Morning Report for Friday 26 November 2021

8:51 AM.New Zealander Simon O'Neill has snagged two Grammy nominations for Best Choral Performance and Best Engineered Album in Classical.

The tenor opera singer, who hails from Ashburton, was recognised for… Read more Audio

8:47 AM.The US government has stepped up its quest to figure out if aliens exist.

A special taskforce is being created to investigate UFO sightings, a move applauded by "ufologists", who have been calling… Read more Audio

8:42 AM.Farmers' fields and lifestyle properties near Palmerston North could soon give way to a massive freight yard.

KiwiRail's proposed Regional Freight Hub could open in less than 10 years and the rail… Read more Audio

8:37 AM.Thursday saw more looting and burning in the Solomon Islands capital Honiara as local police were overwhelmed by angry mobs.

Looters have defied the prime minister's orders for a 36 hour lockdown.

… Read more Audio

8:23 AM.The Chief Ombudsman has told MPs that some prisoners have better conditions than some others do in MIQ.

Peter Boshier presented a review of MIQ to a parliamentary select committee yesterday, after… Read more Audio

8:20 AM.Pharmacy leaders have praised the policy to roll out Covid-19 rapid antigen tests through the country's pharmacies.

From mid-December, New Zealanders will be able to buy rapid antigen tests for… Read more Audio

8:17 AM.The oppposition's top job is vacant again - for the fifth time in four years. National MPs will elect a new leader on Tuesday and until then Dr Shane Reti will fill the role.

He says he's a chair… Read more Audio

8:10 AM.A former National Party press secretary says she doesn't expect Judith Collins to go anywhere soon, despite losing the job of leader of the party.

National MPs will elect the party's fifth leader in… Read more Audio

7:57 AM.An investigation shows 34,000 homes in the North Island were unnecessarily without power on one of the coldest nights of 2021 thanks to Transpower.

The review shows companies were simply responding… Read more Audio

7:51 AM.Rapid antigen tests are being rolled out to pharmacies and businesses from next month as part of a raft of Covid-19 mitigation measures.

These tests, which detect the presence of specific proteins… Read more Audio

7:47 AM.It's the second day of business for most hair salons in Tamaki Makaurau.

Desperate Aucklanders - who had been in lockdown for 99 days - are flocking to their hairdressers.

Belinda Robb of Bibo Hair… Read more Audio

7:40 AM.A political commentator says one of the best candidates for the National Party leadership is being overlooked.

Dr Shane Reti is just hours into his role as interim leader of the National Party after… Read more Audio

7:27 AM.Medsafe is refusing to say whether it will hit pause on assessing Pfizer vaccines for children over the Christmas break.

Doctors say waiting longer may be no bad thing as more data filters out of the… Read more Audio

7:17 AM.Judith Collins is out - but who is next in line?

The competition is on, and National MPs have given themselves a Tuesday deadline to consider their options before filling the top job.

The implosion… Read more Audio

7:12 AM.Former senior National Party MP Chris Finlayson says the "Psycho drama" in the party over past few years has been extremely damaging and both Judith Collins and Simon Bridges should now take their… Read more Audio

7:09 AM.The contest is on for who will take over from Judith Collins as Oppositon leader after she was turfed from the position in a torrid and bruising caucus meeting.

National MPs have given themselves… Read more Audio

6:46 AM.Former National Party MP David Parker wants to see party president Peter Goodfellow resign from his role after yesterday's leadership debacle.

National MPs will elect the party's fifth leader in four… Read more Audio

6:41 AM.She may be best known as 'Crusher Collins' but Judith Collins' nearly-20 years in politics can't be summed up by just a nickname.

The former National Party leader's reign - 499 days to be specific -… Read more Audio

6:22 AM.Hundreds of Tongan RSE workers, stranded in New Zealand for two years, want to get home to their families, but the government says, not yet.

This week the Tonga government called off repatriations… Read more Audio

6:18 AM.The Stroke Foundation is urging New Zealanders to get vaccinated to against Covid-19 to help reduce the risk of a debilitating stroke.

Stroke is the largest cause of serious adult disability in this… Read more Audio

6:12 AM.As DHBs brace for an influx of Covid-19 cases, the Government is banking on oral anti-viral treatments to help ease the pressure.

However an Infectious Disease expert is warning it could take months… Read more Audio