Morning Report Podcast Options

8:48 AM.As the Covid-19 pandemic enters its third year, life may never be the same for those who share the Sanskrit first name of "Kovid"- with a K.

Kovid means scholar in Hindi, but Indian man Kovid Kapoor… Read more Audio

8:46 AM.Some of the country's top surfers will be vying for the prestigious national championship title from today in Westport on the South Island's wild West Coast.

Raglan's Billy Stairmand is setting out… Read more Audio

8:41 AM.The past seven years have been the hottest on record, that's according to new EU data.

Last year was the fifth warmest year ever - while extreme weather such heatwaves and floods caused chaos, and… Read more Audio

8:39 AM.The New Zealand mens' cricketers have had a remarkable turnaround in the second Test against Bangladesh at Christchurch's Hagley Oval.

The Black Caps were humbled by a dominant Bangladesh in the… Read more Audio

8:36 AM.The world men's tennis number one, Novak Djokovic, is a free man once more.

He last night won his court battle to stay in Australia and defend his Grand Slam title next week.

But government… Read more Audio

8:24 AM.Dame Jane Campion's western The Power of the Dog scooped two of the top awards at the Golden Globes yesterday.

The New Zealander won the coveted Best Director gong, and also took out the the Best… Read more Audio

8:21 AM.A major Northland intersection - where students were injured in a bus crash - is yet to undergo safety improvements, despite investigators' advice.

A bus carrying Otamatea High School pupils crashed… Read more Audio

8:13 AM.Reform advocates the Howard League want better accommodation for those on remand.

It comes as some offenders face jail time because bad reception where they live means electronic monitoring is not an… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.Some offenders are having to serve prison sentences because they don't live in areas with good enough reception for electronic monitoring.

The Corrections Department cannot say how often this… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.Drinking beer once involved a pint of bitter or larger, or perhaps a flagon of the favourite from the bottle store.

But the industry is now big business and constantly changing to keep up with… Read more Audio

8:53 AM.Tauranga's water supply has hit a record low, which could see further water restrictions introduced.

Residents are already forbidden from washing cars, houses or boats with a hose and with water… Read more Audio

8:49 AM.More than half a million doses of the children's Pfizer vaccine have arrived in the country, ahead of the rollout next week. From next Monday, those aged from 5 to 11 can receive their first… Read more Audio

8:43 AM.It's been a troublesome start to the year for the Green Party, with former party figures lashing out at the leadership.

Former MPs and delegates have accused the Greens of sidelining their core… Read more Audio

8:40 AM.Fiji has braced itself for a tropical cyclone overnight, and severe flooding already affecting some areas.

Members of the public were warned to stay put - between 2017 and 2021, a total of 17 people… Read more Audio

8:35 AM.A large scrub fire near Wanaka had residents on high alert overnight.

The blaze ripped through around 200 hectares of regenerating bush at Emerald Bay yesterday afternoon, closing Mount Aspiring… Read more Audio

8:27 AM.New court documents filed in the United States say the cruise passengers hurt and killed in the Whakaari eruption weren't fully warned about the dangers.

Twenty-two people were killed when the… Read more Audio

8:22 AM.Today, a Melbourne court will hear arguments on whether the unvaccinated tennis star, Novak Djokovic, should be allowed into the country to play in next week's Australian Open, or whether he should be… Read more Audio

8:17 AM.In Australia, more than 90, 000 Covid cases were recorded across the country on Sunday, as Omicron rips through the community - with Victoria and New South Wales the worst hit states.

One of the new… Read more Audio

8:14 AM.The highly transmissible Omicron variant has spread rapidly around the globe, but so far in New Zealand it's been contained at the border.

Microbiologist and Associate Professor at the University of… Read more Audio

8:11 AM.Covid-19 experts are nervously eyeing the ever increasing number of infected cases stacking up at the border, as the threat of an Omicron outbreak looms.

The highly transmissible variant has rapidly… Read more Audio

8:57 AM.Swimming 10 kilometres a day, for ten days straight, probably isn't most people's idea of a relaxing time at the beach over summer.

While the rest of us are sunbathing or taking leisurely dips in the… Read more Audio

8:52 AM.Drug testing organisations have seen a dramatic drop in the prevalence of eutylone - a synthetic drug often referred to as "bath salts" and sold as MDMA.

It comes as festival-goers spend their first… Read more Audio

8:50 AM.From today, all international arrivals into New Zealand will need to provide a negative Covid-19 test within 48 hours of their departure, down from the previous 72 hours.

Director of Public Health… Read more Audio

8:45 AM.With Omicron knocking on New Zealand's doorstep, there's concern about how our contact tracing system will cope when it begins spreading in the community.

The system came under severe strain when… Read more Audio

8:41 AM.As the Omicron Covid-19 variant continues its rapid spread internationally, putting pressure on health and testing systems across the globe, overseas health experts say New Zealand can learn from the… Read more Audio