Two a penny

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A reorganisation at TVNZ cost $3.7 million, the state broadcaster’s annual report shows.

TVNZ listed expenses related to reorganisation at $3.

It also reveals 168 employees were earning more than $100,000 a year, with the top salary of more than $830,000 paid to chief executive Rick Ellis. .7m for the 2009 financial year which included more than 80 redundancies.1m were made against budgeted costs for the year which included savings from restructuring.

Savings of $13.1m after tax profit and declared a final dividend paid to the government of $1.

Yet TVNZ still made a $2.

Total revenue was $384.47m.9 per cent or $7.8m, which was 1.

Advertising revenue was $298.5m down on the previous year.1m or 5.4m, a $17.

TVNZ said the decline was less than other Australasian media companies suffered, buffered by gains made from screening the Beijing Olympics last August.4 per cent decline on the previous year.

It also said there were significant improvements in ratings and Freeview had taken off, with about 16 per cent of the market picking it up.

The report said TVNZ had increased its share of advertising by 2 per cent taking business off competitors.

There were three people on around $400,000, and six between $290,000 and $380,000.

A table showing what staff were paid showed top salary bands of one person each on over $830,000; $580,000; $500,000.

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Richard Heene provided a glimpse into his bizarre life when he described for a US TV audience in March his belief that aliens are humanity’s ancestors, his latest madcap inventions and his unconventional approach to raising a family.

Appearing on the ABC reality TV show Wife Swap, he told of once passing out in a fast-food restaurant and hearing aliens speak to him.

He boasted of his plans to build a flying saucer covered in aluminum foil and send it into a tornado.

“I’m very grateful that America has voted for us to be on a second time,” he said of his second appearance on the show. He pulled his children around a hockey rink on a hovercraft-like device and took them on UFO-hunting expeditions. Seriously. “(It’s) like the best thing that’s ever happened in our life.”

The signs of Heene’s publicity-hungry ambitions appeared to culminate last week, when a helium-filled balloon floated away from his home with his six-year-old son thought to be inside.

Heene now faces the possibility of criminal charges that could send him to prison for several years.

In the end, investigators said it was all a hoax designed to drum up attention for his next reality TV endeavour on the heels of the Wife Swap appearance.

In this case, investigators say it involved making it seem like his youngest child had drifted away in a balloon when the boy was actually somewhere in the neighbourhood.

The case has cast the spotlight on the bizarre antics of Heene, a 48-year-old amateur scientist, handyman and aspiring reality TV star, whose associates described him as a shameless self-promoter who would do almost anything to advance his latest endeavour. He tried his hand at acting and standup comedy in Hollywood, where he met his wife Mayumi, 45.

Heene has lived a fairly transient lifestyle over the years. They had three children – ages 10, eight andsix – and quickly immersed the kids in their storm-chasing missions that sometimes involved putting them dangerously close to tornadoes. .”

The family has chased down one storm after another, and Richard Heene claims to have flown in an airplane around the perimeter of Hurricane Wilma in 2005.

“Mayumi also manages to take care of the three rough, tough Heene boys, who are completely out of this world.

. Heene was obsessed with launching various inventions into storms, something that developed back in the 1970s after a storm ripped off the roof of a building he was working on

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Maori Party co-leader Tariana Turia says a decision on Foreshore and Seabed legislation will be revealed in the next two weeks.

The Maori Party wants the legislation repealed and its party president Whatarangi Winiata yesterday said the government had agreed.The controversial Act followed a 2003 Court of Appeal ruling in the Ngati Apa case that made it possible, in some instances, for Maori customary title to convert into freehold title.The previous government was not prepared to accept that position and legislated against the ruling, resulting in widespread unrest among Maori and the resignation from the Labour Party of Mrs Turia, who went on to form the Maori Party.That raised the possibility of parts of the foreshore and seabed coming under Maori control, and fears that public access to beaches could be restricted. It recommended its repeal and said interim legislation should be put in place until the politicians worked out a way to recognise Maori rights to coastal areas.The National government appointed a panel to review the Act.Mrs Turia told TV One political show Q and A today that progress was being made..”We’ll see within the next fortnight, but certainly it has progressed really really well. the public will know in two weeks whether that has happened..”I am really satisfied with the progress that we have made, and of course then we get down to the level of detail of what will be in any new piece of legislation, and the important thing about that is that the rights of all New Zealanders are protected including Maori. .”Asked if Maori’s right to take cases to court would be reinstated Mrs Turia said that had not been determined yet.”Asked if Maori’s right to take cases to court would be reinstated Mrs Turia said that had not been determined yet.”

