Morning Report

The Local Government Commission has been criticised in Whangarei over its proposal for a single council for the whole of Northland. Audio

The Maori Broadcasting Funding Agency, Te Mangai Paho, has overhauled the way it funds radio and television programmes - now preferring to pay out for bilingual shows; The High Court has ruled a… Read more Audio

Local Government New Zealand believes councils are too reliant on property taxes for their funding. It says demographic and economic changes have made the future of local government funding an… Read more Audio

A piping contractor has been fined more than $55,000.00 in relation to a gas explosion in Auckland that killed one worker and left another a double amputee. Audio

The Government may have to stump up the cash needed to cover the costs of the broken Interislander ferry. Audio

A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

Three thousand people are expected in Blenheim this morning for the first Royal walkabout of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's Australasian tour. Audio

The Labour Party has taken another step to distance itself from the Greens, refusing to campaign on a platform promising a Labour - Greens government. Audio

Two new "ping" signals have been detected in the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane, giving the search team renewed hope they are looking in the right place. Audio

Toyota has announced a global safety recall of 6.4 million cars, with up to 40 thousand vehicles called back in this country alone. Audio

Bar owners in Wanaka say they won't bother to apply for special licenses in future after their applications to trade over the Easter weekend were declined. Audio

A woman has admitted shooting her husband with an air rifle after a heated argument, following the death of their son at a rugby practice. Audio