1The lawyer defending the two men accused of assaulting cricketer Jesse Ryder outside a Christchurch bar last week is insisting the alleged attack was not a hate crime.

2The State Services Commissioner has said that he was surprised Prime Minister John Key decided to phone his friend Ian Fletcher about the job to lead the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB).

3The eighteen year old woman found dead outside Matamata Hospital has been named as Jovaan Rahera Graham who is believed to have died instantly after being struck by a car in the Kaimai Ranges.

4The Government is proposing a new law to punish cyber-bullies, however many perpetrators may be too young to be prosecuted.

5New Zealand's ten-year mission to Afghanistan is on the verge of ending.

6Despite the movie "Argo" portraying New Zealand in a less than complimentary light during the Iran hostage crisis, a personal diary has unveiled the true role in saving American hostages during the Iranian crisis.

7The Government is increasing the annual fees to Mighty River Power directors ahead of the company's privatisation.

8The next step has been taken in the controversial plan to replace Christchurch's shattered cathedral. there are three different options with varying price tags.

9Martin and Jane Weekes, the parents of Wellington triplets killed in a Doha mall fire, say the complex remains dangerous after fire alarms failed to activate during another blaze.

10Tertiary students trying to access their loans are encountering problems due to overloading on the Studylink website and phone service.

11Scientists in Antarctica say climate change is having two very different effects on the region's Adelie penguins - they are thriving at Cape Bird on Ross Island, but further north (where the continent is warming more rapidly) they are disappearing.

12Feilding endurance runner Perry Newburn is attempting to run 480 kilometres in 72 hours to raise money for a special needs unit at the local high school.