Shows / Checkpoint
Checkpoint
Checkpoint with Lisa Owen is RNZ’s weekday drive-time news programme, Our people, stories and breaking news and interviews from 4-6pm.
Episodes
- Checkpoint
Breakers reviving basketball academy for students
Six years after a basketball development pathway was quietly dropped the Breakers are reviving it at their Auckland headquarters. 20 high school students have…
- Checkpoint
Older NZers worried about safe and affordable housing
Older New Zealander's concern around access to safe and affordable housing has made its way to the steps of parliament this afternoon. The Christchurch…
- Checkpoint
Son finds father dead and mother missing in grisly crime scene
A jury has heard harrowing evidence about how a son found his father dead and his mother missing from their home, which had turned into a grisly crime scene…
- Checkpoint
NZ to jointly fund new port in Cook Islands with US
Foreign minister Winston Peters is chalking up news of a new port in the Cook Islands as a major win for Pacific regionalism. Peters is in Palau for the…
- Checkpoint
Seniors missing out on discounts due to lack of promotion
A SuperGold Card discount is offered by hundreds of small and big name businesses in New Zealand. However, a lack of promotion means many older people are…
- Checkpoint
PM tells striking public servants they should be at work
The Prime Minister had told striking public servants they should be at work. 10,000 public service workers are set to walk off the job next week. The public…
- Checkpoint
Sculpture stolen from Hundertwasser Art Centre by bicycle
A sculpture has been stolen from outside the iconic Hundertwasser Art Centre in what seems like an unsophisticated heist. Police want to hear from anyone who…
- Checkpoint
Children under five to get free flu vaccinations immediately
Children under five can get their flu vaccinations free from today - a year ahead of schedule - as the health system strains under the weight of a late-winter…
- Checkpoint
Messi retiring from international football
One of the greatest ever in football is hanging up his boots. Argentina's Lionel Messi is retiring from international football after 207 appearances for his…
- Checkpoint
Christchurch cafe selling rare coffee for $100 a cup
A Christchurch cafe is offering up a single cup of coffee for $100. Rook Cafe is brewing up the specific cup from some of the most expensive beans in Panama…
- Checkpoint
Guilty verdict in Tupac murder trial brings cold case to close
United States correspondent, Todd Zwillich spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about a guilty verdict in the Tupac Murder trial bringing the near 30 year cold case to…
- Checkpoint
Netball NZ signs non-binding deal for privatised competition
A privatised competition for elite domestic netball is back on the cards for 2027, but Netball New Zealand has told Checkpoint the agreement commits to a…
- Checkpoint
US considers threatening UK's sovereignty claim over Falklands
United Kingdom correspondent, Lucy Thomson spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about the US reportedly considering threatening Britain's sovereignty claim over the…
- Checkpoint
Crown prosectors claim traffic accident led to murder
Crown prosecutors have claimed a minor traffic accident led to the double murder of an Auckland couple in their home in 2023. Lok Fung Lorrence Li is charged…
- Checkpoint
Evening business news for 31 August 2026
News from the business sector, including a market report.
