It looks a bit like a Chatham Island forget me not, and grows to a height of two metres and tastes a wee bit like celery or cabbage - we hear the story of the megaherb punui.

The Government has announced that about 2400 more migrant workers will be allowed into New Zealand for seasonal horticultural work.

Word is the name of our new feature on Mondays - exploring everything about the written and spoken word, especially in New Zealand English. We find out how the language is evolving, how it's changing and what new things we are saying. Are kids always the first to adopt new words and phrases into their lexicons and why are the rest of us so keen to resist new ideas? Tonight - some of the things we say we don't even realise we're saying - with linguistics lecturer Dr Andreea Calude from Waikato University. What's a shadow pronoun and how has the term 'Sweet As' changed since it first arrived in the national lexicon. Andreea is working on a book about making English grammar cool called Mysteries of English Grammar - by Rutledge. It'll be out later this year. She contributes to a regular language column published by Stuff.

Rob Hugh-Jones from the BBC joins Karyn to talk about an attack on a school in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, over the weekend, the head of the UN visits Russia and how people are returning to their pre-Covid-19 lives.

Three people injured in a multiple stabbing in a central Dunedin supermarket this afternoon are scheduled to undergo surgery in Dunedin Hospital tonight. Another person has serious injuries and the suspect is also receiving hospital treatment under guard. Police have lauded those locals who detained the attacker before police arrived. Karyn speaks with Dunedin's mayor Aaron Hawkins.

A state of emergency has been extended around Tokyo and three other areas until the end of May to curb a surge in COVID-19 infections, just months before the start of the Olympics. The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to begin on July 23, but Otago University epidemiologist Professor Michael Baker says the situation in Japan means people will die if they go ahead. Japan correspondent, Phoebe Amoroso explains the latest situation.

The Government has released details around employers and unions setting minimum standards to implement the Fair Pay Agreements. The agreements would set minimum employment conditions for an entire industry or occupation - it will take just 10 percent of a workforce, or a thousand workers to provide a mandate. Unions say this is a big win for them. The Government says it will ensure workers get a fair go. Alan McDonald is the head of advocacy and strategy for the Employers and Manufacturers Association.

A group of Queen Street landlords and businesses has failed in their bid for an interim injuction, to stop further temporary work to make Auckland's main commercial street more pedestrian-friendly.

Students from Hutt Valley High School set up class on the front lawn of Parliament today to protest the dangerous levels of toxic mould found in their classrooms.

The Minister of Tourism, Stuart Nash, has announced a 200-million dollar support plan for the Covid-impacted tourism sector at the annual tourism industry conference in Otautahi Christchurch today.