Morning Report for Tuesday 20 March 2018

6:00 AM.Ardern urged to clarify oil, gas plans, NZer Chris Liddell Trump's new deputy chief of staff, Woman hit, killed by self-driving Uber vehicle in US, Millions spent tackling domestic violence, but… Read more Audio

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

6:10 AM.A $4 million deal that will send thousands of tonnes of toxic Tiwai smelter waste overseas has been welcomed by Southland locals, but some are warning there's more to be cleaned up. The liquidators of… Read more Audio

6:13 AM.Hospital nurses are nearing the end of meetings and voting on a proposed pay deal with their employers. District health boards have offered nurses and midwives two pay rises of two percent, a lump-sum… Read more Audio

6:20 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

6:20 AM.A bushfire in the town of Tathra on the New South Wales south coast has destroyed almost 70 houses and damaged another 30. No one's been allowed back into the town since the fire started on Sunday. At… Read more Audio

6:39 AM.The National Party leader, Simon Bridges, says Jacinda Ardern should be honest about exactly what her plans are for oil and gas exploration. On Monday, in a surprise move, the Prime Minister… Read more Audio

6:41 AM.The government's super-ministry which is under fire for high spending on contractors, has hired back its former chief executive - as a contractor. David Smol has joined the Ministry of Business… Read more Audio

6:43 AM.Auckland's port company rejects suggestions it may be breaching competition law, in the way it runs the city's publicly owned cruise ship terminal. Local tour operators say they are denied access to… Read more Audio

6:49 AM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Audio

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

7:10 AM.Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is being told she must be honest about exactly what her plans are for oil and gas exploration. On Monday, in a surprise move, she personally accepted a Greenpeace… Read more Audio

7:18 AM.A woman in Tempe, Arizona has died after being hit by a self-driving car operated by Uber, in what appears to be the first known death of a pedestrian struck by an autonomous vehicle on public roads… Read more Audio

7:20 AM.A $60 million programme to tackle domestic violence has drawn up thousands of safety plans for at-risk families but appears to be stepping in with actual help in only two percent of cases. Launched… Read more Audio

7:53 AM.The Ngaruawahia community is rallying to support the family of an eleven-year-old girl killed on Sunday while playing on a train bridge across the Waikato River. A Givealittle page has been set up for… Read more Audio

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

8:12 AM.The Ngaruawahia community is rallying to support the family of an eleven-year-old girl killed on Sunday while playing on a train bridge across the Waikato River. A Givealittle page has been set up for… Read more Audio

8:30 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:40 AM.A public sector boss who oversaw an upsurge in spending on contractors, has now been hired by the ministry he used to head, as a contractor. David Smol finished up in the top job at the Ministry of… Read more Audio

8:55 AM.Nurses behind a Facebook page set up to discuss the struggles of the job say they're determined to have their voices heard. They say support for the page, which has 40-thousand members, has spurred… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei are this morning marking the anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi by their chief on this day 178 years. Not long after the signing of Te Tiriti in Manukau, Apihai… Read more Audio