Having baby soon at one of our community birthing units or Middlemore Hospital or want to visit mama and baby?
The following criteria continues in Alert Level 2:
- Two support people for women in labour who have been screened at the entrance.
- One of those support people can continue to visit mother and baby 7am-8pm daily - they are not able to leave and return in the same day.
- One meal can to be brought in from home.
- Baby’s car seat can be brought in to where baby is so they can be transported home in a warm seat.
If there is a need for more support people due to compassionate grounds for the expectant or new mother, then this process will be explained to you at the time. All these measures help us to track any source of an infection if required to keep everyone safe.
Thank you for helping us to continue to protect new mums, babies, whaanau and staff against COVID-19.
Poll: Do you set New Year’s resolutions?
🎉 2026 is almost here!
We’re curious ... how do you welcome it?
Do you set resolutions, follow special traditions, or just go with the flow?
-
10.6% Yes! New Year, New Me
-
22.1% Yes - but I rarely stick to them
-
67.3% Nah - not for me
Poll: 🗑️ Would you be keen to switch to a fortnightly rubbish collection, or do you prefer things as they are?
Aucklanders, our weekly rubbish collections are staying after councillors voted to scrap a proposed trial of fortnightly pick-ups.
We want to hear from you: would you be keen to switch to a fortnightly rubbish collection, or do you prefer things as they are?
Keen for the details? Read up about the scrapped collection trial here.
-
84.6% Same!
-
15.4% Would have liked to try something different
By-election for Otara-Papatoetoe area
Just to let everyone know that we have another by-election happening, and here is the reason why. Below are details and dates, so keep an eye on your letter boxes.
The Manukau Court’s Ruling
The Manukau District Court determined that the Papatoetoe subdivision result of the Ōtara–Papatoetoe Local Board election was invalid, ruling that the outcome had been “materially affected” by voting irregularities. Judge Richard McIlraith found that the scale and nature of the irregularities met the legal threshold required to void an election under New Zealand’s local electoral laws.
In his decision, Judge McIlraith stated that the evidence presented — including reports of stolen voting papers, fraudulent use of ballots, and other procedural irregularities — was sufficient to conclude that the integrity of the election had been compromised. The court noted that at least 79 voting papers were identified as having been cast without the rightful voter’s knowledge during a judicially supervised examination of ballot boxes.
While the judge acknowledged that the election had been administered “properly and in accordance with all requirements” by Independent Election Services and the electoral officer, he concluded that the fraudulent activity originated outside the official process and nonetheless impacted the final result to a degree that required the election to be voided.
As a result of the ruling, the court ordered that a new election must be held, with Auckland Council confirming that the fresh poll must be completed by 9 April 2026
Loading…