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This is the first picture of Alfie Cunliffe, the two-year-old boy from Nelson who was swept out to sea by the Samoan tsunami.

Alfie was on the beach with his parents Gill and Garywhen the first wave hit at the Taufua Lodge in Lalomanu, the tourist resort on the island’s southeast coast that was worst affected by the disaster.

Alfie’s mother, Gill, hoped he was with his father, Gary, but discovered he was not when her husband was brought in alone for medical attention. . He was swept back into shore when a second wave struck and taken to hospital in Lalomanu suffering from internal injuries.

Gary Cunliffe had been swept out to sea by the first wave but survived by clinging on to the coral reef.

Ulrich Moritz, the neighbour, told the Daily Telegraph the Cunliffes arrived at different times at the hospital and it was only when they met up there that they realised Alfie was missing.

The family, who had emigrated from Lancashire in Englandto New Zealand, happened to be staying at the same resort as neighbours from the same street in Nelson. She started crying ‘I’ve lost Alfie’,” Moritz said.

”At first only Gill was there. But then they pulled Gary in and he was in quite bad shape. ”So we thought he could be with Gary.”

After arriving back at his home yesterday, Moritz told The Sunday Telegraph that the scene at the hospital in Lalomanu was chaotic and he had not seen the Cunliffes since then. That’s when she realised that no one had Alfie.

Moritz told the Telegraph the families were on the beach after the earthquake when a young couple shouted that the outlying coral reef had gone dry, a sign that a tsunami might be incoming.

The Cunliffes flew back to New Zealand over the weekend. We all yelled ‘The reef is dry, run, run, run.

”I looked out and all the water was gone, sucked out. We ran to a hill, scrambled and scrambled.’

”Everyone just started to run.

”If we had been any slower, we would have been washed out. We could hear it coming,” Moritz added.”

”We couldn’t believe it. We were seconds from death. It dragged everything out like a giant vacuum cleaner,” he said. It dragged everything out like a giant vacuum cleaner,” he said.

Nelson’s Samoan community say they would like to send representatives to any service held for Alfie.

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The army is tonight rescuing hundreds of motorists trapped in their vehicles after heavy snow closed roads across the central North Island.

Up to 200 vehicles were trapped on Stage Highway 2 between Napier and Taupo, with most cars believed to have stopped because of snow and ice at Waipunga, at about the halfway point. .About 150 people had made their way to the Te Pohue Hotel and a further 60 were at the Te Pohue Hall, Hastings Civil Defence controller Mike Maguire said.”People need to stay where they are and stay as warm as possible,” Mr Maguire said.He advised those waiting to stay put.”A welfare centre has been set up at Hukerere Girls College at Eskdale, and Red Cross and the Salvation Army workers were gathering there to make sure evacuees were warm and feed.”When they hear or see army vehicles approaching they need to flash their lights so they can be seen.Police central communications Inspector Kirsty Henson said about 120 cars had been stuck on State Highway 1 between Waiouru and the Three Sisters.The army also rescued motorists from SH1 near Waiouru.Snow had also closed SH49 between Ohakune and Waiouru, and SH47 at Turangi, she said.Those rescued would be returned to their vehicles tomorrow, she told .”Snow is expected down to 400m, with heavy falls through to (tomorrow) morning, especially above 600m,” forecaster Andy Downs said.The MetService issued heavy snow warnings for the central North Island high country, from the Tongariro National Park and the hills and ranges of Hawkes Bay.East of Whakatane, rain should ease early tomorrow, with 50-70mm of rain expected to fall until then, he said.A heavy rain warning was also in place for the Eastern Bay of Plenty, Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay.

.Heavy rain was expected in Gisborne until tomorrow morning, easing by evening

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Signs the economy may have stopped shrinking do not signal the end of hard times, Finance Minister Bill English said today.

