Articles by Utopia Support

Drumming up ticket sales for Miss Cook Islands

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in Local

Miss Cook Islands tickets for tonight’s pageant were selling fast yesterday thanks to the beautiful Maine Tapairu Joyana Meyer, Pai Chambers and Maine Kuki Airani Engara Gosselin. If you missed out on buying tickets from the lovely ladies yesterday – they are still for sale at the Tatslotto shop in Avarua and at the Pearl […]

Bulldog supporter complains

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, As a Titikaveka Bulldog supporter, I was happy to see that our boys finally won the Grand Finals after 11 long years but was somewhat disappointed to see minimal coverage and hardly any photos in your paper especially on CINews online. To add insult to injury, the headline ‘Eels relinquish championship title’ in […]

Kata - June 7, 2012

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in Kata

Kata - June 1, 2012

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in Kata

Nassau fundraiser

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

The northern group island of Nassau is set to have its first Cook Islands Christian Church ministers in many years when minister-in-training Casey Poila and wife Piva head to the island in mid June. To help cover the cost of relocating to the tiny island – the couple and their Takamoa Theological College family will […]

New scam for Cooks

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

Businesses beware – there is a new credit card scam out to defraud you. Westpac Cook Islands is warning its customers of a new scam that has been seen around the Pacific, New Zealand and Australia in the past few years. The scam involves an email being sent to businesses, primarily in the hospitality and […]

Big day on the River Thames

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

Avarua Harbour Sea Scout Jason Potoru rowed with a Kiwi youth crew down the Thames River in London as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Pageant. Deep Sea Scout leader Ron Bird reports from London. Sunday (June 3) dawned overcast but fine as the New Zealand youth crew, which included Avarua Harbour Sea Scout Jason […]

Current cold snap not the last

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

The Cook Islands Meteorological Service has recorded a low of 16°C on two mornings this week. On Saturday and yesterday, the office recorded 16°C – bringing the average temperature for the last two weeks to between 19 and 24°C. The lowest June temperature on record in the last five years is 15.5°C, which was documented […]

New customs legislation ready

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

New customs legislation will be tabled in parliament next week. Following is a background explanation provided by Finance Minister Mark Brown: The Cook Islands customs legislation is 99 years old. Back before World War I, there were no such things as cell phones, commercial airlines, the internet, and all the other modern technology available today. […]

No answer on second ship

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

Shipping company Pacific Direct Line has been waiting more than a month for a response from government regarding its application for a licence to operate a large vessel into and out of the Cook Islands upon the completion of the harbour project. On May 1, the company approached government with a proposal to operate the […]

New openness with Budget

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

Media are attending a ‘budget lockup’ this morning at the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management. Ahead of Minister of Finance Mark Brown’s Budget speech, scheduled for 1pm in Parliament House, media will have a chance to pore over the details of all three budget books. Officials will be on hand to answer questions from […]

New Budget has a surplus balance

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

The 2012-13 Budget will be a milestone in the reporting of the country’s finances. For the first time, the Budget will be presented in the Government Financial Statistics (GFS) format which is a standard approach to the presentation of public finances by many governments, including those of Australia and New Zealand. In announcing the change […]

Tereora students working hard

Thursday 7 June 2012 | Published in National

Queen’s Birthday weekend was not a holiday for all on the island. Year 11 commerce students at Tereora College, and their teacher Jerry Spooner, gave away their day of relaxing to instead focus on some revision. Spooner, accounting teacher at the school, said the aim of the day was to cover certain topics that the […]

Tokelau aims for 100% renewable energy by 2012

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Environment

Tokelau is following the Cook Islands by declaring a 100 percent renewable energy goal. Pacific island countries are among the most petroleum-dependent nations and territories in the world. However, Tokelau, a group of three small atolls in the South Pacific, will be the first to meet its electricity needs entirely through renewable energy by the […]

Seeking green answers for green economies

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Environment

Yesterday the world celebrated World Environment Day. Below is a message from Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, in commemoration of the occasion. The Cook Islands is celebrating Environment Week this week in honour of World Environment Day. We know the future we want for all. We want a future where every girl and boy can […]

Cloth bag show open

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Environment

The Art Studio in Arorangi is kicking its Environment Week display into gear. Associate minister for the environment and Ngatangiia MP Atatoa Herman, with support from and in conjunction with the Cook Islands Sustainable Land Management Project and the National Environment Service, will formally open the SLM Cloth Bag Exhibition tonight at 6pm. While the […]

Toa tanks run dry

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Local

Toa Petroleum has run out of fuel. Company director Brett Porter is currently in Auckland, but confirmed via email that Toa has no petrol on account of shipping irregularities and expects its next supply to arrive on June 16. ”The Southern Express was originally scheduled to arrive on the third of this month. Our fuel […]

Co-operation with China promoted

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Local

Minister of health Nandi Glassie met with Chinese Ambassador Xu Jianguao in Wellington last week to discuss possible future co-operation in the health sector. Glassie, who has just returned from the World Health Organisation (WHO) General Assembly in Geneva, was following up earlier discussions on possible co-operation with China in the health sector. ”The Cook […]

French Navy vessel visits Rarotonga

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Local

A French naval vessel is due in Rarotonga today on its first voyage to the Cook Islands. The ship, named L’Arago, replaced an older French vessel in Tahiti last year. L’Arago arrives at Avatiu wharf at 8 o’clock this morning, and will stay in port until Sunday afternoon. According to French honorary consul Nathalie Rossette-Cazel […]

'Specific skill set' for solar work is not lacking

Wednesday 6 June 2012 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Having been away for a week, I’ve come late to the debate on the use of local companies to implement New Zealand Aid Programme projects, but Alistair Macquarie has already made most of the points I would have raised – and done so most admirably. However, my staff are adamant that I put […]