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Audio, Radio New Zealand

There are hopes an earthquake simulation in Porirua might result in homes being better prepared for a big shake. Houses on Christchurch's Port Hills suffered more damage than houses in other areas during the Canterbury Earthquakes - even though the ground shaking was roughly the same. Now the Earthquake Commission is on a mission to find out why that was - and prevent the same level of damage in a future quake. Checkpoint reporter Logan Church and video journalist Dom Thomas start their report up on a hilly farm above Wellington.

Research papers, University of Canterbury Library

The Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011 caused significant damage and disruption to the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. A Royal Commission was established to report on the causes of building failure as a result of the earthquakes as well as look at the legal and best-practice requirements for buildings in New Zealand Central Business Districts. The Royal Commission made 189 recommendations on a variety of matters including managing damaged buildings after an earthquake, the adequacy of building codes and standards, and the processes of seismic assessments of existing buildings to determine their earthquake vulnerability. In response the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the agency responsible for administering building regulation in New Zealand, established a work programme to assist with the Canterbury rebuild and to implement the lessons learned throughout New Zealand. The five primary work streams in the programme are: • Facilitating the Canterbury Rebuild • Structural Performance and Design Standards • Geotechnical and structural guidance • Existing Building Resilience • Post Disaster Building Management This paper provides more detail on each of the work streams. There has been significant collaboration between the New Zealand Government and the research community, technical societies, and engineering consultants, both within New Zealand and internationally, to deliver the programme and improve the resilience of the New Zealand built environment. This has presented major challenges for an extremely busy industry in the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquakes. The paper identifies the items of work that have been completed and the work that is still in progress at the time of writing.

Research papers, University of Canterbury Library

Media law developments have continued across many areas in the period to mid-2013. In defamation, the New Zealand courts have begun to consider the issue of third party liability for publication on the internet, with cases involving Google searches and comments on a Facebook page. A parliamentary inquiry into a case that restricted parliamentary privilege has recommended a Parliamentary Privilege Act containing a definition of ‘proceedings in Parliament’. A satirical website increased its popularity when it fought off threatened defamation proceedings. In breach of confidence, a government body, the Earthquake Commission, obtained an interim injunction prohibiting publication of information accidentally released that dealt with the repair of earthquake-damaged properties in Christchurch, and a blogger made the information available online in breach of the order.

Audio, Radio New Zealand

The question of secrecy looms large over the newly announced Royal Commission into the country's security agencies. Nigel Hampton QC is a lawyer with extensive experience of top-level inquiries, including the Royal Commissions in the Pike River disaster and the Canterbury earthquakes. He talks to Guyon Espiner.

Audio, Radio New Zealand

Naval blockade: Greenpeace say its activists are willing to get arrested over their protest against a Brazilian oil company surveying off East Cape. Royal Commission: Legal experts are in agreement ... the purpose of the Royal Commission into February's earthquake in Christchurch is to investigate - not to incriminate.