nzh nzh

ACC chairman John Judge is to go following fresh revelations about the Bronwyn Pullar privacy breach this week.

The taxpayer bill for the AMI Insurance bill has more than halved to just under $150 million in today's Budget.

The Government will use a big chunk of cash it will raise from the sale of Mighty River Power this year to pay for the KiwiRail turnaround plan which was announced three years ago.

ACC Minister Judith Collins is refusing to comment on speculation she will not follow through on her threat to sue Radio New Zealand for defamation.

Prime Minister John Key says a members' bill to force disclosure of lobbyists' attempts to influence policymaking is worth considering.

Relative newcomer David Shearer's prospects of becoming Labour's new leader rose this afternoon after his rival, friend, and flatmate David Parker withdrew from the competition.

Genesis Energy, the owner of the giant Huntly power station, may be first on the block if National wins the election - but Prime Minister John Key yesterday pledged new legislation to prevent any single shareholder from owning more than 10 per cent.

Act would push for a referendum on raising the superannuation age to 67 as part of a confidence and supply agreement with National, leader Don Brash says.

Labour leader Phil Goff says he is "sick to death'' of the teapot tapes diverting attention away from key issues including asset sales, the cost of living and young New Zealanders' job prospects, as the country heads into the last and "most important'' week of the election campaign.

Green Party members were out around Auckland this morning smoothing things over with their political rivals by removing about 10 stickers from National Party campaign billboards defaced over the weekend.

National's attack on Labour over the alleged $17 billion "hole'' in its economic plan ignores more than $1 billion a year in proceeds from the state-owned assets National would sell and the assets generated by Super Fund contributions, Labour's David Parker says.