King Country News | June 4, 2026

King Country

A gorgeous $50m

By Roy Pilott

Mayors and politicians have celebrated the announcement of a $50 million war chest for the Awakino Gorge dilemma.

Waitomo mayor John Robertson told The News he was further reassured that the money would be used for capital works to resolve gorge issues – not fix them when they arrive.

“That was important to hear - for there was some concern, including with me, that the money might be used on maintenance, like put towards the repair work being done on the gorge now - many millions of dollars,” he said.

Last week The News highlighted Robertson’s view that a viable

bypass route – the Taumatamaire Road – was needed when the gorge was closed because of bad weather.

That road is now a winding unsealed route – but Robertson has driven it recently with his New Plymouth counterpart Max Brough and is convinced it is worth investing in.

“New Zealand Transport Agency is to do some options analysis on how to invest the $50 million, and come back to us with this analysis… I expect this to include spending $50 million on the gorge to improve its resilience, and looking at a bypass route - Taumatamaire is the only option in my view,” he said this week.

“The Awakino Gorge has been slipping for 100 years. I am not sure

that it can be ‘fixed’.”

The $50 million budget announcement was literally pennies from heaven.

The agenda for a meeting the day after of the mayors of Stratford, South Taranaki, New Plymouth, Waitomo, Ōtorohanga, Ruapehu and Waipā was called to encourage NZTA , “to invest in the gorge because closures like we are experiencing are not acceptable at all” Robertson said.

The budget announcement changed that to “let’s look at the options for investing in the gorge”.

The meeting was with NZTA chief Brett Gliddon and staff, and it was called by Brough in the wake of another gorge closure.

National MPs Barbara Kuriger

(Taranaki-King Country) and David Macleod (New Plymouth) were among those to celebrate the announcement.

They underlined how critical it was to have State Highway 3 between Taranaki and Waikato open.

No one was more delighted than Kuriger, who contacted Robertson with the news as Nicola Willis delivered her budget.

She told The News she danced for joy when the announcement was made.

Her electorate takes in the gorge and she is familiar with every twist and turn in it.

“Anyone who regularly uses SH3 through the Awakino Gorge knows how important this route is for local

continued on page 2

We say… Money well spent

The 2026 budget will be remembered as one which, in times of financial challenges, was bold enough to recognise in roading it is better to solve the problem, not the symptoms.

That’s why in December a $350 million bypass will replace the arduous climb over Mount Messenger, 36km south of the Awakino Gorge

Te Ara o Te Ata will be a 6km, two lane road between Ahitītī and Uruti and the project will inject the thick end of $100 million into the Taranaki economy. In terms of driving time it will save a handful of minutes – but its value is far greater than that.

On the Waikato side of the gorge, significant work has been completed to give motorist a clear road in and out - avoiding the narrow tunnel.

To not resolved issues with a 14km long gorge which is prone to slips and is being closed more and more often would be inconsistent with the reasoning behind those two projects.

In a golden triangle, businesses are celebrating the announcement of confirmed funding to extend the four lane Waikato expressway south to Piarere.

Taranaki is also an economic powerhouse and looks north. Ensuring that province can get to market efficiently is a no brainer.

Your experienced local Farm Machinery Dealership

A gorgeous $50m

Continued from page 1

communities, freight operators and businesses across the region.”

She said the corridor between Mount Messenger and the SH4 junction between Te Kūiti and Piopio has been closed 14 times since July 2021 because of weather-related events – most recently this year for more than a month following severe weather.

A surgeon’s true calling

By Mary Anne Gill

Paediatric surgeon Udaya Samarakkody has been up since the early hours, called into Waikato Hospital for an emergency operation on a baby.

satisfaction.”

Born and trained in Sri Lanka, Samarakkody was already a qualified surgeon when she and husband Ruwan Fernando left in 1995, prompted in part by civil war after she experienced a bomb blast while driving to collect her son.

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“Every closure causes major disruption for families, businesses and freight operators who rely on this route to move around the region and get goods to market.”

Macleod said the impacts of closures were felt well beyond the gorge itself.

“When SH3 closes through the Awakino Gorge, the effects are felt right across Taranaki.

“For many freight operators, tradies and businesses travelling to and from New Plymouth, a closure can add at least five hours to the journey by forcing traffic to detour via Whanganui

“There have been far too many closures over the past few years, and this investment will help make one of Taranaki’s most important transport links more reliable.”

The gorge – which reopened fully in May 22 after a long closure – was shut for three hours on Monday following heavy rain.

On the beat

Back home by midmorning, she is preparing for a full day of consultations and a possible return to the hospital.

At 65, there is little thought of slowing down and little chance of it. New Zealand faces a shortage of paediatric surgeons, with only four at Waikato Hospital to cover a huge area, including King Country, and one long-term vacancy.

“I actually really like my work and I feel that I’m still very competent,” she says.

Her dedication has earned her appointment as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in this year’s King’s Birthday Honours, recognising more than three decades of service to paediatric surgery and the Sri Lankan community.

“For some it’s a job, but to me it’s a calling,” she says.

“Seeing somebody healed… there’s no other job that can give you that

with Constable Chris Aspin

Gas thieves active

King Country police have seen an increase in fuel thefts.

Offenders are targeting fuel tanks and heavy machinery such as tractors, diggers, and loaders across rural areas. These offences can have a significant impact on businesses and livelihoods.

We encourage the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity or thefts promptly, as this information helps police build a clearer picture of offending patterns and enables us to better target patrols.

Following a serious assault reported in Piopio a few weeks ago, Police have now arrested and charged a 27-year-old man. The individual was already subject to bail conditions for offences outside the district and has since been released on bail to an address in the South Island.

Staff were also involved in a failingto-stop incident that began in Waitomo.

Arriving in Waikato as a locum, she quickly found a supportive workplace. “I just couldn’t believe how good New Zealand was.”

She has since become a cornerstone of paediatric surgical care, treating children from birth to their teens.

“Trauma is what makes you really feel bad,” she says of cases where injuries cannot be overcome. But children’s resilience sustains her.

“We see healing rather than devastation … that gives you so much joy.”

Career highlights include a 22-hour operation in 2004 to separate conjoined twins.

She has also trained and mentored more than 50 surgeons, particularly women entering the once maledominated field.

Beyond medicine, she supports Sri Lankan families in Waikato, helping young people connect with their

The vehicle was later observed driving dangerously around Te Kuiti township and there were concerning reports from both police and members of the public. Officers apprehended the 28-year-old female driver while she was out of the vehicle.

She was transported to Waikato Hospital for medical treatment. The vehicle has been impounded, and charges will likely follow. Thankfully, no injuries were reported, although there were concerns given the incident occurred close to school pick-up time.

Across the district, police received an increased number of driving-related complaints over the long weekend. Many of these involved poor decision-making by drivers, highlighting the importance of patience, safe speeds, and responsible driving behaviour, particularly during busy travel periods.

culture through dance, which she teaches and choreographs.

Family remains central. Her two children work in medicine, and her mother still lives in Sri Lanka.

The honour is especially meaningful - her late father died on June 1, the day the awards were announced.

“I imagine he would have been so proud,” she says. For now, retirement can wait.

As long as she can, Samarakkody will keep answering the call, whether at 3am or in the middle of a busy day, doing the work she believes she was meant to do.

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A 30-year-old man was issued a summons to appear in court after being observed wearing gang insignia in Ōtorohanga. A 30-year-old male was also summonsed to appear in Court for wearing gang insignia after being sighted in Te Kuiti.

A 44-year-old man was summonsed to court after being found driving with excess breath alcohol in Te Kuiti.

A quad bike was located and impounded following a failing-to-stop incident in Te Kuiti.

A 37-year-old man was arrested for breaching his bail conditions after failing to reside at his listed Hamilton address.

As always, we appreciate the continued support, please continue to look out for one another and report any suspicious activity when it is observed.

Be well and stay safe.

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Pulling out the stops

Waikato Regional councillor

Liz Stolwyk says she will look into complaints from regional bus users that stops have been dropped from the Cambridge, KihikihiTe Awamutu and King Country services with no communication other than from the bus driver. Do you now more? Email editor@ goodlocal.nz

Fees up

Hamilton City Council has confirmed fee rises for Hamilton Gardens. The entry fee to the enclosed gardens will be $27.50 for nonHamiltonians from October 1.

… and rates too Waikato regional councillors have agreed on a 0.9 per cent increase in rates revenue from current ratepayers for 2026/27 - down on the 1.4 per cent estimated in February’s draft annual plan budget.

Lights on the statue

A Lights On Event tonight (Thursday) will feature a display projected onto Te Kūiti’s Shearer Statue. The event is part of phase two of a Genesis push to make the town New Zealand’s first to be 100 per cent lit by LED bulbs. More than 3300 free lightbulbs have already been collected by householders. Tonight’s event will include a community dinner served from the Te Kūiti Lions Club caravan, giveaways, and the chance to win one of three $1,000 Genesis bill credits.

Rising to the occasion

Kinohaku School students recently traded classrooms for the clouds and experienced the thrill of going up in a tethered hot air balloon ride piloted by Andrew Parker of the Flying High Project. Morehu Kerr and Tasha Maru made their land available for the event which principal Dawn Telfer said was a true community effort.

Trust wants vape limits

By Roy PiIott

A trust is calling for restrictions on vaping, citing Waikato regional survey data showing daily e-cigarette use rose from three to 12 per cent in the five years to 2025.

