Morning Report for Thursday 5 March 2015

8:52 AM.Scientists are claiming to have developed a guilt free chocolate that drastically improves the appearance of wrinkles and sagging skin. Audio

8:46 AM.A Canterbury kapa haka team performing at Te Matatini - the national Maori cultural festival in Christchurch - says it's under extra pressure to perform but at the same time are confident about having… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.Four years after the Christchurch earthquakes, English language student numbers are still only just over half what they were before the 2011 quake. Audio

8:38 AM.Napier's mayor is livid with the the Local Government Commission for distributing what he calls an 'erroneous pro-amalgamation' pamphlet. Audio

8:34 AM.Three Fijian forestry workers who are also volunteer firefighters are struggling to gain residency despite having lived in New Zealand for 10 years. Audio

8:28 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:22 AM.As the Government prepares to cap MPs' salary increases, Auckland's Mayor Len Brown has pledged to do the same for his councillors. Audio

8:18 AM.More on whistleblower Edward Snowden. Snowden's lawyer says his client wants to leave Russia and return to the United States. Audio

8:11 AM.The New Zealand investigative journalist Nicky Hager says New Zealand is increasing its surveillance on its Pacific neighbours, and passing the metadata straight onto United States authorities. Audio

8:07 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

7:57 AM.The national kapa haka contest, Te Matatini, gets underway in Christchurch this morning. Audio

7:54 AM.Wellington students say a surge in their numbers is making the flatting market so competitive they are being left homeless. Audio

7:48 AM.Attorneys for the accused Boston Marathon bomber opened his trial on Wednesday with a stunning statement of their client's guilt: "It was him." Audio

7:44 AM.The Privy Council's decision to quash the convictions of Teina Pora has sparked fresh calls for an independent commission to review criminal cases. Audio

7:41 AM.A yachting commentator says Dean Barker signing on to race with a Russian crew in this month's RC44 series doesn't mean he's leaving Team New Zealand. Audio

7:37 AM.Consumer advocates are adamant it's worth shopping around for better power deals despite evidence suggesting New Zealanders are happy to let the retailers come to them. Audio

7:29 AM.Winston Peters is adamant he doesn't need Labour's help to topple National in the Northland by-election. Audio

7:26 AM.Barring a last minute act of clemency, Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran will be excecuted by firing squad. Audio

7:22 AM.Customs wants new powers to allow it to demand travellers' give them their cellphone and laptop passwords. Audio

7:17 AM.The Prime Minister, John Key, declined to be interviewed this morning. Audio

7:11 AM.The investigative journalist, Nicky Hager says New Zealand is spying on its Pacific neighbours on a scale never seen before. Audio

7:07 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:58 AM.The Dow Jones Index is down 89 points to 18,114. Audio

6:56 AM.Delegat's is expecting sales volumes in Britain and Europe will stablise by year's end, after falling since 2010, when it sold nearly a million cases there. Audio

6:54 AM.Information about Diligent Board Member Services' new product is preliminary, but the software-as-a-service company could be about to enter a very crowded market. Audio

6:52 AM.An economist says players in the global dairy market are turning their attention to the next dairy season. Audio

6:50 AM.Auckland's leading real estate agent says housing supply in the region is likely to remain tight for most of this year, but a ramp-up in the building of new houses could see house prices retrace 2 or… Read more Audio

6:48 AM.It's the end of an era for Spark, following the sale of Telecom Rentals to Australia's FlexiGroup for 106-million dollars. Audio

6:38 AM.The investigative journalist, Nicky Hager, says New Zealand is spying on its Pacific neighbours, and passing on vast amounts of information from intercepted communications en masse to America's… Read more Audio

6:25 AM.The Prime Minister, John Key, has avoided responding directly to an idea by the Maori Party, which is calling for an inquiry into the justice system for what it says is institutional racism. A… Read more Audio

6:21 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Audio

6:17 AM.The latest from the Pacific region. Audio

6:06 AM.An update from the team at RNZ Sport. Audio

6:00 AM.Nicky Hager says the Snowden files show New Zealand is spying on its Pacific neighbours and passing all intercepted information onto the United States. Customs wants the power to demand laptop and… Read more Audio