A huge sperm whale has been torched and butchered after washing up on a beach in the Wairarapa.

The rain Aucklanders have copped today is likely to ease for a relatively fine but cool weekend.

A Masterton woman, who caused the death of an elderly dial-a-driver while she was three times over the legal blood alcohol limit, has escaped jail.

A southerly blast is headed for the lower South Island tonight, with showers and storms predicted elsewhere around the country.

Five people have been admitted to hospital following two separate crashes in the lower North Island overnight.

Further flooding is possible for the South Island's sodden Waitaki district, where 1000 people remain without drinking water.

Horseplay at Wharekauhau is a breathtaking affair, says Diana Balham.

John Key says it is critically important police address the child abuse investigation concerns raised in an Independent Police Conduct Authority (IPCA) report today.

In defensive mode over National's Maori policy agenda, John Key says separatism has no place in New Zealand.

Fatherhood can be the key to transforming anti-social young men into responsible citizens, according to new research.