Pike River does not have the cash to pay compensation to the families of the men who died in its mine because the money has already been spent on legal fees.

Pike River Coal's sentence of millions in fines and reparation has been welcomed by the miners' union, but they say a law change is needed to hold those responsible to account.

The state wants Pike River Coal Ltd to pay massive fines and reparation of up to $125,000 for each of the 29 men who died in a horrific workplace explosion.

Pike River family members shed tears for their loved ones today and expressed anger at Pike River Coal Ltd for not taking full responsibility for the tragedy.

The trial of former Pike River Coal chief executive Peter Whittall relating to the 2010 mining disaster that claimed 29 lives will be moved to Wellington.

"Are we seeing public sector performance and competence at an all-time low, and if so why?" asks Mai Chen. "What other breaches are occurring that we never hear about?"

A camera was lowered into the Pike River Mine on Friday, revealing more water than expected but not a great amount of damage.

Any survivors of the explosion that tore through the Pike River coalmine would have been stumbling around in the dark, a Greymouth District Court hearing has heard.

The next hearing in the case against former Pike River CEO Peter Whittall will take place in Greymouth this morning.

A crunch five-hour showdown with the Government has left Pike River mine families confident of recovering the bodies of the dead 29 workers.

Editorial: The Prime Minister's first instinct over the recovery of the 29 men killed in the Pike River mine tragedy was the right one.

John Key today fronted an angry group of Pike River Mine families in Greymouth to apologise - and pledge funding of about $10m to recover the main tunnel.

The Government says it will move as quickly as possible to implement all 16 mine safety recommendations made by the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the tragedy at Pike River Coal Mine.

Whistleblowing saves lives but for it to be effective there must be a mechanism for timely disclosure as well as protection of the whistleblower, writes Gehan Gunasekara.

Families of dead miners gather to remember 2010 disaster at Pike River.

Just after 3.44pm today a lone piper played a lament to mark the moment an explosion ripped through the Pike River Mine, claiming 29 lives.

Families of the 29 men killed in the Pike River mining disaster will today mark the second anniversary with a gathering that will include a minute's silence at 3.44pm.

It has been two years since the explosion that trapped and killed the 29 workers in the Pike River Mine. The families reflect on the fight they wish they didn't have to have.

The ramifications of an inquiry's findings into Pike River are potentially huge.

An international team of mine safety experts says the bodies of the 29 Pike River miners can be recovered.

Pike River is a Third World scandal we thought could never happen in a modern civilised country such as ours, writes Brian Rudman.