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LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/auckland-population-projected-to-reach-2-million-by-2033-stats-nz-news-story/
High Court takes an axe to Victoria’s political donations laws – and it will make federal MPs nervous
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Anne Twomey, Professor Emerita in Constitutional Law, University of Sydney
The High Court has taken an axe to the Victorian Electoral Act, chopping out the entirety of Part 12.
It deals with election spending, caps on political donations, three different types of public funding (for election campaigns, party administration and policy development), along with the disclosure regime for donations.
The Victorian parliament will be scrambling to reconstruct and reenact it in a constitutionally valid manner in the lead up to the Victorian election in November this year.
What was the problem with the law?
Part 12 was struck down due to the constitutional invalidity of a seemingly obscure provision setting differential rules for “nominated entities”. But it was really about the constitutional validity of a law allowing the three main political parties to spend more on election campaigns than anyone else.
The High Court had previously held that legislative limits on political donations and electoral expenditure can reduce the amount of money a political party or candidate can spend on political communications during an election campaign.
This means such a law can breach the constitutionally implied freedom of political communication – unless the law is made for a legitimate purpose, such as reducing the risk of corruption and undue influence, and the law is reasonably appropriate and adapted to achieving that purpose.
In Victoria, the parliament passed amendments in 2018 that put a very low cap on political donations. A person could only make donations to a political party or any of its candidates or elected members, up to a cumulative maximum of A$4,000 (since raised to $4,970) over the entire four-year period between elections.
The law did not, however, place any cap on electoral spending, as long as the spending came out of a special campaign account. In effect, the limit on spending depended on what was paid into that campaign account. All donations and electoral public funding had to be paid into that account.
But what else could be deposited in it?
This is where “nominated entities” first appeared. The main political parties each had a separate body, which held major income-producing capital assets. It would transfer funds to the party. The new law allowed the party to register the body as a “nominated entity”. It could then make uncapped transfers into the party’s campaign account. But an independent candidate could not establish a nominated entity, so the candidate had no chance of competing with the spending of a political party, funded by its nominated entity.
The Labor, Liberal and National parties each registered a nominated entity prior to July 1 2020. After that date, this funding route was effectively cut off for small or new parties. Greater restrictions were imposed on the control and operation of any nominated entity subsequently established. They could not build up a capital fund because a nominated entity was restricted to receiving only capped donations over the four year parliamentary term. It was also an offence to deposit money into a fund held by a body and then later register it as a nominated entity, if the amount deposited would otherwise have breached the donation caps.
The upshot was that three parties – Labor, Liberal and National – could use nominated entities to make uncapped donations into their campaign accounts. This meant they could spend vastly greater amounts on campaigns than an independent or a candidate from any other political party.
The challenge
The validity of this law was challenged by two former candidates, Paul Hopper and Melissa Lowe, who ran as independents at the 2022 state election and lost. They argued the law concerning nominated entities was unfair and undemocratic, and there should be a level playing field for elections. Hopper said the donation laws were rigged and unfairly biased to the major parties.
The ground of the challenge was that the law about nominated entities breached the implied freedom because it unfairly disadvantaged independents and small or new political parties in their ability to spend on political communications. Conversely, it advantaged the three main parties.
The High Court accepted the law capping donations burdened the implied freedom of political communication. It also found the law about nominated entities affected independents and smaller parties differently from the major parties.
It noted three kinds of differential operation. First, the law gave advantages to political parties but not to others, such as independents.
Second, it treated nominated entities differently depending on whether they were registered before or after July 1 2020.
Third, it favoured the major political parties by allowing the bodies holding their existing capital funds to become nominated entities when the law commenced, but prevented new funds from being built up by other parties by restricting them to the receipt of capped donations.
The court didn’t need to decide if each of these three differential applications resulted in the constitutional invalidity of the relevant section or the whole part. This was because the Victorian solicitor-general conceded there could be no constitutional justification for the second differential treatment, based on the July 1 2020 date.
Victoria was hoping the court would strike down that minor distinction, keeping the rest of the provisions alive. But the court concluded the invalid provision that imposed the differential treatment was too dependent on a web of other provisions in Part 12. This meant it could not be disentangled without the court effectively redrafting the law. So the entire part was struck down.
What are the ramifications for Victoria?
Victoria now has a massive hole in its electoral act. It has no valid system for disclosing political donations, or requiring parties and candidates to make annual reports on donations and expenditure, or even for banning overseas and anonymous donations.
More importantly, all the money paid in public funding to political parties, whether for campaign funding or slush funds for “administrative” and “policy development” purposes, was unlawful, and has been since 2018. One can imagine some legislation validating that funding with retrospective effect will be introduced pretty quickly.
The writing was on the wall that Victoria was going to lose this case. The solicitor-general’s concession showed the government was trying to salvage what it could.
The Victorian government even introduced legislation to make the nominated entity provisions fairer, but it dropped the provisions about nominated entities before the bill was passed in March this year. The excuse was it was awaiting the High Court’s judgment. It will now have to engage in far more extensive amendments than it had envisaged.
What are the ramifications for the Commonwealth?
The Commonwealth parliament also enacted legislation about political donations in February last year, which is to come into force on July 1 2026. It includes provisions about nominated entities, which have been alleged to tip the playing field unfairly in favour of the main political parties, to the disadvantage of new parties and independents. A challenge to it has been commenced by former senator, Rex Patrick, and former MP, Zoe Daniel.
The Victorian case will not directly affect the Commonwealth challenge. This is because the Commonwealth law does not contain an equivalent provision that treats nominated entities differently by reference to the date they were registered. But it does raise other concerns about differential treatment that were also noted by the High Court in the Victorian case.
While the Victorian law was by far the worse of the two, the Commonwealth law remains vulnerable. In both cases, major parties tried to manipulate the electoral campaign funding laws to their advantage, and the High Court has a history of not taking kindly to such action. Political apparatchiks in Canberra will be feeling more nervous tonight.
– ref. High Court takes an axe to Victoria’s political donations laws – and it will make federal MPs nervous – https://theconversation.com/high-court-takes-an-axe-to-victorias-political-donations-laws-and-it-will-make-federal-mps-nervous-280713
Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/15/high-court-takes-an-axe-to-victorias-political-donations-laws-and-it-will-make-federal-mps-nervous-280713/
Divide and rule – how UAE is Israel’s ‘Trojan horse’ in the Gulf
COMMENTARY: By Eugene Doyle
Without understanding the astonishing network of power exercised by the United Arab Emirates you would have no idea why the UAE was hit particularly hard by Iran in recent weeks.
Nor would you know what fuels chaos from Libya to Sudan to Somalia to Yemen.
If you understand the UAE’s business-geostrategic model and how it mobilises warlords, gold, oil, regional logistics and finance — you get much closer to seeing the pattern in the seeming madness.
Tiny UAE, 1.4 million citizens, wields so much power that Saudi Arabia sees it as a serious threat. In December, Saudi Arabia bombed UAE surrogates in Yemen and told the emirates to exit the country. They didn’t. If the US and Israel hadn’t attacked Iran, more fireworks were in the offing.
Israel is the UAE’s close ally. They collaborate not just on the War on Iran but in many of these various “civil wars” that are both money-making ventures and a series of heartless state-destruction campaigns that give them greater geopolitical weight in the region.
Israel is UAE’s close ally. Image: Google Earth map
We first need to understand what UAE (United Arab Emirates) really is. Comprising seven emirates — Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al-Quwain, Ras Al-Khaimah, and Fujairah — it is now the hub of an empire that both Iran and Saudi Arabia would like to knee-cap.
The powerhouse is actually Abu Dhabi, the oil giant which is the effective boss of the rest, including Dubai.
Family business with six sons
Abu Dhabi is a family business, run by The Bani Fatima, the sons of Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Al Ketbi who is the most influential of the wives of the late Sheikh. Today, ultimate power resides with MBZ (Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan) the eldest of her six sons.
MBZ was a long-time buddy of MBS (Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman) but those days are well behind us. In the words of a senior Saudi figure, Ahmed Altuwaijri, Abu Dhabi is Israel’s Trojan horse in the region.
