A former Canterbury primary school principal who groomed a young boy before sexually assaulting him over half a decade was today jailed for more than nine years.

New Zealand's new Prime Minister is a former farmer and literature student from smalltown Southland who once described himself as "specialising in being boring".

COMMENT: We've recently been supported by a Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund grant for a project called: What is the Southland accent?

15 year old Palmerston North girl, Sarah Ridsdale wins her first film award. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

One person has died and another has been airlifted to hospital with critical injuries.

At least two more schools have been investigated after complaints about seclusion rooms - including one that was eventually closed.

Clinton Highway in the Clutha District is closed as a result of the crash.

A photo of two "hot" Southern District police officers posing with puppies has garnered hundreds of likes on Facebook.

Police believed someone damaged the windows between 5pm and 8pm and were appealing for help from the community.

Firefighters from across Southland who were called to an explosion at Dongwha New Zealand's plant in Mataura at 4.30pm are preparing to leave the scene.

New Zealand is in for a relatively dry day today with areas of morning cloud and isolated showers in the north, clearing around midday and becoming mostly sunny.

A teen who killed a man with one punch unsuccessfully attempted to have his sentence of two years' in prison lessened. But the Court

Scientists investigating the mechanics of the earthquake say it faulted in the same way the February 22, 2011, Christchurch Earthquake did.

The United States and Canada were New Zealand's biggest foreign investors over the last three years.

Thirty patients suffered partial sight loss because of eye clinic delays at two hospitals

Young people living in regional New Zealand have a better chance of owning their own home, according to new figures.

One person was transported to hospital after an Invercargill house was engulfed by fire this evening.

Officials are yet to release the final road statistics for the weekend, but as the holiday period came to a close at 6am this morning the toll stood at three.

The Otago Regional Councillor who lost his seat to Michael Laws by five votes is seeking a recount.

A cyclist has been taken to hospital in a serious condition following a crash in Invercargill early this evening. The cyclist - whose

Derek Cheng basks in a panoramic view that few have experienced.

Police search teams are dusting off a 25-year-old missing person case in a bid to test their new gear.

A 21-year-old man critically injured in a Southland crash on Wednesday has died in hospital. The man was riding a motorbike on a

A police forensics unit and officers were this morning at the Otatara address where a 29-year-old man was found dead late last night.

Two people shot in Invercargill last night may have been related, social media reports suggest.

A man is in Southland Hospital with a gunshot wound following an incident on Sunday.

About 100 farmers in Otago and Southland were forced to dump milk over the weekend in the aftermath of the milk silo collapse at Fonterra's Edendale site.

One person has died after a crash near the Southland town of Mataura this evening.

A child remains in a critical condition after a farmbike crash yesterday.

A dozen vehicles have been stolen around Southland over the past three weeks and police are urging drivers to protect themselves from