National Radio Midday Report

Dodgy Diesel - Fatal Chase – Women’s Security – Dyson Back – Rotting Buildings – Babysitting Laws – Queenstown Classic Deaths – Wahid Rebuked – Philippines Hostages – Race Riots – Middle East Envoy – UK Election – Polish Apology – Fiji Election - Health Budget

- DODGY DIESEL: Tuna fishermen have had to cut short their fishing trips at the height of the blue fin tuna season and return to port because of the country’s diesel problem, which has prompted the oil industry to close marine fuel stations.

- FATAL CHASE: Waikato police are refusing to say why they wanted a man who died when he crashed his car while police pursued him.

- WOMEN’S SECURITY: Women are taking personal security more seriously in Wellington after a rash of rapes and sexual assaults in the central city, with women taking more taxi rides at night and buying more personal alarms.

- DYSON BACK: Laobur MP Ruth Dyson will resume ministerial duties next month as Associate Minister of Health and Social Services, but she won’t get back her Associate ACC portfolio, which she resigned from after being caught driving over the legal alcohol limit 7 months ago.

- ROTTING BUILDINGS: The Insurance Council says the rotting of new buildings will be a huge issue for the insurance and building industries.

- BABYSITTING LAWS: Commissioner for Children Roger McLay is calling for clearer and firmer laws on babysitting, after three Northland youngsters died in a house fire while in the care of a 14-year-old boy, who was amongst the casualties.

- QUEENSTOWN CLASSIC DEATHS: Video footage of the 1998 Queenstown Classic Car Race has been shown at the Invercargill District Court on the first day of preliminary hearings against four volunteer race officials. The charges relate to the deaths of two spectators killed by an out of control car in the November 1998 race.

- WAHID REBUKED: Indonesia’s top security minister has strongly rebuked President Wahid saying he doesn’t support Wahid’s call to declare a state of Civil Emergency.

- PHILIPPINES HOSTAGES: The Philippines President has ruled out the payment of ransom to gunmen who took 20 tourists hostage from a resort island.

- RACE RIOTS: Community leaders in Olden, near Manchester, have called for calm after rioting between Asian and white youths.

- MIDDLE EAST ENVOY: The new American envoy to the Middle East, William Burns, has now met both Yasser Arafat and Ariel Sharon to discuss the recommendations of the Mitchell Inquiry.

- UK ELECTION: With the UK General Election 10 days away, the Conservatives have lost several key business supporters to the Labour Party following the Tory Leader William Hague stepping up his campaign against Britain joining the European single currency, the Euro.

- POLISH APOLOGY: The Catholic Church in Poland has apologised for the 1941 massacre of around 1600 Jews in a Polish town during WWII.

- FIJI ELECTION: Fiji’s deposed Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry has opened his campaign for the August election, saying that his Labour Party will do as well or better than at the 1999election.

- HEALTH BUDGET: Health Minister Annette King says critics of the Government’s health budget are ignoring increased spending on primary health care.

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