For Māori in Waikato, Te Tiratū Iwi Māori Partnership Board says the 2024-25 estimate appears substantially higher, at around 28 per cent.

It warns market practices are driving nicotine addiction and undermining whānau wellbeing.

Tumu Whakarae of Te Tiratū, Brandi Hudson says the scale of harm across the region requires urgent action.

“Te Tiratū is extremely concerned about the widespread uptake of vaping products and the predatory marketing strategies used to lure our whānau into nicotine addiction,” she said.

“Vaping is not a harmless lifestyle choice. It is a rapidly normalised pathway into nicotine dependency for our young people, and we cannot afford to ignore what we are seeing

in our communities.”

The iwi partnership board comprises representatives from Pare Hauraki, Waikato, Raukawa, Te Nehenehenui, Ngāti Hāua (Taumarunui) and Te Rūnanga o Kirikiriroa.

Its Vaping Position Statement has been developed with technical advisor Associate Professor Andrew Waa and calls for vaping products to be made available on prescription only.

“Locally, our town mapping identifies vape retailers in Te Awamutu, Te Kūiti and ŌtorohangaKāwhia, alongside young Māori populations and visible respiratory pressure,” Waa said.

“That is why vaping needs to be treated as a local rangatahi health issue, not just a national policy debate. Māori whānau in Waikato already carry a significant respiratory burden, and youth vaping adds another preventable nicotine and respiratory risk.”

Te Awamutu was identified as having 10 vape retailers or tobaccolinked premises, Te Kūiti three, and

Ōtorohanga- Kāwhia two.

Primary Health Organisation data also shows in Te Awamutu 1008 Māori patients are registered with asthma, 670 in Te Kūiti and 433 in Ōtorohanga, the report says.

There are 121,000 Māori within the Waikato rohe covered by Te Tiratū Iwi Māori Partnership Board and almost half are under 25 and a significant proportion are rurally based.

“Te Tiratū monitoring shows an average of 215 Māori children aged 14 and under were hospitalised for asthma each year between 2020 and 2023, at 1.9 times the rate of nonMāori children,” the board said.

“This is compounded by high levels of deprivation, damp and mould-affected housing, lower rates of primary care enrolment, and inequitable access to youth cessation support, primary care, and trusted local services.”

The board says vapes should only be available as regulated therapies to support people who smoke to quit nicotine addiction or switch to a less harmful alternative.

It would support restricting access to vaping products to accredited health related services and regulating the maximum amount of nicotine in vape liquids.

It also wants vape products to be in standardised packaging, limits placed on the range of flavours and vaping cessation support services for people who vape.

Leaving rivals in her wake

By Dan Tasker

Te Kūiti dancer Alexi Hughes didn’t expected to win her first major hip hop competition — so much so, she was half asleep when her name was read out.

Hughes, 13, won the 13 to 17-year-old solo category of the Australian Dance Crew Championship Auckland qualifier on May 12, but she almost missed the announcement as she was dozing off when the news came.

“I was about to fall asleep because I wasn’t expecting my name, so when I heard Alexi I was like, ‘What’s happening?’, because I was expecting one of the well-known names to win. I wasn’t expecting that.”

Although she was unsure on what exactly impressed the judges about her routines, Hughes said she felt what shone through was the style and personality of her

performance, which featured tracks from Janet Jackson, Cardi B and Run DMC.

“I think it was probably because of how I was different from the other solos and I was unique and had stand-out facials,” Hughes said.

“I just had different styles to other people and music that my teacher’s given me that I can dance to really well to,” she said.

Following her successful qualifier for the Australian champs, Hughes then took out the Hip Hop Unite National Championships for her age at the Lower Hutt Event Centre on May 22.

The Street Dance Sessions dancer also competed in two crews at both competitions. Both crews making the semi-finals at Hip Hop Unite National Championships and one moved on to the final.

Dance has been Hughes’ happy place since she started dancing at Tiny Tots as a four-

year-old. It’s a medium where she can be herself through the creativity, personality and fun the dance style offers.

Although she enjoys dancing a range of other styles including tap, jazz, contemporary, ballet and musical theatre, hip hop has always been her favourite.

“It’s different from all

the other dance styles, and because it has groove and heaps of different hip-hop styles like breaking and popping. It’s just way more fun to do,” Hughes said.

“Before I go on stage, I’ll feel like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m going to go out there and perform’. Then when I’m on stage, I just forget about it all – not forget about it all like forget my dance moves, but like I forget what nervous feels like,” she said.

Although Hughes has qualified to go to the finals of the Australian Dance Crew Championships in Sydney in October, she may not be able to go due to other commitments with her hip hop crews.

The Reid girls

By Meghan Hawkes

Eleven-year-old Ivy Reid and her mother were riding top on the logs being transported by the tramway of Ellis and Burnand’s mill.

The pair, from Ōtorohanga, was on a holiday visit to Te Roa in January 1907 and were part of a group catching a lift to Mangapehi about 19 miles south of Te Kūiti.

Riding the logs from the bush was a common practice and about midday the trucks loaded with logs and a party consisting of Mrs Munro, Miss Angrove, Mrs Meynell and her child, and the Reids were on their way.

But when some distance had been travelled the king bolt of the truck gave way and it partially overturned, throwing the group to the ground.

Mrs Munro was slightly injured, and Mrs Meynell and her child were considerably bruised.

Miss Angrove was severely injured and later sent to Taumarunui by train for treatment. Ivy had been fatally struck by a log.

At the inquest a verdict of accidental death was returned, no blame being attributable to anyone. A rider, though, was added to t he verdict requesting that in future Messrs Ellis and

Burnand disallow the practice of people riding on the logs as it had always been considered highly dangerous.

This was not the first tragedy for Henrietta and Robert Reid.

In 1893, the couple with their several children were living at Parawai, Thames when their seven-week-old daughter Maud Grace died.

Heartbreak struck the family again eleven months after Ivy’s death.

Their daughter Maud Violet, 24, had been working as a domestic in Auckland for Mary Jane Ward for about three months when she told her employer that she had quarrelled with her sweetheart.

Two days later Mary glanced a piece of paper in the kitchen fire and as it curled up in the blaze she saw the words, “See me no more” in Maud’s handwriting.

Maud became unwell and after some persuasion Mary discovered that the previous day Maud had swallowed the fluid obtained by soaking a box of matches in water.

The white phosphorous of match heads was very poisonous; ingesting it caused many accidental and deliberate deaths.

Dr Roberton was called and found that Maud appeared depressed.

She admitted she had also taken a second dose of the deadly liquid.

He sent her to Auckland Hospital, but Maud died seven days later.

At the inquest her mother said from childhood Maud had been of a melancholy disposition and suffered from asthma.

Maud’s aunt, Ephra Grose, stated that she had received a letter from Maud in which she expressed a desire to see her at once, as she wished to tell her something before she died. Tragically, the letter was not received until it was too late.

The jury returned a verdict that death was due to phosphorous poisoning, taken while in a state of extreme depression.

Maud Grace is buried at Shortland cemetery, Thames. Ivy May and Maud Violet are buried at Ōtorohanga.

Rates Rebate Scheme

You only have until 30 June 2026 to apply for the 2025/2026 rating year

You could save up to $805!! Your rebate amount depends on: your rates, if you hold a SuperGold Card, you and your spouse/partner’s gross income (if applicable), and the number of dependants living with you.

Visit our website or Customer Services & Visitor Hub on Rora Street, Te Kūiti for more information and to apply.

AGE OF REASON

The cost dilemma

By Richard Steele

Everybody wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die.

Everyone wants more from the budget, but nobody wants to pay more tax, We all need less bureaucracy in our business, but nobody wants to lose their job.

Every council wants a rate increase, but nobody says where the money’s going to come from.

That’s not quite right, as the money is going to come from us, the ratepayers, it’s just that nobody has done the calculations, as to how much more individual ratepayers can actually pay.

So I watched Nicola Willis deliver the budget - something I’ve never bothered to do before, but it felt important to do so, or more truthfully, I couldn’t be bothered working, so I did. And I was impressed. Obviously, long gone are the days, when there was anything there for farmers, rightly so, subsidies are now 40 years behind us. When we did have subsidies, we only passed the money on to a rising cost structure that still plagues us today.

The prices we receive for our goods now, hard fought for, will only last on a good day until inflation catches up at the annual rate of three percent. That’s a little while away, yet with council rate increases of nearer 10 percent, it’s not that far away at all.

I see government has spent $12 million or so telling motorists, how to drive more carefully, and I’d applaud that, except that the money could have

been better spent, encouraging people to use their cars less, and to crank up other options, like buses and trains. But I don’t live in a city and clog the motorway every day, nor do I have a bus service, so, I’m not qualified to comment. There’s an amazing cacophony of noise from the civil servants, whose jobs are on the line. But read how many thousands the service has grown by with no trade off, in terms of increased service or efficiency, that I’m aware of.

And there’s the rub, We don’t like paying rates and taxes, an opinion my accountant has no time for, but what we really don’t like, is in seeing our taxes wasted.

Superannuation is another elephant in the room Ms Willis highlighted. Winston and the Labour Party don’t agree it seems, but it’s obvious to me that we can’t afford to keep being as generous as we are being now, I’m a beneficiary of super, but I’d like to prepare a younger generation to the possibility that in the future superannuation will start later in life, that it will be means tested, and that if we don’t get the basic economy right, it won’t exist at all.