Along with Bahrain, UAE is a signatory to the Abraham Accords which is a US vehicle to bring Israel in from the cold. The other Gulf States oppose this “Israel First” policy and are clear that a resolution of the rights of the Palestinians must come first, although they do little about it.
The Bani Fatimid system works like this: identify a country that is experiencing instability, pick a side (preferably anti-political Islam) and offer not only to finance that militia or warlord of choice but provide the immense logistical support the UAE has, including air freighting weapons, supplies and soldiers, and the complex systems needed to convert, for example, stolen gold into arms or other assets.
Time and again this has resulted in the creation of shadow economies that end up controlling significant resources (gold, oil, agriculture, ports) and creating parallel states. Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen have all been played in this way. It is textbook divide and rule: weakening a state from within to then exert ongoing influence and resource extraction.
Dr Andreas Krieg of the School of Security Studies at King’s College London told The Thinking Muslim channel recently that UAE is far more advanced than Saudi Arabia in establishing powerful, agile networks across a wide zone of influence.
“It’s not about size. Size doesn’t matter in the networked global order that we’re operating in today. It’s about connectivity and who you can mobilise on your behalf — whether it’s in the information environment or armed non-state actors, such as the STC (in Yemen).
“But it’s also the commodity traders, the financiers, the banks, the insurance companies, the other trading corporations, that you can mobilise to generate what strategy is all about: influence and power,” Krieg says.
Libya’s terrible 15-year civil war has been immensely worsened by outside states, including UAE which turned general Khalifa Belqasim Haftar from a YouTube revolutionary into the head of the massively resourced LNA militia that now controls about a third of the country.
With UAE commanding the centre of a hub-and-spoke system, it can move fighters around the region at will, for example from Libya to Yemen where it sent thousands of LNA fighters to support local client militias. By backing the Southern Transition Council (STC) in Yemen, UAE got control over the vital Port of Aden. Similarly, by partnering with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan, tons of stolen gold flows into Dubai. You get the picture.
Gold is the prime currency of the Bani Fatima empire (MBZ and his brothers). Dubai is known in the region as The City of Gold, the place where the bulk of Africa’s yellow metal, much of it smuggled, finds its way.
Imagine this: at the very time tens of millions of Sudanese are suffering famine or near-famine conditions, the UAE is facilitating the export to Dubai of tons of gold to fuel the war. This represents billions of dollars that should be held for the benefit of the people but instead is being used for empire building.
In Somalia the UAE has switched sides when economic or strategic advantage could be made. Along with Israel, UAE is backing militias who have declared a break-away state “Somaliland” that borders the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The UAE has military bases in “Somaliland” and has poured millions of dollars into the port of Berbera. With hundreds of kilometres of coastline adjacent to vital Red Sea shipping lanes, UAE and Israel will be important players in a contest with Yemen, Saudi Arabia and other powers.
In December last year Israel became the first to recognise Somaliland as a state. UAE is understood to be working on the Trump administration to do the same – further trashing the idea of territorial integrity for the sake of advantage. As an aside: Israel hopes to ethnically cleanse Palestinians to Somaliland one day.
All this dovetails with Israel’s strategy of smashing states to control them. For them, an alternative to regime change in Iran is Balkanisation to create several weak statelets thereby enhancing Israeli security and influence.
For those reasons and more, I hope the sovereign state of Iran survives the onslaught. I hope UAE and Israel’s genuinely evil business of fragmenting state after state is defeated. I hope the Western countries look at themselves in the mirror and ask themselves: what kind of moral monsters would be allies of Israel and the UAE?
Eugene Doyle is a writer based in Wellington, New Zealand. He has written extensively on the Middle East, as well as peace and security issues in the Asia Pacific region.
Eugene Doyle is a writer based in Wellington, New Zealand. He has written extensively on the Middle East, as well as peace and security issues in the Asia Pacific region, and contributes to Asia Pacific Report. He hosts solidarity.co.nz
Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz
Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/15/divide-and-rule-how-uae-is-israels-trojan-horse-in-the-gulf/
Marine farmers using AI to find out what’s happening under water
Source: Radio New Zealand
A live feed of the data captured by the UWAI Robotics underwater drone. RNZ / Samantha Gee
At the top of the South Island, in the centre of New Zealand’s aquaculture and fishing industries, artificial intelligence is increasingly being used to provide better information about what’s going on under water.
Scientists and engineers are working together to develop new tools that give marine farmers better metrics, in a bid to push growth in the sector.
Tim Rensen is one of the founders of UWAI Robotics, a Christchurch-based company that’s built an underwater drone that uses artificial intelligence and advanced imaging to scan mussel lines, so farmers can see their crops in real time.
“What we are working on at the moment is being able to tell farmers what the condition of their mussels is, because at the moment they have to shuck them open to look at the quality of the meat, but we are looking at that, looking at what other biofouling is growing on the lines and what have the conditions been.”
UWAI Robotics co founder Tim Rensen deploying the underwater drone to scan mussel lines on a farm in the Marlborough Sounds. RNZ / Samantha Gee
Once the drone is in place on a mussel farm using sensors and GPS, it scans the lines and provides a video stream to a laptop on the surface, capturing images of thousands of individual mussels.
The data was then instantly analysed using AI and Rensen said it had taken eight years of development to get to this point.
“It is about distilling all of this raw data into a few key metrics like count, size, the variability on the line, we could be looking at whether the mussels are clumping together or if they are well distributed,” Rensen said.
They can provide insights on expected yield, when to reseed and harvest, with the aim of providing even more information as the technology develops.
In Havelock, the Greenshell Mussel Capital of the World, Mills Bay Mussels operations manager Maegan Blom said checking the quality of the shellfish usually involved hauling lines out of the water and opening mussels to inspect them.
“Those quality decisions that you make when you are checking the crop for harvest are really crucial to maintain the value of the product. If you tell your customer what you have got for them and then it arrives at their factory and it is different, that is really not good.”
The company, which supplies fresh live mussels, mussel meat products and health supplements to the domestic market, has marine farms in the Marlborough Sounds and Golden Bay.
A Mills Bay Mussels farm in Kenepuru Sound. RNZ / Samantha Gee
She said it had been fascinating to see Rensen use the underwater drone on a Mills Bay farm in Kenepuru Sound, and then almost instantly supply her with a graph showing the size of the mussels.
“It’s not necessarily quicker, but the accuracy of the information is just incredible so you can make better decisions.”
Blom said had imagined technology like what UWAI Robotics was developing and was excited to see what was already being used in other industries being adapted for use in marine farming.
She said there was lots that couldn’t be controlled when farming in the ocean, so it was important to focus on what could be. Quality data collected over time would enable better operations, previously learnt through years of experience.
“You can control things like when you seed your lines, the density, where you put your farms, what time of the year you harvest, but then there’s things you can’t control, how much food’s in the water, the weather, what happens in the natural environment with predators like when the snapper are going to come and eat the mussels.
“With good information you can actually start to draw conclusions, patterns, trends and become a more efficient mussel farmer.”
In Nelson, marine tech company Seaweave have developed camera systems, sensors and artificial intelligence for use in the aquaculture and fishing industries.
The UWAI Robotics underwater drone which is called Crabby. RNZ / Samantha Gee
Chief executive Chris Rodley said not only was it hard to see what was happening in a marine farm, but access to those sites was weather dependant.
“If a big storm comes to Tasman Bay and the farmers they can’t go out on their vessels to check the farm, they can’t even go out the next day because the weather is so bad, they can’t see it from land and how do we help those guys put their head on the pillow and actually sleep at night?”
He said the benefits were two fold, visual data was available in real time, but could also be interpreted over time to identify patterns and trends.
“Number one, what’s going on in real time on the farm, what’s the water quality like, are there any issues with lack of food, or a huge weather event that dumps a bunch of freshwater into the harbour.”
He said AI was changing the way that data was accessed.
Seaweave CEO Chris Rodley. Supplied
“What if you could talk to your farm, if you could ask it, ‘what is going on right now?’ and your farm could simply answer.
“In the past that was difficult and now we just put that data into a model and it can be queried and that’s exciting.”
