Midday Report Podcast Options

12:00 PM.Aotearoa secures a free trade deal with the UK, and Dame Cindy Kiro is sworn in as our new governor general. Audio

12:47 PM.An Auckland budgeting services trust says something needs to change - and fast - to help families struggling to feed themselves as food, fuel and housing prices increase faster than income.

Mangere… Read more Audio

12:42 PM.A Pacific public health expert is warning it's absurd and unrealistic not to ensure all ethnicities reach vaccination milestones before opening up and easing restrictions.

94 community cases were… Read more Audio

12:35 PM.News from the rural and farming sector with food producers wanting more certainty from the government about vaccination requirements. Audio

12:26 PM.Sam Whitelock is back as All Blacks captain and will lead the side on their northern hemisphere tour despite the return of regular skipper Sam Cane. Audio

12:20 PM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Audio

12:17 PM.The National Party has laid out its so-called Back in Business plan to support businesses, reduce restrictions, and reopen the country.

It would let areas with 70 percent vaccination and no Covid-19… Read more Audio

12:13 PM.The government this morning announced plans to change the way managed isolation is co-ordinated for health workers, guaranteeing 300 spots a month for the health and disability sector.

Health… Read more Audio

12:11 PM.Three COVID-19 positive community cases escaped from an MIQ facility near Auckland Airport yesterday evening.

The first two men were caught by police around five minutes after they fled.

But the… Read more Audio

12:00 PM.Three covid positive cases escape quarantine - one's still at large, the government sets 300 places aside for healthcare workers to come into the country, and the National Party lays out its plan to… Read more Audio

12:53 PM.The former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, says people can expect China's aggressive and confrontational diplomacy to continue for the time being.

Rudd who is a fluent Mandarin speaker says the… Read more Audio

12:50 PM.Colin Powell, the first African American to hold the country's top cabinet position of secretary of state, has died at 84.

In many ways he shaped American foreign policy for decades, and for a time… Read more Audio

12:47 PM.Tearfund's annual ethical fashion report out today shows some promising signs from New Zealand brands.

Five New Zealand companies ranked in the top 20, and roughly 40 percent of the surveyed brands… Read more Audio

12:44 PM.Workers are feeling the pinch, with inflation running red hot while wages fail to keep up.

Year on year, inflation is at 4.9 percent according to this week's figures from Stats NZ.

That means some… Read more Audio

12:35 PM.A free trade deal with the UK is only weeks away. Audio

12:28 PM.All Blacks in shock over death of teamate Sean Wainui. Audio

12:20 PM.Commerce Commission investigates alleged electronics price fixing. Audio

12:17 PM.The Waitangi Tribunal says slow progress calculating compensation to Māori health providers risks further prejudice.

It's also calling on the government to ensure the newly appointed Māori Health… Read more Audio

12:14 PM.A public health expert reviewing the government's contact tracing strategy says it's bizarre that system capacity hasn't been increased, given its cost-effectiveness compared to spiralling cases and… Read more Audio

12:10 PM.Labour and National are promising to make it easier to build more houses.

The parties are launching joint housing reforms -- saying as many as 100,000 extra homes could go up within the next eight… Read more Audio

12:00 PM.Labour and National commit to boost housing. Unlinked covid cases hit 140. Audio

12:52 PM.Countries in the western Pacific have been hit hard by the pandemic, despite largely being able to keep widespread transmission at bay.

Yet according to a report by World Vision, the economic impact… Read more Audio

12:47 PM.Voting for the Bird of the Year opens today -- but the competition's more controversial than usual.

Feathers went flying a few weeks ago when it was suggested a bat (a mammal, not a bird) would be… Read more Audio

12:43 PM.New Zealand is committing $1.3 billion over four years to support countries most vulnerable to climate change - at least half of that money will go to the Pacific.

The announcement comes ahead of the… Read more Audio

12:35 PM.Growers have been told to think of innovative ways to fix the labour shortage. Audio