A Dunedin man drove at speeds over 100kmh in the central city before fleeing police and allegedly punching an officer and assaulting a woman with knuckledusters.

The boarding hostel at the country's oldest school is set to close early amid new concerns about student safety.

Police say there was "no pressure" on staff to meet alcohol breath test targets and have ruled out reviewing how they are applied, after it was revealed 30,000 tests had been falsified.

Chinese tourists are now able to travel to New Zealand, via Australia, without a visitor visa.

The audacious daytime robbery of historical jewels worth $102 million from the Paris Louvre museum last month was executed by petty criminals, rather than professionals from the world of organised crime, the Paris prosecutor said.

Northland conservationist Brad Windust has slammed Biosecurity New Zealand's response to the arrival of yellow-legged hornets, calling it "hopelessly inadequate".