Seaweave first started working with mussel farmers and had since moved into other areas, including wild caught fisheries.
Last year, Seaweave signed an agreement with the Bioeconomy Science Institute to further develop AI imaging applications for fish in aquaculture, which Rodley said it was like facial recognition for fish.
He said nine fish species were currently recognisable. It means individual fish can be identified, assessed for breeding programmes and monitored underwater.
The underwater drone scanning mussel lines on a Marlborough Sounds farm. RNZ / Samantha Gee
Rodley said New Zealand had some of the best seafood in the world, but because of its distance from key markets, so there was a need to focus on quality and telling the story behind the product.
“We can identify individual [fish] as they travel through the supply chain at various points and that’s huge for population modelling and management.
“Linking that to the end consumer allows us to create a huge amount of value.”
It’s hoped the technology will help the aquaculture industry reach its goal of quadrupling its annual revenue to reach $3 billion by 2035.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/marine-farmers-using-ai-to-find-out-whats-happening-under-water/
Far North councillors vote to expand controversial Māori liaison committee
Source: Radio New Zealand
Far North Mayor Moko Tepania faces possibly the first ever media standup at the council chambers in Kaikohe. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
Far North councillors on Wednesday voted to expand a Māori liaison committee which has been at the centre of a nationwide social media firestorm.
More than 100 people, many carrying flags and home-made banners, gathered outside the Far North District Council chambers in Kaikohe ahead of this morning’s meeting to finalise the committee’s membership.
Unusually, the gathering was called not to protest the council’s plans, but as a show of support for its direction and for embattled Mayor Moko Tepania.
Both the Far North District Council and Tepania had been under intense pressure since a podcast last week by former TV journalist Duncan Garner, in which he interviewed outspoken councillor Davina Smolders and claimed the council’s appointment of unelected members to its committees was “illegal”, “undemocratic” and “co-governance on steroids”.
About 100 people gathered outside the Far North District Council chambers in a show of support for Mayor Moko Tepania. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
Both called on the government to step in and appoint a Crown observer.
The controversy centred on the council’s Te Kuaka Māori Strategic Relationships Committee, which includes six councillors – including Smolders – and, as of today, two representatives of the Northland iwi chairs forum, known as Te Kahu o Taonui, and eight hapū representatives.
The Local Government Act states councils can appoint any number of unelected members to their committees, and that councils must involve Māori in decision-making.
Among those at the protest was former Kaipara Māori ward councillor Pera Paniora, who travelled from Dargaville to take part.
She said many of the claims in the podcast were incorrect.
“This committee isn’t illegal or unlawful. It’s a committee that makes recommendations, it doesn’t make decisions, and it’s not a co-governance committee.”
Taitokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
Also there was Taitokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, who said she had helped set up the committee years ago with then chairman Harry Burkhardt.
She said the committee worked well, and the claims she had seen on social media were “disturbing and distressing”.
“To take it away would undo some very good work that has benefited everyone, Māori and non-Māori.”
Pākehā at the protest included Michelle Cels of Kawakawa, who wanted to “stand together against division that’s being sown in the community”.
“There’s so much misinformation out there, and people need to be very clear they are doing their own research, not living in an echo chamber and trusting what people say to them is true.”
Ngāpuhi chairman Mane Tahere, one of the newly appointed committee members, said Māori were already an economic force in Northland – even without a Treaty settlement – and had much to offer in the way of solutions to Northland’s meth and housing crises.
“We’re just carrying on with the mahi and rising above all the rhetoric,” he said.
Far North District councillor Davina Smolders has claimed the council’s appointment of unelected members to its committees was “illegal”. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
The social media storm of the past week had, however, been frustrating for Far Northerners dealing with real-world problems such as the cost of living and extreme weather.
It’s hōhā [annoying] for our people with everyday struggles, most recently the floods.”
Only 30 people were allowed inside the chambers during the meeting with the rest having to follow the livestream from the nearby Memorial Hall.
Speakers included Green MP Hūhana Lyndon and Northland Regional Council chairman Pita Tipene.
Tipene drew a link between the social media firestorm and real-life storms of recent weeks, saying people would be better served by calm and rational debate.
“Me personally, I have come here to listen and get the truth. I’m here with everyone else because we need more light and less heat, given the storms of the last couple of weeks.”
Green MP Hūhana Lyndon addresses councillors. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
Ngatiwai’s Aperahama Keripeti-Edwards, a committee appointee, urged councillors not to be swayed from their current path.
“I ask you to uphold the integrity of your processes. Respect the role of tangata whenua within them. And make decisions that are based on fact, not misinformation, because the future depends on it.”
Advisory committees such as Te Kuaka were necessary, he said.
“You do not make decisions about people without them. You do not speak for others when they can speak for themselves.”
Councillor Smolders said appointing unelected members was allowed under the Local Government Act, but risked going against the intent of the law.
She also said the council could not appoint unspecified hapū representatives to the committee, it could only appoint named individuals.
That meant another resolution would have to be passed later, at another extraordinary meeting, once hapū had decided who would represent them.
The decision to expand the committee’s membership was passed by nine votes to one with one abstention. Only Smolders voted against.
Afterwards she said she was disappointed in the outcome, saying councillors would be outnumbered by unelected members on the Te Kuaka committee.
“And the community has voted for elected members to be their voice,” she said.
Former Kaipara Māori ward councillor Pera Paniora. RNZ / Peter de Graaf
The meeting drew the largest media contingent at the Far North District Council in recent years, along with possibly the first ever media stand-up at the Kaikohe chambers.
Tepania said broadening the Māori relationships committee was the right thing to do, and gave credit to the previous mayor under whose tenure the council signed its first Memorandum of Understanding with iwi.
He hoped the next generation would not still have to justify including Māori in decision making, as his tūpuna [ancestors] had done and as he had been forced to do this week.
“It’s hōhā to have to stand and do that right now, but from the aroha of the iwi who have come here today I feel we are coming together. We have a huge road ahead, but we can do it together.”
Last year’s local elections saw Tepania win the Far North mayoralty by a landslide, and Māori elected to six out of 10 council seats.
Far Northerners also voted to retain their Māori ward.
According to the most recent Census data, just over 50 percent of the Far North population is of Māori descent.
Smolders, an ACT Party candidate, was elected last October with the second-highest number of votes, after Ann Court, in the Bay of Islands-Whangaroa General Ward.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/far-north-councillors-vote-to-expand-controversial-maori-liaison-committee/
Sprout products recalled due to possible presence of listeria bacteria
Source: Radio New Zealand
Several batches of South Alps brand alfalfa and onion sprouts and one batch of Pam’s onion sprouts combo have been recalled due to the possible presence of listeria. Supplied
Food Safety NZ has announced a recall of sprout products due to the possible presence of listeria bacteria.
The affected products – which if already purchased should be returned or thrown out – are sold at supermarkets around the country.
They are several batches of 120-gram Southern Alp Sprouts brand alfalfa and onion sprouts:
- Batch J197 with a best-before date of 21 April 2026
- Batch J197 with a best-before date of 23 April 2026
- Batch J199 with a best-before date of 23 April 2026
Pam’s onion sprouts combo (120g) which is batch J199 and has a best before date of 23 April 2026.
Vince Arbuckle from Food Safety said the sprouts should not be eaten, as they could make people sick – and listeria infection was serious for vulnerable groups, including pregnant women.
Customers can return the products to the retailer for a full refund.
Anyone who consumed the products and were concerned about their health should seek medical advice.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/sprout-products-recalled-due-to-possible-presence-of-listeria-bacteria/
Court of Appeal hears challenge over Ōtāhuhu maunga tree felling
Source: Radio New Zealand
Ōtāhuhu resident Shirley Waru at the Court of Appeal on Wednesday. Supplied
By Erin Johnson
The Tūpuna Maunga Authority and an Ōtāhuhu resident were back in court on Wednesday in a long-running fight over consent to remove hundreds of trees.
Ōtāhuhu resident Shirley Waru previously challenged Auckland Council’s 2021 decision to grant the authority resource consent to remove 278 exotic trees from her local reserve and maunga, Ōtāhuhu Mount Richmond.