- Checkpoint
Kiwi fans turned away from Springboks test due to ticket scam
The All Blacks weren't the only New Zealanders dealt a loss in South Africa at the weekend. A large number of fans were turned away from the stadium in Cape…
- Checkpoint
Most companies using AI according to snapshot
A snapshot of how businesses are using AI shows uptake at 91 percent but a list of concerns is holding them back from using it to transform operations. The…
- Checkpoint
Parents worry jobseekers changes could bite them if teens can't find work
Parents worry changes to the jobseeker benefit could bite them if their teenagers can't find work after high school. From November, the government will end…
- Checkpoint
Government delays planned fuel excise hike
The government has delayed next year's planned fuel excise hike - instead staggering the tax increase over later years - and dipping into a rainy day fund to…
- Checkpoint
Veterans return to Pacific over 50 years after observing nuclear testing
It's a trip over 50 years in the making. Two New Zealand frigates were sent to the Pacific to observe and protest French nuclear testing at Mururoa Atoll in…
- Checkpoint
Student loan policy not enough to keep young people in the country - tax lawyer
National is just "kicking a can down the road" with its promised changes to student loan debt, according to a tax lawyer. David Ananth says reducing the…
- Checkpoint
Rural Hawke's Bay community working hard to restore native bush
A small community in rural Hawke's Bay is working hard to restore a big area of precious native bush that is home to one of New Zealand's largest Totara trees…
- Checkpoint
Netball NZ latches onto Mowbray-Williams lifeline
Netball New Zealand has latched onto the lifeline offered by Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams to keep the elite domestic competition afloat in 2027. RNZ…
- Checkpoint
Blood cancer suvivor raising money for other patients through skiing
When ski-mad Mike Wilwert takes to the slopes this week, every metre he skis will benefit families who need to be close to medical care at Christchurch…
- Checkpoint
Tensions flare in Middle East with new strikes
Middle East correspondent Madeline Croad spoke to Melissa Chan-Green about tensions flaring in the Middle East following a new round of strikes between the US…
- Checkpoint
Half of people want to give to charity in their will
Just over half of New Zealanders are open to the idea of leaving a gift to charity in their will - but while new research shows 52 percent are interested, the…
- Checkpoint
Dunedin hit with snow flurries and icy temperatures
Snow flurries are hitting central Dunedin today, as winter brings one last polar blast to the southern city. The icy change has sent shivers down spines in the…
- Checkpoint
Trucker reunites family with cat 2.5 years after disappearance
Checkpoint producer Johnny Sutherland spoke to Lisa Owen about Morgan MacAllister-Robb - a truck driver turned pet chauffeur who reunited a cat found in…
- Checkpoint
Russia warns it could retaliate against Britain over Ukraine support
United Kingdom correspondent, Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about Russia warning it could retaliate against Britain over the UK's military support for…
- Checkpoint
Evening business for 28 August 2026
News from the business sector, including a market report.
- Checkpoint
All Blacks face tough task going two for two against Springboks
The All Blacks face a tough task in their hopes to go two for two against South Africa this weekend. Despite snatching a victory in the series' first match in…
- Checkpoint
Wine waste being converted to divert emissions
A bio waste project is converting wine waste to a nutrient rich drink for the soil. The Marlborough Circular Wine Programme is getting nearly $3 million of…
- Checkpoint
New Dunedin Hospital outpatient building officially opens
The new Dunedin Hospital marked a major milestone when its long-awaited outpatient building officially opened today. The project has faced years of setbacks…
- Checkpoint
Hundreds of home support workers could lose jobs as contracts cut
Hundreds of Auckland home support workers could lose their jobs after their contracts were cut. Health New Zealand has decided not award tens of millions of…
- Checkpoint
Hot competition for new Pasifika Award at The Big Sing
There is hot competition for a special new gong at this year's national high schools choir festival, The Big Sing. The Pasifika Award has been added to a…
- Checkpoint
Nepalese guide waiting for family to be evacuated
Aotearoa has pledged $2 million in humanitarian assistance to Nepal through the Red Cross. Several villages, kilometres of roads and more than a dozen bridges…
- Checkpoint
Filipino burger takes top spot in Wellington competition
Eateries around Wellington have been facing off for weeks in a hard-fought and popular competition for the capital's best burger. Lazy Juan on The Terrace has…
- Checkpoint
PNG yet to decide on Bougainville independence
It could still be months before Papua New Guinea parliament makes its decision on whether to approve of independence for the country's autonomous region of…
- Checkpoint
Warriors determined to play final at 'spiritual home'
Though the decision may be out of their hands, the Warriors will do everything possible to ensure they play finals football at their "spiritual home". The club…
- Checkpoint
Intercity buses lift minimum age for unaccompanied children
How young is too young for a child to travel unaccompanied on a long haul bus trip. From mid next month, Intercity is lifting the minimum age for unaccompanied…
- Checkpoint
Clean up efforts underway in Queenstown after storm triggers slip
Clean-up efforts are underway across the Queenstown Lakes District today after a winter storm triggered slips, road closures, and emergency evacuations…
- Checkpoint
Volunteering becoming a luxury few can afford
Volunteering is becoming a luxury fewer people can afford, according to Volunteering Northland. It has about 1000 people on its books, but says that doesn't…
- Checkpoint
Growing calls for ban on smart glasses in Australia
Australia correspondent Nick Grimm spoke to Lisa Owen about growing calls for a ban on smart glasses capable of surreptiously recording video of people without…
- Checkpoint
Evening business news for 27 August 2026
News from the business sector, including a market report.