Figures released by Statistics New Zealand today show the economy grew less than 0.1 percent in the June quarter, according to Gross Domestic Production (GDP) figures released today, following five quarters of contraction.”For the economy the worst is behind us, there are still some people who are going to find themselves out of work,” Mr English said.Most economists had picked the data to show further economic contraction and Mr English welcomed the news but repeated his caution about the country’s recovery.SNZ warned the growth was so small it could not be seen as a sign of economic recovery and Mr English said even if it was the recession’s effects on the economy would be felt for years to come.Unemployment generally runs behind the economy and Mr English said it would take another 12 months before those figures showed some improvement. .”

From 1992 it had taken 16 years to get high levels of Government debt down to where they were in 2008 and it would be the same this time around.”I believe the impact of this recession will continue to be felt on the Government’s books for 30 years.The economy would in 2012 be $50 billion lower than it would have been had the global financial crisis not taken place and this meant collecting $16 billion less tax revenue.The Government was currently doubling its debt by 2014 by borrowing $40 billion.”Lifting the performance of the public sector while reducing the rate of spending increases, is one of the Government’s six policy drivers for the next three to five years.Borrowing at that level could not continue and spending had to be brought under control.”This meant no or little new money for pay rises over that period.”This meant no or little new money for pay rises over that period.In the speech Mr English said there were more than 600 government websites and numerous 0800 lines with at least two agencies having about 20 toll free lines.Mr English called for the reduction of duplicated services and more sharing of resources in the public sector.

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Progressive Enterprises is to phase out its Foodtown and Woolworths brands during the next five years, replacing them with a “new generation” Countdown branding. .

Foodtown was mostly restricted to Auckland, and Woolworths was basically the South Island and lower North Island, while Countdown stores were across the country, he said.

Australian parent company Woolworths planned to invest up to $1 billion in New Zealand during the next five years.

The new Countdown branding would be applied as stores were refurbished and new stores were built.

The new branding was unveiled today at Progressive’s Countdown Westgate store in West Auckland, where refurbishment was nearly finished.

“We plan to open up to five new generation Countdown supermarkets and transform around 20 Woolworths, Foodtown and older Countdown stores to the new brand and format each year for the next five years,” Mr Smith said.

Mr Smith said a new logo, which also replaced the current Countdown identity, represented fresh produce and the company’s commitment to fresh food.”

The new brand linked Progressive to Woolworths in Australia, where stores had also been gradually receiving new symbols.

“It also represents a new beginning and direction of our business. It employed more than 18,000 people now.

Through its investment, Progressive would create 2000 to 3000 permanent new jobs. In some cases quadrupling the fresh produce area, Mr Smith said.

The chain had increased the space for fresh food, particularly produce.

“That’s what customers were asking for.

“That’s what customers were asking for.

Factors such as range, value, service, and convenience as well as price all worked together, he said.”

Price was also a significant issue, but customers did not just shop on price alone.

“But we’re certainly not planning to close any stores, and we’re certainly not planning to downsize any of them either.

In three or four places where two group supermarkets were close to each other, the issue would be dealt with on a store by store basis.”

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Police have spoken to the New Zealand-born woman dubbed a ”one woman crime wave”, following her deportation after committing dozens of offences in Sydney.

Patricia Carol Toia, 31, returned to New Zealand aboard a chartered jet on September 10, after commercial airlines refused to have her on board.

She moved to Sydney when she was just one-year-old, and was jailed more then 30 times there for offences including robbery, assaults, heroin trafficking and driving while disqualified.

Held in in Australia’s Villawood Detention Centre since 2004, she was deported from there last Thursday after she exhausted her final appeal. She is banned from driving in Australia until 2060.

It was reported commercial airlines refused to have her onboard.

Australian media reported she was flown here on a charter jet accompanied by three Australian police and two immigration department officers at a cost to Australian taxpayers of between AU$30,000 and $40,000.

Police spokesperson Jon Neilson said: ”We know she’s back and have talked to her.

”If anyone is brought back here, we process them accordingly.”

This was standard procedure for any New Zealand citizen who had been deported back into the country, he said.”

In 2007 the Administrative Appeals Tribunal upheld a 2004 decision to return Toia to New Zealand. .

”The fact that the applicant .

The tribunal’s deputy president, Julian Block, noted that the description of Toia as a one-woman crime wave was by no means inapt. . . But she is a threat to the Australian community, and Australia deserves protection against her, given that the risk of recidivism is, as must be obvious, very substantial indeed,” it said. has spent nearly all of her life in Australia is a relevant factor.

