Over the weekend, calls were made by National for parties to commit to getting the books back in order in the run up to the election. National yesterday called for Budget Responsibility Rules containing debt and government spending and returning to surplus. ACT says the promise is three years too late. Leader David Seymour spoke to Guyon Espiner.

Retail NZ boss discusses new citizen's arrest laws; Latest from Pacific Islands Forum in Fiji; Lillian Hanly discusses the week in politics.

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.

RNZ political reporter Lillian Hanly stepped in for Patrick Gower on this week's weekly political wrap-up. She spoke to Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira.

An update on the latest news from RNZ's rural team.

The latest news from RNZ's business team.

Political reporter Lauren Crimp spoke to Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira from the annual Pacific Islands Forum Foreign Ministers Meeting in Fiji.

An amendment to the Crimes Act has passed its final reading in Parliament, and it is not being welcomed by retailers. The changes, including expanded citizen's arrest powers, could take effect within a week. This means members of the public could detain someone for any Crimes Act offence. But Retail NZ says the law could do more harm than good. Carolyn Young, Chief Executive of Retail NZ spoke to Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira.

Welcome to Midday Report essentials with Tuwhenuaroa Natanahira. In this episode: Labour's unveiled a new plan aimed at small business, promising faster payments, bigger tax write-offs, and less red tape. The party's finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds joins us. After a decade of construction, Auckland's City Rail Link finally has an opening date - Sunday the 13th of September. I spoke to the mayor Wayne Brown. Finally, today is the last day for Maori to choose what electoral roll they're on - either the Maori roll or the General roll. I hear from politcal expert Dr Lara Greaves. Thanks for listening to today's episode of Midday Report Essentials, tune in wherever you get your podcasts - or live at Midday, every weekday on RNZ National.

An update on the latest news and results from RNZ's sports team.