A Government proposal that ratepayers help cover a potential $130m blowout in the cost of SkyCity’s new convention centre is going down poorly with several councillors.

SkyCity chief executive Nigel Morrison yesterday also confirmed his company wants a taxpayer-funded top-up and was willing to walk away from the deal if it doesn't get it.

SkyCity's bid to build the convention centre was accepted for one reason: it did not need public money. Unless it can meet its side of the bargain, all bets are off.

SkyCity is holding all the cards in the latest round of negotiations with the Government over its increasingly expensive convention centre, Labour's Economic Development spokesman David Clark says.

Design improvements, a new five-star hotel and inflation have rocketed up the SkyCity convention centre's pricetag by as much as $130 million.

SkyCity Entertainment Group, the casino and hotel operator, is in talks with the government on how to fund the increased cost of as much as $130 million to build an international convention centre in downtown Auckland.

When Rob Hamilton sat his kids down to tell them he had a new job as SkyCity's CFO, their first question was whether that meant they could go up the Sky Tower for free.

ANZ New Zealand chief executive David Hisco has enjoyed a solid pay rise, with his total remuneration lifting almost 15 per cent to $4.7 million.

Some call him creepy, others call him a piece of cultural history - either way Auckland's giant Santa has been saved from early retirement.

Santa has been saved, with a family-owned company pledging money to keep him on Auckland's main street.

SkyCity, the largest single-site private-sector employer in central Auckland, prides itself on being an "employer of choice," says its chief executive.

A sobbing SkyCity Entertainment Group employee told hundreds of shareholders of the raw deal the company had dealt her after 15 years of employment in Auckland.

SkyCity said first quarter revenues were up 6pc at its AGM today, with big revenue growth coming from Asian high rollers.

SkyCity has extended by nine months the deadline for completing construction of the controversial NZ International Convention Centre.

What would you do if more than $100,000 suddenly appeared in your bank account? An Auckland man appeared in court yesterday over his ill-fated decision.

New Zealand financial markets are expected to firm when they open today after the National Party secured the first ever outright win.

SKyCity has dramatically increased the scope of its planned Auckland convention centre, announcing plans for a five star hotel and a 50 per cent increase in spending on the project .

SkyCity Entertainment Group profits have taken a big dive, its normalised net profit for the June 30 2014 year down 8.1 per cent to $123.1 million.

Significant news will emerge from SkyCity when its annual result is revealed this morning - what will it reveal about the $402m convention centre?

SkyCity Entertainment is tidying up its corporate image, now it has hundreds of extra poker machines firmly in its sights, writes John Drinnan.

A woman undergoing chemotherapy says she felt humiliated after being turned away from a Hamilton casino because she didn't have a doctor's note saying she needed to wear a hat.

SkyCity's international convention centre is facing a tough deadline with nothing built, no land cleared so it can be built and no consents applied for so building can start.

An annual outlook on the media and entertainment industry says we're in a new era, where Kiwi consumers no longer differentiate between the traditional and the digital., writes John Drinnan.

Television New Zealand is adamant the scrapping of up to 12 journalists' jobs because of cuts at 20/20 is not linked to an expensive makeover, writes John Drinnan.

NZ shares rose yesterday, led by Goodman Property Trust, after the property investor said full-year net profit rose 72 per cent. Trade Me and Xero paced the gains while Ryman Healthcare fell ahead of reporting earnings today.

The sudden resignation of SkyCity Entertainment Group chief financial officer James Burrell has surprised institutional investors, who say they are sorry to see him go.

SkyCity CFO James Burrell, who had been seen as a potential leader, has resigned for family reasons and will return to the UK.

SkyCity Entertainment Group wants Auckland's InterCity Coachlines station out of its casino headquarters.