Morning Report for Tuesday 29 September 2020

6:11 AM.Severe weather continued overnight, with an influx of frigid air continuing to bring snow to parts of the country.

Cold air pulled in from the Antarctic is still making its way north, with sustained… Read more Audio

6:20 AM.A brief update from the business sector. Read more Audio

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

6:37 AM.An Auckland woman living near the Harbour Bridge is angry and shocked people were never told neighbouring land was contaminated with heavy metals from the bridge.

RNZ revealed the transport agency… Read more Audio

6:40 AM.Just three lanes of the Auckland Harbour Bridge are open this morning because of the high winds.

Reporter Katie Todd has the latest. Read more Audio

6:45 AM.New Zealand's southern-most region is still being hammered by the latest weather bomb.

Scattered snow showers are predicted for Southland today.

Southland District Mayor Gary Tong speaks to Corin… Read more Audio

6:48 AM.The fishing season kicks off this week and some professional guides who would normally be turning clients away have no bookings at all due to the Covid-19 border closure.

The Fishing Guide… Read more Audio

6:53 AM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Read more Audio

7:10 AM.Wind gusts have seen all lanes closed on Auckland's damaged Harbour Bridge.

The Transport Agency says it will reopen when the wind settles - and that travellers should expect delays this morning.

… Read more Audio

7:15 AM.Southern farmers are waking up to disastrous scenes this morning, as snow continues to fall amid the freezing weather.

Snow continued falling to sea level overnight in Fiordland, Southland and… Read more Audio

7:17 AM.Simon Davies, the president for Federated Farmers Otago region, is waking up to a farmer's nightmare - a winter wonderland during spring lambing season.

His farm is based on the coast at Toko Mouth.

7:21 AM.An Auckland woman living near the Harbour Bridge is angry and shocked people were never told neighbouring land was contaminated with heavy metals from the bridge.

RNZ revealed the transport agency… Read more Audio

7:24 AM.Three weeks out from the election and the latest political poll suggests the Green Party will play a key role in forming a new government.

Last night's Colmar Brunton poll put the Green Party at… Read more Audio

7:38 AM.The government says despite ramping up security at managed isolation facilities, it never anticipated people absconding via fourth floor windows.

The latest managed isolation escapee created a rope… Read more Audio

7:43 AM.The WHO has approved emergency funding for a Covid-19 test which can produce on the spot results in 15 to 30 minutes.

Two companies are producing the rapid antigen tests which will soon be… Read more Audio

7:47 AM.Political parties trotted out their most youth-friendly candidates for TVNZ's Young Voters' debate last night.

Plans for housing, debt and rail were all put under the microscope.

RNZ political… Read more Audio

7:54 AM.A new campaign is launching in support of the cannabis referendum, with sixty New Zealanders - young and old - fronting a nationwide poster campaign.

It includes some familiar faces, like Helen… Read more Audio

8:12 AM.The bad weather has been playing havoc with the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

It has been closed for the past hour but three lanes have just reopened.

Auckland reporter Katie Todd was at the Shelley… Read more Audio

8:14 AM.Southern farmers were bracing themselves for losses overnight as heavy snow continued to fall.

Late yesterday snow started to fall around parts of coastal Otago this evening, with reports of blizzard… Read more Audio

8:18 AM.The Labour Party is set to announce a raft of health promises today, including more than three times the money for dental care for people on low incomes.

RNZ understands the emergency grant for… Read more Audio

8:20 AM.New Zealanders overseas will be able to start voting in the general election and referendums from 30 September.

About 67,000 New Zealand voters are enrolled from an overseas address and will be able… Read more Audio

8:23 AM.Opponents of legalising cannabis say the amount people could buy each day will make life worse for those who are already heavy users.

Those who support it say buying up to 14 grams of dried weed at a… Read more Audio

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

8:37 AM.The National Party says it will double the size of the Serious Fraud Office if elected.

It would also rename the newly beefed-up agency the Serious Fraud and Anti-Corruption Agency.

Deputy Political… Read more Audio

8:40 AM.Work is underway to get power generated at the Manapouri hydro dam in Southland to the rest of the country.

Rio Tinto announced in July it would close its Southland-based Tiwai Point aluminium… Read more Audio

8:44 AM.A man who was wrongly identified as mentally disabled when just six years old, was then sent to a state institution where he was physically and sexually abused until the end of his teens.

It took… Read more Audio

8:50 AM.Freshwater anglers are eagerly anticipating the start of the new trout and salmon fishing season, which begins on Thursday.

Just in time for the school holidays, people will be able to get out on the… Read more Audio

8:53 AM.For many of us our mobile phones are now like an extension of our arms - and for some that means they follow us everywhere, even into the shower.

Wellington's Sustainability Trust says it's coming… Read more Audio

8:57 AM.Holiday parks around the country are bucking the trend in accommodation bookings, with an increase in the number of nights booked compared with the same time last year.

Hotels, motels and… Read more Audio