Morning Report for Tuesday 16 June 2020

6:11 AM.One of the projects the government is fast tracking to help kick start the economy is facing continued backlash over the demolition of homes.

The Northern Pathway cycleway or "Sky Path" on Auckland's… Read more Audio

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

6:23 AM.A brief update from the business sector. Read more Audio

6:37 AM.Environmentalists are suspicious that the true impact of fast-tracking infrastructure projects is being underestimated.

Minister for the Environment David Parker has announced eleven projects to be… Read more Audio

6:43 AM.The Picton ferry redevelopment has been earmarked for fast-tracked consent as part of the government's plan to boost the economy and create jobs.

It is one of eleven projects named in the COVID-19… Read more Audio

6:47 AM.Disability advocates say the public housing agency, Kainga Ora, needs to set its sights higher when it comes to making more houses accessible.

The agency has set a target to ensure at least 15… Read more Audio

6:54 AM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Read more Audio

7:06 AM.The United States Tennis Association will repeatedly hold the U.S. Open this year without fans. Read more Audio

7:08 AM.Nearly 400 health specialists are telling government it must invest in rundown GP and hospital IT systems.

A national health stocktake has revealed that data systems are outdated, poorly managed and… Read more Audio

7:12 AM.The US Supreme Court has delivered a landmark ruling to recognise the rights of LGBTQ workers this morning.

The ruling means the Civil Rights Act of 1964 also protects gay and transgender employees… Read more Audio

7:17 AM.Important health subjects are in line to be dropped from the final year of Otago University's medical degree.

The university has proposed no longer making psychological medicine, obstetrics or… Read more Audio

7:20 AM.England has relaxed its rules after a three month lockdown to try and limit the spread of coronavirus.

Over 41,000 people have died from the disease in Britain. EasyJet aircraft took to the skies for… Read more Audio

7:25 AM.The Labour Party has unveiled its full list of candidates for the election and it includes one of the key voices advising the government during the Covid-19 crisis.

Dr Ayesha Verrall - who is an… Read more Audio

7:38 AM.The Minister for the Environment is promising safeguards will be in place as he moves to fast track major infrastructure plans.

Eleven projects are being rushed through the consent process to speed… Read more Audio

7:49 AM.A Ngaruawāhia hapū is demanding to know why they were not properly consulted about a decision to destroy 300-year-old food pits. 

Excavation of the rua, which give the town its name, stopped in early… Read more Audio

7:53 AM.The public housing agency, Kainga Ora, doesn't know how many of its properties meet design standards that ensure anyone with a disability can live in them.

There are close to 900 people on the state… Read more Audio

7:56 AM.Borders across Europe have opened up to each other for the first time in three months.

European citizens are now able to travel across the continent as border restrictions, put in place to contain… Read more Audio

8:06 AM.The World Anti-Doping Agency has begun an investigation into doping violations after an inquiry led by Richard McLaren uncovered 40 positive tests hidden in the records of the International… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.A group of 360 clinicians have written to the Director General of Health demanding progress be made on updating the country's hospital IT systems.

A recent stocktake of DHBs found $2.3 billion is… Read more Audio

8:16 AM.Otago University has proposed no longer making psychological medicine, obstetrics or gynaecology compulsory for medical students in the sixth and final year.

The plans have alarmed many doctors -… Read more Audio

8:19 AM.Research indicates the government's fees-free policy is persuading students to enrol in university who are not well-equipped to cope.

The study of 1000 first-year students at the University of… Read more Audio

8:23 AM.The government is refusing to pass a single-page piece of legislation, before the election, that would allow families with disabled children to take complaints to the Human Rights Review Tribunal and… Read more Audio

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

8:35 AM.The long-awaited walking and cycling path across the Auckland harbour bridge has been named as one of eleven major projects to be fast-tracked through the consent process.

"Shovel-ready" projects… Read more Audio

8:39 AM.A former US Marine has been sentenced to 16 years of hard labour on spying charges in Russia.

Paul Whelan was arrested in a Moscow hotel room in 2018 with a USB memory stick security officials say… Read more Audio

8:44 AM.New Zealanders aren't great at saving for a rainy day and the rainy day is here.

That's the verdict of the Financial Services Council who have surveyed 2000 people in the first of a three-part… Read more Audio

8:47 AM.Some residents of Cromwell, a town in Central Otago, are suggesting that the name of the town be changed.

The town is named for Oliver Cromwell, the English statesman who led the armies of the… Read more Audio

8:51 AM.The city at the centre of the name changing debate is Hamilton where former mayor and Waikato Regional councillor, Russ Rimmington, has now called for a public referendum.

He believes the public… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.Finally this morning, we thought we'd share this small behind-the-scenes vignette showcasing one of the difficulties of broadcasting from home.

Just as you might have heard Corin's dog Stanley while… Read more Video, Audio