As I’ve been typing away, two economists’ predictions have appeared on the screen in front of me, so I would like to remind you good readers, that economists were only ever invented, to make weather forecasters look good.

Tony keeps stepping up

By Dan Tasker

After 10 years of Firefighter Sky Tower Challenges, Ōtorohanga volunteer fireman Tony Russell is still walking in strong and crawling out stronger.

Russell led the Ōtorohanga Volunteer Fire Brigade team in the annual Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge in Auckland, where 1200 firefighters traverse the 51 floors of the Sky Tower in their firefighting kit to raise money for Blood Cancer New Zealand.

Competing in the 50 to 59-year-old men’s grand master firefighter of steel category (full kit and no oxygen), Russell completed the treacherous uphill climb in 23 minutes 7.82 seconds.

Russell said he kept coming back because it was a good challenge and it was for a worthy cause, especially as his grandfather died from blood cancer.

“It’s something to train for and it’s a good cause, that’s mainly why I keep doing it. As my wife Donna says, walk in strong, crawl out stronger,” Russell said.

“I truly believe it’s just a good cause to give any money people can donate or raise funds for for any form of cancer or research or help anywhere, because so

many people are affected by it throughout New Zealand or around the world,” he said.

The Ōtorohanga team all set off on their journey around the same time, with a new firefighter leaving the start line every 30 seconds.

After a decade of coming back for more misery, Russell was well-accustomed with each of the 1103 steps and the mental challenge that comes with it.

“If you control the mind, the body will follow, but it’s hard controlling the mind when every 12 flights of stairs you turn and then there’s another 12 flights of stairs and then right in front of you is number one. Then you do another 24 stairs; there’s a number two. As long as you don’t look at those numbers and keep your head down and keep going, that’s the key to it,” Russell said.

“Over so many years of doing it, I just about know where the 20th floor is because the sweat starts dripping off the nose. I know I’m not quite half way when that happens,” he said.

Entries for the event usually open in September and if last year was anything to go, the Sky Tower Challenge is hot property with entries filling in 10 minutes.

Firefighters generally start training for the event sometime in the New Year, which

predominantly includes cardio, gym and staircase work.

“Quite a lot of firefighters go up to Ngāruawāhia to the Hakarimatas and climb those stairs. When you walk there, especially during the day, and you’re in your gumboots and all your gear, you get funny looks. Everyone thinks it’s an emergency,” Russell said.

“But as I’m getting older, coming downstairs hurts the knees more and more. This year was the first year I had never trained on stairs; I just relied on my fitness classes to get me through,” he said.

Crews from Kāwhia and Piopio also competed in the challenge.

Piopio’s Rowan Moorhouse finished 24th out of 1200 firefighters in a time of 11m 57.51s.

The quickest man and woman of the day were Andy Tomlinson of Papakura (8m 55.85s) and Aimee Stubbs of Palmerston North (12m 6.95s) respectively.

Piopio’s team of Moorhouse, Corey Barnsdall and Stefan Mischefski finished 43rd out of 113 in the teams competition.

The 22nd edition of the Firefighter Sky Tower Challenge has raised $2.5m for Blood Cancer New Zealand so far, and more than $16m since the event started in 2005.

HALL & WILSON LTD

Talking tolls and management

By Mary Anne Gill

Tolling could play a role in funding future Waikato highways - but only under strict conditions that ensure fairness for users and protect local councils, according to Labour’s infrastructure spokesperson Kieran McAnulty.

Meanwhile a major shift towards asset management – rather than new project announcements – could reshape opportunities for Waikato’s infrastructure sector following signals from Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop.

Both spoke at the Āpōpō Congress in Hamilton last month where, McAnulty signalled openness to tolling on major projects such as Cambridge to Piarere and potentially Southern Links - but said public acceptance

hinges on transparency and choice.

“We do think [tolling] has a role to play,” he said.

“But it needs to be up front at the start… and there must be a credible free alternative.”

That condition is particularly relevant in Waikato, where the existing State Highway 1 alignment could serve as a non-tolled alternative to a new expressway corridor.

However, McAnulty warned that such alternatives must remain state-supported infrastructure - not passed to already stretched councils.

“It’s important that NZTA maintains responsibility for that alternative road… not just push it off to the council,” he said.

Bishop emphasised that improving how New Zealand maintains and manages infrastructure is now a top priority, warning the country has fallen behind internationally.

New Zealand ranks near the bottom of the OECD for asset management performance, he said, highlighting the scale of the challenge.

The government’s response includes stronger oversight of infrastructure investments and a push to ensure agencies prioritise maintenance alongside new builds.

For the sector, that means a potential rebalancing of work - with increased demand for asset planning, condition monitoring, and long-term maintenance programmes.

Bishop said improving decision-making is central to the reforms, including changes to how projects are assessed and approved.

“We want experts to give us clear advice… so we can make well-informed investment decisions,” he said.

The government is also moving to strengthen coordination of underground infrastructure, an issue that has direct cost implications for contractors and local projects.

Poor-quality and fragmented data on underground assets is costing the sector hundreds of millions of dollars annually through delays, rework and inefficiencies.

To address this, new funding has been allocated to improve corridor management and explore a national underground asset register, aimed at reducing disruption and improving project delivery.

For Waikato businesses, particularly those involved in utilities, civil construction and engineering, the changes signal a shift toward more disciplined, data-driven infrastructure investment.

Bishop said stronger planning and oversight will reduce “stop-start” projects - a long-standing concern for the sector - while improving value for money.

McAnulty said the stop-start approach was delaying projects and driving skilled workers out of the country.

Ongoing uncertainty in the infrastructure pipeline was undermining workforce stability and costing the country talent it has invested heavily to train, he said.

The sector was increasingly frustrated by projects being announced, paused or cancelled as governments changed or funding gaps emerged.

That uncertainty is now having a direct impact on the labour market, with skilled workers - including qualified apprentices - leaving for more stable opportunities offshore.

McAnulty pointed to training programmes introduced in recent years that boosted the number of apprentices entering the construction and infrastructure workforce. Many had since completed qualifications. However, a lack of consistent work was pushing those same workers out of

New Zealand.

“Many of them have now left to Australia because of the uncertainty in the construction space,” he said.

For Waikato, where infrastructure development underpins growth across logistics, housing and industrial sectors, the loss of skilled labour presents a significant challenge.

Contractors rely on long-term visibility of work to retain staff and invest in training. Without it, businesses face rising costs, project delays and reduced capacity to deliver major projects.

Our local business news School goes Back to the 80s

Fresh from celebrating success at the Smokefree Rockquest music competition, Ōtorohanga College is gearing up for its biennial stage production.

Set in a vibrant decade of neon and big hair, Back to the 80s follows the graduating class of William Ocean High School as they navigate the trials of teenage life, heartbreak, and growing up.

The curtain on the show goes up next week.

It is narrated by a mature

Corey Palmer as he looks back on his high school days, and a nostalgic story centres on his quest to win the heart of the girl next door, Tiffany Houston, while competing with the school’s arrogant star athlete.

Ōtorohanga College teacher and show director Fiona Parsons says students have embraced learning about 1980’s pop culture and bringing some fun familiar tunes back to life.

“Seeing students take to the

stage and grow in confidence is what it is all about.

Watching them challenge themselves, work hard and vibrantly come to life on stage is the ultimate reward and a powerful reminder of how amazing young people are.”

She says the show is packed with high-energy dance routines and an has a soundtrack of 1980s pop anthem.

“The musical is a hilarious, heartwarming, and nostalgic romp through the agonies and ecstasies of modern youth.”

The show’s choreographer is Melissa O’Brien, from the Ōtorohanga Dance Company.

“This show is sure to be as much fun for the audience as it has been for the cast and crew to prepare for,” Fiona Parsons said.

“It has been three months since auditions took place and the acting, singing and dancing are now coming together for what promises to be an amazing night of entertainment which will appeal to all ages.”

Southern Links between Hamilton and Tamahere faces an uncertain future as pressure builds on major projects and how they will be paid for.

Good Local Media’s Waikato Business News out this week looks into the funding gaps which are preventing this project and the next wave of infrastructure work.

Southern Links, long seen as a key piece of the southern Waikato growth corridor, remains unfunded, placing it firmly in the uncertain category regardless of the next government. Also in the monthly business publication are columns from former Hamilton mayor Margaret Evans and current Waitomo mayor John Robertson about the future of Waikato local government.

Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand are warning businesses to stay on top of their taxes as Inland Revenue steps up enforcement, we meet the lead singer and heart throb of a top 1960s pop group, student nurses getting a helping hand from a Southern Cross Trust scholarship and Waikato’s new dame, Susan Hassall, who says she is staying around until the Medical School gets built.

Sister publication Bay of Plenty Business News leads with an interview with Federated Farmers new chief executive Mike Siermans, a plea from developers to freeze Tauranga development levies and a bright future for horticultural exports following government moves to bolster plant variety rights.

• Read more at goodlocal.nz

Genesis is celebrating Te Kūiti’s e orts to switch to energye cient LED lightbulbs — and the whole community is invited.

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The Capelinhos eruption

By Janine Krippner

In 1957 the Azores islands, Portugal, saw a classic example of a Surtseyan eruption, one that came uncomfortably close to the island of Faial. Prior to this, the 1672–73 Cabeço do Fogo eruption resulted in three deaths when those poor souls were “overwhelmed by lava” while going to watch the activity.

