Helen Clark will face her sixth ballot early tomorrow in her bid to become UN Secretary General but it will be the first one in which the permanent five will vote with a red ballot.

John Key has signalled a rapid and unexpected rise in interest rates and "something big that happens internationally" as the biggest threats to the NZ economy.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte says he would like to "slaughter" millions of addicts just like Adolf Hitler "massacred" millions of Jewish people.

Health authorities are considering plans to move mental health patient Ashley Peacock, to the dismay of his parents.

Helen Clark to continue campaign despite a drop in the latest straw poll for Secretary General of the UN.

COMMENT: Politics throws up some strange bedfellows and that's certainly the case with Helen Clark and John Key.

Helen Clark faces her fifth Security Council ballot Tuesday to choose the next UN Secretary General , amid rumours that another contender is set to join the contest.

On a clear afternoon last Monday a line of humanitarian aid trucks eased to a stop in front of a cluster of warehouses packed with aid supplies 24km outside the Syrian city of Aleppo.

COMMENT: Chairing the UN Security Council earns kudos for little effort - but Key deserves the praise.

John Key said will be blood on the hands of everybody including the Security Council and major participants in the Syria crisis if they could not find a resolution.

John Kerry has called for an immediate halt to airstrikes in Syria in an impassioned speech to the UN Security Council chaired by Prime Minister John Key.

Many New Zealanders might wonder why we bother with the UN, until they hear Key lament the council's performance on Syria in his speech.

John Key has used his speech at the UN General Assembly to go into bat for Helen Clark, advocate for the TPP and call for the Security Council to take action on Syria.

Iraq would welcome more New Zealand troops to train local forces, its Prime Minister tells John Key.

The bar of depravity is sinking lower, says Ban Ki Moon in blistering attack on Syrian Government.

John Key's session chairing UN Security Council on Syria crisis has a heightened significance after the bombing of a UN convoy delivering aid near Aleppo.

Controversial trade deal a massive opportunity for US, says Key.

A free trade deal between New Zealand and the GCC was concluded in 2009 but has not been signed or ratified.

John Key and Helen Clark are stepping up their sales pitch to advance Clark as a strong and independent candidate for United Nations Secretary-General.

Helen Clark says her aim is to still be standing before the "shoot-out at the OK Corral" takes place over the next UN Secretary General.

Afghanistan has shot back at New Zealand after Foreign Affairs Minister made stinging remarks about its government at the United Nations Security Council.

Gerard van Bohemen, NZ's Ambassador to the UN, announces "appropriate measures" aimed at Pyongyang being developed after 'insane' nuclear threat.

Former Prime Minister Helen Clark says she will remain in the contest to be the next Secretary General after a slight improvement in her results in the fourth straw poll.

Angelina Jolie has called for a "new way" of peacekeeping focused on justice and inclusion of women during a surprise visit to a UN

In an ideal world the Secretary General of the United Nations would be a strong, clear-eyed, fair-minded and forceful personality.

Small developing states in the Pacific have traditionally relied on imports of fossil fuels.

Exclusive: Helen Clark has vowed to fight on as she plans the next phase of her campaign to become Secretary-General of the United Nations.