Morning Report for Friday 1 December 2017

6:39 AM.The industry body for engineers says they've put new measures in place since the CTV building collapse to ensure dodgy engineering is reported. Yesterday, after a three-year investigation, police said… Read more Audio

6:42 AM.Today's planned strike by Wellington train workers may be off but is strike action looming in Auckland? Late on Thursday the Wellington union achieved a breakthrough when rail company, Transdev said… Read more Audio

6:45 AM.A distinguished NZ scientist is warning that kauri are heading for extinction because of public apathy and stupidity. Professor Peter de Lange was for 27 years a principal research scientist with DoC… Read more Audio

7:10 AM.There's been widespread dismay at the decision not to prosecute anyone for the deaths of 115 people in the CTV building collapse during the 2011 Canterbury earthquake. Police say it was a tough… Read more Audio

7:13 AM.Justice Minister Andrew Little said on Thursday that "everybody involved in this has walked away scot-free. And that's not right." Nigel Hampton QC, who was counsel for the families at the Royal… Read more Audio

7:20 AM.With the US dealing with a North Korean ballistic missile test and deteriorating relations with the UK over President Trump's retweeting of far right anti-Muslim videos, it's now being reported the US… Read more Audio

7:26 AM.A prominent New Zealand scientist says kauri are heading for extinction because of public stupidity. Dr Peter de Lange a principal research scientist with the Department for Conservation for many… Read more Audio

7:30 AM.The end of this year's NCEA and Scholarship exams is in sight with the final nine exams scheduled to take place today. The annual exam season began three-and-a-half weeks ago and it's been relatively… Read more Audio

7:37 AM.It's back to the drawing board for the government's plans to whack a tax on bottled water exports after revelations it would breach some free trade deals. National says it's another embarassment for… Read more Audio

7:40 AM.Official papers have revealed Sir John Key's story of when he scrapped a mass surveillance programme, and why, doesn't quite stack up. The papers, obtained by the NZ Herald, show the development of… Read more Audio

7:45 AM.The Childrens Commissioner says Maori families are being let down by a system designed to help at-risk children and young offenders. A report by his office has found family group conferences have… Read more Audio

7:48 AM.Children's Commissioner Judge Andrew Becroft says the family group conference system is under resourced and needs significant change and improvement. Audio

7:51 AM.Christmas tree vendors are popping up everywhere, cherries are back in season, and dubious Christmas albums are being dusted off at every shopping mall around the country. In Auckland the residents of… Read more Audio

7:55 AM.A busy summer of cricket begins for the Black Caps today when the first test against the West Indies begins at the Basin Reserve in Wellington. New Zealand will play 27 matches between now and the end… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.Queen's Counsel Nigel Hampton, who represented some of the families of those who died in the CTV building, believes the decision not to prosecute the building's engineers was not warranted, and that a… Read more Audio

8:16 AM.Finance Minister Grant Robertson has ordered every minister to review their portfolios, to make sure all money being spent fits with the strategy of the new government. Mr Robertson delivered his… Read more Audio

8:20 AM.For the first time ever, the Qualifications Authority has given a government polytechnic its lowest possible quality rating. Tai Poutini Polytechnic, which is based in Greymouth, has been downgraded… Read more Audio

8:24 AM.The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan says there should be no official UK visit for the US President. This comes after Donald Trump retweeted inflammatory videos from British far-right group Britain First… Read more Audio

8:30 AM.It's back to the drawing board for the government's plans to tax bottled water exports after revelations it would breach some free trade deals. A national petition signed by more than 15,000 people… Read more Audio

8:37 AM.Fiji police have made a public appeal to parents to keep their children safe over the school holiday period after the deaths of four children last week. Police say one child was found floating in a… Read more Audio

8:40 AM.The risk of drought is rising. While winter and early spring brought a deluge of rain, saturated soils are now drying out fast. That's raised fears that the spreading dry conditions could dent… Read more Audio

8:43 AM.A new review of global research supports what activists have been saying for years - set nets are a major cause of penguin deaths. The review identifies the endangered hoiho, or yellow-eyed penguin… Read more Audio

8:47 AM.A new Antarctic marine sanctuary in the Ross Sea comes into effect today, covering more than 1.5 million square kilometres of the Southern Ocean. It's been welcomed by New Zealand filmaker Peter Young… Read more Audio

8:51 AM.An Auckland iwi community housing project which uses a system of solar panels and batteries for energy has been recognised for its sustainability practice. Vector and Ngati Whatua Orakei teamed up on… Read more Audio

8:55 AM.It's Friday so we cross the ditch to Canberra to talk to our correspondent Kerry-Anne Walsh. Audio