In a 2024 decision, the High Court found the council had inadequate information to assess the temporary adverse affects of removing the trees, and set aside the non-notified consent.
The maunga authority appealed that decision. Its lawyer, Paul Beverley, told the Court of Appeal on Wednesday that adequate information was available to the decision makers, who would have had Auckland’s Unitary Plan in mind when making their decision.
He said it was “not tenable” to suggest experienced council officers were unaware there could be non-visual and recreation affects from the tree removals, when they were a key part of the methodologies they work through in the unitary plan.
Beverley also pointed to information in the authority’s integrated management plan which outlined its restoration plans for the maunga.
However, when Justice Matthew Palmer asked for information on how long it would take for new plantings to become established, Beverley was not able to provide that detail.
In response, Waru’s lawyer James Little asserted the integrated management plan the council officers had access to was different to the revised one Beverley referred to.
“No one in this whole saga is opposed to planting native trees, the concern is with the wholesale felling of hundreds of exotic trees at once. That’s the real gist of the concern,” Little said.
“… a decision that cutting down hundreds of these trees all at once in this type of place forms a reasonably acceptable use is plainly contrary to the Auckland Unitary plan,” he said.
Auckland’s Tūpuna Maunga Authority manages Auckland’s tūpuna maunga, the volcanic cones regarded as spiritually and culturally significant to iwi and hapū in the region.
The authority plans to restore the cultural, spiritual and ecological mana of the maunga through planting native plants, including planting 39,000 indigenous plants on Ōtāhuhu.
The court has reserved its decision.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/court-of-appeal-hears-challenge-over-otahuhu-maunga-tree-felling/
Football Ferns beat Papua New Guinea – Fifa Women’s World Cup 2027 Oceania Qualifiers final
Source: Radio New Zealand
Katie Kitching of New Zealand celebrates her goal against Papua New Guinea. Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
The Football Ferns have beaten Papua New Guinea 1-0 to claim their spot at the 2027 Fifa Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
It will be the seventh World Cup appearance for the Ferns.
As co-hosts of the 2023 event, the Football Ferns did not have to go through qualification.
Follow the blog for how the match unfolded:
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Deven Jackson Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/football-ferns-beat-papua-new-guinea-fifa-womens-world-cup-2027-oceania-qualifiers-final/
Aspire Secures Securities and Asset Management Licences from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission
Source: Media Outreach
Regulatory milestone paves the way for launch of Aspire Yield, enabling businesses to earn attractive returns on idle cash balances
HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 April 2026 – Aspire, the finance stack for global founders, today announced that its subsidiary, AFT HK Treasury Limited, has been granted Type 1 (dealing in securities), Type 4 (advising on securities), and Type 9 (asset management) licences by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong.
The licence marks a significant milestone in the company’s expansion of financial services in Hong Kong, paving the way for the upcoming launch of Aspire Yield, an investment product designed to help businesses earn returns on their idle cash. Specifically, businesses in Hong Kong will be able to:
- Maximise returns – Earn yield on idle multi-currency balances through investments in highly rated, professional-grade money market funds.
- Maintain liquidity – Access funds without the rigid lock-up periods typically associated with traditional fixed deposits.
- Zero barriers to entry – With no minimum investment requirements, businesses can start with any amount.
Aspire Yield was first introduced in Singapore in August 2025 and has since added more than US $5 million in AUM each week.
“This licence allows us to tackle long-standing treasury challenges where competitive investment options have often been out of reach for smaller businesses, requiring large minimum balances, manual cash management, and complex banking relationships that typically favour larger corporations,” said Andrea Baronchelli, co-founder and CEO of Aspire. “Businesses need their capital to work harder, but they also need immediate access when opportunities or challenges arise – we want to make every dollar more productive.”
Hong Kong has quickly emerged as one of Aspire’s fastest-growing markets. Over the past year, the company has recorded 3.3X growth in the city, driven by strong adoption among startups and digitally native businesses operating across multiple markets.
Hashtag: #Aspire
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
About Aspire
Aspire is the all-in-one finance platform for modern businesses globally, which has helped over 50,000 companies save time and money with international payments, treasury, expense, payable, and receivable management solutions – accessible via a single, user-friendly account. Headquartered in Singapore, Aspire has 600+ employees across nine countries, clients in 30+ markets, and is backed by global top-tier VCs, including Sequoia, Lightspeed, Y-Combinator, Tencent, and PayPal.
– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/aspire-secures-securities-and-asset-management-licences-from-hong-kongs-securities-and-futures-commission/
Some schools struggling with drinking water compliance
Source: Radio New Zealand
2024 data shows drinking water suppliers serving 80,000 people had positive tests for E coli. RNZ
The water regulator is satisfied with the approach taken by more than a dozen rural schools, after they had E coli breaches in their water supplies.
The Water Services Authority – Taumata Arowai data from 2024 shows drinking water suppliers serving 80,000 people had positive tests.
There were 38 water suppliers that had positive tests and did not issue a warning, and 18 of those where small rural schools.
Head of regulatory Steve Tayor told Nine to Noon he was satisfied no one was put at risk, but expects suppliers to investigate how it occurred to prevent it from happening again.
In some cases it was possible to isolate the part of the network that had tested positive for E coli, he said.
“In that situation you don’t actually need to issue a boil water notice because there are no consumers affected by it.”
In a school where part of its network tested positive for E coli for example, it would be possible to disconnect the water supply, he said.
“If it’s a holiday period that’s entirely appropriate and that avoids the risk, so if it’s over a weekend you can just disconnect the supply at that time when there are no pupils in that school.”
Taylor said they were seeing a disproportionate number of schools with positive E coli results and they want to see the numbers come down.
“We’d also expect to see in each case the investigation behind what is the reason for that E coli, starting to identify the sorts of improvements and changes needed within those supplies to ensure that actually those E coli readings don’t happen again in the future.”
The Ministry of Education was working to undertake a number of condition assessments across those schools, he said.
“The condition assessment that they’ve been undertaking has involved going around, looking at each case, identifying where the problems in the treatment is and then identifying what the work required is to resolve that.”
The schools under the spotlight had a mix of rooftop collection from rainwater collection and tanks and some had bores as well, he said.
The basic treatment requirements were similar for each, he said.
He said they had tried to make it easier for schools to comply by introducing “acceptable solutions”.
“It’s an alternative to complying with the drinking water rules and an acceptable solution, it’s a smaller unit, it’s basically got your UV treatment that destroys your protozoa and bacteria, it’s got filtration that removes some of the main sediment out and then it can pass through.”
That avoids the need for managing chlorine, for example, which could be difficult in a school situation, as well as reducing ongoing maintenance costs and making it far simpler for schools, he said.
Water NZ chief executive Gillian Blythe told Nine to Noon it was important to look at whether organisations had barriers in place to protect against E coli.
The Water Services Authority – Taumata Arowai, in 2023 wrote to a number of councils to say they did not have the multiple barriers that were necessary in place, she said.
“So you didn’t have your bacteria, you didn’t have your protozoa, you didn’t have your residual disinfection, your chlorine arrangements.”
Since then councils had been investing in water processes, she said.
That had not necessarily been happening in small rural schools, she said.
Blythe said there were capital and capability components in getting school’s drinking water up to scratch and Water NZ had had good engagement with the Ministry of Education.
Water NZ advised schools throughout the country in both city and rural areas to flush their taps after the weekend or after the holidays.
“In some parts of the country there are lead fittings that are there, there might be dust that might have somehow got in, it’s got a bit stagnant, you know flush your taps, there are those simple things that we can do to keep us all safe.”
The Ministry of Education says it has come to an agreement with the regulator to reach a target of 64 schools reaching full drinking water compliance by that end June 2027 deadline.
It says it is on target to ensure all schools have the infrastructure they need to provide safe drinking water by 2030.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/some-schools-struggling-with-drinking-water-compliance/
Country’s biggest bank raises interest rates
Source: Radio New Zealand
ANZ. RNZ / Marika Khabazi
ANZ, the country’s largest bank, is increasing some of its fixed home loan and term investment rates.
