Morning Report for Monday 5 March 2018

6:00 AM.A woman left blind and disfigured by her abusive partner speaks out in the hope it will help others, The mother of a severely disabled man vows to continues her fight to be paid for caring for him for… Read more Audio

6:06 AM.A update from the team at RNZ sport. Audio

6:13 AM.Australia's former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce has cast doubt on whether he is the father of his new partner's baby. Mr Joyce has been quoted by Fairfax media saying the identity of the… Read more Audio

6:17 AM.Government spending on food hardship grants jumped $10 million last year, with Work and Income handing out more grants than ever before. Ministry of Social Development figures show that almost 498,00… Read more Audio

6:39 AM.Negotiations to establish a massive Asian trade pact appear to be going backwards with some now questioning whether New Zealand should pull out. The latest round of the Regional Comprehensive Economic… Read more Audio

6:43 AM.The government has kicked off what it calls the "Pacific reset" with Jacinda Ardern beginning her first trip to the region as Prime Minister. It comes after Foreign Minister Winston Peters promised to… Read more Audio

6:46 AM.An annual Otago University camp for law students could be canned after complaints about excessive drinking, nudity and jelly wrestling. It's organised by law sudents association, knowns as SOULS, but… Read more Audio

7:06 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

7:21 AM.An official new report shows two thirds of councils surveyed are doing substandard safety checks on buildings. Some have failed to issue a single order to get deficient buildings fixed for six or more… Read more Audio

7:38 AM.The new leader of the National Party disagrees with the 'tone' of the new government's approach to foreign policy. The government has kicked off what it calls the "Pacific reset" with Jacinda Ardern… Read more Audio

7:55 AM.The New Zealand Festival in Wellington has had a week full of events. Standing Room Only presenter Lynn Freeman joins Susie Ferguson with her take on what she's experienced, including the NZ Symphony… Read more Audio

8:06 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

8:19 AM.US President Donald Trump's open talk of stiff new tariffs on imported steel and aluminium has drawn strong criticism from its trading partners and the International Monetary Fund. New Zealand is… Read more Audio

8:28 AM.Earthquake and cyclone hit Kaikōura business owners say finding staff in the seaside town has been next to impossible over summer. A seven-point-eight magnitude earthquake in November 2016 shattered… Read more Audio

8:38 AM.The Workplace Relations Minister says Cabinet will now consider ways to make lodging a pay equity claim easier. The Joint Working Group on Pay Equity Principles was reconvened in January, and has… Read more Audio

8:48 AM.Police say the search for missing Alexandra man, Christopher Bates, is being treated as a missing persons case, but they are keeping an open mind about the circumstances of his disapperance… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.The 90th Academy Awards are taking place in Los Angeles today and will feature a live performance from Keala Settle, the half-Kiwi songstress who stars in the musical The Greatest Showman. The song… Read more Audio