Morning Report

Swastikas spray-painted outside a synagogue in Wellington have Jewish community members worried.

Dave Moskovitz is the former president of the Wellington Progressive Jewish Congregation and says the incident is being taken very seriously.

He speaks to Corin Dann.

The Wainuiomata community near Wellington has come together in opposition to a transitional housing development that would offer temporary housing to homeless families.

But it's not because the community doesn't want the homeless to be housed at the proposed Wood Street development. It's because they think they should be able to live there permanently.

Ben Strang has more.

Three young female lawyers who were disillusioned with the state of their profession after the Russell McVeagh crisis have come up with a blueprint for change.

Their report on combating sexual violence, bullying, harassment and bias in the workplace comes two years after the scandal at the prominent law firm.

So has there been change? Are women in law better off?

Ana Lenard is an Auckland lawyer and law lecturer, and a report co-author.

Women working in research are likely to earn about $400,000 less than men who perform at the same level over a lifetime.

A world first study by Canterbury University, released today, looked at the performance of 6000 academics.

It found a man's odds of reaching higher paid job titles of Professor or Associate Professor were more than double that of a woman who was just as good on paper.

Rachel Thomas reports.

Auckland Principals remain concerned about vaping use amongst students, despite new research that daily use remains low among 14 to 15 years olds.

The study - funded by the Ministry of Health - surveyed nearly 30,000 Year 10 Students for six years.

It found more than 95 percent of students who smoked daily had tried vaping - compared with just 25 percent who had never smoked tobacco.

Associate Professor at the University of Auckland Dr Natalie Walker says concerns about a "vaping epidemic" are not borne out by the data.

Richard Dykes is the principal of Glendowie College and the President of the Auckland Secondary Schools' Association.

The Government will front up to Rātana Pā near Whanganui with the Ihumātao dispute still to be settled.

A group from Ihumātao will also be at Rātana to commemorate the birthday of the founder of the church.

It's understood an agreement over the contested Auckland land is not far off - but it's unlikely to be revealed at Ratana 

 

RNZ political reporter Charlie Dreaver filed this report.

Winston Peters has defended New Zealand's absence from the Fifth World Holocaust Forum in Israel.

Peters says Speaker Trevor Mallard was happy to attend but the organisers said no, but National Party foreign affairs spokesperson Gerry Brownlee says the Government should have opted to send a minister or Governor General Dame Patsy Reddy.

He speaks to Corin Dann.

The Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters is defending New Zealand's absence from the Fifth World Holocaust Forum in Israel, saying the Speaker Trevor Mallard was happy to attend but the organisers said no.

National's foreign affairs spokesperson Gerry Brownlee has labelled the non-appearance a disgraceful decision at what will be the largest gathering of countries to fight anti-Semitism on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

He says the Governor General Dame Patsy Reddy, or a Minister, should be there.

The invitation was to heads of state, which Mr Peters says is a mistaken impression of New Zealand's constitution, so Dame Patsy was never considered.

And he says when National was in power it didn't send any political or head of state representative to the forum in 2010 or 2015.

Peters spoke to political reporter Jo Moir about how things ended up here.

Protestors at Ihumātao remain hopeful a resolution to the lengthy dispute will be announced before Waitangi Day.

Kiingi Tūheitia arrived at Ihumātao yesterday for a ceremony lowering and returning his flag, which was raised last August as a symbol of peace and unity, and which he said at the time would only come down once there was a resolution.

A spokesperson for the King says a deal hasn't been finalised, but the King is confident it is close. 

Construction of 480 homes has been on hold since July after hundreds of protesters occupied the land to stop the development.

Pania Newton is a co-founder of the Save Our Unique Landscape group which has been living on the whenua at Ihumātao.

She speaks to Philippa Tolley.

The mayor of Auckland has cracked the whip over frequent cancellations of the only ferry to Waiheke Island.

Yesterday Phil Goff called Ports of Auckland, Auckland Transport, community board members of the island and Fullers - who operate the ferry - into a meeting to explain why cancellations were happening.

Fullers cancelled three ferries from Auckland to Devonport on Tuesday citing the arrival of two cruise ships as the reason it couldn't berth.

The company has a monopoly on transport to the island and was criticised heavily by commuters last year for a high number of cancellations.

Goff speaks to Philippa Tolley.