Morning Report for Thursday 22 March 2012

8:57 AM.Tourists visiting Stewart Island will soon have to pay a compulsory levy for the privilege after a new law passed its third reading in Parliament. Audio

8:53 AM.Conservationists say farmers must start paying for the pollution they produce or many of this country's most significant waterways risk being lost forever. That's the message 200 people at the… Read more Audio

8:49 AM.A Maori incorporation says getting support to build houses on ancestral land has been a challenging process; A Tauranga hapu has decided to appeal plans by the Port of Tauranga, to deepen and widen… Read more Audio

8:44 AM.Some Christchurch people with properties in the red zone say they feel bullied by the government's insistence they have to abandon their homes. Audio

8:41 AM.The country's biggest local body, the Auckland Council, is embarking on a major re-organisation, 18 months after being created in the supercity reforms. Audio

8:31 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:28 AM.Tonga's new king will be known as Tupou the sixth. King George Tupou V's successor is his younger brother, Crown Prince Tupouto'a Lavaka, Audio

8:19 AM.The gunman suspected of shooting dead seven people in the name of al Qaeda has boasted to police that he's brought France to its knees. 24 year old Mohamed Mehra says his only regret is not having… Read more Audio

8:14 AM.The Labour Party Leader, David Shearer says the Prime Minister's has breached promise to set high standards for his ministers in his handling of Nick Smith. Audio

8:09 AM.Ports of Auckland has suspended its plan to make Maritime Union workers redundant and will return to collective bargaining talks. It had planned to make about 300 workers redundant and contract out… Read more Audio

7:56 AM.A study in the United Kingdom suggests that taking a low dose of aspirin every day could prevent some cancers. The research, published in The Lancet medical journal, showed a 25% reduction in cancer… Read more Audio

7:53 AM.The Prime Minister is being condemned for opening the Wellington office of a company that wants to mine conservation land on the West Coast. Audio

7:50 AM.The coroner who looked into the fatal explosion at a coolstore near Hamilton nearly four years ago is calling for the licencing and inspection of plants using hazardous substances. Audio

7:47 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

7:42 AM.Some of New Zealand's veteran activists say the Urewera raids could have been avoided if Maori liaison officers were used. Tame Iti, and three others have been found guilty of about half of all the… Read more Audio

7:37 AM.Police in Toulouse have laid seige to a building where a suspected serial killer is holed up. The gunman, identified as 24-year-old Mohamed Merah, is the chief suspect in the killings of three… Read more Audio

7:28 AM.The extent of the government's back down from proposed cost-cutting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is expected to be revealed when managers meet public-sector unions. Audio

7:23 AM.Some in his electorate think stepping down from his Cabinet post was the right thing to do. Warren Ensby, a bee keeper selling his honey at Nelson farmers' market, is convinced Nick Smith had to go. Audio

7:18 AM.Opposition parties say the Prime Minister's poor political management has been highlighted by the resignation of Nick Smith. Audio

7:13 AM.After private discussions with the Employment Court, the ports will put the contracting-out of work on hold for four weeks. Audio

7:09 AM.The long-running dispute between Ports of Auckland and the Maritime Union has taken an unexpected twist, with the port company agreeing to suspend redundancies and re-enter collective bargaining… Read more Audio

6:47 AM.News from the business sector including a market report. Audio

6:39 AM.Ports of Auckland has suspended its plan to make Maritime Union workers redundant and will return to collective bargaining talks. It had planned to make 300 workers redundant, after the breakdown of… Read more Audio

6:28 AM.A Tauranga hapu has decided to appeal plans by the Port of Tauranga, to deepen and widen the harbour in order to provide access for bigger container ships; A Maori incorporation says getting support… Read more Audio

6:23 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Audio

6:19 AM.The latest from the Pacific region. Audio

6:14 AM.School principals around the country want teachers to be exempt from jury service because of the disruption it causes to students. The Secondary Principals' Association says jury service is putting… Read more Audio

6:11 AM.Opposition parties say the Prime Minister's poor political management has been highlighted by the resignation of the cabinet minister, Nick Smith. Audio

6:00 AM.Ports dispute takes another twist as mediation recommences; Ports company says it was encouraged to re-enter talks; Opposition says PM should have acted more decisively; Political editor discusses… Read more Audio