We're all just attachment junkies who desperately need love and connection, writes Deborah Hill Cone.

Auckland Mayor Len Brown hailed his first 10-year budget in 2012 as the foundation block to transform Auckland once and for all.

Jake Miller was head prefect of his school with a $40,000 scholarship to study law waiting for him.

Derryn Hinch wants to be able to turn on his mobile phone and see the names of all sex offenders in the neighbourhood.

Mother of two Jenny Daniell-Wiig used to rely on a foodbank to feed her family on a regular basis. But with help, she's made changes.

Tracing my whakapapa or family tree is something I'm looking forward to and there are some awesome people who are going to help me do it.

Jonathan Boston and Simon Chapple, authors of Child Poverty in New Zealand, rightly fume at the nonchalant political response to the finding of serious errors in measured child poverty.

Those on paid parental leave will be able to work occasionally on "keeping in touch days" without losing their entitlement under moves to increase the scheme's flexibility.

Would-be immigrants with higher-level English language skills may be given higher priority after an international review of New Zealand's migration policy.

I don't smack my kids but I don't have a problem with people who smack theirs. If that's what you're into, go for your life, writes Matt Heath.

Dequan Wright, a cocky, charming former high school football player from Richmond, California, was only 14 when he was sentenced to a year in jail.

Pregnant women are being reminded to heed dietary guidelines because not doing so can result in the death of unborn children.

If we emphasise that teenage mothers will do badly in life, they are far more likely to, writes Verity Johnson.

PM John Key has signalled possible loosening of euthanasia laws, saying he would sympathise with "speeding up of the process" of death for a terminally ill patient.

Dr Ellen Nicholson and Jenni Mace detail six ways to keep young people safe through adolescence.

Some weeks ago I called in at the small liquor store attached to the dairy around the corner from our street.

We would be immensely better off if the American dream values became instilled in our school children, as they are in America, writes Bob Jones.

Campaigners have convinced the Government that a sniff of free booze will instantly turn Kiwis into alcoholics and criminals. I'm not so sure, writes Matt Heath.

Practically everything I got angry about this year - parking rules, bigots, uptight parenting - is really just about my fear of death, writes Deborah Hill Cone.

Ghetto kid turned presidential hopeful Ben Carson is in New Zealand to help celebrate as the Duffy Books in Homes scheme turns 20.

The annual report of the Family Violence Death Review Committee shows people are most likely to die from family violence in the poorest areas, but that some die right across the decile scale.

The boy who allegedly stabbed his 11-year-old schoolmate in the head had been bullied at school for over a year and may have "just snapped", sources say.

Measuring public attitudes on everything guides policy-makers' decisions, which can only be beneficial, writes Bob Jones. But they're also manipulatable, depending on the phrasing of questions.

There are children in New Zealand living in circumstances that are not much different from those in the slums of Delhi, says Jonathan Boston.

Parents who drive while disqualified or without a licence are passing on the illegal habits to their children, a study has found.

Last week I accidentally revealed that my four-year-old son had seen Game of Thrones. It was just the opening titles, but it still made people really angry, writes Matt Heath.

More than 40 per cent of children who use the internet are victims of cybercrime while girls are more likely to be bullied online than boys, a survey has found.