Shots have been fired following a high profile split in New Zealand sailing. Peter Burling says the control Team New Zealand wanted over him, forced him out of the America's Cup crew. Sports reporter Jonty Dine spoke to Lisa Owen.

The government is planning a shake up of local governmenting, including replacing regional councils with Combined Territories Board; made up of mayors. The government says it will strip out duplication and drive down complexity and compliance costs. Chair of Local Government New Zealand's Regional Sector, Dr Deon Swiggs spoke to Lisa Owen.

The bodies of two climbers who died near the summit of Aoraki Mt Cook have been recovered from the mountain. The mountain guide and a climber died after a fall shortly before midnight on Monday. The pair were in a group of four who were attempting a grand traverse of Aoraki Mt Cook. Samantha Gee has more.

Regional councils as you know them could be for the chop under a radical plan unveiled by the government. Under the proposal 11 regional councils would be axed, and replaced with new combined territories boards; made up of mayors from the regions cities and district councils. Mayors will work together to govern the regions. It's the biggest shake up in local government in more than three and half decades. Minister for Local Government Simon Watts spoke to Lisa Owen.

A well known scientist says she's out of options for funding her research as it gets even tougher to get grants or donations. PHD students are also facing an up hill battle. Award wininng microbiologist Siouxsie Wiles has been turned down for four grants for her research into the safety of resusable menstrual cups. She says when economic times are tough, money for research dries up and funding decisions tend to get more conservative. University of Auckland Associate Professor Siouxsie Wiles spoke to Lisa Owen.

More west Auckland homeowners have been blind-sided by news that their front and back yards don't meet resource consents requirements and have been hit with bills stretching into the thousands. Some properties in the Kumeu development were purchased over a year ago, and owners says neither their real estate agents nor lawyers told them that their homes weren't fully consented. The developer is now in liquidation, and the council has come after the homeowners to pick up the tab. Lucy Xia reports.

The names of five people seeking compensation for sexual abuse in state care were published online in a privacy breach by the Ministry of Social Development. The ministry has removed the link to documents naming the five, but Google searches of the names were still bringing up the MSD information in the search engine's AI summary as of yesterday morning. The ministry has apologised and says the breach was due to human error. Our reporter Jimmy Ellingham has the story, and a warning, this report contains references to suicide.

A player has been red carded in the English Premier League for slapping his own team-mate. Everton enjoyed their first Premier League win at Manchester United's home turf in 12 years - that's despite playing nearly the entire game with 10 men after the altercation. Sports reporter Bridget Tunnicliffe spoke to Lisa Owen.

"Without hats there is no civilization" according to French fashion designer Christian Dior. But as people tighten their belts it seems headwear is suffering with a renowned Wellington milliner, Hills Hats fighting to stay open. The 150 year old business, one of Aotearoa's oldest manufacturers, is relying on crowd funding to help cover the cost of relocating to a more compact factory, and to keep going in the face of rising costs. Hills Hats chief executive Simon Smuts-Kennedy spoke to Lisa Owen.

US correspondent Todd Zwillich spoke to Lisa Owen about a judge dismissing two significant legal cases, including one against former FBI director James Comey, as well as the US upping pressure on Venezuela's president after designating a group in the country a terrorist organisation.