It is raising its home loan rates on terms between one year and five years by 10 basis points or 20 basis points.
The two-year special rate lifts from 5.09 percent to 5.29 percent and the one-year rate from 4.59 percent to 4.69 percent.
Term deposits of between 18 months and five years will lift by either 20 or 10 basis points.
It follows an update to the bank’s official cash rate forecast this week.
Chief economist Sharon Zollner said she now expected the OCR could rise three times this year, starting as soon as July.
ANZ managing director for personal banking Grant Knuckey said the changes reflected moves in wholesale interest rates.
After a fall in late March, the two-year swap rate has risen from about 2.85 percent at the start of the month to more than 3 percent.
Markets are pricing in the likelihood that interest rates will have to rise to counteract inflation due to fuel price rises driven by the Middle East conflict.
“Lower interest rates have flowed through to customers with around 82 percent of our home loans on a rate below 5 percent,” Knuckey said.
More than 44 percent of ANZ home loan customers were ahead on their repayments by six months or more.
Knuckey urged anyone with concerns to contact their bank sooner rather than later.
“People shouldn’t be nervous about talking to their bank, we’re here to support customers with the various options available to them.
“There are steps you can take to manage your home loan and things you can do to help relieve some financial pressure,” he said.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/countrys-biggest-bank-raises-interest-rates/
Huawei Cloud Introduces Token Service in Asia Pacific
Source: Media Outreach
JAKARTA, INDONESIA – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 April 2026 – Huawei Cloud AI Boost Day, themed “Agentic AI Practice”, was successfully held in Jakarta. At the event, Huawei Cloud announced the official launch of its MaaS service in Asia Pacific.
Huawei Cloud MaaS grand launch across Asia Pacific
Following the rollout of AI Compute Service in Hong Kong (China), Thailand, Indonesia, and Singapore in 2025, Huawei Cloud MaaS (Model-as-a-Service) is now available, leveraging Huawei’s in-house acceleration engine to support mainstream models and provide customers with stable and high-quality token services.
Huawei Cloud continues to strengthen its collaboration with high-quality open-source models in the industry. Six models from three categories—GLM, DeepSeek, and Qwen—are the first to be supported by MaaS. These models are designed for two major application scenarios: intelligent Q&A and AI coding. They offer one-click access and out-of-the-box model hosting services, covering the entire lifecycle of model management from deployment to inference, fine-tuning, and evaluation. With elastic compute and pay-per-use billing, enterprises and developers can quickly integrate AI capabilities into their service systems without having to worry about the underlying infrastructure. This makes AI accessible to everyone.
Notably, this release includes support for the latest GLM-5 model. GLM-5 has attained state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance in coding and agent capabilities, making it an ideal general-purpose agent foundation for complex system engineering and long-text agent tasks in enterprise environments.
Huawei Cloud’s long-term strategic investment in AI has resulted in a comprehensive suite of AI solutions, including CloudMatrix AI Infra, MaaS, ModelArts (a model training and inference platform), CodeArts (a coding agent), AgentArts (an agent platform), and DataArts (a data agent).
CodeArts and AgentArts will be launched outside the Chinese mainland in the second half of 2026.
Huawei Cloud has established an optimized cloud infrastructure network in the Asia Pacific region. This network comprises five Regions and 18 availability zones (AZs) located in Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, and the Philippines, ensuring a 50 ms access latency. Additionally, in Malaysia, Huawei Cloud and partners have jointly built a local cloud.
Huawei Cloud AI Compute Service have helped many Asia Pacific customers elevate their cloud journey from simply migrating to the cloud to using AI well. They have benefited from improved productivity and better adaptation to changing environments.
iFLYTEK, a leading intelligent voice and AI company, selected Singapore as the first destination for its global expansion strategy in 2023, naturally extending its collaboration with Huawei Cloud from China to a global scale. Huawei Cloud AI Compute Service helped iFLYTEK quickly deploy their large language model training resources within two weeks. The training remained stable for 60 days without interruption, ensuring zero faults during the release of major versions.
In Vietnam, Green and Smart Mobility (GSM), an emerging green mobility platform, migrated its core operations platform to Huawei Cloud to reduce costs, enhance efficiency, and achieve multi-cloud flexibility. GSM has developed a comprehensive fleet management platform using AI and IoT. By utilizing Huawei Cloud IoTDA and ModelArts AI technologies, GSM analyzes violations and generates risk alerts to ensure driver and passenger safety, thereby fulfilling its mission of promoting green and safe transportation.
Huawei Cloud will continue to invest in AI innovation and provide a secure, stable, and intelligent cloud foundation to help enterprises in Asia Pacific achieve sustainable business growth in the AI era.
https://www.huaweicloud.com
https://www.linkedin.com/company/huaweicloudapac
https://x.com/huaweicloudapac
https://www.facebook.com/HuaweiCloudAPAC
Wechat: 亚太华为云
Hashtag: #HuaweiCloud #MaaS #AI #Token
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/huawei-cloud-introduces-token-service-in-asia-pacific/
New graffiti inciting racial violence found in Auckland’s Royal Oak
Source: Radio New Zealand
A threatening message has been found inside a public toilet in the Auckland suburb of Royal Oak. RNZ/ Blessen Tom
A new piece of graffiti carrying a violent, anti-Indian message has been discovered in Auckland, heightening concerns after a similar incident over the weekend.
The latest graffiti was found inside a public toilet on Campbell Road in Royal Oak, just days after an identical message appeared near Papatoetoe Central School.
It’s unclear when the graffiti could have been written.
Police were investigating the Papatoetoe incident as a hate-motivated crime.
Inspector Jim Wilson, commander of the Auckland City East Area, confirmed a report of willful damage had been made in the Royal Oak area on Wednesday morning.
“Police take these threats and hate-motivated crime seriously,” Wilson said.
“We will now assess this report for further action and lines of enquiry.”
Marcel Morgan, manager area operations for Howick and Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Local Boards, said the graffiti in Royal Oak was removed by Auckland Council contractors on Wednesday.
“The council strongly condemns any offensive or racist graffiti,” Morgan said.
Sher Singh, president of Migrant Rights Network NZ Supplied
Sher Singh, president of Migrant Rights Network NZ, told RNZ he received a photo of the Royal Oak graffiti from a friend.
“I’m a bit disheartened and shocked,” Singh said.
“I’ve been living in New Zealand for 30 odd years, and I’ve never seen anything like this before.
“It’s emotionally draining and it is very concerning that it is appearing in more places.”
Singh said it was time for stronger action.
“It is time for the community to put pressure on the government and find a solution to this because if we don’t do it now, it’s just going to continue,” he said.
Narendra Bhana, former president of the New Zealand Indian Central Association, said the message was “deeply disturbing”.
Bhana’s family has been living in New Zealand for multiple generations.
“This is not simply an act of vandalism,” he said.
“It is a message of hate that, if ignored or minimised, risks normalising something far more harmful than words on a footpath or a public place.”
Narendra Bhana, former president of the New Zealand Indian Central Association, said the message was “deeply disturbing” RNZ / Blessen Tom
Bhana said New Zealand had built an international reputation as a country that stood for inclusion, fairness and unity.
“But these values are not self-sustaining, and they require active commitment from all of us, especially when tested,” he said.
He said the incidents should be met with a firm and constructive response.
“Acts of hate must be clearly condemned, and those responsible must be held accountable,” he said.
“At the same time, we must strengthen community engagement, invest in education that promotes understanding and ensure that our young people grow up in an environment where diversity is respected, not targeted.”
Ethnic Communities Minister Mark Mitchell said that racism had no place in New Zealand.
“Violent or intimidating messages like this are despicable, and I’m pleased to see that police are taking them seriously,” Mitchell said.
National’s Maungakiekie MP, Greg Fleming, also said the discovery of the graffiti at Royal Oak was “deeply disturbing”.
“Maungakiekie is one of the most diverse electorates in the country, and that diversity was part of who we are and what makes our communities strong.” Fleming said.
“What concerns me most is the pattern we are now seeing,” he said.
