A person has died while self-isolating with Covid-19. We're joined by RNZ 's Health Correspondent Rowan Quinn.

A man calling himself the number one Santa in Auckland wants a special exemption to cross the border. Neville Baker has been playing Santa for years but due to the uncertainty of lockdown he wants the freedom to bring Christmas to other parts of the country where festive gatherings can take place. Neville Santa Baker tells Karyn Hay about his plans.

Parts of Northland will shortly be plunged back into Alert Level three at midnight after some cases of COVID-19 which cannot yet be epidemiologically linked. It comes after an easing of restrictions in the region just a couple of weeks ago to level two - which Northland community leader, Hone Harawira, was uncomfortable with. He's been encouraging many in the community to maintain level three protocols to protect the vulnerable. Hone tells us why he believes the lockdown should go further.

The National Library of New Zealand is New Zealand's legal deposit library charged with the obligation to "enrich the cultural and economic life of New Zealand and its interchanges with other nations", so why is it getting rid of over 600,000 books? Paula Browning, chief executive of Copyright Licensing New Zealand, would also like to know the answer to that question.

The New Zealand International Film Festival debuts in Christchurch this Friday, before opening it's doors to 11 other cities and towns around the country. English film, documentary and music video director Julien Temple most recent work -- Crock of Gold: A Few Rounds With Shane McGowan, will be screening. In the doco Julien explores the close ties between The Pogues' Shane MacGowan - Ireland's beloved punk poet -- and his home country's tumultuous history. Julien chats to Karyn Hay about making the film.

They used to call it the race that stopped two nations - but crowd attendance has been in decline to Flemington for the Melbourne Cup in recent years as Australians wake up to the cruelty of the sport. Across the Tasman, a horse dies on track every two and a half days. The Coalition for the Protection of Racehorses has themed this years activism - dressed head to hoof in Squid Games costumes. The Campaign Director, Elio Celotto joins Karyn Hay to explain what the coalition is hoping to achieve.

A massive fire broke out at Christchurch Wastewater Treatment Plant this afternoon with smoke still coming from the building. Operations manager for Christchurch City Council, Adam Two's has the latest.

The kingdom of Tonga goes into Lockdown at midnight tonight til Sunday. It comes four days after they recorded their first ever case of COVID-19. The country has made it through nearly two years of the pandemic COVID-free, but that came to an end last Wednesday after a repatriation flight from New Zealand brought in the virus. The Tongan government confirmed they have seen a surge in second doses of the vaccine since the case was confirmed, jumping from 35% fully vaccinated to 62%. Our correspondent in Tonga, Kalafi Moala explains what's expected.

Phone taps, talk of marriage and kids, piles of cash, tales of misguided trust and a secret boyfriend. It's all part of the Australian Independent Commission Against Corruption's investigation into former premier of New South Wales Gladys Berejiklian. This investigation is looking into allegations of corruption that centre around Berejiklian's relationship with another political figure with whom she's been romantically linked, former MP Daryl Maguire. Gladys Berejiklian stood down from her role at the start of the month after the shock corruption allegations - insisting she has always acted with integrity. The phone taps ICAC heard today containing all sorts of admissions are being described as extraordinary. Author and hard-core Sydney-sider Peter Fitzsimmons has been following every curious twist and turn.

A long awaited overhaul of disability services has been unveiled today by Minster Carmel Sepuloni. The reforms create a ministry for the disabled, new stand-alone legislation which is intended to make Aotearoa more accessible and a new Accessibility Governance Board. Describing the disability system as broken and riddled with barriers, Minister Sepuloni says these changes will transform a fragmented sector and link all of the supports and services available to improve overall outcomes for disabled people. Dr Huhana Hickey is disabled and advocates for the health and disability needs of others. She says the changes are a good start from the Government but not everyone was consulted.