Officials are investigating a proposal which could lead to the Pike River mine being turned into an opencast coal pit stretching into a national park.

Prime Minister John Key has denied that the Solid Energy crisis and Telecom job cuts are a black mark against the Government's handling of the economy.

Solid Energy is in crisis, with a Government bailout almost inevitable, mine closures possible and further job cuts likely in another restructure to try to salvage it.

Work on a West Coast bridge has been halted after workers were caught on camera dumping material into the river.

West Coasters hit by a deluge of heavy rain and thunderstorms can expect little relief in the coming weeks.

The body of a man recovered from a creek in the Mikonui River area, south of Ross on the West Coast, has been confirmed as that of 50-year-old Christchurch man Rex Leslie Taylor.

A Westport man who sold whiskey to a Buller High School student prior to the teenager's death has been sentenced to two months in prison.

Having a middleman able to absorb the criticism and stay immune to the moral and emotional elements of the Pike tragedy makes sense politically, writes Gerard Morris.