National

There were tears of relief - mingled with frustration - among staff at the National Public Health Service today at the news Health NZ had abandoned plans for further job cuts and restructuring.

A man who grabbed his partner by the throat, "lined her up", and then delivered a series of savage blows is about to be shipped back to New Zealand from Australia, the country he has called home for the past 10 years.

Investigations are continuing into a dog attack that killed a four-year-old boy in the Bay of Plenty, as his family face "an unimaginable loss".

Most NZers are not aware of the limited amounts that people on a benefit receive, and that is adding to an increased fracturing of our society, one researcher says.