Last year, she told The she intended to marry her boyfriend Hamish McClelland – who has driving convictions and is on a methadone programme – so he would be able to join her here if she was deported.

Toia had argued against deportation on grounds that she had lived all her life in Australia. It [sending her to New Zealand] would disrupt the good progress that she’s made”.

Mr McClelland told media he and Toia had been on a methadone programme together ”and she hasn’t been in trouble for a while.

”I’d like to have a good job and .

Toia credited Mr McClelland with giving her the chance of a settled life…”

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Fonterra has released plans for a three-step capital restructuring aimed at stopping millions of dollars washing in and out of its balance sheet.

It also seeks to ensure the cooperative has the share equity needed to fund profitable business opportunities.

If accepted by farmers, Fonterra says it should take care of its capital needs for about the next five years and would retain 100 per cent farmer control and ownership of the cooperative. .

The steps are:

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2. Farmers would be allowed to hold shares up to 120 per cent of their milk production, an increase on the current limit of close to 100 per cent, and would have incentives to hold shares even if their production fell. Restricted share value .

3. The way Fonterra shares are valued would be adjusted to reflect that share ownership is restricted to farmers only. Fonterra would move to a system where farmers buy and sell shares among themselves. Trading among farmers .

If feedback is positive, proposals would be finalised and put to a vote at the annual meeting in Ashburton on November18.

Fonterra’s farmer shareholders will be consulted on the first two steps at meetings around the country over the next fortnight and throughout October.

If the first two steps are approved, the third step could be discussed and voted on next year, with implementation possibly in 2011.

If the first two steps are approved, the third step could be discussed and voted on next year, with implementation possibly in 2011.

After milk production fell during the 2007-08 drought Fonterra had to pay out $742 million of equity to farmers via redemptions.

Redemption risk occurs because Fonterra’s share levels are related to milk production and the cooperative is responsible for buying shares back off farmers when they want to redeem them.

“We need certainty in our equity base to invest in dairy processing operations so as to drive a higher payout.

“To be successful and achieve the best possible payout for farmers, Fonterra can’t afford to have hundreds of millions of dollars washing in and out of the balance sheet every time milk production fluctuates, for whatever reason,” he said.”

He said the success of the suggested capital structure changes would ultimately depend on how much additional capital farmer shareholders were prepared to commit to their cooperative. These investments require capital and are long-term commitments – the stainless steel of a new processing plant, for instance, has a useful life of more than 30 years.

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The small West Coast town of Kumara is in shock after a man died violently overnight, the mayor says.

A middle-aged man was found dead at a house in Kumara, 25km south of Greymouth, about 12.

It was believed the man died from injuries suffered during a brawl.45am today.

Inspector John Canning said several people at the house had been spoken to.

A man has been remanded in custody after appearing in Greymouth District Court charged with murder today.

His next appearance will be at Christchurch District Court before a judge on Wednesday.

The accused was today granted name suppression when he appeared before Justices of the Peace.

Kumara, on State Highway 73, has no community constable.

The death comes just a fortnight after the mayor gained national attention for demanding a police presence in the town.

Westland Mayor Maureen Pugh said the death had left the town of around 350 in shock.

The town’s only pub, The Empire Hotel, lost its liquor licence in June following reported misbehaviour by local drinkers. .

“It’s like you are watching something unfold in a movie but it’s actually happening in your own back yard,” she said.

“The ripples go a long way too, because you have people – not only the victim, but the person who gets arrested and charged with this, they all have families too.

“The town is very good at pulling together, they’ll support each other.”

Pugh said it was a “real irony” that the killing had occurred just two weeks after she wrote to the West Coast police area commander John Canning outlining her concerns about the level of nuisance crime and trouble in the “usually lovely” town. So it’s a high-impact event.

“I used the example of needless nuisance stuff that needs to be knocked on the head now before it turns into real crime.

Pugh said her letter had meant to outline the need for a community constable in Kumara.

However, it would be difficult for anyone to argue against the need for a constable in the town now, Pugh said.”

“But I doubt very much whether the people involved in this killing were the same people that had been involved in the minor stuff like throwing stones on people’s roofs.”

Ms Pugh said the impact of the man’s death would be felt throughout the town.

“I spoke with police again last week and the position hasn’t actually been advertised yet, so it’s unlikely we will see anyone anytime soon.”

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