nzherald headlines Trying times When Auckland, followed by Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, began to wade out of the residential property mire in the middle half of 2009, the provincial cities and towns waited patiently for their turn. But it never really came.The... Heartland deal signals new TV scene Television New Zealand's exclusive deal for the "Heartland" channel on pay TV signals a wider and significant change in the media landscape.The key free-to-air broadcaster is bypassing the digital free-to-air network Freeview.TVNZ... Parents win fight to sterilise daughter In a ruling that has divided doctors and disability organisations, the Family Court has granted the parents of a profoundly disabled Queensland girl permission to have her undergo a hysterectomy.The 11-year-old girl, identified... College Sport: Stadium at EGGS part of big plan to catch up The first sod being turned at Epsom Girls Grammar tomorrow in front of a host of past sporting stars signals the start of an ambitious $6 million project aimed at providing facilities as good as, or better than, other Auckland schools.The... Defence extravagance uncovered SYDNEY - The Australian Department of Defence has spent millions of dollars on luxury items that seem only remotely related to its role.After a three-month study of A$48 billion ($62.32 billion) of contracts awarded in the past... FAI Money closes deposit book and repays investors FAI Money, a finance company owned by Eric Watson and Mark Hotchin and once part of the Hanover Group, has told investors it will repay them early and will no longer take deposits as of March 22.A letter to debenture holders says:... Home building up 7.4pc in December The seasonally adjusted volume of residential building activity rose 7.4 per cent in the December quarter, while non-residential volume fell 6.1 per cent.That left the seasonally adjusted change in the volume of all building work... No more ground rent for owners Land at one of New Zealand's largest high-density housing estates has been converted from leasehold to freehold title.Beaumont Partners, directed by Auckland developer Nigel McKenna, has sold land at the 258-unit Beaumont Quarter... Audrey Young: Tolley finds ally in school mum I saw first hand yesterday why teachers are having a difficult job trying to win the argument against Education minister Anne Tolley about national standards.Tolley was holding one of her community meetings on national standards... John Banks: I'll hold their feet to the fire At the select committee hearings last week I made my views clear: there is a real risk that council-controlled organisations will take on a life of their own.I intend to have the chairs of the CCOs in my office once a month to... | 