“Violent threats in Royal Oak and Papatoetoe, protests targeting Sikh communities and the [recent] “remigration” banner outside the Mahatma Gandhi Centre all point to a rise in behaviour designed to provoke fear and division. That is simply not acceptable.”
Priyanca Radhakrishnan, a Labour MP who won the Maungakiekie electorate seat in 2020, said the threatening messages were causing Indian New Zealanders “significant distress”.
“Threats of violence and ethnicity-based hate and vandalism have no place here,” Radhakrishnan said.
“Indian New Zealanders are part of the social and economic fabric of New Zealand and have been for generations. They continue to contribute significantly to New Zealand and many of them live in Royal Oak.”
Race Relations Commissioner Melissa Derby on Monday said she had been seeing increasing anti-migrant rhetoric, including towards the country’s Indian community.
“I know from my engagements with many ethnic communities the fear these messages generate for people,” Derby said.
“Regarding this particular incident, I am deeply concerned about the violent racist rhetoric and its impact on community members’ sense of safety and belonging. … Everyone should be able to live in their community, work or attend a school in this country free from racial harassment and discrimination.”
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/new-graffiti-inciting-racial-violence-found-in-aucklands-royal-oak/
Typhoon Sinlaku weakening but still lashing Guam and Northern Marianas
Source: Radio New Zealand
Online interactive weather platform Zoom Earth shows satellite image of Typhoon Sinlaku tracking away from the Northern Mariana Islands on Wednesday evening. 15 April 2026 Zoom Earth
Guamanians are being urged to continue sheltering in place as Typhoon Sinlaku slowly tracks away from the neighbouring Northern Mariana Islands.
The US National Weather Service in Guam says typhoon Sinlaku is weakening as it slowly moves away from Saipan and Tinan in the CNMI.
Despite the storm weakening residents in Guam on Wednesday evening were still being warned to continue sheltering in place as the slow moving storm’s effects continued to be felt across Guam and the CNMI.
Jenna Blas stationed in a concrete bunker in Guam with the Joint Information Warning Centre says Guam remains in condition readiness one, the highest alert level, and everyone is to remain indoors until the all clear is given.
“So at this time we are still expecting some of those extended peak conditions from this really slow moving Typhoon Sinlaku, Jenna Blas said.
“We are still expecting to experience damaging winds of 39 miles per hour or more and really continuing well into this evening.
Ms Blas said the Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero has declared that Guam will remain at the highest alert level through the evening to ensure public safety and allow for emergency responders to conduct essential assessments.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/typhoon-sinlaku-weakening-but-still-lashing-guam-and-northern-marianas/
AI Compute, Simplified: ST Telemedia Global Data Centres and SuperX Debut AI Innovation Centre in Singapore
Source: Media Outreach
Strategic partnership combines STT GDC’s resilient infrastructure with SuperX AI orchestration to enable enterprises to move from idea to pilot in weeks
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 April 2026 – ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC), one of the world’s fastest growing data centre colocation providers headquartered in Singapore, and SuperX AI Technology Limited (NASDAQ: SUPX), an emerging full-stack AI Data Centre infrastructure solutions provider, today announced the launch of an AI Innovation Centre in Singapore following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the parties in January.
[Pictured from left to right] Mingcheng Lim, Country Head, ST Telemedia Global Data Centres; Kenny Sng, Chief Technology Officer, SuperX
Hosted at the STT Singapore 5 facility in Tai Seng, the centre provides a dedicated environment designed to help enterprises fast-track their AI journey from experimentation to production-ready scale. Reflecting immediate market demand, the centre has already onboarded an initial cohort of users. These early adopters are leveraging the centre’s high-performance compute for complex workloads such as advanced modelling and large-scale data simulations.
The partnership arrives as new research from STT GDC indicates a critical AI infrastructure gap across Singapore as well as Asia. The study, titled “Mind the Gap: Bridging the AI Infrastructure Divide,” surveyed more than 600 leaders across nine Asian markets and found that the majority of organisations are stalled in the ‘Building’ phase of AI maturity due to a lack of foundational infrastructure. The AI Innovation Centre directly addresses these bottlenecks by providing ready, local, and enterprise-grade AI compute.
Enterprise-Grade Infrastructure for Rapid Innovation
Engineered for short-term AI workloads, including pilots, proof of concepts (PoCs), and model benchmarking, the centre combines STT GDC’s resilient, AI-ready facilities with SuperX’s AI hardware and software. This reduces the operational complexity that often causes AI pilots to stall, while enabling enterprises to innovate with significantly lower upfront investment and risk.
Key features of the AI Innovation Centre include:
- Next-Gen Compute: Direct access to the latest NVIDIA Blackwell GPU infrastructure, featuring 192GB HBM3e VRAM per GPU.
- High-Performance Architecture: Servers configured with Intel Xeon Gold 6767P CPUs and 400G InfiniBand networking for high-speed data processing.
- Frictionless Deployment: A dedicated User Portal and Service Catalogue that allows teams to rapidly provision standard GPU plans.
- Data Sovereignty and Security: All workloads run locally in Singapore within a secure, resilient environment, meeting the data residency requirements of regulated industries.
- Pilot Access Program: Qualified customers receive a 14-day free trial to validate performance, compatibility, and cost efficiency—enabling confident, low-risk decisions before scaling to production.
“The foundation of any successful AI strategy is dependable, scalable infrastructure,” said Mingcheng Lim, Country Head, Singapore at ST Telemedia Global Data Centres. “By combining our operational excellence with SuperX’s advanced orchestration capabilities, we are providing a strategic blueprint for organisations to move past the pilot phase. This centre is more than just a testing ground; it is a launchpad for enterprises to achieve measurable return on investment and long-term AI leadership.”
“Our goal is to provide immediate AI capability,” said Kenny Sng, CTO of SuperX AI Technology Limited. “Many enterprises struggle with the cost and complexity of setting up dedicated AI environments. The AI Innovation Centre reduces that friction, enabling teams to deploy models from a built-in catalogue or third-party marketplaces in days, not months. We are bridging the gap between infrastructure and real-world AI outcomes.”
From Pilot to Production-Ready Scale
The AI Innovation Centre is now open to enterprises, regional businesses, and Institutions of Higher Learning (IHLs) offering a 14-day free trial to validate performance, cost, and feasibility. This showcase facility allows organisations to launch a pilot in weeks, providing the secure, enterprise-grade foundation necessary to move from testing to measurable outcomes with confidence.
Beyond initial validation, the centre offers options for full production, hybrid and private AI deployment models, as well as flexible scaling options within STT GDC’s global footprint. This enables organisations to establish a long-term infrastructure partnership that ensures continued innovation and operational resilience.
For more information about the AI Innovation Centre, please visit https://www.superx.sg/cloud/aiic or https://www.sttelemediagdc.com/built-for-ai/turn-aI-ambition-into-scale
Hashtag: #STTGDC #SUPERX
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/ai-compute-simplified-st-telemedia-global-data-centres-and-superx-debut-ai-innovation-centre-in-singapore/
New Research from ST Telemedia Global Data Centres Reveals Asia’s AI Ambitions Hampered by Infrastructure and Talent Gaps
Source: Media Outreach
Singapore leads the region in maturity but faces critical scaling bottlenecks.
SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 15 April 2026 – ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC), one of the world’s fastest-growing data centre colocation service providers headquartered in Singapore, today announced the findings of a new regional research study, Mind the Gap: Bridging the AI Infrastructure Readiness Divide, examining how organisations across Asia are progressing from AI ambition to execution. Commissioned by STT GDC with research partner Ecosystm, the study surveyed more than 600 enterprise and digital-native leaders across nine Asian markets: India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.
High adoption, limited readiness across Asia
The report reveals that AI ambition across Asia is high, with nearly 90% of organisations having embarked on their AI journeys. However, a significant 71% remain in the “Builder” stage of maturity, where initial AI pilots struggle to scale into production environments capable of delivering consistent and measurable return on investment (ROI). In contrast, only 17% of organisations are considered “future ready”, having invested in scalable infrastructure, mature data governance and specialised operational expertise, highlighting a widening readiness gap across the region.