- Checkpoint
Gallagher looking for 200 new workers
A Waikato based tech company is looking for two hundred new workers, on top of the 300 people it has hired since January. Gallagher is a global company that…
- Checkpoint
Late flu season sparking concern for most vulnerable
Auckland kindergartens have been emptier than usual this week, with some reporting more than half of their children off sick. Flu-related hospitalisations are…
- Checkpoint
Five NZers missing as devastating floods swamp Nepal
A torrent of mud and water has swamped villages on the border of Nepal and Tibet. The devastating floods swallowed towns, roads and bridges in the Rasuwa…
- Checkpoint
'Space vapes' laced with illicit substances have police worried
An emerging trend of people getting high on so-called space vapes has police worried. High Alert, New Zealand's early warning system for dangerous drugs, has…
- Checkpoint
Labour commits to no new increases in fuel tax
No new taxes is the latest catch-cry from National MPs, but Labour has tried to turn it around on them today with its own promise - no new increases in fuel…
- Checkpoint
Five New Zealanders among hundreds missing in Nepal floods
At least five New Zealanders are among the hundreds of people still unaccounted for after flooding and landslides in Nepal. The deadly flash flood on the…
- Checkpoint
Ryan Fox to tee off in season ending PGA Tour Championship
Ryan Fox has a reputation for getting around a golf course at pace. Tomorrow morning he will tee off in the season-ending PGA Tour Championship in Atlanta…
- Checkpoint
Westport food truck sent cease and desist by McDonald's
A Westport food truck has been sent a cease and desist letter by McDonald's over its burger of the week. Mister Chops recently featured a special burger, the…
- Checkpoint
Meta reaches multi-billion dollar settlement in social media addiction case
United States correspondent Todd Zwillich spoke to Lisa Owen about Facebook owner Meta has reached a multi-billion dollar settlement in the massive social…
- Checkpoint
Elderly New Zealanders suffering from malnutrition
There are calls for health professionals to be more proactive in screening for malnutrition. New Zealand studies have shown high levels of malnutrition in…
- Checkpoint
Two people dead in South Auckland incident
A major incident has unfolded in South Auckland, with two people confirmed dead in Wattle Downs. Two schools and an early childhood centre were forced into…
- Checkpoint
London bus drivers walk off job over extreme heat issues
United Kingdom correspondent Lucy Thomson spoke to Lisa Owen about British Prime Minister Andy Burnham possibly meeting with US President Donald Trump again…
- Checkpoint
Evening business for 26 August 2026
News from the business sector, including a market report.
- Checkpoint
At least of quarter of American footballers may end up with degenerative brain disease
It's long been known that contact sports like boxing, rugby and football can cause brain damage. But new research in the United States now suggest at least 25…
- Checkpoint
Northland teen granted scholarship to play volleyball in US
A Northland teenager with a passion for volleyball is smashing it with her pick of scholarships from several US universities. Kerikeri year 13 student, Kaia…
- Checkpoint
Forestry should be phased out of emissions trading scheme - environment watchdog
The scheme that is meant to be driving down New Zealand's climate pollution is instead letting emitters kick the can down the road by planting pine forests…