to the Liquor Licensing Authority.
Of those, 25 percent failed the test and have been referred to the Liquor Licensing Authority.
Senior Sergeant Ben Offner told he arranged up to 10 stings each year and each time those holding manager certificates were caught bending the rules.
He said the key was "education and enforcement" but the latter was more effective. Offner had been working with Law Commission staff as part of their review into the Sale of Liquor Act which began in August and is due to be completed in June next year.
In a speech last week at the Pan Liquor Industry Symposium, Law Commission President Sir Geoffrey Palmer said some of the possible outcomes from the commission's review included adjusting the drinking age, restricting drinking hours and advertising and reducing blood alcohol levels for driving.
"This is a subject that touches many aspects of the New Zealand community and we need to get it right," Palmer said.
The Sale of Liquor Act says anyone caught trading liquor with a person under 18 can be fined up to $10,000 or have their licence suspended for a maximum of seven days.

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The man who strangled fiance’s dog revealed

By TAMMY BUCKLEY – Sunday, 01 March 2009

Wayne Williamsrepeatedly beat his fiance's beloved fox terrier with a metal pole then strangled it to death.
Williams pleaded guilty to wilful ill-treatment of an animal resulting in death and is to be sentenced at Manukau District Court later this month.
The SPCA described the death of the fox terrier named Gee Gee as "as one of the worst cases" of animal cruelty they had ever seen and hoped Williams got the maximum sentence the judge could impose.
Williams declined to comment about the case when approached him earlier this week.
Williams could face up to three years in prison or a $50,000 fine or both for the pet killing on November 11 last year. According to the SPCA's summary obtained by a shirtless Williams was witnessed by a teenage neighbour as he killed the dog.
He said he did not want to speak "at this time" and said he would have to talk to a solicitor before making any statement.
He was standing over and swearing at helpless Gee Gee while he beat the 12-year-old dog with a metre-long metal pole. .
The dog escaped the attack by scurrying under the Manurewa, south Auckland, house Williams shared with Gee Gee's owner his fiance but the 34-year-old driver coaxed the dog back out.
Williams then strangled the life out of the injured dog his fiance had lovingly raised since she was just a pup.
"The defendant walked towards the dog with the yellow pole and began hitting it again," the summary reads.
"The defendant strangled the dog until it went limp.
"The defendant then dropped the yellow
metal pole and picked the dog up by the neck. The defendant then placed the dog on a dog bed which was on the deck and covered it with a blanket. The defendant then placed the dog on a dog bed which was on the deck and covered it with a blanket.
When they asked him what had happened to Gee Gee he told them the black, white and tan foxy had died accidentally after he tried to free her after she became stuck under the deck at the rear of the house.
When SPCA inspectors visited Williams' property they found him "shaking and crying". He said he must have pulled too hard," SPCA inspector Victoria Border's statement reads.
"Wayne Williams replied that the dog had been stuck under the deck and he pulled her out by the hips. I did not think that it was large enough for the dog to fit into.
"I asked where the dog had been stuck and he showed me a small clearing to the left of the deck.
"I noticed a large amount of blood coming from the dog's mouth and there was a small amount of blood around the neck of the dog."
Border examined the dog at the house and discovered it had been injured.
The inspectors then removed the dog and an autopsy was undertaken which supported the witness's version of events. There were also spots of blood from the stairs of the deck to the dog bed," Border's statement reads.
It found the haemorrhage and contusions were not enough to have killed Gee Gee but the evidence of haemorrhage in the tissue around the neck was consistent with death by strangulation.
It found the haemorrhage and contusions were not enough to have killed Gee Gee but the evidence of haemorrhage in the tissue around the neck was consistent with death by strangulation.
Armed with the results, the SPCA executed a search warrant at Williams' home on November 14 and recovered the pole and informed Williams fiance of what had really happened.
was asked not to name Williams' fiance because she is still traumatised by the grisly incident, despite extensive counselling.
The couple, who had been together for five years, have since separated.
"She was beside herself and it was one of the hardest things I've had to do was sit down and tell her what actually happened because she totally believed what he said to her was the truth," Border said.
"She's (since) had extensive counselling and she's doing a lot better now."
Border said the witness, who was also "initially traumatised" was now OK.
At a subsequent interview with Border and SPCA general manager David Lloyd-Barker, Williams declined to comment on what had happened.
He was charged under the Animal Welfare Act and entered his guilty plea at his first court appearance earlier this year.
Williams appeared at Manukau District Court on Tuesday for sentencing but it was put off until later this month because pre-sentencing reports were incomplete.
Border told the dog killing was "absolutely one of the worst" cases of animal cruelty she had come across in her career.
"I'm lost for words really on what he did to that dog and what that dog would have gone through. It just makes me sick, to be honest," she said.
Border said, while there were no evident wounds on the dog, the extent and depth of the internal bruising was "disgusting".
"It just blows me away and it upsets me greatly that little dog had to go through such trauma.
"This dog was loved and cared for ever since it was six weeks old by the same person and to end its life like this, it's just so unacceptable."
Border said she did not know why Williams had killed the dog and hoped he would receive a significant sentence.
She praised the witness for her courage in calling the SPCA.
"So many people do not want to get involved with things like this," she said.
"(But) we have to bring people like this to justice and with people like her we are able to do it."If people see things please call us because we can't let things like this just be swept under the carpet, we have to investigate them and we have to bring these people to justice."

