Morning Report for Monday 13 December 2021

8:57 AM.A 13-month-long Senate inquiry into Australia's media landscape has found the existing regulation isn't fit for purpose, and requires an overhaul.

The inquiry was set up a year ago, after former… Read more Audio

8:54 AM.A collection of stories to help children better understand the Muslim community will be available to all primary schools.

The stories have been produced by the Islamic Women's Council in partnership… Read more Audio

8:50 AM.A proposal to build an international airport in the small Central Otago settlement of Tarras has reopened a divide in the town.

Almost a decade ago, a proposal for an irrigation scheme split the… Read more Audio

8:46 AM.A slow-slip earthquake rumbling beneath the Kapiti Coast could help scientists predict when a devastating earthquake might hit.

After five years of being "stuck" to the overlying Australian plate… Read more Audio

8:40 AM.In one of the most exciting finishes ever to the Formula One season, Max Verstappen has won his first World Championship, snatching victory in the final grand prix in Abu Dhabi.

Verstappen was on… Read more Audio

8:36 AM.Voters in New Caledonia have rejected independence from France in a referendum boycotted by the pro-independence camp.

Unofficial results show more than 95 percent voted against independence in the… Read more Audio

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

8:25 AM.A Masterton building owner is furious at the outcome of a five-year-long inquiry into a structural engineer who approved designs for buildings that were prone to earthquakes.

Engineering New Zealand… Read more Audio

8:20 AM.The planned overhaul of First Home Grants has been put off until next year.

The number of grants approved this year is on track to be the lowest since the scheme began seven years ago, despite a caps… Read more Audio

8:15 AM.The early Omicron lab numbers have been crunched and it's becoming clear it will eclipse Delta as the most transmissible variant of Covid-19.

The UK Health Security Agency's findings, released over… Read more Audio

8:11 AM.In one of the largest tornado events in United States history, more than 30 tornadoes have been reported in at least six states, including Missouri, Tennessee and Mississippi.

Strong winds collapsed… Read more Audio

8:06 AM.Red Bull's Max Verstappen took his first Formula One title, denying rival Lewis Hamilton a record eighth, with a last-lap overtake to win this morning's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that started… Read more Audio

7:56 AM.Tree Manu became a two-time winner at the Pacific Music Awards staged over the weekend.

Better known by her artist name - Tree - she walked away as winner of the Best Music Album with her… Read more Audio

7:52 AM.Companies big and small are scrambling to patch a newly found vulnerability in a widely used software which could send the internet into meltdown.

Cybersecurity agencies worldwide are issuing alerts… Read more Audio

7:50 AM.In a significant step, a coroner has recommended key improvements to forestry's code of practice.

This follows the inquest into the death of Niko Brooking-Hodgson who was hit by a flying 9kg shackle… Read more Audio

7:44 AM.A New Zealand-based lawyer for Julian Assange wants Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to offer him asylum.

A British court has cleared the way for the Wikileaks co-founder to be extradited to the US to… Read more Audio

7:42 AM.The planned overhaul of First Home Grants has been put off until next year.

The number of grants approved this year is on track to be the lowest since the scheme began seven years ago, despite a caps… Read more Audio

7:26 AM.Cabinet will today review the country's traffic light settings.

Aucklanders are divided about whether the city should stay in red or move to orange.

The Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke to… Read more Audio

7:24 AM.In one of the largest tornado events in United States history, more than 30 tornadoes have been reported in at least six states, including Missouri, Tennessee and Mississippi.

Strong winds collapsed… Read more Audio

7:13 AM.It's decision day for traffic light settings.

Cabinet will meet this afternoon to discuss what parts of the country stay or change.

Epidemiologist Rod Jackson spoke to Morning Report's Susie… Read more Audio

7:10 AM.It's decision day for Auckland, with a possibility the city will move to fewer restrictions, as case numbers fall and vaccination rates rise.

The number of people in hospital has also fallen since… Read more Audio

6:48 AM.Businesses in Te Waipounamu's West Coast want to go even further, asking for a green light for Christmas. 

Development West Coast's chief executive Heath Milne spoke to Corin Dann. Read more Audio

6:44 AM.It's decision day for Auckland, Northland, Tairāwhiti and Whanganui with they possibility all or some will move out of red and into the orange light setting.

Businesses in Te Tai Tokerau want the… Read more Audio

6:37 AM.An update from RNZ's sports team's Joe Porter.

Max Verstappen has beaten Sir Lewis Hamilton in the final F1 race of the season in Abu Dhabi to take his first World Championship in controversial… Read more Audio

6:25 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Read more Audio

6:24 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector with Nicholas Pointon.  Read more Audio

6:14 AM.Māori, Pasifika and Asian people are still drastically under-represented on the payroll at the Environment Ministry despite some gains last year.

The lack of diversity is particularly obvious in… Read more Audio

6:11 AM.A new house on a site so tiny that its owners worried it wouldn't fit, has taken top honours in the latest Institute of Architects' awards.

Auckland architect Lisa Webb said making sure the house… Read more Audio