Morning Report

Small North Island towns that rely on the country's busiest highway to survive say their businesses have been devastated by a dramatic drop in people passing through.

Many fear their Government support will run dry and they'll have to lay off staff in towns with already limited employment opportunities.

Katie Scotcher went for a trip up State Highway 1.

The battle over who will lead the National Party into September's election will be decided tomorrow.

Leader Simon Bridges has summoned his MPs to Parliament for an urgent caucus meeting.

National MP Todd Muller has confirmed he will challenge for the leadership, telling his colleagues the party can't win the election with Bridges at the helm.

Political commentator Matthew Hooton speaks to Kim Hill.

The glasses are being polished and the beer barrels tapped as New Zealand's pubs and bars prepare to re-open today.

Venues which primarily serve alcohol have had to wait an extra week to open after the move to Alert Level 2.

This was due to the addtional risk they are thought to pose, the government here citing South Korea where a fresh spike in Covid-19 cases was blamed on the reopening of Seoul nightclubs.

Reporter Matthew Theunissen caught up workers who can at last go back to work after nearly two months.

Christchurch Hospital is pushing ahead with a new $150 million medical tower block despite its own doctors pleading that it's far too small.

The five-storey tower will be over half empty because the DHB hasn't got enough money to put beds in it.

Phil Pennington is looking into this.

News from the business sector, including a market report.

The head of NASA's human spaceflight programme has stepped down.

Doug Loverro resigned on Monday less than a year after his appointment. His resignation is just a week before two astronauts travel to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX rocket.

It's the first mission taking off from US soil since 2011.

Space.com editor Tariq Malik speaks to Corin Dann.

The manager of small Taihape cafe fears the economic Covid-19 chaos will force him to lay off staff before any return of overseas visitors can begin.

Le cafe Telephonique, like most businesses in the town, relies on trade from people travelling through on State Highway 1.

The cafe's manager, Abishek Kalra told RNZ reporter Katie Scotcher the town is now deserted.

The Canterbury District Health Board is pushing ahead with a new medical block that its own doctors warn is the worst option available.

DHB minutes show the board was pressured to decide for fear of missing out on central government funding. It has picked what is called the 'reduced cost' option, because just two floors would be fitted out as wards, and three floors as empty shells in the $150 million tower.

The hospital's clinical leaders group pushed for a fourth tower to be built in this same phase, and has warned without it Christchurch's crippling bed shortages will only get worse.

The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists says it's a decision on the cheap that short changes staff.

Its executive director Sarah Dalton spoke to Phil Pennington

News from the rural and farming sector.

A brief update from the business sector.