A South Auckland community's failure to stop a liquor store opening opposite a decile 1 school normalises the sale of alcopops to young people, says principal Robin Staples.

The Grange Golf Club wants to merge with its neighbour the Royal Auckland Golf Club, where Prime Minister John Key plays, in a $100 million deal.

Emails reveal that police bosses sought assurances in the wake of significant problems with burglary statistics in South Auckland - but they were told the system was robust.

Labour's new Manukau East MP and Parliament's first Tongan-speaking member, Jenny Salesa, says she has been overwhelmed by the tremendous support from voters.

A South Auckland man has been found not guilty of the attempted murder of police officer Sergeant Simon Tate.

An Auckland woman smashed a 77-year-old man in the head and set his legs on fire, before closing the door to his bedroom and leaving him to die, a court has heard.

The wife of a man accused of the attempted murder of a police officer has told a court how her husband's uppercuts left the victim looking like "he had no life in him".

Three teenagers have been seriously injured after an explosion was sparked when a cigarette was lit while they were inhaling butane gas in a South Auckland house.

Police are investigating how a man sustained a life-threatening injury while walking home from a family gathering in Otahuhu.

Eight people have escaped a Papatoetoe house fire this evening. Two fire crews were called out to the blaze at 8.40pm and were still at the property doing salvage work at 9.15pm.

Firefighters are currently dealing with a large chemical spill at a freight yard in South Auckland.

New Zealand First dismissed National’s first-home buyer policy – but also took a swing at Labour for being a party for “gays, lesbians and the loony intelligent left”.

Prime Minister John Key has kicked off National's election campaign in South Auckland with a boost to Government assistance for low and middle income first-time buyers.

One of the people accused of stabbing a man to death in his car can now be revealed as his wife.

Police have today said they've found the knife used to fatally stab Davinder Singh as he and his wife ate a takeaway meal inside his car in South Auckland.

One person was taken to hospital in a critical condition after a house fire in Otara last night.

Two people charged with the murder of Auckland man Davender Singh will be allowed to keep their names secret until next week.

Sensible Sentencing Trust founder Garth McVicar has been selected to run for the Conservative Party in this year’s election.

High profile violent crimes against dairy owners boiled over into frustration for the Manukau Indian Association today.

A bronze sculpture of an eel worth $30,000 has been recovered from a scrap metal yard, after thieves tried to pawn it off for little more than $300.

The Government will set up an inquiry into crime statistics if it is not satisfied police have cleaned up the mistakes in South Auckland.

Two people are dead and a homicide investigation is underway in Takanini, South Auckland.

A refusal by the police to release any details of their response to wrongly coded burglaries in South Auckland is being called a "snow-job".

Police resolved a dispute between a sex worker and a client who refused to pay - by escorting the man to a cash machine to settle his $100 bill.

An image of an Armourguard cash transit van being held up at gunpoint has been released by police in the hopes of tracking down the would-be robber.

Footage of a vicious robbery of a liquor store, during which an employee had a bottle of spirits smashed over his head, has been released.

Counties Manukau police have busted an Auckland-wide "chop shop" believed to be trading stolen cars with false plates.