RNZ: Nine To Noon

All Whites coach Darren Bazeley named his 26-strong squad on Thursday for the Fifa World Cup, two New Zealand clubs still active post the regular A-league season, three-time America's Cup winner Blair Tuke is stepping off the Team NZ boat, and the biggest names in World Surfing will be in Raglan over the next week.

Our comedians are here for a lighter look at some of the weeks stories.

Jonathan reports on the on-going battle to get a second bridge underway in Ashburton, the amalgamation question in front of local councils and a world wide shortage of bins delays rollout of food waste collection in Ashburton.

Dean Bedford reviews After Oscar: The Legacy of a Scandal by Merlin Holland, published by Europa Editions.

A new art exhibition, shaped by Cyclone Gabrielle, has a focus on waterways and climate resilience. Currents Calling Home has opened at the Hastings Art Gallery.

Hip-hop soul singer Ladi6 - aka Karoline Fuarosa Park-Tamati is a finalist in three categories at the Aotearoa Music Awards later this month. Following the release of her latest album - Le Va - Ladi6 is up for Album of the Year, Best Solo Artist, and Single of the Year for Lightbulb. 

US President Donald Trump in China for a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Edward White is the Financial Times China correspondent.

The Members Bill was drawn from the so-called biscuit tin in 2024 and passed it's first reading on - appropriately perhaps - April Fools Day this year. 

Asher says the country's ever-increasing muster is because it is ultimately cheaper to put people in jail than to pay for the support services that might keep them away from crime.

Film and television reviewer Tamar Munch 

Tomorrow is Pink Shirt Day - the annual fundraiser  that aims to raise awareness about bullying. 

Technology commentator Mark Pesce on the latest issues.

The trial of Haydn Tasker who is alleged to have murdered Nelson policewoman Lyn Fleming, problems with drunken teens, Ai helping marine famers and the ongoing saga of the former interislander, Aratere, moored since late last year.  

Paul Diamond reviews The Good Settler by Richard Shaw, published by Massey University Press.

A collection of short stories about women across generations has taken out New Zealand's top prize for fiction. All Her Lives by Ingrid Horrocks was last night announced as the winner of the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction at last night's Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. The book of nine short stories follows women at various periods in time and place navigating the social or political challenges of the day: from a queer nurse feeling lost in her family home following her return from the Great War, the children of the gardener at Truby King's hospital making sense of what happens to the mothers and babies there; to a mother trying to keep her children healthy while living in a sub-par rental. Ingrid's interest in 18th century feminist writer Mary Wollstonecraft is also included here - building on her non-fiction work and research about her. She joins Kathryn to explain how she's woven these stories together.

UK correspondent Harry Taylor details the latest in the leadership crisis facing PM Sir Keir Starmer. 

This month, families are getting help to reduce food waste through the Every Bite programme that gives a whole host of practical tips. 

A leading immigration and human rights lawyer says plans to clamp down on asylum seekers, and make it harder for decisions for deportation to be appealed are going ahead without any evidence there is a problem.  

Federated Mountain clubs is concerned that international visitor access charges to top conservation sites could get rolled into day to day funding rather than used for extra preservation of our native flora and fauna. 

What's the best way to approach a loved one or friend if you're worried about their sudden weight loss and what it could mean? 

A hallmark of the punk scene in the 1980s, Zines are now thriving with their own festivals throughout the country. 

Kaitlyn discusses the close of a long-running pub in Tauranga's CBD, levels of immigration scepticism in the Bay of Plenty, three historic caves are permanently sealed due to vandalism and the first dedicated pickle ball venue in Bay of Plenty opens in Tauranga

David Hill reviews Out of the Blue: Essays on Artists from Aotearoa New Zealand 1985-2021 by Christina Barton, published by Te Herenga Waka University Press.

In the small hours of a November morning in 2019, a security camera at London's MI6 building captured a figure falling five storeys from an apartment building and into the Thames. But there was so much more to the young man's life that could inform what really happened to him.

Australia correspondent Karen Middleton details what was unveiled in the federal Budget, where Hantavirus cruise passengers from Australia are being relocated to and another paratrooper has died in a training accident.

Ensuring health data can flow across health services has been one of the big topics for a gathering of digital health leaders in Wellington.

Local councils are facing a long list of expenditures from water services, to roading, to storm repairs and on top of all of that a planned rates cap. So how do councils keep up public amenities such as walkways? 

The fuel crisis and all the hardship it's causing has brought into focus how under prepared New Zealand is to deal with major threats to this country's wellbeing.  

The Wellington Phoenix women's team are off to a grand final, while in men's football Auckland FC are one step away. The All Blacks bring back a legendary former coach to the selection team, while New Zealand Rugby League has a new chief executive.

Like so many kids, Guy Hessell's first job was mowing lawns. When he started redesigning his parents' garden - with dubious results - they passed it off as a phase. But it didn't pass - and Guy went on to get a degree in ecology and ran a successful landscaping business. He was head gardener at Summerset Retirement Village, and Garden Manager at Whangarei Quarry Gardens. He's now sharing his wealth of gardening knowledge in a new book called Let's Go Native: From Back Yard to Bush, Landscaping with Native Plants. It includes how to create native gardens of any size, the benefits of riparian planting and practical advice for the complete beginner.

Hamish also discusses Rocket Lab reaching record-breaking heights with new contracts, while Pacific Edge launches a $24 million capital raise to survive the loss of its primary US revenue stream.

Emma Hislop reviews The Chronology of Water by Lidia Yuknavitch, published by Allen & Unwin.

Peter discusses the planned managed retreat of the township of Whirinaki, the social housing planned for a flood zone in Kawakawa, the mystery death of a dirt biker in Northland and victory for the people of Rawene who have battled for a decade to keep wastewater out of their harbour.

A Supreme Court ruling in 2024 ruled Mike Smith had the right to sue the New Zealand-based companies.

When Paul Auster died his wife Siri - herself an acclaimed novelist and essayist - was haunted by his loss and her latest work is a memoir called Ghost Stories, that weaves together the various pieces of their lives.

Simultaneously, a recent Supreme Court decision has sparked a redistricting surge in Republican-led states, potentially shifting the balance of power in the upcoming elections.

Under present rules whoever is in charge of the boat can give people permission not to wear life jackets. 

Dr Gary Jackson leads the population health team at Te Whatu Ora, which includes public health doctors, analysts, demographers, and advisors.

Qantas Group says Qantas and Jetstar flights from Australia would be reduced by four percent due to high fuel costs. It follows the announcement of earlier announcements from airlines of cuts.

Neale Jones was Chief of Staff to Labour Leader Jacinda Ardern, and prior to that was Chief of Staff to Andrew Little. He is the director of public affairs firm Capital. Peter Dunne was the leader of United Future and is a former MP and Minister who has worked within both National and Labour governments.

Bill dicusses two topics related to how territory is divided up. First, the announcement that local councils need to come up with plans for amalgamation, and what a recent court ruling says about cross-leases, and what it means for renovations and development for a homeowner.

What was supposed to be a weekend side-hustle has grown into a full-time family affair for Donna-Marie Carr, her husband and their three children.