The Front Page podcast: Tasman blaze firefighters fatigued, unemployment rises

Each weekday The Front Page keeps you up to date with the biggest news in New Zealand. Today, firefighters are worn out as they battle the Tasman blaze, unemployment figures are up higher than expected, the Grace Millane murder-accused continues to fight to keep his name secret, and a twist on traditional climate change research. Hosted by Juliette Sivertsen.

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Police and Fire and Emergency are hunting the cause of the second Tasman blaze.

They've set up a special phone number for tips about the fire on Rabbit Island, which they claim is suspicious.

It ripped through 10 hectares and took crucial firefighting resources away from the bigger Pigeon Valley bush fire.

Operational Lead at Fire and Emergency Kerry Gregory says the blaze was independently lit.

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And there are numerous cordons still around the main Pigeon Valley blaze, which is still out of control.

More than 100 firefighters are working round the clock to try contain it.

The Prime Minister says everything possible, is being done to fight the fire.

At least 400 people have been forced to flee their homes and at least one home has been completely destroyed.

Jacinda Ardern has been meeting with emergency services and evacuees.

She's praising emergency services for doing an incredible job, in very difficult circumstances.

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Meanwhile, the farmer whose machinery is suspected to have sparked the devastating Tasman blaze is "mortified", according to fire chiefs.

Incident controller John Sutton says it's almost certain the fire was the result of agricultural machinery.

He says it was a highly accidental event with a totally unintended consequence - the owner was mortified.

While yesterday had been a good day, making progress in containing the fire, the firefighters had a lot of work ahead of them.

Sutton said earlier today some firefighters were experiencing fatigue and they were trying to fly in more firefighters.

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Unemployment has risen slightly higher than expected.

The unemployment rate reached 4.3 per cent in the three months to December, up from 4 per cent in the previous quarter.

That was slightly higher than expected and the New Zealand dollar slumped by more than half a cent against the greenback as the odds on an official cash rate cut grew.

Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had tipped the unemployment rate to rise to only 4.1 per cent.

Stats NZ says wages rose - but marginally - by 1.9 per cent.

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GST and tobacco excise have boosted the Government coffers.

The Crown's reaped a bigger tax take than expected in the six months to December, with the operating balance before gains and losses a surplus of $1.11 billion.

That's tracking well ahead of the $859 million in the December half-year economic and fiscal update.

Core tax revenue rose 7.6 per cent to $40 billion, some $164m than forecast, with bigger than expected GST, customs and excise duties offsetting smaller-than-expected personal income and company taxes.

Crown spending rose 7.5% to $43.48b.

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Invercargill MP Sarah Dowie has fronted media for the first time, since it was revealed a vitriolic text was allegedly sent from her phone to MP Jami-Lee Ross.

Sarah Dowie doesn't think she should stand down while police investigate the text, which Ross claims led to his mental breakdown last year.

She wouldn't answer any further other questions, saying it would be inappropriate to comment while police are investigating.

Late last month, the police revealed they were investigating a text message, allegedly sent from Dowie's phone to Ross which included the words "you deserve to die".

Today is the first time Dowie has spoken publicly, after being named by police in relation to the text.

National leader Simon Bridges said the Dowie saga was not a distraction for the party.

And he says it's not necessary for her to stand down.

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The man accused of murdering British backpacker Grace Millane will keep his name suppressed while a judge contemplates lifting the gag order.

The now 27-year-old Auckland man appeared in the High Court at Auckland this morning, in an effort to convince Justice Simon Moore he should keep his name secret.

Court documents allege the man's charged with murdering Millane between December 1 and December 2 last year.

He pleaded not guilty at his last High Court appearance and a trial was set for November.

Today's name suppression hearing was held behind closed doors, preventing members of the public from attending.

Several members of the media, however, were present as was the office in charge of the case, Detective Inspector Scott Beard.

Justice Moore reserved his decision and suppressed the arguments made at the hearing by the defendant's lawyer Ian Brookie, the Crown Solicitor at Auckland Brian Dickey, the Herald, and Stuff.

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A teenager who admitted killing a workmate at an Auckland factory has escaped a jail sentence.

Lima Feleti, 18, has been instead sentenced to 10 months' home detention by Justice Kit Toogood, during a hearing at the High Court in Auckland this week.

The teen had earlier pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of 19-year-old Hamuwera Holloway.

Feleti killed Holloway when he threw a metal tool at him while they were working in a packaging factory in East Tamaki on September 7.

Justice Toogood said Feleti's attack on Holloway was a "gross over-reaction" to a "minor dispute".

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There are new developments regarding controversial ticket reseller Viagogo.

It turns out the scale of the company's alleged breaches of the Fair Trading Act is far larger than previously reported.

The Commerce Commission alleges Viagogo sold almost 1000 invalid tickets to All Blacks matches last year.

The submissions are in support of the watchdog's attempt to gain an interim injunction against the online ticket reseller.

An Auckland High Court hearing on Tuesday saw Justice Patricia Courtney reserve her decision, with no indication of when she would make a ruling.

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A twist on traditional climate change research.

A new study shows extreme and unpredictable weather will worsen, as ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica continue to melt.

The research looks at how melting ice sheets affects climate change rather than how the climate affects them.

It's being led by Associate Professor Nick Golledge from Victoria University's Antarctic Research Centre.

It's the first to use detailed models of both ice sheets, combined with recent sheet changes from satellites.

He says the melting ice sheets disrupt the ocean's circulation.

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Love it or loathe it - Vegemite is the latest food to get a gluten-free makeover.

They've come up with a version made from gluten-free yeast.

Matt Gray from Vegemite says it took them a while to get it 100 per cent right.

For more on this story, tune in to Newstalk ZB

That's the Front Page for today, Thursday February 7, making sure you're across the biggest news of the day. For more on these stories, check out The New Zealand Herald, or tune in to Newstalk ZB.

You can subscribe to this podcast on Apple podcasts here, iHeartRadio here, and Stitcher here.

If you like to stay up to date on social media, you can find host Juliette Sivertsen on Twitter.