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Call for tougher juror bias test in Bain murder retrial

– Sunday, 01 March 2009

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HIGH PROFILE: The retrial of David Bain has sparked a call for tougher testing for bias among jurors.

A top law professor has called for tougher testing of jurors to minimise the risk of prejudice in the retrial of David Bain on five murder charges.
His comments come as one of New Zealand's leading jury researchers says it is impossible to be sure that pre-trial publicity about Bain's case will have no effect on a jury's verdict.
Associate Professor Scott Optican, of Auckland University's law faculty, told the Sunday Star-Times that Bain's retrial for allegedly murdering five members of his family in Dunedin in 1994 was the perfect case for defence and prosecution lawyers to apply for pre-trial examination of jurors to enable a more rigorous selection process. The retrial is set to start in the High Court in Christchurch on Friday. In 1995, the Court of Appeal ruled "that in wholly exceptional cases, a trial judge may properly exercise the judicial discretion of allowing jurors.
While it was legally allowed in New Zealand, he was unaware of any cases where that had been done.. to be cross-examined before taking their seats"..
"If I was prosecuting or the defence, I think I would be very interested in finding out something more about these jurors.
Questions for potential jurors could be submitted to the judge, who would decide whether [they could] be quizzed, Optican said. You want people who haven't made their minds up and who haven't been exposed to too much evidence on the case.
"It's important to understand anything that the jurors know or whether they bring any biases about the case."
An example could be weeding out jurors who had read books on the Bain case or had closely followed media coverage, he said."
An example could be weeding out jurors who had read books on the Bain case or had closely followed media coverage, he said. ."
In America, grilling potential jurors was standard and commonly called "voir dire", French for "look say". He doubted it would add much time to the trial but would help ensure it was fair. He said another way was by finding out more about potential jurors' views to eliminate unsuitable people.
The research examined 48 trials in 1998, with about a quarter being high profile and complex cases.
While New Zealand's sole major research into criminal trial juries found pre-trial publicity had minimal impact on verdicts, co-author Dr Yvette Tinsley, a Victoria University senior law lecturer, admitted Bain's case was hard to assess. I think it's still possible for a jury to be conscientious, regardless, in the face of publicity.
"I couldn't say confidently the pre-trial publicity won't have any effect [on Bain's case] but you feel the group dynamics will minimise that.
Meanwhile, Bain's ex-lawyer, Michael Guest, said jury selection had been an easy task for his client's first trial in 1995, when he faced charges of murdering all five members of his family."
The research, published in 1999, showed some jurors were affected by pre-trial media publicity but were kept in line by the rest of the panel. He could have been anyone's son, anyone's brother. He could have been anyone's son, anyone's brother. Most of your clients look like criminals but David didn't, so it wasn't a problem."
At the end of the three-week trial, the 12 jurors – seven men and five women -found Bain guilty of murdering his parents, two sisters and brother in Dunedin on June 20, 1994. He was sentenced to life in jail with a 16-year non-parole period and spent 13 years behind bars until the Privy Council found a substantial miscarriage of justice had occurred and quashed his convictions in May 2007. A retrial was ordered and Bain was bailed five days later.
Guest said the plethora of publicity on Bain's case plus increasingly complex trials -the retrial was expected to last three months – made jury selection more challenging.
A key was examining for people who stood by the concept of proving someone's guilt beyond reasonable doubt, rather than caring whether the person was guilty or not.
He said jurors with technical minds, including university lecturers, teachers or engineers, might also be useful in considering complex evidence, such as about DNA.
"Also, if you thought that the police evidence was strong or stronger, you might look for people you could swing into a sympathy defence. For example, some people who might not be as quick-witted as some other people."
In New Zealand, defence lawyers get the list of potential jurors' names, occupations and addresses just days before a trial, although the Crown or police usually have their details for longer. Under the amended Juries Act, either side can challenge four people each for any reason for a jury seat and can also turn away an unlimited number if they had links to the case.
Guest, a Dunedin city councillor, said he would closely watch the retrial. "There are five people in the graveyard in East Taieri cemetery who were clearly killed by someone else. The question is who. We may never get that answered."

