Morning Report for Tuesday 29 January 2013

8:52 AM.Dunedin songstress Kylie Price has arrived back from the Tamworth Country Music Awards in Australia, with two glittering gongs. Audio

8:49 AM.The Wanganui District Council is considering pumping untreated waste directly into the sea, as the stench emanating from the treatment plant continues to plague parts of the city. Audio

8:46 AM.A national conservation group says it doesn't want what it calls Government cronies overseeing the management of Te Urewera; A major shareholder of a Far North Maori organisation says the burning down… Read more Audio

8:41 AM.Government promises to boost the number of apprentices in training this year are leading employers to ask - where will the money to take them on come from? Audio

8:38 AM.After months of strikes, lock out notices, court action, privacy complaints and threats of mass redundancies and finally court ordered facilitation the Maritime Union is meeting today to thrash out a… Read more Audio

8:35 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

8:29 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:25 AM.The Government claims a new visa rule that has just come into effect will help ensure New Zealanders are first in line for job vacancies created during the Canterbury rebuild. Audio

8:22 AM.While politicians engage in a war of words on rival policies to bring the nation affordable housing, a bank economist warns that in Auckland things may get worse before they get better. Audio

8:17 AM.The Economic Development Minister, Steven Joyce, is rubbishing an opposition inquiry into manufacturing, saying while there are challenges in the sector - it is not in crisis. Audio

8:13 AM.In Queensland, the government has declared Brisbane a disaster area. Audio

8:09 AM.A fourth person has died in the flooding disaster hitting southern Queensland and New South Wales, as ex-tropical cyclone Oswald works its way down Australia's east coast, closing in on Sydney. Audio

7:55 AM.Weather experts say conditions are ripe for a record breaking heat wave this week as a high south-east of the country, along with nor-west winds, mix with the remains of cyclone Oswald. Audio

7:51 AM.Opposition parties are meeting this morning to determine whether they will support outgoing Primary Industries Minister David Carter to become Parliament's next Speaker on Thursday. Audio

7:49 AM.Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands has just announced her abdication in favour of her son, Prince Willem-Alexander. Audio

7:45 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

7:38 AM.At the heart of the argument over whether a shortage of land underpins the rise of house prices in the Super City is Auckland Mayor Len Brown. Audio

7:35 AM.The Minister of Finance is pressing Auckland Council to back up its claims that a shortage of land is NOT the main factor behind city's spiralling house prices. Audio

7:26 AM.Three people have been arrested following the fatal nightclub fire in the southern Brazillian town of Santa Maria. Audio

7:17 AM.The Economic Development Minister, Steven Joyce, is rubbishing an opposition inquiry into manufacturing, saying while there are challenges in the sector - it is not in crisis. Audio

7:14 AM.New Zealander Rebecca Gillions moved to Brisbane 13 years ago and went to Bundaberg to celebrate Australia Day. Audio

7:08 AM.Four people have died in the flooding hitting southern Queensland and northern New South Wales, as ex-tropical cyclone Oswald travels down the east coast of Australia. Audio

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

6:39 AM.Exporters have told a joint-political inquiry into manufacturing that the overvalued dollar is one of the biggest threats to their businesses. Audio

6:27 AM.A major shareholder of a Far North Maori organisation says the burning down of its subdivision sales office follows months of opposition to the marketing of coastal customary land; A national… Read more Audio

6:22 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Audio

6:18 AM.The latest from the Pacific region. Audio

6:00 AM.Disaster in Queensland as floodwaters rise, Eye witness account of Queensland flooding, Made up manufacturing crisis not helping anyone - Joyce, Three arrests following Brazil nightclub fire… Read more Audio