Work has finally begun dismantling Lancaster Park in Christchurch, six years after it was damaged beyond repair in the February earthquake. It comes at the same time the city's leaders debate what a new stadium could look like and who will pay.
Medium-density fibreboard has been sitting at an old rubbish put in Wigram since the earthquakes and residents are worried it's harming their health.
As a three-year-old in China, Quin Tang's mother was shot in front of her and her father taken away. After moving to Christchurch 25 years ago, she walked out of an abusive marriage with two young children, no money and speaking little English. Tang then attended Canterbury University, teaching herself to read English from the text books there. She attained four degrees with an A+ average, and began working as a psychiatrist and counsellor. Quin was working in the CTV building when it collapsed. She took two weeks off work to recover, then came back and began counselling other victims of the Christchurch earthquakes. She has written and self-published the story of her life, called Half a Walnut Tree.
A review of the week's news including... Relief after cyclone Cook passes quickly down the North Island with limited damage, questions about what was known about the increasing risk of Edgecumbe stop banks bursting, the man who gave us Fred Dagg has died suddenly, three more former CERA staffers are being investigated after conflict of interests prompted calls for a wider inquiry, a warning more homeless families will be sleeping in cars parks and garages in Auckland this winter, the High Court rules excessive defamation damages against Colin Craig constitute a miscarriage of justice, a verdict in a defamation against the Labour leader Andrew Little, relatives of New Zealand soldiers killed on duty in South East Asia are relieved their family members will be finally returned home, US consumer campaigner Erin Brockovich visits Christchurch homeowners who are trying to settle earthquake insurance claims six years on, three teams have been cut from the Super Rugby competition and a more than 50 year old copper time capsule has been cracked open.
A review of the week's news including... a two billion dollar pay equity settlement, the Government announces changes it says are aimed at improving the quality of immigrants and controlling the quantity, irresponsible, unsafe, and unethical -- that's how a new Netflix series aimed at teenagers is being described, the top family court judge fires back at criticisms levelled at the court system by a new women's advocacy group, the Prime Minister who oversaw the dramatic undermining of unions now says unions have probably become too small, a review of Mental Health Services finds they are under pressure, under resourced and not widely understood, the Air Force's NH90 helicopters have been all but grounded, an eight-year-old girl is pulled alive from Manukau Harbour after treading water for more than two hours, the conversion of thousands of hectares of the Mackenzie Basin to dairy farms has been halted, tampons and sanitary pads will not be subsidised for all women by Pharmac, the government department set up to make the economy bigger isn't sure it can reach the goals it set for itself, Central Christchurch residents say they're under siege from sex workers and are threatening legal action, the massive Kaikoura earthquake may have saved the town from having to spend millions of dollars and the largest multi-sport event in the world has arrived in Auckland.