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Recession puts squeeze on job seekers

By EMMA PAGE – Sunday, 01 March 2009

Meet the future faces of the Kiwi labour market. Young, bright and motivated, they were studying when the economy was stable, but began job hunting as the recession took hold. Those attending Prime Minister John Key's Job Summit on Friday were presented with a grim view of the economy and the government's balance sheets.
The experts can't agree how high the country's unemployment rate will climb, but whether it's 6 percent, 9 percentor, as the most pessimistic suggest, more than 11 percent, tough times are ahead for the nation's workers.
Proposals included four-day working weeks for struggling firms (with a fifth day subsidised by government); subsidies for wooden-frame homes to boost construction and forestry sectors; a year-long tax break for businesses and encouragement for employees to take unpaid leave. But Key promised there would be financial backing for ideas to save jobs and create new work. We'll update their situations in a few months.
To test the temperature of a drastically tightening job market we tracked down four people who finished studying last year and asked them about their search for employment. Based in Auckland.
Sally Conor, 26Postgraduate diploma in Journalism from Auckland University of Technology.
Starting her new job as a sub-editor last week put an end to months of searching for Conor. Works for: Woman's Weekly as a sub-editor. Trawling the internet for work, she usually found only one job a month she was qualified for. Looking for work since November, she applied for four jobs and had two interviews.
Connor is stoked to have found work and will continue to do some freelance writing and volunteer work at radio station 95bFM. Finding her job at Woman's Weekly came through a friend. "I think that's a fair assessment. She says a speaker at her journalism course told students it was the worst time to be graduating. Based in Wellington."
Andrew Castle, 24Bachelor of Arts majoring in film and media with a marketing minor at Otago University.
Castle knows how to market himself; he's hoping this interview could land him a job.Dream job: Landing an entry-level graduate role at an advertising agency.
So far he's had three interviews. He has been applying for around three jobs a week since November, using internet sites, newspapers and contacts. He's recently started doing unpaid volunteer work at a media company to get experience. He's recently started doing unpaid volunteer work at a media company to get experience.
"It's quite exciting because it's giving me a lot of direction and insight into where I want to go."
He says an unsuccessful job hunt can get a little discouraging but he's not alone, with many of his friends also still looking for work. He says he will have to find an interim job to make ends meet but will keep applying for jobs in the advertising industry.
Brian Lopesi, 30Certificate in Applied Technology in Carpentry at Unitec. Based in Auckland. Dream job: Working in the building industry.
After Lopesi graduated last year he went around 25 or more construction sites to ask if someone would take him on as an apprentice. Although there were lots of labouring jobs, none of the companies offered him an apprenticeship so he's decided to return to study.
Last week he was back to Unitec working towards a two-year diploma in construction management, which he hopes will give him a better chance of getting work.
"I think it will take two to three years for the economy to right itself. I'm planning to come out of study and straight into a job."
Ana Davis, 24 Bachelor of Commerce and Administration at Victoria University. Based in Wellington.Works for: Contact Energy
A visit to an IT careers trade fair last year secured Davis a job at Contact Energy.
She started in November just a few days after exams were over and is enjoying her work which rotates around different IT areas within the company. . She says applying for the job in May last year was good because she got in before the economic downturn really hit. But she says IT workers are still in demand and several of her friends have also secured jobs.

