Pokies bill debate
The ability of gambling trusts to spread the largesse wherever they like is under threat. A bill before Parliament would force trusts to pour the gambling proceeds back into the same community that coughed it up in the first place.
The bill's creator, Maori Party MP Te Ururoa Flavell, goes head-to-head with one of the trusts set to lose the right to pass the money out.
Are league tables a good idea?
A parent's right to know. That's the nub of the debate over league tables. Will it mean schools concentrate on producing good data rather than good students or simply allow parents an informed choice?
Mark Sainsbury talks to Professor Martin Thrupp from Waikato University, who's researched National Standards, and Steve Thomas from the Maxim Institute.
Avalanche survivors tell story
Christian Hanson and Paul Bishop are two Taranaki blokes who met at work and decided last Sunday to go for a climb together.
They had both ascended Mt Taranaki numerous times and thought if they got up early they would be home by mid-afternoon to spend time with the wife and kids.
Problem is Christian and Paul never made it home that night. They got caught in an avalanche and are two of a lucky few who have lived to tell the tale.
They told their story today to Hadyn Jones who visited them at Taranaki Base Hospital in New Plymouth.