Prime minister Henry Puna is understood to have cancelled a planned trip to China this week after Rakahanga Cook Islands Party MP Toka Hagai abruptly resigned his seat late last week.

A story on the Stuff website claiming the Cook Islands “is said to be” on the brink of signing a deal allowing China to build a deep water port on Penryhn, has drawn a formal complaint from the Office of the Prime Minister to Fairfax Media in New Zealand.

The Cook Islands government intends to table new legislation relating to seabed minerals activities in December.

A twin-engined Air Rarotonga Embraer Bandeirante with 11 passengers on board suffered an engine failure on departure from Aitutaki last Tuesday evening.

A special service to mark the centenary of the armistice that ended World War One and to honour the 500 Cook Islanders who served in World War One, will be held at the cenotaph outside the Ministry of Justice building on Sunday, November 11.

An Airport Authority spokesperson has revealed an Air New Zealand jet was forced to abandon two attempted landings before finally touching down at Rarotonga International Airport on Tuesday afternoon.

Low cloud forced an Air New Zealand jet to abort its landing at Rarotonga International Airport yesterday afternoon.

There were fewer people than usual at this year’s annual pre-cyclone season thanksgiving service at the National Auditorium on Sunday night – and the reason was the weather.

Punanga Tauturu Inc, Cook Islands Woman’s Counselling Centre coordinator Rebeka Buchanan is a special guest speaker at an Oceania Domestic Violence conference in Auckland organised by the chief executive of Friendship House in Manukau, Neil Denney.

The 2018 Vaevae Revival walk, launched at the Punanga Nui market on Thursday afternoon, was a success, with a large number of people of all ages – not to mention the odd dog or three, turning up to participate in the first challenge for the year.