Morning Report for Wednesday 16 December 2020

6:00 AM.New Zealand cricket coach Gary Stead says it's too early to call fast bowler Kyle Jamieson an all-rounder. Read more Audio

6:20 AM.A brief update from the business sector. Read more Audio

6:22 AM.News from the rural and farming sector. Read more Audio

6:36 AM.Rhythm and Vines is insisting it can cope if there is a Covid-19 outbreak among the 14,000 revellers expected at the festival in Gisborne.

The government has unveiled its plan for a possible… Read more Audio

6:39 AM.Germany is preparing for a silent night this Christmas, as the country enters a hard lockdown, which will extend right through the festive season to 10 January.

The new measures are being brought in… Read more Audio

6:41 AM.Italy is mulling stricter Covid-19 measures for the Christmas period as it sees an increase in cases.

The situation is only getting worse - today the country reported 846 coronavirus-related deaths… Read more Audio

6:45 AM.A relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions for the Christmas period in England has prompted two medical journals to release a rare joint statement, urging the government to reconsider - warning the… Read more Audio

6:53 AM.News from the business sector, including a market report. Read more Audio

7:06 AM.The NZ Cricket coach, Gary Stead says the potential for Kyle Jamieson in all 3 formats for the game is exciting. Read more Audio

7:07 AM.The numbers are astounding - figures out this morning from the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care estimate there are up to 250,000 victims over 70 years.

They are children, young people and… Read more Audio

7:11 AM.The numbers are astounding - figures out this morning from the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care estimate there are up to a quarter of a million victims over 70 years.

They are children, young… Read more Audio

7:15 AM.Police and other emergency services are responding to reports of helicopter crash on the eastern side of the Mahia peninsula in Hawkes Bay.

The police say they were told of the crash by a member of… Read more Audio

7:17 AM.Air crash investigators are due to arrive in Kēkerengū this morning, the site of yesterday's fatal helicopter crash, just north of Kaikōura.

Three children are the sole survivors of the crash that… Read more Audio

7:23 AM.Holidaymakers are being warned to have backup plans if they're not able to return home during the summer break because of Covid-19.

The government wants everyone to think about what will happen with… Read more Audio

7:27 AM.National Party leader Judith Collins expects an "apology" from Speaker Trevor Mallard after it was found that $300,000 taxpayer money was used for his legal fees.

"Also, when he's going to resign… Read more Audio

7:38 AM.Almost one in five trucks travelling between Northport and Auckland failed police safety inspections.

Senior Sergeant Mike Flatt says some of the most concerning faults found were around braking… Read more Audio

7:42 AM.Today's forecast of sunshine and wind for Christchurch has residents and firefighters staying watchful following the mop up of a large fire in the Port Hills overnight.

The latest blaze burned… Read more Audio

7:45 AM.Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader in the US Senate, has finally congratulated Joe Biden on becoming the US President-elect.

The exchange came hours after the Electoral College met and declared… Read more Audio

7:50 AM.A report into Auckland Prison, the country's maximum security prison, has revealed a myriad of problems, despite the introduction of a new strategy Hōkai Rangi.

The strategy was meant to deliver… Read more Audio

7:57 AM.A damp rental in central Wellington is in need of urgent upgrades and has a revolving door of tenants.

This is no skungy student flat though - it's the place Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern calls home… Read more Audio

8:06 AM.The Black Caps batsman Ross Taylor's place in the team in the longer versions of the game doesn't appear to be in jeopardy. Read more Audio

8:10 AM.Flood ridden Napier fears an accommodation crisis will take hold this summer.

There's not only about 700 waiting on the housing register, hotels are shut for flood repairs and a holiday park had to… Read more Audio

8:16 AM.A society set up more than 50 years ago to help people living with disability says it can keep going even as it sells off its rehabilitation centre.

One health specialist says the Laura Fergusson… Read more Audio

8:19 AM.Police monitoring trucks on the road between Northport and Auckland found eleven trucks with faults so serious they had to be taken off the road.

Almost one in five were unroadworthy and posed a… Read more Audio

8:24 AM.The final of the women's Cricket World Cup to be held in New Zealand in 2022 will be played under lights at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.

Before then, cricket fans around the country will get a chance… Read more Audio

8:29 AM.A brief update of movements in the financial sector. Read more Audio

8:35 AM.The Auckland City Mission is expecting to be busier than ever this Christmas, with more families struggling because of Covid-19.

Instead of the usual lines outside the mission's CBD headquarters… Read more Audio

8:39 AM.Two fire crews have kept watch in Christchurch overnight, as the potential for fire on the Port Hills remains high.

Fire and Emergency yesterday successfully contained a blaze after sparks from a… Read more Audio

8:43 AM.Locals are crying foul over the timing of public input into Wellington's massive airport expansion.

"No Fly Zone" - a group formed by Miramar residents during the lockdown - says holding the… Read more Audio

8:51 AM.Tropical Cyclone Yasa has rapidly intensified and is now a category 5 system as it heads towards Fiji.

Heavy Rain Warnings are now in force for some islands and gale force winds are expected for the… Read more Audio

8:57 AM.Twas a week before Christmas, and all through the city not a passenger was paying for their bus or their train out of their kitty.

In Auckland, on Friday, from 4pm, and all day Saturday, travel on… Read more Audio