Morning Report for Wednesday 13 December 2017

6:39 AM.New Zealand is being urged to pressure Iraq into political reform in return for training its government security forces, to help ensure the victory Iraq has declared against Islamic State will hold… Read more Audio

6:47 AM.Many respite centres for mental health patients don't have clinical staff on hand at all times, and eleven of the country's 20 district health boards don't require the centres to record suicide… Read more Audio

7:10 AM.Whangarei Hospital's blood bank has lost its accreditation and the New Zealand Blood Service has been forced to step in to help. The hospital doesn't have enough scientists in the lab.  Audio

7:14 AM.Eleven of New Zealand's 20 District Health Boards are not keeping any records of people attempting suicide or self-harming at respite centres for mental health patients. Advocates say the lack of… Read more Audio

7:19 AM.The countdown to Friday's re-opening of State Highway 1 through Kaikoura has started, but truck drivers won't be celebrating just yet. Audio

7:21 AM.Mycoplasma bovis has been found in Hawke's Bay and Southland for the first time. The Ministry for Primary Industries says a fifth property near Ashburton is also likely to be infected. The spread of… Read more Audio

7:29 AM.Donald Trump has denied accusations that he sexually harassed multiple women before becoming US President. Three of the women who've previously spoken out against Mr Trump reiterated their claims… Read more Audio

7:41 AM.n animal welfare group is laying a complaint with police after being sent a video of a teenager bashing a kitten to death with a rock. Paw Justice put the video online after it was sent to them by an… Read more Audio

7:45 AM.KidsCan says it's been told it will lose its funding on 30 June next year. The charity feeds 30,000 children a week across 700 New Zealand schools. Its executive Julie Chapman told Checkpoint last… Read more Audio

7:52 AM.One of the lawyers who helped free Teina Pora after he was wrongly convicted for murder is turning his attention to another high profile case. Jonathan Krebs will be acting for Scott Watson in his… Read more Audio

8:09 AM.The so-called 'halo' effect of the Auckland housing market has finally reached the Far North. What the locals call the real Far North, that is. The town of Kaitaia - after years in the economic… Read more Audio

8:14 AM.Schools are free to scrap National Standards next year, after the Government pulled the plug on the controversial reporting standards for reading, writing and maths. Introduced by National in 2010… Read more Audio

8:18 AM.A decision on a new route to replace the landslide-prone Manawatu Gorge road has been delayed. The Transport Agency had hoped to have a final version ready by the end of this year, but now says more… Read more Audio

8:29 AM.The New Zealand Superannuation Fund is among a group of powerful investors putting pressure on the world's biggest polluters to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The global campaign, dubbed the… Read more Audio

8:37 AM.57 years ago John F Kennedy announced America would put men on the moon.Yesterday Donald Trump said America will go back. Audio

8:42 AM.Alabama is voting for its next Senator. The party's candidate, Roy Moore, is under scrutiny for multiple accusations of child sex abuse. But US President Donald Trump has thrown his full support… Read more Audio

8:49 AM.Many Karori residents are disappointed a retirement village will replace a teaching campus they've long relied on for recreation. The old Wellington teachers' college was sold to Victoria University… Read more Audio

8:54 AM.Two Auckland iwi have reached an agreement to work together on land issues in what is being seen as a slap to Hauraki-based iwi who have also been making claims in the region. Ngati Whatua Orakei and… Read more Audio