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Weather wreaks havoc in the north

By LOIS WATSON – Sunday, 01 March 2009

Gale-force winds and heavy rain lashed the North Island yesterday, contributing to a fatal car accident, forcing the postponement of Auckland's high-stakes Derby Day race meeting for safety reasons and disrupting the weekend plans of thousands including the 25,000 people who were turned away from a cancelled Lionel Richie concert in Hawke's Bay.
Two people died in a car crash at Waipu, south of Whangarei, believed to be related to surface road flooding. The women died after their car spun out of control and crashed into another vehicle just after 1.
The fire service was called out to at least 50 weather-related incidents in Auckland, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty, including minor flooding, lifting roofs and downed power lines.30pm. .
Meanwhile, the South Island was last night braced as the heavy weather headed south.
Auckland Racing Club chief executive Chris Weaver said the cancellation of the Derby Day race meeting was unprecedented, "but with Civil Defence warnings and huge winds predicted, this was the only decision that we could make", he said.
The Mission Concert, an annual highlight of the Hawke's Bay social calendar, was called off due to safety concerns for the first time ever last night. He is praying better conditions today will allow the meeting at Ellerslie to go ahead. Organisers started turning people away at about 6pm, two hours before the concert was set to start. Despite the pouring rain, most of the 25,000 ticket holders turned up to snare the best spots on the hilly Taradale vineyard, determined to see Lionel Richie live.
The Northland Agricultural Field Days also fell victim to the weather, with organisers forced to cancel the final day as a result of yesterday's high winds and rain. It is understood tickets will be refunded.
Winds gusted to more than 100km/h around the top half of the North Island and heavy rain caused surface flooding in the small Northland town of Kaeo.
Winds gusted to more than 100km/h around the top half of the North Island and heavy rain caused surface flooding in the small Northland town of Kaeo.
In Ruakaka, volunteer fire officers pumped water from 32 boats to save them from sinking.
Katikati in the Bay of Plenty began to flood yesterday afternoon, forcing police to close parts of SH2, diverting traffic around Te Aroha and Matamata.
Fire trucks were forced to wait for lines company Vector to arrive to repair fallen power lines. They lost only one.

. Crews worked through the night on Friday to restore power to 8000 customers north of Auckland around Kaipara Flats and Coatesville

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Seven private schools chase govt cash

– Sunday, 01 March 2009

Just a few weeks into the first term, seven private schools already have their hands out for taxpayer cash.
The schools in Auckland and Christchurch have applied for state integration, which would see them go from minimal government funding to the same per-student allowance state schools get.
In the whole of 2008 only nine schools applied, and other years have seen just one or two applications.
In December, Auckland's Hilltop Primary School made all its teachers redundant after enrolments fell to 16, from a 1990s' peak of 300.
Private schools rely entirely on fees and donations, so they are especially vulnerable to the effects of the recession, as financially stretched parents switch their children to far cheaper state schools. Elsewhere, principals have reported higher than normal numbers of withdrawals of children transferring to state schools.
Parnell's Montessori College also closed its doors after three years of operation, after pre-enrolments fell below 20.
Officials say any decision on the seven schools, which they will not name, are a long way off.
Education Minister Anne Tolley will have the final say and the private sector is hoping that she will be more sympathetic than Labour was. In the last three years only one private school understood to be KingsGate Primary School (Pukekohe) has been allowed to make the switch. She says any private schools allowed to integrate will effectively be taking cash from students at state schools.
Kate Gainsford, head of secondary teachers' union the PPTA, is furious that private schools are turning to the government for help.
Vaughan Darby, executive director of the Association of Integrated Schools, says most of the schools applying for integration are for "Joe Blogg average public". She recently said that schools making such applications are effectively examining for a "bailout for private businesses" and a subsidy for wealthy parents.
"They're not wealthy by any means.
"They're not wealthy by any means. Although they're private schools by definition, they're not private schools as most people would perceive them to be exclusive to those that can afford it..
Darby says before the election, schools were left with the impression that National was, "shall we say, far more open to giving parents choice"."
Parents sent children to integrated schools because of their special character, which could be anything from Christian to Montessori or Rudolf Steiner, he says..
"How that translates though, now they are the government. ..
They must teach the national curriculum and allow the Education Review Office to scrutinise them more closely than if they remain fully private."
Private schools wanting to integrate have to prove they will provide "education with a special character".
He says the association has been "proactive" in advising schools about integration and will hold a seminar for interested schools in June.
He says the association has been "proactive" in advising schools about integration and will hold a seminar for interested schools in June. Deborah James, executive director of the Independent Schools of New Zealand, was overseas and could not be contacted last week.