Morning Report

Police say no survivors are expected to be found on Whakaari/White Island after Monday's volcanic eruption.

Twenty-three people were rescued from the island off the Bay of Plenty coast - five later died from their injuries.

Police estimated up to 27 people had been left stranded on the island when rescue efforts were abandoned because of safety concerns.

Late last night they said they were still working to confirm the exact number.

Their grim conclusion that no one is still alive came after the police Eagle helicopter, rescue helicopters and Air Force craft flew reconnaissance flights over the island and reported no signs of life.

A navy ship was due in the area at dawn this morning to deploy drones and other observational equipment.

The police disaster identification team is assembling in Whakatāne.

Police say New Zealanders and foreign tourists are thought to have died in the disaster - many of the tourists were passengers on the cruise ship Ovation of the Seas, currently berthed in Tauranga.

The ship's operator, Royal Caribbean, issued a statement saying it is devastated by the events.

It says it's providing all the help and care it can to its guests and their families, including offering medical resources and counselling.

White Island Tours had a party on the island when it erupted.

Its chairman Paul Quinn says: "Devastation is an understatement. This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been impacted".

He says his staff and their families are showing immense strength and courage in the wake of the tragedy.

Former Whakatane mayor Tony Bonne has confirmed one of the company's guides, who he knew personally, is among the dead.

The Police and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern are due to hold a media conference at 7am.

Russia has been handed a four-year ban from all major sporting events by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

Whakaari/White Island: Prime Minister briefs media on fallout, White Island eruption report, Paramedic on Whakaari/White Island eruption, Convoy to take stranded tourists out of Franz Josef

Consumer New Zealand has announced the winners of its 'bad taste' awards, given to products that claim to be "wholesome" or "nutritious" when the evidence suggests otherwise.

There are three breakfast cereals on the list that are more than 20 percent sugar, and a hot chocolate powder that despite having a 4-star health rating is 62 percent sugar.

Consumer New Zealand researcher Jessica Wilson speaks to Corin Dann.

Advocates say that a shocking lack of communication between the Ministry of Social Development and Corrections is putting former prisoners at high risk of reoffending.

Former inmates say they struggle with housing and income despite Corrections receiving millions of dollars in extra funding in last year's budget for those services.

The department, however, says it is putting more money into supporting prisoners on release.

Meriana Johnsen reports.

Critics of the cannabis legalisation bill are concerned about how drug driving will be controlled on New Zealand streets if the drug is legalised in next year's referendum.

A police sergeant in the US state of Oregon says officers use a combination of clinical testing and looking for cognitive deficits when determining impairment in drug drivers.

The state legalised the use and possession of recreational cannabis, for those over 21, in 2015.

Corin Dann speaks to Oregon State Police sergeant Evan Sether, who is a drug recognition expert.

Urgency is giving way to frustration as this year's UN climate talks enter their second and final week in the Spanish capital, Madrid.

This week, ministers and country leaders arrive for the final phase of the negotiations, including New Zealand's climate change minister James Shaw.

Mr Shaw has spoken of the country's need to stand united with small Pacific countries, who have been some of the most vocal at the summit, known as COP.

He'll be touting the government's Zero Carbon Act, but analysis - including one released last week by the Germany-based Climate Action Tracker - suggests that even with the act, New Zealand's performing poorly.

If every country did the same as us, it said, the world would be on track for 3 degrees of warming -- double the goal of the Paris Agreement.

But Mr Shaw says the new law is just part of the parcel, and New Zealand will do more to assuage concerns.

A brief update on the movements in the financial sector.

Samoa's Government says the two day shutdown of the country for a mass vaccination effort has resulted in a massive increase in coverage.

It says more than 20,000 people were vaccinated on Thursday and Friday, and 89 percent of eligible people have now been vaccinated against measles.

There are now 6 measles related deaths and 165 people remain in hospital.

Corin Dann speaks to Maina Misa Foma'i Papalii, a freelance journalist in Apia.

The Transport Agency is clearing up Wellington roads after flooding and slips throughout the region.

RNZ heard from a Moonshine Hill Road resident about the shock of discovering a large slip through his property.