Don’t have time to read the headlines? Watch the Focus Morning Bulletin presented by Chereè Kinnear above.
There’s been a big drop in support for Labour, according to the latest Roy Morgan poll.
It’s crashed 4.5 points to 26 per cent support, while National has jumped 3.5 points to sit at 33.5 per cent.
With 14 per cent for Act, the centre-right could form a coalition with 61 seats.
The Greens are steady on 9 per cent.
Te Pati Māori has lost a point to sit at 6 per cent, while New Zealand First has gained two - reaching 5 per cent.
High water levels are continuing to set back search efforts for missing Christchurch real estate agent Yanfei Bao.
Searches for the 44-year-old aren’t likely to resume until tomorrow due to unfavourable conditions at the Halswell River and Lake Ellesmere.
Police believe Bao is dead, after she disappeared 13 days ago.
Investigators are still combing through more than 200 pieces of information.
A historic pay equity settlement has been reached for more than 30,000 nurses.
Unionised and non-union nurses accepted the deal to bring pay rates into line with similar male-dominated professions.
The Nurses Organisation and Public Service Association brought a claim to the Employment Court early last year.
Te Whatu Ora chief executive Margie Apa says mediation with the unions has being going on for the past few months.
Across the ditch, the four crew members of the Australian army helicopter which crashed during a multinational exercise have been confirmed dead.
Officials say the helicopter hit the water with a “catastrophic impact” and there is no chance the crew survived.
The search and rescue effort has now changed to a victim-recovery operation.
And back here, parts of the country are set to be lashed with wind, rain and snow.
A heavy snowfall warning will be in place today on Milford Rd, Lindis Pass and Crown Range Rd.
There’ll also be rain watches in parts of Canterbury and the West Coast.
Otago and the South Island’s east coast will see wind watches - with Wellington, Wairarapa and Marlborough getting wind warnings in the evening.
Mark Brown says NZ wants too much oversight of a new joint action plan.