Governments 5 tests for reopening schools

The Government is actively considering whether to end pre-departure test requirements before August. Chris Hipkins says there will be an inquiry into how the pandemic played out in New Zealand. MIQ is now used mostly for refugees and people travelling to Antarctica. Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says it’s likely the Government will end the requirement for pre-departure testing early. His signal that pre-departure tests were going was one in a range of points he outlined as part of the Government’s change of focus, as Covid-19 became part of “the new normal”. The Government had already announced that pre-departure tests would no longer be required from August, but Hipkins said he was “in the process of making a decision” about ending the requirement sooner. Hipkins said the pre-departure tests, for people coming into New Zealand, were “less important” and provided “a lot less value” than they once did. READ MORE: Covid-19: Ministry of Health … [Read more...] about Pre-departure Covid test rule to be removed ‘soon’, as Government plans for ‘new normal’

Tasman District councillors have followed their Golden Bay Community Board counterparts and made a U-turn over the road layout outside Golden Bay High School. Just as the community board members did in April , the council’s operations committee last week rescinded a previous resolution that paved the way for an alternative configuration and approved making the existing layout permanent. That existing layout, installed as a trial, includes a single crossing across Meihana St in Tākaka – directly outside the school – and the closure of a one-way slip road linking Meihana St and Commercial St, which is part of State Highway 60. Councillors in October agreed to the alternative layout option, which included the reopening of the slip road along with the removal of the trial crossing and installation of two others – one further along Meihana St and another across Rototai Rd. READ MORE: Golden Bay Community Board makes U-turn on road layout outside school Students in … [Read more...] about After twists and turns Tākaka road layout to be made permanent

Dan Wootton tells Sadiq Khan to ‘focus on saving London’ Sign up for our news briefing, including a daily special Russia-Ukraine edition SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info Traffic is currently stopped on the M25 anti-clockwise between Junction 4 (Orpington), J3 for the M20 and J1 (Swanley) due to the collision. National Highways Southeast reported that emergency services, including National Highways Traffic Officers, are currently at the scene. Related articles Sick Russian president Putin's health has been failing for FIVE YEARS Ann Widdecombe blasts Nicola Sturgeon There are currently delays of 50 minutes, according to National Highways. Two out of three lanes have closed along the route. … [Read more...] about M25 traffic chaos: Traffic STOPPED in London after crash – huge queues building

Published 26 May 2011 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing A bid to turn Middlesbrough from a town into a city is approaching completion. In 2010, the government announced that a new city would be created as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations next year. The deadline for formal bids was set as the end of May. Much of the work on the bid was done free by local people and businesses, meaning the overall cost of the bid is in the region of £4,000. Middlesbrough's deputy Mayor David Budd says, once contributions from local businesses have all been taken into account, much of that cost could also be paid back. Reading, Wrexham, Perth and Kinross, Goole, Colchester, Chelmsford, Machynlleth, Milton Keynes, Luton, Medway, Gateshead, Southend, Stockport, St. Austel, Croydon, Doncaster, Tower Hamlets and Bolton are also bidding for city status. Still young … [Read more...] about Middlesbrough bids to be a city

I am a call manager at the Center for Pregnancy Choices (CPC) in Jackson, Mississippi, a nonprofit providing counseling services to women facing unexpected pregnancies. Some would say I am perfect for this role – I faced two difficult unexpected pregnancies myself. Today, I give back so other women know they are not alone. In my work at the clinic, I sometimes receive calls from women who just found out they are pregnant and in need of help. Many are looking for a listening ear or the resources to make their own decision. Most of them are anxious and unsure. I can relate. An unexpected pregnancy threatened my educational goals. When I was a senior in college, a positive pregnancy test stalled me in my tracks, blurring my hopes for graduation and grad school. I was overwhelmed with panic, fear, and stress. What would I do? How would I finish school? What would my boyfriend and parents say? What would the members of my Christian college community think? I doubted whether I … [Read more...] about An Unplanned Pregnancy Didn’t Stop Me From Reaching My Goals. Now I Work To Support Other Women. | The Daily Wire

