Local Featured

Broadley’s back on civvy street

Jon Broadley spent part of his last day as a Brigadier talking up the competitive advantages New Zealand enjoys through its military. He described New Zealand’s peacekeeping efforts – part of the Defence Force’s critical…

A change of direction

The ever-patient editor of this worthy news sheet has asked me to pause my freely wandering opinion piece programme for several weeks to allow me to concentrate on matters pertaining to the forthcoming local body…

Ten go to conference

Waipā District Council told The News it was sending one staff member – chief executive Steph O’Sullivan – to last week’s local government conference in Christchurch. But a day after The News was published, the…

‘News’ prompts call for change

A local government electoral reform group recommendation – endorsed by councils nationwide – can be traced back to The News article published after the 2022 election, which revealed Waipā ratepayers paid a Christchurch company $9.23…

Upston lobbied over expressway ramps

Cambridge Chamber of Commerce has intensified its support for on-off ramps at Tīrau Road, south of the town, and is urging Taupō MP Louise Upston to join the campaign. Chamber chief executive Kelly Bouzaid sent…

Olympians take on African roads

When Olympic silver medallist Nicole Shields found a gap in her competition schedule, she saw an opportunity to pursue a long-held dream: a major cycling adventure. Shields, 25, fresh off her podium finish in the…

Letter to the Editor – 24 July 2025

Needs not wants Waipa District Council has more than $330 million in largely capricious debt. We don’t need town clock renovations, new toilets, cycleways, town hall upgrades, to lose carparks to PC “traffic calming” or…

Clocking off yet again…

Cambridge’s historic Town Clock is causing trouble once more, despite  Waipā District Council spending more than $720,000 on restoration works last year. The clock stopped twice last week. The first incident followed a power cut,…

A story to learn from

This week I have a cautionary scam tale that the victim is happy for me to share. In March 2025, an elderly member of our community was contacted by an unknown person on Facebook messenger….

O’Regan’s last stand

Waipā mayor Susan O’Regan launched her re-election campaign this week, announcing that if elected, it would be her final term in office. She revealed she nearly decided not to stand again due to the toll…

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