Morning Report

The Wellington City Council is being accused of spending a "preposterous" amount of money on its Town Hall. The cost of earthquake strengthening is now expected to be $112 million - nearly treble the… Read more Audio

Shane Jones is planning to have words with the QV board about its shocking expenditure and financial forecast. He's a shareholding minister in the property valuation company and is taking advice from… Read more Audio

At-home early childhood education businesses will lose access to $150 million a year in subsidies unless their staff are qualified. The Government says the mostly unqualified workforce of home-based… Read more Audio

Dame Jenny Shipley is denying she wrote an article in the "People's Daily" in China which compliments China's reforms and its belt and road initiative. The article is headlined "We need to learn… Read more Audio

Bangladesh is hoping it will be third time lucky come today's final one day cricket international against New Zealand in Dunedin. Audio

A leading company director is defending his review of the disgraced Transport Agency. The agency is being overhauled after admitting it let its road safety regulatory functions get so bad they were in… Read more Audio

Auckland primary school children have been verbally abused and almost hit by high speed cyclists on one of the city's most popular cycleways - that's supposed to be shared with pedestrians. Cycling is… Read more Audio

The number of people waiting for state housing has increased by nearly five-thousand people over the past year. The Housing Register is now at 10-thousand 712 people, up from just over 6-thousand in… Read more Audio

Documents released by the Pike River families show the handling of exhibits from the mine was mismanaged, with the inquiry head at the time describing the chain of evidence as diabolical. The… Read more Audio

The Biosecurity Minister Damien O'Connor is cutting short a trip to Dubai and travelling to South Auckland to help respond to a fruit-fly incursion. A Queensland fruit fly was spotted in the Devonport… Read more Audio

All childcare workers looking after under five-year-olds in family homes will now have to have early education qualifications. Home-based carers look after 18,000 children and have the oversight of a… Read more Audio

Vermont senator Bernie Sanders has announced he will run for President of the United States in 2020. Mr Sanders failed to secure the democratic endorsement in the 2016 election - which instead went to… Read more Audio