A Surtseyan eruption occurs when the vent is in shallow water and the erupting lava interacts explosively with the water. This produces jets of volcanic ash – magma blown apart into glassy rock fragments –that are saturated with water so the black plume quickly collapses.

These black plumes are accompanied by white plumes that form when the water flashes to steam with the intense heat of the erupting magma. These collapsing plumes can then race across the water as deadly pyroclastic flows, or in this case we call this a pyroclastic surge.

Preceding the eruption was four days of felt seismicity. The Azores, like the Canary Islands and our own Auckland Volcanic Field, are volcanic fields where we cannot know where the next vent will appear. Where the eruption occurs influences the dangers that activity poses to communities.

On September 27 the eruption began below the sea, with four active vents 1.2 km off the northwest end of the island. Activity moved eastward over time, building a bridge of sorts to the island.

Heavy ashfall deposited fine volcanic rock over the western part of the island. Pyroclastic surges reached around one kilometre from the vent.

Once a cone builds up around these vents, forming a new island, the magma or lava

can be kept away from the sea water and the eruption changes style.

This led to lava fountaining and Strombolian activity, where gas produces more individual explosions, flinging lava away from the vent.

This eruption moved back and forth between these two styles throughout its duration.

Towards the end of the eruption, seismic activity increased and earthquakes damaged 508 houses and destroyed 273 - an important reminder that seismicity can cause significant damage quite independently of the more direct volcanic activity.

In the end, damage included the destruction of agricultural land, houses were half-buried in heavy volcanic ash that then turned muddy with rainfall, as well as the damage from earthquakes. Very soon after the eruption ended, the island built of ash had disappeared below the sea.

While this was a small event in terms of volcanic activity, the eruption style and location near people made it a damaging one. One that we can learn from in terms of what we could expect if a similar event occurred near our largest city.

I would like to give a very personal thank you to those of you who tell my family that you enjoy this column.

On the weeks when work is exhausting and life balance isn’t going well, it is those comments that get this column written.

This column is my way of giving back to my community and I love to hear that you are getting something out of this each week.

A close call

By Peter Nicholl

On May 27 the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee kept its Official Cash Rate unchanged at 2.25 per cent.

The committee has six members, three from the Reserve Bank, including governor Anna Breman, and three external members.

The May meeting was the first held under a new charter and for the first time the votes of the committee members were disclosed.

The disclosure revealed another first. The votes were split 3-3. Three voted to raise the cash rate by 25 basis points to 2.5 per cent. The tie was broken by the governor who has a casting vote. She voted to leave the rate unchanged.

Given the uncertainty about future trends in inflation and economic growth, not just in New Zealand but globally, it didn’t surprise me that the members had different views.

What surprised me was that the three external members were the most hawkish and voted for a modest rise.

Given that one of the main responsibilities of the Reserve Bank is to control inflation, I expected the internal Reserve Bank members of the Monetary Policy Committee to be more concerned about inflation than the external members.

Current inflation at 3.1 per cent is already just above the top of the Reserve Bank’s target range of 1-3 per cent.

The Reserve Bank’s forecasts which were in the Monetary Policy Committee statement have the Consumer Price Index rising further and peaking at 4.3 per cent in the September 2026 quarter.

What happens after that is uncertain.

It will depend on how much the rise in the CPI, which is mainly caused by external developments, feeds into inflation expectations and price and wage setting behaviour in New Zealand.

The Reserve Bank based the decision to keep the cash rate unchanged on the most optimistic of the three scenarios – that the second-round price effects will be slight and the CPI will return to the mid-point of the target range by mid-2027.

But all three scenarios have the CPI above the target range for almost two years, and none include the possibility of the CPI falling to the bottom half or below the bank’s target range.

When I gave talks on Central Bank policy making to courses in the United Kingdom several years ago, I used the following story.

An American tourist got lost in the Irish countryside. He saw a farmer in a field and called out ‘how do I get to Dublin?” The farmer replied, “If I was you, I wouldn’t start from here”. Unfortunately, policy makers have to start from ‘here.’

The Reserve Bank’s starting position is that their cash rate is well below a neutral level because they moved it down last year. This is a risky position to be in when inflation is above your target and you know it’s going to rise further.

The external members of the committee got it right on May 27.

The Reserve Bank needs to move its cash rate back to a neutral level as quickly as possible.

PICK

Understanding intelligence

By Jesse Wood

Pukeatua-raised author, designer, film director and AUT professor Welby Ings was near illiterate until 15 - now he goes to bed with poets and authors.

“Every night, I am in an intimate relationship with something someone has written,” Ings said.

“It was difficult for me to undo the damage of being taught I was a ‘backward’ reader. It was hard to build confidence after years of being described as ‘falling behind’ and ‘failing’.”

Once expelled from Te Awamutu College, Ings was back in town earlier this month, educating others at the Continuing Education group.

Described as a disobedient thinker, Ings is a renowned speaker and educational reformer. He sees productive disobedience as behaviour that pushes our thinking and action into new and unconsidered realms.

Ings spoke about invisible intelligence; a subject he has recently written a book about.

Next month he leaves for a lecture tour of Spain, Poland, Germany and the United Kingdom, where he is speaking at conferences on the nature of thought.

“I was driving around the back streets [of Te Awamutu] here today and thinking, that this town gave me opportunities at a time when I didn’t see it,” Ings said.

“I left here expelled and angry. But I also encountered people who were helpful. I’m a happy man and I live a really great life – but I realise it’s a life

enabled.”

In his talk, Ings covered topics including what it is to fall behind, the tension that exists inside schooling, neurodiversity, the nature of intelligence and creativity - and New Zealand’s “extraordinary” education system.

“I believe all people are neurodiverse. None of us think in the same way.”

He hoped his address might put an arm around people’s shoulders, acknowledging people with vastly difference intellects were in his audience.

Ings spoke about several different kinds of intelligence, non-linear thinking, embodied thinking, translative thinking and slow, reflective thought.

He has a deep respect for teachers.

“Some people teach inside the system and sometimes people teach as grandparents and peers,” he said.

Ings also argued that literacy is poorly assessed in formal education.

“When I started teaching, I was in Otara, during the dawn raids. I had classes with six and seven year old kids.

“I had a ‘special’ class, of kids who were considered largely ‘illiterate’. But they weren’t illiterate. Many of them spoke three languages and they could pun between languages.

“If an idea couldn’t be expressed in one language they would jump sideways and explain it in another.”

Translation is one of the most complex literary skills we have, he said.

“These kids were displaying, in plain sight, the ability to translate, but [according to the system] it didn’t

count. What counted was the ability to read and write English.”

Ings likens the complexity of teaching to being a “constant gardener”, a term he took from a movie of that name.

“In a garden there will be marigolds, daffodils, tomatoes and pumpkins and they will be trying to grow in the same soil at the same time,” Ings said.

“They are all different, they need different things and they develop at different times. They have diverse strengths and vulnerabilities, so they require different kinds of care.”

Ings argues that people should not be taught in standardised “single solution” systems like the science of reading phonics. They require multiple approaches.

Ings learned to read via the shapes of words. He sees them as blocks and recognises a spelling error because it doesn’t “look right”.

“But when you have an education system that reduces learning to standardised approaches, you limit the dexterity teachers need,” he said. “Complex learners rely on an educator with 50 tools in the toolbox, not one.”

Teaching is a complex profession, irrespective of the age of the people with whom you work.

“Be they children of five - or adults completing doctoral degrees. Your job is to understand how each individual thinks,” Ings said.

“You are not filling a head with content, you are growing skills; perceptively working with not one standardised mind, but 20 nonstandardised minds.”

Gardening

FOR BLOOMING BEAUTIES AND PLANTS THAT THRIVE

Katrina Christison Tidy Gardens

Tis is the season for Feijoas

Feijoa season is one of those quiet highlights of autumn in the Waikato. The days are starting to cool, the lawns slow down a little—and suddenly there’s a steady thud of fruit dropping in the backyard. If you’ve got a feijoa tree, you’ll know the drill: check the ground daily, beat the birds to it, and somehow try to keep up with the abundance.

Feijoas are one of the easiest fruit trees to grow in New Zealand, and once established, they’re incredibly generous. But a little care now will help keep your tree healthy and productive for years to come.

Start by keeping the area under the tree clear. Regularly pick up fallen fruit to prevent pests and disease building up. If your tree is young or has been dry over summer, a deep water now and again will help it recover and support next season’s growth. Mulching around the base—using compost, bark, or even your autumn leaves—helps retain moisture and improve soil health. Just keep it clear of the trunk.

Once fruiting has finished, it’s a good time to lightly prune. Remove any dead, damaged, or crossing branches and open the tree up to allow light and airflow through the centre. Feijoas don’t need hard pruning, but a tidy-up each year keeps them productive and easier to manage.

Of course, the real joy of feijoa season is what you do with the fruit. If you’re drowning in them, here are a couple of easy ideas that make the most of that unique flavour.

Feijoa crumble is always a winner. Scoop out the flesh into a baking dish, sprinkle with a little sugar if they’re tart, and top with a simple crumble mix of flour, butter, oats, and brown sugar. Bake until golden and bubbling—it’s hard to beat with a bit of cream or ice cream.

For something fresher, feijoa muffins are quick and popular. Fold chopped feijoa

into a basic muffin mix with a hint of cinnamon and vanilla. They freeze well too, which is handy when the fruit keeps coming.

