12 Feb 2013

Morning Report: local papers

7:34 am on 12 February 2013

Tuesday's headlines: Papal resignation; Lincoln University cutting between 50 - 100 courses; bodies 40 yellow eyed penguins found on Otago Peninsula.

NZ Herald

Under the headline "Shock as Pope quits", The New Zealand Herald reports on the first Pointiff in nearly 600 years to give up Catholic leadership.

The paper says Pope Benedict started using a cane last year and recently appeared to have trouble reading the text of an address he delivered in Rome.

House prices are up across the country but Auckland is leading the way - prices are up over 10% from last year with the average value of an Auckland home now $615,000.

Waikato Times

The Waikato Times reports that some schools in the Waikato have given up asking for school donations as the number of parents paying them is so low.

Experts say with only four out of 10 families paying the donation in some areas, schools would be better off getting parents to help out with their time than chase them for the money.

"Our Kimbra" is pictured: the Grammy winner was born in Hamilton.

Dominion Post

The Dominion Post recounts what a hacking spam nightmare for users of YahooXtra.

Telecom has acknowledged that its email service has been compromised by hackers - after it initially blamed customers for a massive spam invasion.

Kimbra is pictured with the Grammy she won with Gotye.

The Press

The Press leads with Lincoln University cutting between 50 - 100 courses. Management sid the move will sharpen the university's focus but the Tertiary Education Union said the changes could lead to up to 180 of the university's 720 staff losing their jobs.

Two teenage swimmers pulled an unconscious driver out of a submerged ute after it crashed into the Halswell River. They had to swim in water up to their necks to rescue the man.

ODT

The Otago Daily Times reports a man suspected of three armed robberies at a dairy in Dunedin has been arrested.

The Mornington Night & Day was robbed on Monday by a man with a knife. It was previously targetted targetted in August and November last year.

The bodies of more than 40 yellow eyed penguins have been found on Otago Peninsula, raising concerns of the repeat of a 'mass mortality' which wiped large numbers of breeding adults in 1990.

And the annual migration of students has begun, with the influx of young people providing a boost for Dunedin businesses.

It's estimated that students add more than $200 million in value to the city.