Do you know how many Kāinga Ora homes were vacant late last year?
While 1698 people waited for public housing in Hamilton, there were 147 empty Kāinga Ora homes in the city.
The figures from late 2023 “astounded” Hamilton West National MP Tama Potaka - who labelled the city “the epicentre of emergency housing” - and Mayor Paula Southgate is calling for urgent government action.
But Kāinga Ora says the number of vacant homes has since dropped to 34, and there’s a focus on replacing older houses on big sections with multiple homes.
Poll: Do you think NZ should ban social media for youth?
The Australian Prime Minister has expressed plans to ban social media use for children.
This would make it illegal for under 16-year-olds to have accounts on platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X.
Social media platforms would be tasked with ensuring children have no access (under-age children and their parents wouldn’t be penalised for breaching the age limit)
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Do you think NZ should follow suit? Vote in our poll and share your thoughts below.
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84% Yes
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14.7% No
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1.3% Other - I'll share below
What would you do if it was your job to fix Hamilton's CBD?
More alcohol restrictions, more lighting, busking rule changes and a whole lot of lobbying - these are some ways Hamilton leaders want to sort out the CBD.
Crime and anti-social behaviour in the area has been in the spotlight after recent news of a man defecating in the street near a city pub and another who flipped tables out the back of a bar after being found scrounging cigarette butts and asked to leave.
What would you do if it was your job to fix Hamilton's CBD? Tell us your reasons in the comments (adding NFP if you don't want your words used in print).
Neighbour drags bodies from car after fatal collision with train
A neighbour has described the horrifying scene he came across when a train and car collided in Hamilton on Wednesday morning.
The man and his partner, who didn’t want to be named, live four houses back from the Peachgrove Rd rail crossing where the incident occurred at around 4.30am.