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Can you please give me a comparison between a diesel vehicle and a petrol vehicle, 14,000kms per year? Which would be the cheaper to run in the long term, based on a 2.4 or 2.5? Thank you.

Based purely on the AA's 14,000km per annum running cost calculations, there is very little difference. Petrol equates to around 79c per km and diesel around 80c per km. However, depending on which type of vehicle you are considering, the benefit may swing one way or the other in the long run.
Small and mid-sized cars will generally be every bit as desirable on the used market when it comes time for you to sell, whether they are petrol or diesel. However, large petrol powered SUV's and utes can be very difficult to sell, so if its an SUV/4X4 type vehicle, diesel may be the way to go.
Generally speaking, diesel becomes more cost effective if you are doing a much larger mileage than the NZ average of 14,000km per year.