Morning Report

News from the rural and farming sector.

The leader of the occupation movement at Ihumātao is concerned if legislation is passed to fast track resource consents, significant Māori heritage sites may be destroyed. 

Cabinet has approved a new act, due to be passed in June, which would take away the ability of the public and councils to have an input into large shovel ready projects the government wishes to fast-track to stimulate the economy. 

However, land returned via Treaty settlements would be protected from development, and those exercising the act would still need to "take into account" the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. 

That doesn't provide any resassurance to Save Our Unique Landscape leader Pania Newton, who says it was a lack of public consultation that lead to the situation at Ihumātao. 

She is concerned shovel ready projects may involve Ihumātao or other significant Māori land sites.

A brief update from the business sector.

Germany is slowly returning to normality as it eases restrictions on its lockdowns.

As of this week, Germany has allowed the reopening of churches, museums, galleries, zoos, parks, botanical gardens and hairdressers. Students are also gradually returning to classes.

Berlin correspondent Thomas Sparrow speaks to Susie Ferguson.

Top stories this morning... Jacinda Ardern is joining the Australian National Cabinet meeting today... with a trans-Tasman bubble on the agenda But as New Zealand marks its first day with no new cases... do both countries share the same definition of elimination? We'll have more on the secretive data company, Palantir, and its dealings with the government Donald Trump warns as many as 100-thousand could die in the U-S

There are conflicting accounts about the state of New Zealand's supply of the flu vaccine.

The government says there is sufficient stock, but a leaked e-mail from the Ministry of Health suggests there is an overall gap in supply.

Dr Kate Baddock is the chair of the NZ Medical Association and a GP in Warkworth.

Maori health experts and industry leaders have largely been excluded from parliament's epidemic response committee, leaving many feeling extremely frustrated and left-out. The committee is tasked with challenging the government's response to Covid-19, but in six weeks only two Maori organisations have appeared before it. Te Aniwa Hurihanganui has more.

The police say they will not tolerate breaches of the level three lockdown by gangs.

During the country's first weekend at Level 3 police received almost 700 reports of parties being held and took action against 112 people.

Police are warning that this behaviour could "waste the sacrifices" made over the last five weeks In a statement released over the weekend police also referred to a series of incidents linked to Mongrel Mob members in Waikato.

The president of the Waikato Mongrel Mob Kingdom Chapter Sonny Fatupaito says some breaches could have been avoided if the police had taken them up on their offer to work with the more vulnerable gang members, for whom lockdown feels like being in prison.

Denis O'Reilly is a lifetime member of Black Power and community advocate.

He says singling out gangs is not helpful.

New figures show the number of international students in the country is even lower than first thought.

Immigration New Zealand says there are just 51,500 people with valid study visas in the country, 9000 fewer than a month ago and less than half the number that normally come here each year.

RNZ education correspondent John Gerritsen reports.

A brief update of movements in the financial sector.