A Northland Lotto player is one of two to get a big boost to their bank account after winning $500,000 in Wednesday's draw. The winning Lotto First Division ticket was sold on MyLotto. Hastings produced the night's second winner. Powerball was not struck and rolled over to Saturday night, where the jackpot will be $14 million. A Strike player from Timaru took home the $300,00 prize money.
Minister Davis Covid-positive
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis has tested positive for Covid-19 while in Tasmania for a conference. At the beginning of the month, Davis was one of five cabinet ministers yet to test positive for Covid. At the time, he said he attributed his success in avoiding the virus to his strong Ngāpuhi genes and following the usual public health practices.
Mayor Mai at LGNZ conference
Whangārei Mayor Sheryl Mai is among the attendees of the Local Government NZ conference in Palmerston North who were given a glimpse of the thinking into the future for Local Government yesterday. Independent review panel members, Jim Palmer (chairman) and Penny Hulse shared the key issues that will be included in the panel's draft report due for release in mid-October. They outlined a need for major changes across local and central government but emphasised the importance of keeping the "local" in local government, speaking of the complexity of challenges such as climate change and the need for collaboration to tackle "gnarly challenges". Palmer said there is a need to strengthen the role and involvement of iwi, hapū and Māori overall with Te Tiriti more explicitly cited within the system of local government.
InsectBot for Mars challenge
New Zealand's young innovators have been set a challenge of creating an InsectBot capable of surviving on Mars for the chance to win an exclusive VIP tour of the Rocket Lab facilities. Students aged between 10 to 16 years will be able to submit their InsectBot design, with five finalists then chosen to go on and bring their creation to life. A panel of experts in space, entomology and robotics will decide the winner at STEMFest on October 2. Entry information for The Great InsectBot Mission Competition can be found at www.stemfest.nz. Design submissions close on August 9.
Breeding hopes for petrel pair
A pair of grey-faced petrels resident on Matakohe Island that fledged four chicks in the last four years, have returned to the island and are now in incubation mode. One of the island's rangers said they caught a glimpse of a snow-white egg while checking their burrow on July 13. Trail camera footage indicated the egg was either laid that same day or the day before, meaning it should hatch in early September.
Plunket fields flu vax questions
Whānau Āwhina Plunket nurses in Northland say they are receiving a lot of questions about immunisation, with the flu vaccination now funded for 3- to 11-year-olds. Chief Nurse Dr Zoë Tipa said it was understandable whānau had concerns about what's best for their tamariki. She directed people to Plunket's nurses, kaiāwhina, health workers and PlunketLine team, who were always happy to answer questions about vaccinations. Dr Tipa said vaccination was the best protection against the flu, as well as many other preventable diseases such as measles and whooping cough. For more information visit www.plunket.org.nz/caring-for-your-child/immunisation/diseases-we-immunise-against or www.immune.org.nz
