Checkpoint

Checkpoint

Checkpoint with Lisa Owen is RNZ’s weekday drive-time news programme, Our people, stories and breaking news and interviews from 4-6pm.

Episodes

Get Up street art festival returns to New Plymouth

March 5, 2026 • 4 mins
The centre of New Plymouth has been taken over by street artists, musicians, and a whole lot of spray paint this week. The Get Up Festival is back in town for the first time in more than a decade and 26 graffiti artists are transforming the CBD into a living gallery. Taranaki Whanganui reporter Robin Martin went to take a look.
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UK PM holds press conference on Middle East conflict

March 5, 2026 • 5 mins
United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer holding a press conference on the situation in the Middle East, as well the world's most famous dog show, which is officially underway in Birmingham.
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Evening business for 6 March 2026

March 5, 2026 • 5 mins
News from the business sector, including a market report.
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Skiing duo will be flying flag for Winter Paralympics

March 5, 2026 • 4 mins
A New Zealand alpine skiing duo will be flying the flag in Italy when the Winter Paralympics start this weekend. The highly experienced Adam Hall and Corey Peters are the only New Zealanders involved in the 50th edition of the Games. Sports reporter Felicity Reid spoke to Lisa Owen.
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PM not considering stepping down after poll puts National in the 20s

March 5, 2026 • 7 mins
The Prime Minister says he is not considering stepping down after a sobering poll result that has the National party dropping into the twenties. Senior national ministers defended Christopher Luxon as news of the Taxpayers Unions Curia poll landed today. Labour says it shows the Prime Minister is out of touch, but the Deputy Prime Minister says the coalition has a plan to fix the economy. Political reporter Lillian Hanly has m...
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Estimates of up to $10 million USD in war surchages on freight

March 5, 2026 • 7 mins
A New Zealand logistics company estimates war surcharges could add up to ten million US dollars to its monthly freight costs. The Hormuz strait a vital shipping lane between Iran and Oman is current closed. Iran's threatening to bomb any ships trying to pass through the narrow strip of water. Kotahi co-ordinates the ships various New Zealand exports including dairy and meat to the region. It has thousands of containers literal...
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Christchurch's proposal to dump sewage kicks up stink

March 5, 2026 • 3 mins
As Wellington grapples with a wastewater disaster that's pushing 70 million litres of untreated sewage into the sea each day, Christchurch's proposal to pump semi-treated sewage into the ocean for the next two years has not gone down well with one government minister. The city's mayor, Phil Mauger, put forward the idea to mitigate the putrid stench coming from Bromley's damaged treatment plant. The plan has raised the ire of S...
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Fire power over Iran to surge dramatically - US defense secretary

March 5, 2026 • 6 mins
The US Defense Secretary has said that fire power over Iran is about to surge dramatically. Pete Hegseth was speaking at a joint press conference with the head US Central Command, as Operation Epic Fury heads into its seventh day. Admiral Brad Cooper said US combat power is building. Its bomber force has struck nearly 200 targets, including ballistic missile launchers deep inside of Iran. Dr John Battersby, a Senior Fellow at ...
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High Court upholds decision voiding Papatoetoe local election

March 5, 2026 • 3 mins
A new election is confirmed for the Papatoetoe subdivision of the Otara-Papatoetoe Local Board, after a High Court judge upheld an earlier ruling that voided the outcome of the 2025 local body election. The District Court ruled in December that voting irregularities had materially affected the result and declared the election invalid. RNZ Asia's Blessen Tom reports.
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Teacher struck off for sexual misconduct working with youth

March 5, 2026 • 2 mins
A former teacher struck off for sexual misconduct was working at an organisation for vulnerable youth for roughly five months, before a ruling detailing her offending was made public. The Teaching Council's Disciplinary Tribunal has found April Nordstrom had a sexual relationship with a student at Whangarei Girls' High School and behaved inappropriately towards three other students at Horowhenua College in Levin. The years the...
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Warriors kick off season at Auckland's Mount Smart

March 5, 2026 • 3 mins
The Warriors kick off their season in Auckland on Friday night. A packed Mount Smart is expected as a highly regarded Roosters side await the Wahs. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.
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Pressure on Luxon after poll puts National in the 20s

March 5, 2026 • 9 mins
Pressure's mounting on Christopher Luxon after a horror poll has his party slumping three points to its lowest level since the Judith Collins era. The Taxpayers' Union Curia poll released today has National on 28.4 percent, six points behind Labour. Support for the Greens, ACT, and Te Pati Māori have grown. Former National Party MP Simon O'Connor spoke to Lisa Owen.
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Trump suggests US could turn attention to Cuba after Iran war

March 5, 2026 • 3 mins
America correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Lisa Owen about the US Defence Secretary calling for Latin American countries to take more military action against drug cartels. She also spoke about how Venezuela and the US are working to reestablish diplomatic ties, following the dramatic capture and arrest of Venezuela's former president.
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Concerns teenagers with headphones too loud risk hearing loss

March 5, 2026 • 6 mins
Students at 16 high schools around the country will have their hearing tested during March; hearing awareness month. The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Foundation's screening programme started with five secondary schools in 2019 and is aiming to reach 100 this year. It's found large numbers of teenagers are experiencing tinnitus or ringing in their ears and many of them are plugged into headphone or earbuds for hours everyday. Deaf ...
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Australia begins evacuating citizens in the Middle East

March 4, 2026 • 6 mins
Australia correspondent Nick Grimm spoke to Lisa Owen about Australia beginning to evacuate citizens caught up by the widening conflict in the Middle East.
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Evening business for 5 March 2026

March 4, 2026 • 4 mins
News from the business sector, including a market report.
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Rugby world reacts to Dave Rennie's appointment

March 4, 2026 • 3 mins
The rugby world is preparing for the reign of Rennie. Dave Rennie was announced yesterday as the new head of the All-Blacks helm. He edged out Highlander's coach Jamie Joseph who's tackling the fact he came up short in the race for the top job. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.
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Amount of food wasted in retirement villages revealed

March 4, 2026 • 5 mins
The amount of food binned in retirement villages has been picked over by researchers, who've come up with a tool to help reduce the waste. 14 villages were part of the three-year study by the University of Otago funded by the Ministry for the Environment. Some initial results were shared with the industry. Maggie Owens from the Retirement Villages Association spoke to Lisa Owen.
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Kiwi family in Kuwait waiting to hear if they can return home

March 4, 2026 • 3 mins
A New Zealand family living in Kuwait is anxiously waiting to hear whether they will be able to return home, after the Defence Force confirmed it would deploy planes to the Middle East. As part of contingency preparations, consular staff and two C-130J aircraft will be sent to the Middle East in preparation for evacuation operations. Deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Lisa Owen.
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Prices expected to shoot up as Iran conflict continues

March 4, 2026 • 9 mins
The death toll in Iran has reportedly exceeded 1000, conflict continues in the Middle East. The strikes have pushed up the price of brent crude oil but more than 18 percent in the past week as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Westpac suggests that if the conflict continues for a month, prices will shoot up much further. It also warned that our inflation rate could be pushed up by one percent. Finance Minister Nicola Willis...
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