Stories by Jo Moir

First Person - Thousands of people will begin the annual pilgrimage to Waitangi on Sunday, transforming the sleepy snippet of the Bay of Islands once again, writes Jo Moir.

The Hepatitis Foundation board chair has stood down from the role in the wake of an investigation that found extravagant spending, including lavish dinners at top restaurants.

The Foreign Affairs Minister is defending New Zealand's absence from the Fifth World Holocaust Forum in Israel, saying that Speaker Trevor Mallard was happy to attend but the organisers said no.

Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones is hitting back at fresh criticisms of a conflict of interest saying he can meet with whomever he likes at Parliament's restaurant Bellamy's. Audio

The National Party suspects dirty politics are at play after laptops were stolen from its headquarters, but a business next door was victim to the exact same crime a couple of months ago.

The Hepatitis Foundation says taxpayer money is not being used to pay for an audit after an investigation found extravagant spending and unaccounted credit card expenses.

Power Play - New Zealand has had its fair share of tragedy for a small country plonked at the bottom of the ocean, writes Jo Moir. In some cases, it has put us on the map for the right reasons.

Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters says it was under-performance that led to former Prime Minister Jenny Shipley being dumped from the New Zealand-China Council.

The chair of Ngāti Awa Holdings, which owns White Island Tours, says Worksafe's ambiguity over its auditing of the tour company is just another unhelpful misstep.

Cabinet is taking advice from officials on whether a wider investigation is needed into the Whakaari / White Island tragedy last week that killed 16 people.

While authorities are still focused on the response to the tragedy at Whakaari/White Island, Cabinet ministers will have to start turning their attention to what official inquiries may be necessary.

Questions remain over who had the power to stop tour companies visiting Whakaari / White Island after the volcanic alert level was raised in recent weeks.

New Electoral Commission chair Marie Shroff said she was surprised to find she had lesser powers than in her previous role as Privacy Commissioner.

The Department of Internal Affairs is defending the Hepatitis Foundation after a highly critical report and says publicly shaming it does nothing to help the charity sector. Video

The Community and Voluntary Sector Minister hasn't read a damning report into the Hepatitis Foundation's extravagant spending and wasn't aware her department was refusing interviews.

The Hepatitis Foundation has called in the auditors as it pushes back against an investigation's highly critical findings of extravagant spending.

In light of the investigation into the Hepatitis Foundation's expenses, National's spokesperson for the community and voluntary sector says it's time the foundation's chairperson to step down.

The Foundation spent more than $128,000 on travel for its chairperson in just over two years and paid for lavish dinners at top Auckland restaurants.

The Hepatitis Foundation spent more than $128,000 on its board chair's travel expenses, bought "lavish" dinners, and could not account for thousands of dollars on credit cards.

A bill allowing overseas security agents to carry illegal guns while in New Zealand for the APEC summit has passed its first reading, without support from the Greens.

While the government moves closer to a resolution at disputed Ihumātao, the long-time protesters and occupiers of the land remain on the sideline.

Sources tell RNZ the Crown is considering lending money to the council to buy the disputed land, with Fletcher seeking $40m - more than double what it paid in 2014. Audio

New Zealanders now have the casting vote on whether to make euthanasia legal, after Parliament voted 69 votes to 51 in favour of the End of Life Choice Bill. Audio

The spat between Labour and New Zealand First ministers over Indian arranged marriages may have moved behind closed doors -but is no closer to resolution.