PUBLIC ISSUES

The variant has circulated under the radar since late 2024 but is now spreading quickly. Keep Reading

Bird flu is spreading globally and getting closer to New Zealand. Its arrival may be a matter of when, not if – and the risks are significant. Keep Reading

The vaccine can be as effective as heart attack medication for those infected by influenza, epidemiologist Dr Michael Baker says. Keep Reading

“It is one of the rare times that Māori have been less impacted by a disease than Europeans and provides a clear example of how much better Māori do when we are able to exercise self-determination and control our own lives.” — Professor Margaret Mutu, on the Māori response to Covid-19 in 2020. Keep Reading

Earlier this month, Hipkins said the Ministry of Health never passed expert advice about potential risk to teenagers on to ministers. Keep Reading

Despite the ninth wave of Covid pushing up hospitalisations, some people say they have never had the virus. Keep Reading

NZ is now one of just five countries to have rejected the post-pandemic changes to the WHO's global health rules without providing a reason. Marc Daalder reports. Keep Reading

After a meningococcal disease outbreak among Dunedin students, and two deaths at a UK uni, an expert explains all. Keep Reading

COVID-19 hasn’t disappeared, but it’s no longer the health threat it was. Here’s what the latest wave means and who should get boosted. Keep Reading

For years, Stacy Gregg had no sense of taste or smell. That was weird enough, but then things got even weirder. Keep Reading

Matthew Tukaki Posted On March 14, 2026 Keep Reading

ACT has blasted the previous government for being power-hungry and NZ First maintained its reservations about the inquiry, but Labour defended the response as world-leading. Keep Reading

Under-pressure employers taking a hard line on sick leave are being warned to take care with the rules. Keep Reading

The second and final phase of the Covid inquiry covered the period from February 2021 to October 2022 when the disease was in the community. Keep Reading

Hospitalisations and deaths from the virus are climbing as the ninth wave of Covid-19 surges across Aotearoa. Keep Reading

The latest figures show 50 hospitalisations and 19 deaths with the virus in the past week. Keep Reading

Covid deaths are rising again as New Zealand enters a ninth wave of the virus. Keep Reading

Six years on from the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, the evidence of it still lingers. There are the economic, health and social scars – but there are also the physical marks. Keep Reading