Morning Report for Wednesday 19 December 2018

6:12 AM.A disability advocate says a report on the Funded Family Care system is a waste of time and the Government should simply get on with changes everyone knows are overdue. The report was commissioned by… Read more Audio

6:16 AM.New retail developments are set to breathe life into the not-so-shiny end of Wellington's Golden Mile, Manners Street. Some companies have struggled since the ANZ and BNZ banks shut their doors in… Read more Audio

6:20 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

6:35 AM.The resignation of the chair of the quake settlement agency that spied on Christchurch homeowners is being welcomed by the quake claimants. Southern Response chair Ross Butler resigned last night… Read more Audio

6:43 AM.New tests have revealed three Canterbury rivers are contaminated with strains of a dangerous pathogen which can cause kidney failure. Fish and Game commissioned independent testing of the Ashley… Read more Audio

6:49 AM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Audio

7:10 AM.The inquiry in to the taxpayer funded spying scandal has claimed its first victim with the resignation late last night of the chair of Southern Response, Ross Butler. The State Services Commissioner… Read more Audio

7:14 AM.Urs Signer from the group Climate Justice Taranaki, which opposes oil and gas drilling, is not surprised by the report's findings. Oil Free Wellington says concerns about Thompson and Clark were… Read more Audio

7:21 AM.New tests have revealed three Canterbury rivers are contaminated with strains of a dangerous pathogen which can cause kidney failure. They also show, possibly for the first time in New Zealand, that… Read more Audio

7:25 AM.Strains of a dangerous pathogen which can cause kidney failure have been found in three Canterbury rivers. Tests also show the water is polluted with an antibiotic-resistant strain of E coli. Samples… Read more Audio

7:34 AM.The British government has made its clear its doubts for a successful Brexit by advising businesses and citizens to prepare for a no-deal scenario. Ministers apportioned two-billion-pounds of funding… Read more Audio

7:45 AM.Google bosses have been unable to explain why they sent out an email to users which named the man accused of killing British tourist Grace Millane in defiance of a court suppression order. The Justice… Read more Audio

7:51 AM.Advocates for family members who don't get paid to look after disabled children say the Funded Family Care policy needs to be ditched. A new report commissioned by the Government points to a host of… Read more Audio

7:54 AM.The nurses' union at Auckland's Middlemore Hospital says staff are still feeling unsafe walking to and from their cars. Staff across the Counties Manukau District Health Board are planning to rally… Read more Audio

7:56 AM.People have a lot on their plate at Christmas time, but a top chef says what to serve on Christmas Day shouldn't have to be one of them. It can be even more stressful if you're no Gordon Ramsey in the… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.Activist groups are demanding reform in the public service after a report into Government agencies and their relationships with private security firms. A State Services Commission report has found the… Read more Audio

8:18 AM.The investigation into private security firms doing public sector work shows for years the firms have had largely unfettered access to the motor vehicle register. Phil Pennington reports. Audio

8:23 AM.New Zealanders are to be given the final say on whether personal use of cannabis should be legal. The question will be put in a binding referendum to be held at the 2020 general elections. To get two… Read more Audio

8:30 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Audio

8:38 AM.A helicopter used for an aerial 1080 operation in Northland had its fuel tanks sabotaged, allowing 2000 litres of aviation fuel to drain into the earth. The helicopter had been contracted by the… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.The world's most famous football club, Manchester United, has sacked its manager, Jose Mourinho. The team is currently 19 points behind league leaders Liverpool, despite spending $750 million dollars… Read more Audio

8:45 AM.Outgoing National MP Chris Finlayson delivered his Valedictory statement yesterday. Mr Finlayson, a lawyer and Queen's Counsel, had been in Parliament since 2005 and plans to practise law once he… Read more Audio

8:50 AM.A new wave of Maori entrepreneurs are selling products that use te reo Maori in a bid to normalise the language. From Maori greeting cards, to tea and coffee containers with te reo labels, Maori… Read more Audio

8:54 AM.It's just a few days until Christmas and with the clock ticking, anxious shoppers are filing into malls. According to Paymark - the company that runs Eftpos - spending figures are trending upwards and… Read more Audio

8:56 AM.It was a late entrant, but then it shot off to become the winner. Russell Brown is in our Auckland studio to tell us the word voted most popular in 2018 by readers of his Public Address blog. Audio