Summer Report for Tuesday 11 January 2011

8:55 AM.Chinese astrologers have long deemed it the year of the rabbit. Audio

8:45 AM.Today we take a trip on board Queenstown's famous old steam ship, the TSS Earnslaw. Audio

8:41 AM.Researchers studying a species of increasingly rare sea turtles tracked one whose migratory route took it more than 7-and-a-half-thousand kilometres across the southern Atlantic Ocean. Audio

8:37 AM.New figures have been released which reveal just a small rise in retail spending over the Christmas period. Audio

8:33 AM.An update from the RNZ sports team. Audio

8:27 AM.They're reeling them in in Northland. Audio

8:24 AM.The Hutt Valley District Health Board has been asked review its respite care following the death of man whose family was unable to access the service. Audio

8:18 AM.A meeting has been held to decide how to distribute the money raised to help the Pike River miners. Audio

8:12 AM.Doctors at the University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, say the victims who were hospitailised in Sunday's shooting are recovering well. Audio

8:09 AM.There are grave fears for an unknown number of Queenslanders caught in flash flooding west of Brisbane, with at least seven dead, others missing and the toll certain to climb. Audio

7:56 AM.In the first day of play, three New Zealanders have been eliminated from the Heineken Tennis Open in Auckland. Audio

7:50 AM.Aoteaora, Mana Island, Mataketake a Kupe, Whakatane, Eureka, Mount Madonna, Alice Peak, Mount Garnier, Lake Never-never, Lake Truth: with Peter Dowling, revising editor of AW Reed's 'Place Names of… Read more Audio

7:47 AM.Today we are joined by Antony Phillips, the editor of Hawke's Bay Today. Audio

7:44 AM.The meat and shipping industries are welcoming news the Government is considering taking part in an international task force to tackle piracy off the coast of Africa. Audio

7:41 AM.We're joined in the studio by Labour's State Services spokesperson, Grant Robertson. Audio

7:38 AM.Unions have embarked on a campaign to protect workers from the 90-day trial for new workers by excluding it from collective contracts. Audio

7:32 AM.An update from the RNZ sports team. Audio

7:28 AM.Time to talk about the all-important weather, joining me now is the Met Service's weather ambassador, Bob McDavitt. Audio

7:25 AM.New Zealand's glaciers have appeared near the top of a list of those expected to drastically retreat in the next hundred years. Audio

7:22 AM.Anti-whaling activists are promising to continue to harrass Japanese whaling ships after a confrontation in the Southern Ocean. Audio

7:18 AM.We're joined now by the managing director of McDonald's restaurants, Mark Hawthorne. Audio

7:15 AM.Members of the gay community are outraged with McDonald's after the fast food chain blocked access to many gay and lesbian related news and information websites in its stores. Audio

7:10 AM.A desperate situation is unfolding in Queensland's south-east, where flash flooding has claimed the lives of at least seven people. Audio

7:00 AM.At least seven people are dead with more missing as the Queensland floods spread south. Why the gay community is outraged with McDonalds new Internet policy, we'll ask McDonalds about their blocking… Read more Audio