Morning Report for Friday 15 January 2021

8:56 AM.In Dunedin, all eyes are on a famous corpse flower at the Dunedin Botanic Garden. It blooms sporadically and emits an odour so rancid it's been compared to a rotting corpse in the process. Keenly… Read more Audio

8:53 AM.The America's Cup Challenger Selection Series begins today in Auckland and the regatta organiser says now is the time to leave "silly" off the water squabbles behind. The first of four round robin… Read more Audio

8:49 AM.The country's first sniffer dogs specialising in kauri dieback are ready to get to work in the fight against the disease. The two dogs will add first line of defence against the incurable disease that… Read more Audio

8:46 AM.The theft of a treasured Charles Goldie painting from a Hamilton property has outraged the country's art buffs. The painting, titled 'Sleep 'tis a Gentle Thing', was taken along with other valuable… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.Southlanders are expressing relief after a deal was reached to keep the Tiwai Point aluminum smelter open. Mining conglomerate Rio Tinto announced last year it was closing Tiwai in August this year… Read more Audio

8:41 AM.A woman says she's been left shaken and humiliated after being dragged along the beach by the director of a water park in Auckland. Video footage has captured the moment the man first grabs and then… Read more Audio

8:34 AM.A few nerves and two weeks in managed isolation haven't been enough to keep White Ferns cricket captain Sophie Devine down. Playing her first game in seven weeks, yesterday Devine set a new world… Read more Audio

8:27 AM.The US President Donald Trump has become the only President to have been impeached twice, with the House of Representatives condemning him for "willful incitement of insurrection." The impeachment… Read more Audio

8:22 AM.Gay, lesbian or bisexual people are twice as likely to suffer from sexual violence or family harm than the average New Zealander.

Te Aniwa Hurihanganui spoke to Tabby Besley from InsideOUT, a charity… Read more Audio

8:19 AM.Gay, lesbian or bisexual people are twice as likely to suffer from sexual violence or family harm than the average New Zealander. The Ministry of Justice figures from the Crime and Victims Survey… Read more Audio

8:13 AM.A Housing First provider says rapidly rising rents are making working people homeless, because they cannot afford rapidly rising rents, and do not qualify for government help. Nearly 10,000 Emergency… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.A Whanau Ora provider says rapidly rising rents are driving families out of private homes and into emergency housing at an alarming rate. The number of emergency housing grants issued from the… Read more Audio