And if you’ve got more than you can use, feijoa chutney is a great way to preserve the season. Cook the pulp down with onion, apple, vinegar, sugar, and spices until thick and rich. It pairs beautifully with cheese or cold meats and makes a good homemade gift.

If you find yourself with more feijoas than you can use or give away, you can always drop excess fruit off at the local sharing shed in Ōtorohanga, just by the police station. It’s a great way to make sure nothing goes to waste and others in the community can enjoy them too.

Feijoa season never lasts quite as long as you think it will when you’re in the middle of it. So make the most of it—share them around, try a new recipe or two, and give your trees a bit of attention while you’re at it.

Unbeaten run ends at home

By Dan Tasker

Waitete’s women suffered their first loss of the season against competition favourites Taupiri-Te Kauwhata in Te Kūiti on Saturday, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying.

The 24-10 result was enough to see Taupiri-Te Kauwhata leapfrog Waitete on the ladder to take control of the Waikato Women’s Championship with a week to play in the regular season.

Previously unbeaten, with only a 12-12 draw against Morrinsville blemishing their record, Waitete needed to see where they sat as finals footy draws closer.

After having to play golden oldies scrums against Kihikihi and United Matamata Sports, Waitete finally got the chance to test their scrum, which they did with all the mana and pride supporters would expect from a King Country club. They asserted themselves as the dominant pack early, and largely matched TaupiriTe Kauwhata’s physicality in the collision and tackle ball area.

Patience served the visitors well, as they were forced to retain and recycle possession for long periods, slowly breaking the Waitete defence down to eventually lead 12-0 at half-time.

With tactician Chanelle Macrae out with a leg injury suffered in the Morrinsville game, a tiring Waitete pack hung tough in the second half, largely reverting to tap-kicks and scrums from penalties

Waitete remained persistent and showed heart to eventually crack the visiting defence through a try to Abbe Putaura with 20 minutes to go, only to let them in shortly after to trail 19-5.

Time was running out for Waitete, but a determined charge from Matewehe King saw her score the Blues’ second try to give them a chance in the last 10 minutes.

It wasn’t to be as TaupiriTe Kauwhata secured their unbeaten record and the victory spoils with a late try. Both teams will be better off for what was a highlycompetitive game of rugby.

Waitete coach Jason Turner was happy with how the girls were tracking but highlighted the importance of learning how to finish opportunities to win the big games.

“I think that was our best performance to date, credit to the ladies for all the hard mahi that they have put into themselves to get here. I’m happy and proud at where we are at and I feel and know the girls feel they have more to give,” Turner said.

“Our girls have got a lot of heart and grit, so it’s just micro-skills needing work; nothing major, so I’m very happy,” he said.

In the King Country

premier men’s competition, both Piopio and Waitomo suffered severe King’s Birthday weekend defeats to Taupō Marist (72-0) and Taupō Sports (104-0) respectively, while Waitete had the bye.

The Taumarunui derby was a doozy as expected, with outsiders Taumarunui Eels sneaking a 16-15 win against their rivals Taumarunui Districts to keep things interesting with four rounds to play.

This week, Eels get to test themselves again as they host competition leaders Taupō Marist, Waitete head to Owen Delany Park to face Taupō Sports and Waitomo welcome Districts to the caves, while Piopio are on bye week.

King Country Premier Club Rugby standings: Taupō Marist 42, Taumarunui Districts 34, Waitete 31, Taupō Sports 29, Taumarunui Eels 29, Piopio 17, Waitomo 5 (one win attributed to each team for a bye).

Sports win in Hamilton

By Jesse Wood

Ōtorohanga Sports’ women’s side headed into Hamilton and came home with a victory on Saturday, while the men’s sides put up good battles against table-toppers Hautapu.

The women’s premiership side beat Suburbs 37-27 at Flagstaff Park.

Former Black Ferns front-rower Grace Houpapa-Barrett helped herself to a double, while other try scorers included Keighley Brough, blindside flanker Mihi Edwards, Awa Whitiora and Taetia Kopa. Halfback Tayla Toa added two points.

This weekend the Ōtorohanga women have a bye.

The Ōtorohanga premier side faced

Hautapu at Cambridge Memorial Park where the free-scoring home side sea;ed first round honours with a 40-26 win. Centre Manieta Vonovono grabbed two tries for Ōtorohanga gold. Former Waikato loose forward Murray Iti and reserve Lasaro Tora were the other scorers for the visiting team and pivot and captain Manaaki-Rewi Wetini added three conversions.

In the earlier premier B match, Hautapu B beat Ōtorohanga B 38-19. For the Ōtorohanga blues, John Jackson, openside flanker Sam Lewis and Samuel OakleySmith scored a try apiece. Halfback Shannon Yorke added two conversions. At the conclusion of round one, the premier side finished in eighth place and the B team sit in sixth.

Explaining the power cuts

By Dan Tasker

Customers of The Lines Company (TLC) will soon have access to a new online portal designed to provide faster and more detailed information during planned and unplanned power outages.

The upgraded web-based platform is scheduled to go live on June 16 and will provide real-time updates, interactive maps and information on restoration progress.

The new system has been designed to perform better during major weather events, when large numbers of customers may be seeking information at the same time.

TLC general manager digital Craig Hackett said staying informed during outages was important for customers, particularly during severe weather.

“The refreshed portal gives customers a faster, clearer and more dependable way to find outage

information, especially during severe weather when lots of people are looking for updates at the same time,” he said.

The portal will also display planned maintenance outages, so customers can see when work is scheduled and what impact it may have on their power supply.

Customers who do not have internet access or who prefer not to use online services will still be able to report faults and receive outage information by phone through TLC’s existing call centre and automated phone services.

The outage portal is one of the first projects to come from the shared services partnership TLC signed with Counties Energy at the start of the year. TLC adapted Counties Energy’s existing outage platform to reduce development costs and accelerate service delivery.

The new outage portal will be available through TLC’s website from

June 16, and customers are being encouraged to check the portal for the latest outage information and updates.

TLC services 18,000 electricity customers in the King Country, Ruapehu District and Central Plateau, with a network covering 13,700 square kilometres and more than 4500km of power lines.

Meanwhile, in another power collaboration to the north, Waipā Networks and Wel Networks are establishing a collaboration which will enable Waipā use an established Wel platform to modernise the management of its electricity network.

The Advanced Distribution Management System is a software platform used to monitor, control and optimise the distribution of electricity across the network. Extending Wel’s control room platform in a co-hosted setup, will give Waipā Networks greater real-time visibility of its network.

HOME MAINTENANCE

Sweet treats

Many dishes have been named after the places where they originated or after the people who first created them.

The chocolate chip cookie was invented in 1938 by Ruth Graves Wakefield, owner of the Toll House Inn in Whitman, Massachusetts. She famously chopped a Nestlé semi-sweet chocolate bar into small pieces and added them to a cookie recipe, expecting them to melt. Instead, they held their shape. Thus, the Toll House Cookie was invented.

During the 20th century, chocolate chip cookies grew in popularity through their association with the Swiss chocolate company, their distribution to American troops during World War II, and the development of new versions by manufacturers in the 70s and 80s.

Despite their name suggesting a Tuscan origin, Florentine biscuits most likely originated in France during the 17th century. It is said that French chefs created them to honour the Medici family of Florence or Queen Catherine de Medici. With roots dating back to the 12th century, Shortbread originated in Scotland as a medieval ‘biscuit bread’ made from leftover bread dough. Over time, it evolved by replacing yeast with butter, becoming a luxury treat commonly associated with celebrations such as Christmas and Hogmanay.

Choc Balls

225g butter

1/2 cup icing sugar

1 cup almond meal

2 cups plain flour

1/4 teaspoon almond essence

75g dark cooking chocolate

1/2 cup icing sugar, extra

Line one or two baking trays with baking paper.

Cream the butter and the first 1/2 cup of icing sugar, until smooth and creamy. Beat in the almond meal, flour and almond essence.

Cut the chocolate into approximately 1cm cubes. Take a heaped teaspoon of the dough and neatly roll it around a

cube of chocolate. Place on the baking paper. Repeat with the remaining mixture and chocolate cubes. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Bake the Choc Balls for about 40 minutes, until lightly golden. Remove from the oven and, while hot, dust with the remaining icing sugar. When cool, store in an airtight container. Makes about 30.

Florentine Slice

250g dark chocolate

50g butter

1 cup sweetened condensed milk

2 cups corn flakes, coarsely crushed 80g glace red cherries, chopped

1 1/2 cups roasted mixed nuts (cashews, peanuts, Brazil), finely chopped

1 1/2 cups dried fruit mix

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a 30cm x 20cm x 5cm pan with baking paper, then grease.

Melt the chocolate over just simmering water in a double boiler or in the microwave. Spread evenly over the base of the pan. Refrigerate until set.

