Morning Report

National Party Rotorua MP Todd McClay is annoyed newly arrived international passengers were bused from Auckland to Rotorua for mandatory managed isolation.

He says it happened under the cover of darkness and the people of Rotorua need answers. They arrived in four buses between 10pm and midnight on Saturday.

The government says the move was necessary because there they were running out of room in Auckland.

McClay speaks to Philippa Tolley.

"Why now?" is the question many league fans have been asking following the unexpected sacking of Warriors coach Stephen Kearney over the weekend.

Hours after the Warriors big loss to Souths, Kearney was told by club management that his services were no longer required.

It has led to suggestions that some players may quit the club and return home. 

Barry Guy reports.

More than seven years after her 20-year-old son took his own life, Corinda Taylor is still fighting for answers.

Overwhelmed by the coronial process, she is calling for changes to ease the burden on grieving families.

Timothy Brown filed this report.

A video has appeared on Twitter showing a video of a tagger being restrained by police in Auckland in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Bystanders who filmed the altercation are claiming excessive use of force by the four officers holding him down.

On Twitter, the man's cousin claims police ruptured his oesophagus. The video has already been viewed more than 44,000 times.

In an official response, Auckland District Commander Superintendent Karyn Malthus says: "The man violently resisted [arrest] and it took several officers to restrain him, one of whom sustained minor injuries.

"The arresting officers struggled to apply handcuffs to the resisting man, and additional officers created a protective arc in order to allow them to complete the handcuffing action."

Superintendent Karyn Malthus says police acted in an appropriate and professional manner in a volatile and dynamic situation and upon becoming aware, prioritised the man's medical treatment over keeping him in custody. 

He was taken to hospital shortly after being taken into custody.

He has since been released and is due to appear in the District Court on 10 July.

The Māori Party will campaign on a platform of substantial funding for Māori participation in all sectors - from health to justice to construction.

 

More than 500 people were at Hoani Waititi Marae in Auckland at the weekend for the party's conference, where the party unveiled its new flagship policy, Whānau First.

At the same time, Mana Movement leader Hone Harawira has formally endorsed the Māori Party for both the party vote and in each Māori electorate. 

John Tamihere is a co-leader of the Māori Party.

President Donald Trump has held his first campaign rally since the coronavirus outbreak began, but the turnout in Tulsa, Oklahoma was much lower than organisers had hoped for.

Earlier in the week, Trump tweeted that a million people had signed up to attend the rally, but on the night the arena was almost half-empty.

During his speech, President Trump said he told officials to slow down coronavirus testing to keep case numbers low.

Simon Marks is in Washington DC.

A New Zealander in isolation at the Auckland Airport Novotel says they have all been put into lockdown after being told of a new case of Covid-19 there. That brings the total number of current cases in the country to eight. Alexa Cook, who arrived in the country on 13 June, says they were rung by a member of the Defence Force tonight, and told to stay in their rooms until further instructions. More than 4000 recent arrivals are now in managed quarantine, but places in Auckland are at capacity. Another 900 people are expected to arrive in the country over the next two days. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks to Philippa Tolley.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the number of people arriving into New Zealand is increasing, and doubled on last month.

More than 4000 recent arrivals are now in managed isolation, but places in Auckland are at capacity and hotels in the region are now being used..

Another 900 people are expected to arrive in the country over the next two days.

Ardern speaks to Philippa Tolley.

Cases of Covid-19 among those returning to New Zealand are continuing to climb, with at least one more revealed last night.

A couple in managed isolation at the Novotel Auckland Airport received a call from the New Zealand Defence Force at 8.30pm.

They were told there had been a positive Covid-19 test in their hotel and that they would now be in lockdown, unable to leave their room.

Alexa Cook, a former RNZ reporter, and her partner are this morning in day nine of what was supposed to be a 14-day isolation.

The number of people wanting to travel to New Zealand under special exemptions is on the rise, but there's no room at isolation hotels in Auckland.

Thousands of people are being managed at 20 hotels across the country and almost 900 more are expected to arrive in the coming days.

The flurry of people returning home has officials searching for accommodation away from major centres - but National says there is no clear quarantine plan in place.

Here's RNZ political reporter, Katie Scotcher.