Nursing faces a great brain drain, inflation falls to a three-year low, and have we just found New Zealand's best custard square?
1 'It's just better' – Why Kiwi nurses are moving to Australia
The Great Brain Drain: With New Zealand facing a significant exodus of professionals to Australia, Australia Correspondent Aziz Al Sa’afin investigates why, talking to the Kiwis behind the numbers.
New figures released by Stats NZ show a net migration loss of 27,000 people across the ditch. One of the most affected sectors is nursing, where the lure of higher salaries and improved working conditions is proving irresistible for many.
2 Banks pull forward rate cut predictions as inflation falls to 3.3%
Banks are now predicting a cut in the official interest rate as early as August following today's drop in inflation.
The projections come as the annual rate of inflation has fallen to its lowest level in three years, with Stats NZ figures showing a 3.3% rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in 12 months to the June quarter.
3 Green Party releases summary of Darleen Tana investigation
The Green Party has released the executive summary of an independent investigation into the actions of its besieged former MP Darleen Tana.
A lawyer commissioned by the party to investigate Tana and her husband's actions suggested the pair gave her contradictory statements, labelling their responses to the review as "significantly compromised".
4 NZ Police announce major changes to recruitment eligibility criteria
The changes, announced today, are expected to increase the potential pool of new recruits by thousands of people, with more than 250,000 people currently holding a restricted licence in New Zealand.
It comes as figures released to 1News show in the last year, 322 New Zealand police officers applied to work in the state of Queensland alone.
5 Farmer fined $98,000 after clearing native bush to sell as firewood
A Murchison farmer and his business have been fined $98,000 for clearing nearly 10 hectares of native bush to sell as firewood, from the remote Maruia Valley at the top of the South Island.
Defence lawyer Ben Williams said the farmer had identified his error and was "extremely embarrassed and apologetic" about what had happened.
ONE CELEBRITY WAITANGI VISIT
The Chase's Shaun Wallace - aka The Dark Destroyer - has stopped over at the Waitangi Treaty Grounds as part of his tour around NZ this month.
His hosts wrote: "Unsurprisingly, he effortlessly took on questions about Aotearoa and Waitangi from our kapa haka team and didn't even flinch when the warriors came at him with their taiaha!"
ONE CUSTARD SQUARE TO SAVOUR
From the first velvety, creamy bite, it's clear Piccolo Morso's custard square is no ordinary quadrangular sweet treat. With firm, smooth custard, hand-piped icing and the passion-fruit filling, it verges on perfection.
And that's what the judges at Baking NZ's Great Square off thought too, when awarding the New Plymouth bakery first equal at the Custard Square Championship, alongside Hamilton's Volare artisan bread shop.
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