Morning Report for Monday 11 April 2022

8:51 AM.Anti-mandate protesters in Dunedin's Octagon have until midday to leave.

Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins says the lifting of vaccine pass requirements and most mandates means there's no reason for them… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.High Covid-19 hospitalisations in Hawke's Bay is concerning general practice doctors.

More than 150 people in the region have been hospitalised during Omicron outbreak and in recent weeks Hawke's Bay… Read more Audio

8:36 AM.Plunket staff are upset the organisation will shut down a parenting education programme, due to a lack of funding.

Six hundred PEPE courses are attended by about 4000 parents and caregivers each… Read more Audio

8:18 AM.Bars around the country still requiring Covid-19 vaccine passes are finding themselves at the forefront of online activity by anti-mandate supporters.

The requirement for hospitality and… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.MPs are debating whether to haul the Russian Ambassador before them for parliamentary questioning over the Ukraine invasion.

Such a step would be extraordinary: Parliament has only used its power to… Read more Audio

7:56 AM.A seaside park in Nelson, once home to a weed-choked pond, is getting a new lease of life.

Named after the town's model engineers society, The Modellers' Pond has been overrun with weed and algae for… Read more Audio

7:48 AM.Australians go to the polls to vote for their next federal government in six weeks, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirming that the election will be held on May 21.

The campaign pits… Read more Audio

7:41 AM.Hawke's Bay has consistently had one of the highest, if not the highest, Covid-19 hospitalisation rate of any region in the country over recent weeks.

Doctors say they're stretched and terrified of… Read more Audio

7:36 AM.The government is set to review the Covid-19 traffic light system this week.

It would be considering a move from red to orange.

Last time the settings were reviewed Cabinet opted to keep the entire… Read more Audio

7:27 AM.SIS assessments of the LynnMall stabber show very early on they were calling him a terrorist and would-be martyr.

A criminologist and leading Muslims say this helped radicalise Ahamed Aathill… Read more Audio

7:24 AM.Trade training is booming with thousands more people signing up for apprenticeships since the pandemic began.

Industry training leaders say apprentice numbers are spiking in some industries… Read more Audio

7:16 AM.MPs are debating whether to haul the Russian Ambassador before them for questioning, after he's twice rebuffed their requests.

Such a step would be extraordinary - Parliament has only used its power… Read more Audio

7:09 AM.The Prime Minister says expelling the Russian Ambassador remains an option, but it's not the most impactful action New Zealand can take to condemn the Russian invasion.

MPs are debating whether they… Read more Audio

6:50 AM.Polls are closing in the first round of the French Presidential Election - and president Emmanuel Macron is facing a strong challenge from the far right.

It's being called one of the closest first… Read more Audio

6:41 AM.Some MPs are debating whether to haul in the Russian ambassador to New Zealand, Georgii Zuev, for a parliamentary grilling over the Ukraine invasion. National leader Christopher Luxon has already… Read more Audio

6:20 AM.Severe gales and heavy rain are expected in a day or so as Cyclone Fili approaches the North Island.

The storm could first hit Northland and then track across eastern parts of the island, raising… Read more Audio

6:13 AM.More than 1200 bodies have been discovered in the Kyiv region since Russian forces withdrew from the area.

Now Ukrainian authorities are investigating 5000 cases of alleged war crimes committed by… Read more Audio