The Government’s Te Huia train between Hamilton and Auckland could be heading to central Auckland as soon as October.The train courted criticism for the fact that its weekday services only go as far as Papakura, at which point travellers…

Three people have suffered stabbing injuries – two with serious wounds – during an altercation in South Auckland this afternoon. Police were called to the Great South Rd address in Ōtāhuhu around 2pm.Three people suffered…

Overseas-based Kiwis trying to secure bookings in the Government’s latest release of managed isolation spots say it’s an “absolute joke and depressing”. Wellsford woman Caroline, who is desperate to get to the UK to see her mum…

A Rotorua couple expecting triplets has asked for the public to put pressure on the Ministry of Health after the father’s request for a special exemption to cross the Auckland border for their children’s birth was rejected today….

The University of Otago has launched a voluntary redundancy scheme for staff as it seeks to contain spending in the face of losing international students and rising costs.Acting Vice-Chancellor Professor Helen Nicholson said while…

Sick children are being given new armour to help fight their battles against serious illness.

Jason Sotiris is the inventor of a unique superhero costume for children to wear in hospital.

The costumes are like a extra functional hospital gown, which makes it easier for children to change in and out of while they're undergoing medical procedures.

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The idea came about after his daughter Angela was diagnosed with a rare type of cancer called Langerhans Cell Hystiocytosis, just after her first birthday.

"It was really hard to keep her clean and hygienic and just after a few tough nights while she was on chemotherapy. An idea went off in my head and I thought I'm going to have a crack at this," Mr Sotiris said.

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Mr Sotiris worked together with a close friend and the Fair Fight Foundation to create Supertee, to help make the lives of other sick children and their parents, a little easier.

"My dream is to make sure that wherever in the world a parent is given the news their child is battling a terminal illness, that a Supertee is available," he said.

One of the children to benefit is four-year-old Gold Coast boy Matheo Eggleston, who lives with a rare genetic disease.

His mum Shalyn Eggleston says the outfit has been a lifesaver.

"He can go for all his MRIs and all his scans because there is not metal in them and it just made life so much easier," Ms Eggleston said.

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Supertee has made 5000 garments for sick children so far but they're hoping to get 8000 more into medical centres by the end of the year.

Two regional New South Wales local government areas will go into lockdown this evening due to an increased risk of COVID-19.

Stay-at-home orders will be in force in Port Macquarie and Muswellbrook from 6pm today.

Residents must stay at home unless except for the six essential reasons of shopping for food, medical care, getting vaccinated, compassionate needs, exercise and work, or tertiary education if you can't work or study at home.

LIVE UPDATES: State indicates only double jabbed will be allowed in

NSW health authorities are calling on people to come forward and get tested in numbers to ensure the spread of COVID-19 in the community could be tracked and curbed.

Earlier today, NSW Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Marianne Gale flagged the lockdown of the regions.

"We are watching and looking at the situation very carefully in Port Macquarie, Muswellbrook and Kempsey," Dr Gale said.

READ MORE: Home COVID-19 tests approved for Aussies from November 1

"In all of those areas, we have had an increase in local cases and people who have been infectious in the community, so we are currently looking carefully at those situations and we'll be providing recommendations."

However, Kempsey LGA's stay-at-home order will be lifted on schedule at midnight tonight – though it may be re-imposed as new information about health risks is reported.

For more information on restrictions, visit the NSW government COVID-19 website.

Scientists have confirmed the discovery of a nearly complete fossil of a 25-million-year-old eagle that once flew over South Australia and preyed on koalas – an incredibly rare find because of how well preserved it is, experts say.

The newly discovered species, Archaehierax sylvestris, is one of the oldest eagle-like raptors in the world, according to a study published Monday in the peer-reviewed journal, Historical Biology.

Paleontologists from Adelaide's Flinders University unearthed the fossil in March 2016 on a remote outback cattle station during a research trip at Lake Pinpa in South Australia.

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Archaehierax is the largest eagle known to have lived in Australia during the Oligocene period, which dates back about 33.9 million to 23 million years ago, the study said.

It was smaller and more slender than the wedge-tailed eagle, Australia's largest bird of prey, according to the Western Australian Museum.

