1The New Zealand economy is still in a hole - although the hole isn't quite as deep as first feared. Treasury's latest economic and fiscal update show that things have got better since the release of the May Budget.

2Wellington's controversial billion dollar highway through Transmission Gully has been given the green light but it's not clear yet who'll pay, with the government still considering a toll. The highway is part of a $2.4-billion plan for the region announced by Steven Joyce.

3Business News

4The father of an 11-week-old baby who was starved and beaten to death, has been sent to jail for at least 17-years. Azees Mahomed was sentenced today for the murder of his daughter Tahani last year, while his wife will face four years in prison for failing to provide the necessities of life.

5As fraught climate change negotiations continue in Copenhagen, New Zealand has been sent to the bottom of the class in a ranking of countries based on their green credentials.

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7Icepak, the company which owned the coolstore near Hamilton that exploded in April last year, killing one fireman and injuring seven others, has been fined $37-thousand and ordered to pay reparation of $95-thousand.

8Economists at the NZIER are picking the unemployment rate to remain at high levels for longer than previously predicted.

9In Fiji four people are dead and at least two thousand people are homeless in the wake of Cyclone Mick which battered the country yesterday.

10Waatea News

11The full horror of women and children struggling to escape from a Tongan ferry as it went down in August has been heard at an inquiry into the sinking.

12The Maori Party's goal of changing the way social services are delivered to Maori is another step closer, with discussions being held on making separate funding available in next year's budget. The funding will come under the banner Whanau Ora.

13The United States' Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has urged Iran to free three Americans as soon as possible after Tehran announced they would be put on trial.

146:00pm News

15The New Zealand economy is still in a hole - although the hole isn't quite as deep as first feared. Treasury's latest economic and fiscal update show that things have got better since the release of the May Budget.

16Wellington's controversial billion dollar highway through Transmission Gully has been given the green light but it's not clear yet who'll pay, with the government still considering a toll. The highway is part of a $2.4-billion plan for the region announced by Steven Joyce.

17Icepak, the company which owned the coolstore near Hamilton that exploded in April last year, killing one fireman and injuring seven others, has been fined $37-thousand and ordered to pay reparation of $95-thousand.

18A High Court jury has found two men guilty of stabbing an Auckland man to death as he walked home from a party.

19Business News

20In the Philippines, 9000-families are being evacuated as what's often described as the world's most perfect volcano threatens a major eruption.

21The Labour Party leader Phil Goff has moved quickly to squash any suggestion that there is discord within his party over the selection of the Maori flag to fly on Waitangi Day.

226:30pm News

23Politics and pollution have been the catalyst for a walkout by developing nations at the United Nations climate summit. The mostly African states are claiming that developed nations are trying to abandon Kyoto Protocol which binds the developed world to cut their carbon emmissions.

24Politicians are being accused of creating hysteria around benefit fraud and using the justice system to support their claims.

25The seven firemen injured in the Tamahere coolstore explosion last year say the owners of the plant are hiding behind its corporate structure to avoid paying sufficient reparation. Icepak has been fined $37-thousand and ordered to pay reparation of $95-thousand.

26Waatea News

27The Health Ministry is warning tobacco companies they could face prosecution if they continue offering retailers cash and other incentives to sell their products.

28In the Venezuelan capital Caracas queues of people have waited for hours to buy thousands of Barbie dolls and other popular toys at huge discounts.