Morning Report Podcast Options

7:34 AM.NCEA and Scholarship exams start today for more than 140,000 school students. The first exams this morning are Social Studies, Dance, Art History and Scholarship Earth and Space Science. RNZ's Youth… Read more Audio

7:26 AM.A suicide prevention expert is calling health authorities' response woeful as Porirua and Ōtaki grapple with a spate of sudden deaths. The Horowhenua town has had four such deaths since mid-September… Read more Audio

7:22 AM.GPs and emergency departments are on extra alert for a once-rare strain of meningococcal disease that has killed six people in the past year. The MenW strain, which is being blamed for an overall… Read more Audio

7:18 AM.Doctors and emergency departments are on alert for a rare strain of meningococcal disease which has killed six people this year. The number of cases of Men-W has doubled over the last 12 months and… Read more Audio

7:15 AM.More than 30 million people have cast early ballots ahead of election day in the United States. The first polls are due to close at midday on Wednesday (NZ time). Kevin McAleese is in Washington DC… Read more Audio

7:10 AM.It's mid-term election day in the United States - one third of the seats in the US Senate and the entire House of Representatives are up for grabs. At stake is control of Capitol Hill, where the… Read more Audio

7:06 AM.Australian animal welfare groups have renewed their calls for an overhaul of the racing industry after the death of an Irish colt in yesterday's Melbourne Cup. Audio

6:50 AM.The Productivity Commission asks if there are better ways to fund local government. The Privacy Commissioner takes banks to task for lax information security. The little ice cream company with big… Read more Audio

6:46 AM.A second lower North Island community is grappling with a spate of sudden deaths and wondering when health authorities will do more. Ōtaki, in the Kāpiti region, has had four such deaths since mid… Read more Audio

6:43 AM.A union which represents migrant workers hopes a new investigation into their exploitation will finally reveal the true scale of the problem. The Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway has directed… Read more Audio

6:27 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Audio

6:22 AM.An early look at the day's business news and a catch up of overnight financial market action. Audio

6:17 AM.New Caledonia's political leadership is invited to Paris next month to discuss where to next after the victory of the anti-independence camp in last Sunday's referendum. A start was made in Noumea on… Read more Audio

6:12 AM.Bad weather does not appear to be dampening voter turnout in the United States midterm elections. There are reports of long lines at polling places across the country. Our correspondent Kate Fisher is… Read more Audio

6:06 AM.Charlie Appleby is thrilled to be the first British horse trainer to win the Melbourne Cup. Audio

6:00 AM.Voting is under way as Americans prepare to give their verdict on Donald Trump's first two years in office. A rare strain of meningococcal disease that's killed six people this year alarms doctors. Audio

8:56 AM.A South Taranaki cottage has been named the best bach in New Zealand. Voters in the Bookabach competition picked a beachside hideaway in Opunake as the people's choice this year. Fox Cottage was built… Read more Audio

8:55 AM.A senior nurses' union official has spoken out about a storm of anger, bitterness and abuse against its officials by some union members during recent pay talks. Nurses voted in early August to accept… Read more Audio

8:46 AM.As proposals to decriminalise abortion are underway, a group of women who have had abortions took out newspaper advertisements urging Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to be cautious about reform. The ads… Read more Audio

8:43 AM.At 5pm on Tuesday, 24 horses will line up for the 158th running of the Melbourne Cup. One person watching that race will be Patrick Bartley, racing writer for The Age. He talks to Kim Hill. Audio

8:41 AM.Three million dollars is being earmarked for a memorial to remember the victims of the country's worst ever aircraft crash, the Mt Erebus disaster. From today, architects and designers will be able to… Read more Audio

8:40 AM.Some councils around New Zealand are doing away with Guy Fawkes altogether for other more home-grown celebrations such as Matariki. With no let up in fireworks sales will the call for a ban, or public… Read more Audio

8:38 AM.A New Zealand family living in Brisbane has been told it will cost them 70 thousand dollars a year to send their three-year-old autistic daughter to preschool. That's under changes to disability… Read more Audio

8:30 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:23 AM.The Children's Commissioner wants to stub out smoking in cars when children are inside. The idea was last floated in 2014 but the previous government ignored advice to introduce a ban on the grounds… Read more Audio