Melt the butter and mix it with the condensed milk. Combine all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

36 Young eel (5)

38 Craze (5)

40 Excessively abundant (4)

45 Move (5)

46 Areas (7)

79 Wound dressing (7)

81 Prompt (3)

84 Relation (2-3)

85 Study leave (10)

86 Practical joke (5)

87 Leather belt (5)

88 Third place-getter (6,9)

89 Foot lever (5) DOWN

2 Trial (6)

3 Oscillated (5)

5 Consumes (4)

6 Flying charge (7)

7 Dealer in fabrics (6)

8 Elevate (5)

9 General pardon (7)

10 Closed hand (4)

11 Rarely (6)

12 Speedy (5)

13 Hard rock (7)

14 Antarctic bird (7)

18 Retaliate (6,4)

23 Hinder (5)

24 Ceremonial goblet (7)

26 Free time (7)

27 Boating event (7)

29 Inspection and repair (7)

30 Outcome (6)

31 Basket for fish (5)

32 Horrified (6)

34 Heinous (4)

47 Female relation (4)

48 Foreign; non-native (6)

49 Unclean (5)

50 Get back (7)

52 Knock off work (4,2,1,3)

53 Stain (7)

54 Money return (6)

55 Pain-killing drug (7)

56 Wharf (5)

57 Let fall (4)

62 Sidestep (5)

67 Pinkish (anag)(7)

68 Energy sugar (7)

70 Predict (7)

72 First (7)

73 Column (6)

74 Curved fruit (6)

75 Programme (6)

76 Unit of length (5)

78 Triangular wall part under ridged roof (5)

80 Mournful song (5)

82 Elegant bird (4)

83 Overtake (4)

Spread the mixture evenly over the chocolate, then press down firmly and evenly. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool in the refrigerator until set. Cut into fingers or squares. Makes about 24.

Rosemary Shortbread

1 cup icing sugar

1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary leaves

250g butter, softened

1 cup custard powder

1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary leaves

1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

2 cups plain flour

Place the icing sugar in a bowl and stir in the rosemary leaves. Cover and stand for a couple of days for the rosemary flavour to infuse the icing sugar.

Cream the butter together with the icing sugar (with rosemary) and custard powder until light and well mixed. Add the essence and mix well. Stir in the flour. Knead the dough lightly to mix.

Roll out the dough to about 7mm thickness. Shape and/or mould the shortbread as desired. Place on a cold baking tray. Chill for at least 30 minutes to prevent spreading. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Bake the shortbread for 15-20 minutes. Makes about 30 x 3-cm round biscuits.

74 Banana, 75 Agenda, 76 Metre, 78 Gable, 80 Dirge, 82 Swan, 83 Pass.

DOWN: 2 Ordeal, 3 Swung, 5 Eats, 6 Airfare, 7 Draper, 8 Raise, 9 Amnesty, 10 Fist, 11 Seldom, 12 Swift, 13 Granite, 14 Penguin, 18 Strike back, 23 Delay, 24 Chalice, 26 Leisure, 27 Regatta, 29 Service, 30 Result, 31 Creel, 32 Aghast, 34 Evil, 36 Elver, 38 Mania, 40 Rife, 45 Shift, 46 Regions, 47 Aunt, 48 Exotic, 49 Dirty, 50 Recover, 52 Call it a day, 53 Tarnish, 54 Refund, 55 Aspirin, 56 Jetty, 57 Drop, 62 Dodge, 67 Kinship, 68 Glucose, 70 Foresee, 72 Initial, 73 Pillar,

89

Across 1. Agitated (inf) (3,2)

4. Be thrifty (6)

8. Lei (7)

9. Loud warning device (5) 10. Cap (5)

11. Colossal (7) 12. Abrupt (6) 14. Cut through (6) 17. Retribution (7)

19. Outing (5)

Last week

21. Famed (5)

22. Unsettle (7)

23. Guard (6)

24. Dig (5)

Down 1. Neurotic (6,6)

2. Rhythmic hum (5) 3. Chatter (7)

Staid (6)

Take an exam again (5)

Seafarer (7)

Not okay (12)

Fan (7)

Hurt (7)

Piled (6)

Gentle push (5)

Customary (5)

Across: 1. Maths, 4. Crabby, 7. Car, 8. Agenda, 9. Utopia, 10. Stock exchange, 14. Awful, 15. Duvet, 18. Perpendicular, 23. Rotund, 24. Doddle, 25. Gel, 26. Wheeze, 27. Event. Down: 1. Might, 2. Tonic, 3. Scared, 4. Crutch, 5. Aroma, 6. Bring, 10. Stamp, 11. Offer, 12. Novel, 13. Enter, 16. On edge, 17. Middle, 19. Epoch, 20. Pause, 21. Undue, 22. Allot.

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BASIN BLENDER COOKER CORER CROCKERY DISHWASHER EGGCUP FREEZER FRIDGE GLASS GRATER KETTLE

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District Welcome to the

From Jewellery Repairs to Luxury Timepieces

— Discover The District’s Trusted Jewellery & Watch Specialists”

Do You Need Your Jewellery Repaired?

Is your favourite necklace broken? Has a ring lost its sparkle—or worse, a stone? Struggling with a snapped chain, loose clasps, or worn-out settings?

You’re not alone. Jewellery carries deep personal and emotional value. When it breaks or loses its shine, it’s more than just a piece of metal—it feels like something important is missing.

That’s where we come in.

We’ve Got You Covered

– For All Your Manufacturing and Repair Needs

Whether it’s:

• Restoring a cherished family heirloom

• Resizing a ring to fit just right

Replacing missing stones or resetting old ones

Custom-manufacturing a one-of-a-kind piece

Our expert jewellers combine skilled craftsmanship with care and precision—bringing your jewellery back to life or creating something new you’ll love forever.

Come In and See Us – The Jewellery Experts! Don’t let your treasured pieces gather dust. Come talk to real people who understand the value behind every piece.

Visit us today for a free consultation and let’s make your jewellery shine again.

STOKED EATERY WINTER FEAST

QUIZ NIGHT every second Thursday starting from the 28th May

Stoked Eatery has been cooking up a storm since 2015 and has transformed into the hottest spot to dine in Te Kūiti. Winter Feast, Soup of the day to start then choice of Pork Hock, Chicken Parmigiana or Potato and Parmesan Gnocchi, Sticky To ee Pudding to Finish. $50

Bookings appreciated

Railway Building No.2 | Rora Street | Te Kuiti | Ph: 07-878-8758 theteam@stokedeatery.co.nz | Open 7 days 11.30am - 8pm

LOCALS SERVING LOCALS

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A brick four-bedroom home in this price range is a rare find-especially one offering both elevation and the privacy so many buyers seek.

Orientated for all day sun, this property features a modern kitchen with a great outlook, complemented by two wellappointed bathrooms. Fully insulated with two heat pumps, plus a ventilation system and gas hot water system.

Designed with families in mind, and an easy walk to High-school for the teenagers, the home offers two separate living areas across both levels, providing flexibility and space for everyone.

Those relocating from the city will particularly appreciate the generous section, complete with its own driveway, double carport, and two garden sheds-kids and pets need space !

Adding even more appeal and the key feature of this fantastic find, this cosy home is Solar set up and for a low monthly subscription of only $207, you can say goodbye to your power account, reducing household expenses and making it easier to budget (further information will be provided to interested parties).

Find out more by calling Karen or Kerry, or call us today for a viewing time. You will be impressed!

ADDRESS 16A Edward Street, Te Kūiti

LAND SIZE 1135 sqm (more or less)

HOUSE 4 bedrooms, 2 living rooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 carport

PRICE $539,000

WEBSITE monarchsouthwest.co.nz WEB ID OH22839

$220,000 44 Thomson Ave, Otorohanga, 686sqm, power, water, fibre, wastewater at boundary. Ph Buzz/Sam $220,000

9 Sunset Close, Otorohanga, 750sqm in Westridge subdivision. Ph Lorraine $175,000

Lot 1, 52 Old Te Kuiti Road, Otorohanga, 1876sqm, power, water at gate, no covenants. Ph John P $285,000

Lot 2, 0 Old Te Kuiti Road, Otorohanga, 2716sqm, power, water at gate, no covenants. Ph John P. $285,000

149A Old Te Kuiti Road, Lot 1, 5517sqm, easy covenants. Phone Lorraine Offers over $250,000

Lot 1, 627 Waitomo Valley Road, Otorohanga, 8105sqm rural lifestyle section. Phone Julie $298,000 Lots 90-108 Harpers Avenue, 486sqm to 962sqm, Westridge II subdivision. Phone John From $220,000ea 576C Mangawhero Road, Otorohanga, 1ha, fenced, sensible covenants. Ph Noldy Offers over $385,000

Te Kūiti sections (sizes are approximate)

35 Robin Azariah Place, Te Kuiti, 1084sqm, handy to schools and hospital. Phone Buzz $250,000 Other sections (sizes are approximate) 0 Rotoiti Road, Oparau, 3389sqm, two separate lots on one title. Ph Julie..

TRADE PROFESSIONALS

P 07 878 8335

DAIRY SPECIALIST • DOMESTIC COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL

E james@marshallelectrical.co.nz

DAIRY SPECIALIST • DOMESTIC COMMERCIAL • INDUSTRIAL

W marshallelectrical.co.nz

David Knight - 027 722 4857

David Knight - 027 722 4857

Steve Knight - 027 598 2005

Steve Knight - 027 598 2005

Tai Dundas - 027 598 2115

Tai Dundas - 027 598 2115

Ōtorohanga - 07 873 6385

Septic Tank Cleaning

Te Kūiti - 07 878 5169 Taupo - 07 378 8545

Ōtorohanga - 07 873 6385 Te Kūiti - 07 878 5169 Taupo - 07 378 8545

SERVICING THE KING COUNTRY 24 HOURS, 7 DAYS A WEEK

Residential / Commercial / Industrial / Inspections

E james@marshallelectrical.co.nz W marshallelectrical.co.nz

6.1 Previous Hardship Resolution (Waiora Muraahi)

• Discussion regarding the previous resolution that hardship advance payments be placed on hold until Trust funds are in a stronger financial position.

