1Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke has called the Irish Republican Army (IRA) "cowards" following the murder of two innocent Australian tourists in a Dutch village.

2The driver of the car involved in yesterday's fatal bus crash in New South Wales has been charged with the murder of a woman an hour before the crash, and the manslaughter of an elderly bus passenger.

3The Fire Service plans to recall and modify $6 million worth of suits which they have condemned as unsafe.

4Fire Safety officers are still trying to establish the cause of an Auckland house fire this morning.

5Twenty-four hour security is being introduced at the Treasury building in Wellington following a break-in.

6Hospitals in Christchurch and Auckland are dealing with several cases of the potentially fatal Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV).

7Increasing violence against women has prompted calls for a night time curfew for men.

8Rural residents face a five-fold increase in power prices under electricity restructuring proposals.

9Police officers from around New Zealand are gathering in Ranfurly for the funeral tomorrow of slain constable Peter Umbers.

10Moscow authorities are enforcing food sale restrictions after panic buying stripped the shelves bare.

11Princess Anne has visited Siberia and Lake Baikal.

12A British brewery is trying to brew a 3000-year old Egyptian beer.

13The New Zealand economy could face a setback tomorrow if the Australian Government intervenes over its country's wool clip, forcing down the price of wool.

14The historic Highden Monastery near Palmerston North, which has trained hundreds of New Zealand Catholic men for the priesthood, is closing down.