TV3 News

Friday, 2 February 2001, 6:17 pm
Article: Alastair Thompson

Construction Receivership – Construction Problems Widespread – REAL Folds – Mark Middleton Verdict – The Race – Team NZ – Body Found – Arson – Kidnapped Kiwi - Lockerbie

CONSTRUCTION RECEIVERSHIP: A giant construction job in Auckland has turned into a nightmare for hundreds of sub-contractors after Hartner Construction was placed in receivership today. Hartner’s was the fourth largest construction company in NZ. Workers are angry. Hartners are blaming the closure on a legal dispute.

CONSTRUCTION PROBLEMS WIDESPREAD: Insolvent construction companies may owe as much as $35 million to small contractors in NZ. Subcontractors feel angry about this. The Government meanwhile has announced a change to fix the problem. The practice of pay when paid will be outlawed under the new law. Employees could be working under the new law by the end of the year.

REAL FOLDS: REAL real estate agency has also been placed in receivership.

MARK MIDDLETON: Mark Middleton was convicted on three of five charges of threatening to kill Paul Daly today. Paul Daly killed 13-year-old Karla Cardno in 1989. Mark Middleton was her stepfather. Middleton faces seven years in jail. Lawyer Keith Jefferies says the fight goes on for Middleton.

THE RACE: The Kiwi Skippered Club Med sailed through Cook Strait today. Club Med has averaged 20 knots for the last month. Skipper Grant Dalton says it was a joy to have a brief homecoming to NZ. Friends and family came to greet the catermaran in the strait.

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TEAM NZ: Team NZ has announced its family of five sponsors will remain the same for the next challenge. The sponsors say that the extra money is worth it due to public support,

BODY FOUND: A body has been found in an isolated part of a cemetery.

ARSON: An Upper Hutt man aged 52 has been charged with several arsons in the Wellington region.

KIDNAPPED KIWI: The body of an American who was kidnapped with a NZer in Ecuador has been found in the Amazon jungle. However there is no word yet of the fate of Kiwi copter pilot Dennis Corrin.

LOCKERBIE: A Libyan man accused of bombing a 747, and acquitted by a Scottish court in Holland, has returned to a heroes welcome in Libya. The Libyan leader says he will produce evidence proving a convicted Libyan intelligence agent is innocent on Monday.

Alastair Thompson

Scoop Publisher

Alastair Thompson is the co-founder of Scoop. He is of Scottish and Irish extraction and from Wellington, New Zealand. Alastair has 24 years experience in the media, at the Dominion, National Business Review, North & South magazine, Straight Furrow newspaper and online since 1997. He is the winner of several journalism awards for business and investigative work.

Contact Alastair Thompson

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