Two bee or not two bee? That is the question a group of Australian scientists set out to answer : whether bees can distinguish between odd and even numbers. And, perhaps surprisingly, they found the answer to be yes, they can. This is the first example of a skill known as “parity classification” – determining whether a number of objects is odd or even – to have been exhibited in a non-human animal. Researchers wanted to see whether the relatively simple brains of bees (containing just 960,000 neurons in comparison the human brain’s 86 billion) would be able to categorise numbers by their parity. The study was led by Dr Scarlett Howard at Monash University in Australia. To do this they split their bees into two groups. Pieces of white card printed with between one and 10 black shapes were placed next to bee feeders and the bees were allowed to fly around discovering the food associated with each card. One group of bees were taught to associate even numbers a sugary … [Read more...] about Can bees count? That’s a more complicated question than you’d expect

RNZ RNZ explores how Māori language used in theatre can be a way to nurture and grow the language. (Audio aired August 2018). The stage has an increasingly critical role in efforts to revitalise te reo Māori, but more resource needs to be given to artists and arts organisations creating Māori theatre, practitioners say. Filmmaker and theatre director Katie Wolfe directed Auckland Theatre Company’s The Haka Party Incident , which resurrects the day a group of University of Auckland students rehearsing their annual tradition of a mock haka are confronted by activist group He Taua. The verbatim theatre piece combines documentary and kapa haka, and is critically acclaimed. In developing the piece, Wolfe investigated the genesis of the haka at the centre of the controversy. She said being able to reflect on history became a “delightful exploration into the beautiful art form that is haka”. Its Māori and Pākehā cast learnt seven different haka for the show, including one … [Read more...] about Theatre’s role in helping revitalise te reo Māori

Jamie Oliver has accused the Prime Minister of using cost of living crisis as an "excuse" for not tackling obesity The celebrity chef presented an Eton Mess dessert opposite Downing Street on Friday morning in protest over the government's U-turn on halting 'buy one get one free' (BOGOF) offers on junk food. A long-time healthy eating campaigner, Oliver praised Tesco for pledging to ban the deal from this October after the government postponed the ban for a year. He was surrounded by supporters as he embarked on the "What an Eton Mess" protest, in a dig at the PM's school and his U-turn. But, speaking on a tour of the Hilltop Honey factory in Wales, Boris Johnson argued that while tackling obesity is of "vital importance" the BOGOF offers can help people struggling to put food on the table during the current cost of living crisis. Advertisement "There are lots of things you've got to focus on, including diet, eating less, well eating less is … [Read more...] about Jamie Oliver accuses PM of using cost of living crisis as an ‘excuse’ for not tackling obesity

Printing money to prop up economies is not, traditionally speaking, considered to be good practice. Cranking up the printing presses evokes images of Weimar Germany or Zimbabwe under Robert Mugabe: denominations with an absurd row of zeros at the end, or those terrifying images of wheelbarrow loads of cash being transported for use as kindling. Some trepidation, then, greeted the announcement in the financial crisis of quantitative easing - in the UK’s case under Mervyn King, the Bank’s Governor at the time. This type of digital money creation was an innovation to combat the worst recession for decades, and led to some forecasts of a huge wave of inflation. The Bank argued it is nothing like simply printing and spending money - QE is used to buy bonds in financial markets, not to fund spending directly. It can also be removed from circulation later, as is happening now. In the event, hyperinflation did not follow and most advanced economies spent the following decade trying … [Read more...] about How the Bank of England’s money printing spree paved the way for inflation crisis

RNZ The Detail: Journalist David Farrier talks about his reporting on serious allegations of emotional and physical abuse at one of the country’s biggest megachurches: Arise. It was early May and Pastor Peter Mortlock​ was preaching to the converted. There had been trials and tribulations, highs and lows, but Mortlock had much to be pleased about. He founded Bays Christian Fellowship on Auckland’s North Shore in July 1982 and watched it grow and grow. In the early 2000s, the church, now known as City Impact, built a large facility complete with a state-of-the-art 2100-seat auditorium. Along with 10 campuses in New Zealand, there are 48 mission campuses in India, plus others in the Philippines, Mexico and Tonga. On this particular Sunday, nearly 40 years after the start of the City Impact story, Mortlock had good news and bad news. READ MORE: Ex-member of Arise Church told she was 'choosing to be depressed', she says The Detail: David Farrier on Arise Church … [Read more...] about The media and the megachurch