6.2 Hardship Assistance Request (Waiora Muraahi)

• Request for consideration of hardship assistance for Zephaniah’s 2026 Morehu Melbourne Tour.

8. General Business

• Application to appoint Mania Muraahi as secretary

• Review the trust order

• Any other matters raised by beneficiaries

9. Karakia Whakamutunga

IT’S TIME TO REGISTER YOUR DOG ŌTOROHANGA DISTRICT

A friendly reminder to all dog owners that registration for the 2026/27 year is now open. Register before 31 July 2026 to avoid late fees.

Your dog registration fees help keep our community safe. They fund important services like dog patrols, responding to aggressive or roaming dogs, maintaining the pound, reuniting lost pets with their owners, and supporting responsible dog ownership. Every registration helps protect people, pets, and property.

Dog Control Fees (Dog Control Act 1996) Registration Fees

• Urban Dog: $167.00

• Urban + Neutered Dog: $130.00

• Urban + Special Owner Dog: $130.00

• Special Owner + Neutered Dog: $72.00

• Rural + Special Owner Dog: $72.00

• Late registration penalty: 50% of the applicable fee (after 31 July)

Tags & Collars

• Registration Tags: Free

• Replacement Tags: $5.50

• Dog Collar – Small: $13.00

• Dog Collar – Large: $20.00

Other Dog Control Fees

• Rehoming Fees: Actual cost

• Microchip: $36.00

• Vet Costs: Actual cost

• Special Owner Property Check: $41.00

• Property Compliance Monitoring:

• 1st Inspection: No charge 2nd and Subsequent Inspections (per inspection):

- Urban: $82.00

- Rural/Kāwhia: $3.50/km beyond 5 km from Ōtorohanga town boundary (includes sta time) Pound Fees

• Seizure Fee (per dog): $72.00

• Poundage (per dog): – First Impoundment: $82.00

• Poundage (per dog): – Second or More: $160.00

• Uplift for Barking/Threat/Non-Registration, or any other purpose authorised under the Dog Control Act 1996: Actual and reasonable costs

• Sustenance fee while impounded (per dog per day): $21.00

• Surrender Disposal Fee: $93.00

• Public Notification Fee (for impounding): Actual cost Impounded dogs only be released from the pound between the hours of 8.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday on full payment of all fees. No releases to be made on Saturdays, Sundays or public holidays. Stock & Animal Impounding Fees (Impounding Act 1955)

• All Stock: $134.00

• Notification Advertisement: Actual cost

• Repeated Impounding (same owner): Double the initial impounding fee

• Surrender of Impounded Stock: Actual cost

• Vet Fees for Impounded Stock: Actual cost Grazing (Sustenance) Fees (while impounded)

• Horses, Cattle, Donkeys, Deer, Pigs: $15.00/day

• Sheep, Goats, Others: $10.00/day Stock Driving Charges

• Stock Driving (per o cer, per hour): $150.00 (plus mileage at council rates & after-hours/other reasonable costs)

Roaming Stock on Council Land (per day unless stated) General Roaming Fees

• Horse, Cattle, Deer, Pig: $15.00/day

• Sheep, Goat, Other Animal: $10.00/day

If you have any queries, please contact Council: info@ otodc.govt.nz or call 0800 734 000

Letters to the Editor

• Letters should not exceed 200 words

• They should be opinion based on facts or current events

• All letters to be emailed to editor@goodlocal.nz

• No noms-de-plume

• Letters will be published with names

• Please include full name, address and contact details for our records only

• Letters may be edited, abridged, or rejected at the editor’s discretion

• The editor’s decision on publication is final.

ST LUKE’S MARKET DAY

This Saturday, June 6 8am-12 noon

Carpark 85 Esplanade, Te Kūiti

$10 per space

Sellers and buyers welcome Enquiries: 021 201 0355 or 027 243 6312

Te Nehenehenui

2026 Election of Ngā Kura Rere Trustees

Call for Nominations

Te Nehenehenui (the Trust) is the post-settlement governance entity established to manage the settlement assets of Maniapoto (the Iwi). It is governed by 6 Ngā Kura Rere trustees elected by all adult members of Te Nehenehenui, 7 Ngā Kura Tau trustees, elected from the Rōpū Whakahaere members from each of the relevant Whare o Te Nehenehenui and 1 Te Kura Kaumātua trustee, who is appointed by the trustees in accordance with the requirements of the Trust Deed. In accordance with the requirements of the Trust Deed, the Ngā Kura Rere trustees must retire later this year to allow new trustees to be elected. The Trust now invites nominations from adult registered members to fill the 6 Ngā Kura Rere trustee positions. The term of office for these positions is 3 years. The retiring trustees may re-stand for election if they are nominated.

Nominations for these positions open on Wednesday 3 June and close at midday on Thursday 2 July 2026. Nomination forms and an information sheet are available from the Returning Officer (contact details below), from the Trust’s office 49 Taupiri Street, Te Kūiti (Ph 0800 668 285) or can be downloaded from the Trust’s website www.tenehenehenui.iwi.nz/governance/elections

Election Details

If more than 6 valid nominations are received, a voting process will be carried out by postal and online voting. All Te Nehenehenui Adult Registered Members are eligible to participate in the election process. Voter packs will be mailed from 29 July and voting will close at midday on Monday 7 September 2026.

Invitation to Register

To register or update your contact details please either phone the Trust office on 0800 668 285, email tribalregister@tnn.co.nz or complete the online registration process at https://tenehenehenui.iwi.nz/kakaho/ Anthony Morton Returning Officer

Ph: 0800 666 028

Email: iro@electionz.com

Te Awamutu News

King Country News

PROPOSAL TO CLOSE ROAD

In accordance with the Tenth Schedule of the Local Government Act 1974, notice is hereby given that the Ōtorohanga District Council, for the purpose of allowing the NZ Silver Fern Rally 2026, proposes to close the following roads to ordinary vehicular tra c for the period indicated hereunder: Ōtorohanga District – Saturday 28th November 2026

To close Aotearoa Road, at its intersection with Kahorekau Road and Wairehi Road between 8.30am and 1.00pm

To close Ranginui Road, 200m from its intersection with Waipapa Road, past McLean Road and 200m from its intersection with Scott Road SH30 between 9.20am and 1.50pm

To close Ngapeka Road / Tahia-Bush Road at the Waitomo DC Boundary between 12.10pm and 4.40pm

To Close Tauraroa Valley, 600m from its intersection with Maihiihi Road, left into Hoddle Road. Hoddle Road at its intersection with Maihiihi Road between 1.05pm and 5.35pm

There will not be any detour in place. Access for emergency vehicles will be allowed in the event of an emergency.

Pursuant to the Transport (Vehicular Tra c Road Closure) Regulations 1965, any person objecting to the proposal is called upon to lodge notice of their objection and grounds thereof in writing before 4.00pm Thursday 18th June 2026 at the o ces of the Ōtorohanga District Council, 17 Maniapoto Street, Ōtorohanga or email: andrea@otodc.govt.nz

Date: Saturday 6 June 2026 10:00 start

Venue

• Apologies

• 2025 AGM Minutes

• Chairperson’s Report

• Objectives 2026

• Financial Report Ahu Whenua Trust Amendment

• Election of New Trustees

• General Business

• Karakia whakamutunga

If you require a Proxy Form or would like to attend the AGM via Zoom please email –tewarongaheretrust@gmail.com

All other enquiries to Doug Macredie Chairperson 027 273 5769

2026 Ownership Review

PUBLIC CONSULTATIVE PROCEDURE

In accordance with the Deed of Trust under which the Waipā Networks Trust has been constituted, the Trustees and the Directors of Waipā Networks Limited have prepared a joint report considering proposals and available options for the future ownership of Waipā Networks Limited.

The Trustees and the Directors propose that the Ownership of the Company should continue to remain 100% Trust owned on behalf of the Community.

The Trustees hereby implement a Public Consultative Procedure. Notice is given that the Ownership Review will be available for inspection by the public from the 1st May 2026, from the Trusts website www.waipanetworkstrust.co.nz or during normal business hours at the following location:

Waipā Networks Ltd 240 Harrison Drive TE AWAMUTU

Persons interested in the proposals are invited to make written submissions to the Trustees.

All mail submissions should be addressed to:

Submissions to the Trustees

Waipā Networks Trust PO Box 34 TE AWAMUTU 3840

All email submissions should be addressed to: info@waipanetworkstrust.co.nz

Persons wishing to make submissions should ensure that those submissions are received at the above address no later than 5pm 30th June 2026 (“the due date”). Submissions received by the due date will be made publicly available.

In due course, any persons who make written submissions by the due date will be offered an opportunity to be heard by the Trustees at a meeting open to the public.

KM Heeringa Trust Manager

WAIPA NETWORKS TRUST

We buy milk!

Got reject or surplus milk?

Call us today on

027 871 5075

We collect within 1.5 hours drive from Te Awamutu.

Tapuiwahine A12 Trust

Sunday, 28 June 2026

Online via Teams

Registrations: 9:30–10am

Meeting Starts: 10:30am

AGENDA

Five Yearly Trust Deed Review

• 2020 Trust Deed

• Proposed Amendments

• Proposed Resolutions

For Proxy Forms, Agenda Booklet, Teams Link, or Apologies, email: tapuiwahinea12@gmail.com

Lump Wood Charcoal

Looking for charcoal?

