Tragic weekend on nation's roads; MPs call for their private travel perks to be scrapped; deal on All Blacks' performance of Ka Mate haka 'close'.
NZ Herald
The paper devotes its entire front page to a tragic weekend on the nation's roads. It says the distraught mother of one of two cyclists killed in the Waikato wants to know how the driver of the car ended up on the wrong side of the road coming round a blind corner. It was one of nine fatal crashes over the weekend.
Dominion Post
The also leads with the road toll, focusing on the small rural town of Opiki where a 42-year-old woman and her unborn baby died. Residents of Opiki, 18 kilometres south-west of Palmerston North, were woken by a loud smash as the southbound car driven by the expectant mother collided with a northbound vehicle driven by a young man.
A deal to allow the All Blacks to continue to perform the Ka Mate haka if it is trademarked by Ngati Toa appears close, with lawyers for the Rugby Union expecting an agreement within weeks.
Wellington's annual Christmas parade was watched by an estimated 60,000 children and their parents.
The Press
MPs across the political spectrum are calling for their private travel perks to be scrapped after the resignation of cabinet minister Pansy Wong. Prime Minister John Key says there is a time and a place for looking at the travel perks but raising MPs' salaries to compensate would be contentious.
Canterbury's rugby chief says selling only low-alcohol beer is not necessarily the answer to stopping bad behaviour at stadiums. However, an addiction expert has accused the rugby union of being under the thumb of its brewery sponsor.
Otago Daily Times
Dunedin City Council faces a decision on yet another multimillion-dollar project, at the same time as it grapples with ways to curtail mounting spending and debt. The latest project involves opening the Caversham railway tunnel to create a cycle link with Mosgiel.
