Morning Report

The latest rural news with Gianina Schwanecke.

An early morning sports news update.

Multiple Education Ministry whistleblowers say they were told to delete the term Aotearoa and other Maori words from official documents. They say managers always gave the instructions verbally and refused to put them in writing even when challenged to do so. Some terms were restored in final curriculum documents. Education correspondent John Gerritsen reports.

Catch up with the latest headlines from around the world with RNZ's Alice Wilkins.

A crowd of more than 50,000 fans are expected at Twickenham on Saturday as the Black Ferns take on the Red Roses in one of the biggest women's rugby Tests of the year. Black Ferns Halfback Maia Joseph spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Karla Bergquist discusses mental health emergency callouts; Ombudsman seeks urgent meeting over Education Ministry video; Researchers warn of deadly El Nino effects; Firefighter union responds to National's new FENZ policy

A young cheerleading team based in Kapiti Coast has reached new heights, taking first place and being named Grand Champions at the 2026 Australasian Majors in the Gold Coast last week. The win means the BigAir Rebels have now earned their spot in the 2027 Global Games in Hawaii. William Davenport, owner of Tawa's BigAir gym and cheerleader Fin Collins spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Let's head to the New Plymouth electorate now, where you'd be forgiven for thinking the potential building of an LNG terminal at Port Taranaki or rebooting the oil and gas sector would be the big election issues. But as our Taranaki Whanganui reporter Robin Martin found out, one issue trumps them all, the cost of living.

A protest is being planned tomorrow in the Northland town of Dargaville over council plans to demolish its local town hall. The Northern Wairoa War Memorial Hall which was built in 1953 is lined up for the wrecking ball this month. Over the years, the building has hosted balls, funerals, markets, fashion shows and even Selwyn Toogood hosting It's in the Bag. Dargaville Ratepayers and Residents Ass...

An early morning sports news update.

The latest market updates and news from RNZ's business team.

Lots of households have been feeling cost-of-living pressure, and many are looking for ways to earn more money to combat it.

Feral cats are a major threat to native wildlife across Aotearoa. On Aotea Great Barrier Island in the Hauraki Gulf, the approach to eradicating them looks a little different. An iwi-led conservation project is taking on thousands of feral cats, through a kaupapa grounded in te ao Maori. Maori news journalist Layla Bailey McDowell visited the island.

National has vowed to make Fire and Emergency New Zealand a departmental agency directly accountable to the Emergency Management Minister, if re-elected. This comes after a select committee report found FENZ had misled Parliament and mismanaged the purchase of new fire trucks. The NZ Professional Firefighters Union is calling for a full-inquiry. National Secretary Wattie Watson spoke to Ingrid Hip...

Citizens Advice Bureau is reporting higher levels of need from the communities they serve - from people seeking job hunting support, to others asking for help to find a place to stay. But the organisation says the resourcing it has to continue the work is under pressure. Kerry Dalton is the chief executive of the Citizens Advice Bureau and spoke to John Campbell.

AI smart glasses conjure up images of predatory and invasive behaviour, their ability to capture photos, videos, and audio of you without your explicit knowledge or consent. But, they're having a life changing impact on the blind and low vision community, helping them identify objects, read labels, and so much more, which means improved independence. Pic Picot of Pic's Peanut Butter is visually im...

While it might feel like the election campaign's been going for months, it's really just getting started. Parliament officially wrapped up for the term last night, with MPs taking the chance to trade some final barbs. RNZ's Political Editor Jo Moir spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Parliament has wrapped up for another term with politicians landing their final pre-election blows in the House. The adjournment debate was full of sneers and cheers, with party leaders criticising their opposition and crowing about their own successes. Political reporter Lauren Crimp has more.

An early morning sports news update.

The latest market updates and news from RNZ's business team.

Earlier this week, Western Heights Primary principal, Ash Maindonald told Morning Report a quarter of children starting school are not independently toilet trained and the issue is becoming more challenging, Plunket is at the grassroots supporting parents and their babies until they're ready for school. So what are they seeing? Plunket clinical services manager Kym Ward spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Police and Health NZ have back-tracked on a plan for officers to hand over mental health patients to ED staff within 15 minutes, with the aim now 30 minutes, down from 60. Karla Bergquist is Health New Zealand's director of specialist mental health and addiction spoke to John Campbell.

The chief ombudsman has requested an urgent meeting with the head of the Education Ministry, after a video was leaked showing a manager asking staff not to put things in writing, to avoid being subject to the Official Information Act. Education correspondent John Gerritsen spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

An early morning update from RNZ's business team.

Part of Queenstown is being turned into a testing ground for ideas that could one day help cut your power bill. A new energy sandbox is being scoped to test ideas like energy sharing, plug-in solar and solar for renters in a controlled area, before any wider rule changes. Rewiring Aotearoa's Josh Ellison spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.