Morning Report

Green MP Golriz Ghahraman says she has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Gharaman says she first learned of her diagnosis two years ago when she began to lose sight in one eye.

Multiple Sclerosis - or MS - is a disorder of the central nervous system and can affect the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves.

She speaks to Susie Ferguson.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will today meet with the family of the three Fijian men who lost their lives in the Christchurch mosque attack.

Ardern has just arrived in Nadi and will travel to a mosque in nearby Lautoka this morning for a ceremony to remember the men and acknowledge their families.

RNZ political reporter Jo Moir is travelling with the Prime Minister and speaks to Corin Dann from Nadi.

Public perception of the oil and gas industry is more favourable than it was two years ago.

That's according to the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association, which has published the results of a survey of 17-hundred New Zealanders which it says shows a "marked improvement" in the public's view.

Niamh O'Flynn from Greenpeace speaks to Corin Dann on the survey.

A brief update on the movements in the financial sector.

Public perception of the oil and gas industry is more favourable than it was two years ago.

That's according to the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association, which has published the results of a survey of 1700 New Zealanders which it says shows a "marked improvement" in the public's view.

John Carnegie is the PEPANZ chief executive.

He speaks to Susie Ferguson.

The push towards providing government services online is too difficult for some people and leaving them further and further behind.

That's the conclusion of a new report from the Citizens Advice Bureau, which says there needs to be a commitment to making services as accessible as possible - including continuing to provide face-to-face support.

RNZ social issues reporter Sarah Robson has the story

The Wellington suburb of Miramar is being called a "burglars' paradise" after a spate of break-ins and assaults that have left residents scared and wondering where the police are.

A local business group says since November shop-owners have suffered 14 break-ins and residents are also reporting burglaries from cars and houses.

Early yesterday morning a badly injured man was found outside the polo club - he'd been attacked the night before.

RNZ reporter Karoline Tuckey was at a public meeting last night when about 50 worried locals demanded answers from the police.

One of China's biggest education agencies, JJL, wants the government to urgently let Chinese students travel to New Zealand.

A director of the company, Kevin Zheng, says it has hundreds of students affected by New Zealand's ban on travellers who have been in mainland China in the past 14 days.

If the ban isn't lifted, Zheng, suggests New Zealand follow Australia's lead, and pay the students a subsidy to travel to a third country, stay there for 14 days, and then continue on here.

Grant Guilford is Victoria University of Wellington's vice-chancellor, and spearheads the Universities NZ committee on international policy.

He speaks to Susie Ferguson.

The Coronavirus could rob the New Zealand cyclist George Bennett of one of his major events this year.

A law professor says defence lawyers are still exploiting rape myths and it's no surprise many rape victims regret taking their cases to court.

Elisabeth McDonald from the University of Canterbury has listened to audio recordings of forty rape trials where the defence argued sex took place by consent.

She says it's still routine for complainants to be questioned about the clothes they were wearing and why they didn't scream for help, fight back or go to the police more quickly.

Her analysis of the trials has resulted in a 586-page book, published by Canterbury University Press, which is being made available online for free.

Professor McDonald speaks to Susie Ferguson.