The Latest Breaking News from Newsroom.co.nz

The NZ Royal Commission of Inquiry into how the nation handled the Covid-19 pandemic has already spoken to hundreds of people of all persuasions, but the work is definitely taking the hush-hush approach

After an interminable comeback from injuries, Michaela Sokolich-Beatson thought she’d never wear the silver fern again - till she led the FAST5 Ferns to a netball world final, Suzanne McFadden writes from Christchurch.

The Detail podcast brings you the issues behind the news every weekday. Here's what we covered this week.

A walkout by one nation marred an otherwise undramatic summit, but the barriers to reconciliation between Nauru and the Pacific Islands Forum are not insurmountable.

Wellington writer Jake Arthur has been judged runner-up at the 2023 Sargeson Prize for his short story "On Beauty", described by judge Vincent O'Sullivan as a story about "how and why a principled female professor tells a male student he is beautiful, and is called before an Ethics Committee"

By Susan Strongman: Retired and living alone in Hamilton, Mum ticks a lot of the boxes that put her at risk of loneliness.

Talking to dairy farmers after the co-op announced new on-farm emissions targets at its AGM in Methven, Rod Oram describes the fear that climate action triggers for many.

When councils cut their budgets, it's always libraries that have the spotlight put on them. As staff hours and numbers are cut, librarians are overcoming their reluctance to whisper about the value of their services.

As the incoming government draws up the next blueprint for urban water management reform, there needs to be more transparency about the use of data and evidence, writes Julia Talbot-Jones