Checkpoint

A former teacher struck off for sexual misconduct was working at an organisation for vulnerable youth for roughly five months, before a ruling detailing her offending was made public. The Teaching Council's Disciplinary Tribunal has found April Nordstrom had a sexual relationship with a student at Whangarei Girls' High School and behaved inappropriately towards three other students at Horowhenua College in Levin. The years the students attended the schools have not been disclosed by the tribunal to protect their identities. Reporter Finn Blackwell spoke to Lisa Owen.

The Warriors kick off their season in Auckland on Friday night. A packed Mount Smart is expected as a highly regarded Roosters side await the Wahs. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

Pressure's mounting on Christopher Luxon after a horror poll has his party slumping three points to its lowest level since the Judith Collins era. The Taxpayers' Union Curia poll released today has National on 28.4 percent, six points behind Labour. Support for the Greens, ACT, and Te Pati Māori have grown. Former National Party MP Simon O'Connor spoke to Lisa Owen.

America correspondent Katie Silver spoke to Lisa Owen about the US Defence Secretary calling for Latin American countries to take more military action against drug cartels. She also spoke about how Venezuela and the US are working to reestablish diplomatic ties, following the dramatic capture and arrest of Venezuela's former president.

Students at 16 high schools around the country will have their hearing tested during March; hearing awareness month. The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Foundation's screening programme started with five secondary schools in 2019 and is aiming to reach 100 this year. It's found large numbers of teenagers are experiencing tinnitus or ringing in their ears and many of them are plugged into headphone or earbuds for hours everyday. Deaf and Hard of Hearing Foundation chief executive Natasha Gallardo spoke to Lisa Owen.

Australia correspondent Nick Grimm spoke to Lisa Owen about Australia beginning to evacuate citizens caught up by the widening conflict in the Middle East.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The rugby world is preparing for the reign of Rennie. Dave Rennie was announced yesterday as the new head of the All-Blacks helm. He edged out Highlander's coach Jamie Joseph who's tackling the fact he came up short in the race for the top job. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

The amount of food binned in retirement villages has been picked over by researchers, who've come up with a tool to help reduce the waste. 14 villages were part of the three-year study by the University of Otago funded by the Ministry for the Environment. Some initial results were shared with the industry. Maggie Owens from the Retirement Villages Association spoke to Lisa Owen.

A New Zealand family living in Kuwait is anxiously waiting to hear whether they will be able to return home, after the Defence Force confirmed it would deploy planes to the Middle East. As part of contingency preparations, consular staff and two C-130J aircraft will be sent to the Middle East in preparation for evacuation operations. Deputy political editor Craig McCulloch spoke to Lisa Owen.