National Radio Midday Bulletin

Woman Charged - Sentencing Delayed - Child Abuse Register - Fiji Shooting - Blumsky & Local Govt - Helen Clark & Local Govt - Airport Fog - Logging In Court - Car Explodes - White House Protests - Texas Death Penalty - Unemployed Figures - Petrol Prices

WOMAN CHARGED: A 28-year-old Carterton woman has appeared in the Masterton district court charged with assaulting a Carterton toddler who died last week, but police say the charge doesn’t relate to the investigations into the toddler’s death.

- SENTENCING DELAYED: A High Court judge has adjourned the sentencing of two women for manslaughter and cruelty to a six-year-old child because of media interest in the case.

- CHILD ABUSE REGISTER: The New Zealand Medical Association says it has serious problems with mandatory reporting or the establishment of a register for child abuse.

- FIJI SHOOTING: Security at military checkpoints has been tightened on the main island of Fiji after a soldier and a policeman were shot dead by armed locals last night.

- BLUMSKY & LOCAL GOVT: Wellington mayor Mark Blumsky says he has written to all local mayors to ask them to resign from Local Government New Zealand and consider setting up their own body.

- HELEN CLARK & LOCAL GOVT.: The Prime Minister Helen Clark says she had only one small tiff with Local Government New Zealand and she cannot believe it was related to CEO Carol Stigley’s resignation.

- AIRPORT FOG: Northern airports are working overtime to clear a backlog of flights after a second day of fog which has disrupted many travelers’ plans.

- LOGGING IN COURT: The High Court has been told it would be brought into a most serious conflict with Parliament if it opposed the passing of a Government Bill stopping native Rimu logging on the West Coast.

- CAR EXPLODES: Three seperate members of a Basque separatist group ETA are dead after an car carrying them exploded in Spain.

- WHITE HOUSE PROTESTS: Police have moved in a heavy patrolled area around the White House to remove protestors demonstrating against United States economic sanctions against Iraq.

- TEXAS DEATH PENALTY: Texas, which leads the United States in the death penalty punishment, is set to execute two men, one of whom may be mentally retarded.

- UNEMPLOYED FIGURES: The Act MP Muriel Newman has made public figures which shows that a great number of beneficiaries return to the unemployment benefit after they are put in job placements.

- PETROL PRICES: The Automobile Association says it supports the development of a bench mark assessment for petrol prices to ensure the public they were paying a fair amount.

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