Tumu Tumu Eztate supplies two varieties of charcoal for your BBQ and cooking needs.

Sustainably harvested right here in the King Country.

Pricing (10kg bags)

- Mānuka Pieces: $45.00

- Mixed Wood Pieces: $35.00

Bulk sales available – please contact to ask for pricing.

Contact Mick Tapara 022 513 9522

info@tumutumueztate.co.nz www.tumutumueztate.co.nz

Or find us on Facebook

Waitomo District Council Meeting Schedule 2026

The following is a schedule of the Waitomo District Council and Committee meetings scheduled for the remainder of the 2026 year. All meetings start at 9am unless specifically stated otherwise.

Sunday 21 June 2026 Te Raangai Whakaupapa at 10am Koorero (Māori Relations Committee)

Tuesday 30 June 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

Tuesday 28 July 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

Tuesday 11 August 2026 Audit and Risk Committee Meeting

Tuesday 25 August 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

Tuesday 29 September 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

Tuesday 13 October 2026 Audit and Risk Committee Meeting

Tuesday 27 October 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

Tuesday 24 November 2026 Council Monthly Meeting

An invitation is extended to members of the public to attend public meetings for observation purposes.

Meetings of Council are webcast in real time to the Waitomo District Council website and are available for viewing on demand as soon as the meeting finishes.

Member(s) of the public wishing to speak at a Council meeting are required to gain approval from the Mayor at least three clear working days prior to the scheduled meeting.

Agendas for meetings are available on Council’s website at least two working days before the meeting.

All Saints Piopio, 22 Moa St Sunday 10am

St Peter’s by the Sea 25 Aria Tce, Mōkau 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Sunday 2pm

Piopio contact: 07 877 8097

Mokau contact: 06 752 9123 Phone parish office 07 878 8026 St

Harvest Church Ōtorohanga

Sunday Service @ 10.30am

5 Tuhoro Street, Ōtorohanga Ph 07 873 8890 Mob 027 493 0117 Email harvest.pc@xtra.co.nz ALL WELCOME. Pastors Peter & Carole Coventry (An Assemblies of God Church)

ŌTOROHANGA BAPTIST CHURCH

8 Ranfurly St, Ōtorohanga

Sundays 10:30am Service and Children’s programme Everyone is welcome Contact: 07 873 8685

Letters to the Editor

St Bride's Anglican Church Haerehuka St Ōtorohanga Sunday morning service 10am

Ph 07 873 7006

Services – Sunday 10am Session

• Letters should not exceed 200 words

• They should be opinion based on facts or current events

• All letters to be emailed to editor@goodlocal.nz

• No noms-de-plume

• Letters will be published with names

• Please include full name, address and contact details for our records only

• Letters may be edited, abridged, or rejected at the editor’s discretion

• The editor’s decision on publication is final.

10 Sheridan St, Te Kūiti An Assemblies of God church 10:30am Sunday

10:30am Sunday

Thirty-plus years have drifted by, since Mel rolled into Te Kuiti town, with that dazzling smile, a spark in her eye, and enough spirit to light the whole place up. A little pocket rocket they called her, full of laughter, warmth and grace, making friends wherever she wandered, turning strangers into lifelong mates. Before long she wasn’t just visiting, she belonged, heart and soul, part of the Shearing Capital of the World, a true local woven into its story. She gave so much of herself to others, as a teacher, a partner, a loyal friend, encouraging, caring, always present, the kind of person you never forget. And though the years keep moving on, some people never really leave us. Mel still lives in the stories, the laughter, and the quiet ache of missing her. We were truly blessed to have known her, to have called her our darling friend. Forever held within our hearts, forever remembered with love. Always smiling.

ROBERTS, Katharina (Katie) – Peacefully at Te Kuiti Hospital on Monday, May 25, 2026. Aged 96 years. Dearly loved wife of the late Ian. Loved and cherished mother and mother-in-law of Raymond and Karen, Helen and Brian. Loved oma of Ben, Sophie, Sean and Samantha. Will be sadly missed. A farewell for Katie has been held. A special thank you to all the staff at Hillview and Te Kuiti Hospital for their wonderful care of Katie. Tributes can be left on our website www. vjwilliams.co.nz/funeralstributes. All communications to Roberts Family c/- PO Box 241, Te Kuiti 3941. In the care of VJ Williams & Sons, Funeral Directors Association of NZ

janine@goodlocal.nz

We welcome you to our 10.30am Sunday service. www.journeychurch.org.nz

10 Sheridan St, Te Kuiti

Pastor Terry & Rowena Bradley 07 878 8694 021 703 008

10 Sheridan St, Te Kuiti

Pastor Terry & Rowena Bradley 07 878 8694 021 703 008

A Farewell with Heart

King Country Christians meet every Sunday

An Assemblies of God Church

An Assemblies of God Church

in the Piopio Senior Citizens Hall, Weka Street, Piopio, at 10.30am

Phone Judy 021135946 Everyone is welcome! Phone 0211359346

Every life deserves a meaningful farewell. Our compassionate, professional, and dedicated team is here to help, offering care and understanding when it matters most. Call us anytime – we’re here for you.

KNOW YOUR PROFESSIONAL

BEING AN EXECUTOR

If a family member or friend has passed away, you may discover that you are the executor of their will.

The rst step will be to identify what the person who has died owned at the date of their death.

This will usually involve looking through their home to make sure you have all the details

As the temperatures drop and we bundle up in scarves and blankets, it’s important to remember our pets need winter care too. Just like us, they feel the chill, and the season can bring unique challenges for their health and comfort. Whether you have a sprightly puppy or a wise old cat, a few mindful adjustments can keep your furry companion happy and thriv-ing all winter. Keep them warm

of their assets – bank accounts, land, vehicles etc.

The estate solicitor will then advise you whether or not you will need to apply for Probate.

Probate is the authority that the bank, the Land Titles O ce, or the share registry as appropriate need to see so that they know

as not all pets are built for the cold. Shorthaired breeds, senior animals and smaller pets may need extra protection when venturing outdoors. Coats are a simple and a ordable way to help retain body heat, especially when out on walks. For aging pets make sure to support joint health as the cold can aggravate arthritis and joint sti ness. Signs like limping, reluctance to climb stairs, or reduced

that the executor is the person who they should deal with for the property of the person who has died.

The solicitor will prepare documents if you need to get Probate. Once that has been granted, you and the solicitor will work together to gather in the assets so that they can be distributed in accordance with the wishes set out in the will.

playfulness may indicate discomfort. While your pet still needs physical and mental stimulation, they may need shorter, more frequent walks if it’s too cold. This is also a great time of the year to monitor for any changes in behaviour with diet and exercise and schedule in a wellness examination with your veterinarian. Preventative care helps to identify and manage any is-sues before they become more serious.

ELECTRIC VS. MANUAL TOOTHBRUSHES: WHICH IS BETTER?

Both electric and manual toothbrushes can clean your teeth well if used properly, but they work di erently and o er di erent bene ts. Manual toothbrushes are cheap, easy to nd, and let you control pressure and technique. Electric brushes, especially oscillating-rotating or sonic types, do most of the brushing motion for you and can remove more plaque with less e ort.

Why choose electric?

- Easier for people with limited dexterity (arthritis,

kids, seniors)

- Built-in timers help you brush the recommended two minutes

- Pressure sensors on some models prevent hard brushing that can damage gums and enamel

- Studies show electric brushes often reduce plaque and gum in ammation more than manual brushes

Why stick with manual?

- Lower cost, no charging required

- Lightweight, travel-friendly

- Very e ective when you use proper technique: two minutes, twice a day, gentle circular strokes angled into the gums

Bottom line: Pick the brush you’ll use correctly and consistently. If you struggle with technique, have mobility issues, or want extra plaque control, consider an electric brush. Replace brush heads or manual brushes every 3 months or sooner if bristles wear. Regular brushing, ossing, and dental checkups matter more than the brush type.

In an age of airline disruptions, changing schedules, and global uncertainty, the value of using a travel agent has never been greater. While online booking sites may appear simple, they often leave travelers to navigate problems alone when things go wrong.

As a travel agent, I receive noti cations when airlines make schedule changes, cancel

ights, or alter connections—often months before departure. This allows me to act quickly to secure alternative options before ights ll up. If disruptions occur while clients are overseas, support is only a phone call or email away. In many cases, we are already working behind the scenes while our clients are asleep, resolving issues before they even wake up.

Travel agents also have access to dedicated airline support teams that the general public cannot use. When major disruptions occur, this can mean avoiding long airport queues and lengthy call-centre waits alongside hundreds of other stranded passengers.

In today’s travel environment, having an experienced advocate in your corner is invaluable.

DAVID MACKENZIE Owner/Publisher

PIOPIO KING COUNTRY NEWS PICK UP LOCATIONS

Home delivery of the King Country News to the Piopio urban town area has ceased. Rural delivery areas continue to receive a delivered paper as usual. In Piopio we have the following locations where readers can pick up a copy of the King Country News each week:

GAS Piopio Service Station

•Piopio Foodmart

• Piopio Superette

•The Village Bakery Cafe Piopio

Urban delivery copies were reallocated to these outlets to accommodate this change.

For advertising enquiries contact our Advertising Director Janine Davy on janine@goodlocal.nz or phone 027 287 0005.

For editorial enquiries contact our Editorial Director Roy Pilott on editor@goodlocal.nz or phone 027 450 0115.

www.kingcountrynews.co.nz