Morning Report

Top stories this morning... Forty million face masks - and plane loads of other PPE gear - are on their way Some hospitals are being swamped with people wanting virus tests now the rules are relaxed Also on Morning Report... The unemployment rate could climb into double digits because of Covid-19 - we'll talk to the Finance Minister shortly A pregnant nurse is angry her DHB is refusing to give her special leave during the lockdown

Young love is being put to the test under the strict nationwide lockdown, with some couples scrambling to move in together, while others choose to stay apart.

The lockdown rules are clear - if you're not an essential worker, going to the supermarket or taking solitary exercise, you must stay at home.

Mooching and casual canoodling with people outside of your bubble is banned, in a bid to halt the spread of Covid-19.

So how are fledgling couples coping?

Katie Scotcher has been speaking to young lovers in lockdown.

Maori in the Far North are continuing to run checkpoints, identifying tourists and other non-residents, and directing them to stay out of the region.

Volunteers, dressed in protective gear with gloves and face masks, are stopping cars, talking to drivers and giving out leaflets with directions for tourists, and numbers that people could ring for help.

Hone Harawira is the leader of the Tai Tokerau Border Control.

He speaks to Corin Dann.

NZME's stock has plummeted as the Covid-19 crisis cuts into the media company's advertising revenue. As a result the company has warned staff that jobs are on the chopping block at the NZ Herald and at Newstalk ZB.

Chief executive Michael Boggs told staff in an email yesterday the company would have to contract to continue operating.

NZME made its first major cuts on Monday when Radio Sport was shut down with immediate effect.

Mediawatch's Colin Peacock.

The Government is moving to identify shovel-ready infrastructure projects that can get started when the national lockdown ends.

A group of executive-level industry leaders have been brought together to recommend a list that can help the economy recover from a looming recession.

Already the Waikato Times is reporting Hamilton MP David Bennett calling for the Cambridge to Piarere and Tauranga to Hamilton expressway projects to be given the go ahead.

Minister for Economic Development is Shane Jones speaks to Corin Dann.

New Zealanders have hit pause on the property market while the Level Four lockdown is in force but figures out today suggest people hoping to sell their houses when the restrictions are lifted still expect prices to remain high.

Also people are spending more time online looking at properties while they're stuck at home.

Vanessa Taylor from RealEstate.co.nz speaks to Corin Dann.

A brief update of movements in the financial sector.

New Zealander Jesse Stevens and his wife are now into day 18 of their lockdown in Spain. Spain is one of the countries hardest hit by the coronavirus.

The country now has 95,000 confirmed cases, the third highest in the world, and almost 8000 deaths, second only to Italy.

Stevens is self-employed and lives in a suburb of Barcelona.

He speaks to Susie Ferguson.

Front-line health workers are asking, why there is a priority list for who gets protective gear like masks if there is no shortage.

District Health Boards have put in a system where parts of the hospital are ranked for Covid-19 risk and safety gear given out accordingly.

The Ministry of Health says there is no shortage of equipment - it's releasing 7 million masks to community health and disability workers over the coming weeks.

Charlotte Cook reports.

A Palmerston North mother says it was daunting and emotional having to give birth at hospital with no whānau support. 

Under alert level four, most hospitals are allowing only one person to attend a birth but the current crisis still poses barriers for families.

Leigh-Marama McLachlan reports.