Challenges faced by the Builders
Across Asia, the research identifies a reinforcing cycle that keeps many organisations stuck in pilot mode. AI initiatives are often launched on infrastructure that cannot scale to production, limiting their ability to demonstrate measurable ROI and making it harder to justify further investment in purpose-built, high-density environments. This challenge is compounded by gaps in in-house expertise, with many organisations lacking the specialist operational skills required to manage increasingly complex AI infrastructure at scale.
“Across Asia, organisations are moving quickly from experimentation to implementation, but many are discovering that AI success now depends less on training models and more on foundations,” said Chris Street, Group Chief Revenue Officer of ST Telemedia Global Data Centres. “Without scalable infrastructure and operational readiness in place, it becomes difficult to convert early AI ambition into consistent business value.”
The Sustainability Blind Spot
Despite rising energy and cooling demands driven by AI workloads, sustainability considerations remain secondary for most organisations when evaluating infrastructure options. Although 27% of organisations say ESG goals will actively shape or be central to their future plans, 64% of organisations across Asia continue to prioritise performance or cost, even as power density, thermal efficiency and long‑term total cost of ownership become increasingly critical factors in scaling AI responsibly.
A disconnect between what organisations want and what they need
The study also highlights a persistent disconnect between how organisations evaluate infrastructure partners and the capabilities they actually need to scale AI. Across Asia, organisations continue to prioritise baseline requirements like security and reliability, despite identifying operational expertise, scalability and cost efficiency as their most significant challenges.
Singapore: ahead of the region, but facing a new constraint
These challenges are visible across the region, but they manifest differently in more mature markets. Singapore stands out against the regional baseline with a significantly larger share of organisations having progressed beyond early-stage pilots. While only 17% of organisations across Asia are considered future‑ready, 40% of Singapore organisations have reached the Integrator stage, reflecting stronger early execution and deployment capability.
However, the study also finds that the final step to leadership remains the most difficult. Only 3% of Singapore organisations have reached the “Leader” stage of AI infrastructure maturity, signalling that even in Asia’s most mature AI market, the transition from integration to full leadership remains difficult.
Scaling, not adoption, is now the key challenge
In Singapore, where adoption is more advanced, the constraints have shifted. Limited infrastructure headroom, shortages in specialised operational expertise and continued investment discipline are now emerging as the primary barriers to scaling AI workloads and sustaining leadership.
“For Singapore, AI adoption is relatively mature; the defining challenge now is scaling deployments fast enough to support real‑world demand,” said Mingcheng Lim, Country Head – Singapore, ST Telemedia Global Data Centres. “Whether the country can maintain its lead in the region will depend on whether infrastructure capacity, specialist expertise and investment approaches can evolve at the same pace as AI workloads.”
Sustainability awareness has yet to shape infrastructure choices
In Singapore, regulatory expectations have driven relatively high awareness of sustainability issues. However, sustainability continues to rank among the lowest priorities when organisations evaluate infrastructure providers, highlighting a gap between awareness and action, even as power density, thermal efficiency and long‑term cost efficiency become increasingly important to scaling AI responsibly.
The mismatch between wants and needs persists
As with the wider region, Singapore organisations continue to evaluate infrastructure providers based on familiar baseline criteria, even as their scaling challenges point to a growing need for specialist expertise, speed to scale and sustainable, high‑density infrastructure capability.
These findings suggest that Asia’s next phase of AI progress will be defined not by ambition alone, but by execution capability. For Singapore, sustaining regional leadership will depend on infrastructure strategies that support scale, resilience and speed, enabling organisations to convert early AI momentum into enduring competitive advantage.
To download the report, Mind the Gap: Bridging the AI Infrastructure Readiness Divide, please visit: https://www.sttelemediagdc.com/resources/ai-readiness-assessment-report.
Hashtag: #STTelemedia #STTGDC
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.
LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/15/new-research-from-st-telemedia-global-data-centres-reveals-asias-ai-ambitions-hampered-by-infrastructure-and-talent-gaps/
Moana Pasifika ‘no longer viable’ beyond 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season
Source: Radio New Zealand
Tevita Latu of Moana Pasifika, Blues v Moana Pasifika, round 5 Super Rugby Pacific match at Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand on Sunday 15 March 2026. Alan Lee / www.photosport.nz
Moana Pasifika has officially announced it has made the “difficult and heartbreaking decision to disband” at the conclusion of the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season, confirming media reports about the franchise’s demise.
In late February, Moana Pasifika CEO Debbie Sorensen told RNZ Pacific the club was “here to stay” despite its funding struggles and that “we’re not going to give up”.
“What we’ve demonstrated in the last five years is that we are here to stay,” she said, calling on fans and supporters to “stick with us”.
However, things have moved quickly for the club, which has struggled both on and off-field this season.
“Moana Pasifika announces the difficult decision to disband its Super Rugby team after the conclusion of the 2026 season, thanking the community for its unwavering support,” the club said in a statement on Wednesday.
“After 5 years of competing in the Super Rugby competition and engaging with communities, Moana Pasifika have made the difficult and heartbreaking decision to disband their Super Rugby franchise following the conclusion of the 2026 season.”
The club said the decision comes after extensive consideration of the financial, operational, and strategic realities facing the franchise as well as professional rugby in New Zealand.
“Despite the tireless dedication of players, staff, and supporters, it is no longer viable to continue the franchise at this level of competition,” the club said.
Moana Pasifika chair Dr Kiki Maoate said it is one of the hardest decisions they have ever made.
“Our commitment now is to ensure a smooth transition for everyone affected and to celebrate our legacy by finishing the season strong.”
In 2021, the Moana Pasifika Charitable Trust was founded by Savae La’auli Sir Michael Jones and Tuifa’asisina Sir Bryan Williams, with a mission to create the first professional Pacific rugby team.
Moana Pasifika fans, crowd and supporters, Hurricanes v Moana Pasifika, round 16 of the Super Rugby Pacific competition at Sky Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand on Saturday 31 May 2025. Elias Rodriguez / www.photosport.nz
In 2022, Moana Pasifika played its first Super Rugby game in 2022.
“We acknowledge our loyal fans for standing by us through the highs and lows – your support has meant everything to us, especially our players,” Dr Maoate said.
“We ask that you stand by your team today.”
Moana has one win from nine games this season, and sits on the bottom of the table.
Head coach Fa’alogo Tana Umaga is off contract at the end of the season and heading for an All Blacks assistant position.
Early this season, Fa’alogo called on World Rugby to provide more financial support to Moana.
“We don’t get funding from them anymore, and that’s their decision,” he said.
“But if you look around the world, around how many Pacific Island players are playing in all these different countries, you don’t want to lose sight of who we represent and what we can do for this game.”
The side finished 12th in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, 11th in 2024 and seventh last year.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/moana-pasifika-no-longer-viable-beyond-2026-super-rugby-pacific-season/
World Cup berth on the line as Football Ferns host PNG Bilums in the Oceania Qualifiers
Source: Radio New Zealand
Football Ferns v PNG Bilums
Kick-off: 7pm Wednesday 15 April
North Harbour Stadium, Auckland
Direct qualification to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil is up for grabs on Wednesday night as Papua New Guinea take on hosts New Zealand in Auckland.
The two-sides defeated Fiji and American Samoa at the weekend in Hamilton to bring them one step away from tournament glory and a berth in the World Cup finals.
The Papua New Guinea Bilums defeated American Samoa 1-nil in the semi-finals. Supplied / Phototek NZ
The Papua New Guinea Bilums defeated American Samoa 1-nil on Saturday, earning them a spot in the Oceania Qualifiers Final.
If they beat New Zealand, the team will qualify for their first ever FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Head Coach Ericson Komeng said the players have made great sacrifices to make it this far.
“The girls deserve to be here. They’ve been working so hard for the last couple of months. They’ve put hard work in, both on and off the pitch.
“Some of the girls are mothers in the team who left their families to be here with the team. It’s sometimes so hard for them, but like I said, hard work has got them here.”
Papua New Guinea have been runner-ups for the OFCs direct qualification spot three times before.
