Napier MP Stuart Nash says he has lost confidence in the region's police district commander.

The investment of $53.5m in schools in Tauranga, Hamilton and Hawkes Bay is part of the Budget 2016.

When a thief struck in Napier, he took the one thing owner Zan Lee had installed to prevent things being taken.

This year's Farmlands Horse of the Year made a financial loss, HOY chairwoman Cynthia Bowers says.

A Hastings couple have been remanded on bail for sentence on multiple burglary charges after a series of raids on the homes of the woman's parents and one of her neighbours.

Police found a man and women in a car, with apparently recently made methamphetamine later estimated to have a street value of $70,000.

Two Hawkes Bay dairy workers were incorrectly paid and forced to borrow cash to protect their jobs.

She was described as a happy, healthy child - then bruises began to appear on the then 17-month-old's face and head.

A Hastings retiree illegally selling meat to cover the cost of his hunting trips has been netted by an undercover seafood operation.

Police are asking the public for help after an eight-tonne horse truck was stolen in Havelock North overnight on Friday.

The Government's big-spend on "social investment" is being treated with scepticism by some of those battling issues such as housing and child poverty.

A PostShop has been closed after a powder scare.

A volunteer teacher killed in a crash earlier this week had already "made her presence felt" - just two months into a year-long stint at Hohepa school.

A Hastings woman has been ordered off the roads for eight months, after confusing a car's brake with the accelerator and running over two young girls earlier this year.

A lawyer has been accused of assaulting and injuring his former girlfriend, champion triathlete Amelia Watkinson.

A moderate 4.2 earthquake has rocked the central North Island early this morning.

Severe winds, strong rain and the first dusting of snow on Mt Ruapehu are heralding cooler conditions.

The completion of a settlement of major Treaty of Waitangi claims is in the balance after a hui was held to resolve issues over its management.

Tributes to "brave" and "inspiring" man who died after suffering a head injury during a half marathon.

English comedian and devoted birdwatcher Bill Oddie is winging his way to Hawke's Bay next week to share tales of his years as a conservationist.

A man claiming to be a doctor and offering medical services has been charged with assaulting someone with a needle.

Ngapuhi leader yesterday admitted lying about whether he had shot five protected wood pigeons.

A whopper joey has been found in Hastings.

Seatbelts are thought to have helped prevent serious injury in a crash which partially blocked a major highway intersection north of Napier today.

Dean of Napier Cathedral, Dr Michael Godfrey, has denied accusations of a long term affair with an underage girl, as he vowed to clear his name.

He's just a metre tall and most of his bones have been fractured by disease. But Samuel Gibson is an inspiring inventor and adventurer.

A man was stabbed with a screwdriver and hit over the head with a table as he tried to chase an intruder out of his Hastings home.

A woman and a man are badly burnt after a gas cylinder exploded in their Hawkes Bay home, blowing out three windows.