A senior member of Whakatane's Maori university, Mark Laws, drowned yesterday at the East Cape settlement of Te Kaha.

Crowd control at Gisborne's Rhythm and Vines festival is being improved after boisterous partygoers forced organisers to shut down bus services last night.

New Year's Day is tipped to offer sunny weather for most of the country and some respite from the recent muggy, humid weather.

The Crown and Ngati Porou today signed a Treaty settlement giving the iwi $110m and the return of approximately 5898 hectares of land.

Gisborne, a bit like Wairarapa, has to make a lot of noise to get noticed. Geographically it's not top-of-mind.

There is extra security at Gisborne Hospital following a gang brawl between Black Power and the Mongrel Mob last night.

Another 80 job losses announced today in a third sawmill unable to profitably export timber suggests the wood industry is in crisis, says a union representing workers in the sector.

A 14-year-old boy was jailed for 20 months and his father for two years at the High Court in Gisborne today in an emotional sequel to the shooting of an 11-year-old boy on an East Cape farm in July 2009.

Paula Yeoman looks at the hottest music festivals on offer over the next few months and talks to an expert on the subject of sweet summer vibes, Tiki Taane.

In the eternal quest to come up with a point of difference at wine festivals, beyond the bands, showground attractions, tasty finger food - and the wine, Gisborne ought to take a bow.

Canterbury's wineries are slowly bouncing back from September's earthquake.