With feet nearly 15 centimetres long, the eagle would have had the ability to grasp large prey. The scientists said it would have hunted an extinct species of koala, which was about the same size as those alive today, as well as possums and other animals in trees, the study said.

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"The largest marsupial predators at the time were about the size of a small dog or large cat, so Archaehierax was certainly ruling the roost," Ellen Mather, author of the study and Flinders University postdoctoral candidate, said in a statement.

The partial fossil skeleton is comprised of 63 bones, making Archaehierax sylvestris one of the best preserved species found around Lake Pinpa. The completeness of the skeleton allowed researchers to determine where it fits on the eagle family tree, Ms Mather said.

"It shows a range of features unlike any seen among modern hawks and eagles," she said. "It seems to have been its own unique branch of the eagle family."

The fossil bones reveal that the wings of the species were short for its size, which made them quite agile and allowed them to dodge trees while it hunted. Its legs were relatively long, which would have given it considerable reach.

Scientists did not say why or when the species went extinct.

The Australian environment during the Oligocene was vastly different to today. Lake Pinpa, where the fossil was found, was once a lush ecosystem covered in trees and forests, the study said. Today, it is barren, dry and desolate.

Trevor Worthy, associate professor at Flinders University and co-author of the study, said in the statement that it is rare to find even one bone from a fossil eagle. This is likely due to a number of reasons, Mather added, including that bird bones can be quite fragile, which makes them easier to break.

"To have most of the skeleton is pretty exciting, especially considering how old it is," Mr Worthy said.

Researchers have made a number of fossil discoveries in Australia over the years, shedding light on the diversity of species that roamed the Earth eons ago.

Most recently, scientists discovered that there once was a species of flying "dragon" that soared over Australia 105 million years ago. The pterosaur was described by researchers as a "fearsome beast" who snacked on juvenile dinosaurs.

In June, scientists confirmed that the 2007 discovery of a fossilised skeleton in the state of Queensland was Australia's largest dinosaur. The dinosaur, nicknamed "Cooper," stood at about two stories tall, and was a as long as a basketball court.

South Korea is considering a ban on the consumption of dog meat.

The Korea Times reported that President Moon Jae-in raised the issue with his Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, during a policy discussion about a new government scheme to care for abandoned pets.

The country has passed a law against the inhumane slaughter of dogs or cats, but not against the consumption of the meat.

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However, dog meat consumption has fallen in South Korea, as more people in the country come to keep them as pets.

Mr Moon has several pet dogs himself.

Polls conducted by the Humane Society International late last year showed more than 84 per cent of South Koreans said they had not or would not eat dog meat, and nearly 60 per cent believed the trade should be abolished altogether.

However, the Korea Times said the debate had still sparked resistance.

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"Dogs that are raised for consumption weigh from 35kg to up to 80kg," dog farmer representative Cho Hwan-ro said.

"They are completely distinctive types of breeds raised in a different environment compared to pets."

But animal rights advocate Jeon Jin-kyung welcomed the president's comments, saying more South Koreans were viewing eating dog meat as animal abuse rather than tradition.

A prison escapee who turned himself in after 29 years in hiding on Sydney's Northern Beaches will seek clemency for the crime that put him in jail.

Today, dressed in prison greens and appearing via video from Silverwater jail, Darko Desic pleaded guilty to escaping Grafton Prison in 1992.

Just over a fortnight ago, the 64-year-old handed himself in to police after 29 years flying under the radar.

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He had been working cash jobs in Avalon before the coronavirus pandemic left him homeless.

At the time of his arrest, Desic told police he escaped prison because he didn't want to be deported back to war-torn Yugoslavia.

Today Desic's lawyer Paul McGirr revealed he'll be seeking clemency for the original charge of cannabis cultivation, arguing his client is rehabilitated.

The sentence for escaping prison in the early '90s was seven years but that legislation no longer exists.

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"He's struggling," Mr McGirr said.

"He's just humbled by the fact that there's people out there that want to see him get out.

"The prison system is designed for rehabilitation, and he's proven over 30 years he hasn't reoffended, so what's the purpose of locking him away again?"

His defence lawyer said Desic has work and accommodation lined up and has trained as a stonemason.

There is an online fundraiser which has raised money to help Desic rebuild his life if he is let out of prison.