While acknowledging New Zealand’s Football Ferns are a tough team, Komeng said they are prepared to dig deep for the win.
“Well in football anything can happen. If we can focus on ourselves and have that anger to challenge New Zealand, they’re a tough side to play against, but in football it’s unpredictable.
“We just go in this as a team with a positive mind and see where we go”
PNG Bilums captain Ramona Padio said making it to the World Cup would be a dream come true.
“It means a lot to me for us to come this far and get to the grandfinal,” she said.
“We are very happy to be going into such a significant game. It’s been a long-time dream for all of us so we have to give it our best and face the challenge tomorrow.”
New Zealand’s Football Ferns defeated Fiji 5-nil in Hamilton. Supplied / Phototek NZ
Meanwhile, tournament favourites, the Football Ferns, are aiming for their seventh World Cup appearance.
Captain Kate Taylor said she is hungry for more.
“It would be amazing! Last time I kind of got a little taste of it and so I think leaving that World Cup, I just wanted more. And I think that’s kind of what helps push people through – that little taste of things or wanting to go one better and so that’s where I sit.”
Having won all four of their qualifier matches so far, the Football Ferns are coming in hot with 24 total goals.
Coach Michael Mayne said while they have been dominating competition, they need to stay grounded and alert ahead of Wednesdays final.
“The competition in the team has been really important, but I think we just really focus on consistency in what we’re doing, so that’s what we’re aiming for,” Mayne said.
“I think you’ll see that in the squad that starts that match, we want to make sure we take little steps. And some of the stuff we were showcasing the other night, because we can be better and that’s the challenge.”
The winner will secure a ticket Brazil, while the loser will have a second chance to try and qualify through intercontinental play-offs.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/world-cup-berth-on-the-line-as-football-ferns-host-png-bilums-in-the-oceania-qualifiers/
Whistleblower sparks investigation into medical scanning services
Source: Radio New Zealand
RNZ has reported extensively on districts struggling with technology and radiology workforce shortages. (File photo) 123rf
A whistleblower sparked an investigation by a top lawyer into Health New Zealand’s medical scanning services.
The agnecy said Michael Heron KC would lead an independent investigation after a protected disclosure about radiology services.
An investigation three years ago found patients had had suffered harm for years from poor radiology tech at Hawke’s Bay Hospital, while RNZ reported extensively on the Bay and other districts’ struggles with technology and radiology workforce shortages.
“We can confirm that the board has commissioned an independent investigation into issues raised in a protected disclosure in relation to radiology services,” board chairperson Dr Levy and deputy board chairperson Dr Andrew Connolly said in a statement.
They would not confirm if the findings would be made public.
“Relevant Health NZ staff are being interviewed as part of the process. We can’t comment further while this confidential investigation is underway.”
The senior doctors’ union, the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists (ASMS), said several doctors and nurses in Hawke’s Bay had been invited to talk to Heron and it was offering them support.
The Protected Disclosures law gave protection against retaliation.
In a note to members that RNZ had seen the ASMS said, “You may be aware that Michael Heron KC is conducting an investigation, at the request of Health New Zealand’s Board, following a protected disclosure concerning radiology services in Hawkes Bay.
“He will be visiting Hawkes Bay Hospital later this month.”
Association executive director Sarah Dalton said, “We know that there is an inquiry underway as a result of a protected disclosure.
“And we understand in the Terms of Reference is an undertaking from [HNZ chair] Lester Levy that the inquiry will be made public but that hasn’t happened.
“A number of clinicians – doctors and nurses – have been invited to talk to Heron. We are offering advice and support.”
Heron was a former Solicitor-General and had led government inquiries into misuse of Census data, and judicial behaviour, and culture reviews such as for the Law Society.
The Protected Disclosures Act 2022 protected an employee or former employee who in good faith reports “serious wrongdoing that they believe on reasonable grounds is, or has been, occurring in their workplace”, according to Employment NZ.
Health New Zealand had for years struggled with risks to patients and workers in various districts from outdated and fragmented radiology technology systems, stressing out staff who risked missing vital scanning information and raising the risk of misdiagnoses.
In 2024, documents sought by RNZ revealed hospitals across the central North Island were struggling to overhaul unstable medical scanning technology with faults rising rapidly.
In 2023 HNZ released a report it had tried to keep secret under whistleblowing laws, that found patients had been harmed by “unsafe” processes and inefficient radiology medical imaging services at Hawke’s Bay Hospital.
This had dragged on for years despite red flags raised with management. Consultant radiologist Dr Bryan Wolf triggered the investigation as a whistleblower.
Work had been underway for several years to upgrade the tech nationwide.
RNZ in February sought an update on that work in an Official Information Act request but a response had been delayed by HNZ to May.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/whistleblower-sparks-investigation-into-medical-scanning-services/
Opposition open to black market tobacco taskforce, cautious of fear-mongering
Source: Radio New Zealand
A report into the illicit tobacco trade has been released by Retail NZ. 123RF
The opposition is voicing its cautious support for a crack down on black market tobacco, but warns the tobacco industry itself could be stoking fears.
A report into the illicit tobacco trade, released by Retail NZ on Tuesday, pushed for the formation of a unified response from Customs, Police, Health NZ and Inland Revenue.
Its chief executive says we need to act quickly, but the prime minister isn’t convinced.
Chief executive Carolyn Young said there needed to be a dedicated, collaborative effort.
“You also have to have the ability to arrest people, you’ve got to have the ability to seize product, you’ve got to have the ability to close the store,” she said.
“If we really want to get on top of this we need to attack it now, with dedicated resources, and funding appropriately.”
An RNZ investigation found multiple shops operating in Auckland selling the cheap smokes, with one charging just $13 for a pack, less than half the excise duty required by law to be paid.
Importing cigarettes without paying the excise duty is illegal, and offenders can be charged with defrauding customs revenue.
It was also illegal for retailers to sell illicit cigarettes, with offenders facing a six-month prison sentence, a $20,000 fine or both.
Young said she was open to legislative changes to make a taskforce more effective.
“Without having appropriate penalties that would deter criminals from wanting to continue down this pathway, then they’re just going to continue…”
Chris Hipkins says he was yet to see proof that an illicit tobacco market existed in New Zealand. RNZ / Mark Papalii
Labour leader Chris Hipkins is supportive, but sceptical.
“We’re certainly open to looking at how we can support a crack down on the illicit tobacco trade,” he said.
He didn’t believe the black market was as big in New Zealand as it was overseas.
“I’m also very mindful that often a lot of the fear-mongering around the illicit tobacco trade is actually stoked by the tobacco companies themselves, but is there more we can do to ensure that we don’t have illicit tobacco trade in New Zealand, if there is a need for more action there, we’re very open to it.”
Hipkins said he was yet to see proof on an illicit market here.
“I think the key thing is we’ve got to identify what the problem is that we’re trying to solve here,” he said.
“I’ve yet to see significant evidence that there is an illicit tobacco trade in New Zealand, but if it’s out there, we do want to see it dealt with.”
In 2024, the illicit market reached 27.2 percent of total tobacco use, according to data from tobacco industry groups.
But when asked about supporting a potential taskforce, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was unenthusiastic.
“That’s not a priority for me right now,” he said.
Customs minister Casey Costello welcomed Retail NZ’s report, and told RNZ the illicit market had been a concern since she had been in the role.
“I think a joined up taskforce is a priority, is achievable, and is something that we really need, and it is consistent with my desire around organised crime to have much better connectivity between agencies.”
The minister said a joint task force would be essential, and has already sought advice around a broader “force multiplier” response from health, police, and Customs.
Police minister Mark Mitchell said he was concerned about any black market or illicit trade, which often linked back to organised crime, though said he had not read the Retail NZ report yet.
“We’ve just got to be vigilant and constantly working on ways of making sure that we don’t allow that type of black market to really become and entrenched baked in in New Zealand.”
At the moment, we were better placed than Australia, he said.
“We want to make sure that we stay there, and that we can continue to deal with these issues.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/15/opposition-open-to-black-market-tobacco-taskforce-cautious-of-fear-mongering/